Vis-à-vis and its lively opposite

Meaning

In a position facing another. Literally 'face to face'. Often now used in the sense of 'in relation to'.

Origin

The term is French and began to be used in English in the mid 18th century. The French spelling is vis-à-vis, i.e. with the grave accent, although that is often omitted when written in English. It is now frequently printed, no doubt to French shrugs and mutterings, as 'vis-a-vis' or even 'viz-a-viz'.

When 'vis-à-vis' was introduced into England it was provided with two distinct meanings, both of which were in use from the 1750s onward. Oddly, it seems that these were both introduced by the author and politician Horace Walpole.

The first meaning was the literal translation from the French, i.e. 'face-to-face'. Walpole was an incurable letter writer and, fortunately for us, many of his letters have been published in a collection of books, which provides the first citation we have of the term in English, in Letter to George Montague, July 1753:

"He was walking slowly in the beau milieu of Brentford town, without any company, but with a brown lap-dog with long ears, two pointers, two pages, three footmen, and a vis-a-vis following him."

What he meant by a 'vis-a-vis' in that letter was 'a small two-seater carriage, in which the passengers sat face-to-face'. These carriages were similar to the four-seater version that Queen Elizabeth uses each year to tour the course at the Royal Ascot race meeting.

The meaning was extended to apply to any person or thing that was facing another, for example, one's dance partner, someone sitting across the table at mealtime, couples meeting in the street, etc. Mary Berry included a citation of the first of these in Social life in England and France from 1780 to 1830, 1831:

It seems perfectly indifferent to them [the peasant men and women dancing] who is their vis-à-vis.

Secondly, it meant 'with regard to'/'in relation to'. Horace Walpole again, in Letter to R. Bentley, November 1755:

"What a figure would they make vis-à-vis his manly vivacity and dashing eloquence."

It is this second meaning that we have held on to. We can now safety substitute 'with regard to' for 'vis-a-vis' with little fear of misinterpretation.

If you frequent square dances, you are likely to find yourself 'vis-à-vis' with your partner. When the dance caller shouts out do-se-do (also spelled 'dosey doe', 'dozy-doe' 'do si do', 'dosado' etc.) you had better turn around, for what he really means is 'dos-à-dos' - in the original French 'back-to-back'. Dos-à-dos was employed as widely as 'vis-à-vis' in the 19th century, being used as a name for carriages, duelling partners - anything in fact where the participants are back to back.

This Land Is My Land

This Land Is My Land
Art Show
Show Runs: March 10, 2012 – June 1, 2012
Opening Reception: Saturday, March 10, 6-8 PM

Join us and the artists for our show opening with music by LaWanda and Greg, on Guitar, Banjo, and Uke.

This Land is My Land focuses on the work of artists whose subject is landscape, seascapes or skyscapes in various mediums: Watercolor, Acrylic, Oil, Gouache, Pastel, Colored Pencil, Photography, Digital Art, Fiber Arts, Collage, Assemblage, Monotype and other printmaking, Batik, Jewelry, Crafts and Landscape Garden Art.
http://www.expressionsgallery.org/

Expressions Gallery
A Fine Arts Gallery in the Ashby Arts District in Berkeley, CA.

2035 Ashby Ave, Berkeley, California, a half a block from Ashby Bart 

Hours: Wednesday-Saturday, Noon-5pm, Sunday 12-3pm and by appt.

Phone: 510-644-4930

Featured throughout this show are a number of Free Events:

Friday night Literature and Poetry Readings and Open Mike, 7-9pm

March 16, 2012 
Featuring Selene Steese, Sherri Rose-Walker, Richard Hack

April 20, 2012 Featuring Jan Steckel, Jeanne Wagner
  
May 18,  2011: TBA

Writing Teachers Write, Fourth Wednesdays of Month 5:30- 7:30pm
March 28,  April 25, and May 23, 2012

Off-Site Shows

"Looking Back and Into the Future", March 19, 2012 – August 8, 2011. City of Berkeley, Planning and Development Dept, 2nd Floor 2010 Milvia St. Open Mondays through Thursdays 9AM – 4 PM

"Digital Art"  February 21, 2012 – May 11, 2012 and then “Berkeley Public Works Show” May 11 – June 15,2012
1947 Center Street Lobby Gallery, Berkeley, Ca. Open Mon -Thurs 9-4 PM

Classes for artists-For Artists who need to learn how to take, process, size, attach and send digital images of their artwork, we have classes and equipment for your use through or non-proft Arts and Educational Center.

Come on by. Whether you are a serious collector, someone interested in learning more about art, or just browsing, you are sure to find something of interest at Expressions Gallery. Expressions Gallery, is more than a gallery, it strives to be an integral part of the community and an arts center dedicated to supporting all forms of art.

Object of Beauty

Church in Sonora, California

From My Neck of the Woods

The Damned Story: On the woodsy west side of Hamden lies a road to nowhere . . . except trouble!

Like many suburban towns across this great state, Hamden claims a lonely ol’ street that seemingly exists as a home to everything from ghosts and phantom creatures to inbred hicks and supernatural feelings of dread.

Behold Downs Road.

Originally a complete thoroughfare from Hamden to Bethany, the road has been closed at both ends, leaving an abandoned unpaved segment through woods. Along this stretch are a few old foundations and other remnants of past inhabitation. Over the years, many stories have sprung up about the area, including that of a Downs Road Monster, which may or may not have been an ornery albino horse, among other things.

