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T H E M USEU M O F US OA K L A N D M USEU M O F CA LI FO RN IA
Craft Now –—–—–—– Making is back. In a big way.
Yo-Yos & Half Squares / Contemporary California quilts The Russell Collection / Iconic photographs of the Transcontinental Railroad FA L L 2 0 1 5
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WELCOME
T Calling All Makers!
“We invite you to visit the Gallery to enjoy the extraordinary breadth and depth of the work of California artists, as well as to learn about the unique place of craft in their lives.”
Works by Kay Sekimachi and Robert Stocksdale on view in the new Craft installation.
his fall at the Oakland Museum of California, we are celebrating the rich and varied traditions of craft for which our region is so well known. Recent incarnations of the Maker and DIY movements have received widespread attention and inspired new generations of creatives, as demonstrated by the great success of our Thought Leader Brit Morin’s enterprise, Brit + Co. Innovations of craft also have a long history in California, as showcased in the newly reinstalled Craft section within our Gallery of California Art. We invite you to visit the Gallery to enjoy the extraordinary breadth and depth of the work of California artists, as well as to learn about the unique place of craft in their lives. Craft traditions have also made their way to California from all over the country, as shown so beautifully in the quilts featured in our exhibition Yo-Yos & Half Squares: Contemporary California Quilts, which includes works by several makers with roots in the South. Thanks to the passion and commitment of local collector Eli Leon, these quilts have been preserved and stewarded for decades, and we are delighted to be giving these works a fresh look and an opportunity for wide public appreciation. The love of quilts and quilting transcends generations, and we know we’ll win over some new followers with this stunning exhibition. In addition, fall brings the return of our Días de los Muertos exhibition, which combines cultural practice with craft and art making in a myriad of forms. This year’s exhibition, Rituals + Remembrance, showcases artworks evoking rich memorial practices across a range of cultures. The artists selected represent a diversity of backgrounds and traditions, including Latin American as well as Asian American, African American, and Pacific Islander. And we are pleased to present the twenty-first annual Days of the Dead Community Celebration on October 25, a chance to join together with our Bay Area community in honoring art and ancestry. Our celebration of craft and memory making also gives us the perfect opportunity to acknowledge and thank Tex Gieling, an amazing jewelry maker who has remembered the Museum in her estate plans. This gracious gift will provide us with a source of enduring support far into the future for exhibitions and programs related to craft, such as those we highlight in the pages ahead. We hope you will be inspired by upcoming visits to explore your own creativity—and to make OMCA a regular part of your autumn traditions.
SENG CHEN
Lori Fogarty Director and CEO
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CONTENTS
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Andrew J. Russell, Mrs. Lamb, 1868. Stereographic collodion glass plate negative.
A Celebration of Craft The reinstalled Craft Gallery highlights how the
resurgent Maker Movement is right at home in California.
& Half Squares: Contemporary California Quilts 8 Yo-Yos
Unconventional quilts made by Bay Area women dazzle with
C OV ER: C O L L ECTI O N O F ELI L EO N; T HIS PAG E TO P: C O L L ECTI O N O F T H E OA K L A N D M USEU M O F CA LIFO RNIA , M USEU M P U RC H ASE
originality and exuberance.
departments
12Tracks of History
4 Thought Leader
are spellbinding historical records.
16 Commemoration
Recently restored and digitized, photographer
Andrew J. Russell’s images of the Transcontinental Railroad
A conversation with leading “do-it-yourselfer” Brit Morin.
OMCA’s Days of the Dead exhibition and Community Celebration honor departed loved ones in creative ways.
On the cover: Pieced by Mattie Pickett, quilted by Willia Ette Graham, Texas Star, 1987 (detail).
18 Advancement Artist Imogene “Tex” Gieling included OMCA in her estate plans to ensure continued support of the Museum’s craft collection.
19 Calendar A guide to OMCA’s exhibitions, events, and programs.
Pioneering metalsmith Imogene “Tex” Gieling outside her studio in San Francisco.
