The Venice Premiere of UNZIPPED: An Autopsy of American Inequality - A True Venice Reunion!

The Venice Premiere of UNZIPPED: An Autopsy of American Inequality was held last weekend at the Mishkon Temple on Main Street, on a beautiful night in a historic building filled with friends. 

 

I had never been inside the Temple, and you would never know how big it is inside ... and how full it would soon be with all of our Venice loved ones. A long line formed outside, and the buzz was building as friends happily greeted each other and caught up as fast as they could before the movie was to begin.

 

The long road to getting this film out into the world began in Venice, and was made for and by Venetians. To finally get to see it in a room jam-packed with people that also care deeply about our chosen home was both very exciting and very moving. I was close to tears the entire evening. 

As I'm still deep in caregiver mode for my family in Minnesota, I had to just zoom in for the event. That made it even more special and emotional, because I had to soak it all in for just one night, and try to get to see and talk to everyone at once who I miss so dearly. Of course, that was impossible, so please consider this both my thank you note and my love letter to all of you who were there to support us and our Venice movie. 

All of the happy reunions and catching up of course meant that the film had to start on "Venice Standard Time" - which is always a little later than stated. Once we got everyone seated, there was a land acknowledgement and welcome from Carol Levy, the Mishkon President, as well as an update and welcome from Kristina von Hoffman, President of the Venice Heritage Museum. The VHM was one of our chosen beneficiaries of the evening, as well as a valuable resource throughout the making of our film. We all learned that it looks like the VHM will have a home as soon as this year! Great news! It will be a wonderful place for people to learn all about our beloved town that has given so much to the American culture. Venice Family Clinic was also there as a beneficiary and partner, and the good they do for our community is on full display in our film. THANK YOU, VFC!

UNZIPPED is not a documentary trying to tell you how things should be. It is a vehicle to get a conversation started about how we can all find solutions together for the unhoused situation that has gotten out of control in Los Angeles in recent years. And get a conversation started it definitely did - even DURING the film! In true Venetian fashion, audience members were shouting back to the screen, cheering for faces they know and love, jeering at others who maybe are missing that empathy chip that is so crucial to any hope of harmony in our world. It was awesome. 

Cheers rang out as Run The Jewels kicked in and the credits ran, and then it was time for more socializing and catching up. As hoped, there was much discussion about the homeless issue, and what everyone thinks is best for Venice. PERFECT. Keep it up! We need to not look away, and we need to look out for each other - whether we have housing or not. It's a very complicated issue (as the audience let us know), but we don't have the option of looking away. We can all do better. We all MUST do better. And we don't want it to stop with seeing the film and having discussion about it. There are SO many ways to get involved in our #RaiseTheRoof campaign ... there are so many ways to help in the world - just pick ONE. 

It was all over way too soon, and I didn't even nearly get to talk to everyone I wanted to, but I saw your faces and felt your love, and carried it all back with me the next day (after the crucial and glorious beach afternoon, followed by Hinano's!) with a smile on my face and in my heart. 

If you weren't able to join us at the Venice screening, you're still in luck! The Oscar qualifying run of UNZIPPED begins TODAY at the Santa Monica Laemmle for one week. There will be a Q and A with our director, Colin Gray, after the Tuesday screening (that I will HATE to not be at), and I hope you can get there to see it in a proper theater. There will also be a New York premiere in May, and a big Hollywood red carpet whole deal premiere on June 1st, and a streaming release that will make it available in 192 countries right on your own tvs. Please stay tuned for all of the developments regarding the film, and please try to get involved in your own way. 

 

Affordable housing needs to be enshrined as a HUMAN RIGHT. It is unconscionable that there is even one person living on the street in a country this wealthy, never mind whole tent cities. It's really embarrassing, and as one of our interview subjects in the film says, other countries in developing parts of the world look at US as backwards. As they should. And we all know we can do better. 

There was a lot of work and heart and emotion put into this film, and our whole team has a deep love for Venice that is up on the screen for all to see. I miss our groovy old Venice, and anyone who lived there in those times knows what I mean. The magic is still there in Venice, it's just maybe a little harder to find than it was back in the day ... unless you know where to look. And all you had to do last Saturday was sit down in a darkened theater among your COMMUNITY gathered together to know that you were surrounded by that only in Venice vibe that will always be kept alive in each one of us, wherever we may go. 

