KALEID gallery presents featured exhibits by clayprint monograph artist Martha Castillo and mixed media artist Eric Taggart.

Artists' Reception First Friday June 6th, 7-9pm
Exhibit on view through July 12, 2008.

This reception is part of the South FIRST FRIDAYS artwalk. It is free and open to the public.

Cities and Beyond by Martha Castillo
This collection includes work from two of Castillo's most recent series: “Cities I Have Known”, and “Beyond the Surface”. Mostly large, all abstract, expressive and lively, they capture her feelings about places and ideas.

I perceive life as many of layers of mood, color and texture, and am inspired by the visual evidence of ageing all around us. Those layers, built up over time, and worn down by use, generate the uneven patina of life’s experience. *Clayprinting allows me to be curious, to explore complex interplays of shape and color, surface and core.
The monoprints are textured and complex. I hope you will find them inviting.

*Clayprint-This innovative new technique invented by Pennsylvania Artist Mitch Lyons, is all about layers. The artist creates images by painting layers of white potters clay with pigment added, onto a slab of un-fired stoneware clay. The image is then transferred by hand to canvas, using a wooden brayer and other hand tools, generating a monotype. Every print is a unique, artist made, original.

Martha Castillo has studied with Mitch Lyons, the inventor of clayprinting, on numerous occasions. In addition to exhibiting her clayprints to a growing audience, Castillo teaches workshops in this exciting new medium.

If you bring forth what is within you, what you bring forth will save you. If you do not bring forth what is within you, what you do not bring forth will destroy you. by Eric Taggart

Eric Taggart is a self-taught artist who lives and works in the San Francisco Bay Area. In undergraduate and graduate school, his focus of study was philosophy, religion and psychology. In 2003, he began to explore these same fields through artmaking in an effort to mend what was deconstructed through my formal education.

Taggart adds: I work in many mediums and tend to be drawn to objects and materials that already have history and narrative. Recent works have included whiteout, wire, tape and string - materials that are commonly associated with mending and repair.

Taggart engages religious, psychological and political themes through his mixed-media work which often includes found objects, personal family artifacts and common materials typically used for household mending and repair.

In the spring of this year, a blue ribbon jury of Los Angeles gallery owners and museum curators (most notably Howard Fox, Curator, Los Angeles County Museum of Art) selected Taggart as one of LA ArtSeen's 2008 Emerging Artists. His work was then hung in the company of works by such highly esteemed artists as Andy Warhol and Robert Rauschenberg at the corresponding benefit auction in Hollywood.

Eric has exhibited in San Jose, San Francisco, Mt. View, Los Angeles and San Diego. He has a BA in Philosophy and Theology from Point Loma Nazarene University and a MA in Psychology from John F. Kennedy University. He currently resides with his wife in Los Altos.

KALEID gallery
88 South Fourth Street, downtown San Jose

Art & Poetry with Open Mic

Pot Luck at 6:30pm, BYOB (please bring a dish if you can--but if you can't, don't worry)
7:30 PM Art Presentation & Spoken Word Reading with Open Mic following

Featured Artists:
Elizabeth Parashis: Expressionist Figurative Paintings
Perry Westerlund: Naturalist Calligraphic/Patterned Drawings

Featured Poet:
Tresha Haefner: Playful poems with an incisive and at times ironic eye-that really move!

Thursday, June 19, 6:30pm-9:30pm
42 Central Ave., Los Gatos
Call for more info: 408/410-2313

Now, fabric, acrylic paint, buttons by Therese May

Ribbons, cast acrylic monotype by Donna Orme

Donna Orme & Therese May
Exhibit June 4-June 29, 2008
Reception: Friday, 6/13/08, 7-9 pm - Meet the artists and see how compatible our two very different styles blend together.

Gregory Kate Gallery
925 The Alameda #101, San Jose, CA 95126
408.271.2626
Gallery Hours: Friday, 6-9 pm, Sat. & Sun. 11 am-6 pm

Broken Door Espresso presents photography and digital images by Nicolette Paloma and Brittany Rediger

New mural and paintings by KALEID artists Christine Benjamin and Michael Foley.
Music by Polyluv

Friday, June 13th 8Pm till Late

231 E Santa Clara St. (Downtown SJ across from City Hall)
San Jose, CA 95113

Phantom Galleries Redwood City invites you to a celebration of its debut exhibition in downtown Redwood City. This is an excellent opportunity to experience an eclectic contemporary art exhibit, meet the artists, and enjoy music and refreshments in a casual social atmosphere.

Featured artists include:
Francie Allen
Martha Castillo
Rochelle Ford
Sarah Beth Goncarova
Sarah Ricchiuti
Oleg Lobykin
Woody Miller
Beth Mostovoy
Terenia Offenbacker
Michelle Reynolds
Joyce Savre
Julia Seelos
Cindy Stokes
April Vanderbilt

Artists' Reception: 7pm - 9pm.
Second Saturday, June 14, 2008
2115 Broadway & 2125 Broadway, downtown Redwood City (Map)

Live music by Panthelion
Hors d' oeuvres by Bangkok Bay Restaurant and cupcake desserts by Michelle Reynolds (while they last!)
Free and open to the public.

