The Bandit Forever

Burt Reynolds died on September 6, 2018, and very shortly after that a new mural went up on South Venice Boulevard near Speedway to honor this Hollywood legend.

The Bandit has been immortalized by Jonas Never, whose work shows up all over Venice. It's nice to see am image of Reynolds there in his prime, and it brought a smile to my face. My brother Paul does an impression of Reynolds that always makes me laugh (it involves gum chewing), and when I heard that Mr. Reynolds had passed away, I made Paul do the bit in his honor. And laughed again.

RIP, and thanks for the laughs, Burt.

Together We Are Stronger Than Any Wall

I was walking down Abbot Kinney this morning, and stopped to admire this poster while I waited for the light to turn at Venice and Abbot Kinney. "Together we are stronger than any wall."

How true is that? And it applies not only to Trump's ridiculous wall, but to those imaginary walls that we tend to put up between us. Like in Venice now, between the Haves and the Have Nots (though that goes for the entire country/world as well). Like between "Dotard" Republicans and "Libtard" Lefties (both slags that I can't stand). Like between neighbors that don't bother to know each other, and build walls to keep themselves in and everyone else out. It's so basic to realize that by working together for a better situation for everyone absolutely makes us ALL stronger. That is elementary stuff. Golden Rule essential knowledge.

Let's learn this lesson finally, shall we? Thanks to whomever put up this excellent reminder that all the beautiful people in our community living in harmony makes the whole that much more solid. Awesome. 

Where Is The Love?! Venice.

These are some crazy times, Man. Every day some new crazy thing/s happen to make you shake your damn head and wonder how we got here. Wonder what is wrong with people? Wonder where in the world is the LOVE anymore?! I'm thinking all that on my walk this morning, when I noticed that someone had done a little tag on a Canal bridge ... and then I zoomed in ...

Where is the love?!?! Right?!?! It's nice to know I'm not the only one wondering this - and what we can do about it. That was on my mind as I kept on trucking, and turned down Altair to head back. Well, THERE was some love! A cute little bungalow dweller put it right there in front, letting us all know that at least here, it's still Love Street. Phew.

Easing on down the road over to the French Market for my morning coffee, I saw that there was more big LOVE to be found, right there on Venice and Abbot Kinney. In rainbow colors and everything! So, the next time you think or hear the very important question of "Where is the love?", know that you can always find it in Venice. Better yet, you can always find it in your own heart to give, and in your own mind to receive.

Love you.

The May Venice Art Crawl - Shredtastic!

The Spring (and Norwegian National Day! - I care) edition of the Venice Art Crawl was held last night, and was as excellent of an evening as it always is. I'm working on a show that gave me a late start to crawling, but I put on my race-walking shoes and got to see as much art as I possibly could. This time around the VAC was focused on our "Cultural Corridor", as I like to call it, of Venice Boulevard. I started at Beyond Baroque, but it looked like an AA meeting was happening (as it has been on VAC nights before), so I kept on trucking to the Venice Library to get a map. It was there that I found out it WAS a stop on the Crawl, and not an AA meeting at all. Oops. Well, good turnout, Beyond Baroque, I'm sorry I missed it!

The library art part was over by the time I got there, but I understand little kids were painting outside. Dang it, that would have been adorable.  Friends were texting that they were over at Hama Sushi, enjoying sake and the fantastic Venice photographs from Todd Van Hoffman.

It was jam packed inside Hama (sorry, waiters!), so the shindig soon expanded to outside, where The Jewpanese Brothers (Masao Miyashiro and Jeremy Parker) were ripping it up outside under the portable Venice sign that accompanies our various event parades. People were singing and dancing in the street in Windward Circle - exactly as they should be.

My friends wanted me to sit and have some sushi and sake, but I protested, as there was still so much ground to cover and art to see. A man sitting there said, "You're putting a lot of pressure on yourself. Part of the Art Crawl is to see your friends and neighbors and enjoy yourself. It's ok if you don't see everything." That was nice of him ... and I should have listened, because I ended the night starving with no kitchens still open - but I DID get to see a whole lot of art.

The next stop was Surfside, where we were going to see the excellent photos from Ray Rae Goldman, but we got there and were told that he had cancelled due to an injury (hope you're ok, Ray!). There WAS, however, more super cool AR stuff from Cody Nowak and the app ReBlink, who had impressed us at the last Crawl. This time out, he truly blew minds. Classic style paintings hung on the wall, but when viewed through the Ipad (or the app on your phone), they came to life in striking and spectacular fashion. Like, WOW. Suzy Williams had never seen any AR, and I think her face below sums it up.