Others who have visited Downs Road have claimed to seen apparitions of children and other spooky spirits, as well as to have been accosted by unknown creatures (think Melon Heads) who have clawed the outsides of parked cars or chased away wayward hikers. In short, it’s supposedly not a welcoming place for outsiders, as those who do manage to stay for a while also report inexplicable feelings of doom and fear.

It also seems to be a place that draws many teenagers for partying and others looking for trouble, which only help to enhance the reputation of a place of weird goings-on.

Our Damned Experience: We briefly visited Downs Road in January 2009 at the beginning of a snow storm and didn’t get too far along the trail before turning back. As it seems with many of the damned places around the state — both Melon Head roads (Shelton and Trumbull), Little Genessee settlement, etc. — the property is owned by the local water company. (Steve and I are building a theory on this — get your tin foil hats ready!) Hmm . . .

Although we didn’t stay long and didn’t see much other than snow, we did have one sort of odd moment. While we were walking, a small tree near us suddenly shook violently as if bird or squirrel had launched itself off it. The weird part was that with no leaves on the trees around us, if there was any sort of animal around, we would’ve seen it instantly.

Other than that, we didn’t see any odd Melon Head-like creatures, nor did we have any unusual feelings or experiences.

Maybe when we go back in good weather, it’ll be more of a Down-er. [*groan*]

If You Go: There are two parts of Downs Road in Hamden — if you’re at the part with the YMCA Camp, you’re at the wrong end. The side you’re looking for ends in a cul de sac and has a gate across the entrance. As mentioned, the property is owned by the Regional Water Authority and can be hiked with a permit.

Efforts To Capture Images of Barns

Thousands of precariously leaning, rotting barns with peeling paint and missing boards dot America’s rural landscape.

The aging relics hold a certain romance for many, and interest is growing in numerous states in saving or at least documenting the rickety barns before they become victims of age and urban sprawl, the cost of maintenance too high when they no longer have a practical purpose.

Barn surveys have been started in states including Colorado, Connecticut, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, Ohio, Oklahoma, Vermont and Washington. With photographs and basic information about the architecture, historical character, use and condition of the barns, the surveys will give preservationists a glimpse of rural American and hints about how to save its bucolic landscape.

In Connecticut, photos have been taken of 8,200 barns, said Todd Levine, director of Historic Barns of Connecticut. The effort started in 2004, when an architectural historian was hired to document the 100 most visible barns in the state. Levine said the group launched a website in 2007, and the following year a grant program began providing money to assess barns’ conditions and look at ways to save and reuse them.

“The first step in preservation is documentation, so we need to know what we are losing to know what we need to do to protect them,’’ Levine said.

Back in Missouri, barn enthusiasts are being encouraged to attend an upcoming meeting where the preservation group plans to discuss potential partnerships with other organizations to encourage more people to document their barns and perhaps consider reusing them as homes or businesses.

“We are losing them fast,’’ Hart said, “so that is one of our first efforts to try to get as many of them documented as possible.’’

––

Online:

Missouri Barn Alliance and Rural Network’s Facebook page: http://on.fb.me/y1NvOJ

National Barn Alliance website: http://barnalliance.org/

Missouri Preservation: http://www.preservemo.org/

Historic Barns of Connecticut: http://connecticutbarns.org/

California Preservation Conference May 3-6 2012

THE 2012 CALIFORNIA PRESERVATION CONFERENCE
Old Roots, New Growth -- Cultivating Communities
May 3^rd - 6^th at the Oakland Marriott City Center.

The 2012 California Preservation Conference will be held in Oakland - a city with great beauty, vibrant culture, new industries and innovation.  In just 3 days you will gain a year's worth of education and networking with 125 speakers and 500+ expected attendees.  Don't miss your chance to make valuable business connections, earn continuing education credit and experience Oakland. 

Educational sessions cover a range of topics such as preservation basics, economic development, new technologies for historic buildings, planning for change, industrial reuse and preservation in the 21st Century.  

Join us in Oakland and you will learn why the New York Times listed Oakland as one of its top 45 places (#5) to visit in 2012.   

Fundraiser for Musician Clifford Coulter announced by Tony Lindsay

This week we have another event that we seriously need your support on. Those of you who live in the San Francisco Bay area that are musicians and fans may Know of our Brother and great friend Clifford Coulter. Clifford has been living in Asia for the past few years playing music like he loves to do and like we love to hear him do it. 
Well almost about a week ago he suffered a pretty big heart attack and his Kidneys failed on him also. He's doing better little by little, thank God. We have decided to have a fund raiser for him at the Fairmont Hotel, 170 S Market St, in downtown San Jose Ca. The Fairmont Hotel has been nice enough to let us have the event there on Sunday February 26th starting at 7pm. 
We may also try to figure out how to get donations on line for those of you who can't make it but would like to share your love. We are going to have a great line of entertainers participating that night so please, if you can make it we would love to see you and please pitch in so that we can help our brother Clifford recover and come home.
Thank you in advance and stay tuned. Mark the date, Sunday February 26th at the San Jose Fairmont hotel, 7pm. 

