Archive: Newsletters 2003

Message from Josefa Vaughan,
Executive Director, ArtSeed

Dear Family, Friends, Mentors, Students and Comrades in the Arts,

We did it! Our dollars, deeds, dreams and patience have formed ArtSeed into an official 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. The responsibilities of this giant step entail greater possibilities, too. We are now eligible to apply to new sources in order to fund our three program areas: HouseCalls (private mentorships); Shebangs (public workshops & art exhibitions) and Grapevines (professional development for the young and disadvantaged). I urge you to check out all the articles in this newsletter! After reviewing our outlines of program activities for 2000 – 2001, 2001 – 2002, and 2002 – 2003, I do not know how we had time to do all the fact finding and soul searching necessary to enter this whole new chapter. Think of it! A public middle school classroom of “troubled youth” and a handful of form-phobic artists have, with the help of numerous mentors over the course of three years, become a viable tax-exempt corporation!

We have come a long way in a relatively short and particularly difficult period of time. When you take a peek at the nonprofit incorporation chronology and the outlines of program activity on our website: www.artseed.org, you will be amazed at the milestones we have passed along this arduous but magical trek. Nonprofits are unique to America and to me they are our saving grace. I am very proud to have been a part of creating a new one with so many arms reaching out to link with other sister organizations in the Bay Area and beyond for these trying times.

Daily I encounter things that remind me of how important it is that ArtSeed unite with other agencies to make a difference. Government officials don’t always see how vital the arts are to the economy. Studies like the extensive ten-year one conducted by Stanford anthropologist Shirley Brice Heath have concluded that participation in the arts, more than any other extra curricular activity, encourages the development of certain “habits of mind” that can lead to academic and personal success.

I speak from experience. You would not have liked me as a teen. But then I met Pilar Rubin, who gave me a paintbrush, told me I had promise and taught me some skills to prove it. Art is a medium by which the young can learn what it takes to become a professional in any field: discipline, passion, imagination, organization, cooperation, patience.

ArtSeed’s Fine Arts Summer Camp 2003 provided 40 kids, 9 teens and 4 adults with lessons that earned us hugs and them promises of continued contact. Our fundraising kickoff at The LAB, Coloring Sounds: Songlines for Seibert’s Pipes, involved countless people on three coasts and attracted numerous new constituents. This year we ArtSeed artists learned as much as we taught.

We could not have accomplished so much without having been mentored by numerous professionals in a variety of fields. I want to thank our lawyers Jeffrey T. Chow and Victoria Tseng with Jeffrey J. Chang & associates who worked with us through the Volunteer Legal Services Program of the Bar Association of San Francisco. Our new president, Lydia Titcomb, one of San Francisco’s most generous and inspired champions of the arts, stepped up as our board development mentor and first supporting trustee. Our new chief financial officer, Cris Larson, CPA, took us by the hand financially. I am very grateful to all these friends!

Founding Youth Advisors to ArtSeed have leapt high hurdles to accomplish wonderful things. Five-year ArtSeed veterans Dana Flores and Steven Chin have graduated from School of the Arts, San Francisco. Thuong Tran, an honors student from Vietnam is beginning her second year at Lowell High School. Brandon Jones, founding ArtSeed Youth Advisor and one of our original middle school “troubled youths,” has qualified for and completed several outreach opportunities and made a CD of his spoken word pieces. Numerous ArtSeed interns have offered countless hours of time in exchange for valuable classroom, installation and administrative experience.

Hundreds of students have been touched by our programs and have in turn deeply moved us as teachers and artists. Laura Kamian, our founding treasurer and a former student of mine, regularly exhibits her art. Marissa Kunz, our secretary, was a teaching intern with ArtSeed for several years. This fall she won a highly sought after artist residency at Alvarado Elementary School.

We are all working hard to develop and culminate several proposed projects, namely:

1) Postcards to People in Power: An International Call for Human Rights, Environmental Responsibility and Peace. In pilots for this proposed project ArtSeed scribes have assisted people on public transit and in schools to make and send copies of colorful messages to world leaders. We will maintain an archive of postcards and responses for public display. Estimated project cost: $12,500.

2) The Bay Area Directory of Resources for Artists and Youth will use sophisticated geographical information systems online and in an artist’s book to describe the state of the fine arts education community at this critical time. What began as ArtSeed’s Community Needs Assessment and Feasibility Study can become a stunningly effective tribute to the survival of Bay Area arts programs and teaching artists. Estimated project cost:$9,350.

