communiqué Winter 2012/2013
Photos of Brand Library handpainted ceilings revealed during renovation! Near Right: Cupid in the reference area Far right: Exotic bird in the dining room
Right: Huge beehive being removed from the the mansion’s cornice
News on the Brand Library Renovation Work is buzzing in more ways than one.
W
By Carolyn Flemming
hat a wonderful adventure it has been to be part of the remodeling project at the Brand Library and Art Center! From the exterior activity is hard to detect, but the project is progressing steadily. Asbestos and lead removal and seismic bolting are completed. The new heating, ventilation and air conditioning units have been installed; a new roof is almost completed and new plumbing and electrical lines have been laid.
The Author: Carolyn Flemming is Facilities and Building Projects Administrator for Glendale Library, Arts, and Culture
As is true of renovating any older building, there have been surprises. The first was the extent to which honey bees had taken up residence in the cornice of the mansion tower. Work in that area had to be postponed until three enormous hives could be moved. Can you imagine a private label “El Miradero” honey? Sadly, the honey went with the bees. When the wall coverings were removed in the mansion it was shocking to see how loosely the building had been held together. The walls were often just a series of well-placed rocks that were stacked, lightly grouted and plastered. Ironically, instead of being destroyed by the 1994 Northridge earthquake, the Brand mansion, built in 1903, fared better than the 1969 addition. The best surprise of all was revealed under the mansion ceiling. Resting faded and fragile beneath the “popcorn” and chicken wire mesh were original handpainted ceilings. The plaster layer on which they were painted was so thin and compromised by age and conditions that it is impossible to preserve them in place. But they have been thoroughly documented and better yet, several samples were carefully removed and set aside. Our hope is to preserve and frame some for display in the mansion when it re-opens. As those of you who have been through home remodeling work will understand, the project completion date is not yet confirmed but targeted for early 2014. We will keep you posted with an update in the next newsletter and information can also be found at brandlibrary.org/BrandLibraryRenovation.asp F
associates of brand library & art center A 501(c)3 non-profit organization supporting the Brand Library & Art Center
Message
President Arlene Vidor
from the President
Greetings members and friends, This year, it seems as though
events. In addition most of the
everything we do is cloaked in the
events we sponsor, including the
glow of our run-up to the open-
popular music series, are acces-
ing of the newly renovated Brand
sible to the public, free of charge.
Library. We expect to coordinate our next national juried art exhibition, “Brand 42”, with this occasion, and there will also be other celebratory events, including fundraisers and plenty of buzz and excitement. We anticipate utilizing this momentous occasion to turn all eyes appreciatively to the ‘Brand.” Hopefully everyone will want to enlist right there and there on the spot.
funds to support the ongoing maintenance and improvement of the Brand Library and its collections when it reopens. We are inviting everyone to join the Brand Associates; As a member you enjoy a relationship that enriches you, the Brand Library & Art Center and our entire community. Your tax deductible membership and donations
There is only one way to put it: If
provide essential support for the
you support the arts, then join the
art exhibitions, music and dance
Brand Associates. Please check
programs, lectures, films, special
out some of the events planned
events and tours. Join online at
for 2013 (back page) – some
www.associatesofbrand.org today
of these are specifically for our
and support the arts.