Thanks, Tony L

Destiny Muhammad Jazz Trio

Destiny Muhammad Jazz Trio

Thursday March 1, 2012   6:30pm

Cost of event:  $10-$15

Sassy crossover jazz from one of the hottest jazz trios to hit the bay in a long time! Destiny Muhammad on harp & vocals accompanied by stand-up bass and traps that will take you back in time!

website for event:  http://destinymuhammadjazztrio.blogspot.com

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Destiny-the-Harpist/58368673071?v=app_178091127385

Location of event: 

Red Poppy Art House

2698 Folsom Street 


San Francisco, CA 94110

http://redpoppyarthouse.org/

Phone: 415.826.2402

Alameda Sangha

Alameda Sangha

Sundays 7-9pm  Free!

Buena Vista United Methodist Church

2311 Buena Vista Ave

Alameda CA 94501

The Alameda Sangha is a place to practice and discuss mindfulness meditation and 

Buddhist teachings. Founded in 2008, we are led by three teachers of the Theravada tradition, 

Pauletta M. Chanco, Rebecca Dixon, and Anthony Rodgers.

Everyone is welcome.  There is no charge or fee for attending.  According to the ancient tradition of Theravadan Buddhism, we practice dana: the mindful generosity that opens the heart.  We provide a donations basket so those who attend can practice dana in turn and keep the sangha going so that others can also attend freely.

There are plenty of comfortable chairs that are good for meditating and zafus (cushions) available, but no mats.  Feel free to bring a blanket to cushion your knees, or any of your own sitting equipment.

Our Sangha

We are dedicated to making a space available for people in Alameda to meditate and discuss the dharma. 

 Begun in 2008 and initially taught by Martina Schneider, the group was led by Rebecca Dixon in 2009.  

Starting this year, leadership of the sangha has been shared by Pauletta, Rebecca and Anthony, 

and we look forward to having occasional guest teachers, too.

Everyone is welcome.  There is no charge or fee for attending.  According to the ancient tradition of Theravadan Buddhism, we practice dana: the mindful generosity that opens the heart.  We provide a donations basket so those who attend can practice dana in turn and keep the sangha going so that others can also attend freely.

Alameda Sangha meets at the Buena Vista United Methodist Church at 2311 Buena Vista Ave. in  Alameda (near Park). There are plenty of comfortable chairs that are good for meditating and zafus (cushions) available, and a rug but no mats.  Feel free to bring a blanket to cushion your knees, or any of your own sitting equipment.

The format of the meeting can vary, but generally we meditate, have a dharma talk and then open discussion.  Paticipation is optional, but encouraged in order to build community, and we hope that, whenever you come, you will feel part of and supported by our sangha.

OUR SCHEDULE

Sundays 7-9pm

February

19 Rebecca* Faith in Practice

26 Rebecca Anthony Pauletta

            #6pm Yoga

March

 4 Anthony  Lay and Monastic Tradition

11 Anthony  Resolve in Practice

18 Pauletta  Sabbasava-sutta: Discourse on Removing Troubles

24 Pauletta   The Four Brahmaviharas: The Four Heavenly Abodes  

                                       

April

 1  Anthony  Strength of Compassion

 8  Rebecca*  Gradual Awakening

15 Rebecca*  Beyond Joy

22 Anthony  Reviewing the Path

29 TBA

* Please note that on nights when Rebecca teaches, the meeting will be held from 7:00 - 8:30 pm.

Teachers

Pauletta M. Chanco is a long-time student and practitioner of meditation in the Theravada Buddhist 

tradition. She was recently nominated to the Community Dharma Leadership Program at Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Woodacre and hopes to begin this in 2012. She has taught beginning and ongoing meditation classes at Alameda Yoga Station since 2007. Pauletta has a daily meditation practice and incorporates spiritual practice in her daily life interactions and shares her insights in her passing on of the teachings with real life examples.  

She is a mother of 3 children aged 14, 16 and 30 (plus a new grandchild).

Pauletta is also a professional fine artist whose abstract paintings are inspired by her meditation 

and spiritual practice. View her art work online at www.paulettachanco.com. She explores the interconnection 

between art, creativity and spirituality to see how they relate and interact with one 

another in daily life, and treats us to a tasty recipe.

Rebecca Dixon has spent many years sharing the dharma and practice opportunities with hospice patients, incarcerated women, and the chemically dependant.  A graduate of Spirit Rock's Community Dharma Leader program, she is a member of the Chaplaincy Council at Insight Meditation Center in Redwood City and helped found the East Bay Meditation Center.  Rebecca has taught meditation in a variety of settings, including dharma study groups, courses in various locations in the East Bay and on line, and short retreats.  She was the 

Alameda Sangha's teacher during 2009, and has led a sitting group on Monday nights in Oakland for over five years.  You're welcome to visit her web site for Mindful Life Group.

Anthony Rodgers has been practicing in the Theravadin tradition of Buddhism for several years and is studying towards a Masters in Buddhist Studies from the Graduate Theological Union/Institute of Buddhist Studies in Berkeley.  He is a graduate of the Dedicated Practitioners' Program at Spirit Rock Meditation Center and the Buddhist Chaplaincy Training at the Sati Center in Redwood City.  Anthony completed the Zen Hospice Project's Volunteer Caregiver Training in 2009 and volunteers weekly at Laguna Honda Hospice.