Inside Out is published three times a year by the Oakland Museum of California, 1000 Oak Street, Oakland, CA 94607 museumca.org ©2015 Editor: Kelly A. Koski
Contributors: Lori Fogarty, Sarah Kimmerle, Rebecca Kirkpatrick, Linda Larkin, Claudia Leung, Maggie R. Pico, Lisa Sasaki, Michael Silverman Photography: Terry Lorant Produced by: Diablo Custom Publishing dcpubs.com
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BRIT + CO
“ It’s important to remember that makers aren’t just people who use 3D printers or build robots. A maker is anyone who uses his or her hands to make and create, from a chef to a gardener to a calligrapher.”
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THOUGHT LE ADER
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A Conversation With Brit Morin KNOWN AS THE MARTHA STEWART OF THE DIGITAL AGE, THE FOUNDER OF SAN FRANCISCO–BASED BRIT + CO DISCUSSES THE IMPORTANCE OF KEEPING THINGS HANDS-ON BRIT MORIN, 29, has crafted a unique career at the intersection of creativity and tech. Brit + Co, her four-year-old DIY and e-commerce company, is the leading online destination for millions of millennials who like to make things with their own hands. Her site features hundreds of tutorials on everything from cooking and weaving to concrete casting. Texas-born Morin—who formerly worked for Apple and Google—is passionate about creating food, fashion, software, and 3D–printed designs. Here, she speaks to Inside Out about the importance of craft and creative communities.
in the digital age. But it’s important to remember that makers aren’t just people who use 3D printers or build robots. A maker is anyone who uses his or her hands to make and create, from a chef to a gardener to a calligrapher. The Maker Movement has taken off, thanks in large part to the community. Makers are especially passionate about sharing and teaching what they’re making, and social media and sites like Brit + Co make it easier than ever to discuss projects and learn from others. The Co in Brit + Co actually stands for community, not company, for that reason.
What inspires you about crafting? Crafting and DIY are really special kinds of creative outlets. They encompass almost limitless mediums and forms, and can range from hobbies to professions. What I find most exciting are the people who come up with such inventive new ideas every day. The contributors to our site and the amazing makers we feature help us bring our readers the latest ideas, hacks, news, and products that are out there. It’s a truly engaged community helping to empower creativity. The variety of things we can make as DIY-ers is awesome, since we can get ideas from almost anything. Nature has always been a huge inspiration for me. Going for a hike, spending a day at the beach, and exploring the Bay Area are great ways to spark creativity.
What are your goals for the foundation you recently established? Our goal with the #IAMCREATIVE foundation is to inspire creativity by equipping girls and women with financial grants, resources, and knowledge to execute ambitious creative projects. Grants are designated for female U.S. residents who are 13 years or older, and we’re looking to fund one-of-a-kind projects that showcase an element of learning and are aligned with our mission to unlock creativity. We’re hoping our grant recipients will take their own creativity to the next level and help inspire others to do so as well.
Why do you think the Maker Movement has so much momentum? The timing is right. Millennials have rediscovered making in response to their hands-off, tech-enabled, on-demand lifestyle. Making allows us to return to our roots by becoming more curious and creative. One of the reasons I started Brit + Co was that I felt there was a gap to fill between tech and DIY, combining creative skills with all that comes with living
What do you see as the role of museums and other cultural institutions in the craft movement? I think museums can help bring the Maker Movement to life by displaying art from makers or building interactive makerlike exhibits that visitors can explore. Museums can also expose people to new mediums and forms of expression to further inspire and drive creativity. Cultural institutions will be vital in fostering craft for this generation and those that follow. Check out the online world of Brit + Co at brit.co.
