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Cerro Coso artists display work in show this coming Tuesday

By Eva Poole-Gilson

The students in Cerro Coso Community College’s art classes will celebrate their new work with a show opening November 15th, Tuesday, at the Bishop campus. Art professors Patty Holton, Theresa Otto, and Deborah Lurie invited their painting/drawing  and ceramics students to put together a joint show so the community could see and enjoy original art of differing types. The reception for the show will be held from 5-7 p.m. in the Learning Resource Center at the College.

Ceramics by Professor Theresa Otto

Patty Holton and Theresa Otto are presently co-teaching the Ceramics class, with an enrollment of about twenty, most of whom will be represented in the show. Patty has taught for Cerro Coso Community College for the past seven years. The Ceramics classes offer techniques in hand-building and throwing-on-the-wheel with clay. Ms. Holton’s brain-child was the tile mural called Celebrating the Sierra, recently installed on the east, outside wall of Bishop’s branch of Inyo County Library, downtown. The mural, highlighting the flora and fauna of the Eastern Sierra, was five years in the making, worked on by 125 people and spearheaded by a faithful corps of nine. The tiles for the mural were created and fired at Cerro Coso Community College and stored, when necessary– until installation, at the home of Betty Cameron, a member of the faithful corps. Patty, who herself created tiles for the mural, has also shown her work—oil paintings and mixed media creations—in galleries here and on the East Coast.

“Why encourage art students to display their work?” The three professors gave numerous reasons: to spark their creativity; to inspire their continuing efforts; to encourage them to value their own ingenuity; and to see their work in context with other students’ work.  Theresa Otto offered one particularly important answer. She talked about an art class she’d taken in college; even though she became and worked as a nurse, she always hankered back to that art class, how much she enjoyed it, how much she missed it. She found that it had kept a kind of balance for her during college years—in the scale of academics, personal life, and future plans and work prospects. Theresa eventually gave up nursing to devote her work efforts to art, to the remembered value with which it had enriched her life. “A show like this,” she said, “might keep that important spark of interest in art alive in these students after graduation.”

Deborah Lurie has been teaching at Cerro Coso Community College for four years. This semester her painting and drawing students have already visited local art galleries and also enjoyed a few “plein-air” classes. In our unique outdoor world, the latter certainly affords them the opportunity of studying composition, color, and some of the most beautiful subject matter in nature. Since her own college days, Deborah has been a working artist, over the years perfecting her individually distinctive style in watercolor, pen and ink, and charcoal. She also creates hand-built sculpture.

Tile by Professor Patty Holton

A piece or two from each professor will also grace this show, on display through November 28th only—so hurry down to the reception at the Learning Resource Center of Bishop’s Cerro Coso Community College, just off Line Street, five miles west of Bishop. Please call 760.872.1565 or 760.872.5303 if you’d like more information. Art classes will be available for registration for the Spring 2012 Semester at both Bishop and Mammoth campuses. Open House registration is from 12-6 p.m on Monday, December 5 (Bishop) and 12-6 p.m. Tuesday, December 6 (Mammoth).

Valentine Reserve series

Each summer, UCSB is pleased to offer the public a chance to visit the Valentine Reserve, which is normally closed to the public. This week:

July 15: Wildflowers of the Reserve with Sherryl Taylor, from noon-12:30 p.m.; moderately strenuous hike around the spectacular Valentine Meadow.

July 16: Living History-Los Angeles to Valentine Camp in the 1920s with Old Timer Ken Irvine, from 9-11:30 a.m. Irvine is in character and period costuming to tell true tales of some of the most influential men of Los Angeles, who came to Valentine Camp to hike and fish

RSVP: Education Coordinator Leslie Dawson, ldawson@msi.ucsb.edu or call 760.935.4356.

IMACA summertime food drive

This summer Inyo Mono Advocates for Community Action (IMACA) is partnering with Vons to participate in another “Help Us End Hunger” food drive. Through July 24, Vons is selling pre-sacked bags of groceries containing “most needed” non-perishable items such as cereal, macaroni and cheese, spaghetti, peanut butter and tuna.

Due to the economy IMACA has seen an increase in demand for food assistance and they need help keeping their pantry stocked. It’s easy to help many individuals and families in need simply by purchasing a bag of food. More info: call 800.541.1822.

