KQED Radio, “The California Report” • September 17, 2012 • by Rachael Myrow
Artists of Occupy Bay Area at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Chuck Sperry at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, July 7 – October 14
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Presents:
Occupy Bay Area
July 7-October 14, 2012
Gallery 3
$10 Regular/ $8 students, senior, discount
FREE for YBCA Members & YBCA:You
FREE first Tuesday of each month • noon – 8 pm
Since its inception in September 2011, the Occupy Movement has generated both praise and condemnation. A direct response to the financial instability, subprime mortgage crisis and the decline of trust in the government’s ability to effectively address the problems in the labor market, it continues to resonate in the American consciousness. In response to the significant output of art and documentation produced in support of the Occupy Movement in Oakland and San Francisco, YBCA has put together an exhibition of works that have proven to be particularly effective in supporting the goals and aspirations of the Movement. Impressively, various political poster artists devoted their talents to messaging the politics and culture of the movement by creating iconic images — designs that were a call to action, or posters announcing an upcoming event. In many ways these works, by twenty-five Bay Area artists, carry forward the region’s long tradition as a leader in political struggles, from the Free Speech Movement of the 1960s, to struggles by communities of color in the 1970s, to AIDS activism in the 1980s. The exhibition also includes a selection of photojournalistic and documentary photography and video that serve as a record of the events around the Occupy Movement.
Additionally, to connect to earlier movements and provide a historical context for the project, the exhibition includes posters and photographs from other political struggles, including the Black Panther Party, I-Hotel in Manilatown (1968–77); the ARC/AIDS Vigil at City Hall (1985–95); the Occupation of Alcatraz (1969–71); the Free Speech Movement at UC Berkeley (1964–65); and the San Francisco State University protests, to gain an Ethnic Studies program and Black Student Union demands (1968–69).While these earlier movements certainly differ in ways from Occupy, they all are the result of a deep desire for marginalized peoples to be represented and treated fairly.
This exhibition is not meant to represent a fully executed social history, but is a testament of the power of images to evoke the emotional expression of popular and wide-spread sentiments. By localizing our efforts, we also pay special tribute to the role that Bay Area artists have played in giving voice to the 99% and utilizing art as an effective vehicle for social change.
Poster artists:
Rich Black
Zerena Diaz
Cannon Dill
Dignidad Rebelde (Melanie Cervantes and Jesus Barraza)
Eric Drooker
Alexandra Fisher
Dave Garcia
Ronnie Goodman
Jason Justice
Gabby Miller and Miriam Klein Stahl
Nuclear Winter Art
Occupy Design
Political Gridlock (Jon-Paul Bail)
Cristy C. Road
Faviana Rodriguez
Chris Shaw
Colin Smith
Winston Smith
Chuck Sperry
Xavier Viramontes
Gregoirire Vion
Fred Zaw
Anonymous artists
Aligned artists:
Sergio de la Torre
Kota Ezawa
Eric Drooker
Megan Wilson
Suzanne Lacy
Sanaz Mazinani
Artists of historical posters & photographs:
Robert Bechtle
Emory Douglas
Rupert Garcia
Ilka Hartmann
Steven Marcus
“Indian Joe” Morris
Rachael Romero
Sheila Tully
Anonymous artists
Photojournalism and video artists:
Li Chen
Ewen Wright
Free University Art School “Occupy Art” with Jon-Paul Bail
The Free University of San Francisco aims to make the highest level of education available, completely free, to any individual who wants it, regardless of color, creed, age, gender, nationality, religion or immigration status—a university free of money, taught for free. The only requirement for membership is a desire to teach and/or a desire to learn.
Jon-Paul Bail & Chuck Sperry, “Occupy Art,” Free University Art School Event
Every Sunday, February 5, 2012 through March 4, 2012 – 2:30PM to 5PM
Viracocha
998 Valencia Street (at 21st Street)
San Francisco, CA
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Course Description:
The Free University Art School is very proud to present Jon-Paul Bail prolific Bay Area artist who uses the streets of the world as his canvas. Since last year’s brilliant presentation – street action / wheat paste demonstration – at the Free University, Jon-Paul Bail has been extremely active making a series of “Hella Occupy” posters for the Occupy movement across the length and breadth of California. Based in the East Bay, “JP” set up a print station on site at Oscar Grant Plaza and the heart of the Occupy Oakland movement in the first days people gathered there. He began producing thousands of posters which have become iconographic to this historical event. As the movement spread and touched similar gatherings and actions across California, “JP” travelled and set up his mobile propaganda studio, printing at Occupy Oakland, UC Berkeley, UC Davis, and Occupy San Francisco. Jon-Paul discusses his motivations, methods and will bring our art class to a live on-site, print-making session at the Occupy Education action scheduled for March 1st – location to be disclosed later. Chuck Sperry and Jon-Paul Bail are collaborating on a poster design which will be printed in quantity in the class, and later printed live at the Occupy Education demonstration scheduled for March 1, 2012.
Come early / limited room!
Jon-Paul Bail / Chuck Sperry Collaboration in process:
Here is a sampling of posters Jon-Paul is presenting to the class – which he designed, printed and collaborated on:
Bio:
Jon-Paul Bail (JP) founded Political Gridlock in 1991 and has been posting street art ever since. JP’s work is branded by strong cohesive messages and relevant imagery, putting a funny and sometimes shocking spin on popular culture. His work reference issues that are based in local, national and global communities. His first company was called Reagan Wear and was co-founded with Ron Donovan from The Firehouse Kustom Rockart Company. Having studied silk-screening with Malaquias Montoya at California College of the Arts from 1986 – 1989, JP graduated from the San Francisco Art Institute in 1991. His poster titled Inhail to the Chief , which depicts Barrack Obama smoking a blunt, was featured in rap artist E-40′s music video featuring Dem Boyz in 2010. He has done print work for Winston Smith and Emory Douglas and has shown work in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Rome, Italy. JP’s art is in the collections of the Legion of Honor, Oakland Museum, and Center for the Study of Political Graphics and has been published in four political art books (Yo! What Happened to Peace, Reproduce and Revolt and two editions of Paper Politics).
Make Tacos Not War
Friday, May 6th from 6:00pm — 9:00pm
This is a high-octane art exhibit intended to generate feelings of passion and love for all mankind thru the medium of the printers’ ink. Revolutionary, thought provoking, highly flammable and very spicy, we will feed your mind with images intended to change the world thru the magic created when art and taco’s collide.
North Bay Artist and Printmaker Lawrence ‘El’ Colacion in collaboration with friends:
Jon-Paul Bail,
Jesus Barraza,
Melanie Cervantes,
Ron Donovan,
Xico Gonzalez,
Don Rock,
Winston Smith,
Julio Soriano, &
Chuck Sperry have created images on paper in response to war on planet earth.
Local Tiki Tycoon Jose Mendez will have his hand crafted Jivaro style shrunken heads on dis play for some skin crawling excitement.
Napa Chef Frank Hernandez will be slappin’ together some of the best taco’s this side of Juarez you’ll ever eat.
Live Musica by Sean Allan & The Mean Time Playboys!
Exercise your freedom to invite all your friends!!
Location:
Wildcat Loft
1210 First Street, Napa, CA
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