IN THIS ISSUE:
- POETRY OUT LOUD: ARTBEAT interview with Cheryl Evans
- AC5 SEEKS COMMISSIONERS: two open seats
- ART PASSAGES NEW GALLERY: Crossroads – Emerging Avenues in Art
- LITERARY CORNER: ARTBEAT Interviews Poet Robert Eastwood
- ARTIST OF THE MONTH: Ellen Hall-Graves
- ARTIST’S SPOTLIGHT: ARTBEAT review of the Ruth Bancroft Sculpture Garden opening
- ARTS VIEW Arts and the Media: art and the cell phone
- ARTFUL PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE MONTH: Beth Witrogen
- CALIFORNIA ARTS COUNCIL: License Plate Program
- ARTBEAT TV: ARTBEAT Video Magazine program schedule
- FINE ART SERIES: National Gallery of Art Video Loan Program
- ARTS CALENDAR & DIRECTORY: free service sign up today!
- AC5 on Facebook
- ARTBEAT Call for submissions
A Note to our readers: We are pleased to offer Literary Corner, a new monthly feature of ARTBEAT that will have interviews of writers and poets with submissions selected by contributing editor Maria Rosales. In the debut article Rosales interviews Robert Eastwood, renowned poet in the Bay Area, from Contra Costa County. Keep an eye on this section - it will be interesting! Another new feature that you may have noticed is Arts View: Arts and the Media by contributing editor Jan Weiss. Weiss reviews cell phone cameras as an emerging art form in this edition. As always we encourage and request submissions from our readers. We do publish your work! Please keep it coming. Next month we will feature Jeannie Wallen's nature photography, among others. See the Call for Submissions section for details.
Yours in the Arts,
Scott Belding
Managing Director, AC5
POETRY OUT LOUD: ARTBEAT interview with Cheryl Evans
ARTBEAT: How did you get involved in reading/reciting poetry?
Cheryl Evans: I did not know much about poetry when I started writing it myself. How I came to poetry was in elementary school when my class was learning about Black History Month. We learned through poems by different African American writers. I enjoyed the rhythm of the poems and admired the concept of telling a story through rhyme scheme and stanzas. When I was introduced to church I began reciting my own poetry to the congregation and that is when I realized how deep my passion was for reciting to others to encourage them in any way that I could.
ARTBEAT: What was it like, the first time you recited a poem for an audience?
Cheryl Evans: The first time I recited a poem for an audience was in my 8th grade history class. I wrote it at home and would recite it to myself in front of the mirror. When I thought about the people I would be reciting to I would get nervous and the paper would begin to shake in unison with my nervousness. That is when I decided that I would memorize the poem instead of holding the paper and reading it. When I went to class the next day, I walked to the front of the room with a confident manner about me (although I was scared out of my mind). No one ever knew the nerves I faced being in front of that class, but they loved the confidence I portrayed and appreciated the eye contact.
ARTBEAT: How did you get involved in the Poetry Out Loud program?
Cheryl Evans: In the 10th grade I joined a club at my school, Deer Valley High School, which was called the Wolverine Writers. The coordinator, Ms.Bethea, was a lover of poetry herself and introduced to us the competition of Poetry Out Loud. I was not comfortable with reciting someone else’s poem, but there was no harm in trying something different.
ARTBEAT: How did you prepare for the county finals competition?
Cheryl Evans: Preparing for the county competition was time consuming. I met up with Ms. Bethea about 3 times out of the week to work on the poems and it was a fun experience. I appreciated the poet coaches coming out to my school to work with me. I anticipated the county finals every day until the day came. My family encouraged and motivated me in every way that they could. I recited the poems to myself on my way to the bus stop and whenever I had time to myself. I took time out to research the poets so that I could get a better perspective of what they may have felt when writing the poem.
ARTBEAT: What was it like, from an emotional perspective, to participate in and ultimately win the county Poetry Out Loud competition at Acalanes High School? (Describe the events of that morning, how you felt about your readings that day, as well as others’ readings, and how it felt when you were announced the winner.)