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alifornia has always embraced and nurtured scrappy self-starters. As mass manufacturing grew in the twentieth century, independent-minded artisans from across the country and the world came to California, and began setting up small studios. They created one-of-a-kind works—ceramics, textiles, sculpture, furniture, and more—with a dedication to quality and craftsmanship that the factories simply couldn’t match. Now, anyone can step into their world by visiting the reimagined Craft section of the Gallery of California Art, where some of the craft movement’s most compelling work is on display—from the beautiful to the provocative to the whimsical. The Craft section has been reenvisioned to show how the artists’ lives intersect with their work. “The new Craft section says something about who the artist is or was,” says Carin Adams, associate curator of art and material culture. “We use photos that show artists in their studios, the way they live with their art, and how they use it to express their spirituality. Walking through the Gallery is like taking a fascinating journey through time and through people’s lives.” For many California makers, craft is a way of life. The Gallery shares how artists— like Ruth Asawa, who was known for her abstract wire sculptures—integrated their art with their lifestyle. “Ruth Asawa was part of a self-sustaining artists’ colony in Sonoma County called Pond Farm,” Adams says. “Many artists in this collection have a connection to the colony, which was founded in the 1940s and deeply influenced by the Bauhaus. They lived and breathed their art, and created it in nature.” The fact that California has long been a hotbed of political and social activism has drawn many artists to the state. The Gallery features several artists, like sculptor
A FEAST OF VISUAL DELIGHTS What can you expect to see in the new Craft section of the Gallery of California Art? You’ll spy everything from a hand-carved couch by Sam Maloof, to graceful bowls by renowned wood turner Robert Stocksdale, to pop art by Libby Black. See jewelry in various styles, from statementmaking assemblages by Alex & Lee to work by Margaret de Patta, whose Constructivism-inspired creations were featured in an OMCA exhibition in 2012. Also on view is work by fiber artist Kay Sekimachi, known for weaving delicate nylon monofilament into ethereal sculptural forms.
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Gyöngy Laky and fiber artist Ed Rossbach, whose work reflects their views about gender, militarism, material culture, or the environment. “We want to illustrate how these artists were responding to what they were seeing in their world,” says Kelly McKinley, director of the OMCA Lab. “They weren’t just making art for art’s sake. Their work reveals a particular lens on the world at a particular time, and it allows people to understand that moment in history.” The Gallery also illuminates artists’ personal journeys, whether political or spiritual. “Humanizing these artists demystifies the creative process and the notion of the creative genius,” McKinley explains. “If you don’t know about silversmithing or wood turning, when you connect personally to an artist’s life, you can often find connections to your own. It helps you understand their motivations to be crafters.” The Gallery offers different media—audio, video, interactive—to bring these stories to life. Today, craft is enjoying a dramatic resurgence, as evidenced by everything from the Maker Faires popping up around the country to artisans selling handmade works on Etsy. With all this renewed interest in the art of craft, there’s no better time to explore some of California’s most creative and thoughtprovoking makers, including modern artists who boldly push their craft forward. “In the same way that people are thinking more intentionally about their food—how it’s prepared and where it comes from—the resurgence of craft and the Maker Movement is related to the desire to finesse a particular way of making things,” McKinley says. “With the breakneck speed of our lives and being constantly connected through technology, craft offers us a counterpoint, a way for us to slow down. A visit to the Museum is an opportunity to escape into a world of thoughtfully handcrafted beauty.”
SENG CHEN
Works in the new craft installation range from the satirical— like Gaza Bowen’s Tuff Scuffs, self-cleaning high heels for housewives—to the transcendent, exemplified by jewelry from artists such as Margaret de Patta and Claire Falkenstein.
a celebration of craft
SENG CHEN
A NEW INSTALLATION IN THE GALLERY OF CALIFORNIA ART ILLUMINATES HOW TODAY’S CRAFT MOVEMENT HAS DEEP ROOTS IN THE GOLDEN STATE
Two works by Gyöngy Laky span almost two decades: Laky created Mehta, left, a basket made of electrical wire, fiber, twigs, plastic, and cotton string, in 1984; and And So …, a part of her series of ampersand sculptures, was commissioned by the Museum in 2005.