The Bruton House: A Gold Coast Landmark A Presentation by Woody Minor

Alameda Architectural Preservation Society

Thursday, March 8, 2012 at 7:00 pm
The Bruton House: A Gold Coast Landmark
A Presentation by Woody Minor

Free for AAPS members; $5 for non-members

Location-
Immanuel Lutheran Church
1420 Lafayette Street,
Alameda, CA  94501
(Parking available at the corner of Chestnut Street and Santa Clara Avenue.)

A Monumental Home
Story by Woody Minor
At the March membership meeting, Author and Architectural historian Woody Minor will present his recent research on the Bruton House, a Gold Coast mansion located at 1240 St. Charles Street, and owned by longtime AAPS member Jeannie Graham.  The research was done for the landmark nomination report Minor submitted to the city’s Historical Advisory Board this past October.  The HAB concurred with the findings of the report, giving its unanimous stamp of approval for the house’s designation as an Alameda Historical Monument.

The house has architectural significance, exemplifying a style, and historical significance for its association with persons important in the artistic history of California.  The Bruton House is the eighth residential structure in the city so honored, and it will be formally listed later in March, when the City Council takes action on the issue.

The Bruton House ranks among the largest private residences in the city, enclosing over 4,000 square feet of living space on four levels.  The parcel, covering nearly 13,000 square feet, is likewise among the city’s largest residential lots, graced with one of the oldest oak trees on the island.  A gracious Colonial Revival residence with Queen Anne elements, it was designed and built in 1897 by the pioneer Alameda firm of Denis Straub & Son, whose junior partner, Fred P. Fischer, served as architect.  Stylistically, it is transitional between Queen Anne and Colonial Revival.  The boxy massing, hip roof, and classical detailing are signature elements of Colonial Revival, while the asymmetrical façades, gabled dormers, multiple bays, varied windows, and wraparound porch with eclectic columns are more Queen Anne in feeling.

Resident Artists
Commissioned by San Francisco businessman Daniel Bruton, Pacific Coast agent for the American Tobacco Company, the house remained in the family through World War II.  Daniel and his wife, Helen, were both natives of Ireland, hailing from the cities of Dublin and Belfast, respectively.  Their three daughters, Margaret, Esther, and Helen, all born in the 1890s, were destined to become noted regional artists.  They were raised in the house and spent much of their adult lives there at the height of their careers, in the 1920s and 1930s, using the attic as a studio.  The Bruton sisters were frequently covered in reviews and articles in California newspapers of the prewar period.  Their parallel careers followed similar paths, resulting in critically acclaimed paintings, etchings, sculptures, mosaics, and murals, and their works can be found in many private collections and museums.

Developing the Gold Coast
Woody will also discuss the significance of the house in its Gold Coast milieu, describing its architectural elements as well as its neighborhood setting.  The Gold Coast comprises Alameda’s most impressive concentration of fine homes, and the lecture will include an overview of the area’s development beginning in the late nineteenth century, with a focus on St. Charles Street. The Bruton House was the first house in an 1897 development known as the Strybing Tract, extending along the east side of St. Charles Street south of San Antonio Avenue.  A number of Bay Area architects contributed to the creation of this fine Colonial Revival/Craftsman streetscape, including Henry H. Meyers, Bert E. Remmel, and A. W. Smith.

The PowerPoint presentation will include numerous historic and contemporary images to elucidate the history, setting, and architecture of this notable Alameda property.  Woody will give some tips on how to do research about your historic home, providing an overview of such indispensable sources as Sanborn maps, assessor’s maps, deed conveyances, building permits, newspaper articles, and census data.  And he will tell us about the process of preparing landmark nomination reports, from onsite notes to online research to the final, grueling synthesis.

______________
A fourth-generation Alamedan, Woodruff Minor has written extensively about Bay Area history and architecture. His books include “On the Bay”, “Pacific Gateway”, and “The Architecture of Ratcliff”.
Woody has been out of the country for over a year, and this is his first presentation to the AAPS since 2009, when he spoke about his book “A Home in Alameda”.  He looks forward to sharing new insights he gained into the city’s history by way of the lovely Gold Coast home of Jeannie Graham.

"Viscosity" Showcasing the sculpture of Michael Sturtz & Ben Cowden at FLOAT

The FLOAT Gallery is Proud to present…
"Viscosity"
Showcasing the sculpture of Michael Sturtz & Ben Cowden
FLOAT, Floatation Center – Art Gallery 1091 Calcot Place, Unit # 116 (located in a store front loft of the historic cotton mill studios) Oakland, CA 94606

Opening Party Saturday February 25th, 6pm – 9pm
Show runs February 20th through April 14th , 2012
Local singer/songwriter Drea Roemer will be Performing live.
Viscosity is a mix of kinetic and found objectification art, mimicking and expanding beyond the human experience.