Cheryl Evans: The morning of the competition was a mixture of various emotions. I was exhilarated, encouraged and hopeful. I was also nervous, discouraged by the possibilities of me winning and doubtful. However, through it all, I knew that someone would be walking away with the title of the Contra Costa County Poetry Out Loud Winner, and it was not impossible that that someone might just be me. When I met the competitors, I felt relaxed as we shared our different experiences in preparing for the County Competition. The maturity that they spoke with made me even more nervous about what their actual recitation would be like. The competition was intense and I enjoyed sitting back to hear the different styles of expression flow from these reciters. I was confident with my recitations, but what discouraged me was the lighting. I like to look my audience in the eye, but I could not see them so instead I found comfort in the eyes of the judges. When all the competitors stood on stage to hear who the winners were, my heart was beating twice as fast. When my name was called for first I could not believe it!! I felt an overwhelming joy in my heart and all I could think about was how great my God is to bless me with the honor of representing Contra Costa County at the State finals.
ARTBEAT: You also placed third winner at the state level competition. This is an amazing accomplishment, given that you are among only 27 winners out 40,000 competing participants from the state of CA. How has your first place winning recitation at the county level and third place win at the state level affected your life, what does it mean to you?
Cheryl Evans: I love the passion I have for reciting and I appreciate the fact that others acknowledged that passion I have for reciting. I realized in this competition that if you really want something, you will get it; it just takes dedication, motivation and drive. The people I had the honor of meeting made it all worth it. It made me think about new people I come in contact with and how you never know the company you may be hosting. Therefore, I treat strangers as a possible open door for anything. Poetry Out Loud enhanced that awareness.
ARTBEAT: Tell us if you would, about some of the poignant moments in the experience as a whole, either in events leading up to the competitions or the competitions themselves... and what went through your mind and heart during those moments?
Cheryl Evans: The most memorable moment of this whole experience was when I went to the State competition and we had a dinner the evening before the day of the competition. At that dinner we had the opportunity to recite one of our own poems so I wrote a poem the week before specifically for this event. The message that I wanted to get out to the people was that high school students have a voice in this economy as well when it comes to anything that we feel will benefit the future government. After the dinner, many teens came up to me and applauded the recitation, but most importantly they received the message I wanted to portray. They appreciated the fact that someone their age had the courage to speak out on issues such as healthcare, unemployment and education, and how it affects the youth today as well. It encouraged them to want to raise awareness at their schools, amongst their peers and administration. This felt better than winning first place at county and third place at state. I accomplished exactly what I set out to accomplish.
ARTBEAT: Do you have any advice for other aspiring poets and writers?
Cheryl Evans: If you are a writer or poet, I just want to say continue to do what you are doing. For whatever reason you write, stay encouraged, stay motivated, but most importantly stay true to yourself and to your writing. Allow no one to step on your dreams, because those dreams are the inner purpose laminated within you. Hold no doubt and be who you are because it's what you desire to be. You write because it's your thing!! It's your healing!! It's your refuge!! Let no one tell you otherwise. If you ever need any encouragement, I'm here, I'm touchable. My email address is: evanscheryl10@yahoo.com. Keep your heads up!!
AC5 SEEKS COMMISSIONERS: two open seats
Contact: Scott Belding
Managing Director, AC5
925-519-3586
Email: ac5@ac5.org
For Immediate Release
Arts Advocates Sought for Vacancies on County Arts Commission
June 23, 2010, Martinez, CA-Two vacancies currently exist on the Arts & Culture Commission of Contra Costa County (AC5) for the At-Large and Alternate seats.
To be eligible for these seats on the Commission, applicants must reside in Contra Costa County. Applications are available on the Contra Costa County Web site, www.co.contra-costa.ca.us/, and then choose Board Advisory Body Information. Candidates for the At-Large 1 and Alternate seats will be interviewed by the Arts Commission, which will then recommend the candidates to the Board of Supervisors for appointment.
Applications must be post marked by September 1, 2010 to be considered.
