CΔCHING OUT @ Festival of the Arts

Because THE CΔCHE is founded by California State University, Sacramento alumni, it was our honor and duty to cover the 2017 Festival of the Arts (FotA), hosted by the College of Arts and Letters at Sacramento State. The Festival of the Arts is a celebration of every department across the College of Arts and Letters for the week of April 5-9 that pays tribute to English, Theater, Music & Dance, Photography, Language, Design, History, Film, Philosophy and Art. For these five days, there are a range of events across disciplines that engage the students and community both on and off campus. While there was much to attend for the FotA, THE CΔCHE was only available for two events particular to our interests: U-Create!, and the Art History Art Talk, “How Do You Make an Art Museum & Why?” with Rachel Teagle, Director of the Manetti-Shrem Museum at UC Davis, and Lawrence Rinder, Director of Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA) at UC Berkeley.

U-Create!

U-Create! was a showcase in Downtown Sacramento on April 6 from 5-9pm, hosted by two local galleries, Beatnik Studios and the Verge Center for the Arts for the third year in a row. This night of programming was in constant rotation with activity bustling at each location with poetry and book readings, dance and music performances, research presentations, guest speakers, and a display of student photographic works. For a one night soiree, this evening was overwhelmingly packed with a plethora of showcases to choose from.

Photographer, Plasencia Yajaira (left), and model, Alexis Price (right).

At Beatnik Studios, depending on when you were in this gallery space or the other, opera performances could be enjoyed while examining student photography or chatting with other attendees. The spacious Beatnik studios was a great location to house these activities which allowed for seating and mingling simultaneously, along with two exhibitions on display from regional professional artists. “Italian Poetry through Art, Voice and Translation” was one event which featured students reading poetry and discussing artwork in front of an audience. This performance was a beautiful example of student involvement across disciplines in the College of Arts and Letters. While the emphasis was on the Italian language, this showcase included Carrie Reyes-Cruz, a recent graduate in Studio Art, who shared her passion for Italian art and her personal visual exploration through the painting medium. Also on display were student works from “Introduction to Art and Visual Culture” course (Art 7) which included a photo project on appropriation and identity. One outstanding work from this series was A Coat of Thick Skin by Plasencia Yajaira. Appropriated from Zhang Huan’s work Family Tree (2001), Yajaira photographed her friend and fellow student, Alexis Price, to explore the power of identity, language, culture, and assimilation. Arranged in a square with nine images, this work was powerful and particularly engaging since neither the artist or the model are art majors.Too often, in the College of Arts and Letters at Sacramento State, there is separation between these inspiring and innovative departments. Albeit, it is refreshing to witness and experience the cohesion of creative forces, especially amongst students.

Plasencia Yajaira, A Coat of Think Skin, Photography, 2017.

Across the street at Verge Center for the Arts, a much different environment presented speakers, music performances, and a clothing exhibition. While the main gallery was closed for an upcoming installation, the workshop warehouse staged performances by students, including the Sacramento State Saxophone Quartet and Persian Chamber Music Performance. Unfortunately due to weather conditions, a clothing exhibition was forced indoors and squeezed into the lobby, presenting the Theater Department’s collection of vintage costumes. Marguerite Boatwright and Sarah Riffle modeled costumes for the stage, and were apt to discuss the arrangement of vintage hats and undergarments on display. The Axis Gallery was concurrently open with a rotating exhibition that featured works from their collective of regional professional artists, but was not affiliated with U-Create!. While this evening was brimming with outstanding performances across disciplines in the College of Arts and Letters, the Art Department was undeniably upstaged by the turn-out from the Music, English, Theater and Dance Departments. This goes to show that the arts is a term with a plurality of meaning that appeals to different ways of thinking and seeing that are not solely dependent on the visual.  

Vintage costume collection from the Theater Department.

Sarah Riffle (left) and Marguerite Boatwright (right)

Art Talk: “How Do You Make an Art Museum & Why?”

For the thirteenth annual event for Art History in the FotA, the Art Department opted out of their usual symposium style event, and instead hosted an art talk with two regional museum directors, Rachel Teagle and Lawrence Rinder. These speakers brought a new perspective to art and art history students by presenting on, "How Do You Make an Art Museum & Why?" (A particularly important question for the Art Department which has a significant art collection, and is consistently in pursuit of an on-campus museum or space to show said permanent collection.)

Rachel Teagle presenting at Sacramento State Art Talk.

 Although most art and art historian careers lead to museums, the founding mission and upkeep of a museum is not a conversation that is talked about in art or art history courses. Teagle, the Director of the brand new Manetti-Shrem Museum on the UC Davis campus which opened in November 2016, emphasized the importance of community impact and her museum's mission to stay grounded in the legacy of the UC Davis first-generation art faculty. UC Davis has a long, and somewhat forgotten, history of innovative and talented artists, which were represented in their premier exhibit "Out This Way" and include: Wayne Thiebaud, Robert Arneson, William T. Wiley, Roy De Forest, Roland Petersen, Manuel Neri, Ralph Johnson, Ruth Horsting, Daniel Shapiro, Tio Giambruni, Jane Garritson and John Baxter. Without a doubt, Teagle shared her passion to make the museum a place which is dedicated to education and contributes to enriching the lives of the community, in fact, the design of the building even supports that mission. Built under her direction from the ground up, Teagle raised the funds and made a call to architects, both regional and national, to integrate the unique landscape of the UC Davis area as a part of the Manetti-Shrem Museum's journey. 

Lawrence Rinder presenting at Sacramento State Art Talk.

Lawrence Rinder, the Director of BAMPFA, spoke from the perspective of the oldest museum in the UC system. Similar to the Manetti-Shrem, Rinder shared the process of designing a new and updated building that met the needs of the community. This common thread between both talks is at the core of the "Why" question for a museum - to create a space which makes available new ways of thinking and new perspectives for the people. Whether they are pursuing higher education at the university campus, or entering BAMPFA with little to know previous art historical knowledge, these places of learning are accessible to the community and it is the mission of the museum to generate engagement. Rinder described BAMPFA as an encyclopedic museum totally unique for its commitment to visual art and film that is relevant both regionally and globally. 

The Sacramento State Festival of the Arts occurs every Spring with new and exciting programming suitable for anybody at any age. From philosophical research presentations to puppet performances, all you have to do is get to choosing! For an idea of what events are typically offered and in what time frame, check out the 2017 schedule of events below. 

http://www.csus.edu/al/festival/full%20schedule.html

For more information about the Manetti-Shrem Museum visit
http://manettishremmuseum.ucdavis.edu/

For more information about BAMPFA visit
http://www.bampfa.berkeley.edu/