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Pieced by Sherry Byrd, quilted by Willia Ette Graham and Johnnie Wade, Roman Stripe Variations, 1989 (detail).
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COLLECTION OF ELI LEON
Yo-Yos & Half Squares: Contemporary California Quilts
A NEW EXHIBITION FEATURES BOLD, IMPROVISATIONAL QUILTS LOVINGLY HANDCRAFTED BY BAY AREA WOMEN The title of OMCA’s fall exhibition Yo-Yos & Half Squares: Contemporary California Quilts refers to standard terms for triangles and circles of fabric hand sewn or appliquéd into quilts. But that’s about as standard as the exhibition gets. Don’t expect to see the conventional symmetry, delicate flowered patches, and precise seaming of many traditional European and American quilts. Instead, the 20 improvisational quilts, crafted by eight women in the Bay Area over the last 30 years, dazzle with color and exuberant patterns. The quilt makers break rules, measure with their eyes instead of rulers, and tease traditional quilting forms such as strips and medallions to fit their unique artistic visions. (See glossary on page 11 for quilting terms.) Centerpieces are off center, color combinations vivid and inventive, and repetitions broken by shifts in texture, direction, or scale. Some of the quilts riff on traditional patterns. Texas Star turns the simple background of the classic Lone Star quilt from quiet to ecstatic with a jumble of multicolored tumbling stars. Worn blue jeans, a staple of the old-time britches quilt, are reimagined in designs with freewheeling names like Swing Dinger and Mamaloo.
“ We hope the exhibition alters viewers’ ideas of what a quilt can be ... Looking at them is entering a different world— one that is asymmetrical and tactile.” — CARIN ADAMS, ASSOCIATE CURATOR OF ART AND MATERIAL CULTURE
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Some quilts have their makers’ heart and life story stitched into them, such as a chair cover made of men’s ties sewn together and embroidered with biblical references and birth dates. “We hope the exhibition alters viewers’ ideas of what a quilt can be,” says Carin Adams, associate curator of art and material culture. “Looking at them is entering a different world—one that is asymmetrical and tactile.” Of the quilt makers featured in the show, only one—Angie Tobias—was born in California. Four piecers—Arbie Williams, Mattie Pickett, Rosie Lee Tompkins, and Sherry Byrd—migrated to the East Bay from the South; as did quilters Irene Bankhead, Willia Ette Graham, and Johnnie Wade. Most learned quilting early from their mothers and grandmothers, for whom quilting was a necessity or creative outlet, or both. The artists had little time or patience for quilting when they were working and raising their own children, but picked it up again later in life. They work with a variety of materials—from stiff 1970s polyester to velvet and glittery textiles the late Rosie Lee Tompkins (the quilt-making pseudonym of Effie Mae Howard) called “Christmas fabric.” Their inspirations are just as varied. Personal crises drew some of the women back to it. Tompkins believed that God designed her quilts and guided her hand in making them. Byrd likened quilting to another love of hers, music. Instead of playing an instrument, she says, “We play jazz with a needle and thread.” All of the quilts are from the collection of Oakland resident
Eli Leon, who traveled the country on a Guggenheim Fellowship in the 1980s, collecting the stories of quilters and their quilts. In 1988, he put together the first exhibition of African American improvisational quilts, which toured in the United States and landed in the national spotlight for the first time. Leon also fostered collaborations between some of the piecers and the quilters featured in this show. “Leon’s collection is unique in the way that he was so deeply involved in the finished process,” Adams says. “His story is interwoven with those of the quilters.” The show includes one quilt Leon made in memory of his father. Quilt-maker Willia Ette Graham once captured the spontaneity and free spirit that characterize the quilts in this exhibition when she explained that she stitched leftover scraps from one quilt to the border of another just “to pick your eye back up again.” But chances are, your eyes won’t stop dancing at this exhibition of breathtaking quilts.
