It’s Now or Never for Gallery Heist
Recently Culturcosm had a chance to chat with Julianne Yates, proprietor and curator of Gallery Heist, which just opened it’s first show “Now or Never” on November 14th. In an exclusive interview, she tells us what it’s like to be a 23-year-old from Los Angeles curating art in San Francisco and opening her first gallery amidst the art explosion in the Tenderloin.
What brought you from L.A. to San Francisco and what has kept you here?
At the time I was in a musical—my background down there was acting—and I was doing PR for a tri-annual fashion, music, and art event called Project Ethos, which is a really good vehicle and advocate for youth and the arts. Then all the projects I was working on in Orange County came to a natural end and I had an opportunity to move up here, just for the summer, and I took it. I ended up meeting an art consultant named Debbie Green who was working with Hyde Street Gallery. When I was about to move back to L.A. because I couldn’t find any work at all, I got a call from her asking if I would like to come work at the gallery.
How did Gallery Heist and your first show here become a reality?
I had this list of artists who I’d been watching for two years while I worked at Hyde Street, and was totally inspired by their work. One of the artists, Brett Amory, who I showed with at Hyde Street has been a huge inspiration to open the gallery and stay in San Francisco. He introduced me to pretty much everybody that I know in this art scene.
I was invited to sit and draw at a Sketch Tuesdays [at 111 Minna], one of the events that I’d watched for about a year and a half. When I finally went, I thought ‘this is amazing, why didn’t I come sooner?’ I met the curator, Brad [Alder], who knew that I was curating at Hyde Street and that I’d worked with Brett, so he invited me to co-curate Sketch Tuesdays. So I started rounding up artists, and then I met Gabe [Scott], who was the main curator for the Minna gallery. I told him I was opening a new gallery and asked him if he wanted to co-curate the first show with me.
I went to high school with [photographer Zach Lewis] and then caught up with him up here and he turned me on to Mike Giant. I was doing a fundraiser for Heist Gallery called Artcycle SF, and I contacted Mike to see if Rebel8 and The Skullz Press would be interested in sponsoring the alleycat [bike race] around the city.
What has been the most challenging or exciting thing about curating?
I don’t hang until I get all the artwork in here and then I lay it all out and then sit with it. My favorite part is hanging the shows. It’s almost like painting, you have this canvas and that’s the blank wall, and then all of your colors are all the different pieces. It’s just like how artists sometimes explain painting as building up and taking down. It’s like communicating with a piece—it will tell you when it’s done. [Hanging a show] is the same thing, in my eyes, it’s an art form that I enjoy.
How do you choose the artwork you want to show?
To me, art is language in common. You don’t have to speak the same language to understand what’s happening in a painting. I like it when the pieces are saying something, when they’re thought provoking and make you think something deeper. I love artwork that challenges whatever’s happening in the world or society. Like with Adam Caldwell’s pieces—he has the technical training and ability, but then he has these ideas that he’s able to execute, these socially challenging conceptual pieces that are backed with mad skill.
You had a great turnout for your first opening, how did it compare to your expectations?
I didn’t really have any expectations. Obviously you hope for the best, but I think I was so focused on making sure everything was hung and ready to go that I didn’t really think about the turnout. I had promoted as much as I could and there were people helping me out promoting, and I’m thankful to all those people. I guess I couldn’t have asked for a better turnout and I sold some work and so that’s awesome on top of everything.
How can a small gallery hope to be successful in this economy?
I think the key is lower price points, smaller works, more volume, less margin. In this show there were 51 pieces from 21 different artists, all the prices range from $50 prints from Mike Giant, to Kevin Taylor’s piece, which is $4,900. I want to be able to have that range, so if someone can’t afford the art, they can buy it on a T-shirt, and experience the art, support and promote it, and be a part of it. I’m not going to only cater to people who can afford $3,000 paintings.
How does your own work fit into your plans for Heist?
I’ve always considered myself a writer. I don’t have anything published yet, but I plan to. I definitely want to tie that aspect into the gallery, with open mic events and publishing books, eventually getting my own publishing company, publishing my work and the work of others. I’m talking to The Beat Museum about starting that sort of endeavor. Acting will always be a part of my life and hopefully, I believe this will lead me back into that. And photography—I’m always continuing to build on that.