Michael Sturtz:
As a fixture of the Bay Area arts community, Michael has worked as a sculptor, a teacher, and as a facilitator since the early 1990s.  As the founder of  HYPERLINK "http://www.thecrucible.org" \t "_blank" The Crucible, a non-profit industrial arts education facility and gallery, he is known for his innovative creativity and ability to make challenging artwork and ideas possible.
Michael’s pieces address concept and form through the visualization of fused biological and mechanical elements. His sculptures are hybrids of impossible pairings and momentous environments coming together to radiate destructive and re-constructive energy.
His art showcases a strong juxtaposition between materials including; metals and glass, stone and kinetics, fire and liquid, 3D objects and video.  By contrasting natural functions with industrial and technological processes, Michael has formed a body of work that is incapable of stagnation, and instead explores the exponential evolution of medium and concept.  HYPERLINK "http://michaelsturtz.com/" Michaelsturtz.com

Ben Cowden:
Benjamin Cowden began working with metal during an undergraduate anthropology project in Cameroon in 1997, where he studied how Baka Pygmies turned worn machetes into utility knives. He later worked with street-jewelers in Costa Rica, learning small metals techniques, before taking a more formal route to education by attending blacksmithing workshops at the John C. Campbell Folkschool in North Carolina. Benjamin was an Artist-in-Residence at the Appalachian Center for Crafts in Tennessee from 2001 to 2003, during which time he focused on utilitarian forged ironwork, including furniture and kitchenware. Cowden began earnestly making sculptures in 2004 when he entered the Master of Fine Arts in Metals program at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. Making work which viewers can touch and use remained central to Cowden’s work, and throughout his graduate studies Benjamin focused on interactive mechanical devices which addressed human experience. After receiving his M.F.A., Mr. Cowden relocated to Oakland California, where he is continues to explore the depths of mechanical sculpture. His current fascinations include pseudo-random and 3-dimensional movements, as well as 3-D printing in metal.  HYPERLINK "http://twentysevengears.com/Biography.html" Twentysevengears.com

Opening night Music by Drea Roemer:
Drea Roemer is a local singer/songwriter and acoustic guitarist who is currently working on her first album.  Her songs have been described as textured and dark-edged, with palpable emotion and mood. Songs can be found at HYPERLINK "http://soundcloud.com/drea-muldavin" \t "_blank"http://soundcloud.com/drea-muldavin.

FLOAT
An urban art spa is the only floatation center & art gallery in the San Francisco Bay Area, floatation therapy is a unique and powerful tool that allows you to shut out the world, and drift into the deepest possible level of physical and mental relaxation. FLOAT offers new, public exhibits of local artists to stimulate and challenge your senses.
Come for a Float – Stay for the Art

FLOAT, Floatation Center – Art Gallery 1091 Calcot Place, Unit # 116 (located in a store front loft of the historic cotton mill studios) Oakland, CA 94606
http://thefloatcenter.com/index.html/

ASMP NorCal Presents Photojournalism Today

ASMP NorCal Presents
Photojournalism Today
Tues March 13 2012 -  Starts 6pm 7:00-9 pm
6-7 pm Social hour with pizza and drink for $5
http://asmpnorcal.org/

Price:
ASMP NorCal members: $5.00
Affiliates, students $10.00
Non-members $15.00
Pizza and drinks will be available with the purchase of a $5 food ticket.
Location:
Left Space Studios
2055 Bryant Street
San Francisco, CA 94110
http://www.leftspace.com/   

PHOTOJOURNALISM TODAY
Faced with a 24 hour news cycle, competition from all sides (including social media), and an endless stream of technological advances, what exactly is it like to work in the news media today? Join us on Tuesday, March 13th as ASMP Northern California presents Photojournalism Today featuring some of the leading working California and national photojournalists.
The best photojournalists need to be more creative than ever, and our collection of panelists are at the leading edge. Panelist Jane Tyska, for instance, has lately covered the late-night raids, rallies, and marches of Occupy Oakland, using an Eye-Fi card to send still and video images from the front line. Come hear Tyska share these experiences, as well as how she uses Twit Pic and Twit Vid to promote the Oakland Tribune’s website and help drive traffic while covering the news in real time.
The feature story too has changed, expanding from stills on a page to multimedia storytelling featuring audio and video to more fully engage viewers. San Francisco Chronicle staffer Mike Kepka will be on hand to describe how he stays at the forefront with his innovative weekly multimedia feature column, The City Exposed. And San Francisco Chronicle Director of Photography Judy Walgren will shed light on how she manages to keep on top of changing work flows and technologies, especially as budgets and resources stretch thin.
Freelance news photographer Noah Berger will further address the complexities of shooting on assignment for the Associated Press (AP) and New York Times, among other publications, while Professor Ken Kobré will debut segments of his new documentary, Deadline Every Second: On Assignment with 12 AP Photojournalists.
So join us on Tuesday, March 13th for a highly interactive and entertaining session as we learn exactly what constitutes Photojournalism Today.
About the Panelists:

Noah Berger is a freelancer who has spent the past 17 years covering Bay Area news for editorial, corporate, and government clients. On the news side, Berger works principally for the Associated Press, San Francisco Chronicle, Bloomberg News and the New York Times. He also covers transportation/development issues for state agencies and health care for the Blue Shield Foundation and the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). Despite the stress of maintaining a freelance career, Berger still loves (almost) every day of shooting.

Mike Kepka has been a San Francisco Chronicle staff photographer since 1999. Five years ago, he started producing his own photo/multimedia column for the Chronicle called The City Exposed, which celebrates San Francisco’s quirky collection of characters. In the past year he has transformed his column into a venue for new forms of multimedia techniques that continue to follow a true “one-man-band” style of reporting and production. At the dawn of what looks to be a new boom in digital storytelling, Kepka is excited to be helping pioneer these new forms of journalism. You can follow Kepka’s work at www.Sfgate.com/cityexposed and  http://vimeo.com/sfchronicle and on Twitter at @thecityexposed.

