ArtNotesQuarterly members’ magazine for the Lake County Arts Council

Fall 2006www.lakecountyartscouncil.com

EcoArts Sculpture Walk on display through Oct. 15by Cynthia M. Parkhill

The EcoArts: Lake County Sculpture Walk remains on display through mid-October at the Middletown

County Trailside Park.EcoArts of Lake County is a non-profit organization

dedicated to promoting visual art, visual art education and ecologic stewardship to the residents and visitors of Lake County. The sculpture walk originated through a partnership between the Lake County Arts Council and the County of Lake, which provided the outdoor venue.

Organized by Karen Turcotte, the sculpture walk has been installed each year since 2003 during the summer months. The Lake County Board of Supervisors, during reviews of the sculpture walk, have approved its contin-ued installations.

In 2005, EcoArts of Lake County filed for non-profit

status and was approved as a 501(c)3. A $5,000 grant from AT&T (formerly the SBC Excelerator program) enabled the creation of a Web site, www.EcoArts ofLakeCounty.org. The Web site includes “cyber-walks” of each year’s EcoArts exhibit.

The sculpture walk opened this year along the county park’s central trail. It features work by a number of art-ists who are locally and internationally known and will remain in place through Oct. 15.

The Coyote Film Festival debuted this summer to support the mission of EcoArts. Langtry Estate and Vineyard has hosted monthly outdoor screenings of in-dependent films, including several by local filmmakers.

For more information, visit EcoArts of Lake County’s Web site. Tax deductible donations can be sent to Eco-Arts of Lake County, PO Box 8, Cobb, CA 95426.

www.EcoArtsofLakeCounty.org

“Lake County Landscape” by Alicia Lee Farnsworth

www.EcoArtsofLakeCounty.org

“Shutter Bug” by Lawrence Lauterborn

Page 2 • ArtNotes, Fall 2006

Executive Director — Shelby Posada, 263-1871; ESP352@aol.com

Board of Directors:President — Sandi Ciardelli, 263-0663 (home), 263-8132 (work); designwomen@saber.netVice President — John Ross, 263-6120; pogo2@sbcglobal.netTreasurer — Betty Lou Surber, 263-4721; surber@jps.netSecretary — Susan Krones, 263-2251; krones@zapcom.net

Annie Barnes, 263-3010 (work), 274-9251 (home)Carol Dobusch, 279-1169; hansdobusch@mchsi.comJoan Holman, 263-1345Glenneth Lambert, glenneth@thefine-artcafe.orgKristi Peake, 279-1130 (home), 349-4316 (cell); kristi747@netzero.netLuwana Quitiquit, 263-5553Norman “Wink” Winckler, 279-2965 (home), 349-0934 (work); wink162@msn.comFloyd Surber, 263-4721; surber@jps.net

Voris Brumfield (Board Member Emeritus), 987-3461

Staff and Office Volunteers:Betty Lou Surber, The Great OzDiana Liebe, Gift ShopJohn Ross, Membership

LCAC Media:Webmaster — Xian Yeagan, yeagan@xianyeagan.comArtNotes Editor — Cynthia Parkhill, 277-0296 (home), 295-7554 (cell); cparkhill@jps.net

Gallery Committee Members:Floyd Surber, Mary Lawson, Bonnie Ewing, Diana Liebe, Gaylene McComb, Pat Courtney,Ray Farrow, John Eells, Ron Snider, Richard Siesser, Gwen Patsy, Revina MitchellSoper-Reese Committee:Mike Adams, Bob Carpenter, Amy Casey, Sandi Ciardelli, Carol Dobusch, Wally Fuller, Nina Marino, John Ross, Floyd Surber

Schedule changes at Main Street Gallery

Beginning with the October 2006 show, the Gallery will be staggering the shows in order that every First Friday Fling will also be an opening

reception for several artists.Since the beginning of the Gallery, shows have lasted three months, and

all shows have had their openings on the same date. This has tended to dis-courage passersby from dropping in, since everyone knew that they would see the same art that they saw the last time they were in.

Attendance at the Gallery has improved since the establishment of the First Friday Flings, our monthly celebrations of the arts. However, the Re-ception/Flings were much better at-tended than the others. In the future every Fling will also be a reception, with approximately a third of the art-ists opening a new show.

In order to make the change in the schedule, some artists were willing to shorten their shows. So for the October Fling, there will be thirteen artists opening, some who will be there for two months, some for one. Once ev-erything is settled, the artists will show for three months each. In November and December, there will be several new artists. This will allow us to give each artist more attention both at the openings and in press releases.

