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ART CENTER NEWSWIRE - July 30, 2001

PASADENA, CA, USA | To keep abreast of the exciting and innovative ideas, people and projects at Art Center College of Design, the media and general public can subscribe to Art Center's news digest by sending a blank email to: newswire-on@lists.artcenter.edu. We highlight some of the newsmakers in our Art Center community twice a month. To report news or obtain more information, contact Jan Kingaard, tel. (626) 396-2394, fax (626) 683-9233.


CAMPUS

Pasadena Star NewsPasadena Councilman Steve Madison hosted a town hall meeting at Art Center. He provided updates on new and ongoing development projects, traffic, the energy crisis and other issues.

Los Angeles TimesPortuguese architect Alvaro Siza will be collaborating with Frank O. Gehry on the master plan for the Art Center campus expansion. His focus will be on the technical skills center. The Art Center project is Siza's first U.S. venture.


GREAT MINDS

Instructor and alum Stan Kong hosted a group of 11 students with the Institute for Educational Advancement. These gifted students were from around the nation and at Art Center for two weeks to participate in a highly intensive workshop on industrial design. In addition to developing problem solving skills, they went on field trips that included Disney's Imagineering where high-level executives made a presentation. Stan also immersed the group in California culture, which included trips to Venice Beach, the Hollywood Bowl and Old Town Pasadena, to give them a sense of why so many leading transportation and industrial design firms are located in Southern California. Armed with disposable cameras, the group took photos that captured their L.A. experience, which they later mounted on 3D structures that they had designed and built. At the end of the workshop, the students presented visuals, concept development and renderings for one of two problems presented by Stan: Zero-emission buses that reflect a recent California law passed by the AQMD or stress-related injuries suffered by women that reflect work space designed by and for men. Both options incorporated the need for social responsibility, which Stan feels is essential to good design. The students reported back to Stan that they felt their trip was an "incredibly valuable experience." Stan is hoping to host another group next summer.

Faculty member Jim Heimann has written a new book showcasing the bizarre architecture of Los Angeles. California Crazy & Beyond introduces readers to the Wigwam Motel, which still stands on the border of San Bernardino and Rialto and Randy's Donuts in Inglewood, for example. Of the historical structures, Heimann says, "Sadly, such vernacular structures have historically been undervalued and thought of as unworthy of preservation. They were a subcategory of architecture nobody bothered to chronicle. They were often considered ugly marks on the environment."

ArtextThe work of several Art Center alumni and instructors, including Salomon Huerta, Jennifer Steinkamp, Jessica Bronson and Jorge Pardo, is reviewed.

ADVERTISING

The New York TimesBarely eight years have passed since the campaign first started. But the dairy industry's ads, with the "Got milk?" tagline, have made a lasting mark of the American consumer landscape. The recent California Milk Consumption Tracking Study by the California Milk Processor board indicates that the ads have been instrumental in stemming an erosion in domestic milk sales that seemed pretty much unstoppable back in the early 1990's, when "got milk?" was first devised by Goodby, Silverstein & Partners in San Francisco, a unit of the Omnicon Group. Jeff Goodby is a member of Art Center's Board of Trustees. The California ads for the California Milk Processor board continue to be the work of the San Francisco firm. The total marketing budget in the state is about $24 million, and approximately $180 million nationwide, according to Jeff Manning, the executive director of the California board.

One ShowGreg Braun won a gold pencil for his work for the ACLU, which also won a Clio, two national Addys and six local Addys this year. Advertising Age magazine named his ACLU work the "Best Magazine Ad of the Year" and his Fallon work is featured in the current issue of Archive Magazine.

Orange County Women In BusinessCyndy De Arcos Geier has been nominated for the organization's top award. Her company, ICON Imaging Studios, was recently nominated for the "Family Owned Business" award.

BoardsAlumnus Hal Curtis was selected as a S.E.A.L. (Supremely Effective Advertising League) team member. Industry peers choose fellow professionals that are then assembled for a specific style of ad project, "from saucy comedy to poignant PSAs."