THANK YOU, VENICE!! I LOVE YOU! Now go see UNZIPPED, let us know what you think, and let's roll up our sleeves together to make our Community - and the WORLD - a better, even MORE magical place. 

#RaiseTheRoof !!!!

The 40th Anniversary Venice Art Walk!

The forecast said rain for Sunday, and that would be a major drag for the 40th anniversary edition of the Venice Art Walk to benefit our Venice Family Clinic ... but the sun came out just in time, and the day was glorious in every way.

We were shooting artists and families for our documentary 90291: VENICE UNZIPPED, so it was extra great that the rain stopped, like PHEW. I didn't get around to as many artist studios as I usually do, because we were shooting, but I did get to race through the Google campus to see the silent auction part of the day. There didn't seem to be as much art in there as most years, but I didn't have as much time either, so all was well - and there was plenty of art to be seen.

The Gold's Gym parking lot was decked out as a family fun zone, complete with a rainbow balloon arch to welcome you, as we were looking for real rainbows in the sky.

So many local (and global) artists support the Venice Art Walk, and the Venice Family Clinic supports so many artists - and regular people too. Health care is such an issue in this country, and that we have a resource that looks out for everyone - regardless of income - is a special gift, and really the point of the entire event and day.

I had just been to the wonderful We Rise L.A. opening night a couple nights before, so my head was full of art that actually matters, and was happy to see that the artists representing Venice were also using their heads and talents to make their points.

There was a lot of great work, and I just quick snapped shots of the ones that I'd want to have in my own home, like the California Bear.

I met a woman named Kim Schoenstadt at a party the night before, and she told me her work would be in the Art Walk, so I looked for it and found it there. It's pretty cool, as it's kind of paint by number, and you buy the outline, then fill it in yourself for an interactive piece. Cool, right?

There was work by people you see on the streets of Venice every day, and there was work from people that aren't living anymore. There were things with low opening bids from up and comers, and there were real expensive pieces by dudes like Ed Ruscha.

The signature artist this year was Laura Owens, whose work was not only up for auction, but adorned all the official tote bags this year.

This year they had a bunch of Art Walk artists do their own version of a dog sculpture, and the individually decorated hounds were also up for auction.

There are always a lot of cool people roaming around the Venice Art Walk, but probably the coolest this year was Flea, who was not trying to blend in with his entirely purple outfit, yellow shoes, and pink hair.  Californication personified!

Andy Moses had a piece that reminded me of really good Spin Art, and it made me think of his dad, Ed, who we lost last year.

One of my favorite pieces inside was one that said "Good Night, Sleep Tight" with words made of a collage of hotel/motel ephemera from a Crosby, Stills, and Nash tour. How cool, and it also touched my heart because that is what our Mom has always said before we went to sleep.

The Beer Garden area was crowded and jumping, with people happy to be outside enjoying the sunshine and art.

I had to race off to meet back up with my film crew, but quickly stopped off to see the great work by M.B. Boissonnault in her studio. We had interviewed her for our documentary earlier in the day, as one of our favorite Venice artists and a woman with great things to say. There was a constant flow through her studio, so our visit was brief, but gratifying. Thanks, M.B.!

From there it was a short walk over to the studio of Tanja Skala and Greg Falk, who were our next subjects to film for an interview. I always love my visits to this husband/wife team and the incredible studio of theirs that they built themselves from scratch. Skala always does a riveting, profound performance piece for the Art Walk, which are always a highlight of the day for me each year. This year found Skala and her friend acting as doctors, giving prescriptions of "Empathy Pills" to the patients that came through.

They sat in front of a periodic table of human emotions, and as you stood in front of it, you really got that of all of the emotions that we feel, empathy is the one most needed in this world right now.

That is true for our film also, and in interviewing Skala and Falk (with his amazing work upstairs that includes a speed wheelchair made from skateboard parts! Giving back!) we realized what a good summation it also is for our project. In examining income inequality, homelessness, gentrification, and art in our community, the number one thing most needed right now IS empathy.

That is also true of the Venice Art Walk itself. Artists of all levels contribute to the event to give back to the clinic that helps other members of their community in a beautiful example of yes, Empathy.

