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Embrace creativity at Palo Alto Festival of the Arts
 PALO ALTO - From the sinuous lines of modern sculpture to the subtle beauty of traditional watercolors and oils, the Palo Alto Festival of the Arts showcases the highest quality work by the 300 fine artists participating. The Festival of the Arts celebrates its 30th anniversary August 27 and 28 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. in downtown Palo Alto on University Avenue between High and Webster streets.
Sponsored by the Palo Alto Chamber of Commerce, the Festival of the Arts embraces a variety of art experiences, including the new Kinetic Sculpture Garden and the annual Italian Street Painting section.
Artists travel from the Bay Area and throughout the U.S. to exhibit one-of-a-kind pieces for sale with each booth labeled “Made in America.” Look for sculptures in metal or recycled material; paintings in acrylic and oil; watercolors; wall hangings; ceramics; fine jewelry; photography; fiber; and glass in all manner of styles from abstract to Impressionistic, functional and decorative.
“The Palo Alto Festival of the Arts is the premier fine arts festival in the Bay Area. The art is juried for quality and originality,” says Paula Sandas, president and CEO of the Palo Alto Chamber of Commerce. “This festival is unique in that it caters to those who appreciate and collect finer pieces.”
New this year is the Sculpture Garden, displayed in free form fashion on the plaza at Cowper and University, with the theme of kinetic art. Returning is the crowd-pleasing Italian Street Painting Expo, where more than 60 artists will turn asphalt into art in just two days. KBAY and KEZR broadcast the action live.
To accompany all this art, two stages of entertainment plus street corner musicians -- Bob Culbertson, Dreamroad and Aryeh Frankfurter -- will perform throughout the festival. The Main Stage at Waverley will host Sage, the Groove Kings, and other lively bands while the Webster Stage, sponsored by the California Coast Music Camp, features acoustic musicians playing folk, country and Americana.
To keep the kids entertained, visit the Kids’ Art Studio or the Kid’s-Chalk-a-lot area within the Italian Street Painting Expo.
As always gourmet food, fine wines and microbrews are available and two local food trucks -- Oaxacan Kitchen and Kara’s Cupcakes – can be found on Emerson by University in the new Gourmet Alley.
Also, on hand, will be a Ford display at the corner of Ramona whereby festival attendees can take a test drive.
Admission is free, with free parking outside the event area. Call (650) 324-3121 or visit www.mlaproductions.com for more information.
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Kinetic sculpture moves Andrew Carson
PALO ALTO - Sculptor Andrew Carson blends functionality with form to create interactive sculptures that blend mechanics and aesthetics. His kinetic pieces are the perfect introduction to a new part of the Palo Alto Festival of the Arts – the Sculpture Garden with a theme. Each year at Cowper and University, the theme will change, and Carson has the honor of representing kinetic, or moving, sculpture.
“The Palo Alto Festival of Arts is a unique place to meet people and share my work. I am very excited about the new sculpture garden,” he says.
The Seattle, Washington, artist creates wind sculptures from cast glass, hammered copper and wielded steel. These large pieces are meant to “interact with people and solve riddles of landscape both interior and exterior,” he says on his Web site www.windsculpture.com.
Carson uses a variety of materials including electronics, illustration, camera and mechanical systems to create his wind-driven works of art. Fascinated with the wind’s energy since his boyhood in Boulder, Colorado, he built whirligigs as a teen, messed around in a machine shop and “learned everything about rotation and engineering” working in a bicycle shop. He returned to his young fascinations to create elegant weathervanes after receiving his bachelors in fine arts in photography from the University of Washington.
To create these feats of balance and motion, Carson first sketches on paper, then sizes parts, figures mechanics and rotation and develops prototypes. Once the design is done, parts are created through a combination of handwork and industrial processes.
Admission is free, with free parking outside the event area. Call (650) 324-3121 or visit www.mlaproductions.com for more information.
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Whimsical shapes color Stacy Dynan’s world
PALO ALTO – Whether its free-spirited women riding bicycles, soaring in balloons and flying airplanes or spare fields in large block colors, Stacy Dynan’s acrylic and mixed media paintings depict themes both whimsical and bold.
“My use of acrylic paint and mix media investigate how texture, color and shape relate to each other on canvas, applied in dozens of layers,” says the Redwood City artist, who enjoys participating in a festival so close to home.