3) The ArtSeed Apprenticeship Program and Bay Area Fine Arts Apprenticeships Summer Summit connects artists at the Shipyard (300 studios!) to residents of Bayview Hunters Point. It will also encourage more agencies throughout the Bay Area to foster sustained, one-on-one learning arrangements. We are proposing to organize a festive showcase for artwork produced in year-round apprenticeships. Estimated project cost: $20,320.

4) A catalog documenting ArtSeed’s radically inclusive recent great Shebang at The LAB will help us to reach more potential students, volunteers and patrons. This offset lithographic edition of 2,500 signed and numbered copies (twenty pages, spiral bound with nine black and white and three full color reproductions) will include an essay by composer Charles Boone illuminating key historical experiments linking heard and seen creative material. An essay by Meredith Tromble examines the cultural context for and rewards of participatory art. A third essay will trace the roots and vision of ArtSeed. Estimated project cost: $5,000.

5) General Operating Expenses are what generate ideas and keep our pilot initiatives simmering. A grant that covers general operating expenses and one paid staff position will insure the survival of all ArtSeed pilot projects. With enough in-kind support we could realize at least one of our projects each year. Operations with paid staff estimated cost: $50,000.

My understanding of and respect for many “non-arts” professions has expanded immensely. I am led to think that great artists and extraordinary finance professionals share more personal propensities and professional habits than is commonly supposed. By honestly observing, meticulously recording and then balancing life’s qualities and quantities both professionals serve society in very real and essential ways. Through my work with this organization I’ve met the most inspiring people imaginable. The kids at Benjamin Franklin Middle School shook me up and got me hooked on keeping up with their progress. Many of these lively youngsters exist in worlds that would crush me.

Assistants, volunteers and co-workers like artist and ArtSeed secretary Marissa Kunz hung in there with me through very tedious and challenging situations offering precious time and valuable insight. Finally I wish to thank the pro bono consultants who have mentored us and the financial contributors who have helped us gain legitimacy and the means by which to serve. Real service, profound learning and masterful art are fueled by the “love of humankind” described in Inspired Philanthropy. This book by Tracy Gary and Melissa Kohner describes how, in a radically inclusive sense, we are all philanthropists. We are all in this together and I feel very honored to be on board with you.

There are no passengers on this ship. We are all crew. Bound for wonderful adventures, let’s continue to align our dollars, deeds and dreams.

– Josefa Vaughan

ArtSeed Welcomes Two New Board Members: Lydia Titcomb and Cris Larson!

ArtSeed is very pleased to welcome on board Lydia Titcomb as its new president. Lydia has been involved with the San Francisco Art Institute for eighteen years, fourteen of those as a board member, and the last four years as the chair of the Trustee Committee. She served as chair for the 125th anniversary celebration of the Art Institute in 1996. Lydia has volunteered for the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art Tour and Travel Department, leading art trips to the south of France, Indonesia, Brazil and other locations. She was a founding member of Music in Schools and a member of Other Minds, a nonprofit organization that pioneers avant-garde music. Lydia has two masters degrees, one in Nutritional Biochemistry from Columbia University and one in Museology from John F. Kennedy University.

ArtSeed also welcomes Cris Larson to the Board of Directors. After serving on ArtSeed’s Advisory Board for most of the year, we were fortunate to have Cris accept the post of Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of ArtSeed. We know that we are in good hands because Cris, an art-lover and mother of two, has a long and impressive background in finance. She has worked as a financial and business professional for over twenty years. Most recently she worked as an independent consultant and consultant with KPMG where she provided financial and business management consulting. From 1985 to 1999, Cris was a Senior Vice President at Bank of America where she authored a five-year business plan for their nationwide interactive TV financial portal; wrote the three-year strategic plan for the $2 billion global capital markets and brokerage business; managed multi-million dollar technology development projects; structured and negotiated a $1 billion strategic alliance; built a $25 million equity derivative business; and implemented and managed a global marketing campaign. Cris also served as CFO for the BA Ventures and BA Capital Corporation and for BA Leasing and Capital Corporation. Cris has an MBA from California Sate University, Hayward and a BS from the University of California, Berkeley. She is a certified public accountant (CPA).