ShootThe work of several Art Center advertising students and their instructors was recognized at the recent AICP (Association of Independent Commercial Producers) Show in the student commercial category. Honored were Tony Garcia, Eric Sherman, Armando Sanchez, Lisa Plettnick, Toni Ann Rossi, Sal Rendino and Dan Coates for their 30-second spots for Consumer Reports Online, "The Crush" and Staple Office Supplies' "Gotcha." Robert Hanson, Michael Ahnemann, Reuben Steinberg, Nick Hill and Rebecca Jameson received praise for their work for Motel 6, "Get A Room"


FILM

MillimeterAlumna Yuki, while a student, decided to experiment with the technical side of filmmaking. Her spec commercial for Kirin Beer, called Pig, eventually won a silver CLIO from the AICP. Taking the skills she learned at Art Center, she has since done work for DNA, doing a campaign for McDonald's. "Everyone was nice, and very open to my ideas, but we were limited by certain rules that most people are not aware of "Those limitations impacted my ability to be creative, but they gave me a nice challenge," she says. "Next time, I'll understand some of these limitations better going in, and I'll be a little more prepared in ways that will help me get a few more (than six seconds) of my ideas on screen."

BoardsYoung filmmaker Jonnie Ross has compiled an impressive spec reel of outlandishly creative work. Currently studying under the tutelage of Larry Bridges at LA-based editorial house Red Car, the Art Center alumnus was first noticed at the tender age of 18, receiving several awards including one from the President. "I was informed by a White House appointed committee that I had received 'the highest honor a graduating high school student can receive' [in the U.S.]," explains Ross. "I was named a 'Residential Scholar In the Arts,' invited to meet resident Clinton and then had my work exhibited in the National Museum of American Art in Washington." His main interest now is "to discover something original and bring that to the world of commercials."

Pasadena Star News, Daily News, Los Angeles TimesVictor Robert and Rodney Hom were among 12 recipients of this year's Motion Picture Academy's 28th Annual Student Academy Awards. They won in the animation category for their film "The Yellow Umbrella."

Los Angeles TimesArt Center was one of six schools profiled by KCET, showcasing the work of film students. "Fine Cut: A Festival of Student Film" presented shorts (no longer than 30 minutes) of student work from Art Center, USC, UCLA, the American Film Institute, Cal Arts, and Loyola Marymount.

HighlanderA new Nogales High School production studio may hold the key to the future for its students interested in a career in the entertainment industry. Junior Gary Kavanagh used the studio equipment to make a three-minute short film that he showed to an Art Center counselor.


GRAPHIC DESIGN

Communication Arts MagazineIt says six and a half years in preparation, but the masterwork about letter-making comes from a full career of live and study about letterforms, type fonts, and using the knowledge of readable letters in drawing logos. The result is a five and a half pound volume filled with more than you want to know‹but always interesting if you are in the communication arts. Doyald Young has taught classes at Art Center for almost 30 years. He also has a full studio practice and shows more than 50 examples of identities and logos for Pacific Rim clients, national firms and Hollywood stars and titles. And he lets readers in on the steps of development in his book, Fonts & Logos. This awesome book is, in itself, an object of beauty.

IndependentTenino High School valedictorian Marya Danzer is looking to hone her artistic talent at Art Center College of Design. She will be first attending Evergreen State College to major in graphic design before coming to Art Center.


ILLUSTRATION

Los Angeles TimesInstructors Laura Cooper and husband Nick Taggart extend the beauty of their garden into their home as well as onto canvas. He may choose to show two views of the same plant, providing a glimpse of the subtle balance between the beautiful and the grotesque. Laura works in three-dimensional outdoor spaces, usually garden-centered. Their current organic project is a "red garden": a pair of fiberglass body-cast planters of themselves, filled with ornamental grass.

The Times UnionAlum Lane Smith has teamed with Jon Sciezska to create a new book entitled, Baloney (Henry P.), about a lovable space alien who is punished to "permanent life-long detention" for showing up late for school again. The story draws its quirky language and expressions from nearly two-dozen languages, including Pidgin, Latvian and Maltese. A handy decoder is located at the back of the book glossary. Scieszka and Smith have won numerous awards for their books, including The New York Times Best Book of the Year, Caldecott Honor Book, and American Library Association Best Books.

ReviewThe work of super hero Concrete creator Paul Chadwick was part of the Lake Oswego Festival of the Arts. Chadwick believes that comics are an original American art form and after leaving Art Center, pursued his own comic series. He has received critical acclaim and numerous awards for Concrete.

Pasadena StarNews, Whittier Daily News - Ruth Richardson is reviving the art of portraiture. "There is something so personal about the faces," she says of her work. She was featured at Sierra Madre's 39th Annual Art Fair, but her paintings are also for view by appointment at her studio.