The policy of the Main Street Gallery has always been to give an opportu-nity to show to artists who have never shown in a gallery before, and we do not intend to alter that policy in our effort to create a more exciting venue. However, since many developing artists can use assistance evaluating their work, we will be viewing it in advance of the show in order to help choose the best.

— Xian Yeagan, Gallery Manager

Matson leads writing work-shop this fall

This Fall, discover your talent for creative writing in a workshop led by Clive Matson, author of “Let the Crazy Child Write” (New World Library, 1998). Learn how to put those ideas on paper with simple ex-ercises and basic writing techniques then venture into the world of sto-ries, personal essays, poems, plays or scripts. You will finish with at least one draft of new exciting material and a healthy understanding of how your talent can enhance your life.

The workshop takes place from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 29 at the Main Street Gallery. Class fee is $55; a deposit is required.

For more information or to regis-ter, contact the Main Street Gallery at (707) 263-6658 or call or e-mail Clive Matson at (510) 654-6495, clive@matson-ford.com.

This event is supported by Poets & Writers, Inc. through a grant it has received from The James Irvine Foundation.

In the future every fling will also be a reception...

ArtNotes, Fall 2006 • Page 3

From the Executive Director ... A Writer’sBookshelf

“[T]he role of the artist is to transcend conventional wisdom, to transcend the word of the establishment, to transcend the orthodoxy, to go beyond and escape what is handed down by the government or said in the media ...

It is the job of the artist ... to think out-side the boundaries of permissible thought and dare to say things that no one else will say.”

— Howard Zinn, “Artists in Times of War” (Seven Stories Press, 2003

A few months ago, I was asked to orga-nize a seminar around the topic of “The Writer’s Bookshelf ” for a series of poetry workshops that were held in conjunction with open mic at Crave Coffee in Middle-town. Sandra Wade and Fran Ransley led two very productive workshops but given the scarcity of turnout, which largely consisted of my husband and myself, the series discontinued and my seminar remains untaught.

However, what better venue than the pages of ArtNotes to offer, at least periodi-cally, some insights into books on writing that I have found to be of value.

A recent discovery at a local bookstore was a small book by Howard Zinn, “Artists in Times of War.” It talks about an artist’s responsibility to interpret and transcend the issues of the day and the conventional orthodoxies that frame them..

While Zinn takes a wider approach than simply the discipline of writing, he showcases historic novels like “Catch-22” and “Slaughterhouse Five,” whose authors used the realm of fiction to criticize aspects of “The Good War.” Zinn also credits pam-phleteers, for the affordability of their craft, with playing an influential role in the spread of historic causes.

“Common Sense,” by Thomas Paine, which Zinn argues was perhaps the most important publication in the history of the United States, went through 25 editions and sold hundreds of thousands of copies. Pro-duced by Paine in early 1776, it advocated independence from England with simple words and powerful logic. Imagine what a writer could do today with the combined re-sources of letters to the editor, pamphleteer-ing and posting messages via the Internet.

— Cynthia M. Parkhill

The Gallery Committee continues to grow and refine and define its role within the Arts Council. We are pleased to announce that Xian Yeagan has accepted

the position of Gallery Manager and is enthusiastically pursuing new venues and shows for the Gallery. Floyd Surber is currently serving a Chairman of the Gallery Committee and Carol Dobusch is Vice Chairman of this dynamic group.

Taste of Lakeport was fun and profitable, and it is good exposure for LCAC to be actively involved in this widely publicized event which had more than 700 participants. Thank you Marie Wright for your beautiful watercolor that was one of the prized drawings, and thank you to all of you artists who donate your valued work to the Arts Council and help with our fundraising efforts and community participation. Konocti Vista Casino’s caterer and Shannon Ridge Winery were so pleased with their exposure at the Gallery that they asked if could work together on the event in 2007.

Pastels in the Park was a happy and bustling affair with pastel artists on the walkways, vendors and artists of all mediums showing and selling their wares. The festivities were further enhanced by the entertainment provided by John Jennings, Little Deer and Orion Freedom Song, Dan Meyers, Bill Barrow and Connie Miller and our enthusiastic MC, Burt Hutt. Special thanks to Angelina’s, Curry’s Furni-ture, Sandi’s Interiors, Mendo-Lake Office Supplies, and the Buckhorn for sup-porting the event and to Karen Magnuson for doing our poster.