The AC5 Commission meets monthly in open session. AC5's mission is to support artists and arts organizations in the County and to forge strong partnerships between the arts community and its various constituencies through its annual awards recognition event, public art activities, and educational programming. Current commissioners include David Duer, District 1; Darwin Marable, District 2; P.J. Shelton, District 3, Christine Callahan, District 4, Darija Walker, District 5 and one at-large member: Peter Maund.
Visit AC5's new Arts Directory and Calendar at www.ac5.org, where artists and arts organizations can create free online profiles, upload work samples, and post arts events to our calendar. Or, search for and connect with artists, performances and arts events in your community.
Scott Belding
Managing Director
Arts & Culture Commission of Contra Costa County (AC5)
10 Douglas, suite 250
Martinez, CA 94553
(925)519-3586
ART PASSAGES NEW GALLERY: Crossroads – Emerging Avenues in Art
The SLIDE SHOW for this exhibit can be viewed online at the AC5 website by clicking here.
The Arts and Culture Commission of Contra Costa County, through the Art Passages program, presents Crossroads - Emerging Avenues in Art, a new art gallery installed on June 23rd. The show features the works of six Contra Costa County artists: Yvonne Browne, Elizabeth Kennen, Koriana Kisielprice, George Rammell, Michael Warwick and Beth Witrogen. We invite you to come see the gallery at 651 Pine Street, Martinez, CA, in the County Administration Building, open weekdays from 9am - 5pm.
Art Passages is a changing exhibition program in the county administration building's public spaces that highlights artists throughout Contra Costa County. Each exhibition is on display for approximately three to four months and celebrates the diverse forms of creative expression of artists representing one of Contra Costa County's five supervisorial districts. The exhibition program is designed to create an opportunity for artists to show their work to a larger public, to support the larger community’s awareness of and familiarity with county artists, to form relationships with regional art organizations, and to attract potential buyers for county artists’ work.
Crossroads - Emerging Avenues in Art will also be the visual basis for an Ekphrastic poetry event. Click here to view the rules for the Ekphrasis Event.
What is Ekphrasis? Ekphrasis is a poem written about another form of art, which is most often a painting or photograph. Etymology: Greek ekphrasis, literally, description, from ekphrazein, to recount, describe, from ex- out + phrazein to point out, explain.
The Arts and Culture Commission of Contra Costa County is sponsoring an event that collaborates visual art with poetry. Selected Mixed Media Artwork is on display at the art exhibit CrossRoads – Emerging Avenues in Art at The County Board of Supervisors Building, 651 Pine Street, in Downtown Martinez. Poets interested in participating in the event please contact Primopoets@hotmail.com or write to ac5@ac5.org.
LITERARY CORNER: ARTBEAT interview with poet Robert Eastwood
By Maria Rosales, Contributing Editor
A Conversation with Robert Eastwood
“….how valiant human beings can be in the wrong directions, how they often learn the hard way or too late, and the irony that often this process is beautiful.”
Robert Eastwood is a quiet storm. A renowned poet, he is also an artist, a photographer, and in conversation with ARTBEAT, he casually mentions, as if from an afterthought, that he is “currently doing research for a Civil War novel.” Eastwood retired from business, then taught high school and began writing poetry. Nominated twice for a Pushcart Award, his work has appeared in Blue Unicorn, Carquinez Review, Ekphrasis, and many other journals, in print and online. His three chap books, The Welkin Gate, Over Plainsong, Night of the Moth are by Small Poetry Press. He lives in San Ramon.
ARTBEAT: What business were you in? What did you teach?
Robert Eastwood: I worked for thirty-four years for the “telephone company”––a business that has had many splits and combinations. I initially studied engineering after high school on a scholarship, but then quit and got a job with Pacific Telephone & Telegraph. It wasn’t long before I realized I needed to get an education, so I began working nights and going to school. It took me eight years to get through college this way, installing, trouble-shooting telephones while studying art and English. I wanted to be an artist of some sort, writer or painter. I married during this time, and before I knew it we had our first child. My nebulous plans for art didn’t seem too secure for a family. The Company promoted me to management, and before I knew it I was locked, because of my family responsibilities, in a business career. I was an installation supervisor, PBX engineer, Marketing Data Specialist, Statistician, Plant Staff Supervisor in NYC for AT&T, District Manager, Division Manager, and I ended my career as the AVP for Labor Relations, negotiating Labor Contracts for 150 thousand employees. By this time we had had four children, and they had all been put through college. I retired from business, and decided I would teach school, since I could now afford to do what I really wanted––something more beneficial to the community. I taught Middle School for a short period, then High School English and also Economics for seven years.