Ken Kobré is a tenured photojournalism/videojournalism professor at SFSU, whose most recent one-hour film, Deadline Every Second: On Assignment with 12 AP Photojournalists is set to premiere in Spring 2012 at the Corcoran in Washington DC, Columbia Journalism School in New York, and UCLA in Los Angeles. Kobré has literally written the book on photojournalism: Photojournalism: The Professionals' Approach (Focal Press, 6th Edition), a 30-year bestseller used in almost every US university where photojournalism is taught.

Jane Tyska
Jane Tyska is a photo and video journalist at the Oakland Tribune/Bay Area News Group. Tyska spent a month in Nepal and Bhutan in 2010, following a Bhutanese refugee family from a camp in eastern Nepal to their new home in Oakland, and continued to document them until the birth of their first baby. Tyska also documented the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti and a local contractor’s efforts to help rebuild. She has won numerous awards, including a national award for the Bhutan project from the South Asian Journalists Association and a YIPPA international press photo award for her Haiti work. Tyska has also received recent awards from the California Newspapers Publishers Association and the East Bay and Peninsula Press Clubs. Tyska previously worked for the Portsmouth Press in Portsmouth, NH and Community Newspaper Company in Boston, which included the Cambridge Chronicle and other local papers.

Judy Walgren has been the Director of Photography at the San Francisco Chronicle for just over one year.  She faces daily challenges involving a depleted budget and fewer photojournalists to shoot the increasing number of Chronicle iPad app assignments, which require panoramas, galleries, and multimedia. Before coming to the Chronicle, Walgren was staff photographer at the Denver Post, the Rocky Mountain News and the Dallas Morning News, where she was part of a team that received the 1994 Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting on violent human rights abuses against women worldwide. In between staff jobs, Walgren was based in Taos, New Mexico, where she covered assignments worldwide as a freelance photojournalist. She has been awarded the Barbara Jordan Award for reporting on people with disabilities, the Sidney Hillman Award, and multiple Harry Chapin World Hunger Awards, in addition to other honors.  Walgren believes in the power of images to change the world.

Micelle Obama Celebrated at Oakland's Joyce Gordon Gallery

                        




sheRose of our Time: A Tribute to the First Lady, Michelle Obama

Curated by Eric Murphy 

March 2 – April 19, 2012 

OPENING RECEPTION 

First Friday, March, 6-9pm 

feat "Poet Voices" - Deborah James, Paradise, Jeanne Powell, and Mechelle LaChaux, Katie Ball and Aqueila Lewis

Saturday, March 10, 1-4pm:

In Celebration of our First Lady

Music and Poetry, hosted by Kim McMillon  

Performers: Chokwadi, Al Young, Ayodele Nzinga, Meg Day, Anna de Leon, Kaylah Marin, and Kim Shuck.

Spoken word performance by Jazz Hudson

Saturday, March 24, 3pm  

HONOREE AWARDS AND ARTIST TALK: 

Thursday, April 5, 5-7pm

WORKSHOPS at Joyce Gordon Gallery

Saturday, April 7, 1-3pm  Christine Balza - Babayin Script

                           3-4pm  L. Frank - Language Reclamation

Judy Stone enamel workshop at The Crucible - visit www.thecrucible.org

Public Forum with Urban Releaf: 

Saturday, April 14, 1-4pm

CLOSING RECEPTION 

Thursday, April 19, 5-8pm

2hr play by Shelly Cone from the Santa Maria Sun

“Tales from Motherhood” English and Spanish version


Where: 

Joyce Gordon Gallery

406 14th St 

Oakland, Ca. 94612

http://www.joycegordongallery.com/


Who: Christine Balza, Ebony Iman Dallas, Shari Arai Deboer, Joan Finton, Penny Harncharnvej, Betty Nobue Kano, Deborah Lozier, L. Frank Manriquez, Kemba Shakur in partnership with installation artist and sculptor Karen Seneferu and the Oakland Museum of California, Judy Stone, Flo Oy Wong, Sandhya Sood with the Julia Morgan 2012 and the Organization for Women Architects and design artists (OWA) and more.

Joyce Gordon Gallery and A.I. Oakland presents “sheRose of our Time” an exhibition paying tribute to the First Lady, Michelle Obama for her continued support of cultural and economic significance in the arts at a time when many worthy causes compete for her attention. Our First Lady informs us that nearly 6 million people make their living in the nonprofit arts industry and that arts and cultural activities contribute more than $160 billion to our economy every year. "The arts are not just a nice thing to have or to do if there is free time or if one can afford it," she said. "Rather, paintings and poetry, music and fashion, design and dialogue, they all define who we are as a people and provide an account of our history for the next generation. My husband and I believe 

strongly that arts education is essential for building innovative thinkers who will be our 

nation’s leaders of tomorrow,” – Michelle Obama

It has become commonplace in the United States for the title of "First Lady" to be bestowed on women, as a term of endearment, who have proven themselves to be of exceptional talent, even if that talent is non-political. “sheRose of our Time” highlights women artists of diverse media and performing arts who have and will inspire innovative thinkers of the next generation. In keeping with the tradition of Michelle Obama as a presenter of artist awards, we on behalf of Joyce Gordon Gallery would like to honor the first ladies of our lifetime for making a difference in the arts through history, culture, craft, design, and urban development.  

