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INSIDE | OUT

A N E W STAT E O F M I N D AT T H E OA K L A N D M USEU M O F CA LI FO RN IA

Oakland Now Exploring, enjoying, and sharing the city’s wonders

The Gardens at Lake Merritt

Fertile Ground / The creative community of San Francisco’s Mission Scene California Photography Series / Marion Gray’s compelling images of Bay Area arts WINTER 2015

WELCOME

We Love Oakland!

In community, Longtime OMCA Members Sharon and Barclay Simpson at an OMCA event.

OAKLAND MUSEUM OF CALIFORNIA

Lori Fogarty Director and CEO

O N T H E C O V E R : B E E H O T E L AT T H E G A R D E N S AT L A K E M E R R I T T, G R EG L I N H A R E S , C I T Y O F O A K L A N D . T H I S PA G E , B O T T O M : S C O T T Y M O R R I S .

his issue of Inside Out gives us an opportunity to pay tribute to our hometown and all of the qualities and characteristics that make it distinctive—not just to locals anymore, but to visitors from across the world! Many Museum staff live right here in Oakland, but the partnership we have with Visit Oakland, being trained as the first official class of Oakland ambassadors, makes us appreciate even more the diversity, beauty, vitality, and rich cultural history—and even greater promise for the future—that Oakland affords. We couldn’t be any prouder to be right in the heart of it, and we are committed to continuing to help create a thriving and healthy community. The theme of community extends through a number of stories you’ll see in the coming pages. With our upcoming exhibition, Bees: Tiny Insect, Big Impact, visitors will see firsthand how communities of bees are essential to a healthy ecosystem. You’ll hear from Ruby Neri and Alicia McCarthy, artists featured in Fertile Ground: Art and Community in California, about the friendships, connections, and shared values that generated a scene of creative activity—first in San Francisco, and extending to Oakland, with many artists now living on this side of the bay. And, check out our calendar of activities for great community events happening in the months ahead, including our beloved annual Lunar New Year celebration. At the same time, we mourn the loss of one of our own community—and a son of Oakland—Barclay Simpson, who passed away on Nov. 8. Barc, as he was known to all, was an extraordinary leader, both in his business and in his philanthropic endeavors, always committed to equity and fairness and ensuring access to higher education, the arts, and athletics, among his many passions. Barc and his wife, Sharon, have made extraordinary contributions to the Oakland Museum of California, particularly at crucial points in our history and development. We pay tribute to Barc for his generosity, service, and commitment to leaving the world—and especially the East Bay community—a better place for his having lived and worked here. We will miss him. During the start of this new year, we wish you all the joy of community and offer our thanks for your support and involvement with OMCA.

CONTENTS

features

Built in 1913, the pergola at Lake Merritt is one of Oakland’s most treasured icons.

6 Oakland Now

New ways to experience—and share—the best of our

beloved hometown.

10 Mission: Possible

Fertile Ground: Art and Community in California

celebrates the energy of San Francisco’s Mission District in the 1990s, and artists Alicia McCarthy and Ruby Neri show how that community still thrives.

departments 4 In the Galleries

Archiving the Arts For some forty years, photographer Marion Gray

has documented key moments in the Bay Area’s artistic life.

A special exhibition in the Gallery of California Natural Sciences presents a kaleidoscopic, interactive look at the importance of bees to our ecosystem.

14 Thought Leader A conversation with Tanya Holland, the pioneering chef and TV star behind Oakland’s Brown Sugar Kitchen.

16 Retail Tales T O P : V I S I T O A K L A N D ; D E B O R A H J O H N S O N . B O T T O M : L I S A K E AT I N G .

Want to get out and explore Oakland? Let the OMCA Store be your outfitter.

Chef Tanya Holland has helped revitalize West Oakland through the success of her Brown Sugar Kitchen.

The Story of California. The Story of You.

Oakland Museum of California

The Museum is an ideal venue for unforgettable events.

18 Calendar A guide to OMCA’s exhibitions, events, and programs.

Caption tk.

17 Advancement

Contributors: Lori Fogarty, Sarah Kimmerle, Linda Larkin, Claudia Leung, Maggie R. Pico, Lisa Sasaki, Michael Silverman Photography: Terry Lorant Produced by: Diablo Custom Publishing dcpubs.com

WINTER 2015

IN THE G ALLERIES

Abuzz About The exhibition, adapted from a show of the same title that debuted at the Oakland International Airport, focuses on the life of bee colonies and native bees. Featuring hands-on activities and a supersized beehive that kids can climb through, Bees aims to educate visitors on how they can get involved in saving bees. Also included are workshops on building bee “hotels” and tips for designing your own bee-friendly backyard. Other installations include a beekeeping suit that visitors can try on; honey-extracting equipment; photos and games to showcase bee diversity; and an “action lounge,” where visitors can learn how to help sustain bee populations. “One of our goals is to have people leave here feeling they can go home and make a difference—and actively change the fate of bees in their own neighborhood,” Seiter says. “This is something they can take a stand on.” Bees: Tiny Insect, Big Impact is on view in the Gallery of California Natural Scienes from Saturday, Jan. 31, through Sunday, Sept. 20.

