Corona del Mar Today: Artist pulls ‘Mama Crusty’ from Civic Center sculpture display
“Mama Crusty,” a spider-like, 650-pound artwork created from recycled metal, is the third selection for the second phase of Newport Beach’s Civic Center sculpture exhibit to be replaced after one selection was deemed too erotic and another too dangerous.
The Newport Beach Arts Commission voted Thursday to replace “Mama Crusty” with “Pebble Series” by Edwin Hamilton.
Artist Tim Little withdrew “Mama Crusty” from the exhibit, according to a city staff report.
“The artist objected to the terms of the contract, specifically that half of the honorarium is paid upon installation and the second half is paid upon deinstallation,” said Tim Hetherton, library services director. “The artist preferred that the honorarium be paid in total upon installation.”
The piece had drawn criticism from members of the public who spoke at a City Council meeting in June. Corona del Mar resident Barry Allen described it as “the worst so far in the entire group” of 10 pieces approved by the council for installation this summer.
“It is hideous, it is beastly, it is scary-looking,” he said. “Small children and even sensitive adults are going to have nightmares.”
In July, arts commissioners agreed to replace one of the original choices, “Loomings,” with a piece by Kenneth Capps called “Act/Equator z360” because of safety concerns related to “Loomings’” sharp edges and points and proposed location near a steep slope.
Another original choice, “Venus,” was replaced by a piece called “Demoiselle” after commissioners decided that “Venus’” “stylized representation of the female anatomy” wasn’t family-friendly.
The sculptures will be installed this month, and a formal opening ceremony is scheduled for Sept. 12.
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Avocado Avenue median gets drought makeover
Crews have begun work on medians along Avocado Avenue south of East Coast Highway as part of the city’s ongoing water conservation efforts.
The first part of the project was to shut down irrigation and spray the turf with an herbicide, said Kevin Pekar, a Newport Beach park maintenance supervisor.
“Currently we are removing the dead sod while protecting the tree roots,” he said. “In the upcoming weeks, we will be installing a mix of drought-tolerant, California-friendly shrubs and succulents, similar to the plant palette selected for the medians further south on Avocado.”
The project also includes retrofitting the irrigation system with low-precipitation rotating nozzles and installing an edging of decomposed granite for areas where there is street parking, he said. The edging helps reduce irrigation runoff.
As part of efforts to comply with an April 1 order by Gov. Jerry Brown that urban water use statewide be reduced by 25%, Newport Beach has been letting some medians turn brown, and crews used green dye on a median along San Joaquin Hills Road earlier this summer.
Newport Beach failed to meet state water-reduction mandates in June and must detail for state water officials the steps it is taking to decrease water use, according the State Water Resources Control Board.
Meanwhile, city staff has been placing signs in residential neighborhoods reminding residents which days they are permitted to use outdoor irrigation. In much of Corona del Mar, residents may water on Tuesdays and Saturdays, except from November through March, when watering is allowed only on Tuesdays.
“The watering-days signs are part of our conservation outreach efforts,” said Tara Finnigan, a city spokeswoman. “Huntington Beach put out similar signs and our employees that live over there noticed them (and) thought they were helpful.”
Mary Locey, another city spokeswoman, said the signs would be placed throughout Newport Beach.
“We are targeting residential and/or HOA landscape areas to remind folks of the required watering days, because outdoor irrigation accounts for the largest water usage,” she said in an email.
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CdM plans on agenda for library board meeting
An update on the Corona del Mar branch project will again be on the agenda when the Newport Beach Board of Library Trustees meets at 5 p.m. Monday.
“City staff is coordinating a community meeting with the Corona del Mar Residents Association for early September (date to be determined),” a staff report states.
The board will consider revised layout options and exterior renderings at a Sept. 21 meeting, the report says, and a final plan will be presented to the board at its Oct. 19 meeting. The preliminary layout and renderings will go to the City Council for approval this fall.
In May, the council approved $6 million for the project, which will demolish and combine the Corona del Mar library and fire station on Marigold Avenue. Construction is scheduled to begin next spring.
Some residents criticized early iterations of the plans, which would shrink the library. The project’s architect presented new versions, including one that could add up to $1 million to the project’s budget but would create a bigger library space.
The board meeting will be held in the Friends Room of the Central Library, 1000 Avocado Ave. The public may attend and make comments.
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New art exhibit installed at Central Library
A new art exhibit called “Eccentric Concentric,” featuring works by Richard Bohn, has been installed in the lobby of the Central Library at 1000 Avocado Ave., according to the city.
“Bohn’s work, which includes digital prints and three-dimensional mixed media, is based on a process he calls ‘intuitive collecting,’” a city memo states. “His work combines collections of textural patterns, photographic images, colors and shapes, special effects, scraps and a variety of mundane objects elevated to an art form inspired by the fun and aesthetic integration with one’s everyday life.”
The exhibit, which features 15 pieces, will run through Aug. 29.
Bohn is scheduled to deliver a presentation and answer questions about the artwork during a reception at 7 p.m. Thursday in the Central Library’s Friends Room.