Betty Nobue Kano, painter, curator and lecturer, was born in Sendai, Japan. After earning her M.F.A. in Painting from U.C. Berkeley, she has exhibited her work in over 200 regional, national and international venues. She lectures at SFSU and a former Executive Director of Pro Arts Gallery, a nonprofit art gallery in Oakland, CA.  Betty Nobue Kano and Flo Oy Wong co-founded the Asian American Women Artists Association (AAWAA), a nonprofit organization promoting the visibility of Asian American women artists and to serve as a vehicle for personal expression with a view of Asian American cultures and history from women’s perspective. We are honoring Betty Nobue Kano with a Joyce award as First Lady of Culture.

Flo Oy Wong, a Sunnyvale, California-based mixed media installation artist, is a visual storyteller who began her career at the age of forty.  Born and raised in Oakland’s Chinatown, she has received numerous awards for her narrative work, including two National Endowment for the Arts. Flo is also a co-founder of the Northern California-based Asian American Women Artists Association. AAWAA gave Asian American women artists access to major museums, galleries, collections and publications and furthers the goal of establishing the place of Asian American women in American art history. We are honoring Flo Oy Wong with a Joyce award as First Lady of Culture.

Christine Balza, a mother of four children and a self taught artist, finds her inspiration with the ancient Filipino script, Baybayin. Her paintings, sculptures and informational video share a lost writing system from the indigenous people of the Philippines. Baybayin’s use can be carbon dated to as far as 900C.E. and was last actively used in the 1800’s. In 2009, newspaper articles lead to featured interviews reaching both local and international media attention. She has taught Baybayin in workshops at Immaculate Conception, Sonoma and San Francisco State University and the Asian Art Museum. Exhibitions include, Linen Life Art Gallery, City of Oakland/State of California Craft and Cultural Arts Gallery, National Japanese American Historical Society Peace Gallery and Asian Art Museum. We are honoring Christine Balza with a Joyce award as first Lady of Culture.

L. Frank (nom d'arte of L. Frank Manriquez) is a Tongva- Acjachemen artist, writer, tribal scholar, cartoonist, and indigenous language activist who work is presented by BorderZone Arts in SF. She live and work in California and has won several awards for her activities, including from the American Association of University Women, the James Irvine Foundation, the Fund for Folk Culture (travel to the Native Californian art collection at the Musée de l' Homme in Paris). In 1995 she was featured as a "Local Hero" in KQED-TV/Examiner Newspaper's Native American Heritage Month series. Her artwork has been exhibited in museums and galleries locally, nationally, and internationally. L. Frank serves on the board of The Cultural Conservancy and is a co-founder of Advocates for Indigenous California Language Survival, a non-profit entity founded in 1992 whose goal is to assist California Indian communities and individuals in keeping their language alive and provide development of new speakers. We are honoring L. Frank with a Joyce award as First Lady of Culture.

Ebony Iman Dallas is an artist, designer and co-founder of Afrikanation Artists Organization, a non-profit, non-governmental organization founded in Hargeysa, Somaliland/Somalia in March 2010. Ebony Iman Dallas is originally from Oklahoma City, OK who currently resides in Oakland, CA. Her move across country brought with it a series of events that were both life altering and revealing of her purpose. This includes one fateful meeting that led her to her long lost Somali family on her late father's side, further inspiring her work. Currently an MFA Design candidate at California College of the Arts, her primary focus is on Interactive Design. Her thesis topic is about connecting artists of African descent internationally, in an effort to promote unity, understanding, collaboration and activism towards health, economic and socially related challenges among them. We are honoring Ebony Iman Dallas with a Joyce award as First Lady of International Culture.

Kemba Shakur is the founder and director of Urban Releaf, a nonprofit responsible for the planting of an estimated 14,000 trees in low-income East Bay communities. The 2009 Alameda County Women’s Hall of fame Inductee is fondly referred to as the “tree lady” and by the Oakland Museum of California as a modern day John Muir. A pivotal moment in her life came in the 1990s, when Kemba moved to West Oakland and was struck by the lack of greenery.  Instead of packing up and moving on, Kemba started planting trees.  She founded the Urban Releaf in 1999, guiding it to success by abiding two key principles – creating a more beautiful community where residents take pride in where they live and offering opportunities for at-risk youth and unemployed adults to gain marketable skills. We are honoring Kemba Shakur with a Joyce award as First Lady of Urban Forestry and Environmental Development. 

Judy Stone is one of a small group of people worldwide who call themselves enamelists. Enameling, is a centuries-old process of fusing glass to metal with high heat and a complex medium that requires that the enamelist understand the intricate dance of metal, glass and heat and use of color used three-dimensionally. Stone has studied with some of the country's most prominent enamelists including Bill Helwig, Margaret Seeler, Jamie Bennett, William Harper and Martha Banyas. Her enamels are shown at crafts fairs and galleries both in the U.S. and in Europe. She also teaches enameling throughout the United States including the enameling department at The Crucible in Oakland, California is her creation. Stone is also co-founder of the Women’s Building Celebration of Craftswomen, which began in 1979, as a small crafts show featuring 22 craftswomen in SF.  In 1989, the highly successful event out grew its new home at The Women’s Building and is now hosted annually at Fort Mason Center. Over the years, The Women’s Building Arts and Crafts Fair grew into one of San Francisco’s top holiday attractions, yet remained true to its grassroots mission: promoting hand-crafted art by women artists. We are honoring Judy Stone with a Joyce award as First Lady of Enamel, Craft and Design.