A mason bee inside a bee hotel.

OAKLAND MUSEUM OF CALIFORNIA

A honey bee emerges from its cell with the help of an older sibling.

“ One of our main goals is to have people leave here feeling they could go home and make a difference—that they can actively change the fate of bees in their own neighborhood.” — SARAH SEITER, ASSOCIATE

CURATOR OF NATURAL SCIENCES

L E F T: E L I Z A B E T H S E L L E R S ; R I G H T: M A X W E S T B Y, C R E AT I V E C O M M O N S 2 . 0 .

here’s a theory—it may or may not belong to Albert Einstein— that should the planet’s bees suddenly die out, all humanity would be gone within four years. Sound dire? It’s not unthinkable. California’s 1,600 different species of native bees represent one of the most important and fascinating links in our ecosystem. But bees’ numbers are shrinking: Climate change, pesticides, dwindling food supply, devastating parasites, and disease all contribute to their decline. That’s why the Oakland Museum of California’s new, family-friendly exhibition, Bees: Tiny Insect, Big Impact, opening in the Gallery of California Natural Sciences on Jan. 31, shines a light on the challenges facing California’s most buzz-worthy insect. “Bees are really important to our ecosystem, both nationally and globally— and particularly in California, one of the breadbaskets of the nation,” explains Sarah Seiter, OMCA’s new associate curator of natural sciences.

Bees

A new exhibition showcases the outsize importance of California’s pollinators

Bee-guiling Activities

F R O M L E F T: T H E E X P E R I M E N T P U B L I S H I N G ; Q U A R T O P U B L I S H I N G G R O U P U S A ; A L B E R T W H I T M A N & C O M P A N Y ; F O L K M A N I S P U P P E T S .

You can help scientists by tracking “zombie” bees! In conjunction with the Bees exhibition, get involved with research activities being conducted by local scientists. One partner research group is ZomBee Watch, a citizen science project sponsored by San Francisco State University that tracks populations of bees infected by the Apocephalus borealis, a parasitic fly that lays its eggs inside bees, effectively turning those bees into zombies. These zombie bees are attracted to light, and visitors can learn to make a special light in their own yard, then track how many of the undead bees come to it, and share their research online with scientists at the university. Another citizen science project featured in the exhibition, the Great Sunflower Project, asks people to simply track the pollinators. “Being a naturalist is awesome, but citizen science is great because your data collection and observations are really going to be used,” Seiter says. “This is data that’s going to inform policy. It’s genuinely going to benefit science.”

Buzz-worthy Gifts The OMCA Store is positively humming with gifts for people of all stripes in celebration of the new Bees exhibition Backyard beekeepers will love Bill Turnbull’s Confessions of a Bad Beekeeper and Kim Flottum’s The Beekeeper’s Journal, in which enthusiasts can track their progress.

For honey lovers, there are beeswax candles from San Francisco’s Bee All Designs and craft soaps and pure honey from Bubble Farm in Alameda.

Younger visitors will enjoy the honeybee glove puppets by Folkmanis Puppets or These Bees Count, a children’s book by Alison Formento and illustrated by Sarah Snow.

See these products and more at the OMCA Store or at shop.museumca.org. WINTER 2015

Oakland’s New Ambassadors

OMCA and Visit Oakland team up to train the next generation of civic boosters

Above and opposite page, top right: OMCA staffers receive certificates recognizing their completion of the “I Am Oakland” training.

OAKLAND MUSEUM OF CALIFORNIA

KOL A SHOBO, VISIT OAKL AND.

explore the downtown streets around the Oakland Museum of California on Friday evenings, when the Museum puts on a can’t-miss bash with Off the Grid, is to witness Oakland at its most Oakland-ish. The city’s pulse thumps as thousands of people peruse the galleries, dance to live hip-hop, salsa, or R&B, and savor the intoxicating smell of pulled pork sandwiches served from food trucks. This is the Oakland renaissance on full display, with the creative volume turned way up. On other nights, you have to work a little harder to discover this energy, which recedes back into restaurants, clubs, and artist workshops. What you need is a tour guide—or at least a few tips from a local who knows the scene. That’s the idea behind a new program to train 12,000 “destination ambassadors” across the city, from taxi drivers and hotel staff to restaurant servers, starting with 150 staff members at the Oakland Museum of California. In August, the Museum and Visit Oakland partnered to host the inaugural “I Am Oakland” training session. Museum staff were the first to take the ongoing class, which includes a guided bus tour of the city and ends with a

Near right: OMCA Director and CEO Lori Fogarty; former Oakland Mayor Jean Quan; CEO of Visit Oakland Alison Best; and Mark Hochstatter, Visit Oakland Board of Directors Chair.