Not too late for skate camp

The three-day Grom Mania Skate Camp begins on Wednesday, July 20, 2011. The all day (9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.) camp will meet daily at the Shady Rest Skate Park for dropoff and pickup. In addition to a heavy emphasis on street scene skateboarding, the camp will also travel to summer hot spots and enjoy activities like bowling, swimming, and vert skating. Helmet, elbow pads and kneepads are required. The cost is only $100 per session or $35 per day, for ages 7-13 years. Register at the Recreation Department Office located above Giovanni’s or call 760.934.8989 ext. 222.

June Lake Festival Kids Camp

Summer is camp season, and this year, in conjunction wtth the June Lake Loop Music Festival, the Art Beat Foundation and Walter Lantz Foundation host a free, one-week music camp for Mono County kids to learn musical instrumentation, singing and stage performance. The camp will be held at the June Lake Community Center July 25-29, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. daily. The campers will perform Saturday, July 30, at noon during the Trout Town Jamboree. Snacks will be provided.

Online registration is available at www.artbeatfoundation.org. Email: china@artbeatfoundation.com or call 415.596.7386. More info about the June Lake Music Festival and Art Beat is available at www.junelakemusic.com. Also sponsored by Mono Council for the Arts and the June Lake Womens Club.

DSES Sierra Cycle Challenge

The cycling fundraiser, a fully supported three-day ride through the beautiful Eastern Sierra, departs from Footloose Sports in Mammoth Lakes on July 23. From there, it’s a ride down U.S. 395 to Benton Crossing Road and Hwy 120 East to Falls Creek Ranch, then back up to Sage Hen Summit and Grant Lake and return to Footloose Sports in Mammoth Lakes on July 25. Each rider must raise $1,200 to participate in this event. Fundraising is made easy through the DSES Firstgiving event page.

This year’s event is limited to 20 riders, so sign up early! Call 760.934.0791 to reserve your spot in this year’s ride.

You could be the lucky winner of this Cedar Juniper Tree painting by local artist Laurel Stanford Manning! This original piece of artwork will be sold to the highest bidder. Place your bid either on The Sheet News Facebook page, or by emailing support@thesheetnews.com. Bids will be accepted until Wednesday, July 6, and the winner will be announced in the July 8 issue of The Sheet. The painting is currently hanging at the Looney Bean in Mammoth. Stop by and take a closer look!

Cerro Coso Community College and Instructor Elizabeth Kenneday-Corathers are proud to announce an exhibit of art from the college’s Painting I and Painting II classes. The range of paintings gathered include classroom exercises as well as individual creations of note. The exhibit of paintings will be held on May 11 from 4:30 – 6:30 p.m. in the College Room (Learning Resource Center) at the Mammoth Public Library. The public is welcome and refreshments will be served.

Those interested in participating in Cerro Coso Community College art classes are invited to enroll in the Drawing classes beginning in August 2011. Registration is now open.

Mammoth Lakes Town Council held a study session with the Public Arts Commission prior to its regular meeting on Wednesday night. At the session, PAC presented its draft “Public Art Plan: Policies and Criteria,” which will be used to guide those wishing to install public art in the Town of Mammoth.

As with anything surrounding art, subjectivity came into play when Elizabeth Tenney came back to Council with her Gateway Monument project later in the evening, again requesting that the Town waive permit fees.

According to the draft Art Plan, the first design criteria for the identification, selection and acceptance of public art is that the art tells a story about the community and its surroundings.

However, during the study session discussion, Mayor Skip Harvey specifically pointed out that the PAC should not overlook art that is just fun. “It shouldn’t always have to tell a story,” he said.

When it came to Tenney’s Gateway Monument, one of the things the Council had asked her to do when she first came before it on March 16 was to take the project to the PAC to see if the Public Art Fund should cover the cost of the fees, as well as support the other in-kind requests Tenney was asking of staff time and grading operations. The PAC has used Public Art Funding to commission another entrance sign further down Hwy 203, near U.S. 395.

According to the April 6 staff report, PAC “came to consensus not to recommend funding portions of the [Gateway Monument] project through the Public Art Fund.”

The group’s rationale for this included its determination that the Gateway Monument is not “uniquely designed” as required in the context of the Municipal Code. Additionally, the group stated that it did not want to fund a similar project to the one it is commissioning just down the road.

At Wednesday’s Council meeting, PAC Chair Nick Holst added that the Gateway Monument “did not tell a story,” as PAC was suggesting be a requirement of public art in its Public Art Plan presented during the study session. He claimed the sign further down on Hwy 203 that PAC is funding will have a story that will relate to the mining history of Mammoth. The Gateway project does seem to conform to all of the other design criteria in the plan; again, however, the requirements are left open to subjectivity.