There were also paintings by Deborah Medina at Surfside that greeted you as you walked in, and that's what I love about the Crawl. So many Venice businesses open up to include art and art lovers, recognizing that ART is a major reason why Venice ever became Venice. They know that over at Small World Books (best book store on the West Side!), where they had the work of Alex Crist AND free guacamole! Win win.

Next door at The Sidewalk Café they were showing the watercolors of Elizabeth Covington and the photos of Dan Kacvinski, with live Japanese classical guitar music on the patio from Ashun that was simply lovely.

With no time to waste and the clock ticking, we sped down Speedway to North Venice Boulevard, where a collective of 10 women were showing their art and jewelry in an apartment so packed with friends and neighbors we could barely squeeze inside, even though there was wine. Leila Jean Levi, Michele Pelletier, Aly Farrow Wilkins, Mildred Rivera, Karen Gladstone, Joanne Silver, Susan Ryza, and Sage Ryza all showed their cool stuff, making friends and sales along the way. We could have stayed and chatted the rest of the night, but, again, time was of the essence.

Moving right along, we hit up James Beach to see work from Lori Petty, but were told that one was also cancelled. Ok, off to Canal Club across the street. Patrick Marston was showing his Venice inspired art in the front of the restaurant ...

... And Todd Goodman was showing his Venice inspired art in the back room. I pretty much wanted every piece, and was happy to see that Goodman was selling his colorful, beachy prints left and right (and I was happy they were prints, because otherwise he'd priced them far too low - get one!). From the pier to the sunsets, Venice is beautifully represented in his work (which was also the poster for this Crawl).

The most fun part of the Crawl is always running into the locals that you know and love. This happened non-stop last night, which was so heart-filling, but also slowed down the racing a bit ... maybe a good thing? A whole crew of us formed and headed over to Sunny Bak's pad, where there was a "Broken Heart Repair Shop" set up.

A nurse (Candy Frost) sat at a little table and listened intently to the lovelorn people lucky enough to snag a time slot, and offered prescriptions for their heart's recovery. Though deeply needed, I was not among those to get an appointment, and the guy that had just finished his own diagnosis had his lips sealed (though with a look of serenity on his face), so I can't really report as to what really went down. And my heart still needs fixing ... but I digress.

Onward! An evening stroll back up Venice Boulevard led us to the Wallspace pop-up happening in the yard at Sea You Are Free space on the corner of Venice and Abbot Kinney. It's always a good time there on the corner, and last night was no different. Wallspace represents several artists, and there were about 10 different ones showing there last night. I think my favorite of the bunch were the street signs repurposed with cooler words from Scott Froschauer ...with more uplifting messages than the typical "Stop" and "Yield" and "No Parking".

Once we realized there was only ten minutes left in most of the VAC stops, we sat down on a bench in the yard and finally took a breather. My friend's son, Declan, was with us much of the Crawl, and after spending the whole evening looking at art and meeting up with O.G. Venice folks, he said, "I'm so happy we live in Venice." This kid was born and raised here, so that made it even more special. He doesn't take if for granted, and every day feels fortunate to be brought up in such an original place that cares about our art and our community. I feel exactly the same way every day, but it's nice to hear it from a kid.

Now starving, we set out to find food only to find that almost every place on Abbot Kinney now closes their dang kitchens at 10:00 p.m. That is lame. Drinks were no problem (and there was even art at The Brig and Wabi Sabi, by Nicole Hoffman and Debbie Zeitman, respectively), but that's never a good idea on a completely empty stomach.

We did an entire lap around Venice - for real - and found that now back on Pacific,  even Mao's was closed! Where is an Art Crawler supposed to eat AND see all the art?! A real conundrum ... with the answer ending up being In and Out. Sigh. No real matter ... it was another fantastic event that we are lucky to have going down in our town. And now the annual Art WALK is this Sunday, so it truly is almost an embarrassment of artistic riches down here. Come see, won't you?

Hooray for the V.A.C.!!

David Hockney And Alison Saar At The LA Louver

I couldn't make the big opening for the new shows at the LA Louver last Wednesday evening, as I had a prior engagement, but I'm not mad. I just went to check out the art the next day, up close, sans crowd, where I really got to appreciate it. Downstairs at the Venice Boulevard gallery is showing Topsy Turvy from Alison Saar, and it is excellent. "Topsy" refers to the character in Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin, and the wood sculptures and paintings on vintage linens portray the slave girl as a symbol of defiance.

