Venice Art Crawl - St. Patrick's Day Eve Edition

Last night was the first Venice Art Crawl of 2017, and it was a complete blast. The theme this time was "This Is Venice", and everyone did their best to show what that was. REALLY was. I'm not sure if it had anything to do with it being St. Patrick's Day Eve, but people were in the mood to go OFF. And did.

We kicked off the night at In Heroes We Trust with a little music and pre-party, as you do. This Crawl focused on the Venice Boulevard corridor (I've always called it the "Cultural Corridor", and in fact, this is the zone that Danny Samakow is talking about making our Venice Arts District. Solid.), from the beach to Beyond Baroque. With so much ground to cover, I had to kick in the spurs and wrangle everyone to go, and after zooming past the gorgeous Paris photos at Le Pop Up Gallery on Abbot Kinney, we traipsed through the walk streets to Beyond Baroque, who were hosting the Inaugural L.A. Punk Film Festival. How cool. The only thing was that we had no time to sit and watch films when there were still miles to walk. They might want to think about having it be its own event next time, so everyone can attend. Just a thought. It was fun just walking around last night, almost like Halloween for adults, with crowds of people walking the streets in clusters, letting everyone know which house/venue not to miss.

One not to be missed was  at the corner of Venice and Abbot Kinney, where the front yard of the new Josa store from Tulum was having a bootleg event, off the map, in true Venice style. Jules Muck was there doing a live painting of a big, beautiful flower on the building, and Death Of Politics played out on the front lawn, pretty much stopping traffic at that intersection. The Electric Bike Parade going by received an enormous ovation as they lit up the foggy night on their colorful cycles.

I heard a lot of friends saying this Art Crawl felt like the old days, and they were right. That's what I love about the VAC too, it always feels like it's about the Community, and you always see people you know. Oh, and basically everywhere is serving up drinks, so it feels like the old First Fridays when you could drink and have music in the stores. No one was feeling any pain last night (though we all are today).

As the clock was ticking, we headed off down Venice to the Library parking lot, where more live painting was happening.

The Boys and Girls Club had a community canvas going, where any and everyone was invited to pick up a brush and add to the masterpiece. We used to do this at Abbot's Habit back when my brother was the manager there. They'd put up big canvases and someone would do a sketch and then divide it into squares. Each person chose a square to fill in, showing how all our different styles made up the creative whole. They always turned out beautifully, and I could kick myself that the one I bid on was lost in one of my moves. Boo. We should do it again before Abbot's closes! O.K.

There was an interactive game set up where you could toss a bean bag and win a book. The books were all gone by the time I got there, which was fine because I was awful at it. But good times. The night only got crazier as it went, so I lost all my cards and map with notes and names on it, etc, but shout out to this stop where we had a lot of fun. Thanks!

Off we went to Sunny Bak's place, our tireless Art Crawl leader. She was showing her incredible Beastie Boys photos and her venue was stuffed with appreciators of the arts (on a day when the NEA is being de-funded, this Venice experience is more important than ever!)

They were also showing Harold Cleworth's fantastic car paintings at this stop, and I loved the Lowrider one that said, "Bless The Lowered".  Fresh.

I knew we could not miss the first time the Paper, Scissors, Rock salon was on the Art Crawl, and I was totally right. You could tell from a block away in the fog that this joint was going off. People were partying out on Pacific Avenue, in the street, like the good old days.

You could hear the music of Jeremy Parker and Masao Miyashiro setting the good vibes, and when we rolled up it was so tight inside you could barely move.

Great photos from Ray Rae and Josh "Bagel" Klassman were on display, and Bart Saric and Jeff Ho were showing their paintings, but the best part of this location was all of the extra fun people who came out. It was like a big house party in there, and this stop was a unanimous favorite.

We could have stayed at any one of the stops for the whole evening, as each of them were so fun this time. This is always a problem when you want to see everything, and having such a good time everywhere we went meant that there were some good venues I missed, and I'm sorry. By this hour, we had to hightail it over to Gotta Have It, where our friend's awesome band, Restavrant, was going to be exploding the place into smithereens, as they're known to do.

