A great start!

Thank you to all of you for a wonderful beginning to our Art Salon. It was a great experience for me and cumulatively, exactly what I wanted.
Just knowing that my turn was coming up put a certain productive pressure on me to get more done. It was a little nutty, but felt good. I whipped up that cake sculpture pretty quickly.
I enjoyed the conversation, including trying to figure out what the conversation should be and how structured/unstructured I really wanted it.
Preparing my work, space and criteria was also an interesting process. Deciding how much to say and not say, how much of my personal narrative I should share and which pieces would best demonstrate this artistic journey, were all a part of the equation.
There were things that were said that made wince inside and other times when I soared. That felt like good balance. By the end, I was exhausted and exhilarated. I was comatose on Sunday night.
How nice to have this!
I am looking forward to being on the other side and chatting about the rest of the group's work. I hope this Salon is something that you can make valuable for yourself. I think we are good balance.
Thanks again. I'll give you more details about Tom's visit as we get closer. I am off to make some more papier mache flowers...
Happy holidays! Oh, go visit Kate's show on Thursday!

Sunday, December 7, Studio visit

I am looking forward to seeing all of you and connecting this Sunday at 2:00 (see directions below). Please confirm that you will be coming. If you would like to bring a guest who may be interested, please do!
I would also love to have a volunteer for this Sunday to take notes (not about my art). I have had some great conversations with some of you lately and there are ideas floating around that would be great to record and add to this blog.
Thanks!
-Phoebe

Side Street Projects: What do Curators Want?

Side Street Projects out of Pasdena has created a new series of Podcasts featuring ten interviews with Southern California curators and art dealers, asking the question "What do curators want?"
Go to the website to listen and find out more about this organization.
Thanks for the recommendation Beth!

The first meeting

Thank you to everyone for showing up and bringing your enthusiasm and willingness to participate. It was interesting to note how many people shared the same need for community and desire to be a part of something greater than themselves. Living in Los Angeles can be challenging for artists, given that we know that artists communities thrive in many other places around the country and world. When I hear about "Cafe Societies" I get a little weepy. However, it felt great to be able to jump right in to conversations with the understanding that we share a common desire, passion and language.

Many conversations were started last night and I noticed some threads that we may want to pick up on:
How to make time for your self and your work
How to get into galleries
Making contacts, networking
Self doubt, insecurity, a less-than-warm vibe in the art world
Sharing technical knowledge

We may want to designate occasional, special meetings away from a studio to address these specific topics (and of course, please add your ideas). A breakfast meeting could be perfect.

I felt very excited about our meeting. I truly feel like I need nothing from you, just the shared experience of knowing I am not alone, but part of a greater group of people: others like me who are making their giant rubber band ball, day in and day out, not because it makes sense, or has any pracitcal function, but because we need to, are driven to, if not, we will wither.
See you all next time!
-Phoebe

Studio Visit: Phoebe Sarason

Our first studio visit will be at the home of Phoebe and Craig.
Go to mapquest here.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
2:00 PM

Brewery Art Walk

This weekend is biannual the Brewery Art Walk. Click on the link for details.

Keeping in touch

Phoebe phoebesarason@mac.com
Beth elizabethleister@aol.com
Kate kate@katesavageart.com
Craig craig@gmpc.com
Cherie cheriesinnen@tagteamstudio.com
John johnhyatt@tagteamstudio.com
Judy jcorona@ucla.edu
Zelda artgal00@hotmail.com (that's zero, zero)
Carolyn cvosburgh@bwscampus.com
Clinton clintonbopp@gmail.com
Sandy sabrams4@mac.com
Tom tpmiller3@gmail.com

Who We Are

Here is a list of the Art Salon members:
Click on name for link to websites
Phoebe Sarason
Craig Stanman
Kate Savage
Elizabeth Leister
Zelda Zinn
Sandy Abrams
Carolyn Vosburgh
Judith Carona
Cherie Sinnen
John Hyatt
Tom Miller
Clinton Bopp

Our First Meeting: October 30, 7:30 PM

Eat now, look later

Let's use this first meeting to get acquainted. Some of us will know someone, but none of us will know everyone. This will be an opportunity to meet and share our thoughts and desires for the Art Salon. Our next meeting will be the first of the studio visits.

Since we will be coming from the four corners of the city, I have chosen a location that is probably not convenient for anyone, but easy enough to get to for most:

Novecento Restaurant
3837 Main Street
Culver City

It is a comfy Italian restaurant, with good basic food. Not fancy, not noisy, not far from the 10 freeway. There is street parking as well as a parking structure behind the restaurant with 2 hours free parking. Go to the link above for directions and more information.

RSVP

Please do this promptly. I will need to make accurate reservations.
You can either do it here by:

Clicking on comments
Signing up as a follower
Or by e-mailing the person that invited you or me at: pixiesoup@mac.com

Soiree by Florine Stettheimer

About this blog

We can use this site to connect to our own websites, add links or download photos. We can also use it as a way to communicate where and when we will meet and to announce any news or recommendations.

When we will meet

Once we know who is participating, we can nail down a date for our first meeting. I am aiming for sometime in mid-to-late October or early November.

Here's the Big Idea

The idea is for this small group to meet every 4 to 6 weeks and take turns visiting one another's studios. Perhaps we may meet at a gallery or an art talk or a museum. Or for breakfast. Perhaps not. This is an open forum. Dialogue is my greatest goal.

You have been invited to become a part of this group. We are in the initial stages of formation. Part of the idea is for you (the invited) to in turn, invite someone that may be interested in participating. It will be a more dynamic experience if we have new voices in addition to our own (wildly talented) friends.

Please respond to the person who invited you and we will pull all of our information together and get started.