KOL A SHOBO, VISIT OAKL AND.

“ There is cultural and ethnic diversity here; there are a diversity of neighborhoods and even a diversity of landscapes, from the wetlands along the bay to the redwoods in the hills.” —LORI FOGARTY, DIRECTOR AND CEO

Oakland Trivia Quiz How well do you know Oakland? Take our quiz to test your local knowledge. ( 1 ) Which Oakland body of water is the nation’s oldest wildlife sanctuary? ( 2 ) How many languages are spoken in Oakland? ( 3 ) What popular music streaming startup is headquartered in Oakland? ( 4 ) When did the glamorous Fox Theater in Uptown first open its doors? ( 5 ) Which two famous figures lived in the same penthouse near Lake Merritt Boulevard (but not at the same time)?

1. Lake Merritt. 2. 125. 3. Pandora. 4. 1928. 5. Black Panther Huey P. Newton, and UC President and former Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano.

classroom session on creating more memorable experiences for Oakland’s 2.5 million annual visitors. The idea is simple: Your taxi driver or museum docent should go the extra mile to answer questions or recommend a spot for drinks—like the Tribune Tavern or Dogwood—or a glamorous venue to catch a show, like the Fox Theater or the Paramount. And that helps everyone. “The training helps people learn how to take that extra time with guests,” says Alison Best, CEO of Visit Oakland and the architect of the program. “If a guest is already at the Museum, you know they have an interest in art or culture or history, so what are the other places in Oakland you can suggest for them to visit?” The idea of cultivating civic ambassadors aligns perfectly with the Museum’s mission “to inspire all Californians to create a more vibrant future for themselves and their communities,” says OMCA Director and CEO Lori Fogarty. All museums attempt to take you on a journey through history or art, but that shouldn’t end at the walls of a building. “Whenever you’re a large institution like OMCA, the community looks to you to set the tone for how people are welcomed to town,” says Emily Quist, the Museum’s associate director of visitor strategy. “A lot of people see us as a community resource and as a tourist destination. So this training has prepared us to answer to both of those needs.” Think of the Museum as the starting point on your Oakland journey. View exhibits about the city’s urban wildlife and stream system, then go outside and see the real thing. “We want to be out in our community, building bridges with other partners,” Fogarty explains. “We want the Museum to leave the building and take people to the city’s many vibrant neighborhoods and business districts.” What makes Oakland special, Fogarty says, can be summed up in a single word: diversity. “There is cultural and ethnic diversity here; there are a diversity of neighborhoods and even a diversity of landscapes, from the wetlands along the bay to the redwoods in the hills.” The Museum is eager to act as your ambassador to help you explore it all. But in a city that’s often misunderstood, it’s important for all Oakland residents to think of themselves as ambassadors, Fogarty says. “Not enough people know about our great Museum and our great city.”

WINTER 2015

OMCA’s Top 50 Things to Do in Oakland th e s e ny of a m e? H ow ou don h a ve y

1. Get a taste of the city’s foodie neighborhoods with a Savor Oakland food tour. 2. See a renowned musical act at the beautiful and historic Fox Theater. 3. Stop and smell the flowers and take in the incredible views at the Mountain View Cemetery.

4. Indulge in a variety of dim sum at the Legendary Palace or enjoy hand-pulled noodles at Shan Dong in Chinatown. 5. Dine at Oakland’s very own Michelinstarred restaurant, Commis. 6. Sample Off the Grid food truck treats and check out the latest

exhibits at Oakland Museum of California’s Friday Nights @ OMCA every week. 7. Spend the night under the stars at Chabot Space and Science Center. 8. Witness the Mighty Wurlitzer’s song before a Saturday evening film at the Grand Lake Theater. 9. Chat with the locals as you sip a tasty, freshsqueezed greyhound cocktail from Cafe Van Kleef. 10. Wake up your inner coffee aficionado and take a tour at the Peerless Coffee Museum. 11. Stroll along the winding walkways at

OAKLAND MUSEUM OF CALIFORNIA

18 the Morcom Amphitheater of Roses. 12. Play with fire at The Crucible, Oakland’s industrial arts school. 13. Walk the labyrinth at Sibley Volcanic Preserve in the Oakland hills. 14. Sample great wines and get some exercise on a cycling trip with East Bay Winery Bike Tours. 15. Enjoy Oakland's architectural greats and wonders on a walking tour, including the Cathedral of Christ the Light along Lake Merritt. 16. Travel presidential style with a cruise on the USS Potomac.