Phantom Galleries Redwood City is a project in which community artists come together to enliven vacant storefronts with colorful exhibits and installations to create a 24/7 fine art gallery viewable from the sidewalk. The project is produced by Two Fish Design in partnership with the Redwood City Redevelopment Agency. For more information, please call 408.271.5151 or info@PhantomGalleries.com

This reception is in collaboration with the Redwood City Second Saturday Artwalk which also features Gallery 2611, bazaar brazil, Redwood City Art Center, Art on Broadway and the Main Gallery.

Recently the Washington Neighborhood experienced senseless violence resulting in the loss of two lives and sending shockwaves of sadness and fear through the community.

On May 21st at 1:45pm, Lorenzo Torres and another man were shot, Lorenzo died from his wounds.

On May 23rd at 4:30pm, Vahid Hosseini was gunned down in the Bank of the West parking lot on his way back to the Willow Market that he and his wife ran for many years. Vahid later died from his wounds.

Both of these tragedies occured in broad daylight, within a short distance from our school, parks, youth centers, library and our most importantly, our homes.

Our community would like to invite you to an opportunity to demonstrate to our children, families and the city as a whole, that we stand for Peace, Dignity and Community.

Please join us!

In Community Spirit,
Autumn Gutierrez

Community leaders and local residents invite you to a Comm-UNITY Walk for Peace

Monday June 16, 2008, 6:00pm
In Front of Biblioteca Latinoamericana
921 S. First St., San Jose, CA 95110

Please join us in an effort to show our community's:Peace, Dignity & Unity in response to the recent senseless violence that’s happened in our neighborhood.

We will begin at the Biblioteca Latinoamericana, walk down Oak Street to Vine, then South of Vine to Willow, a stop at the Willow Market, then walk east to First Street, then back to the Biblioteca.

If you’d like to help make posters for the walk, we will meet at the Biblioteca Community Room at 4:00 pm.

We hope that you can join us. For more information, please contact Mark Lopez @ 408-483-8748 or email: mark@gwna-sj.org

The grand opening of the new Joyce Ellington Branch Library on June 28 will feature the dedication of two new, site-specific artworks.

Congratulations to current KALEID artist Lucy Liew who created artwork elements for the Children's area of the Library.

Inspired by the community's enduring connection to the elm trees that for many years had existed on the site, Liew's Trees of Knowledge are two "trees" built around columns of the building, rich with colorful images. She suggests that these "serve as a gateway to the world of imagination and learning that await the visitors to the Children's section of the library."

Liew's Metamorphosis - Transformation in the Woods is a painting in the form of butterfly wings (shown above upon installation). Positioned in the Storytelling Corner so that they will frame the storyteller, the imagery on the wings is intended to inspire positive themes for young readers.

Artist Masayuke Nagase's work Where The Tree Is Born, (depicted in the photo essay below) pays tribute to the Library's namesake, honored community member Joyce Ellington, as well as to the trees that formerly stood on the site. This exterior artwork, a granite sculpture in the form of a tree trunk, rises from a plaza filled with patterns of the shadows cast by tree branches. Low enough that it can be climbed or sat upon, the top surface of the sculpture contain rings of text referencing Joyce Ellington and area history. The sides have a bark-like texture that Nagase created using handprints collected from community members, including some of the students from the neighboring Grant Academy Elementary School.

The Joyce Ellington Branch Library Grand Opening
Saturday, June 28; the official program is from 11:00 AM - 12:00 Noon.
491 Empire Street, San Jose, 95112.
Both artists will be present to discuss their work immediately following the program.

Ellie Brown, who moved from San Jose to teach in South Korea, just sent us the news that she has published her book entitled Two Girls: My Sisters 1996-2006, a ten year art project in which Ellie dedicated herself to photographing her two sisters through their adolescence.

"Just as I began to establish my sisters as girls, pre-adolescence descended and absolutely changed the path of my project. On the surface I was still photographing my sisters but it was my approach that changed. I was fascinated and repulsed by new conversations of boys, makeup and weight. This led me to read any and every book I could find on the subject of adolescence and pre-adolescence. It also led me to seriously investigate my own pre-adolescent experiences, which were far less than stellar, in relation to theirs. In photographing Emily and Abby, I was also photographing how a girl becomes alien in her own body, how confidence may falter, how grooming rituals become of great importance, how relationships with friends and family change and most importantly, the quest for identity. When I photograph my sisters and when I photograph other girls I am primarily concerned with identity in our complicated media driven culture and how it manifests."

For more information or to purchase the book, please click here.

A Midsummer Art Celebration will be held on Saturday, June 21, from 10am - 6pm in the sculpture gardens of the Triton Museum of Art. Hundreds of local and regional artists working in all mediums will offer original works of art for sale.

