Kelly Slater's Apolitical Process

There was a real fun art opening last night in Venice when Kelly Slater brought his vision of an artistic journey through the 2016 election to the Folding Table Gallery on Main Street. Apolitical Process was curated by PM Tenore and features the work of Kevin Ancell, Todd Glaser, and Bruce Reynolds. All the pieces reflect what's going on in the current mess of getting a new President elected, and aim to expose the truths, dangers, hypocrisy and misinformation, according to the writing on the wall.

The place was jam packed and the crowd was spilling out on to the street on a balmy evening. The bar was open, and everyone was enjoying it as they checked out all the great work. Every last piece was awesome, and meant to provoke discussion and promote the questioning of the powers that be (also on the wall). Right on.

It was all very impressive, and no punches were pulled when it came to skewering those that deserve it. Like Ben Carson. About Guess Who's Coming To Dinner (It's Not Uncle Tom) 2016,  Reynolds captioned with "How a black neurosurgeon who has supported a presidential candidate, who is running a campaign that has courted white nationalism with dogwhistle politics. All coming on the heels  of the first black man to become President Of The United States." With Carson's face on rice boxes. It would be funny if weren't so sad and true.

There were a lot of guns on the walls, which is automatically heavy, especially considering all the shooting of innocent people going on these days. It's hard to even think about ... but we have to. We have to make sense of it somehow in order to STOP. IT.

Reynolds had a bunch of great sculptures, and an obvious intelligence and wit, as seen in his cuckoo clock piece, making a statement even with the material chosen - cuckoo.

One of my favorite Reynolds pieces was Bye Bye Miss American Pie, 2016. Its caption read "This piece represents American Democracy under attack and being stripped of its dignity by this political cycle. AMEN. It's based on the Esquire magazine cover that featured Muhammad Ali after he was stripped of his title for draft evasion - when really he should have been applauded. It's powerful stuff.

Todd Glaser had some gorgeous, silvery photographs, one featuring Slater, who was in the house having a great time with friends and fans alike.

The crowd was heavy on the surfers, of course, and everywhere you looked there was another friend, another local, all there to support both Slater and his very profound vision.

Kevin Ancell painted an entire quiver of Slater's boards in the black and white patterns of an Orca, which Slater asked for after being extra moved by the documentary Blackfish. Names of friends who have passed away were etched into the boards, giving a patina of sadness to the beauty of the memorial.

All the heavy subject matter couldn't put a damper on the spirits of the party goers, however, as everyone was having a grand old time, that got even more fun when the band struck up, with Slater fronting them on vocals. It appears that there is very little that this super man cannot do. Geez.

The band was cranking, turning the energy up even higher in perhaps one of the best reactions to all of the madness that one can have ... as Emma Goldman famously said, "If I can't dance, I don't want your revolution."

Thanks to all involved for a great, thought-provoking, rocker of a night!

Apolitical Process is on now through October 9, 2016. You want to see this show.

Folding Table Gallery
210 San Juan Avenue (corner of Main Street)
Venice

"Made In Venice" Premieres In Venice

The long anticipated, years in the making documentary Made In Venice premiered in Venice last Saturday at The Electric Lodge, and was more than worth the wait. It was a screening for the cast and crew, most of whom were in attendance. This wonderful film tells the story of how the dream of a Venice Skatepark came to be a fantastic reality, and all the struggle that went into it.

The movie covers the history of skating in Venice, and how it came to be known as the legendary Dogtown ("This town ain't fit for a dog!"). Though modern skateboarding was pretty much invented here, it took until 2009 for Venice to have its own skatepark, and would never had happened without the tireless work and absolute belief in the project on the behalf of skaters and activists in the community. As the audience filtered in, you saw one cast member after another arrive ... Christian Hosoi, Jeff Ho, Bart Saric (who did the film's animation sequences), Victor Blue, Tonan, Aaron Murray, Masao Miyashiro, Lauren Wiley, Dan Levy and Juice Magazine ... and finally, the true hero of the story, Jesse Martinez.

Martinez introduced the film along with its director, Jonathan Penson, who both told about the years and hurdles it took to make. They also explained that though we do now have this beautiful skatepark, the struggle continues, as the city of Los Angeles relies on Martinez and his crew to maintain and clean the park every day - without any compensation from the city. Unbelievable. But they do it. Every day, seven days a week.

The documentary is so good because the subject matter is beloved by Venice. It's incredibly lump in the throat touching at times, and laugh out loud funny at others. Venice does not lack for characters, and the ones you get to know in Made In Venice are some of our best. As pro skater Tuma Britton says in the film, "We don't do boring. This is Venice." Exactly.

"We were the bad stepsons of Venice, we were raising hell on this beach. If you were considered a Dogtown boy, you had made it," says Martinez in a clip to explain what it all meant to people. We are taken through the history of the rise and fall of both skating and skateparks, including a time when the area was briefly taken over by Rollerbladers. Dark days indeed. "We'd do almost anything to protect Dogtown," says Martinez at one point - and they certainly did.