ARTBEAT: How did these experiences feed your poetic life?
Robert Eastwood: It may sound strange, but the long business career has made little contribution to my poetry. However, it has been useful in some short stories I have written. Teaching stimulated more, with the close contact and involvement I had with children, especially the neediest ones. Really, it’s been my childhood experiences more than anything, and life outside the business world, that have been the source of most of my writing.
ARTBEAT: Did you write poetry at all before retiring?
Robert Eastwood: I was the editor of my High School newspaper, The Pathfinder, and it was then that I began writing––archly serious essays, and poetry that rang with the rhyming of 19th century poets. In college I had poetry and short stories published in the college literary journal, while I studied and tried to emulate great poets and novelists. I wrote during my business years, and continued to read widely. In the midst of that career I yearned for the time and capability to devote myself to writing. That’s the reason I retired as early as I did. While teaching I could study and teach books I loved, as well as introduce children to the basics of writing (which in my view, is the core of thinking). I became serious about poetry, and began sending off poems for publication.
ARTBEAT: Is there a theme that recurs in your poetry?
Robert Eastwood: If there is a recurring theme I suppose it would be the poignancy and ironies of being alive. I’m attracted to how valiant human beings can be in the wrong directions, how they often learn the hard way or too late, and the irony that often this process is beautiful.
ARTBEAT: Do you have any rituals that you observe to enter the writing process?
Robert Eastwood: I write on a computer. Before writing anything I read through my files of poems or parts of poems attempted. Many times, though onto an idea fresh from observation, these “derelicts of poems” supply outlines, imagery, and unusual language, all to flesh out the poem at hand. I sometimes graft lines or sections of old unrealized poems into a new combination that surprises and pleases me. I’m most often stimulated to write a poem by something I’ve read or seen, and these poem-remnants often find new life integrated into the frame of a new idea. Obviously, I keep all my scraps and attempts.
ARTBEAT: Is there a poem you are most proud of writing?
Robert Eastwood: There’s one poem that particularly pleased me when it came in second in the Ale House Press contest––it’s called “My Way Back.” It’s about a young man fighting in Iraq.
ed note: “My Way Back”, previously published by Ale House Press, is presented below this article.
ARTBEAT: What kind of work are you most drawn to reading?
Robert Eastwood: I’m a constant reader, with piles of magazines and books in every room, driving my wife crazy. With poetry, I read Poetry Magazine, American Poetry Review, and a number of other journals to keep myself abreast of what’s going on in what you could call the “elite circles.” I read history, particularly American civil war era stuff, and the writers of the Transcendental era. I read fiction in a very disordered way, jumping from classical authors to all of Mankill’s novels and the Stieg Larson triad.
ARTBEAT: Poets tend to have favorite poets they visit often. Can you suggest someone readers might enjoy checking out?
Robert Eastwood: I always enjoy reading Elizabeth Bishop. Her incredible focus on the observed, her imagery, always intrigues me. “The Fish”, “The Moose.”” Robert Lowell also enriches me, not so much for his subject matter, but again for his imagery and use of language. Seamus Heaney blows me away with the music in his poetry. I enjoy the accessibility and technique in Stephen Dunn. Amy Gerstler writes gutsy poems. Tony Hoagland is a modern voice that has moments of brilliance, and some flat stuff, but overall, he’s one of our strongest poets. There are so many wonderful poets writing today. I have a bias against “Language” poetry, preferring the human-centeredness of narrative poetry.
ARTBEAT: I know you volunteer in the community in poetic endeavors (judging for Poetry Out Loud, Silver Voices) –– tell us about that, any others?