Art demos, music and food will also be on hand. A percentage of all the proceeds from sales will benefit the art and education programs of the Triton Museum. Admission and parking is free.

Triton Museum of Art
1505 Warburton Avenue
Santa Clara, CA
408-247-3754

Come for the art and stay for the music this Friday. The art show is from 5pm - 8:30pm, and the featured band is Freesound.

Redwood City is fast becoming the peninsula’s epicenter for the arts with new galleries and great places to hear live music. This summer Art on the Square returns to Courthouse Square. Premier Bay Area artists and artisans will exhibit their work in the heart of the beautifully renovated downtown.

Presented by the Redwood City Civic Cultural Commission and the Redwood City Redevelopment Agency, the four juried outdoor shows complement Music on the Square, the city’s popular Friday evening summer concert series.

Enjoy painting, sculpture, photography, glass, fiber, jewelry, ceramics and more by fantastic local artists. And, at each show there will be a drawing for gift certificates. Winners can “spend” their certificate in any artist's booth. Remember to fill out an entry form. Who knows, maybe you'll be one of the four lucky winners!

Art on the Square
Friday June 20, 5 - 8:30 pm
Courthouse Square
Redwood City, CA 94063
for full schedule, visit: www.redwoodcityevents.org

Two great spaces have become available within the Object Art gallery space-

STUDIO: 650 square foot loft space available for sublet in excellent San Jose Japantown neighborhood. Track lights, shared restroom, utilities included. $650/month

ALSO AVAILABLE: Gallery/studio/office - 1200 square feet with street front entrance. Track lighting, new paint and carpets, shared restroom facilities. $1250/month

Price negotiable for right person or group

For more information contact Ken@artobjectgallery.com OR call 408.288.9305

Current Phantom Galleries and KALEID gallery artist Christine Benjamin (artwork above) will be in the MISCHIEF group art show in San Francisco which involves over 100 artists.

Reception: Saturday, July 19th, 4-8 pm
Exhibit dates: July 16th - August 10th

Studio Gallery
1718A Polk Street (between Washington and Clay)
San Francisco, CA 94109
415.931.3130
Hours: Weds - Fri, 11am-8pm, Sat & Sun, 11am-6pm

Avenue 1 is currently in the need to fill a Saturday Morning illustration instructors position from 10:30 AM to 1:30PM. The class is part of our Summer Illustration Program. The instructor originally signed up to teach the course is no longer available.

This course is to teach the basics of Adobe Photoshop and Character Design. Only those with an extensive character design portfolio and Photoshop knowledge should apply. This position can start as soon as this Saturday the 28th of June or the following one.

If interested please contact Jin immediately at jin@avenue-1.com

To learn more about Avenue 1 and its programs, visit: www.avenue-1.com

Avenue1
114 E Santa Clara St, San Jose CA 95113
T 408.786.1066 F 408.786.1022

Skylark Media Group & Fabrik Magazine announce the 2008/2009 competition for the SKYLARK PRIZE for individual artists and GROUPSHOW for 5 additional artists. With a main focus on artists working in the US, but open to every artist in the world, the Skylark Prize seeks to recognize outstanding quality and diversity in the arts.

Eligibility: All artists, 18 years and older.
Media: painting, drawing, mixed media, digital art, animation art, printmaking, watercolor, photography, multimedia/video art, ceramics, sculpture, installation.

Awards:
1. The Skylark Prize will be awarded to a mid career level artist whose work has shown to be innovative and renewing, while consistent in its quality for a period of at least 10 years. The award; a sculpture, designed by internationally acclaimed artist Richard Erdman, will be accompanied by:
- FELLOWSHIP; An exclusive 6 week fully paid Fellowship (including trips to Beijing and Shanghai), at the prestigious Sias International University, In Zhengzou, China
- CASH; Cash Prize of $ 2,000
- EXHIBIT; A solo exhibition at Skylark Fine Art Gallery in Los Angeles (located in the heart of LA’s design district)
- CATALOG; A catalog produced for the artist by Skylark Media Group
- EDITORIAL; Skylark’s media sponsor Fabrik Magazine will run an editorial on the artist’s work.

2. Five Additional Prizes: the work of five –additional- artists will be chosen for a groupshow at Skylark Fine Art Gallery. A separate catalog will be produced for these
artists. Skylark’s media sponsor FABRIK Magazine will run an editorial on the artists’ work.

Postmark Deadline for Entries: September 1, 2008.
Winners will be notified February 2009.
Exhibitions and Award Ceremonies will be held in Spring 2009.

Download full prospectus http://www.skylarkprize.com

Skylark Fine Art Gallery
8576-A Melrose Avenue, West Hollywood, CA 90069
310-657-0324, fax, 310-657-0371
info@skylarkfineartgallery.com
http://www.skylarkfineartgallery.com

Please note that there will not be a First Friday Artwalk for July due to the July Fourth holiday. We will return First Friday August 1st with featured exhibits at KALEID gallery by Kyle Perera (aka Pellet Factory) and Andy Gouveia.