The monument sign, which may or may not include a sculpture someday, (the cost is too prohibitive at this time) will be made from granite and according to Tenney will give Mammoth a sense of place. Tenney showed slides of different national park signs across the country where people had stopped to take a picture in front of the sign. She believes the Gateway Monument project will inspire visitors to do the same in Mammoth. Inspiring people to stop and take a picture is part of the uniqueness requirement in the Public Art Plan.

The other design criteria in the plan are that the project should be located in a truly public place (Gateway Monument will be at the entrance to town in front of the public courthouse); long lasting, and made of highest quality.

When asked whether or not she thought it was odd that PAC was using Public Art Fund money for a sign just down the road from her Gateway Monument, Tenney said “I have no comment on that.” She did however point out that her project was not initially put forward as a piece of art, but as an entrance sign.

The Town Council followed the Commission’s advice and voted to use General Fund money rather than the Public Art Funds to support Tenney’s in-kind requests, approving the waiver of $2,807 in permit fees. According to Tenney, Mammoth Mountain is also providing significant support to the project, as are many others such as designer Larry Walker and architect Bruce Woodward.

“Rusty was flabbergasted with how great the mountain looks at that angle,” gushed Tenney, who is looking for volunteer support throughout the community. For information on how you can join in with contributions of help, expertise and funds, please contact Elizabeth Tenney at 760.709.6969 or e10ney@npgcable.com  (Donations will be tax-deductible through the Mammoth Community Foundation.)

In other Council news …

The Mammoth Lakes Town Council approved the framework for the Sierra Valley Sites Neighborhood District Study with direction to staff to pay special attention to the area’s storm drainage issues and all mobility issues.

Council also approved a letter that will be sent to Mono County requesting the County follow its own consultant’s advice and completely deal with the inequitable amount that the Town is paying in solid waste fees versus the rest of the County. “The Town receives 40 percent of the service but pays 60 percent of the fees,” explained Town Manager Marianna Marysheva-Martinez. The County’s consultant stated that the County would need to add $500,000 to the budget each year to correct this inequity. The County is proposing to add $288,000. The letter encourages the Supervisors to bump up to the full $500,000 before they take a vote on the issue next week.

Last night’s Snowbash at Wave Rave, part of the 12th Annual WWSRA trade show, brought t-shirt body art to the mountains. During a fashion show several models discreetly showed off their assets, which were covered in paint and little else. See more photos in this week’s print issue of The Sheet. (Photo: Kirkner)

Sketches for the Mammoth Art Park show, as art and snowboard park unite in jumps, jibs, rails and other features of this first-ever undertaking.

By St. Marie

Perhaps you’ve heard of art in a park before, but what about art in a snowboard park? Didn’t think so, since it’s never been done before. But that’s the task Mammoth Mountain Ski Area has undertaken this season with Mammoth Art Park, starting with the I AM SNOWBOARDING art exhibit honoring Jeffrey Lin Anderson.

The art will literally be in an Unbound Terrain Park on the Mountain, in the jumps, along the rails and in the “jib-able sculptures” and other park features—huge pieces of colorful art right there in the snow.

According to Torrey Cook of Artists Republic for Tomorrow, the art advocacy group curating the first exhibit, the original idea came from MMSA’s Action Sport Brand Manager Josh Chauvet and Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Mark Clausen.

“They both see the good feelings that art brings within a creative community of people—such as mountain riders—and wanted to support that by getting MMSA more involved,” Cook said.

I AM SNOWBOARDING was a natural fit for the first show since it is an exhibit featuring art by some of the top names in the snowboarding world all made in memory of another great snowboarder from Mammoth who died in 2003.

Cook said that because the Jeffrey Lin Anderson (JLA) Project has done such wonderful things for the community, with the Brothers Skateboard Park already being a “ride-able art park” and the I AM… show, it made perfect sense to have that as the first Art Park of the four planned for the season.

Dustin del Giudice, a Mammoth local known for his amazing metal work, is heading up the creation of all the Art Park features.

“Del Guidice has worked closely with the artists as well as graphic designer Peter Stow to make sure the art submitted translates seamlessly into handrails, boxes, and other three-dimensional objects that go into the Art Park. Some of these features are becoming massive jib-able sculptures,” Cook said, adding that all this makes the paintings come alive.