What about the long-term plans for the gallery?
Ideally, the long-term goal for Gallery Heist would be to open up a location in Los Angeles so I could get back there, and definitely in New York. I’m really hopeful. I believe in the art here and the artists, and I see it taking off. Just look what’s happening on Geary Street with me and Kokoro [Studio], and Ever Gold, and Public. White Walls definitely paved the road for conscious art and provided the groundwork for us to be here, along with Fecal Face and Ratio 3.
What makes the art you’re showing and the galleries in the Tenderloin important?
Our history is being documented by with these artists. These are the people who are saying something about our society, and taking the risk to be protestors and advocates of conscious art. I think the future is beginning. It’s DIY and it’s just cool. It’s so fun to see these young people saying ‘this is the art that we want to see’ and being able to have the courage and passion to open up a spot and rough it out, and really do it. It’s places like this that are making the movement. It’s finding more alternative spaces like this that are going to put San Francisco on the map, I think, as an International scene. People want it. There are so many young people here in San Francisco, and here is art by young people for young people, and for everybody. There’s a sense of belonging and community here, which I think is important.
You’re 23—some people might be surprised at someone taking on such an ambitious endeavor at your age. What would you say to them?
When am I ever going to do this in my life again? It still hasn’t really set in—what I’m doing, I just know that it feels right. This is happening, this is life, this is what it’s all about. I’ll write about this in twenty years and it’ll be a cool story, once it takes off.
Gallery Heist is located at 679 Geary St. at Leavenworth in San Francisco.
Stop in to say hello and check out “Now or Never,” Tuesdays-Saturdays, noon-midnight, Sundays, noon-6pm.
—Sara
Photos courtesy of Greg Jacobs.
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Fancy That: Ateliers Ruby Helmets
There’s nothing like your first crush. And if you’re anything like us, you crush hard and often. This is where we pay homage to all things worthy of lusting after.
Michael fancies the lux line of jet helmets from Les Ateliers Ruby. Their sleek carbon fiber shell and crimson nappa lambskin lining bring together the best in material science and retro styling. The result— the ultimate status symbol for, as Ruby puts it, “everyday heroes and heroines.”
The Pavillon is Ruby’s flagship, open-faced model and is currently offered in three distinct colorways— Shibuya (peppermint), Concorde (black) and St. Honore (white). The Belvedere model builds on the classic form with the added feature benefit of a full-face visor, showing a clear homage to American and Japanese science fiction.
It’s no surprise that founder Jerome Coste drew his inspiration from the legendary speed racer himself Steve McQueen. It doesn’t get much cooler than that.
Ateliers Ruby helmets are available in the Bay Area at either Vespa of Walnut Creek (2780 Camino Diablo) or Rockridge Two Wheels in Oakland (5291 College Avenue).
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Wonders Never Cease
I haven’t come across any more witty nicknames yet, but I do have more to say about the Tenderloin and the wave of artistic energy that is gaining momentum here.
According the National Endowment for the Arts Artists in the Workforce study for 1995-2005, San Francisco has the highest percentage of artists in the labor force of any American city (3.71%). It makes sense that many artists would make their homes in the TL—it’s always been a haven for working class creative types because it’s one of the last truly affordable neighborhoods in San Francisco.
Soon after he opened his barber salon/art gallery about two years ago, Public owner Steve Jester told me “The Tenderloin is the new Lower East Side.” That rang true to me, and I doubt I’d be the first to suggest that it’s also the new Mission. When I moved to the Bay Area eight years ago, the Mission was in the early stages of its arts and culture explosion. I’ve now lived in the ‘Loin for over three years, and perhaps it’s my heightened awareness of the haps in the ‘hood, but art seems to be pushing up like dandelions through cracks in the pavement around here lately.