Julia Morgan (January 20, 1872 – February 2, 1957) was an American  architect, born in San Francisco and raised in Oakland, Ca. A graduate of Oakland High School in 1890, Julia was small in stature (barely 5ft tall), but she left large footprints on the field of architecture and also opened doors to opportunities for many women. Morgan was a woman of firsts: one of the first women to graduate with a degree in civil engineering from the University of California in Berkeley; the first woman to graduate with a degree in architecture from the famous Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, and the first female licensed architect in the State of California.

In a field dominated by men, Morgan succeeded in becoming the one of the most prolific architects in American history, designing more than seven hundred buildings over her forty-seven-year career, which include schools, churches, stores, YWCA buildings, hospitals, houses, and apartments. At the same time, she spent twenty-eight years working on California’s most magnificent building, William Randolph Hearst’s Castle home at San Simeon. Julia Morgan is buried in the Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland,California.  Morgan’s legacy reminds us of what can be accomplished by those who persevere. 

Sandhya Sood is a licensed architect, exhibited artist, certified green building professional (CGBP) and founder and Principal of Accent Architecture + Design, a practice focused on ecological, vibrant and contextual architecture and urban design. Sood received a Masters in Architecture from UC Berkeley and has been inspired by fellow Cal alumnus, Julia Morgan. Sood is a member of the Landmarks California Committee, a collaboration working to raise awareness and appreciation for California’s cultural and historic resources, thereby helping to preserve California's rich landscape of natural, cultural and architectural treasures.  JM 2012, the first project of Landmarks California will celebrate the work and life of Julia Morgan, a visionary whose environmentally sustainable architecture, business acumen and diversity of projects has inspired many women architects as well as members of the Organization of Women Architects (OWA).  

In honor of Julia Morgan, we present Sandhya Sood with a Joyce award as first Lady of

 History, Design and Innovation for the Arts.

Joyce Gordon Gallery is a commercial fine art gallery located in the downtown district of 

Oakland California. It exhibits art that reflects the social and cultural diversity of the Bay Area and international artists. The aim of the gallery is to respect the creative pursuits of the individual and s

eeks to make such work accessible to a broad audience.

Joyce Gordon Gallery     

406 14th St, 

Oakland, CA 94612     

510-465-8928 

http://www.joycegordongallery.com/

Art Exhibit and Day of Japanese American Remembrance Event and Sake Event ~ Transcendental Vision

Art Exhibit and Day of Japanese American Remembrance Event and Sake Event

Transcendental Vision
Japanese Culture and Contemporary Art
Exhibition Dates: Now - Sunday, February 26, 2012

Related Events:
Sunday, February 19, 6:00 - 8:00 pm Free
Day of Japanese American Remembrance
A special ceremony for Day of Japanese American Remembrance hosted by the Japanese American Citizens League of the Monterey Peninsula will be held at The Independent in conjunction with Transcendental Vision and Heroes All: Our Nisei Veterans. Among the speakers will be Larry Oda, past National President of the Japanese American Citizen League, and Tom Graves.

Friday, February 24, 5:00 – 8:00 pm Free
Sake and Food Tasting Event
Monterey’s Downtown Dining sponsors a special Sake Tasting/Food Tasting event for the exhibition Transcendental Vision,  Japanese Culture and Contemporary Art and Heroes All: Our Nisei Veterans.

The exhibitions run from Friday, January 27 through Sunday, February 26.
Hours are 12:00 pm to 7:00 pm, Wednesday through Sunday and by calling 831.747.1088 or 202.253.4057

Location
The Indepdent,
601 Ortiz, Sand City, CA 93955
--on the Monterey Peninsula
http://www.sandcity.org/


How has Japanese culture in its myriad forms influenced Western thinking and specifically, contemporary art? Transcendental Vision, Japanese Culture and Contemporary Art addresses this question through the work of twelve contemporary artists, each of whom is influenced by the Japanese sensibility.

“Although there are obvious visual differences in their work, the artists in this exhibition have transcended the ancient East-West divide to express a vision of spirituality and the sacredness of everyday things.“ states Gail Enns, curator of the month-long show.

Enns’ own personal background with contemporary art and Japanese culture stems from having curated exhibitions at the Japanese Ambassador’s residence and the Japanese Cultural Center in Washington, DC, and at the Nippon Gallery.

This month-long installation features works by Tom Nakashima, Rob Barnard, Jerry Takigawa, Sandy Yagyu, Mark Tanous, Masako Takahashi, Laurel Farrin, Lisa Solomon, Grace Munakata, Sharron Antholt, Tamiko Kawata and Mary Annella Frank. The expressions of art range include ceramics, photographs, sculpture, paintings and installations.

Heroes All: Our Nisei Veterans, by photojournalist Tom Graves, will be presented in tandem with Transcendental Vision. The show honors Japanese Americans who served in the United States Armed Forces during World War II. Graves’ black and white photographs capture images of these veterans 70 years after America's entry into WWII.

The exhibitions are sponsored by Sand City, the Sand City Arts Committee, the Orosco Group, the Japanese American Citizens League, and produced by Celadon Inc., a 501(c) (3) organization that works to develop partnerships between business, art groups, and society at large.

Phone: Gail Enns, 202-253-4507
Website: www.sandcity.org
www.celadoninc.org