17. Captain a vessel from California Canoe and Kayak on the Oakland Estuary. 18. Bask in the sun or take a swim at Lake Temescal. 19. Get lost in the oneof-a-kind magazine collection at Issues along Piedmont Avenue, and try a banana split at iconic ice cream parlor Fenton’s Creamery. 20. Follow Jack London’s footsteps by stopping in at Heinold’s First & Last Chance Saloon for a beverage. 21. Bring the kids to Children’s Fairyland, or leave them at home for featured “grown-ups” events.

L E F T: V I S I T O A K L A N D . T O P : V I S I T O A K L A N D ; G R E G F I S C H E R .

Adapted from Visit Oakland’s 101 Things to do In Oakland. Get the full list at visitoakland.org/101-things-to-do.

34. Visit Creative Growth, the oldest and largest art center for adults with disabilities. 35. Catch a flick or view a performance by BANDALOOP outdoors on the Great Wall of Oakland.

29 22. Mingle with the monkeys at the expansive Oakland Zoo. 23. Do the Bernie Lean at an Oakland A’s game, or venture into the Black Hole at an Oakland Raiders game at the O.co Coliseum.

T O P : V I S I T O A K L A N D ; J E R R Y T I N G . R I G H T: V I S I T O A K L A N D ; TA V I S J A C K S O N .

24. Treat yourself to a show at the iconic Paramount Theatre of the Arts. 25. Listen to live music almost every night of the week at historic jazz club Yoshi’s Oakland. 26. Show your Oakland pride by sporting your favorite 3D-printed Oakland crane and oak tree jewelry from the OMCA Store. 27. Catch the iconic cranes in action at Middle Harbor Shoreline Park in West Oakland.

28. Visit a farmers’ market—like Old Oakland on Fridays, Grand Lake on Saturdays, or Jack London Square on Sundays— for fresh produce and prime people watching. 29. Cruise on an authentic Italian gondola at Lake Merritt, or rent your own watercraft. 30. View the Uptown art galleries during Art Murmur’s Saturday Stroll each week. 31. Cruise the Bay as you travel to and from Oakland and San Francisco via the ferry. 32. Cozy up on a couch with a beverage as you watch a film at The New Parkway theater. 33. Explore Oakland’s cultural renaissance at one of the Eastside Arts Alliance’s weekly open mic nights, film screenings, and monthly freestyle dance parties.

36. Stroll down Temescal Alley for a sampling of Oakland’s hip and happening creative shops, and get a classic straight razor shave at the Temescal Alley Barbershop. 37. Track down your ancestors in the incredible registry at the Mormon Temple. 38. Honor black history at the African American Museum and Library of Oakland.

41. Listen to a mariachi band at a Fruitvale District restaurant. 42. Take an evening drive along Skyline Boulevard for an amazing view of the sun setting over the Bay. 43. Take a dance class at Malonga Casquelourd Center for the Arts (formerly Alice Arts). 44. Enjoy cocktails alfresco along the dock at Lake Chalet on Lake Merritt. 45. Enjoy fried chicken, waffles and BBQ by Tanya Holland, the California Travel Association’s Chef of the Year in 2013, at Brown Sugar Kitchen or B-Side BBQ.

46. Enjoy a moment of peace at the Kaiser Rooftop Garden downtown. 47. Learn the art of fruit and vegetable carving or a variety of cultural dance at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center. 48. Find a unique treasure at the Oakland Museum Women’s Board’s White Elephant Sale. 49. Enjoy a night out at a hot club with a classic vibe, The New Parish. 50. Develop some character—not to mention muscle—by becoming a member at the YMCA of the East Bay’s state-of-the-art downtown Oakland fitness center.

39. Visit the Gardens at Lake Merritt to check out everything from succulents and citrus to roses and bonsai trees. 40. Walk along College Avenue in Rockridge after collecting wine, cheese, and other gourmet goodies from Market Hall.

Did we miss your favorite? Tell us what you think are the best Oakland places, activities, and events on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram, and tag it #OMCA and #OaklandLoveIt.

WINTER 2015

View additional content online at museumca.org/ mission-scene

MISSION: POSSIBLE

Artists Alicia McCarthy (left) and Ruby Neri have kept in touch as friends and collaborators for more than twenty years.

Fertile Ground: Art and Community in California celebrates the vibrant Mission Scene of the 1990s, which lives on today through the collaborations and friendships of artists like Alicia McCarthy and Ruby Neri

the 1990s, San Francisco’s funky, multicultural Mission District was home to many of the city’s brightest artists. So when the neighborhood started changing with the influx of dot-com money, many of those artists responded by embracing a new artistic sensibility: scrappy, lo-fi, “bottom-up” street art using handmade lettering, found materials, and can after can of spray paint. While the artists associated with the Mission had different visual styles and degrees of social activism, what bound them together was deep friendship and mutual respect. They often lived, collaborated, and showed together, with the collective idea being that the spotlight belonged to everyone. “Many of these artists were and still are close friends,” says OMCA Senior Curator of Art René de Guzman, who, along with OMCA Curator of Photography and Visual Culture Drew Johnson, and a a curatorial team from SFMOMA, organized the Mission Scene section of Fertile Ground: Art and Community in California, on view through April 12, 2015. “To them, being an artist is not just an occupation. It’s about community.”