Our next event is our Children’s Creative Art Day at Museum Park on Saturday, October 28. 2006. LCAC will provide the pastels for the sidewalk art, Frances and Francis plan to do clay work with anyone participating, and the 4H will handle the games. We’d also like to bring back the Scarecrow Contest. Shari’s Secret Garden will donate to the event and anyone else wishing to participate in the activities or has other ideas that we could add to the day, can contact me at 263-1871 or Betty Lou at 263-6658.

Many of the items from the back area have been cleared in preparation for Bob Carpenter and Ed Posada to start framing in our “Coffee Bar”. Anyone wishing to help with the project can contact me at 263-1871.

We have a great many new and talented community members becoming in-volved in the many projects of LCAC. In particular, some special talents have pulled together to raise funding for the Soper Reese Theatre. These combined efforts are what make our organization a vital part of the community.

In October we will reach a quarter of a century of bringing the Arts to Lake County. Each of you can be proud of your efforts on behalf of LCAC; whether you host the Gallery, write an article, put up posters, create art, work on fund raising and events, recruit new members or just talk about the Arts to your friends and neighbors, you are what makes us an ever increasingly vibrant organization. Thank you and I can’t wait to see our accomplishments in the years to come.

— Shelby Posada

Time running out for establishing a non-profit, community radio station

by Andy WeissOver the years, KPFZ has chosen

to follow a fiercely independent route. Admirable, yes, but possibly treacher-ous as well. Corporation for Public

Broadcasting (CPB)funds will most likely not be flowing into the coffers of this station. Some critical listeners might write-off KPFZ as a non-NPR

See RADIO, Page 6

Would you like to become a member or do you need to renew? Use this handy form!

Page 4 • ArtNotes, Fall 2006

Lake County poets laureate attend Poet Laureate Day“It is well known that a time of

deep social problems often becomes a time of intense intellectual, reli-gious and artistic activity.”

—From the introduction by Jonathan Chaves to his translation of “Pilgrim of the Clouds,” poems and essays by Yuan Hung-tau (Weather-hill, 1978)

It was Sunday, Aug. 6, 2006, the 61st anniversary of the day the

USA dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. Three of our four Lake County Poets Laureate hitherto gathered at the Frank Bette Center for the Arts and Gallery with more than a dozen other poets laure-ate, past and present, from all over California.

From 10 a.m. to noon we mixed, and were honored by the arrival of Al Young, California state poet laureate for the past year (and for a further two years, since it took the state legislature a whole year to install him formally).

Coordinator of the gathering was Alameda Poet Laureate Mary Rudge, a true “mover and shaker” who has been to many countries in the cause of poetry, notably in 2005 to China, whose government is

“wooing” Western writers in prepa-ration for hosting the Olympic Games. Mary knew well our Lake County poet Virginia Russ (who would have been 100 this year), long-time resident of Pepperwood Cove near Lucerne, through being active in the Ina Coolbrith Circle.

Kevin Patrick Sullivan from San Luis Obispo handed out packs of Major League Poet Cards (Mille Grazie Press, 1995), two sets each of 12 collector trading cards. The All Stars set included Lucille Clif-ton, poet laureate emerita of Mary-land; Donald Hall, now U.S. poet laureate; Hawaiian-born Garrett Kaoru Hongo; Galway Kinnell,

then-state poet of Vermont; Max-ine Kumin, then-poet laureate of New Hampshire; U.S. Poet Laure-ate Stanley Kunitz; Linda Pastan, more recent poet laureate of Mary-land; Adrienne Rich, long-beloved in California; and Bay Area-based Gary Soto.

Mary Rudge gifted each par-ticipant with a copy of her 2002 revised edition pocketbook of poems “When the Rapture Comes,” originally a BEATZINE 96 publica-tion. All exchanged business cards and bought each other’s books.

After a buffet lunch came three hours of continued idea-sharing and poetry readings for the public. We were photographed, videotaped and sketched for posterity! These pictorials may be used in an anthol-ogy for exhibit at the gallery and/or the Alameda Island Poets chapter of the statewide California Federation of Chaparral Poets, Inc., the state’s oldest poetry federation, dating from 1940. It is believed this cre-ative historic documentation will be of value to the State Library, various cities, selected museums and librar-ies such as the Bancroft Library at U.C. Berkeley and the California History Library in San Francisco, or will be placed in other archival collections and/or exhibited.

First Lake County Poet Laure-ate “Okie” Jim Lyle read a favorite poem by his successor James Blue-Wolf, as well as from his own work. Chinese-heritage Carolyn Wing Greenlee, who succeeded BlueWolf in 2004, was very warmly received, and your current Poet Laureate Sandra Wade read some of her recent work, both philosophical and political.

