What: Live & Silent Auction to benefit the work of the Coalition on Homelessness
When: Thursday, September 9, 2010, 5:30pm to 10:00pm
Tickets: $25 At the Door

This year’s auction for the Coalition on Homelessness will feature work by Andrew Leone, Zina Al-Shukri, Deborah Lyons, Kathryn Arnold, Sita Bhaumik, Tom Mogensen, Brett Amory, Johanna Poethig and others. For more information about the event, including artworks to be auctioned, go here. The Coalition on Homelessness provides a collection of literature and fact sheets on homelessness here.
Image credit:  Art Hazelwood and Jos Sances, It’s Sinful, 2010, Heat Transfer Ceramic Tile

SOMArts Cultural Center and the San Francisco Art Institute City Studio have joined forces to offer a ceramic sculpture class for youth ages 12 to 19. This opportunity is not only free … youth who are accepted into the weekly class learn art and job skills and will be paid for their time.

The class will meet weekly on Wednesdays from 4:00pm to 7:00pm beginning September 15 at SOMArts, 934 Brannan St in San Francisco. Teaching artists Allison Taylor and Cathy Fairbanks will lead the class

To receive an application or more information, call (415) 351-3530 or email citystudio@sfai.edu.

What: Behind the Burka opening reception, and book signing
Opening reception: Thursday, August 26 from 6:00pm to 10:00pm
Exhibition hours: August 27 through 29, from 11:00am to 7:00pm
Where: SOMArts Bay Gallery, 934 Brannan St. (enter down long driveway)
Who: Asma Salehi
What else: $2 admission fee supports ADRP (Afghanistan Dental Relief Program)

SOMArts Bay Gallery will host an exhibition of work by artist Asma Salehi, as well as a book signing for her work Buzaak Chinie (The Porcelain Goat), a traditional Afghan folk tale retold and illustrated by Salehi.

Asma Salehi was born in Afghanistan in 1972. After her father vanished in 1978, she and her family searched for him in vain for three years. With the war intensifying, the family needed to escape Afghanistan for their safety, and fled to Pakistan where they waited for two years before finally coming to the United States. The dual struggles of going to school and trying to make ends meet in the U.S. paid off when Asma’s artistic talent was discovered in 1991. Since then, has been compelled as an artist to create work that challenges people to think about critical issues around the world.

In “Behind the Burka,” Asma hopes to raise awareness of the lack of opportunities and freedom for Afgahan women after suffering so much strife over the years. Women in Afghanistan have been victims of war, domestic violence, illiteracy and poor physical health for the past 25 years. Many books have been written and stories have been told about the plight of Afghan women but little progress or improvements have been made. Asma illustrates these forgotten and unheard voices on canvas and sculptural form.

The expressive realism of Asma’s work helps the audience feel the pain and suffering as well as the joy and glory of the Afghan women, revealing their humanity. The artist herself is breaking cultural boundaries by going public to reveal her talent for the first time. Several series of her art work will be displayed alongside the “Behind the Burka”. She is amongst the few Afghan female artists who are making a bold visual statement to convey the harsh realities of women in Afghanistan.

“Behind the Burka” comes to SOMArts with support from the Affordable Space Program.

Artist Evan Bissell's collaborative painting

If you haven’t visited the exhibitions page recently, we have now added a link to our “Pullfolio” so you can see each current exhibition as it arrives and view slideshows of past and ongoing exhibitions.  This archive helps us keep you up to date with what’s going in the ever-changing gallery, and shares the work of Bay Area artists with those who are not able to visit the physical gallery space.

Pullfolio was co-founded by Bay Area photographer Andrew Ng, who attended the recent SoMa photo walk co-sponsored by SOMArts and CaliberSF.

We want it.

SOMArts is experimenting with audio for some upcoming exhibitions. If you have an unloved iPod shuffle, write to info@somarts.org and we will make arrangements to take it off your hands and put it to good use. We will also acknowledge your generous, tax-deductible donation.

