It's on

Hey muralists! So we are on for today. See you at the cornfield at 10:30 am.

-Mr. Flores

Meeting Tomorrow

OK. So its Saturday night at 6:45 pm and its raining and cold outside. The forcast tomorrow has a chance of rain in it.

Two things could happen tomorrow:

scenario a): it is a spectacular day in LA with views from the mountains to the ocean and beautiful billowy white clouds.

scenario b): its raining or gray and gloomy with no views to speak of.

If scenario a) happens then here's what's up. Meet at the Cornfield at Franklin at 10:30 am. Be prepared for a 3-4 hour day and bring your sketch pads.

If scenario b) happens then the day is yours for whatever you would like to use it for... no meeting and we would just have to reschedule.

I'm hoping for a spectacular day as often times happens after the rain in LA. Hope to see you all there tomorrow.

-Mr. Flores

6 AM and Rain?

I was actually just kidding about the 6AM thing but if everyone is down it would give us a cool perspective on the lighting at dawn. I'm sure that the views and lighting that we would absorb would make it into the mural somehow.

As far as the rain, the forcasts all say different things. We probably just have to play it by ear. I'm sure that we would have to reschedule if it was really raining, maybe for the following weekend.

We do need to work out rides. Can you drive and take people: Steven? Luis? Anyone else? I guess the best thing to do is meet at the Cornfield as usual and then caravan to the spots. We will probably visit three or four vantage points in about three or four hours.

Let me know,

Flores

I'm finally on here. Now that the lowest-tech member of the project is on, no one else has an excuse. So Sunday looks like a good day for a hike. I say that we do it early, like 6 AM. Anyone into that?

-Mr. Flores

Sunday Hike

Me and Mr. Flores are thinking of scheduling a morning hike for this Sunday. How does everyone feel about that? Can everybody make it?

Change for next Thursday

A change in the schedule for next Thursday- we'll be in the field, not in the classroom. Also, some good news: the project has recieved a grant from the Arroyo Arts Collective! I will put up a link on the website to keep track of the awards, grants and press we've received.
One more thing... can those who took photos in Elyria Canyon make a CD and bring it next week for the file?
-Romo

Next Meeting/Elyria Canyon Review

We'll be meeting next on the 30th of November- that's a Thursday. On the agenda: review sketches done at Elyria Canyon; make printouts or copies of photos taken at the canyon and file them into the white notebook.
Can anybody who can find a 3-hole-punch for the 30th?

The canyon was beautiful and I think the hike reinforces the idea that the process of drawing and painting is experience and consciousness--both a kind of meditation on our surroundings and our place as part of the landscape and also a way to be more fully a part of the land.
Some things I became aware of:
1. the soft borders between pathways and more plant covered areas
2. the ground being covered with mashed and minced dead grasses
3. the different colors of the grasses, from green to straw to gray and moldy
4. the space between the trees and bushes: the way the larger ecosystem spaced and arranged itself
5. the amazing diversity in points of view from the hill: from vistas of 20 miles on the right to walls of foliage two feet away on the left. This is something that we can really push in the mural. One of the most stubborn preconceptions of western art is the idea of illusionistic space--that things recede into an illusionary space on the wall or canvas. After being up in the hills, it came to me that the hills don't lend themselves to that type of illusion and that the mural should reflect the more organic notions of space that the hills suggest.

This thursday

Our apologies for the delay in meetings... we'll be convening this thursday to continue the research on the mural- this week will probably be partially dedicated to organizing reference material. Ideally we can use a photocopy machine to make copies of drawings, photos and other source material to file in the white binder.
Also, check out this http://busybeaver.net/index.html... for promotion?

the grant is IN

After much late-night work, writing and number crunching, the application for the $10,000 Community Beautification Grant is in!
If fortune shines on us and we get this grant- it will be enough to paint the first floor breezeway. Many, many thanks to all of you for your volunteer hours and all the work you put into this project- if we get this grant you all are the reason!

-Romo

links...

These, along with other good images should be printed and filed, I found these by looking up the word Tongva on flickr.com
http://flickr.com/photos/whalt/sets/72057594119141614/

The official tongva website
http://www.tongva.com/

Interesting info here + an overview of Tongva culture/history

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tongva
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puvungna

Excellent info on medicinal plants used by the tongva
http://www.runajambi.net/tongva/

More photos
http://www.kaytedeioma.com/Traditions/Gabrielino-Tongva-Photos.htm

Info on cartoon (traditional mural technique)
http://www.truefresco.com/frescoshop/article_info.php?articles_id=1
http://www.truefresco.com/frescoshop/article_info.php?articles_id=3

Working on the grant up in the hills

Yesterday, me and Mr. Flores met to work on this grant that's due soon. To get a better perspective of the hills, I followed my own advice and checked out the hills of Glassel park. Amazing stuff, all the points of view and angles one can see from a high hill. I hope that we can all make it out to Elyria Canyon once more to sketch and talk about the landscape.
Oh yeah, and one more thing- does anybody know if the Tongva had pets or semi-domesticated animals that would be around them during festivals etc?

-Romo

CAC grant due November 17

Click here to see the "Artists in Schools" grant- looks like a good fit for us.

-Arturo

First Post

This blog has been set up for us to communicate with each other easily. Our main website is linked on the side-bar...
I'll be getting everybody accounts so that we can all post to this site to share our info/ideas/schedules/etc.

-Arturo