Shall we count the ways? Public joined established veterans White Walls and Shooting Gallery on Larkin and well-known Space Gallery*** on Polk. Now we have Ever Gold on O’Farrell, host to one of the site-specific exhibits included in the limited-time Wonderland Project. Socially conscious Gallery Heist is joining the fold on November 14th, taking over the tiny space on Geary that used to house 20 GOTO 10 gallery. And those are just the places I know about, not including the many arts-supporting cafes and bars in the Thirstyloin.
But wait, there’s more! Something big has been taking shape in there heart of the ‘Loin over the past few years, and on October 1st, Gray Area Foundation for the Arts (GAFFTA) officially opened its doors on 55 Taylor street, transforming a space that was once a porn theater into a new bastion of optimism and creativity. A nonprofit digital arts and technology center “dedicated to building social consciousness through digital culture,” Gray Area serves a new generation of artists by providing a working studio space that encourages collaboration. At the same time they serve their community “by making digital culture accessible, substantive and inspiring.”
Featuring new works from three pioneers in the field of digital art—C.E.B. Reas, Camille Utterback and Stamen Design, Gray Area’s critically acclaimed inaugural exhibition “Open” encapsulates the foundation’s philosophy and intention to use innovative technology to encourage collaboration, sharing of resources, and openness, in both the creative process and the community. Meet the people that made GAFFTA happen.
In summary, there’s evidence of a new generation of socially conscious artists living in the Tenderloin who are reaching into an ever-expanding digital universe while at the same time planting their roots into the immediate community. They’re doing it themselves, all together. If this is an example of a macro-trend manifesting on the micro-level, then there might be hope for us yet. At the very least it’s inspiring, and that’s no small thing in this day and age, especially in this neighborhood. Call it what you will (except for North of Market, ‘cause lord knows we don’t need a NOMA), it’s prime time to start paying attention to The Artsyloin.
The Gray Area Foundation for the Arts Gallery is free and open to the public Tuesday-Friday, 1pm–6pm. “Open” runs until Nov. 18th. Don’t miss a special free symposium with all three of the exhibition’s artists next Wednesday, Nov. 11 at 6pm.
–Sara
*** This Thursday Space Gallery will be hosting CULTURSHOCK!
Please join the editors and writers of Culturcosm on Nov. 5 at 6pm for a seismic event showcasing an impressive roster of Bay Area artists and designers, many of whom you’ve read about right here. Learn more.
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Mamet’s Land of Equal Criminality
“There are no solutions, only the rearrangement of problems.” So exclaims President Charles H.P. Smith [Andrew Polk], the apparent Commander-In-Thief in David Mamet’s latest play, November, which follows the president and all his man, aide Archer Brown [Anthony Fusco], as he nears the end of his first and (likely) only term.
Yes, that’s just one man. Soon after the curtain rises it becomes clear that Smith has lost his way and his base; even his Secret Service detail has defected for coffee without so much as offering to bring back a cup for their boss. With no money for TV ads, “numbers lower than Gandhi’s cholesterol,” no legacy, and — horror beyond horrors, no commemorative library! – Mamet’s president manifests a moral bankruptcy that alludes not to any one president in history but rather to the nation’s empty, lint-lined consciousness right now.
While November surely enjoyed maximum traction when it debuted on Broadway in January 2008, amidst election frenzy and Bush fatigue, it is no less timely or fun in its current run at San Francisco’s American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.).
In fact, Mamet’s greatest strength in crafting November is his care not to reveal a set point in time, let alone clear sides. Indeed, several times the script refers to our nation’s best asset being the existence of more than one side to take, that the very meaning of freedom is the ability to stand for and against something at the same time. “What we are is a democracy,” says Smith’s disheveled yet socially level speechwriter, Clarice Bernstein [René Augesen], whose desire to wed her lesbian lover on live television serves as the catalyst for Smith’s potential downfall or redemption, depending on which camp he wishes to please.
Keep in mind that Mamet’s POTUS aims only to serve his most critical constituent: himself. Throughout the play, Mamet sets up Smith, who’s more puppet than master, for various known U.S. political pratfalls — last-minute pardons, prison camps, refusal to acknowledge gay marriage, and the pillaging of Native Americans for personal gain — ultimately revealing the president and his nation as a bunch of bigoted, racist, homophobic, greedy, corporate shills hellbent on leveraging power for profit. Even still, when the day is done they have the audacity to wonder, blinkingly, what went so wrong.