OAKLAND MUSEUM OF CALIFORNIA

Fertile Ground celebrates the interrelationships between artists during four periods in California art history from the 1930s to today. The Mission Scene section—which features artists active from the 1990s on—highlights the work of such pioneering talents as Barry McGee, Chris Johanson, Margaret Kilgallen, Alicia McCarthy, and Ruby Neri, among many others.

THE ANTI-ART STARS If 1980s New York was the era of brand-name artists like Julian Schnabel, David Salle, and Jean-Michel Basquiat, the Mission in the ’90s was its opposite. Artists like Neri and McGee worked in the studio but also often went out under the cover of night, signing their graffiti art with aliases. Making headlines was of less interest to them than, as Neri says, “just focusing on being creative.” Several of these artists met at the San Francisco Art Institute (SFAI), where they identified as kindred spirits. “I felt that the other students who liked to work in the middle

J O H N N A A R N O L D . C O L L EC T O N O F T H E O A K L A N D M U S E U M O F C A L I F O R N I A . N E W LY C O M M I S S I O N E D W O R K T H A N K S T O T H E S U P P O R T O F T H E W O M E N ’ S B O A R D .

of the night were my kind of people,” says McCarthy, who befriended Neri there. “Ruby and I started painting on each other’s paintings. I remember one of my teachers was not happy, because we wouldn’t distinguish whose work was whose, but that was what we were going for.” Neri and McCarthy had other things in common. Each had a connection to California artists from the previous generation: Neri is the daughter of sculptor Manuel Neri, and McCarthy was close to ceramicist Richard Shaw (both are key figures in other sections of Fertile Ground). “It was like a parallel course we were taking,” Neri says of her connection with McCarthy. “We weren’t even aware of how close we were.” After graduating, they increasingly defined their individual styles. Using the pseudonym REM, Neri became known for her renderings of galloping horses on walls throughout the city, while McCarthy, never a hard-core graffiti artist, explored patterns, colors, and grids to hypnotic effect. As the ’90s wore on, many of the artists dispersed. Yet the community remains vibrant thanks to the efforts of longstanding art spaces like Adobe Books, the Luggage Store, and Southern Exposure, as well as through the artists’ commitment to one another. Neri and McCarthy, for example, say they are always thinking of new ways to collaborate; they have even sent drawings back and forth in the mail, between Oakland and Los Angeles, for each other to work on. OMCA’s Fertile Ground, Neri and McCarthy say, has been an exciting opportunity for them to exhibit together again, alongside works by many of their friends. The fact that the show is in Oakland is also relevant, they add, because the city has become a “fertile ground” for today’s up-and-coming artists, the same way the Mission was twenty years ago.

Sculpture, right: Ruby Neri, untitled, 2014.

“It is a huge honor to be at OMCA now,” McCarthy says. “I am still in disbelief to be here with Ruby and other artists I love so much. They are really good, sincere people who are proud of their community.” Fertile Ground: Art and Community in California is on view in the Great Hall through Sunday, April 12. Fertile Ground: Art and Community in California is jointly organized by the Oakland Museum of California and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. The exhibition is made possible in part by generous support from the Oakland Museum Women’s Board, OMCA Art Guild, SFMOMA’s Collectors Forum, Barclay and Sharon Simpson, Fisher Family, Pat Wilson, Quinn Delaney and Wayne Jordan, and Frederick G. Novy and Susanna Novy MacDonald, the Helen Forster Novy Fund. Additional support is provided by SFMOMA’s Bay Area Contemporary Arts Exhibition Fund, founded by Agnes Cowles Bourne, Ann Hatch/Clinton Walker Fund, Maryellen and Frank Herringer, Eileen and Peter Michael, Nancy and Steven H. Oliver, Christine and Michael Murray, Paul Sack and Shirley Davis, Judy C. Webb, Anita and Ronald C. Wornick.

Painting, left: Alicia McCarthy, untitled, 2014.