Yo-Yos & Half Squares: Contemporary California Quilts is on view in the Gallery of California Art from Sept. 12, 2015, through Feb. 21, 2016. This exhibition is made possible in part by generous support from the Simpson family.
COLLECTION OF ELI LEON
Associate Curator of Art and Material Culture Carin Adams examines a denim detail on the quilt Swing Dinger, pieced by Arbie Williams and quilted by Willia Ette Graham.
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Right: This detail of Unfinished (red velvet and embroidery), pieced by Rosie Lee Tompkins, shows the appliquĂŠ and hand embroidery techniques she used to whimsical and surprising effect.
A Quilting Glossary AppliquĂŠ: To sew small pieces of fabric onto larger pieces by hand or machine. Batting: The soft middle layer of a quilt. Embroider: To sew patterns onto fabrics with thread. Half squares: Triangular patches that are sewn together to form squares.
Above: Pieced by Rosie Lee Tompkins, quilted by Irene Bankhead, 17 Patches (detail). Below: Pieced by Mattie Pickett, quilted by Willia Ette Graham, Texas Star, 1987 (detail).
Hand-quilting stitch: Stitching made through the three layers of a quilt to hold them together and form the quilting pattern. Medallion quilt: A quilt with a central motif surrounded by multiple borders. Piecing: Arranging and sewing together the patches that make the decorative quilt top. A quilt maker who does this is called a piecer.
COLLECTION OF ELI LEON
Quilting: Sewing the decorative quilt top to the batting and backing, the bottom layer of fabric on a quilt. A quilt maker who does this is called a quilter. Strip piecing: Joining strips of fabric lengthwise to form a set of strips that look like striped fabric. Yo-Yos: Circular patches with the edges turned under and secured with stitching.
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COLLECTION OF THE OAKLAND MUSEUM OF CALIFORNIA, MUSEUM PURCHASE
Opposite page: These collodion glass plate negatives by Andrew J. Russell would have been used to create a stereograph, giving a threedimensional effect when viewed through special lenses. Top: Sargent Swartz, the Guide, 1869. Stereographic collodion glass plate negative. Bottom: O. C. Smith and Wife, Echo, 1869. Stereographic collodion glass plate negative,
Andrew J. Russell, East and West Shaking Hands at Laying Last Rail, 1869. Imperial collodion glass plate negative.
TRACKS OF HISTORY Photographer Andrew J. Russell’s historic images of the Transcontinental Railroad are newly preserved and digitized, and soon will be accessible via OMCA’s website
BEN BLACKWELL
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n 1868, artist and photographer Andrew J. Russell traveled west with large-format and stereo cameras to document the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad, from Omaha, Nebraska, to Promontory, Utah. Trundling his bulky equipment by wagon across plains, deserts, and mountains, he captured the life and relentless pace of Union Pacific crews as they laid tracks across a vast landscape. Russell’s photographs brought the railroad and the West to a national audience. His most famous image, East and West Shaking Hands at Laying Last Rail, taken in 1869 in Promontory, is an icon of photography and American history. In 1969, the year OMCA opened, it acquired a remarkable collection of Russell’s original glass plate negatives. The most complete collection of the artist’s railroad work in any format, it depicts in detail the majestic scale of Western lands, the enterprise of railroad building, the life of frontier boomtowns, and the effect of railroads on Native Americans. Now, all of these fragile, historic documents have been digitized and will be made available to the public. “For the first time, people will be able to freely access high-resolution scans of this collection’s images,” says Joy Tahan, senior registrar. “The scans reveal incredible details in the negatives—from old signposts to graffiti scrawled on walls and rocks—that convey the atmosphere of the time and place.” In an effort funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Museum has worked since 2012 to digitize, catalog, preserve, and create educational information about the collection. OMCA also added 18 images, with accompanying curriculum, to its website Picture This: California Perspectives on American History