Robert Eastwood: Besides the efforts you mention, I guide and coordinate two writing workshops: The Poets’ Society of the Tri-valley, and Contra Costa Poets. These groups are very helpful to me personally, as I struggle to birth a poem, but I think the members also find that the workshop process helps their work. Poetry Out Loud is one our most important poetry investments, bringing the beauty and significance of poetry into high schools nationwide. Whenever possible, I volunteer to help. Silver Voices is in its infancy. It has the promise of outreach into the “silver-haired” community, offering poetry as solace and beauty, and extending the efforts of the Ina Coolbrith Circle to reach out with poetry.
ARTBEAT: What are some of your favorite non-poetry or literature activities?
Robert Eastwood: I paint occasionally, using oil, pastel, acrylic and watercolor. I also sketch and draw with ink. I go for draftsmanship, and a form of realism. I also play with photography a great deal. I collect cameras and have far too many. Lastly, I attempt to play golf well, but fail miserably. Currently I’m doing research on a Civil War novel.
- end of interview -
Poems by Robert Eastwood
My Way Back
Father, nothing wets the dust in Fallujah.
To them, I’m one of the booted men
strapped in khaki-colored steel, Hum-Vee
grumbling on its desert-whitened wheels.
They mill about me, about my belted body.
I hear mutters, but tell myself they own
the sand phantoms that whirl in the streets,
the colors that peel from a brutal sun,
the crumbled concrete, rust-rimed steel,
the hardscrabble shops & skewed walls, even
the scirocco that trundles tank-rutted roads.
I wish it were a place of lakes.
A place where a person never sinks.
Where brine brims your sides, skin lilts.
Where you can never sink. I remember once,
in a hazy distance on the Great Salt Lake,
you called over the water. Your tongue, bell-like.
You mouthed & pointed as I emerged encrusted,
held up your camera. When I smiled,
my lips cracked open the taste of the lake.
Here, always, smoke fills my nose.
Here, dark men squat in the sun
with mouths open, facing Mecca.
I see tongues in silhouette, broken teeth.
I feel assassination in the strange-tailed words
spread like dead vines across the walls.
Just sky would be a better place.
Sky, or in a watery-blue distance, a shore’s
lean finger wavering on the horizon––
a better place. Instead of dust, ancient water.
But I climb walls, father. Abutments bruise
my elbows. Forms crouch in alleyways.
All the bricks loosen. From afar come
the storm’s ominous thuds––car-bomb thunder.
Palms bend, mantled in ash. Fronds hide eyes.
If only I could float, father, cradled
on deep water. I’d lay back in the saltiness,
on that lake of ours. I’d never sink.
© Robert Eastwood
ARTIST OF THE MONTH: Ellen Hall-Graves
A local Martinez artist, Ellen studied art at the University of Washington also with artists Yoji Kan, sculptor and Fay Chong, watercolorist. Her unique collection of paintings and crafts can be found at the White Rabbit Boutique in Martinez.
Ellen's work can be viewed in the AC5 Arts Directory here. AC5 actively pursues its mission to be a convener of the arts in Contra Costa County. Each month we feature a local artist by selecting randomly from the Arts Directory listings. To become eligible for this recognition, register today in the Arts Directory.
ARTIST’S SPOTLIGHT: ARTBEAT review of the Ruth Bancroft Sculpture Gardens show June 18 - July 18, 2010
The Ruth Bancroft Garden’s 16th Annual Sculpture In The Garden exhibit is a unique mix of professional sculptures and crafts created by outstanding local artisans. This is the 16th year that the annual show has been produced. It is a wonderful meandering display of unique, beautiful, outrageous, disturbing, thought provoking, elegant, playful, majestic works of art that will appeal to all types of tastes in one way or another. As one walks though the gardens there is a sense of wonder and anticipation for what will be found around the next bend in the walking path. There is clearly a well designed layout for the artwork, and artful placement of the different sculptures is evident. Their groupings and settings in terms of surrounding flora were well thought out, and one can clearly enjoy and appreciate the different artworks and the depth and breadth of creativity that is embodied in this garden gallery. This show is a gem not to be missed!