WINTER 2015

ARCHIVING THE ARTS PHOTOGRAPHER MARION GRAY’S COMPELLING IMAGES ILLUMINATE AND ENRICH THE BAY AREA’S VIBRANT CREATIVE COMMUNITY 12

OAKLAND MUSEUM OF CALIFORNIA

COURTESY OF THE ARTIST

hen visitors encounter the nearly four decades’ worth of photographs chronicling the Bay Area performance, dance, and installation art scene that comprise OMCA’s new California Photography exhibition, Marion Gray: Within the Light, they experience multiple levels of visual art. There’s the photography itself, and the art depicted therein. But the exhibition also gives visitors a close look at how Gray has contributed to the vitality of the artistic communities that she documented. Gray, a San Francisco-based, UC Berkeley-educated photographer, has spent the better part of the past forty years documenting often experimental and groundbreaking Bay Area contemporary art. She started in the ’70s, documenting Cristo and Jeanne-Claude’s installation Running Fence (1972–1976) and Eiko & Koma’s 1979 stage works, among many, many others. Later, she also photographed Merce Cunningham Company’s “Ocean” in Harmon Gym on the UC Berkeley campus in 1996 and “Songs of Ascensions” by Ann Hamilton and Meredith Monk, performed in a cylindrical tower at Oliver Ranch in Geyserville, in 2008. Over the years, Gray has seen—and shot—many of the most important artistic performances in the Bay Area. In addition to producing striking images, Gray has supported a generation of mostly underground artists. Throughout the process, she’s become a profoundly influential member of the cutting-edge art world, known and loved by many local artists and performers. “Marion has an important sense of how each of these works relates to the whole body of performance art and history in the Bay Area, and that sense was developed thanks to intense dedication,” says Christina Linden, OMCA’s associate curator of painting and sculpture. “That connection really comes through—her intuitive sense of just what’s compelling.” But Linden is quick to point out, “This is, in and of itself, an art exhibition, not just an archive of a very specific history. Yes, these photographs are a great way to learn about the history of our area’s subversive artistic communities, but the images are really interesting in their own right. They’re incredibly rich to look at, whether you are aware of the history or not.”

Top: Marion Gray, Joan Jonas, “The Juniper Tree,” SFAI, 1979. Bottom: Marion Gray, Opening of the exhibition “Avedon 1946–1980”. 1980, printed 2010. Opposite page: Marion Gray, Ann Hamilton and Meredith Monk, “Songs of Ascension,” Oliver Ranch in Geyserville, CA, 2009.

Marion Gray: Within the Light is the fourth exhibition in OMCA’s ongoing California Photography series, which explores various aspects of the Golden State through visual imagery. Marion Gray: Within the Light will be on view in the Gallery of California Art from Saturday, Feb. 14, through Sunday, June 21.

WINTER 2015

“There’s just so much to the city. It’s so diverse— socially, economically, geographically, even the weather—and it’s constantly interesting.”

Hot out of the Oven

L I S A K E AT I N G

Tanya Holland’s latest cookbook, Brown Sugar Kitchen: New-Style, Down-Home Recipes from Sweet West Oakland, is available in the OMCA Store.

OAKLAND MUSEUM OF CALIFORNIA

THOUGHT LE ADER

A Conversation With

Tanya Holland

The secret ingredient for the award-winning chef and TV star? Local pride.

hen Tanya Holland moved to Oakland eleven years ago, she made a vow: “I’m going to promote the hell of out this city!” She started small. The Rochester, New York-born host of the Melting Pot series on the Food Network and award-winning chef began by opening a restaurant in her adopted neighborhood of West Oakland. With its rough-and-tumble reputation, the locale seemed an unlikely choice. But since it opened in 2008, Brown Sugar Kitchen—which serves soul food with a modern twist—has been nothing short of a phenomenon. Its success led to a second venture: B-Side BBQ, just down the road. Although Oakland has undergone a culinary renaissance of sorts, Holland knows it still gets a bad rap. So as a transplant and cultural ambassador for the city, Holland has made it her mission to take advantage of her national exposure to redefine the conversation about Oakland. Here, she speaks to Inside Out about representing her new city and maintaining the local flavor. What does it mean to you to be an “ambassador” for Oakland? It means that I can share the positive things that Oakland has to offer with

the world. I can let everyone know what I see here that’s sweet and wonderful, and help bring more visitors to our beautiful city. There’s just so much to the city. It’s so diverse—socially, economically, geographically, even the weather—and it’s constantly interesting. I really see its potential. And of course it’s good to help build or revitalize a community— people really appreciate it.

which provides us all with its proud clothing and accessories.

How can Oakland be revitalized without losing its historical character? When I moved to West Oakland, I saw an absence of representation of the diversity and of the African-American community in terms of quality restaurants. Other communities have been here, but Oakland really has a strong history of African-American activism and culture. So it was a no-brainer. I cook soul food and wanted to create a concept that’s acceptable to people born here, but I also want to represent this culture in a contemporary way.

You have a degree in Russian literature. Do you bring any wisdom from that background to your life? It’s probably in the back of my head somewhere—I liked Gogol and Chekhov and some of the poets—that underdog thing. I guess that’s something I carry around with me, and maybe I gravitate to the misunderstood protagonist vibe.