We look forward to great insight and support from Lydia and Cris for years to come!

Message from Lydia Titcomb, President of ArtSeed

Greetings! This is my first communication as the President of the newly formed Board of ArtSeed. I am very happy to be involved with ArtSeed and to work with Josefa Vaughan in pushing the nonprofit enterprise forward. To transform one life a year is worth all the effort and work. I thank Josefa, all the artists and the individuals who made ArtSeed a reality.

I look forward to the coming months to increase our base of support and activities by adding several qualified board members.

– Lydia Titcomb

On the Financial Front: A Message from Cris Larson, Treasurer of ArtSeed

I am very pleased to be serving as Treasurer for ArtSeed. I have worked with other nonprofit organizations over the last several years to help them formulate procedures, set up budgets and build financial reporting tools. I find it very rewarding to help communicate the success of an organization’s efforts through presenting its financial data and helping those involved to understand the ongoing economics of their organization.

I am most excited to be working with ArtSeed because of its focus on art and on children. My own upbringing included a lot of time spent in art classes and on art projects and I feel it was a very important component of my life that I have tried to pass on to my own children.

ArtSeed very successfully benefited from Coloring Sounds: Songlines for Seibert’s Pipes , earning more than $3,000 including proceeds from the follow up art sales and donations inspired by the show. A number of grants made the project possible including one Individual Artist Commission to Josefa Vaughan of $10,000 from the San Francisco Arts Commission Cultural Equity Grants Program. At the beginning of August, bank funds available for future projects are more than $3,600 up from $335 at the beginning of February.

A number of very exciting projects are planned for ArtSeed in the upcoming year. The current bank funds along with future grants and private donations will enable ArtSeed to continue to build on its current success and offer its programs in the community. As Josefa has described, ArtSeed was also officially designated as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization in 2003. This new tax-exempt status should improve ArtSeed’s fund raising abilities as potential patrons have yet another incentive to give: their contributions will be tax deductible.

– Cris Larson

ArtSeed Fine Arts Summer Camp 2003

With a $1,250 gift from the Shipyard Trust for the Arts (STAR), personnel support from the Bayview Opera House, and hard work from our volunteers and lead artist-teachers Josefa Vaughan and Marissa Kunz, ArtSeed’s Summer Camp 2003 was a challenge but also – we believe – a real success! We want to thank STAR’s President, Kathleen McNamara, for her advocacy.

The proposal for this camp was created after an announcement was made at a Bayview Opera House event that providers of summer art programs for youngsters in this community could no longer afford the cost of these services. Programming cuts of this kind are more devastating than in other parts of the city due to the community’s geographic and cultural detachment from many city resources. Thus, we designed this camp as a emergency fix for the problem but hope it will expand and enrich our relationship with the Hunters Point community. Moving forth, we hope to keep in contact with the Bayview Opera House and its staff along with a core group of youngsters who showed a profound interest in continuing art practice through more classes, camps and apprenticeships.

From July 8 to July 18, ArtSeed set up camp at the Bayview Opera House from 1pm to 4pm, Tuesdays through Fridays. The total headcount of participants – a majority of which were elementary age and from the Bayview Hunter’s Point community – was 55. Students were introduced to traditional and experimental media and subject matter. They experimented with painting on paper and canvas; drawing with charcoal, pencil, markers and oil sticks; collage with found and given material; 3D assemblage with a range of diverse materials such as clay, string, wire, cork, paper and beads; and sketching in personal hand-made sketchbooks! Often students got a chance to stand up and talk about their work to the rest of the class. In addition, guest artist and ArtSeed apprentice, William Scott, added interest to the camp by demonstrating his signature self-portraiture for the kids.

The camp ended with a culminating celebration and exhibition. Student work was put on display at the Opera House before they got to take it home along with a hand-painted canvas bag of supplies and sketchbooks. The Opera House also kindly provided refreshments and snacks for this festive finale.