What: Fundraising Tools for Artists, free workshop presented by NYFA
When: Wednesday, August 25th from 6:30pm to 9:00pm
Where: SOMArts Cultural Center, 934 Brannan St, SF 94103
What else: advance registration available online at nyfaworkshop.eventbrite.com

New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) Program Officer for Fiscal Sponsor Programs Rory Golden will present a workshop at SOMArts in San Francisco on NYFA’s fundraising and support programs and other professional development topics. The presentation will allow room for Q&A and follow up with participants. The workshops focus on NYFA’s extensive fundraising and support programs available to artists nationwide.

NYFA events are geared to individual artists across disciplines and small/emerging arts organizations. Visual, performing, literary artists and filmmakers are all encouraged to attend. The workshop is free and open to the public.

An engaging and passionate speaker, Golden notes “As a professional artist and arts administrator, I want artists of all disciplines to know that NYFA is here to support them, regardless of where they live. In particular during these challenging economic times, NYFA’s Fiscal Sponsorship Program makes a real difference for artists to access grants and charitable contributions in ways that individuals cannot. Learning about NFYA Source, our free fundraising and resource database for artists across disciplines, provides resources they might not otherwise access.”

More About “Fundraising Tools for Artists”
Golden’s presentation will be an overview of NYFA support programs for artists available nationally and will include information on two of NYFA’s main fundraising and support programs:

NYFA Source www.nyfa.org/source is the most extensive national online directory of awards, services, and programs for artists. Listings include over 4,200 arts organizations, 2900 award programs, 4,200 service programs, and 900 publications for individual artists across the country. More program listings are added every day.

Fiscal Sponsorship http://www.nyfa.org/level2.asp?id=2&fid=10 Fiscal Sponsorship is a critical way for individual artists, artists’ collaborative projects, and emerging arts organizations in all disciplines to apply for funding usually available only to organizations with 501(c)(3) nonprofit status. The right fiscal sponsor will not only allow you to manage your project efficiently, but can actually help artists to raise more money and realize their artistic visions more fully.

To schedule a free NYFA presentation through your organization contact: rgolden@nyfa.org

Also Available: “NYFA Doctor’s Hours on the Road: One-on-One Consultations”

Rory will be available for short one-on-one consultation sessions with artists immediately from Friday August 20th and throughout the following week on request.

Golden brings his own unique flavor to Doctor’s Hours on the Road. His  one-on-one coaching sessions leave you with new ways of considering familiar problems, concerns, or blocks in your studio practice or career.

The 20-minute session is a pointed inquiry that involves candid, straight talk to explore what’s between you and your goal. Conversations with Rory are surprising, challenging, exciting, and yield unexpected points of view that will cause you to take action leading to results.

NOTE: This is not a portfolio review. It is a coaching session, so rather than receiving commercial gallery contacts, you will more likely be given questions to delve into and actions to take moving forward.

NOTE: All one-on-one sessions are for individuals and are confidential; however, creative collaborators are welcome.

To register for consultations: http://www.nyfa.org/level3.asp?id=717&fid=1&sid=76

To schedule a consultation in San Francisco from August 20 – 26: email rgolden@nyfa.org

NOTE: NYFA charges a $20 fee for one-on-one consultations; to register click on the link above and follow the instructions or email Rory.

About NYFA
The New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) was founded in 1971 with the mission to empower artists at critical stages in their creative lives.  Each year NYFA awards close to $1 million to individual artists and small organizations.   Our NYFA Learning programs serve thousands of artists through workshops, panel discussions, and individual mentoring on topics ranging from grant writing and budgeting to creating an artist portfolio and audience development.  Our Fiscal Sponsorship program is one of the largest and most established in the country and helps artists and organizations raise and manage over $3 million annually.   Finally, our website, NYFA.org, received over 4.4 million unique visits last year and contains in-depth information about more that 8,000 opportunities and resources for artists in all disciplines.

For more information about the New York Foundation for the Arts see www.nyfa.org

About the Presenter
Rory Golden comes from a lineage of artists. He brings strong experience in supporting artists and an active artist’s professional practice to his position at NFYA. As Executive Director at the Center for Book Arts (2000 – 2004) in New York, Rory established various new programs to support artists. These include a new exhibition series, a letterpress broadsides poetry reading series, a workspace artist-in-residence program for emerging artists, and a tuition-free class for emerging writers. He left the position in 2004 to pursue his own challenging creative projects. Before coming to NYFA Golden was part-time Studio Manager at the Atlanta Printmakers Studio.