Fields, roads, structures and people in her work are rendered with a deceptive simplicity allowing color and shape to speak. In addition to the paintings at the show, you can see more of her work at www.stacydynan.com.
“The shapes and style of my paintings provide me with the much-needed symmetry and balance that I think we all desire and need in our lives. Viewing it through art provides it in a very subtle and non-intrusive way,” she says.
The former telecommunications consultant found her calling in London after viewing an abstract landscape by Scots artist John Brown. On impulse she bought her first art supplies and within an hour, had a painting of her own.
She’s refined that talent with art degrees and private instruction to hone a style uniquely her own.
Admission is free, with free parking outside the event area. Call (650) 324-3121 or visit www.mlaproductions.com for more information.
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Jerry Caruso’s glass art reflects new traditions
PALO ALTO – Sometimes old techniques can be infused with new energy and style. Such is the case with the wall sculptures of Jerry Caruso, who uses reverse painted glass and metal to create contemporary designs.
Caruso works with partner Nick Foschi in Caruso and Foschi Designs in Desert Hot Springs. Both Nick and Jerry cut and paint the large-scale architectural glass that is cut in various shapes and designs. The creative duo also created set designs for the movie “Sordid Lives” and Showtime’s “Weeds.”
After working for 30 years in stained glass and in cutting architectural glass, Caruso decided to infuse his art with new direction, using a reverse painting technique.
Reverse painted glass is where the glass is painted on the rear of the piece. Texture is added to the back, allowed to dry then painted with metals and blends of color. Metallics and natural tones, primary colors and blues and purples decorate the unique wall pieces that are abstract in design.
“You can see color and texture and also a sheen from the glass; it creates a nice glossy finish,” says Caruso. The reverse painting technique, “takes my art to a different level. It’s a whole new direction for me.”
To make the glass and metal creations, Caruso uses the Tiffany method of joining with copper foil. Each piece is then assembled using copper over the edges. Stained glass, blown glass, nuggets, jewels, stones and metal are incorporated. Visit www.carusofoschidesigns.com to see more.
Admission is free, with free parking outside the event area. Call (650) 324-3121 or visit www.mlaproductions.com for more information.
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Life experiences etched into Lynn Guenther’s jewelry
PALO ALTO - The jewelry made by Santa Cruz artist Lynn Guenther is inspired by her travels around the world. She works to express ancient meanings with contemporary designs that transcend time.
“I enjoy creating jewelry that adorns the body and expresses the spirit,” she says, adding that travel feeds her creativity.
Guenther works in silver, copper and gold to add depth, contrast and richness to her jewelry. Using a saw and other silversmith techniques to create the design, she then overlays with different metals to make the image stand out. The earrings, necklaces, bracelets, pins and rings are embellished with colorful gemstones, glass and occasionally found object. All her work is hand-fabricated and unique, and many examples of her metalwork can be
viewed at www.lynnguenther.com.
Guenther, who often travels in the summer, enjoys participating in the Palo Alto show because “of the high quality of the fine art and craftsmanship presented at the show,” she says, and that festival goers, “take the time to really look at the work and appreciate it.”
When viewing Guenther’s jewelry, you can see symbols, such as the universal spiral, and aesthetics from many different cultures. Her recent fascination with Mayan and Maori art shows up in her new work, and nature imagery is also prevalent and bridges many cultures. All her pieces “are infused with my life experiences,” she says.
Admission is free, with free parking outside the event area. Call (650) 324-3121 or visit www.mlaproductions.com for more information.
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Turning asphalt into art
PALO ALTO - A 14x10-foot rendition of Octavio Ocampo’s “Visions of Quixote,” created from chalk on pavement by Chris Brake, greets visitors to the Italian Street Painting Expo, one of the most fascinating parts of the Palo Alto Festival of the Arts.
Tasso Street is closed between University and Lytton streets to provide an asphalt canvas for more than 60 artists from around California. In two days, they create eye-popping images in styles from the Renaissance to Modern art.
Festival-goers gather to watch the artists create, and KBAY and KEZR will broadcast the action live. Artists begin early Saturday morning, work all weekend on temporary masterpieces, but come Sunday evening, the art is washed away.