Here are some of our favorite quotes from participant/observer evaluation forms:

“Josefa, Marissa and Bonnie worked under challenging conditions. Assistant Bonnie was able to keep the supplies flowing while the art staff kept the projects moving. The students were excited when they returned to the Bayview Opera House and saw their artwork hanging on the walls. The staff personalized their art by sharing their personal stories. Allowing them to discuss and present their art honored the students. I am very excited about the program. I look forward to it coming to the Bayview again. I have been teaching in the area for twenty years, the program is unique, stimulating and fun for the students.” –Mary Midget, chaperone/teacher

“I hope the program will continue since the children benefited so much from it. They need this opportunity.” –Laura Morgan, chaperone/teacher

“I enjoyed everything, creating all kinds of things!” –Aisha Coleman, student age 8

Coloring Sounds: Songlines for Seibert’s Pipes

What do you do with 30 years of pretty good life drawings, abandoned meanders from other artists, a story about your grandfather having built the largest pipe organ in the world, a nonprofit organization that needs a fundraising kick-off benefit and a $10,000 Individual Artist Commission Award from the SF Arts Commission? You guessed it: The exhibition, Coloring Sounds: Songlines for Seibert’s Pipes from March 28 – April 26, 2003 at The LAB in San Francisco was this and much more! Josefa Vaughan’s “solo” show featured performances, a panel discussion, a creativity fitness station and hundreds of continuation paintings, drawings and prints. Additionally, three dimensional components, and sound elements were contributed by local composers, passers-by and ArtSeed participants. The project became a rallying point around which ideas flowed between people from all walks of life while ArtSeed expanded its vision and base of support. In a world at war, where else would you find a SF Opera French hornist playing an Arabic composition, an electronic sound piece developed for hanging handmade pipes, a butoh dance and didjeridoo performance? Hundreds of people contributed time, attention, talent and workmanship to this mammoth and multi-faceted project. Significant connections were made across disciplines, social strata, and ages.

A magical spirit of generosity prevailed during a turbulent time. Because this benefit exhibition embodied so many aspects of ArtSeed’s mission, we would like to express our heartfelt gratitude the countless individuals who made this project a success by giving their time, expertise, money and vision. Hearty hugs to the many patrons who stepped forward by sending us checks or by giving us back their honoraria. Thanks to Roberto Gastelumendi, who helped design and single-handedly built our first two consoles for our proposed creativity fitness stations. Special thanks to The LAB staff: Elisabeth Beaird, Laura Brun, Kristen Chappa and to all The LAB’s wonderful interns and volunteers: Tim Benjamin, Jennifer Witcher, Greg Hipwell, Erin Ruch; Performers: Christopher Burns, Alden Jenks, William Klingelhoffer, Laetitia Sonami, Charles Boone, Kenji Hayashi, Beau Casey, Thuong Tran, Brandon Jones, William Scott, Claudia Grubbler; Panelists: Meredith Tromble, Raymond Holbert, David Hegarty, Jeanne Foss, Richard Felciano, Charles Shere; ArtSeed Volunteers: Carola Anderson, Troy Byker, Lori Kossowski, Rocio Avila, Yanina Aparicio, Shane Shafer, Steven Chin, Dana Flores, Laura Kamian and Marissa Kunz; and finally the brave “continuers” who gave me their own art on which to work or who were willing to draw and write directly on mine. Alden Jenks’ sound installation required a great amount of time and commitment on his and his family’s part. Thank you Jesse and Mikako!

Our benefit exhibition Coloring Sounds: Songlines for Seibert’s Pipes would not have been possible without an Individual Artists Commissions Award from the San Francisco Arts Commission’s Cultural Equity Grants Program. Additional funds were provided by the San Francisco Bay Area Chapter of the American Composers Forum Subito Grant Program. In-kind donations were gratefully received from Jeff Olson/Utrecht Art Supplies as were pro-bono services from John Varn of ChromeWorks. Heartfelt thanks to all our individual patrons.

L to R: JV Continues Russell Nachman’s Staff (detail), JV Continues Dianne Jacobs & Others Continue JV, composite wall, Thuong Tran & Brandon Jones spoken word performance.