— Sandra Wade,Lake County Poet Laureate

Photos by June Golden

Would you like to become a member or do you need to renew? Use this handy form!

ArtNotes, Fall 2006 • Page 5

Main Street Gallery

October:Joan Holman (two months)Shelby Posada (one month)Ginger Armstrong (one month)Rhonda RullyRichard SeisserSarah TanseyGwen RavinoPat Brewer (Artist of the Month)Jo BergesonTom Macomber (one month)

November:Ray Farrow (three months)Bill Rose

December:Sharon FentonKenneth McIntoshAnnette HigdayBob Minenna (three months)Floyd SurberTrisha Tierce-MaderaDesiree Hemenger

Student Gallery —Jackie Farley/Temple of 1,000 Buddhas

Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday; 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday

Exhibitors for October, November and December

The Main Street Gallery is moving into a new phase. Through Gallery-centered events, we are making the Gallery into a more exciting and dynamic venue. While this has rewards, it has costs, too, and one will be for a computer system for the Gallery.

We have found a non-profit source for nearly-free computers, but we will have to get a monitor. It’s a small desk, and doesn’t have

room for a giant old monitor. We are looking for an angel to give us a flat-panel monitor for the Gallery computer. Are you that angel?

Over the last few years we have accumulated a large number of artworks, mostly paintings, donated to the LCAC. We will be having an auction of this work in the Gallery in mid to late November, proceeds to benefit the Gallery and the LCAC.

If you would like to do something for the always thin economy of the Arts Council, and you have artwork that is standing and facing the wall, please consider donating it. We are plan-ning on having more than one auction, perhaps on a regular schedule, at which your gifts and your presence would be very welcome.

Thanks for your help. — Xian Yeagan

Non-ProfitUS Postage PaidLakeport, CA

95453Permit #75

Lake County Arts Council325 N. Main StreetLakeport, CA 95453(707) 263-6658

Page 6 • ArtNotes, Fall 2006

ArtNotes

player and move on up the dial. Others, the more technical-ly-minded ones, might say that terrestrial broadcast radio is an anachronism and part of the past. All those things may be true. But, a more crystal truth is that KPFZ won’t be go-ing off the air because of the whim of a congressional budget cut. A firmer truth is that KPFZ’s opinions and music won’t be shipped in via a Washington D.C. public radio network. And the final truth is, you won’t be able to get Lake County public affairs and local music on XM satellite radio.

Truly independent community radio is a rare peak in the media consolidated hills of America. If, the station can get on in the first place.

It took Lew Hill and Eleanor McKinney six years to found KPFA. They did it first. Others followed. Like KZFR in Chico, just over a hill or two from Lake County.

It took them nine years before the lights went on in their community. Across the country, at the edge of the cold waters of Maine, WERU spent its first eleven years broad-casting from Noel Paul Stookey’s (Peter, Paul, and Mary) chicken coop.

The stories and the obstacles are as varied as are the com-munity stations in America. But for every station that made it, a dozen more flopped. Gave up. The list of community groups that reluctantly returned their construction permits

(right to build a station) to Washington D.C. and failed to bring public radio into their communities is much longer than the ones that succeeded.

What is a radio station? When is it actualized? Where does it come into being? At the studio? From the transmitter site? In front of the microphone? Is it floating on the air waves? Or does it only exist in the listeners’ ear?

Community radio is ethereal in nature — you can’t put your finger on it, or your arms around it. But you can tune in on it, and you can embrace it. Somehow it can be as real and as permanent and as provocative and as significant as KPFA, KZFR, WERU, and a hundred other grassroots sta-tions. The people who started those stations are long gone. But the radio waves they lit up are invisible beacons that continue to pulse through the night air.

If you would like to be a part of establishing Lake County’s first and only community radio station that will get to every corner of the county, or if you know where KPFZ can find a chunk of change, let us know. Time is running out. And money is our problem. The FCC is only giving KPFZ 18 more months to get the station on the air, then the oppor-tunity will be lost forever. Call Andy at 274-2152. And thanks to those of you who have supported our efforts over the years.

RADIO, From Page 3

ArtNotes is produced four times a year, in January, April, July and October. Editorial and advertising deadlines for the January 2007 edition is Dec. 15, 2006. Please send articles to Cynthia Parkhill, 9270 Pawnee Trail, Kelseyville, CA 95451 or e-mail cparkhill@jps.net. Advertising rates start at $25 for a business card; for complete information about advertising, please contact Shelby Posada, ESP352@aol.com; or Cynthia Parkhill, cparkhill@jps.net.