Gotta Have It was also jam-packed, again with solid wall to wall friends. Restavrant does not mess around, and they had the room going crazy the whole set. Like, there was a mosh pit in a vintage store last night in Venice. Super, all-star fun.

The fog outside only grew thicker, but no one cared and the party spilled out on to the sidewalk out front, as it should. People were making liquor store runs, and passing out beers to friends and strangers alike. It was a good, old fashioned, sweaty, proper rock and roll jamboree, and every single person in there was stoked. It didn't appear that anyone minded that it was now officially St. Patrick's Day, a day on which you're kind of expected to party pretty hard. Again. No problem.

The walk home was thick with mist, letting you pretend you might be sort of Ireland-adjacent. All I know is that I was smiling, and today's text messages were all about how much of a grand old time everyone had. A humble and true thank you to all the participants, from artists to musicians, to planners to players. I love you all an awful lot.

Happy St. Patrick's Day, O'Venice!

Venice Art Crawl - The Spring Edition

Part Two of Venice Art Week went down last night with the Spring installment of the wonderful Venice Art Crawl, and it was as awesome as ever. I think I need to throw out a little disclaimer here, because I had some people disappointed that I didn't make it to see (and write about) their ArtBlock location. People. I'm one lady, usually on foot for these things, and when there's over 100 artists to check out, you most likely won't make it to all of them. I write these stories on my own time and dime, with no compensation from anyone, as a gift and service to the community I love. If you'd like to be mentioned, it might be helpful to introduce yourself ahead of time and let me know about what you're doing, because otherwise it's basically the luck of the draw, and time, and if I already know you and want to see you. Every story I write is meant to celebrate the people and greatness of Venice, and I guess I'd just be happy that someone is doing that at all - and I'll do my best to see it all, but if I don't ... you're still cool and maybe I'll see you next time. Or invite me over and we can do your own story sometime. OK. Thanks for bearing with that, and on to the Crawl!

My first stop was again a visit to Amy Kaps, who this time had decorated the utility box at Venice Boulevard and Oakwood in her signature black and white striped fabric.

She and photographer Eric Schwabel (another Minnesota native!) were there in matching stripes, taking photos and generally causing a stir at that intersection. This was a fun way of letting people know both "The Power Of Stripes" as their installation was named, and that the VAC was indeed ON.

We had a lot of ground to cover, as usual, so from there we hightailed it over to Deus Ex Machina to see Beastie Bak - the awesome work of Sunny Bak from her time documenting The Beastie Boys all over the place. As Art Crawl happens at night, it's always a party at every stop, and Deus was no different, with kegs and a grill going out back, and a bunch of biker-ish guys at laptops inside. Funny.

The Boys and Girls Club of Venice was showcasing the artwork of the kids in their programs, and had a stage set up outside with a whole bunch of families enjoying the sounds of what I think was also a kid band. The Rasta Bus was dropping off and picking people up all along the way, though we declined a lift because we had not yet seen it all over on Lincoln.

The Venice Love Shack was the headquarters for the VAC this time out, and it's always fun to see what they have going on over there.

A bunch of friendly folks were hanging out, and I learned about the brand new Westside Collective trailer located there, with the cutest summery clothes I've seen in a while. There will be a return visit there soon, trust me.

I hadn't been to the Venice Arts space on Lincoln in quite a while and it was great to see all of the good that they're still doing as an organization. I taught Creative Arts there as a volunteer for five years, and it was some of the very most rewarding work I've ever done. I don't think they have that class anymore, but the photography work of the kids at Venice Arts was as impressive as ever.

We had my friend's dog with, so were a bit limited by where we could go inside (sorry again if I missed you!), but we did as much as we could. We headed over to Abbot Kinney, where there was no one at the Wylie House, so we carried on over to In Heroes We Trust. Daniel Chimowitz was there showing his super original stencil art on canvas and clothes, and both Chimowitz and IHWT owner, Neely Shearer, were done up in his cool creations.