L to R: Steven Chin Continues JV (detail), Laetitia Sonami’s digital bellows performance, JV & Claudia Grubler’s wheelchair performance, Wall composite reflection as Laura Kamian knits

L to R: JV at Hunters Point Shipyard, Lt.Ish, participant; William Scott Continues JV (detail); a participating visitor to The LAB; Panelists in front of reclaimed and continued remnants from the 1996 Bayview Opera House Children’s Mural Program

Photos by Emily Hughs, Christine Jegan, Kristen Chappa, and Lt. Rudy Garrett

Postcards to People In Power

ArtSeed’s ongoing Postcards to People in Power pilot project reflects ArtSeed’s mission: “to provide opportunities for people of all ages and backgrounds to grasp, utilize, and transform the arts.” Additionally, it addresses the potential power of the earnest and inexpensive hand-made mark. To reflect on the small but enduring forces that generate history’s decisive moments, people from all walks of life were invited to create a postcard with a wish for this planet’s future to be sent to a world leader or news service of their choice. ArtSeed plans to continue collecting and then mail copies of these postcards. We will retain an archive of original postcards and responses they have generated for future exhibition.

Though we are still looking for funding sources for this project, many ArtSeed students, volunteers and artists have had a fruitful and interesting year of pilot postcard collecting and display. Although postcards can be collected from anyone at anytime – such as on a bus – there were a few memorable highlights.

Of note is our involvement with Lise Swenson’s Living LABoratory exhibition this past October 2002. The show, which featured artists who worked in or made work about San Francisco’s vibrant Mission District, included ArtSeed’s Postcards to People in Power project. Armed with an ironing board, a stack of blank postcards, drawing materials, a big smile and the willingness to explain our project to passers-by, ArtSeed youth and volunteers set up postcard collecting stations at the busy 24th and Mission street BART station. Curious locals, young and old, many of whom only spoke Spanish, became willing and chatty participants. In addition, a postcard creation booth and display wall were set up at the exhibition at The LAB gallery itself. For the exhibition’s performance night, youth participant Brandon Jones along with ArtSeed staff Marissa Kunz and Josefa Vaughan “performed” the postcards by reading the messages to a packed gallery audience.

As momentum for the war in Iraq grew, the postcard messages increasingly reflected the political climate. In February, Claire Bain, longtime ArtSeed volunteer and artist, orchestrated another successful postcard collecting session with people of various political stripes at a mass meeting. In addition to printing, collecting and mailing the postcards, Claire painted a beautiful ArtSeed banner that we still use today. (Thank you Claire!)

Many more postcards were collected from elementary school classes such as Malcolm X Academy and Chinese American International School. At Malcolm X, Mr. Lowe’s 5th grade class invited Josefa and Marissa to do a Postcards to People in Power workshop. The art and messages for these postcards were distilled from environmental concerns voiced in essays, poems and paintings generated from Heidi Hardin’s Children’s Mural Program.

Collected storyboard postcards with
participant’s age in the upper left corner

ArtSeed “scribes” at the 24th Street BART station
collecting postcards from neighbors

William Scott with “Create Peace” banner
by Claire Bain at the Peace March

Make Stuff Day

The second annual ArtSeed Make Stuff Day held on August 2, 2003 was an overwhelming success. The goal of Make Stuff Day is to bring ArtSeed friends, family and volunteers together for a fun-filled day of “getting creative” and making lots of “little things” to have available as thank-you gifts to our patrons while enjoying each other’s company. And we did just that!

This year’s host, founding member Laura Kamian, upped the ante from last year by planning several well laid out supplies stations in a beautiful sunny flower garden at her residence in Emeryville. An avid knitter herself, Laura’s fuzzy yarn boa stations were extremely popular and produced professional looking objects. Among other things made were magnets, cards, ornaments, bookmarks and more.

Guests were pleasantly surprised by a mouth-watering array of gourmet foods and sweets prepared by Laura herself – and entirely from scratch!

As the day wound down, even more surprised, however, was Josefa, who received a special one-day early birthday surprise complete with song, gifts and a small blueberry pear pie with candles.

By the end of the day 36 objects were created and new friends were made. We all thank Laura for a wonderful event.

Look out for Thuong and Brandon at POOR Press!

Congratulations to Thuong Tran and Brandon Jones, ArtSeed Youth Advisors, who earned a scholarship to POOR Press’s 10-week media and journalism program for youth and adults. They are learning how to write, design, layout, edit, publish and market their very own book or CD! Brandon’s spoken word and rap CD, entitled “Spittin’ Flames,” will be debuted at the POOR Press Book/CD Release Party in November 2003. A story with excerpts from his CD will be featured on KPFA and the San Francisco Bay View Newspaper as well. Thuong, on the other hand, has had to interrupt her participation to accommodate her family’s travel to Vietnam. Perhaps she is doing research on her POOR Press book project?