Rory has exhibited his artwork widely in both solo and group shows at venues such as Eyedrum and the Spruill Gallery in Atlanta, the Denver International Airport and both the San Francisco and New York Public Libraries. His work has been recognized with fellowships from Yaddo, the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts, the Blue Mountain Center and the National Academy of Fine Arts. Recent grants include an Idea Capital Grant, a Puffin Foundation Grant and a recent research grant from Duke University Libraries Special Collections. His work was recently featured in Art Papers magazine’s 11th annual art auction and will be featured in upcoming group and solo exhibitions in New York City, Georgia and Michigan.

What: Dia de los Muertos 2010, Artist Call for Installation Work, Altars, and Flat Work
Theme: Honoring Revolution With Visions of Healing
When: Deadline for submissions is Sept 13
What else: Artist information meeting is on August 24 at 6:30pm

This year’s Day of the Dead exhibit at SOMArts is titled Honoring Revolution with Visions of Healing. It’s dedicated to the centennial celebration of the Mexican Revolution, to the recovery of the Gulf of Mexico, and to Maria de la Asuncion Lopez, the mother of Adrian Arias, a long-time Day of the Dead artist.

The title Honoring Revolution with Visions of Healing can be interpreted in a wide variety of ways. There are many issues to address that are currently affecting our lives – the disastrous oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the death of Virginia Benavidez, reaction to the death of Oscar Grant, and the earthquakes in Haiti and Chile. We are looking for art and altars that can interpret these events and/or heal the wounds caused by these events/issues.

Curators René Yañez and Rio Yañez welcome back artists who have participated in the past and look forward to working with new ones. We are fortunate to continue working with our skilled production team of architect Nick Gomez, publicist Sally Douglas Arce, foreman Mike Dingle, executive director Lex Leifheit, facilities manager Ed Varga, and curators René and Rio Yañez. This year, our exhibit will open on October 8^th, a full week earlier than usual to meet public demand for a longer exhibition.

We are also continuing our examination of the ways technology shapes how we celebrate Day of the Dead. Once again our flickr group enables us to accept digital photos online as offerings to those who people want to honor.  We will be printing or projecting them for display. The public can send their digital contributions to http://www.flickr.com/groups/digitalofferings/.

We are looking for people to create traditional altars for the exhibit as well as those who can contribute work that reflects their own contemporary view and vision. Our deadline for submissions is Monday, September 13^th, 2010. There will be an informational meeting for interested artists at SOMArts on Tuesday, August 24^th at 6:30 pm. We strongly suggest you attend, as we will be talking about the materials that will be used to structure the exhibit (to create the walls and walkways) and it will be an opportunity for you to meet your fellow artists. Please send us a written proposal for your piece as well as a sketch or illustration with accurate measurements by Monday, September 13. If you have never exhibited with us before please submit images of previous artworks and/or installations. Artists who have shown with us do not need to submit past work.

Questions:  Call 415-863-1414  ext. 104

Submissions and questions can be emailed to René@somarts.org and rio@somarts.org Please send submissions to both email addresses.

Alternately you can submit your proposal by mail to:

René Yañez
SOMArts Cultural Center
934 Brannan Street
San Francisco, CA 94103

Important Dates
August 24^th: Artist informational meeting 6:30 pm.
September 13^th: Deadline for submissions
September 26^th: Begin Installation
October 7^th: Installation Deadline
October 8^th: Opening reception
November 6^th:  Closing reception

ABOUT SOMARTS CULTURAL CENTER
Insurrection, Connection and Community through the Arts
SOMArts (South of Market Arts, Resources, Technology, and Services) was founded in 1979 and operates the South of Market Cultural Center, one of four city-owned cultural facilities in San Francisco. SOMArts supports exhibitions, performances, classes and other collaborations that serve its mission: to promote and nurture art on the community level and foster an appreciation of and respect for all cultures.