Spearheaded by a mighty group of skatepark supporters who truly believed that skaters were the heart and soul of Venice, the dream for a world class skatepark was kept alive, and seen through. Ger-I Lewis teamed up with Heidi Lemmon (of Skatepark Association USA), and along with the tireless help of our late Councilman Bill Rosendahl (who found funds from an old oil fund!), the spirited group finally won approval for a skatepark. It was a unanimous decision from the Coastal Commission, after a touching speech by Martinez who spoke to the fact that skating had changed lives for the much better. And then it took four more years of redtape.

Construction finally began on the park on December 31, 2008 and the official opening was on October 3, 2009 - a triumphant and emotional highpoint of the film. "We did it! And I'm not too old to use it!" - Ger - I Lewis says, with obvious joy across his face. The opening day scenes are so happy and exciting ... but the work didn't/doesn't stop there.

Martinez is out there at the skatepark every morning, pre-dawn, making sure it's clean and safe to skate. This means hand scrubbing off the graffiti, cleaning up after the homeless and partiers that wreak havoc overnight, and generally 100% taking care of the park's maintenance on their own. For free. Often out of their own pockets. This clearly isn't right, and one of the hopes of the film is not only to showcase the park that more pro skaters come out of than any other in the world, but also to show its value to the City of L.A. and get these tireless workers some sorely needed compensation, although money is very obviously not what drives Martinez and his volunteer crew.

"Money you won't be remembered for, but to be a Dogtown boy {or girl}, you'll be remembered forever. This skatepark is the legacy I'll leave behind one day for my sons," says Martinez, and it's true. Both the film and the audience were filled with kids and skaters of the up and coming generations who will continue to benefit from all of the hard work and history of the Venice legends who gave them what they have today. And the future is bright.

Made In Venice closes with a soundbite from the late skate legend and friend, Jay Adams, who says, "You know how some people say, 'Oh, I love it, I'd do it for free'. Well, Jesse IS doing it for free. Why don't some of you guys start paying him?" Yes. WHY don't we? In typical Martinez fashion, he was nowhere to be found when the hoots, hollers, whistles, and "Thank you, Jesse!'s" rang out over the closing credits. I found him outside after the film, far from the crowd, and visibly uncomfortable with the attention and praise. So much so that he'll probably never even see the film, but the important thing is that now everyone else can see it and know what a true hero he is to our community. A true hero Made In Venice.

Made in Venice will debut in theaters August 25, 2016. It's a must see for anyone who knows and loves Venice.

*Merch proceeds from the film will go towards the upkeep of the Skatepark. Get yours!

The 2015 Venice Vintage Motorcycle Rally - Bands, Beers, Babes. And Bikes

The 2015 Venice Vintage Motorcycle Rally is in the books, and it was another total blast of a day in Venice. It was extra HOT, so the rally held on the blacktop of the Farmer's Market was pretty much an inferno, but that only helped to give the beer gardens a brisk business.

Motorcycles and booths lined both sides of the parking lot, with gear heads and cyclists of all ages and backgrounds milled around checking out all the great bikes.

I know about nothing about motorcycles, so I'll just say this was my favorite one, and because it's a great blue, basically.

The revving of engines and the speakers blaring the live music could be heard for blocks, and gave the whole neighborhood that festive feeling that comes with a big community event.

The kid band, Detour, was back this year, blasting out a cover of Rage's "Killing In The Name" just as I arrived. They are awesome, and will only get better with age.

The Whaler had a full bar booth, so that's where you could be sure to bump into someone you knew while they were waiting to quench their pronounced thirst. Here is where I got to introduce two of Venice's best songbirds to each other, Miss Jessica and Lacey Kay Cowden - both from Louisiana, and both carrying their little dogs. I think there needs to be a collaboration here, ladies!

A highlight of the Motorcycle Rally every year is the Venice Vintage Pin Up Girl Contest, and this year brought out a large roster of lovely ladies ready to strut their stuff across the Rally stage. I'm pretty feminist, so I'm usually mixed about these kinds of things, but bikes and babes have always gone together, so it makes a certain sense. And they all looked great, all were talented, and any one of them would be great to represent the VVMC (except maybe the ones from San Francisco. We're in Venice.)

The contest is the baby of Nik Falco (of Trim fame), and she was also a thoroughly entertaining MC. I laughed out loud several times, and not just because the ladies were doing talents like ventriloquy with lips fully moving. One girl said she could fix any of the bikes there, and I thought that might be reason enough to win, but the judges, celebrity locals like Jeff Ho and Brian Van Holt, thought differently.

Several of the gals sang, and they were all pretty good. One lady (Sasha from Venice!) sang "Cool Rider" from Grease 2, and for those two things alone, we felt she really should have won. I thought the girl that laid down and jumped a bike chain with her ass might take the title, but in the end, the honor went to Elizabeth Deo.