ArtSeed is proud of them both!

Making Connections: The Children’s Mural Program, Richmond District YMCA, Alvarado Elementary School and The Asian Art Museum

This year ArtSeed artists and volunteers have made many connections with Bay Area institutions and schools through personal employment. Often these links provide fertile ground for collaboration and involvement of ArtSeed participants with the larger arts community.

As art teachers in Heidi Hardin’s Children Mural Program this Spring semester, for example, Josefa Vaughan and Marissa Kunz added to the existing program by introducing ArtSeed’s Postcards to People in Power project. The Children’s Mural Program provides instruction in visual art techniques (mostly painting) as the medium of an environmental science curriculum exploring various issues of concern to the community, especially the history, Superfund clean-up, and reuse of Hunters Point Shipyard. This involvement became the impetus for ArtSeed’s very own summer camp in the Hunter’s Point community.

At the Richmond District YMCA this summer, Josefa Vaughan piloted ArtSeed’s creativty fitness center with Art Mondays where she taught two classes and hosted two hours of drop-in studio for all ages. Members and neighbors of the Richmond District YMCA got a chance to try professional grade materials while receiving professional guidance from teaching artist Josefa Vaughan. Intern Bonnie Kirkland and ArtSeed’s Founding Youth Advisor Steven Chin also provided valuable tips and encouragement. Steven’s father, Rodney Chin, coordinates several programs for this YMCA and is responsible for this exciting new ArtSeed outreach initiative. We thank you, Rodney!

Marissa and Josefa were also guest teaching artists at the Richmond District YMCA Summer Camp, coordinated by Jessi Prevost. Classes included Web Masters, Introduction to the Fine Arts, Photography and Critter Craze Art. Thank you, Jessi!

Congratulations to artist Marissa Kunz who won a coveted teaching post at Alvarado Elementary School in Noe Valley. Alvarado is famous for being the birthplace of artist Ruth Asawa’s Alvarado Arts Workshop, one of the first innovative arts education programs in the Bay Area to bring practicing artists into the schools.

And lastly, congratulations to Allison Wyckoff, long time ArtSeed volunteer and supporter, who is now holding a post at The Asian Art Museum in the AsiaAlive Program. AsiaAlive is a free, interactive, drop-in program for all ages, featuring live artist demonstrations, hands-on activities, videos and books on rotating monthly themes.

Plugs!

ArtSeed Artists are working artists – and here are just a few things we would like to shamelessly plug!

Worth checking out is a recently completed mural by Claire Bain on San Jose Street between 23rd and 24th (the back wall of the old Valencia police station). It is site-specific and features scenes from the immediate area arranged in storyboard fashion across its top. The main section of the mural is based on a fennel garden located across the street, which harbors the eggs, caterpillars and chrysali of the Anise Swallowtail butterfly, a native species. Ironically, fennel is an invasive plant to which this indigenous species of butterfly has adapted! The garden also has a large poinsetta plant mixed in among the fennel. Claire is a filmmaker and enjoyed this project very much because properties of light and sequencing of imagery are integral to it. She employed a selection of materials with properties of transparence, reflection and refraction of light, including mica flake dust and tiny spheres of glass which act as prisms. The mural looks very different depending on the position of the viewer and the time of day. The mural is entitled Regarding Here. Artist Alfred Hernandez assisted and friends Michelle Dyrness, John Steiner and Amy Green dropped by one day and added their touches to the fennel section.

Another fun project completed this past year was several limited edition POOR Press Po’ Cats books with digital collage illustrations by Marissa Kunz. Marissa has been collaborating on this project with Dee Gray, co-editor of POOR Magazine. Through travels near and far, the Po’ Cats weave a modern day humorous allegory critiquing and engaging in the ironic mix of colonialism, travel, indiginismo, racism, ageism and much more.

Laura Kamian’s art was accepted in shows listed below. An avid knitter with a background in abstract and fauvist painting, her work for the past two years has been an attempt to address the traditional assumptions and separation of these two strains of work – between high and low art. She attempts to bring into balance her painterly impulses with “ordinary” crafts processes and materials. Laura places importance on finding joy in her materials and describes her work as an “attempt to retrain myself in the use of my materials, and to redirect my idea of what it means to use them.”