Image credits: Photo by Rio Yañez. Model: Rachel-Anne Palacios. Makeup: David Tafolla

This just in! Local artists and educators Dee Hibbert-Jones and Nomi Talisman will debut their Untitled video, an animated documentary that tells the stories of three families whose loved ones faced a trial for a capital crime, are on death row, or have been executed.  The video screening will take place in the video annex alongside the exhibition What Cannot Be Taken Away: Families and Prisons Project, which opens tomorrow night, Thursday August 12, at 6:30pm.

Through animation the project gives anonymity to the participants as they tell their unique and often painful stories in their own words. The animation transforms these very personal stories into an emblematic visual language, as the narratives remain true to the interviewees’ words. The project gives the audience an introduction to the extreme situations each family finds itself in. It is a vehicle for voices rarely heard or understood outside of these families and communities. This two-year-long project is a work in progress, produced in collaboration with Community Resource Initiative with funding support from the San Francisco Arts Commission, the UCSC Arts Research Initiative and the Creative Work Fund.

Image credit: animation still from Untitled, by Dee Hibbert-Jones and Nomi Talisman.

What: What Cannot Be Taken Away: Families and Prisons Project
When: Thursday, August 12, 2010, 6:30 – 9:30pm
Where: SOMArts Cultural Center Main Gallery
Who: Evan Bissell and Community Works
Exhibition dates: August 12 through September 19 2010
Gallery Hours: Tuesday through Friday 12:00pm to 7:00pm, Saturday 12:00pm to 5:00pm

“Let’s create some love through the work and be able to accept our differences and the conditions of our lives. Because they say; my father this, my mother that and this and that…if we can go ahead and whatever we create with these pieces, let that be acceptance of our experiences and move to that point of forgiveness.” – Teak, San Francisco Jail, 2010

There are over seven million youth in this country with parents in the legal justice system. What Cannot Be Taken Away: Families and Prisons Project is a new exhibition of collaborative paintings with Evan Bissell and Community Works that share the experiences of eight individuals who have experienced this rupture in their own families. Resulting from eight months of intergenerational, creative dialogue between Bay Area youth who have incarcerated parents, and fathers who are currently incarcerated in San Francisco jail, the exhibition centers around eight life-size collaboratively designed and created portraits. The exhibition also includes interactive wall drawings, installation pieces, audio, documentation of the process and a dynamic workshop series.

SOMArts Gallery Director Justin Hoover commented, “Evan Bissell’s work is a unique approach to social responsibility where an individual acts as a hub for collaborative and creative social justice. In this way, What Cannot be Taken Away highlights some of the most vital social efforts in the local community to use the arts for healing, peace and justice”.

Exhibition Programming
All events are free, all ages friendly, and open to the public. Advance registration strongly recommended.

Saturday, August 14, 2:00 – 5:00pm
Forgiveness Workshop with Sujatha Baliga and Evan Bissell
A participatory workshop looking at the power of forgiveness, and its role in community and individual peace.
Seating limited, preregister at: http://forgivenessworkshop.eventbrite.com

Thursday, Aug 29, 2010 2:00 – 4:00pm
Writing Workshop with Chinaka Hodge and Elena Berman
For writers of all experience levels.
Seating limited, preregister at: http://bissellwritingworkshop.eventbrite.com

Saturday, Sep 11, 2010 2:00 – 4:00pm
Visual Arts Workshop with Evan Bissell
A hands-on workshop for artists of all levels.  Please bring a photograph, poem, lyric, writing, article, or fact relating to healing and justice.
Seating limited, preregister at: http://visualartsworkshop.eventbrite.com

Sunday, Sep 19, 2010 12:00 – 2:00pm
Closing Reception And Artist Walkthrough
Free admission.

All events will be held in the SOMArts Cultural Center Main Gallery
934 Brannan St, San Francisco, CA 94103
Enter down long driveway.
Street parking available and flat rate parking is accessible at Brannan & 8th St
SOMArts is within two blocks of the Muni lines number 12, 19, 27 and 47.

Image credit: Joe by Evan Bissell, acrylic and oil on paper, 7′x3′, 2010.  This heroic-scale painting by Evan Bissell depicts one of the eight individuals included in his collaborative painting series to be exhibited at “What Cannot Be Taken Away.”