Valley SunConcept designer Edwin Ushiro had a solo exhibition entitled, "Searching for Rainbowman" at the Phyllis Craig Gallery in North Hollywood. This was his first exhibition of drawings and paintings.

Malibu Surfside NewsSummer Le Prevost of Malibu received an Art Center scholarship for 2001.

Laguna News PostFaculty member Tom Wudl displayed new works at the Peter Blake Gallery in Laguna. The recent art works are delicate watercolor images on perforated paper and allude to themes and images in ancient Asian art.

New TimesAlumnus P-Jay Fidler was part of a four-person exhibit at the La Luz de Jesus Gallery in Hollywood. For Four Mation, Fidler points mainly to Flemish paintings of the 14th and 15th century as his main influences, but also "uses a strong sense of contemporary design and illustration."

Santa Monica MirrorGraduate and commercial artist Mary Thompson was part of an exhibit in Marina Del Rey. She describes herself as a plein air painter, and wanders up and down the coast of California, dedicated to painting still lifes, street scenes and landscapes.


PHOTOGRAPHY

Photo District NewsThe provocative work of Makiko Takehara and Vanh Wan were included in the PDN Photography Annual.

Park La Brea News, La OpinionEarly works by artists enrolled in Art Center's photography program were featured in the Michael Dawson Gallery. The exhibit was entitled "Photographs at Art Center College, 1940-1950."

Pasadena Star NewsThe Light-Bringer Project and students from Art Center joined together to provide free family portraits at Washington Accelerated School in Pasadena. The exercise benefited everyone: the students studying portrait photography and lighting design, the Light-Bringer Project, a non-profit organization that runs after school arts and learning classes and the more than 400 participating families that will receive beautiful pictures.


TRANSPORTATION

Pasadena Star NewsThree Ferrarisa 1990 F40, a 250 Zagato and a 1973 Daytona Spiderwere just some of the rare, sexy and pricey cars displayed for Art Center students. Exotic cars from Lamgorghini, Lotus, Mitsubishi and Mercedes were among the more than 60 that received the close scrutiny and admiration of transportation design students and car enthusiasts alike. The event was organized by two former Art Center students, Toby Rohrbach and John Aldrich, who own a 348 TS Ferrari, and a 1991 Lamborghini Diablo, respectively. Rohrbach works for Oakley and teaches night classes at the College. Transportation Department Chair Ken Okuyama, designed Ferraris for Pininfarina before joining the college last January. Students in the transportation design program study subjects including automotive aerodynamics, history of automobile design and automotive engineering.

Post Tribune, (San Bernardino) Sun, Flint Journal, The Herald-Palladium, Portland Press Herald, Dayton Daily News, Lake Forester, The Cincinnati Enquirer, The Kentucky Enquirer, The Birmingham News, The Pantagraph, The Morning Call, St. Paul Pioneer Press, The Dothan Eagle, Tribune Chronicle, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, Lansing State Journal, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, News & Record, The Gazette, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Automotive NewsPT Cruiser designer Bryan Nesbitt left DaimlerChrysler to head up the Chevrolet Brand Character Studio for General Motors. Though he says he has no problems with Chrysler, Nesbitt left because "I'm a car guy. I mean this is a much bigger boat with a lot more opportunities." According to Wes Brown, Nextrend analyst, "It's going to take a radical philosophical change at GM to allow him to have the freedom he once had at Chrysler. Should that occur, it could only mean good things for General Motors.

Automotive NewsSouthern California is the birthplace for many trends that catch the eye of the rest of the nation. This includes the creative styling found in automotives. SoCal is home to a number of design studios that also house alum. These include Audi/Volkswagen's Design Center California in Simi Valley, BMW's Designworks/USA in Thousand Oaks, DaimlerChrysler Pacifica Advanced Product Design Center in Carlsbad and Honda Research and Development Americas in Torrance.

Los Angeles TimesMiss Information's Guide to Auto Activities included the Classic Car Weekend at Pasadena's Central Park. Displays from student car designers at Art Center were featured.


WILLIAMSON GALLERY

Williamson Gallery-Southwest Chamber Music concluded "The Universe" festival. Art Center was part of this citywide celebration of art and science. The Universe was a collaborative effort of eight organizations that presented music, visual art exhibits, symposia and a film series. The concert was noted as 'a fitting conclusion to this year-long festival exploring humankind's relationship to the heavens.