The complex painting of Don Quixote was chosen by Brake for its surreal images drawn from legend. “These illusionary works are my favorite to re-create for the public. I look at street chalk art as more of a performance art, rather than a lasting piece of work,” says the Santa Clarita artist.
“The Palo Alto Festival of the Arts is a wonderful event,” he continues. “Everyone is friendly and appreciative of all the artists. It is a great mix of not only chalk artists, but other visual artists and their beautiful work.”
You can see more of Brake’s street art at www.streetchalkartist.com, and you can visit Brake’s 10-year-old daughter, Kimberly, will also participate with the rest of the artists in creating squares that vary in size from 4x6 feet to 12x12 feet.
There’s room for budding artists under 12 to try their hands at drawing at the Kids’ Chalk-a-lot area. For a small fee, chalk is provided and kids can decorate 2x2 feet squares. All of the proceeds go to Youth Community Service, which use the proceeds to raise awareness of their leadership and service-learning programs.
Admission is free, with free parking outside the event area. Call (650) 324-3121 or visit www.mlaproductions.com for more information.
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Chamber’s support essential to Palo Alto Festival of the Arts
PALO ALTO - The Palo Alto Chamber of Commerce, with its many volunteers and participants, is pleased to sponsor the 30th annual Palo Alto Festival of the Arts. On Aug. 27 and 28, University Avenue will be transformed by more than 300 artists from around the U.S., who display only the finest in art.
Local merchants and restaurants throw open their doors to welcome the thousands of art lovers who attend the festival each year. As visitors stroll downtown viewing the artwork and enjoying the sculpture garden, they also discover the numerous attractions Palo Alto has to offer. This makes the Festival of the Arts one of the most important events for the Palo Alto Chamber of Commerce each year.
Founded in 1910, the Chamber provides solid support and education to local businesses. The Chamber is busy promoting and investing in the community’s economic vitality and quality of life. Its members create an environment where business, government and community residents work together to improve the city’s business and civic health.
As an independent and voluntary nonprofit organization, all activities to support members are funded through dues and event income.
The Chamber of Commerce’s 550 members include small businesses, retailers, hotels, restaurants, nonprofits, educational and health institutions as well as major corporations and professionals.
The Palo Alto Festival of the Arts is presented with the help of hundreds of volunteers and organizations. Though it’s impossible to thank everyone by name, here are a few of the outstanding efforts by local organizations that help to make the festival a success.
Lucile Packard’s Children’s Hospital, presenting sponsor of the Kids’ Art Studio.
Palo Alto Parents and Professionals for Art, beneficiary and management of Kids’ Art Studio.
Youth Community Service, beneficiary of the Italian Street Painting Expo.
University Art, for donations to Italian Street Painting Expo and Kids’ Art Studio.
Kiwanis of Palo Alto, management and support of fine wine and microbrew booths.
Palo Alto Weekly, ongoing media support.
Garden Court Hotel, host of Invited Artists Reception.
The talented artists and musicians who make the festival possible.
And the members of the Palo Alto Chamber of Commerce, whose support and tireless efforts make the Festival of Arts the successful event it is today.
Once you’ve enjoyed all the Palo Alto Festival of the Arts has to offer, sample the restaurants, patronize the merchants and come back for another visit.
Admission is free, with free parking outside the event area. Call (650) 324-3121 or visit www.mlaproductions.com for more information.
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Art you can dance to
PALO ALTO - The Palo Alto Festival of the Arts is filled with all kinds of artists, including the musical kind. In addition to street corner musicians, two stages will host dance bands as well as acoustic performers.
On the Main Stage at Waverley, all-woman rock band Cover Grrls, the R&B sounds of Love Stoned and hits by Groove Kings play Saturday, while the smooth sounds of I Know a Band, tribute paid by Divas of the Decades and the funky Sage get a groove going Sunday.
The Webster Stage, presented by the California Coast Music Camp, hosts folk singer and banjo player Coty Hogue; and Steve Meckfessel, who sings original music.
As you stroll among the artists, be sure to give a listen to Bob Culbertson on Chapman Stick, the flute and keyboard sounds of Dreamroad and Aryeh Frankfurter, a Celtic harpist.
Admission is free, with free parking outside the event area. Call (650) 324-3121 or visit www.mlaproductions.com for more information.
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