The room is dominated by the five life-sized girls holding tools that were used in southern plantation crops: a machete, tobacco knife, hoe, sickle, and bale hook. They are going after the masters and are camouflaged by cotton branches. Someone had called my friends at Fiore Designs to order an arrangement to gift Saar on the night of the opening, and had asked for something featuring cotton blossoms, and now I understood why.

The Wrath Of Topsy sculpture shows off the little pigtails that remind one of Medusa  ...

... and High Cotton has the young girls ready for war.

From the press release, "For Saar, these works summon the collected rage and frustration for our current times" and were inspired by the poet Audra Lorde, who said that, "Racism and homophobia are real conditions of all our lives in this place and time ... I urge each one of us here to reach down into that deep place of knowledge inside herself and touch that terror and loathing of any difference that lives there. See whose face it wears. Then the personal as the political can begin to illuminate all our choices." That is so heavy, and so true. Kudos to Saar for portraying these truths in such a beautiful and touching way.

Upstairs is the new David Hockney show, in celebration of the classic L.A. artist's 80th birthday. It's a lot lighter fare, both in theme and colors used. Each piece was created on either an Ipad or an Iphone, showing just how far technology has advanced in the art world. As Hockney has said, "Anyone who likes drawings and mark-making will like to explore new media."

All of the work was done between 2009-2012, and the Louver show marks the first time they will be on view in Los Angeles. The portability of the phone and Ipad gave Hockney the means to create anytime, anywhere, and as his proficiency on the technology grew, so did the drawings. It's extra impressive, considering many of his generation have trouble just sorting out how to text. Hockney gets it.

With subjects ranging from oranges to ashtrays to his own self-portraits, Hockney turned his screen drawings into prints, which are what you will see at the Louver. Some of the works were originally shown in Paris at the Musée Yves Saint Laurent, where they were actually displayed on phones and pads. The prints make it much easier, I imagine, to view all the subtle strokes and colors of Hockney's vision.

Those saturated colors cheer you up the moment you reach the room at the top of the stairs, and make one want to have them all, as it's pretty hard to choose a favorite from such a bright and sunny collection. If pressed, I'd go with the bowl of oranges or the sunrise from Hockney's bedroom window. I love the quote in Hockney's press release - "I draw flowers every day on my Iphone and send them to my friends, so they get fresh flowers every morning ... and my flowers last." Well, if Hockney is still accepting new friends ... please count me among them. I love eternal flowers. 

It's Good Friday, and checking out this wonderful exhibition could make it a Great Friday. In fact, it kind of goes with the holiday weekend ... the darkness and uncertainty of Good Friday (and our current world), followed by the beauty and hope of Easter Sunday (with the optimism that things can be reborn and light will come again).  Wherever you are, I hope you will feel that hope.

David Hockney Iphone and Ipad Drawings 2009-12

Alison Saar Topsy Turvy 

Both showing at LA Louver now through May 12, 2018 

New Shows At LA Louver - Starring Matisse

I hadn't been to an opening at the L.A. Louver for a while, so it was lovely to head over there last night and see both new art and a bunch of familiar faces to wish a "Happy New Year" to (I'll say it until I see you the first time in it). I love it when everyone comes out in the name of art.

The ground floor held a group show called "Elemental" that featured sculptures by a variety of diverse artists from Carl Andre to Yoko Ono, all in materials that were in some form raw - elemental. Richard Deacon's Siamese Metal #6, 2012 was next to Peter Alexander's I Remember When It Was All Orange Groves that conjured no pastoral landscape that I could tell. Art. It was all rather cold, dark, and metallic ... reminding me a bit of the Trump's Christmas decorations.

A lot of people packed in to check it all out, and it was a mix of longtime Venetians and dudes that probably rode in on Bird scooters (Please don't. They make you look like SUCH tools. Thanks.). Art lovers and scenesters congregated in the main room around a piece by Richard Long called Trastevere Spring Line, 2012.

The piece I liked the most downstairs was Sundog by Peter Shelton, mainly because I had recently seen a magical rainbow sundog in the sky back in Minnesota, and this brought back a fond memory. All reactions to art are personal, if you think about it ... and sometimes you really have to search for that connection ...

... as in the altered fridge that Josh Callaghan titled Monument To World Peace made one wonder just how a household appliance could accomplish such a thing, but kudos for trying.