Regarding Here, a mural by Claire Bain

Digital Collage illustrations,
limited edition POOR Press book series
Marissa Kunz

Laura Kamian, “Repeat Pattern (Orenburg Lace)”
silk, oil,and wax on masonite, 11″ x 8″ x 2″, 2002

Laura Kamian, “Tension”, silk, wool, and wax
on canvas, 23″ x 23″ x 2″, 2002

Volunteers and Interns

ArtSeed interns and volunteers have been the grease that keeps our tater tots cooking! And we would like to thank all of them for putting their time and talent to such good use. They are ArtSeed!

Thank you to all of our office assistant volunteers and interns – Joy Mukai, Rocio Avila, Yanina Aparicio, Christine “can do!” Rice, Richard Mitchell, Dragan Miletic, Synne Bull, and Arwen and Heather Vaughan – who have done an extraordinary job in organizing our office, updating our mailing list and/or administering our website. Chris Komater gave us nonprofit incorporation advice early on, Charles Boone has proof read many documents for us, and Tamera White drafted a press release for our recent benefit exhibition. We are very grateful for all this help.

Special thanks to our photography and graphic design volunteers: Clay Murphy for helping with numerous flyers and name cards, Carolina Humphreys and Catherine Bunn for helping with our brochure, Emily Hughes and Christine Jegan for their fantastic photographs of ArtSeed Shebangs and HouseCalls, and Lisa Fox, our newest graphics guru, who will be helping us with our catalog among other things!

We would also like to thank Baktash Sorkhabi, Stephani Mejia and Monica Mercado, high school students who came all the way from Concord to help out at ArtSeed’s Bayview Opera House Summer Camp. Big thanks also to the Bayview Opera House staff: Shelley Bradford-Bell and Aisha Gilmore; to BVOH interns: Felicia Moore, David Gonzalez, Karl Lincoln, Rodney Garrett, and Cieara Green; and to Chaperone/Teachers: Mary Midget, Patricia Ann Roth, Pinky Benjamin, and Tamara Jones.

Big thanks to teaching assistants Nathan Murray for his work at Chinese American International School and ArtSeed’s Bayview Opera House Summer Camp assistant Bonnie Kirkland for her work with Steven Chin at the Richmond District YMCA.

Thank you Steven Chin, Dana Flores, Shane Shafer, Lori Kossowski, and Roberto Gastelumendi for being troopers and helping in numerous projects and in numerous ways throughout the year. Kudos to our new star volunteers Maria Hernandez, Emma Wallerstein, Devan Miller, and Wes O’Haire.

Last but not least, there are volunteers like Michael Dovbish and Haidar Alssaqaf who share their expertise on business management, bookkeeping and financial planning.

Apprentices

ArtSeed has been working hard on maintaining and developing an arts mentoring and apprenticeship program that creates bridges between established Bay Area artists and young, at-risk or inexperienced artists. Students are paired up with mentoring artists in a symbiotic and mutually beneficial partnership. Artists benefit from the practical assistance and fresh approach that a youthful intern inspires, and aspiring artists gain knowledge, experience and an advocate/mentor. We believe that exposure to the daily artistic practice of an established artist teaches students about the craft, criticism and business skills necessary to be a professional in any field.

New private students who have benefited from and contributed to ArtSeed’s pilot apprenticeship initiative this year are William Scott, Lori Kossowsky, Dana Olney-Bell, Deja Brown and Leland Wolfson.

ArtSeed hopes to partner with Hunters Point Shipyard studio artists (300 of them in one place!) in developing long term and in-depth mentorships that could enrich the lives of Bayview Hunters Point youth. A program that would profoundly crossfertilize a community in this way and impact residents on such a scale would be unprecedented.

We want to acknowledge the arts education initiatives out of which ArtSeed has grown. These are the Texas Institute for Arts in Education, the San Francisco Arts Education Project, and the Hills Project. We also owe a debt to schools, art spaces and community centers where we have had the opportunity to bring our ideas to fruition. Chinese American International School; Studio One, Oakland; Synergy School; Benjamin Franklin Middle School; Starr King Elementary School; the Richmond District YMCA; the Bayview Opera House, Southern Exposure, Mission Neighborhood Centers, The LAB, The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art Family Day; The Oakland Museum of California “Art IS Education” Day; the de Young Museum Artist Studio; and The Point Artist Studios. Your support means a lot to us. Please inform us of any inadvertent omissions.