There are more than twenty artists represented with over 50 sculptures placed throughout the gardens. There is a printed map handout that will help guide the visitor through the maze of outdoor sculptures. This is an excellent opportunity to explore the beauty of The Ruth Bancroft Garden while viewing exceptional outdoor sculptures in a setting that allows you to visualize how the artwork might enhance your own garden. All pieces are for sale, and a portion of each sale goes to the Ruth Bancroft Gardens annual fund raiser. At the opening events over the weekend of June 18 -20 over $20,000 was raised in sales. Historically the event has been short term but this year the sculptures will remain on exhibit through July 18th. The Ruth Bancroft Gardens are internationally known and yet perhaps somewhat of a well kept secret locally. We encourage our readers to come out to Walnut Creek and investigate this haven of artistic talent blended with the subtle beauty of the well designed gardens. The address is 1552 Bancroft Road, Walnut Creek, and the venue is handicapped accessible. For additional information please call 925-944-9352. The show runs from June 21-July 18: The Sculpture Exhibit will remain on display in the garden through July 18 and will be open 7 days a week from 10am – 4pm. General admission is $10, $7/members, seniors, and students and children under 12 are free.
ARTS VIEW Arts and the Media: the art of cell phone photography
By Jan Weiss, Contributing Editor
Throughout the years, the art of photography has changed so much. It once was a cumbersome tool to be heavily carried from place to place and only one shot was taken at a time. Years later it was film in packs of 24 exposures that had to be taken down to the local drugstore and dropped off in an envelope. It would be at least one week before the photos were available, and then the whole lot, the good and the bad, had to be paid for. Then digital cameras came along and the avid photographer could make mistakes, delete them, take more shots and as long as the memory was not consumed, one could joyfully take as many as were desired. Digital cameras moved from an actual camera to the convenience of the phone so now – at any given time - I can shoot a picture when I am inspired. The phone on my camera actually has more pixels then my digital camera. Given that photography has moved from a posed or staged format to something so impulsive and unstructured that what we are now seeing from photographers – professionals and amateurs alike - is a spontaneous and natural gallery of images for us to enjoy.
Cell phone photography groups have been created to meet the demand of so many people wanting to show and share their images. Flickr, the photo sharing site that I spend a lot of time on – has two groups dedicated to the art and artists behind cell phone photography. This city scene from Squeezomatic on the Flickr group: Cell Phone Photography - captures a moment in time on an urban street with people walking, graffiti on a wall and a corner phone booth. It captures mood and motion and humanity. A Dogs Eye View from 99% on Flickr was probably caught at perfect moment when the dogs were both looking up.
Cell phone photography is forgiving, because no matter the light we can still take the shot and maybe crop it a little or drop it into Photoshop to manipulate the color and now you have turned what might have been just an ordinary scene into a compelling story.
The Apple iPhone gets its own group on Flickr: Photos Taken With an Apple iPhone so this one isn’t a mix of phone brands but comes from one source. Critical Todd captures commuting with On The F Train and Star by David Woof expresses sheer joy in this image. Midtown Meditation is priceless. This image is the epitome of cell phone photography. The photographer Anton Kawasaki probably happened upon this scene and pulled out his phone and caught a moment so peaceful and also so intensely personal. This medium, more than others is honest. Brutally honest. Sometimes showing beauty, sometimes sharing private moments and sometimes, like the commute image revealing our raw humanity.
There is a cell phone photography Facebook page as well as many sources and blogs to learn more. This blog is actually a resource for other blogs about this medium. Spend some time on it and follow if you can – this has some pretty interesting and unexpected surprises.
ARTFUL PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE MONTH: Beth Witrogen
My theme is Essences of Things Unseen, new macro work around Contra Costa County. I've been peering into flowers and weeds and discarded flotsam and finding the most exquisite patterns that send me into rapture. I love to share the beauty I'm seeing and hope others resonate too.
I HAVE BEEN a San Francisco Bay Area photographer for nearly four decades, from ballet to birds, sports to flora. Lately, I’ve been drawn to detail, seeing the macrocosm of nature with fresh eyes. I also love the personalities of birds as they go about their business just being birds. They teach me so much about freedom and focus — and the patience to be who we are at heart.