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❝ Russell was one of a handful of landscape photographers who
shaped our perception of the American West in the nineteenth century. His images are artistic works that stand alongside those of Carleton Watkins, Eadweard Muybridge, and Timothy O’Sullivan in their aesthetic power and technical virtuosity. ❞
(picturethis.museumca.org). By the end of December, direct digital scans of 817 photographic items by Russell—including 645 original glass plate collodion negatives, lantern slides, salted paper prints, books, and printed stereographs—will be available for viewing on the OMCA Collections website. In addition, the Museum worked with art historian Glenn Willumson, Ph.D, to develop detailed cataloging information. To preserve the nearly 150-year-old collection, OMCA’s staff created customized archival storage for 580 undamaged glass plate negatives, as well as for sixty-five broken or deteriorated glass plates. Registrars and preparators have also safely rehoused more than 100 glass lantern slides; mounted stereo views; and one of the rare surviving copies of The Great West Illustrated, an album of vintage albumen prints made by Russell. According to Drew Johnson, curator of photography and visual culture, “Russell was one of a handful of landscape photographers who shaped our perception of the American West in the nineteenth century. His images are artistic works that stand alongside those of Carleton Watkins, Eadweard Muybridge, and Timothy O’Sullivan in their aesthetic power and technical virtuosity. By sharing and preserving the Russell Collection, the Museum will be providing an incredible research tool for all kinds of disciplines, with enormous visual appeal.”
COLLECTION OF THE OAKLAND MUSEUM OF CALIFORNIA, MUSEUM PURCHASE
Transmissive scan of Andrew J. Russell’s Imperial collodion glass plate negative, Mormon Family, 1868.
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PRESERVING THE PAST
Clockwise from top: Pen-Peng Wang, the Museum’s paper conservator, examines prints with Gawain Weaver, consulting photo conservator. Curator of Photography and Visual Culture Drew Johnson studies a print. A photonegative depicting Union Pacific Railroad Station North Platte. Weaver inspects the transparency.
When OMCA acquired the Russell Collection in 1969, the negatives had been lying forgotten for nearly a century in the archives of the American Geographical Society in New York. “It’s quite amazing that they’ve survived up to this day in such good condition,” says Peng-Peng Wang, OMCA’s paper conservator. Thanks to efforts by Wang, Photograph Conservator Gawain Weaver, and Museum collections staff, the glass plate negatives have been safely archived for the future. Undamaged negatives, Wang says, are being stored vertically. The collection’s cracked or broken negatives are now mounted in specially designed boxes, and the whole collection is archived in earthquake-safe cabinets monitored for humidity and temperature. The majority of the plates, Wang explains, are wet plate collodion negatives. This photographic process, common from the 1850s to the 1880s, used a chemical emulsion made of cellulose nitrate dissolved in ether. Photographers poured the liquid, called collodion, onto the glass plates. Once they exposed these wet plate negatives in a camera, they had to develop them immediately, in mobile darkrooms. “Collodion negatives can be extremely delicate,” Wang says. The type of glass or collodion used, varnishes, postprocessing treatments, poor storage conditions, or mishandling can all lead to deterioration. Fortunately, most of the Russell Collection negatives are very stable. “Considering that they traveled in wagons across the country,” she adds, “most of them are remarkably intact.” This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.
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DAYS OF REMEMBRANCE OMCA’s Días de los Muertos exhibition is an inclusive exploration of memory and memorial practices
B R YA N K E I T H T H O M A S
A detail of Bryan Keith Thomas’s altar, I'll Fly Away, which references his Southern heritage. The altar incorporates church fans, rose petals, and bags of cotton, among other materials.