Deo told me that she was origianally going to sing too, but as there were too many singing talents, at the last minute she decided to apply her lipstick with her cleavage, and that brought her the sash. She was lovely and gracious, and took a moment after her victory to give some pointers to a future Miss Venice Vintage, Tallah Tiger (the darling daughter of contest judge, Mersedeh Ahrablou). Adorable.

Raffle tickets had been sold all day to win a vintage motorcycle, and when the time came for the name to be drawn, the guy wasn't present. They called him and put him on speaker though, and the excited winner promised to high-tail it down there to claim his bike, putting to rest shouts for a re-draw. I'm sure he was stoked.

With the crowning of Ms. Deo, it was time to now just rock. GLR played a blistering set under the blistering sun, and the crowd was all the way into it.

People partied until the sun went down, and then branched out across town to keep the party going. Another great day in the neighborhood, and another great Venice event, that just gets better every year.

Thank you to Brady Walker, Nik Falco, the VVMC, and all the bikers and babes that came out to celebrate yet another thing we love about Venice.

See you next year!

No Pozer - The Art Of Jeff Ho

Much of old school Venice turned out Saturday night at the C.A.V.E. Gallery for the opening of the solo exhibition of art from Dogtown/Z-Boys legend, Jeff Ho.

The crowd spilled outside in front and back, and if you hadn't seen someone from Venice around for a while ... they were probably there. It was awesome.

Tunes were pumping, surf videos were playing, and people were partying, surrounded by the bright colors and classic graphics that let you know it's a Ho original.

The works were done with aerosol on surfboards and canvas, and the hardest part was figuring out which one you liked best.

If you live in or care about Venice and its history, these were pieces you'd like to have.

Depicting graffiti from the P.O.P. skate era, and Zephyr tags, this is about as legit in the world of skate art as you can get.

The ones that said, "Locals Only" and "Go Home" and the show's theme, "No Pozer" also made points that were well taken in this day and age ... with humor, but still.

Ho was there, accepting congratulations and embraces from all the friends and fans he's made over the decades as a leader in our surf and skate culture. And clearly having a blast himself.

All the homies were there in support of Ho, and Abbot Kinney was back to keeping it real, even if just for the night. It felt fun, it felt like a community, and it felt like we were all in on something that was special, that needs to continually be celebrated and preserved.

The party could have gone on all night, and most likely did, as the revelers branched off to see what trouble we could get into next.

Looking back at the gallery and all the people gathered outside, not wanting to leave, everything felt all good in the hood. No pozers in sight.

No Pozer is on view through August 2nd, 2015

C.A.V.E. Gallery
1108 Abbot Kinney Boulevard
310-450-6960

A Jay Adams Photo Memorial Bash

Friday night saw the 413 Arts Gallery on Rose packed to the rafters with a house full of Venice Originals, all in attendance to view the exhibit of excellent photographs of the late Dogtown and Z-Boys legend, Jay Adams - and to party their faces off.

Works by renowned skate world photographers like C.R. Stecyk III, Steve Shelp, Chuck Katz, Luke Hudson, Josh Klassman and Cesario Montano adorned the walls and had all the friends and skaters in the house taking their own photographs of them ... if they could move their arms to do so.

There were classic Thrasher covers ...

... Classic photographs from contests over the years, classic mugging from one of skating's biggest characters, and more classic times shared between friends of Adams ... almost like he was still here.

Luminaries from skating and music and Hollywood all rubbed shoulders together with O.G. friends and fans of Adams.

As you approached the gallery, it looked just like a big, bumping house party, which it exactly was, with great art thrown in for good measure.

Tequila and beers were flowing all night long, making it all the more festive - and nuts.

Stories were traded all night, and j's were passed around ... perhaps also in Jay's honor.

After my initial lap around the gallery, I saw that most of the pieces had already been sold, red sticker dots claiming their ownership in someone's new, now cooler art collection.

I caught up with Seven Adams and his darling girlfriend, Anabelle. He's doing well since the death of his father in August, where I had a chance to meet him at the beautiful paddle out memorial at the Venice Pier.

I liked that when I took their photo, Jay was looking over Seven's shoulder ... and with all these guys keeping an eye out for Seven, he's going to be just fine.

The party spilled out on to the front patio and sidewalks, as there was no more room inside for anyone to squeeze in.

Old friends caught up, new ones were made. People that were only friends on Facebook became friends in real life. Christian Hosoi, Jeff Ho, Bennet Harada ... name someone from skateboarding, and they were probably there, if they could be.

Tribute was again paid to a true iconoclast in the history of our community and in skateboarding and surfing ... Adams was the reason for the night, and the reason that so many people once again came together to remember him.

Remembering him is easy ... it's keeping that spirit - and the community itself - together that takes some effort. If Friday night's celebration was any indication ... we're ALL going to be just fine.

Thank you to Cesario Montano and 413 Arts for putting on another great event for everyone gathered.