I didn't get to see as much art as I would have liked this year, but what I did see was beautiful and moving ... and all for a wonderful cause! It was also great to see so many locals out and about enjoying art in and about the heart of Venice.

Thank you to the Venice Art Walk crew for another excellent year of art and empathy! Love.

The 2018 Venice Family Clinic Art Walk & Auctions - Art And Healthcare For Everyone!

The 2018 Venice Family Clinic Art Walk & Auctions  took place yesterday, and showed once again - for the 39th time! - why it is an annual event that Venice looks forward to all year. My dear friend, Deb, was coming west to spend the day at the Walk with me, and I couldn't have been more thrilled. The May Gray burned off as soon as we'd finished fueling up at The French Market, and we were off to Google headquarters to pick up our maps and wristbands for the studio tours.

The entire area was already packed by the noon starting time, and people were ready to check out some ART. And there was SO MUCH art. Phew. The Google headquarters is always a good place to start, and it's free, so it really is an event for the whole community. Outside, there was a kid zone, food trucks, an art car "museum", arts and crafts booths, workshops, and the merch area, where you could pick up this year's t-shirt designed by Alexis Smith with a print of her "Stairway To The Stars".  Own it. Love it.

The silent auction inside of Google features so many artists you don't really even know where to begin. I wanted nearly every piece, and with so many bids being placed, you can see why this is the Venice Family Clinic's biggest fundraiser of the year. Art for good! My first favorite was Till The Clouds Roll By, 2018 by Patrick Haemmerlein. I was clearly outbid, because I didn't get back in time and I didn't win it. Boo, but happy for whomever got this great piece of art.

I also loved Pacific, 2016 by Lynn Hanson. A sea painting on a pull-down map! Ooooh.

A piece by Sam Durant (also an honoree of the event, and a past client of Venice Family Clinic) was really the whole point of the fundraising day, called, Everyone Deserves Healthcare, 2018. The serigraph was created especially for this year's Art Walk. It spoke the absolute truth, and served to remind everyone what the day was all about.

Another honoree of the event was the late Ed Moses, who was represented by his son, Andy Moses, and by a gorgeous live painting that was done to remember this Venice legend.

Guillermo Bert told us You Don't Have The Right To Remain Silent, 2017 - and you don't. Not in these times. There were several works that touched on current events, but this one was one of the most pointed.

In that same vein was another favorite  ... God, Leave The Rockstars Take The Politicians, 2018 by Adam Mars. My sentiments exactly.

"It's on every Collector's Calendar" was one of the event's tag lines, and if you are a collector of photography, there was a TON for you to choose from. Alfred Stieglitz (!) to Danny Clinch, John Van Hamersveld's Muddy Waters to The Eazy E by Mike Miller. And if you were lucky, you could get it for a steal.

There was live painting going down outside, and Jim Morrison was being both painted and adorned with flowers as he watched over the live music and beer garden in the patio outside of Google. Love Street vibes, for sure.

The clock was running on the Art Walk, so we set out to see how many artist studios we could get to while they were all still open. The complex next to Gjusta was up first, and I revisited my new friends from Wallspace, who were showing several of the works we saw at the Venice Art Crawl three days earlier.

They were popping up in MB Boissonnault's space, so I got to see her excellent, wave-like works again too.

Up the hall, I checked in with Marty Katon, who was chatting with visitors while a pigeon in a cage cheeped along. His wildlife and Native American pieces are so great, and he's even now doing original oil paintings on bracelets - as seen on such trendsetters as Rihanna!

I was delighted to find that my friend, William Attaway, was back in his own space just a few doors down from his longtime studio next to Gjusta. There are new works, including a giant giraffe sculpture that he did at the "Bombay Beach Biennale". Attaway is a Venice classic, and Art Walk would never be the same without his outstanding work on display. Welcome back, Attaway!!! (not that it ever felt like you were gone).

Jim Budman's studio is always a fun place to visit. He's always rearranging and adding things, and it's a treasure chest of interesting curios and art. Plus Mr. Budman is always a treasure chest of stories and bon mots himself. The only drag is that you don't want to really linger any one spot, because there is just so much to see all over town ... so off we went.

It was tempting to stick around Patrick Johnston's ceramic studio to enjoy a cold Tecate, but man, the art. We admired his collaboration pieces depicting Venice scenes, and I vowed to return for one of my own one day soon (when I have my own shelves again). Hugs and well wishes were exchanged and back to it we went.