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TOP: YVONNE ESCALANTE/PHOTO BY ARA AHADI; BOTTOM: NANCY HOM/PHOTO BY BOB HSIANG
COMMEMOR ATION
ORIGINATING IN MESOAMERICA OVER 1,000 YEARS AGO, the tradition of Días de los Muertos—or Days of the Dead—has evolved over the generations into a vibrant celebration of departed loved ones. Every year from October 31 through November 2, people honor the deceased in creative ways: filling ofrendas, or altars, with symbolic offerings; adorning graves with marigolds; and making elaborate sugar skulls, tissue paper decorations, and favorite foods and beverages. Today, the holiday is widely observed, as people throughout the world participate in this meaningful tribute to the continuum of life and death. The tradition is also an important one for the Oakland Museum of California, which this year presents its twenty-first annual Días de los Muertos exhibition and community celebration. The exhibition, Rituals + Remembrance, features a variety of altars, sculptures, paintings, and installations. The work represents elements of Buddhist, African American, Filipino, Hawaiian, Japanese, Chicano, and Latino cultural traditions, to name a few. Among the exhibits will be a mandala by Nancy Hom; music boxes by Yvonne Escalante; an artwork by Bryan Keith Thomas; and installations created by MetWest High School, Sankofa Academy, and the Alameda County Public Health Department. The diversity of artists in the exhibition illuminates how Días de los Muertos, like many global traditions, speak to the human impulse to express loss and ritualize remembrance. “The Days of the Dead include so many layers—the personal, cultural, historical,” says Evelyn Orantes, OMCA’s curator of public practice and the curator of this year’s exhibition. “It’s a tradition that brings people together to share their own memorial practices and inspirations.” ON VIEW: Rituals + Remembrance Oct. 14, 2015, through Jan. 3, 2016
Above: Yvonne Escalante’s intimate music boxes incorporate cast glass corncobs, which strike brass keys. The corn honors the artist’s Salvadoran father and German-American maternal grandfather, representing a deep connection to farming on both sides of her family. Below: Nancy Hom will create a six-foot mixed-media mandala in a style similar to this smaller one from 2014. The mandala will incorporate materials representing loved ones at the centerpiece of a walking labyrinth.
COMMUNITY CELEBRATION Oct. 25, 11 am–4:30 pm The 21st annual Days of the Dead Community Celebration will feature live dance and music performances, an artisanal mercado, altars by community groups, and food for purchase from Off the Grid vendors.
SPECIAL PROGRAMS DURING FRIDAY NIGHTS @ OMCA: - - -
Community Altar Spotlights Oct. 2, 9, & 16, 5–8:30 pm Each week, view an altar by a featured community group. Family Art Activity Every Friday in October, 5–8 pm Learn how to make papel picado and origami cranes. Makers & Tasters Friday, Oct. 2, 6–8 pm Watch a demonstration and make your own sugar skull.
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ADVANCEMENT
HEART OF GOLD Pioneering metalsmith Imogene “Tex” Gieling has established an enduring legacy that will support both her passion and OMCA Remnants of her ninety-second birthday bash were still scattered around her San Francisco studio when jewelry artist Imogene “Tex” Gieling recently welcomed visitors to talk about the power and pleasure of craft-making, her lifelong pursuit. “Crafts are made to fit people—something to wear, sit on, to enjoy in your house,” she says. “They are a statement about how we live.” Gieling took a bold step in the 1980s to help ensure continued support of OMCA’s craft collection. As part of her estate planning, she made a generous donation to the Museum: the Victorian home in San Francisco that she and John Gieling, her late husband, lovingly restored. Today, as then, Gieling is certain that OMCA is the right choice. “Other museums were busy with art from Central and South America and Europe. No one else was showing interest in our own craftspeople.” Gieling came by her artistic inclinations by way of Corsicana,
Texas, where she was born and raised, and took drawing lessons from her grandfather, an artist, musician, and writer. She went on to study with the Bauhaus artist and educator László MoholyNagy, then at the Hans Hofmann School in New York, and later at the University of Washington, where she found her medium, metal arts. She was on the faculty at UC Berkeley’s Department of Decorative Art and San Francisco State University, where she taught until her retirement in 1990. Over the course of her career, she developed new metalworking techniques to realize her eclectic design ideas for jewelry. Several of her pieces are in OMCA’s collection. These days, Gieling stays active and upbeat—entertaining friends and fellow artists, and visiting galleries and museums. She is buoyed by the resurgence she sees in today’s crafts. “With all the new materials you can use, there is a real flowering,” she says. “We’re in a period that’s going to create a renaissance.”