What does it mean to be a local celebrity? It makes me proud that people recognize that we’ve made a positive contribution. It’s inspiring because I know I’m directly affecting people and bringing them joy. It’s rewarding, and it motivates me to do more.

A lot of those Russian stories have tragic endings. Hopefully the parallel ends there. Let’s hope so!

Are there local institutions that you see as playing a key role in the city’s revitalization? I think the Museum is great, with their Friday Nights @ OMCA events and their rebranding. I also love Oaklandish,

WINTER 2015

RE TAIL TALES

Trailblazing Treasures Let the resources offered in the OMCA Store point you in the best direction to explore Oakland The Oakland Museum of California aims to engage visitors with the artistic and historical community that extends beyond the Museum’s walls. That makes the OMCA Store the perfect place to serve as your Oakland trailhead, educating and preparing you to discover the city in a new light. “We want to give our visitors a rich understanding of Oakland. Many of the experiences they can have in our galleries and many items in the OMCA Store reflect that mission,” says Michael Silverman (left), OMCA’s new associate director of retail and product development, who brings a wealth of experience and local knowledge to his position. Check out some of the products now in the OMCA Store—and get ready to hit the trails!

The OMCA Store offers indispensible guides to help you navigate Oakland as never before. The Creek & Watershed Map of Oakland & Berkeley, a unique publication produced by OMCA, gives urban explorers a great way to traverse the city by following its historic waterways. David Weintraub’s East Bay Trails includes 56 hiking and biking trips in Alameda and Contra Costa counties, and This Is Oakland: A Guide to the City’s Most Interesting Places, by Melissa Davis, profiles the shops and restaurants of Oakland’s neighborhoods and the trendsetting minds behind them.

Show off your local pride

With a wide selection of homegrown gifts, the OMCA Store makes it easy to be a Golden State booster. Flaunt your California state of mind with an aluminum water bottle sporting OMCA’s logo, or a cutting board by Totally Bamboo in the shape of the the state of California (stating “You Are Here” over Oakland). Finally, give your farmers’ market fruits and veggies some local flavor with this denim bag by Maptote.

See these products and more at the OMCA Store or at shop.museumca.org. 16

OAKLAND MUSEUM OF CALIFORNIA

WILDERNESS PRESS; THIS IS OAKLAND; MAPTOTE.

Know your terrain

ADVANCEMENT

Eventful Occasions With its unique mix of art, nature, and history, OMCA is the ideal setting for memorable gatherings

K AT H L E E N S C H WA R T Z

magine having the first dance of your wedding under the pear trees lining the Oakland Museum of California’s terraced garden. Or breaking from a corporate presentation to enjoy drinks overlooking Lake Merritt. By hosting your party at OMCA, you can turn your special occasion into an unforgettable one. From weddings to corporate retreats, renting event space at the Museum is both simple and stunning. “You really get that California feeling,” says Maggie Pico, director of OMCA’s Resource and Enterprise Center. There are two main Museum spaces available: Blue Oak café, which can seat approximately 160 guests and includes the three surrounding patios (overlooking the Koi Pond, the central staircase, and the beautifully landscaped main garden, which can accommodate up to 2,000 guests and offers access to the terraces, including the “Peace” terrace overlooking Lake Merritt). The James Moore Theater seats 261 and is also available for rent. All spaces come equipped with audio and visual hookups, plus a preferred list of caterers and vendors that can provide food, beverages, lights, and furnishings. “It’s very special to have your social occasion at OMCA, a leading cultural institution,” Pico says. One marketing director, after hosting their firm’s event at the Museum, raved about the experience. “It could not have been more perfect. The setting on the terraces was elegant and relaxed, with ample room and wonderful views. Our guests loved visiting the gallery after hours, too. OMCA is our favorite venue in the East Bay.” For more information or to inquire about a facility rental, visit museumca.org/event-rentals.

WINTER 2015

CALENDAR

Check out the full lineup of events and programs at museumca.org

EXHIBITIONS, EVENTS, AND PROGRAMS Mission Scene Moment Friday, March 6, 7 pm James Moore Theater Experience music, performance, video, and poetry by the creative community that emerged from San Francisco’s Mission District in the 1990s. This event features poet Bill Berkson, musician Devendra Banhart, video maker Karla Milosevich, and bands Corner Tour and the Helen Lundy Trio, among others. Tickets required. To learn more, visit museumca.org/mission-scene.

Friday Nights @ OMCA is presented in partnership with Off the Grid: Lake Merritt @ OMCA. Media support is provided by the East Bay Express. Friday Nights @ OMCA is made possible in part by generous support from the Koret Foundation. Friday Nights @ OMCA art programs are made possible by generous support from the Walter and Elise Haas Fund.