If you’re wondering if you’ll have to ski or snowboard through the Art Park to see for yourself, Cook said, “Of course, there will be photos and art posted online, but there is no better way to see this art than if you are up close and personal. People that come through the Art Park, even if just for a look, are going to take home an experience to talk about for years to come.”

The Art Park opened on Saturday, December 18.

Edison Hall to be returned to original educational facility concept, Beekley Art heads out the door (Photo: Kirkner)

After seven years of housing the Beekley International Collection of Skiing Art and Literature, the Mammoth Ski Museum is on the verge of a remodel that will relinquish the art collection and change the use of the building almost entirely.

Edison Hall, the building known as the location of the Mammoth Ski Museum and the offices of the Mammoth Lakes Foundation, will be turned back into an educational and cultural center if the remodel is approved by the Town. This was the original purpose of this building, which served as the first structure of Mammoth’s Cerro Coso Community College campus.

“We brought the Beekley collection here in 2003,” said Mammoth Lakes Foundation President and CFO Evan Russell. “It came from a private collector and was the first time it had been made public.”

Russell credits Mammoth Mountain Ski Area CEO Rusty Gregory with the idea of creating the Mammoth Ski Museum back then with this collection.

“We had hoped it would be an asset to the community but also that it would create a revenue source for the college. That hasn’t happened yet,” Russell said.

He claimed that while the community enjoyed the art collection, the items did not generate enough traffic to the museum, especially traffic that would be willing to pay for admission or purchase museum souvenirs once inside. Russell also pointed out that from the beginning the Museum had always hoped to find a larger space for the art since its current home only allows 5 percent of the collection to be on display at one time. That too has yet to happen. Therefore, the Mammoth Lakes Foundation has sent a letter of its intentions to the owners of the Beekley collection. Currently Russell does not know where the collection will end up once it leaves the Ski Museum.

“We think that the remodel will be a better, more sustainable use of the building,” Russell said.

The project will be tackled in three phases. MLF is currently working on obtaining permits to build a 100-seat theater that Russell hopes will not only give the Mammoth Lakes Repertory Theatre (a DBA of the Mammoth Lakes Foundation run by Shira Dubrovner) a permanent home, but will also generate money through ticket sales. If approved, this first phase would take place this fall.

“We’ll also be able to save money by not renting space at the Mammoth Lakes Arts Center’s theater,” Russell added, a fee that was costing them $1,500 per month this year. “Really the deciding factor, theater-wise, was the control that would come from having our own space.”

The goal is to complete the theater by Dec. 1 so the MLRT can hold its production of A Christmas Carol there. The cost of phase one is expected to be between $30,000 and $40,000.

Phase two will be the creation of an art studio for students interested in painting, drawing and pottery, and phase three will create a teaching kitchen that would hold 20-25 students. These two phases will get underway in 2011.

The change is expected to dovetail with and stimulate the community’s idea of a Cultural Center. Russell hopes it can help fill the gap until the actual center can come online.

The Mammoth Ski Museum in Edison Hall will continue to celebrate the history of Mammoth, Eastern Sierra culture and Dave McCoy’s photography.

“We want to keep this local history in the museum and in place in the building,” Russell concluded.

Mono Council for the Arts Gallery presents “Visions of Mono Lake,” showcasing art depicting Mono Lake in a variety of mediums. Artist reception May 29 from 5-8 p.m.  For more information e-mail Kendra at kendra@bluebirdimaging.com.

Welcome to our … town ??? industrial park ??? What do you think? (Photo courtesy TOML)

The town’s new proposed welcome sign, has of late sparked a lot of water cooler and coffee house debate. As with most art, what you see in it depends on who you are and your point of view. Some see art, others see a monicker for an industrial park, and still others see only the dollar signs associated with its cost.

Take, for instance, the members of the Public Arts Commission, who all had slightly differing opinions on the Janice Kabala-designed piece that is the finalist to supplant the current welcome sign on Hwy 203 at the entrance to town. Town Council asked the commission to pull together public and commission opinion and make a recommendation as to whether it should go ahead, go back to the drawing board or be put on hold. Commissioners took up the subject during their Tuesday morning regular meeting.

At the outset, Commissioners Bea Beyer and Kendra Knight expressed reservations. Beyer had a problem with the overall design and, even though she came in late to the discussion and applauded the work done to this point, would have a problem supporting the expense of the project.

