October 14, 2024 Breaking News, Latest News, and Videos

Artists Talk About Public Art in Santa Monica:

“Public art is so 2, 500 B.C.!” exclaimed Lucy Blake-Elahi as she introduced the panelists at “Public Art, Expression of Community Voice.” The event, held at the Santa Monica Main Library on July 28, and sponsored by Senior Arts Foundation, featured three artists (plus Blake-Elahi, an artist and art history instructor at West Los Angeles College) speaking about their experiences with public art and what it means to them.

Blake-Elahi’s comment referred to her realization, while teaching art history, that much of the earliest art was indeed public-monuments such as the pyramids and Stonehenge and ancient temples. Blake-Elahi defined public art as “art in any medium, as long as it is publicly accessible. If visual, it is often site-specific.” There is also community involvement, both in terms of creativity and funding.

Each of the artists showed slides of his/her work as they talked about the public art projects they had created or collaborated on.

Francisco Letelier, a Chilean-born artist who now lives in Venice, has worked as an artist for 25 years and is also known for writing and spoken word performances. His public art works include “Reflecting the Light,” an indoor mural at Whole Foods Market in Venice, the Sun and Moon tile murals at Metro’s Westlake MacArthur Park station and a mural on the side of the Pioneer Bakery in Venice.

Letelier’s life experiences have given a political stance to his work.

His family left Chile after the 1973 coup and his father, Orlando Letelier, was killed by a car bomb in Washington D.C. in 1976. After that, Francisco began his art career by joining his brother Jose in the “Brigada Orlando Letelier,” a mural-painting group that traveled to various American cities to create public art.

“There’s a great power in the collective act of creation,” said Letelier. “It’s often messy.” Artists, he observed, are accustomed to working alone. But in working in collaboration on public art works, they can be open to discovery.

As an answer to a question from an audience member about the attitudes toward controversial art, Letelier said he believed that both positive and negative responses to art are a good thing.

May Sun, a painter, sculptor, and photographer born in Shanghai, created two public art projects for Metro – the colored tile décor at the Hollywood and Western Metro station and in collaboration with Richard Wyatt, “City of Dreams, River of History” at Union Station.

While working on her installation for the Santa Monica Museum entitled “LA/River/Chinatown,” Sun learned that Chinatown’s original site had been moved in order to build Union Station. This led to her using artifacts from the old Chinatown site as materials in her contribution to the Union Station installation, “River of History.” The artifacts, such as old bottles, are incorporated into the “river bed” on top of a tile-decorated “river bench” in the eastern lobby of the station. Sun also paid tribute to the river with floor paving elements that refer to native plants and animals, and with an aquarium with faces of native and Latino residents of Los Angeles etched in the glass façade.

Pat Warner comes from the eastern U.S. and has lived in Southern California since 1982. “I think of myself as collaborating with nature,” she said as she showed slides of her outdoor sculptures that grace various parks. Made mostly from wood, they range from an octagon constructed from firewood to a tiny house painted with depictions of flora and fauna. Warner has also contributed to rapid transit station art with her nature-themed decorations for the Pierce College/Winnetka Orange Line station.

Blake-Elahi also showed slides of her public art works. Interested in Ballona Creek, she has been an activist for preservation of the Ballona watershed and her public art work includes a mosaic and two sundials in Culver City Park that pay homage to the creek. She also has painted decorative traffic medians for various Los Angeles streets.

Audience members expressed their excitement about public art during the Q and A period that followed. One man commented that he thought there should be some public art at Main and Marine Streets, the southwest entrance to Santa Monica. He wanted to know if any of the artists would want to create some kind of “welcome” art there.

“Go to your government,” said Blake-Elahi. “Santa Monica has an Arts Commission. Tell them you’d like to see more public art. Put it in writing.”

Related Posts

Film Review: Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One

July 19, 2023

July 19, 2023

FILM REVIEWMISSION IMPOSSIBLE – DEAD RECKONING PART ONERated PG-13163 MinutesReleased July 11th The story in this “Mission: Impossible” chapter, “Dead...

Film Review: Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny

July 5, 2023

July 5, 2023

FILM REVIEWINDIANA JONES AND THE DIAL OF DESTINYRated PG-13154 MinutesReleased June 30th The director of Indiana Jones and the Dial...

Film Review: Past Lives

June 27, 2023

June 27, 2023

FILM REVIEWPAST LIVESRated PG-13105 MinutesLimited Releases June 2nd and June 9th, Full Release June 23rd The Korean concept of “In...

Film Review: Sanctuary

June 8, 2023

June 8, 2023

FILM REVIEWSANCTUARYRated R96 MinutesReleased May 19th In my humble estimation, this is one of the best movies of the year....

Film Review: The Little Mermaid

June 2, 2023

June 2, 2023

FILM REVIEWTHE LITTLE MERMAIDRated PG135 MinutesReleased May 26th With today’s technological developments, a live-action The Little Mermaid is not only...

A Riveting Revival of the Pulitzer Prize-Winning “A Soldier’s Play” Now Playing At The Ahmanson Theatre

May 31, 2023

May 31, 2023

On Stage With… Murder mysteries, whether cinematic or theatrical, are one of the most popular subjects. The list is quite...

Film Review: Chevalier

May 12, 2023

May 12, 2023

By Kathryn Boole  RATED PG-13107 MinutesReleased April 21, 2023 Chevalier is based on the true story of a historical figure...

Ballet at the Broad Stage Memorial Weekend – Meet the Talent!

May 10, 2023

May 10, 2023

Westside Ballet of Santa Monica returns to the Broad Stage with special guest artists kicking off Friday May 26th with...

Elizabeth McGovern Lights Up The Stage in “Ava – The Secret Conversations”

April 26, 2023

April 26, 2023

Play About Legendary Screen Star Runs Until May 14 At The Geffen Playhouse By Beverly Cohn Ava Gardner, born Ava...

Unconventional Art Festival “The Other Art Fair” Returns to Santa Monica This Weekend

March 31, 2023

March 31, 2023

140 independent artists, immersive installations, performances, DJs, and a fully stocked bar await visitors at Barker Hangar The Other Art...

Samohi Theatre’s “The Drowsy Chaperone” Takes the Stage in Santa Monica

March 1, 2023

March 1, 2023

Shows will take place at Barnum Hall on March 3 and 4 at 7 p.m. and March 5 at 3...

Film Review: “Marlow”

February 23, 2023

February 23, 2023

FILM REVIEW“MARLOWE”Rated R109 MinutesReleased February 15th “Marlowe” is a beautifully shot period piece that takes place in the late 1930’s....

Film Review: All Quite on the Western Front

February 22, 2023

February 22, 2023

I have never been a soldier at war, although I have close friends and relatives who have been. Universally they...

SMC Emeritus Concert Band to Hold Free Concert This Weekend at the Broad Stage

February 22, 2023

February 22, 2023

Concert February 26 will feature musical selections with an outdoor theme Santa Monica College’s Emeritus Concert Band, under the baton...