Barry McGee, Untitled, 2014.

Member for a Day Saturday, Jan. 24 OMCA Members at any level enjoy free reciprocal admission at over ten Bay Area museums on this day. For a full list of participating institutions and details, visit museumca.org/ member-for-a-day.

MUSEUM HOURS Wednesday

11 am–5 pm

Membership Mixer Friday, Jan. 30, 5–9 pm Come out for a special night of private tours of Fertile Ground: Art and Community in California and enjoy Memberonly raffles, store discounts, gallery sneak peeks, and other Friday Nights @ OMCA festivities.

Thursday

11 am–5 pm

Friday

11 am–9 pm

Saturday

10 am–6 pm

Sunday

10 am–6 pm

OAKLAND MUSEUM OF CALIFORNIA

Monday Closed Tuesday Closed

Friday Nights @ OMCA Every Friday, 5–9 pm The third season of Friday Nights @ OMCA launches January 9! Enjoy our extended hours and favorites like DJs, bands, and dance instruction, and of course, Off the Grid! Programs for 2015 include: • Family-friendly drop-in art workshops (weekly) • Pop-up Talks: Collections Spotlights (third Fridays) • Snack-size Docent Tours (first, second, fourth, and final Fridays) • Storytime with Oakland Public Library (final Fridays) • Makers & Tasters Series (first Fridays; final Fridays with Whole Foods Market) Check out the full lineup at museumca.org/friday-nights.

MLK Clay Workshop Sunday, Jan. 18, 12–3 pm Create your own unique ceramic artwork and bring Dr. King’s dream of beloved community to life. Amazing Bee Hotel Making Sunday, March 22, 12–3 pm Celebrate spring and help the recovery of bee populations by building your very own five-star bee hotel to take home. Oakland Unified School District’s 36th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Oratorical Fest Sunday, March 22, 1–3:30 pm Hear Oakland teens represent their communities with speeches that move the audience and provoke thought and conversation. The Darling Song Cycle Sunday, April 26, 12–3 pm Enjoy original songs, images, and wordplay inspired by the story of the Darling family from Peter Pan in a performance that will delight both kids and adults.

T O P : D R E W A L I T Z E R ; B O T T O M , F R O M L E F T: S H A U N R O B E R T S ; R O L A N D C O V I L L E .

OMCA Family is made possible by generous support from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Lunar New Year Celebration and Other Asian Traditions: Year of the Sheep Sunday, Feb. 22, 12–4:30 pm Explore the connections between the diverse Asian cultures represented in California and celebrate the Year of the Sheep with live music, traditional lion and dragon dances, storytelling, Chinese opera face painting, art-making activities, and more.

OMCA Highlight Tours Fridays and Saturdays, 1 pm California Art Tour Saturdays and Sundays, 2 pm California History Tour Sundays, 3 pm Architecture of the Museum Tour First Sundays, 1 pm Curator-Led Tour of Fertile Ground: Art and Community in California Thursday, Jan. 22, 6:30 pm Join fellow Donor Forum Members and SFMOMA supporters for a private tour led by: • Drew Johnson, OMCA curator of photography and visual culture • Janet Bishop, SFMOMA curator of painting and sculpture • Caitlin Haskell, SFMOMA assistant curator of painting & sculpture • René de Guzman, OMCA senior curator of art More details to follow in invitation. RSVP required. Upgrade to Donor Forum and join this event! Learn more at museumca.org/donorforum or by calling Sarah Kimmerle, individual giving manager, at 510-318-8517.

SPECIAL EXHIBITIONS

OMCA FAMILY SUNDAYS

OMCA TOURS

Fertile Ground: Art and Community in California Through April 12 | Great Hall Sunshine and Superheroes: San Diego Comic-Con Through May 31 | Gallery of California History Bees: Tiny Insect, Big Impact Opens Jan. 31 | Gallery of California Natural Sciences California Photography Marion Gray: Within the Light Opens Feb. 14 | Gallery of California Art

WINTER 2015

NONPROFIT ORG U.S. POSTAGE

PAID

Oakland Museum of California 1000 Oak Street Oakland, CA 94607-4820

SALT LAKE CITY, UT PERMIT NO.6563

Detail of Oakland Museum White Elephant Sale Warehouse Mural. Artists: Vogue, Ernest Doty, and Griffin One.

SOMETHING BIG Shop the White Elephant Sale, the Biggest and Best Rummage Sale in Northern California!

Preview Sale Sunday, Jan. 25 White Elephant Sale Saturday, March 7 Sunday, March 8

WhiteElephantSale.org

TOP: OAKLAND MUSEUM’S WOMEN'S BOARD. B O T T O M : R O B E R T FA H E Y

IS RETURNING TO OAKLAND IN 2015…