A welcome new addition to the party on Westminster was a old-timey truck called El Sombrero. They served up "fine frozen ice" - meaning slushie cocktails like Margaritas and Moscow Mules. After the brain freeze subsided, this stop found us kicking up things a big notch.

My first posse handed the baton to the next posse, and everything got rowdier. We set our compasses for the Windward Circle and found a fun band playing outside of Hama Sushi, and a bunch of art set up there on the sidewalk. It was extra fun and festive in the Circle, with the streets full of happy people having fun. Love it.

NextSpace (in the old video store space on the Circle) had a thing going on called "The Impermanence of Perception", where various artists (including homegirl Jules Muck) were painting with virtual reality brushes, and viewers could see what they were doing on a screen. I've done this at my friend's office, and it's way cooler to do it yourself than watch someone else, but we didn't stick around long enough to see if others got a turn, because friends were awaiting at the Townhouse. And by now we needed a thirst quencher. And my friend Big Cookie was lagging. I told him to speed it up because there was so much art to see, and he said, "No, you said this was the Art CRAWL, not the Art RUN." I stood corrected. Ha!

I like it when people set up bootleg artist sites on the VAC, and this time there were some guys displaying their work on the sidewalk between the Bank Of Venice and The Townhouse, and getting a lot of attention. The work featuring 3D shoes hanging off the telephone wires was my favorite. Right on, @Irvingjc!

Andy Clockwise was spinning Prince at The Townhouse, so that took up more time than I'd intended (another intangible that can happen at these events, and if I didn't get to see your art because of dancing to Prince - well ... apologies again, but that can't be helped.), but by then the official hours of the VAC were over anyway.

We saw that people were still hanging on the sidewalk in front of Gotta Have It though, so we had to go see what was going down there, as it's always one of my favorite stops of the Crawl. The art there was by Chris Markland and Adam Christopher Bright, and it was all good. Markland's video work was projected on the wall, tunes were spun, and tequila shots were enjoyed. Another successful blast of an Art Crawl was on the books!

Then it was back to The Townhouse - and none of your business. Thank you (!!!) to all of the VAC organizers and volunteers! It's such a special thing you've created, and we all really love it. We're already looking forward to the next one - July 21st!

OK ... one more to go. Hope to see you all on Sunday at the Art WALK! Phew.

*Also, Kudos for having more than enough maps this time, VAC!

The Venice Art Crawl: Holiday Edition!

The Holiday version of the Venice Art Crawl took place last night, and as usual, it was a complete treat for the neighborhood. Also as usual, you pretty much need a jet pack to get around to all the spots, but even without the jet pack (that we were promised by now!), I did pretty good. REALLY good, considering I was on foot (slightly faster than actually crawling) and had no map.

I was wrapping up things with work to get away for the holidays, so didn't get down to the Venice Pier in time to see the Electric Bike Parade take off, and would have loved to have taken part in that, seeing all the fun they had. I got home and hit the ground walking, starting off at Will Leather Goods on Abbot Kinney where Jules Muck was back in town and doing live paintings on leather. Of peoples' pets!

People queued up to get their little dog or cat portrait painted by Muck on a wallet, bag, or even a soccer ball. It was great to see Jules again, and great to see people get so excited about both her work and their pets.

Carrying on down Abbot Kinney, there were a lot of people out and about, but I was on a mission that could not be stopped unless it involved art. I got to In Heroes We Trust just a little too late to enjoy their  holiday nog ...

... But the holiday cheer was in full effect nonetheless, with revelers bundled up to combat the slight chill that we all think is Winter here. There was art, there was hula hooping (even in tiny toddler sizes, that one little moppet kept slamming into me with, and it was no problem), and there were gifts galore in case you could tear yourself away from the partying to check some things off your list.

I checked a great thing off of my list when I headed over to General Admission to have my Locals Only (awesome SoCal skate culture in the '70s photo book) book signed by the photographer, Hugh Holland. They had prints and Tshirts of the iconic photos available as well, which would make the perfect gift for the surfer or skater in your life (as would anything from Venice Originals, but they were closed for the night).

