Last Days Of A Bohemian Paradise - An Evening With Dotan Saguy

I finally got to see Dotan Saguy's great photography show at Venice Arts last night for the closing reception and conversation that would kick off the four day Venice Art Crawl Afterburn extravaganza this weekend. Last Days Of A Bohemian Paradise shows off the Venice Boardwalk at its most beautiful and poignant, as we all know this last beach community of color is very much an endangered species. Saguy has been doing in photography what I have been doing with stories - trying to capture the beauty and originality of this place while it still exists.

Saguy's book of the same name was also being celebrated (and I'm creating a book of stories too!), and we got to see its wonderful photographs enlarged on the walls of the Venice Arts gallery, as local characters mingled and discussed the good old days - and what we still have. So far. Artists and hippies and all the character that has historically made Venice great is being evicted ... and we all have to ask, as the photo does below, Why are you doing this?

After an impromptu electric guitar set from Harry Perry that got folks dancing, we sat down to listen to Saguy speak on this fantastic photo project. It started super late (Venice Standard Time), but nobody seemed to mind, as Elisa from Venice Arts said, "Thank you for having a festive Venice attitude about the delay." Once the tech stuff got sorted out (maybe do that before the event next time, friends), Saguy shared the stories behind taking these photographs. He started shooting 25 years ago, and he knows that because he got a camera for a wedding present, and he and his professor wife just celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary. He took some classes and workshops, and assigned himself to go shoot Havana before it changed too much ... kind of like Venice.

Saguy won a National Geographic contest, and the prize was an assignment to South Korea, so he was now a real professional, and that gave him the encouragement to pursue photography as a full-time career. He was drawn to and felt connected to Venice (like most of us who chose to make it our home), and he showed a slide show of his progression in Venice. Saguy spent three years shooting the Boardwalk and its denizens, resulting in his beautiful book, completed in the summer of 2017. That was the year I reigned as Venice's Neptune Queen, and I was honored to be included in one of Saguy's photographs in the book (and am now coveting a print!).

Saguy talked about "how inclusive and generous (Venice) people are with each other ... with a tenderness to it all" ... and how that is all in danger. The project is so great that the press has been phenomenal, which brings an awareness to how special Venice is - and a responsibility to us all to preserve it. Saguy's method is best summarized by the acronym "D.I.E." - which stands for Design. Information. Emotion. - all of the elements he feels are necessary to make a great photo. And it's all there in every piece of his work. There was a photo of a surfer girl, that until he discussed it, I didn't really notice the organization and geometry of it all, and how he fills the frame with something interesting for the eye in the foreground, background, and the focal point. His pictures really are worth at least a thousand words.

Shooting in all Leica black and white lends a timeless quality to Saguy's work, and at times it's hard to tell if you're looking at the 60's or the future - should the future remain cool. That remains to be seen, and Saguy felt a responsibility and an urgency to document what still left of bohemian Venice, and create a record (same here, Brother). The Venice Freak Show, the homeless, skaters, body builders, surfers, gangsters, snakes ... they're all represented here, in all their glory. 

The Venice Boardwalk led Saguy back to Havana for his next project, where he will capture its own version of the Boardwalk, the Malecón. However, "I can't stop shooting Venice", so he's also at work on a project about the homeless and their pets, as well as one about Van Life. Awesome.

The Venice cast of characters celebrated with Saguy (seen below, the one who's not Harry Perry, Marcus Gladney, or Sunny Bak) until we got kicked out of Venice Arts and took it on over to James Beach, but I think we all felt happy to be together and to know that in some small way, we've all contributed to this creative mecca by the sea. With photos, stories, and each other - we'll always have Venice.

Last Days Of A Bohemian Paradise is available in book form and in photographic prints limited to 10 of each photo at www.dotansaguy.com. Saguy will also be teaching a Leica master class in Venice, March 29-31, 2019 (information on his website).

Long Live Venice!

West Of Lincoln Project - By Ruth Chase

The West of Lincoln Project, the first solo exhibition by Venice born painter Ruth Chase had its opening reception last Saturday at Venice Arts, and I heard it was as big old party. I unfortunately could not attend, as I was working on a television shoot that wrapped for the day well after the opening was over. I was bummed to miss this extra-Venice event, so I headed over there to check out Chase's art as soon as I could.

The West of Lincoln Project has been a lifelong dream come true for Chase, as the paintings portray the citizens of Venice that grew up here, and their stories are of their entire lives growing up here in this diverse community by the sea.