These images reflect my passion for exploring the fragility of light and appreciation that each moment is unique and evanescent. I love the exquisite vulnerability of that elusive “halflight” of dawn and dusk, where life’s mystery reveals itself if we remain awake. In “The Essence of Things Unseen,” I investigate the tiny blueprint of what a plant is — before it becomes fully itself throughout all of its natural cycles, including death.
Recent exhibits include Diablo Valley College, Contra Costa County Arts Commission/Martinez, Diablo Rock Gym in Concord, Berkeley IronWorks, a yearlong installation at the Gilman Grill (Berkeley), and several shows at Shadelands and City Hall in Walnut Creek. In the 1980s I exhibited my dance work at the S.F. Opera House and Mills Building.
My work has been featured in the Contra Costa County Watershed calendars since 2005 and published in WildBird and Terrain magazines, as well as The San Francisco Examiner and several online publications. Commercial clients include Bay Commercial Bank and Avatar Energy (both headquartered in Walnut Creek). I teach Photoshop and nature photography through Walnut Creek Civic Arts Education. I also shoot water polo for county high school and UC Berkeley teams.
I am a member of East Bay Artists Guild, ProArts, AC5, VarsityPix, and the National Association of Photoshop Photographers.
- Beth Witrogen
Information and sales: beth@witrogenphoto.com Website: http://www.witrogenphoto.com Tel. 925.323.6065 (mobile)
CALIFORNIA ARTS COUNCIL: License Plate Program
From Malissa Feruzzi Shriver
Chair, California Arts Council
It’s a crucial time for the arts in California. Our economy relies on creative minds, artistic organizations and innovative workers, yet our per capita state investment in the arts is the lowest in the nation. But there’s something each Californian can do to turn this around …
Help us reach one million Arts plates!
One million cars with California Arts Plates would mean $40 million for the arts. That would put California near the top in arts funding rather than dead last. Californians have the power to take our state from last to first in arts funding by choosing the Arts Plate for their cars and supporting arts for children and a strong creative economy and arts infrastructure.
Arts Plates are now tax deductible
All fees for the Arts Plate are considered a charitable contribution to the California Arts Council (more). Businesses and residents looking to support arts statewide now have an extra incentive to support California arts – and have a cool looking license plate as well.
Buy an Arts Plate - help move California from last to first
Since the Arts Plate first went on sale in 1994 it has raised over $20 million for California arts through sales and renewals. Currently over 60 % of the California Arts Council’s budget comes from the Arts Plate.
ARTBEAT TV: program schedule
ARTBEAT has regularly scheduled programs on CCTV. Below are the timeslots for ART BEAT AC5 sponsored programming.
SUNDAY NIGHTS: 7 - 9 PM
WEDNESDAY MORNINGS: 9 - 10 AM
THURSDAYS 1st & 3rd OF EACH MONTH: 6 - 7 PM
The general format is, ARTBEAT Video Magazine, followed by Fine Arts Series. The Art Passages video program is to be scheduled soon. As a general note all AC5 TV shows are part of ARTBEAT... this includes:
Fine Arts Series, A National Gallery of Art Video Program
ART BEAT Video Magazine, Interviews of Contra Costa County Artists on Location
Art Passages, Video footage of the Art Passages Gallery in Martinez
ARTS CALENDAR & DIRECTORY: free resources for artists of Contra Costa County
Sign up for the free Arts Directory and Calendar Service here.
Did you know AC5 offers a free directory and calendar service for local artists in Contra Costa County and surrounding areas? The directory service is sponsored by AC5 and is available free of charge. While we have a strong membership, there may be some readers who have not yet created an entry in the directory. The directory is categorized for ease of searching. You may create your listing based on your area of artistic specialization. There are listings in Performing Arts, Visual Arts, Literary and Media Arts, and Arts Organizations. Whatever category you choose, there is a simple online form to fill out and you can post images of your work and external links to your web site. You can link your eMail address so that people can contact you through the directory service. There is also an events calendar where you can make entries for your events. Entry in this directory will make you eligible for the new monthly publication Artist of the Month in the ARTBEAT newsletter. Are you registered? If not, join now and experience the benefits first hand. The link for registration is http://directory.ac5.org/. Note, the Arts Directory will soon be advertised on CCTV spots, and in the AT&T Real Yellow Pages. We strongly encourage artists to use this powerful marketing tool.