Across the street at Gotta Have It, it was going off, with both live music and live coloring, courtesy of their featured artist, Jared Hoffman.

They aren't included on the VAC map (that I still couldn't find and vastly prefer to the phone app to check things off!) for some reason that needs to be sorted out, because their art and parties at the Art Crawls are always one of the highlights for me.

Last night was no different, as a packed house spilled out on to the sidewalk, where I added a little purple to the coloring poster outside. Super fun, every time, bumping into friends left and right - which is actually the very best part of the VAC, even more than the art.

But the art is always rad, and the point of it all. I hitched a ride down to Washington to say hello to my fun friend, Michelle Blackmon at her great new space that featured the art of Lindsey Nobel, the live music of Christopher Hawley, and a light show by Todd Alter (and a spin art thing that you could do yourself!). It was great, and extra festive over there.

We passed some urban Carolers on the street, which I always love (my name is a verb at this time of the year!), and hit up Arbor (where you could get your photos printed on wood by Lindsey from The Blocksmith) and The Cow's End (where the great Outi Harma, Mark Saterlee and Roitash Rao were showing their work, and in Rao's case, live painting on trash. Awesome).

We popped in to Maui and Sons to see the work of Todd Goodman and Martin Cohen - awesome again. We're SO lucky to have so many talented people everywhere you turn! It sure keeps it interesting in these parts. Snowflakes were projected on all the buildings in Washington Square, so we could kind of fake that we have Winter (and it WAS pretty cold by the water).

I still couldn't find a map, so I missed some places that I didn't know were showing, but had heard there were things happening in the Venice Pier parking lot. Due to time, I missed the whole actual pier (which I found out later had art in all the little alcoves along the pier - bummer), but I did finally get to see inside of the Yellow Submarine. It was kind of strange, with people just climbing in, sitting on the fuzzy benches, and staring it each other. Okay, great, Clark Griswold nod, bounce.

Someone told me there was a giant Nativity scene set up in the parking lot made out of black lights and glow in the dark stuff, which sounded so Venice and awesome, it was kind of the point for us heading that direction. We looked all over and saw nothing of the sort ... until I saw a little cluster of people looking at the back of a pickup truck bed. We walked over and sure enough, there was the Nativity. Not exactly life sized, as I'd heard, but beautiful all the same, and had made by someone's Dad, according to the dog eared map I finally found on the ground. It was lovely.

I got a text to get over to the party at the corner of Venice and Abbot Kinney, which I guess is now called The Kinney Collective. I stopped at my house to drop stuff off, and when we walked down Abbot Kinney to the party, it was simply great. I could hear the music of my friends in the band, Nocona, welcoming the whole town to come and celebrate the holiday.

Local artists (Gary Palmer, etc ...), artisans (some of the cutest lingerie I've seen in a long while by CantiqLA), and neighbors came together to kick up our holiday heels right there on the corner in the center of Venice, and it was a blast. The Electric Bike Parade wound up there too, so we all came full circle, and we all loved every minute of it, staying put there until the end.

As I talk about becoming the circle, this morning I had to head back over to Washington to see in daylight the mural by Francisco Letelier that was rescued from the Pioneer Bakery, titled Becoming The Circle. It shows our People, residents of Venice, as we continue to endure the rapid change here, while trying desperately to maintain what we love about Venice. Like wonderful things such as the Art Crawl.

It was a perfectly festive note to wind up the Art Crawl year, with warmth and good tidings tangibly felt at every stop (and, as ever, apologies to all the stops I missed!). Thank you to all from the VAC that continue to work hard to provide such an absolutely Venice experience for everyone who attends. And HAPPIEST Holidays to you all!

With love.

The Summer Venice Art Crawl - Fresh Air, Fresh Art

The Summer edition of the Venice Art Crawl was held last night, and - per usual - it was a total blast. My bike is out of commission so this one was done on foot, and man ... there's a lot of ground to cover. We did really well, but still only got to hit about half of it. And it was awesome.