THE ART OF GIVING / Anyone can leave an enduring legacy; there is no minimum amount. To learn more about how to include the Museum in your will or other estate plans, contact Linda Larkin at 510-318-8516 or lalarkin@museumca.org, or visit museumca.org/leave-a-legacy. Already included the Museum in your estate plans? Please let us know. We’d like to welcome you to the Heritage Society and include you in our Sept. 22 appreciation program (see next page).
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CALENDAR
Check out the full lineup of events, tours, and programs at museumca.org
EXHIBITIONS, EVENTS, AND PROGRAMS Heritage Society Appreciation: An Inside Perspective on OMCA’s Craft Collection Tuesday, Sept. 22, 4:30–6 pm Associate Curator of Art and Material Culture Carin Adams will provide an inside look at the reinstalled craft section in the Gallery of California Art. If you’ve included the Museum in your estate plans, please join us for this special program. RSVP to Amanda at 510-318-8502 or rsvp@museumca.org. Donor Forum: Director’s Dinner Sunday, Oct. 4, 6 pm Director-level donors gather for a special evening at Impact Hub Oakland—a hot spot for East Bay creativity and social entrepreneurship. Celebrate Oakland’s vibrancy and diversity over an elegant meal. More details to follow in invitation. RSVP to Amanda at 510-318-8502 or rsvp@museumca.org.
SPECIAL EXHIBITIONS Yo-Yos & Half Squares: Contemporary California Quilts Sept. 12, 2015–Feb. 21, 2016 Rituals + Remembrance Oct. 14, 2015–Jan. 3, 2016 UNEARTHED: Found + Made Dec. 12, 2015–Apr. 24, 2016 Michelle Dizon: Drifting Islands Through Nov. 8, 2015 Pacific Worlds Through Jan. 3, 2016 Bees: Tiny Insect, Big Impact Through July 24, 2016
TOP: ROLLIN COVILLE; BOTTOM: ODELL HUSSEY
Corporate Appreciation Night Friday, Oct. 16, 5–9 pm All employees of OMCA’s Corporate Partner companies are invited to an evening of free Gallery admission, discounts, a raffle, and all the festivities of Friday Nights @ OMCA. RSVP to Yayoi at corporatepartners@museumca.org. Member Appreciation Month This December, OMCA recognizes our Members with a host of events and special offerings. Here’s a sneak peek: • OMCA Store Member Sale Friday, Dec. 4–Sunday, Dec. 6 Members receive an extra 10% discount in the OMCA Store, for a total of 20% on regularly priced items. • Member Open House Saturday, Dec. 12, 11 am–5 pm Come see what’s new at OMCA! Look for event details. • Donor Forum Open House: After Hours Saturday, Dec. 12, 6:30 pm Spend Saturday night in conversation with artists, thought leaders, and OMCA’s creative staff. Details to follow in invitation. RSVP required.
MUSEUM HOURS Monday Closed Tuesday Closed Wednesday
11 am–5 pm
Thursday
11 am–5 pm
Friday
11 am–9 pm
Saturday
10 am–6 pm
Sunday
10 am–6 pm
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NONPROFIT ORG U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
Oakland Museum of California 1000 Oak Street Oakland, CA 94607-4820
SALT LAKE CITY, UT PERMIT NO.6563
CALIFORNIA INDIAN MARKET Find exquisite creations at this special two-day event. Celebrate Native American Heritage Month and meet and support artisans from the California Indian community.
FRI., NOV. 13–SAT., NOV. 14 Created in partnership with News From Native California.
C L O C K W I S E F R O M T O P L E F T: L E A H M ATA , S H A U N R O B E R T S ( 2 )
2ND ANNUAL