members, to reward them for their support of the arts over the years. We started the year off with a dazzling tour of an exhibition at The Norton Simon Museum (page 7) and we’ll continue to reward our members by offering special 2
It’s truly imperative that we tap
See you all soon at one of our events.F
Vice President / Director of Events Teri Deaver Treasurer and Artists Representtive Huguette Zmuidzinas Secretary VACANT Director of Development Caroline Tufenkian Historian Angela Hernandez Chair of Brand National Juried Art Exhibition Irena Raulinaitis Director at Large Sally McAller Chair, Dance Series Hilary Thomas Chair, Music Series Blair Whittington Brand Library Manager Nora Goldsmith, Acting Manager Ex Officio Board Members: Cindy Cleary Director of Library, Arts and Culture Liaison City of Glendale Arlette DeHovanessian Arts and Culture Commission City of Glendale Newsletter Layout Carole Dougherty Contributing Editors: Cathy Billings Teri Deaver Carolyn Flemming Alyssa Resnick Caroline Tufenkian Arlene Vidor Melissa Zakarian
Spotlight on
Caroline Tufenkian New Board Member
By Arlene Vidor
C
aroline Tufenkian joined the Board of Directors in 2012 and is currently responsible for our organization’s fundraising program. Prior to that, Caroline was no stranger to making a contribution to our cultural life through the Brand Library. In 2001, working with the Brand Associates and library staff, she curated the “Modern Icon” exhibition in the Brand gallery in conjunction with the Armenian Festival. In addition, Caroline has curated exhibits and represented artists for over 12 years in venues such as BGH Gallery at Bergamont Station, The Fine Arts Building in downtown Los Angeles, CSUN Art Gallery, and Art Cube in Laguna Niguel. She is on the Board of Trustees of the Armenian Library and Museum of America (ALMA) in Boston and serves as ALMA’s liason on the west coast, organizing exhibitions that have featured coins, artifacts and illuminated manuscripts. Caroline travels extensively to Armenia to seek out contempo-
rary art. She has an M.A. degree in Art History from California State University, Northridge. Says Caroline, “It’s an honor to serve on the Board of Directors of the Associates of Brand Library & Art Center at such an important time as we prepare to reopen the Library. I envision at least one exciting fundraiser in a Glendale home in 2013 and also a large fundraising event to coincide with the library’s grand-re-opening in 2014.” Caroline is currently also serving on the City of Glendale Historic Preservation Commission. Even with all this activity and raising three young sons, she still finds time to draw and read in her “leisure time.” It is really hard to imagine Caroline having any leisure time but we are glad she has decided to spend some time with us! F
Caroline Tufenkian has assumed the fundraising role for the Brand Associates
Join our mailing list by sending your name and email address to info@associatesofbrand.org
Like us on Facebook
3
Brand 41 Works on Paper
1
Brand 41
A boisterous crowd flooded the opening reception and award ceremony at the Burbank Creative Arts Center.
A
By Arlene Vidor lively crowd packed The Burbank Creative Arts Center on October 5, 2012 for the opening of “Brand 41”, our forty-first annual national juried exhibition. Sixty-five works in a variety of media broadly based on the theme “Memories” were selected by juror Bonese Collins Turner. The show was smaller than usual this year, due to logistics and limited space at BCAC. However, the exhibition, mounted for viewing by BCAC’s Frances Santistevan, was extolled as a strong and diverse collection.
Associates Board Member Irena Raulinaitis, Chair of the Works on Paper show explained, “this year’s show theme was ‘memories’ — and we welcomed a very broad interpretation. Our themes, whatever they are, might be realized clearly or be expressed in a deeply personal and ambiguous way by the artist. The use of a theme is to create an impetus to produce new work — not to limit the artists’ vision.” Said juror Bonese Collins Turner, “Judging this large number of outstanding works was enjoyable and daunting.” What did Bonese look for? She says “beyond obvious concerns with design, technical skills, and creativity, I seek out humor, a message, a unique viewpoint, or a quality of mystery.” Says Caroline Tufenkian, Brand Associates fundraising director, “We had a good base of support for individuals and made a great first effort and reaching the local business community.” An update on preparations for Brand 42, which will coincide with the opening of the renovated Brand Library, will appear in our next newsletter. Photos: 1. Sean Barrett smiles in front of his striking watercolor depiction of his grandfather. 2. Kit Boyce, pictured with his woodcut “OH” 3. Suzanne Dunwell, Assemblymember Gatto’s representative; Councilmember Laura Friedman; Arts and Culture Commissioner Arlette DeHovanessian; Library, Arts and Culture Director Cindy Cleary; and Brand Library manager Nora Goldsmith enjoying the fesitivites. 4. Carolyn Liesy tends to her “Ontological Clothsline” 5. Christen Wanser (left) with her work “Tribal Uncovered” 6 Board member Jennifer Bergstrom and the Brand Library’s Blair Whittington 7. Board member Sally MacAller shows off her refreshment table 8 Alan Loomis and Annette Vartanian of the City of Glendale with Arlette Dehovanessian. 9 Gregory Radionov receives an award from Cindy Cleary for his work, “Home Alone Social Networking”
4
2
4
7 2
8
5 9
3
6 5
Brand Library
Book Reviews Judging a Book by Its Cover By Melissa Zakarian As the old adage goes, “Never judge a book by its cover.” However, book covers are themselves an art form. The covers of some of the books in the Brand collection are enough to lure a patron to open them. I randomly selected three diverse books based only on their eye-catching covers and looked inside. The featured here are available at the Glendale Central Library at 222 East Harvard Street.
