Laguna Art Show Features CSUF

The Art Scene Meets the ‘OsCene’ Scaled-down display of “World’s Largest Picture,”done by The Legacy Project, Founded in 2002 in Orange County. Photo by David Osborne

By da vid osborne Daily Titan Staff Photographer thebuzz@dailytitan.com

Occasionally, the naive Orange County-ian may forget the pool of talent in which he or she swims in every day. Some may not be up-todate with the maturing art scene in Southern California that has long been setting the standards in many areas of the art world including clothing, sculpture and visual medias.

In an effort to enlighten those uneducated to the brilliant art all around us, the Laguna Art Museum brings its biennial survey, The OsCene 2006: Cotemporary Art and Culture in OC.

The OsCene (a combination of the phrases “OC” and “scene,” and pronounced o-seen) features 38 contemporary artists residing right here in the OC, 16 of which include Cal State Fullerton faculty members, alumni and students.

In fact, the curator of the show, Jacqueline Bunge, is a current graduate student in the Exhibition Design program at CSUF. Bunge played an instrumental part in sorting through the nearly 300 submissions that were received from OC artists looking to be included in the exhibit.

“I wanted there to be a wellrounded mix of all media including kustom kulture, design and clothing. I think the number of graduate students I chose from UCI and CSUF showed a definite sophistication in their works,”

CSUF graduate James Lorigan’s “Fall (Narcissus)”

Photo by David Osborne

Bunge said.

Upon first entering, the observant CSUF student may notice a short film that looks remarkably familiar. This short film, entitled “Feel Good Doll,” was shot entirely on the CSUF campus.

The eight-minute “feel good” video was done by the artist Joanna Grasso, a graduate student from CSUF. It features Joanna as she carries a headless, white doll with a black square printed on its chest throughout the campus’ parking structure, TSU, Titan Shops, and other familiar locations.

Grasso carries the life-size doll over her shoulder as she questions students and faculty about the possible sexuality of her doll.

Photo by David Osborne

“Homogenized,” a glass sculpture by Jason Charkravarty, who completed is M.F.A at CSUF.

Another sequence of scenes shows her taking the doll into the oncampus Kinko’s where she proceeds to make photocopies of the six-foot doll.

“I’m always on the edge of getting in trouble,” Grasso says with a short laugh while grappling the large white doll’s legs over her shoulders.

Jason Chakravarty, who completed his Masters in fine art in art this year at CSUF, is another student whose art has been seen on campus and is also featured in the OsCene.

The show features three sculpted pieces by Chakravarty, all of which set the standard of originality in the show. A particular piece labeled “Homogenized” is of six cast-glass milk cartoons in a steel basket that are lit from within by xenon, a white gas like neon.

The artist explained that missing children ads on the sides of milk cartons inspired the three glass cast figures.

Another artist that is likely to grab attention is James Lorigan, who received both his bachelor’s and master’s in art at CSUF, and now is chair of the Art Department at College of the Canyons in Santa Clarita.

His acrylic piece entitled Fall (Narcissus) features a young boy’s doll-like head fixed atop a twigconstructed cross with two crows perched in the top right corner. The beautiful colors and rendition of a boy’s face give off a pleasant mood to a seemingly dark piece.

In addition, many of the artists have and are participating on panel discussions. The next panel discussion, which will happen on Sunday, will be about The Legacy Project’s World Biggest Photograph.

This panel discussion, including the six members of The Legacy Project, will discuss the Great Picture Project from July 2006 that involved transforming a former airplane hanger at the El Toro Marine Air Station in Irvine into the world’s largest camera. A display documenting the project is also part