FINE ART SERIES: Now Showing on CCTV
Contra Costa TV Airs Fine Arts Series, A National Gallery of Art Video Loan Program Sponsored by AC5
AC5 has teamed up with CCTV to offer a video series from the National Gallery of Art Video Library program. In an effort to bring high quality arts information to our community, the AC5 is sponsoring a series of educational videos made available to us from the National Gallery of Art. This program began airing in February 2010 and will be ongoing. Check local listings. Showtimes are: SUNDAYS 7 - 9 PM, WEDNESDAYS 9 AM and the first and third Thursday of every month from 6 - 7 PM. The series begins with featured American artists. The content is high quality and educational, from the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
AC5 IS ON FACEBOOK
We invite you to join the AC5 Facebook group. We will post events and general information from time to time on Facebook, and members can use the group page as another means to communicate with fellow artists, share information, and post images and videos of their work. Click here to join the AC5 Facebook Group.
ARTBEAT NEWSLETTER CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: Three Opportunities
The ARTBEAT newsletter has three monthly sections with content published from submissions by our readers. This represents three wonderful opportunities for artists to increase their visibility and share information with the public and with other artists in the community. We invite and encourage readers to submit articles with photos and links, for the following sections of ARTBEAT:
(1) ARTIST’S SPOTLIGHT publishes selected articles submitted by local artists or arts organizations in Contra Costa county. The selected articles will not be used to advertise or market the artist's work. Rather, they will focus on artists' point of view about their work, projects, activities, or lifestyle and experiences. We want to feature artists' writing about their passion for their art, their challenges and their solutions, about surviving as an artist or arts organization in today's economy.
Call for Submissions: To be considered for this publication, artists and arts organizations can submit articles to AC5. Articles selected for publication will be featured in the following month's ARTBEAT newsletter. The deadline for the next round of submissions is July 20th.
Submission Guidelines: Articles can be submitted via email to ac5@ac5.org. Articles may be submitted as in-line text within an email, or as a document attachment. Please limit your submissions to no more than one page of single spaced text in 10 or 12 point font. Images related to your article (no more than four) may be included as attachments and you may include web links. Please do not send hard copy submissions. AC5 reserves the right to edit submissions.
(2) ARTFUL PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE MONTH In an effort to expand the effectiveness of the AC5 Mission, which is to be a convener of the arts, and to make the arts available to everyone in Contra Costa County, we would like to raise "arts awareness" through monthly publishing of photographs submitted by local artists and photographers.
Call for Submissions: We request and encourage our readers to submit photographs of their art or, artful photographs. Include in your submission a brief description of the photo(s) and any web links that relate to the work. Please limit the number of photographs to four photos per submission. For the July issue of Artbeat, the submission deadline is July 20, 2010. Send submissions as image file attachments to ac5@ac5.org.
(3) ARTIST OF THE MONTH
highlights one artist or arts organization each month with text, graphics, and links about the artist or arts organization, their works, shows, events and any other newsworthy notes. The artist of the month will be selected from the registered artists and arts organizations in the Arts Directory & Calendar at http://directory.ac5.org/ on the AC5 web site. If you would like to be eligible to be selected for this article, please be sure that you, or your arts organization, are registered in the Arts Directory. Candidates for the Artist of the Month will be randomly selected from the Arts Directory. If you are not yet registered with the Arts Directory, if you sign up before July 20th you will become eligible for Artist of the Month for the July edition of ARTBEAT.
Call for Submissions: The call for submissions is simply to register in the Arts Directory at http://directory.ac5.org/.
Arts & Culture Commission of Contra Costa County
10 Douglas, Suite 250, Martinez, Ca 94553
Tel. (925) 646-2278 eMail ac5@ac5.org