“I know I’m something of a lone voice, but the existing sign has not been defaced and seems to reflect well the spirit of the town,” Beyer stated.

“The new concept does sort of scream, ‘Irvine.’ If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” Beyer said. “I’m really concerned with our throwaway society.”

She did, however, allow, “To be fair change involves risk.”

Price tag for removing the old sign, creating the new one and having it installed: $150,000. That’s where Knight said she was somewhat torn. “Early on, it was different and cost much less, around $50,000 was what we estimated the initial cost to be.” Chair Noelle Deinken pointed out that there was no real, hard and fast initial cost, but took her point that in any event it’s now higher.

“On the other hand, art is a form of communication and won’t necessarily communicate with everyone the same way,” Knight added. “It’s modern art, which by definition is ahead of its time.”

Since the process started, she added, the commission has been “confronted by the public on numerous occasions and weighed a lot of factors.” The new sign proposal was, Deinken related, one part of the Town’s branding study that was started about two years ago.

Commissioner Nick Holst surmised, and Town Senior Planner Sandra Moberly confirmed, that the additional cost was due to a certain amount of permitting and the estimated costs of removing the current sign and its footer, and installing the new welcome sign. Moberly said those figures weren’t included as part of the original sign’s cost, but would have to be included as part of any new sign, no matter what it was. She did, however, say the numbers pushing the cost that high are “very conservative” and that staff “expects it will probably be less.”

Deinken said she thought the sign was elegant. “It shows that Mammoth is with the times, and riding the wave of the future,” she commented.

Kabala, defending the merits of her work, said the sign was designed with rustic colors, recalling the area’s mining history, which she said we are bound to, like it or not. “There’s no sign like it anywhere in the world, including Irvine,” Kabala said. “It’s truly one of a kind.”

During public comment, Elizabeth Tenney said she approved of having art as a welcome sign, but had reservations. In a down economy, she said, it was important to “keep Mammoth up to snuff.”

“We need to give visitors a sense of warmth along with that welcome, and the sign’s concrete doesn’t convey that,” she opined. “It also doesn’t show the ‘best of Mammoth’.”

“It’s interesting, a well designed piece of sculpture, but not it,” she concluded.

Alan Blumer said he thinks the sign should include more elements associated with the town, such as more wood and stone, and be more representative of the Town’s stated “Village in the Trees” objective. “[The new concept] looks like something you’d see in a business park.”

Justin Everson wasn’t so hard on the concept. “My initial response was, ‘It’s a name tag.’ It’s hard to ‘get’ until you see the colors and textures. It’s not the same old thing.”

Holst agreed, indicating that the sign, which features letters lit from the inside and metal rosettes to catch and throw outside light, breaks with the tradition of aligning Mammoth with U.S. 395.

“Making a seamless transition from 395 to town isn’t practical or necessary,” he stated. “Doing that in itself would seem manufactured.”

“You [the Public Arts Commission and Kabala] have labored long and hard on this sign and I support it,” said Mayor Neil McCarroll said. “My term ends on June 8 and I would like to see something done by then.”

“I wanted to see something not homogeneous,” remarked Commissioner Michael Bornfeld. “Parts of the town are almost cookie-cutter, Disney-esque in terms of colors and sameness. This new sign adds some spice, some freshness.”

Sara Pfeiffer said she thought it might be better to try to blend some old with the new. “People have strong ties with the past they knew and grew up with,” she posited. “Integrate materials that speak to the recent past.”

Councilmember Skip Harvey wasn’t as critical of the piece itself as he was the whole new sign effort. “Our focus right now should be to enhance our guests experience in town, a la what Trail of the Trout did,” Harvey said. “I think it’s more important to have smaller displays of art throughout town versus one big sign.”

Moberly said that installation of the new sign would have to go out for public bidding, which Beyer pointed out could be problematic for local contrators, who are often outbid by outside companies. Kabala said, however, that if she has her way, the metal work for the sign will be done by a local artist. The concrete work, however, may have to come from out of state. Kabala said there are only two companies in the country that do the kind of work that incorporates integrated fiber-optic lighting.

The Commission voted 4-1 (with Beyer abstaining) to move the new sign plan to its next (and presumably final) step, recommend Kabala’s concept as is to Council for funding.

The concept renderings and color/texture samples for public viewing in the Town offices on the second floor of the Minaret Mall above Giovanni’s.