Stevie Ray Vaughan, Day by Day, Night After Night, His Early Years, 1954-1982 Craig Hopkins 780.92 Vaghan, S. HOP V.1 “He is rightfully recognized as one of the greatest electric guitar players, often placed on the top tier polls with only Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page” (Page 3). A black and white photo of legendary guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan lovingly playing his guitar makes for a striking cover. This extremely visual new addition to the Brand collections details Stevie Ray’s musical journeys starting with his band Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble. Craig Hopkins, noted biographer of Stevie Ray Vaughn, includes photographs, business cards, and reproductions of lyric drafts that belonged to Vaughan. Also included many insightful interviews with bandmates and friends. Open the book to a colorful collage of Vaughan concert tickets. A strong sepia toned photograph of Stevie Ray and Mick Jagger sitting on a sofa sharing a laugh moved me.
Type Player Type as Experiment, Type as Image 741.6 TYP This visually decadent book about the art of typography drew me in with its thick cardboard cover and paper, colors and style. The title “Type Player” is shiny black and bold. Among many alluring photos is one arresting visual of the alphabet, with a model wearing a neon green sleeve and posed as a letter. Another fascinating rendition of our alphabet can be seen through the eyes of designer Andrew Effendy, who designed analphabet with barbed wire — “I came up with this idea after seeing so many barbed wire fences in Skid Row, Los Angeles.” Typographer Nam states: “I can present typography in my own way, as I believe it is one of the territories that can accomplish a visual expression that functions as a communication tool as well as expressing the beauty of the form itself.”
Custom Lettering of the '60s & '70s Edited by Rian Hughes 745.6197 CUS Before the digital era, there was only the old-fashioned and labor-intensive way of designing logos and typeface by hand. Another colorful tome, “Custom Lettering of the '60s & '70s” contains over 4500 examples of typography used during those two decades. This book is highly recommended for fans of typography or memorabilia from that era. The book cover displays bursts of flashy neon colors, daisies, suns, and bubbly circles. How 60s-70s is that? The book is chock full of type face examples used in advertising, entertainment and commerce, as well as the language of the times. Retro heaven! 6
The
History Corner Photo: Glendale Library, Arts, and Culture Archives
Gloria Williams, as always, beautifully communicated her enthusiasm for the exhibition and instilled in all of us an appreciation for a genre of artwork that perhaps many of us had given little or no thought to lately
L
eslie C. and Louise Brand owned a copy of Cristofano Allori’s “Judith with the Head
of Holofermes” that is thought to have been painted by one of Allori’s students. The two original copies by Allori himself are in Florence and London. If it is truly Allori’s student’s
work, then it would likely date from early 17th century. Althought this theory was alleged to be expanded on by an expert at a local museum, there is no documentation or marks on the painting to support its provenance or authenticity. Nevertheless, it was loved by the Brands and has remained hanging on the
Turning Over a New Leaf on Still Life
O