The upstairs skyroom held more sculptures, centered around a little ceramic dude by Matt Wedel that was fun and whimsical, and it gave one a breath of fresh air while checking it out.

The best in show/s was a wonderful display of art by Henri Matisse, showing works on paper from 1913 - 1948.  The drawing, etchings, and lithographs were almost all female, and almost all nude, and all highly covetous (and they're all for sale!). They're all so simple and sultry, conjuring up what felt like an easier, breezier time. La Sieste, 1938 was particularly dreamy, and kept distracting me from all of the conversation happening around.

These shows are all on display until March 3, and it's always a lovely addition to any day to take in the art at L.A. Louver, whatever they are showing. Venice is nothing without its art.

Calvin & Hobbes Love You!

Awwww. Returning from the beach this morning, I was thinking about everything in the whole world, like most days. As much garbage news and as many mean-spirited people as there in this joint, there really are some truly lovely ones. Like the person behind the "Someone loves you" street art. This morning they struck again, and there was a new one featuring Calvin & Hobbes letting everyone know that they are loved.

I'm sorry that I don't know who the artist is to properly credit them (let me know if you do!), but I want them to know it's appreciated, and almost always seen when it's really needed.

Thank you to them for this little day-maker there at the entrance to the Venice Canals. And just so they know ... someone loves them - and their work -  too. XOXO.

anyone lived in a pretty how town ... called venice

Things have been pretty hectic lately, and my morning walks have suffered. Well, TGIF, and my reward was a glorious, gorgeous morning stroll all over town. I hit the Venice Farmer's Market to get my citrus and salad fix for the week, and say hi to all the lovely locals there. I was thinking how I haven't gotten out that much and my stories have suffered as well ... and then on my way to the beach, I turned a corner on Venice Boulevard and got another reward.

e.e. cummings is one of my all-time favorite poets, and there painted on a little bungalow's fence was one of my all-time favorite e.e. cummings poems - anyone lived in a pretty how town. It could not be more charming, and could not have made my day more ...

... until I turned the corner again, and saw the triptych of lovely hand paintings that accompanied the poem.

A sand stroll was extra necessary after this, and the view from the Venice Pier this morning was breathtaking. I thought about the poem again.

It made me happy, and made me grateful that the artists and the poets of Venice are still what make it a pretty how town.

A beautiful start to a beautiful weekend for everyone who lives in our little town by the beach, and to all everywhere. Good vibes only this weekend, ok, Universe? Thanks.

anyone lived in a pretty how town
(with up so floating many bells down)
spring summer autumn winter
he sang his didn’t he danced his did.

Women and men(both little and small)
cared for anyone not at all
they sowed their isn’t they reaped their same
sun moon stars rain

children guessed(but only a few
and down they forgot as up they grew
autumn winter spring summer)
that noone loved him more by more

when by now and tree by leaf
she laughed his joy she cried his grief
bird by snow and stir by still
anyone’s any was all to her

someones married their everyones
laughed their cryings and did their dance
(sleep wake hope and then)they
said their nevers they slept their dream

stars rain sun moon
(and only the snow can begin to explain
how children are apt to forget to remember
with up so floating many bells down)

one day anyone died i guess
(and noone stooped to kiss his face)
busy folk buried them side by side
little by little and was by was

all by all and deep by deep
and more by more they dream their sleep
noone and anyone earth by april
wish by spirit and if by yes.

Women and men(both dong and ding)
summer autumn winter spring
reaped their sowing and went their came
sun moon stars rain

- e.e. cummings 

An Ocean Avenue Installation

 *Update 10/18: I walked by this morning and it's all gone. Even the bushes. In less than 24 hours.
   Sorry, dudes. I was into it. Keep your art going!

Over the past couple of weeks, I've noticed an increasingly larger homestead/art installation growing at the corner of Ocean Avenue and South Venice Boulevard. It's clearly a little colony of houseless neighbors, creating their shelter in the bushes located there ... and decorating it for passersby to enjoy.

Not everyone is enjoying it, however. A woman at the Farmer's Market last Friday told me that she'd been making calls to have it cleared out, but to no avail. She said she was told that you can actually get arrested yourself if you try to remove the things from the property. She felt it was a more nefarious deal, and that police might have been told by council people and/or those who want to see the big homeless housing development happen on Venice Boulevard to leave it be. To let things get as bad and obvious as possible to get more people to sign on for the housing project. Hmm.

