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Art Exhibit Celebrates 21st Year

Roger Brigham
Connection Staff
October 2007

It’s anybody’s guess what will overwhelm visitors going to the 21st Annual Emeryville Art Exhibition this month more: the creative painting, ceramics, sculptures and textile works of the 91 artists entered, or the spanking brand new building that will be holding the event.

Each year the celebration is located in a different location donated for the event. This year the celebration will be in EmeryStation East, the recently opened 245,000-square-foot, multihued green-glass edifice with enclosed plaza and waterfall at 5885 Hollis Street.

“As Emeryville continues to develop, it becomes more and more difficult for us to find a donated space that is large enough and has adequate lighting and amenities for the exhibition,” Sharon Wilchar, project coordinator for the exhibit, said.

“This is the second time that Wareham Development has generously provided a space for the show in its EmeryStation complex. EmeryStation East, its most recently completed building, covers almost an entire city block but the gardens and sculpture cannot be experienced until you arrive at the first floor podium level which is also where the art exhibition is located.

“Depending on whether you live or work in Emeryville, we’re a bit off the pedestrian paths but the exhibition will be a great way to introduce the community to this new glass structure.”

The exhibition will kick off with a free gala reception Friday, Oct. 5, from 6 p.m., then runs daily 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. through Oct. 28. Music for the reception will be provided by David Berson Bay Moods Quartet and a no-host bar will raise money for the Emeryville Youth Art Program. Wilchar said the reception has been able to generate $1,000 for the program 17 of the previous 20 years.

The face of Emeryville seems to change with every new building, but the artistic core of its soul has never wavered.

“Twenty years ago the U.S. Census results positioned Emeryville as a city with more artists per capita than any other in the country,” Wilchar said. “Our population has increased so dramatically since then that this no longer is true, (but) we still have a large, active artist community in both our residential and business sectors. This year, 25 percent of the 91 selected artists are new to Emeryville or are exhibiting in the show for the first time.

“Artists continue to call Emeryville home. For many artists in the exhibition, this may be their first time to exhibit their work publicly. For all of the artists, having several thousand people view their work, perhaps purchasing their work, is an incredible opportunity that the Celebration of the Arts mailings and publicity create.

The show was originally created more than 20 years ago by civic officials, business leaders and local artists to showcase the works of the 45th Street Artists Cooperative. As the city has grown, so, too, has the exhibit.

“Emeryville has a population of only about 9,000 people, but the daytime population is well over 25,000 because of all the companies located here,” Wilchar said. “We have a really strong and large resident artist population, but we are greatly enriched by all of the talented people who work in our city, too. This year, 30 percent of the exhibiting artists are from our business community. The exhibit is a wonderful way to bring the community together in celebration of all the artists who either live or work in Emeryville.”

This year’s artists include ceramic artist Sara Paloma Barrios; painters Yvette M. Buigues, Jerry Carniglia, Joseph DiStefano, Pat Klein, Louise Stanley and Canan Tolon; sculptors Mari Andrews and Robert Ortbal; photographer Kevin Twomey; and textile artist Anastasia Schipani. The collection was selected by independent curator and visual artist Paul Tomidy, and Beth Goldberg, curator of the Falkirk Cultural Center in San Rafael.

“The new face of Emeryville with its bustling shopping centers, new condominiums and new modern business buildings seemingly contrasts the long-standing tradition of artists living and working here” Tomidy said. “Along with artists who have been here 35 years or more, the new businesses and condominiums also bring new artists to the mix. The ingenuity that artists employ in their creations also applies to the creative spaces where they make their art. This large show covers a broad spectrum with many differing approaches and mediums at hand. Hopefully viewers will find art that they appreciate but also discover new unexpected forms.”

This was the first year Goldberg has judged the exhibition.

“Seeing the variety and depth of art in Emeryville was a rich experience,” she said. “As a juror, the ability to view art in the context of the artist’s studio and home, and speak to the artist directly, provides deeper insights into the process and reality of the work. I am also struck by the way most of these artists integrate their art-making so fully into their lives. One of the most enjoyable aspects of this process is being able to peek into people’s studios and homes and see the creative ways they have set up their workspaces!”

Wilchar said there was an attempt to make the opening reception as economically responsible as possible.

“The opening night is our city’s biggest cultural event, bringing the whole community together to celebrate creativity in Emeryville,” she said. “Dave Berson’s Bay Moods jazz quartet, hors d’oeuvres and beverages donated by local restaurants and caterers, exhibiting artists, volunteers from all segments of the community all make for a lively evening. With the help of information from the City of Emeryville and the generosity of Albert Repola of Ruby’s Cafe, we plan to make the reception a zero-waste event this year, everything compostable.

“Several of the artists this year are well established in the Bay Area and always present solid work, and there are also many younger artists with fresh or intriguing imagery. Kinetic sculptor Reuben Margolin seems to never be wanting for concepts, whether mechanical, mathematical, or poetic, to explore.

The Emeryville City Council has approved a purchase award program in connection with the exhibition. A selection panel will review the works and make a purchase recommendation to be approved by city council for installation in City Hall in November.

The exhibit is sponsored by Emeryville Celebration of the Arts, the City of Emeryville, Wareham Property Group and Oakland Magazine.

For more information on the exhibition, visit www.emeryarts.org or call 510-652-6122.

Roger Brigham is a writer for The Emeryville

Connection. If you have a question or comment, please contact him at ecocnews@gmail.com