By Arlene Vidor ur first event of the year turned over a new leaf — so to speak. Twenty lucky Associates members got to blow away any pre-conceived notions of what defines a “still life.” Gloria Williams Sander escorted us through her meticulously curated exhibit Significant Objects: The Spell of Still Life at the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena. We came away with keen insight into the rich associations and diverse techniques used to represent the still life genre. Gloria drew on the Norton Simon’s own collection, as well as private collections, the Getty Institute, and other sources to put this show together. The classical definition of a still life—a work of art depicting inanimate, typically commonplace objects that are either natural or man-made conveys little about what is possible. Does this form lack imagination and demand little of our intellect? The answer is a definite “no” — there is plenty of room for fantasy and intepretation as Gloria demonstrated. We viewed depictions of a valuable commodity — the tulip, a stuffed cloth depiction of an inverted catsup bottle pouring forth (by Claes Oldenburg), nitrogen frozen flowers captured by camera as they were detonated by explosives, as well as an almost inconceivably detailed and well preserved wood carving made from one piece of wood hundreds of years ago. The socio-political meaning behind some of the older still lifes (e.g. just how rich were these people?) was explored and the group of attendees had plenty of questions for Gloria, who as usual fielded all of them concisely. An age-old art form — the still life — took on new life for us that day. F
library walls ever since their residence. In this photograph, circa 1910, Louise Brand looks relaxed reclining in the Brand’s library next to the beloved painting. The painting will continue to hang in the Brand Library when the library reopens. F
The Brand Associates tour group with our guide, curtor Gloria Williams Sander, 3rd from left, front row.
7
associates of brand library & art center communiqué 1601 W. Mountain St. Glendale, CA 91201-1209
NONPROFIT ORG U.S.POSTAGE PAID GLENDALE, CA PERMIT NO. 503
associates of brand library & art center
a 501(c)3 volunteer non-profit organization whose goal is to sponsor cultural events at Brand Library & Art Center – dance, music, visual arts, talks foster education in the arts through presentations, films, and special events raise funds for the Brand Library’s programs and in support of the library’s collections promote awareness of the Brand Library’s history and value to our community as a cultural resource Get involved, join the Associates. Associates of Brand Library & Art Center 1601 W. Mountain St. Glendale, CA Join the Associates online. Visit our website at www.associatesof brand.org
Calendar Communiqué
Visit www.brandlibrary.org for more details about events
*Saturday, February 23 2 pm brand associates Music Series Junko Garrett – pianist Plays J.S. Bach, The Goldberg Variations
Coming in April for our members: Tour of “Batchelder Magic” Coming in May – Our Annual Members Meeting At the Shosheian Tea House and Garden with special guests and performance
*Wednesday, April 3 7 pm REEL ART Film Series “Free Radicals – The Historyof Experimental Film” With intro by Adam Hyman of Filmforum
*Saturday, May 18 2 pm brand associates Music Series Alma Nova Duo, award winning flute and guitar duet
*Saturday, March 23 2 pm Brand Associates Music Series Elixer Piano Trio plays Mendelssohn, Khachaturian and Piazzolla
*August 21 7 pm REEL ART Film Series "Fahrenheit 451" with special guest speaker (in honor of Ray Bradbury’s birthday)
*Thursday, March 28 7 pm Talking about Art Series Photography by Japanese Americans Creation, Loss and Rediscovery A talk and book signing by Dennis Reed
October 19, 2013 Time to be determined Back by popular demand: Arts Tour of the LA Metro
*Saturday, April 20 2 pm brand associates Music Series Armen Anassian and Mark Robson playing Strauss Violin Sonata
Other events are being planned, so please check back to our website, www.associatesatbrand for updates. *Event is in the Glendale Central Library auditorium 222 E Harvard, Glendale CA 91205
All events are sponsored by the Brand Associates with member-provided funds and in cooperation with the support of Glendale Library, Arts, and Culture.