We started off on Abbot Kinney, since that's closest to my house, and it was fun to see some ladies painting outside of the Ohm Salon, while we were deciding if we had time for a quick drink at Wabi. We did not. Not if we wanted to see as much art as we could, and we did.

The Aust store had art by Francesco Masci and tunes by the Cerny Brothers ... and PBR's.

Heading toward the sunset, we passed by the old Anjela Shoe Repair shop, only to be stopped in our tracks by the darling new store in that space, L'Angels. Hand chosen by Andy from the shoe repair shop, the store features 100% work by L.A. artists and creators. Excellent.

Just about my favorite thing I saw in the entire Art Crawl were the jewelry pieces in there by Venice local, Susan Rich. She has taken chips off of the Venice Graffiti Walls and turned them into rings and necklaces. They are so cool I can't stand it. Get in there and see for yourself.

Cruising on up the boulevard, we stopped in to see my friend Peta at Wylie Wilson, where they were featuring smooth jazz and art by John Cesar - and all her wonderful lingerie creations, all made about six blocks away. These are the places that are actively keeping the spirit of Venice alive on Abbot Kinney, and they are the places locals should support. Period.

We crossed the street to see the exceptional work of Fin Dac at the C.A.V.E. Gallery. It's really impressive pieces depicting beautiful Japanese women, like the one on the wonderful new mural up the street.

My favorite piece in there was one of those women done entirely in Italian (Venice) mosaic. So cool.

Another highlight of this Crawl was in the magical space behind the walls of the Ecole Claire Fontaine on Abbot Kinney. There were about ten artists displaying in there, and a bunch of adults playing on swings and climbing trees. It was adorable in there, and showed a lot of good art too (we especially liked the pieces by Audrey McNamara). I'd never been in there in all these years, so it was nice to see the place where so many of Venice's little ones have learned their first lessons.

The Beach House next door featured the art of Alon Goldsmith, and a lot of super cute, super expensive beach lifestyle stuff. And a cool video projection floor.

We zipped in to say hi at In Heroes We Trust, checking out their latest vintage finds quick and checking out the party.

Onward we sped ... the Sole Bicycles garage had a packed house for the art of Isabelle Alford-Lago and her big apes. That one was quite the party, but we couldn't stay because we wanted to get over to Small World Books and check that out. Too late, they were already closed.

The Sidewalk Cafe was real fun, and great because they were showing the fantastic work of our friend, Christina Adshade.

I'd only ever seen her art online, so to see the detail and talent behind it up close was impressive. Plus they were playing old Guns 'N Roses, guys from The Sons Of Anarchy were there, and so was the Tree Man. That's a good Venice hang right there.

From there it was off to Gotta Have It, as most of the other venues were wrapping up by then. DJ Redbeard was playing o.g. reggae and dancehall, and I loved every single note he spun. Great party jams.

The art on display was by Bethany Richards aka Pink Riches. Her art and her style were both extra groovy.

Enjoying a beer with the crew there, we checked the map - and the time. We still had over half to see and no time to do it. I think next time I might have to begin on the Washington Boulevard end of things, because I never seem to make it that far down. Too much art to see is an excellent problem to have, however. The crowd spilled out on to the sidewalk, like parties of yore, and we all remarked how we loved the Art Crawl so much, because it reminds of how First Fridays used to be ... with music, and drinks, and most importantly, everyone you know.

We accepted our fate of only getting to half, and decided to console ourselves back over at Wabi Sabi. As we traipsed back over to Abbot Kinney, we passed an enormous, flowering cactus. As my friend Mario was with me, and we had just had a triumph of saving and sharing an endangered cactus that very day, we felt it was an appropriate artistic display to finalize the art portion of our crawling with.

We toasted a great day, a great crawl, and the fact that we got to see so much of that fresh art, in the fresh Summer air.

As ever, thank you so much to all the incredible people that put this celebration of our local artist together every time. It's such a gift to the community, and well ... just fun as hell.

See all you crawlers again in September! (the 17th. Mark your calendars.)