The paintings and the stories that accompany them are what makes up the tapestry and history of this beach town so beloved by so many. Familiar Venice faces like Solo Scott are painted in all their youthful glory, showing the fun - and the wisdom - that came from living here in Venice all of one's life. My Life Depends On It.

Eddie Hadvina talks about his Second Chance.  
 

The portrait Place of Strenth of Gloria Olivas Omar is touching, as it shows her as a young girl at the Festival of the Chariots (which I also had to miss last Sunday), and how that was always her favorite event in Venice. Those memories gave her strength when she was dealing with stage four breast cancer (now in remission), and it's all there on the bright canvas.

In The Deeper We Go, The Brighter We Shine, Elaine Love Leslie is shown, and her story tells of how Venice is her greatest spiritual teacher. I get it.

Summer Breeze, Community Love shows "Miss P", the grandmother of Rhonda Lynn Wise, who showed her family the beauty of Venice when she moved here in 1967. Venice means SO much to generations of families, which is why it's so painful to see so many longtime residents being moved out of town by what boils down to financial genocide. Seriously.

Spirit of the Moment depicts David Fowler on a skateboard (a crucial component to any story about Venice), and the caption that sums it up. "Growing up in Venice is a metaphor for life. On a skate, you fall down and you get back up. In life you take your family with you. They are the ride. They fall, and you help them get back up." Exactly. That's Community. That's what's at stake here.


Leonard Duran is shown with a low-rider vibe that represents the V-13 people of Venice, aptly titled, Never Forget Where You Came From, Always Remember Where You're Going. Excellent advice.

Fernando Manzanilla discusses his sobriety in a story that breaks down his portrait, Not Just Me Anymore. There is much growth shown in every single painting, and growth might very well be the connective theme of the show. Growth, nostalgia, and love for a place and its people.

The one that moved me the most was Untitled. This one is for the Oakwood neighborhood, and as Chase wrote in the caption, it's not for her to portray. It's for the community itself to embody. I got a lump in my throat, as we all know how much history is being displaced, and this historically African American stronghold is no different.

The Venice tags by Ric Clayton are very cool, and very recognizable if you've ever cruised around Venice. It's a style -and a lifestyle.

The wonderful show of and for Venice will by on display at Venice Arts through September 1, 2017. It is a must-see for anyone that knows and loves Venice.

Congratulations and thanks to Ruth Chase for showing what so many are feeling. Love, concern, and gratitude for Venice, California.

West of Lincoln Project
Venice Arts
13445 Beach Avenue
Venice (ish)
310-392-0846

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!

Herb & Dorothy

Thank you, Venetians. You once again led me to a wonderful film via "Local Favorites for Venice, CA" on Netflix, and affirmed my belief that I live amongst some real cool cats.

I saw Herb & Dorothy last night, and am still just brimming over with love for it today. Herb and Dorothy Vogel are now-famous art collectors, whose love and dedication to art - and to each other - is so moving and real ... it's contagious.


It also reminds one of how extremely important art, music, dance, creative writing, theater - ART in all forms - are to have in our schools as part of every child's education and expression. Especially now when California is broke and public schools often can't keep up with basic education requirements, we see the temptation to get rid of what administrations might consider frivolous or whatever, but it's SO important it makes me crazy to even imagine making kids go without.

I used to have a kid's class on Saturday mornings at Venice Arts called Art Discovery. I just made it up every week, and had "Guest Stars" come in to help teach the things I didn't know how to do myself. My brother would come in and make a jam band with the kids. My friend Denise would show them how she makes molds for toys at Mattel. My friend Shane taught them how to be tough guy actors. Vavine taught hula. I would wake up Saturday mornings after a long night out and think "Tie Dye today?", with both dread and humor. All of this tangent being said, it IS important. I ran into a Dad of one of my former kids this morning down at the beach, and he told me that the boy is playing trumpet and making movies now - at 10. He was exposed to ART every Saturday morning, and he is a cool little kid now, and I suspect will grow up to be even cooler.

Herb and Dorothy grew their art collection in their tiny one bedroom Manhattan apartment to the size and import of such greatness that when they decided to DONATE it all to the National Gallery in D.C., it took FIVE full Semi sized trucks to transport it all. They still live in the same little apartment, and Americans and visitors have been given the GIFT of seeing all their art displayed forever. Watching the film, you learn about all the art pieces from their regular person point of view, and I found myself feeling both smarter about art, and inspired to create, and share.

Check out Herb & Dorothy ... it will do your heART good.