Cultural History is woven into new arts center exhiits

Discovery Channel to show off Escondidan's artistry

Reprinted from Today's Local News, Saturday, July 28, 2007

By Pat Sherman
TODAY'S LOCAL NEWS

A diverse cross section of work by Southern California artists and an exploration of turn-of-the century American Indian basketry are part of four exhibits opening today at the California Center for the Arts, Escondido Museum.

The installations, which include works by North County artists, will be displayed through Sept. 30 at the museum, 340 N. Escondido Blvd.

California basket trade
“Weaving Connections” includes 30 pieces by American Indian basket weavers from the 1880s to the 1940s, a time of robust cultural exchange between indigenous artisans and California settlers and tourists.

The rapid pace of industrialization left many people nostalgic for a simpler time, creating a market for traditional art forms. As collectors began to commission pieces from American Indian weavers, the utilitarian baskets became prized works of art.
Jessica Horton curated “Weaving Connections,” using pieces from the collection of Mina and David Smith of the Sana Art Foundation in Escondido. Other works are on loan from the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum in Palm Springs, the San Diego Museum of Man and Idyllwild resident David Salk.

During the past year, Horton has worked as a photojournalist for the news Web site Voice of San Diego and as an executive assistant for Sana Art Foundation, which has a museum on Orange Street in Escondido. The organization works to promote African, Oceanic and American Indian culture.

Horton researched settlement patterns and tourism in California at the turn of the century. The oldest pieces in the exhibit feature traditional geometric patterns passed down through generations. Gradually, weavers began to incorporate stars, flowers and other patterns requested by buyers.

Though the origin of some of the pieces is unknown, Horton said compelling details about the evolution of baskets emerged as she conducted her research. It is believed that in 1896, Chemehuevi Indian artist Mary Snyder became the first weaver to break a long-standing taboo against using rattlesnake imagery on baskets.

“It said that if a weaver wove a rattlesnake into her basket, she would be struck blind,” said Horton, who majored in art history and political science at University of California San Diego. “There were various spiritual beliefs that suggest that the rattlesnake was a harbinger of ill luck and would punish earthly behavior that was considered (unacceptable) within native society.”

Eventually, the rattlesnake became one of the most popular motifs, Horton said.
Other items in the exhibit depicting rattlesnakes include handwoven trays, an umbrella stand and a hat with a viper coiled on top.

Horton will give a lecture about the exhibit at 6 p.m. Tuesday at the museum. The cost is $5.

'Cultural Fusion'
An exploration of the diverse cultural influences on Southern California art will be featured in the juried exhibit “Cultural Fusion.”
Two works by Escondido artist Keely Berry-LeBlanc, “Patchwork” and “Thing Two,” are featured. A native of Maryland, Berry-LeBlanc said her art has been transformed by Southern California's Pacific Rim and American Indian influences.
“I like working with natural materials,” she said. “I never know quite what's going to come of it.”

Berry-LeBlanc created the patterns for her gourd piece, “Patchwork,” using a wax-resist process similar to that used in batik.

Made from jute, waxed linen and raffia, the whimsical “Thing Two” stands upright, like a cluster of enoki mushrooms with dreadlocks as caps. Berry-LeBlanc said it is her interpretation of California's playful, outdoor culture, evoking Dr. Seuss, rocky hillsides and golden grasses.

“It's just kind of a fun, funky little piece,” she said. “It makes me smile.”
Solana Beach ceramic artist Christine Beniston contributed “Steeples,” eight thin stacks of colorful ceramic beads, each crowned with a whimsical curling spire.
Beniston's pieces were inspired by man's symbolic reach for the heavens, as seen in structures such as gold-coated church steeples, stone mosque spires and the ostentatiously towering high rises of Dubai, often referred to as the United Arab Emirates' version of Las Vegas.

“I was so fascinated that man would build these symbols,” Beniston said. “People attach a lot of symbolism to these forms that are basically clay. You can look at Stonehenge, the mystery of what that represents.”

Beniston also has created public artworks, including a kinetic wind sculpture that was recently installed at Las Brisas Park in Reno, Nev.

Other exhibits at the museum through Sept. 30 include “Shauna Peck: Installations,” and “In Character: Actors Acting,” by photographer Howard Schatz.

The exhibit includes portraits of Hollywood celebrities, such as Nathan Lane, Chevy Chase, Michael Douglas and Ellen Burstyn.

During the photos shoots, the actors were asked to convey a specific mood or emotion using only their facial expressions and hands.

Pat Sherman: (760) 752-6774; pat.sherman@tlnews.net

© 2007 Keely Berry-LeBlanc