Graffiti Expo: Street Art in a Legit Setting

THE SCENE

“L.A. Graffiti Art Expo ‘90,” the Cultural Affairs Department’s third annual graffiti art exhibit and demonstration, will be held Saturday and next Sunday at the L.A. Photography Center (412 S. Park View St.).

The goal of the event is to promote a positive aspect to street art. Involved artists will try to encourage kids to stop tagging and vandalizing property and to direct their talents onto murals.

On view at the free event, which runs from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. both days, will be an exhibition of graffiti art by the major artists in the field, as well as video documentaries of past and recent works by various artists. Information: (213) 383-7342.

Noted artist Peter Shelton’s new show at Venice’s L.A. Louver gallery marks the first time the artist has exhibited his drawings--which deal with the removal and editing process inherent in the making of art--without a sculptural accompaniment. The show, which runs through Sept. 8, features drawings for an upcoming installation at the L.A. County Museum of Art, as well as drawings for both realized and unrealized new works.

CURRENTS

Pacific Asia Museum has received a $500,000 grant from the W. M. Keck Foundation, which it will use to purchase adjacent property directly north of the museum for future expansion, including a new museum wing on the site that now houses the museum’s parking lot. Groundbreaking for the project--which will also include renovation of much of the existing museum space--is set for 1992.

OVERHEARD

“It’s so wonderful to be talking to someone about your work on a professional basis, because for once, you really are the expert. You have all the answers, because you did it. It’s just a wonderful feeling.”-- a casually dressed female artist, talking to female friend about her recent gallery exhibition.

DEBUTS

Steven Dobbin, a recent graduate of USC’s master program, has his first solo exhibition at Meyers/Bloom gallery in Santa Monica through Sept. 8. Dobbin creates free-standing mixed-media sculpture dealing with his concerns about family and domestic issues.

Artist Craig South, who works under the name “Nervous Systems,” has his first one-person show at the downtown American Gallery through Sept. 2. South combines appropriated images, multiples and installations.

Artist Corey Stein has her first solo exhibition in Los Angeles at Dennis Anderson Gallery through Sept. 8. Called “Pinched Lilies,” the show features Stein’s three-dimensional replicas of condors and vultures which explore the lay-in-wait attitude.

HAPPENING

“How Can the Arts Community Better Represent Itself?” a free advocacy workshop addressing topics including California’s arts budget, the L.A. Endowment for the Arts and National Endowment for the Arts reauthorization, will be held Saturday from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. at Barnsdall Park’s Gallery Theater (4800 Hollywood Blvd.). Scheduled speakers include Assemblyman Mike Roos, City Councilman Robert Farrell, Barbara Goldstein of the L.A. Cultural Affairs Department, political consultant Jeff Chester, and California Confederation of the Arts executive director Susan Hoffman. Information: (213) 936-4014.

Three workshops to assist applicants for Fall 1990 National/State/County Partnership arts grants will be held this week. The first will be held Monday at 1 p.m. at EZTV, 8547 Santa Monica Blvd., West Hollywood; the second on Tuesday at 10 a.m. at Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions, 1804 Industrial St.; and the third on Tuesday at 1 p.m. at Beyond Baroque arts center, 681 Venice Blvd., Venice. The application deadline for the county-administered grants is Sept. 4. Information: (213) 974-1343.

ETC.

Diane Upright, former director of New York’s Jan Krugier Gallery and former senior curator of the Fort Worth Art Museum, has taken over the post of senior vice president and head of the Contemporary Art Department for Christie’s, New York. She will work closely with Contemporary Art Department founder Martha Baer, who is now senior vice president and director of 20th-Century Art. . . . James D. Williams Jr., the executive director of Boston’s Human Rights Commission, has been appointed as associate dean of Otis/Parsons Art Institute, effective Sept. 1. The appointment ends a four-month national search to fill the position.