We headed over to the studio of Alejandro Gehry, the son of architect, Frank, and an impressive artist in his own right. His series of the women of punk rock (Belinda Carlisle, Siouxie, etc...) were on display, as were his new works of women in military helmets. He was there explaining these works to some visitors when we arrived, and said that he got the idea for the concept works when women were allowed to be in combat. I would have loved to stay and hear more ... but more art was calling!

My former next door neighbors on Westminster were showing in their home studios, and Brad Miller and Mollie Favour both showed their fantastic works off. To get to Favour's studio, you took a wooden staircase covered with wisteria to get there. Inside, Favour was working on paintings featuring those same wisteria, and they were lovely. We thanked them for sharing, and took off over to Broadway to see still more art.

The massive studio of Greg Falk and his wife, Tanja Skala, was our next stop, and was a highlight of the Walk, as it always is.

Falk was showing his super interesting work upstairs, like the piece that displays world currencies according to their longitudes, where he found that the melanin in the faces gets lighter the more north you go.

There was a piece showing the ten most read books in the world, which we were admiring when all of a sudden we heard LOUD shouting from downstairs...

Skala was leading about a dozen women in a performance art piece that voiced female affirmations as they quoted Maya Angelou's Still I Rise. We were their only audience at the time, and it gave me chills as it gave their legs bruises. Powerful stuff, and I'm so happy to call this creative force of a couple my friends. Wow.

As we were still pretty close to Google, and my friend, Lacey Cowden, was about to play in the courtyard, we kicked it back over there to enjoy Lacey's tunes, and also take a quick breather in the shade (as it was now a bright, sunny day after the marine layer burned off).

We couldn't get too comfortable, though, as most of the other studios were further away, and we needed to hop on one of the shuttles circling around town. We got on a blue line shuttle, and headed for the home studio of Matthew Heller. Heller's great works with song lyrics and asterisks are some of my current favorite local artworks, and it was fun to get to see where they were created.

The wonderful Amy Kaps' pad was our next stop, and she was there in full black and white striped regalia. I was overjoyed to hear that she has been booked to do one of her performance pieces for RedCat Theater in its upcoming season. Richly deserved, and not to be missed!

Rohitash Rao's studio was our next visit, and I was real happy to hear the news that he gets to stay in his space that he was about to be booted from - thanks to Wabi Sabi, who offered to share the space with him. That's how a community that wants to keep its artists living and working nearby works together to make it happen. NOT by jacking up rents so that no one cool remains. Ahem. Rao's art is some of the very best around - and wittiest - around. I love every single thing, but especially the little plane in the big sky with a bubble saying, "Excuse me, Stewardess? I speak jive." Love.

I quickly stopped by Gary Palmer's studio, where we drank the last of his wine, and saw more of the work that we'd been teased by over at the silent auction.

Now it was four, and as many of the studios were closing down, and Deb had to get back East to let her dogs out, it was back to Google for me, where several friends had been texting, "Where are you?!" from. Now was the time to enjoy a little wine and the musical stylings of Foxtrails playing for a now extra-packed lawn. So many friends and local acquaintances were there, you couldn't even finish an entire conversation ... and I loved it.

By the time we did our fair share of gabbing and wine drinking, the food trucks and all that outside were closing up shop, and we decided to hit Hal's for happy hour and a resting of the feet. More friends congregated there, and it was a whole posse that then headed over to Flavio Bisciotti's studio to help him celebrate his birthday, that also happened to fall on this day. Friends reveled and congratulated him on a new year, and admired his work while we were at it. Oh, and there was more wine. Cheers, Flavio!!

It had been a super long day (after a super long night staying up to watch the royal wedding the night before and I was BEAT). As I headed straight for the bed waiting for me, I was walking down Abbot Kinney and got escorted part of the way by the passing Venice Electric Bike Parade! What a wonderful and fitting conclusion to a day that is always about Venice and the arts. Spectacular!

Once again, EVERYONE DESERVES HEALTHCARE!!! And the Venice Art Walk happens each year to bring us closer to that truth, and that reality. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, to all involved in the creation and execution of this wonderful annual art extravaganza. We love the ART, and we love you, Venice Family Clinic!

Until next year ... Keep art in Venice alive every day!