I don't know about all of that, but I do know that it is some of the more creative construction happening around Venice these days (other than the Frank Gehry house finally going up!). I'm about to make friends and ask if there's room for me, as it seems to be about the only remotely reasonable housing currently available around these parts (Seriously. Where are all my cool landlord friends hiding?!), and this is where I want to be. What are the rules, anyway? You can just put up a tipi wherever you want and live in and landscape around it? Cool. I had an offer off an unused geodesic dome that its owner said I could borrow if I could find land to put it on ... out of the box, but at least some people are still being innovative in Venice.

My friend said they must be rookies, as no one who lives on the streets is ever trying to attract that much attention to themselves. I've seen police there talking to the residents a few times now, and have thought their time there must be up, only to pass by the following morning to see it all still intact. I'm not mad at it. We all know Venice real estate is almost evilly ridiculous as of this writing, and you do what you have to do. Venice has long been a beacon for travelers of all kinds, and certainly one for artists. This corner appears to be for both. And art is for everyone.

I'm curious what other Venice folks think about this ... let's discuss.

Life Is A Beach. Grab A Bucket!

Man, what a week. Sometimes you just need to go to the beach. So I did. On the way down, I saw this person pulled over in the broad daylight pasting something up on the utility box. I liked that they were so brazen about it, and looked forward to what it would be.

On the way back, they were done and gone. There was some new street art there by MegZany featuring Strawberry Shortcake, telling us that "Life is a beach. Grab a bucket." I love it. I was a big fan (as was my brother) of Strawberry Shortcake and her gang (particularly Orange Blossom and Apple Dumpling), and everyone knows I'm a big big fan of the beach. But I also like the sentiment. Yeah, times are hard, but you gotta do something about it. Grab a bucket.

It's a glorious Friday, gearing up for another glorious weekend at the beach in Venice. There is much to be grateful for. Life is a beach ... !

We Mob Deep

I was back in Venice taking my morning stroll today, when I came upon this old painting of a lighthouse attached to a sign in front of the Pacific Resident Theater. Someone had tagged over it and written "We Mob Deep", and then bothered to hang it on a parking sign. I kind of love it.

And I love how well "Mob Deep" accurately describes Venice and its denizens that care about it. When you love a place like the people I'm talking about do, you take it seriously. You have each others' backs, which I'm finding out now more than ever. You fight for what's right, and defend against what is wrong. And we run mob deep.

Love you, Venice. Thank you.




*And RIP Prodigy from Mobb Deep.

The World Wall - A Vision Of The Future Without Fear At SPARC

The World Wall is another wonderful project conceived by artist Judy Baca, and SPARC held an opening last weekend to unveil the Canadian section of the wall.

The World Wall: A Vision of the Future Without Fear is a traveling installation mural that began in 1987 and is still in progress. Currently, the wall is made up of nine 10 X 30 foot portable panels, and when completed it will include 14 works, with 7 from different nations, and 7 led by Baca. Thus far, Finland, Russia, Israel/Palestine, Mexico, and now Canada are represented. It addresses the big issues facing the world today, like war, peace, cooperation, environment, interdependence, and spiritual growth ... and it is beautiful.

SPARC opened its doors last weekend to show off the new contribution from Canada, The Inuit Send The World A Canary, by Tania Godoroja Pearse (assisted by Kriss Boggild and Kathy Kaiser). It shows an oil pipeline pouring into the doom of climate change on one side, and nature with people working together on the other, and it is a triumph of color and meaning. When this entire wall is complete and assembled, it is going to be a wonder of the world. Like I want to nominate Baca for the Nobel Peace Prize degree of wonder. This is one of the most important works of art happening today, in my humble opinion - and just straight up fact.

There was fine food and drink for all who attended the opening at SPARC, and though I had to run off to another show, I did get to catch up briefly with the SPARC gang to congratulate them. We also discussed how Joel Silver needs to give back the Edward Biberman Venice mural that was in our former post office to be on public display permanently at SPARC. It's for the entire Community to enjoy, not some private production office that isn't even up and running after years, leaving the old P.O. an empty ghost building of no neighborhood vision. It's just sad. And wrong. Give it back, Silver!

I digress. Please take this exceptional opportunity to view an artistic miracle in progress while it is on exhibition at SPARC until October 13, 2017. This is how you create world peace and progress, by working together as one world, one heart, one love. When you see spectacular works like this, you know that it is indeed possible.

SPARC
685 Venice Boulevard
Venice