Sound familiar?
After depicting this overweight, overwrought American everyman as he blusters and bumbles through his last days in office, Mamet punctuates his vision with one final Pee-fuckin’-Ess:
“I had despaired, these past five years, of that entity I described to myself as ‘The American People.’ This people, to my mind, had elected, reelected, and suffered the depredations of an unprincipled, ungovernable band of thugs. These had cheapened the dollar, enrolled us in an absurd war, alienated immemorial allies, abrogated rational treaties, drowned the country in debt, and knew neither remorse nor obligation. The good news is it’s a spectacular country … we’ve been around for 230 years in spite of human nature. It’s a great place to live.”
David Mamet’s November is playing at San Francisco’s A.C.T. through Nov. 15. Ticket prices start at $10 on several nights. Click here to view showing times and ticket price ranges.
— Kay
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Head & Tails: Eve Lounge
Up or over, shaken or stirred, we’re looking for the best bets to quench your thirst. This is where we spill it all about the area’s nearest and dearest brewpubs, bars, wine cellars, tasting rooms, package stores, liquor aisles, and well, we ARE thorough.
It’s no wonder there is a lasting interest in San Francisco’s prohibition era speakeasies—this city had a uniquely rebellious relationship with America’s “Noble Experiment.” It’s estimated there were around 6,000 speakeasies in the city toward the end of the era and we continue to celebrate those gathering places with bars either reminiscent of the Jazz Age, or even built on their very foundations as with Bourbon and Branch.
Coming to you from the team behind John Colins, there’s a new addition to the City’s collection of bars romanticizing the days of prohibition, and it’s a beaut. Eve Lounge, just down the street from her big brother bar in SOMA, is a swanky tribute to the bad girls of the Roaring Twenties.
The sultry pin-up style paintings, the feathers and chains hanging from the chandeliers, and the peep-show-like windows along the entry hallway all seem to celebrate the Flappers and the modernism and new-found sexuality they represented back in the day. The handcrafted wooden bar top by local furniture company Tree to Table, along with a long curvaceous banquette, all contribute to the warmth and sensuality of the decor, further encouraging patrons to relax and let loose.
And if beats from some of San Francisco’s finest DJ’s don’t have you rolling down your stockings to cut a rug, the menu of ‘20’s era-inspired cocktails, created by mixologists Scott Baird and Josh Harris of 15 Romolo fame, is sure to.
Everything is $2 off during happy hour, daily 4-7pm. Every Monday night Eve Lounge presents Original Sin, a recurring industry event, sharing “love for the people that serve the City,” with DJ Kash orchestrating a rock hopera. Check Eve’s facebook page for ongoing weekly and special DJ events. And don’t show up looking like a scrub, Eve has a strictly enforced dress code to maintain its air of sexiness.
Eve Lounge is located at 575 Howard at 2nd in San Francisco. Open Monday-Friday, 4pm-2am and Saturday, 8pm-2am. 415.806.0075
—Sara
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Culturshock: a seismic event celebrating the best of Bay Area art & design
On November 5th, Culturcosm will host its first event benefiting its carefully-curated roster of local talent. Held at the acclaimed Space Gallery, the event will feature a bevy of independent artists and vendors showcased over a 2-level 1600 square foot venue, with full bar service.
Participating Artists include:
ReMade USA Handbags
Litter Jewelry
Kurt Manley Photography
Quando Belts by Genaro Vergoglini
Tomgirl Jewelry by Taryn McCabe
Cuong Ta Ceramics
Artwork by Hilary Williams
Artwork by John Wood
Vanessa Gade Jewelry
Spray Can Artworks by FuryOne
My Dutch Bike
Nate1 of New Skool
Shop our recommended best in Bay Area art and fashion, boogie down with DJ ExtraLars and marvel at surprise live entertainment planned throughout the evening.
Join us from 6 o’clock on and support the movers and shakers of the Bay Area!
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Wonders Where You Least Expect
The ‘Loin, the TL, Trendyloin, Tendernob, Tandooriloin… the neighborhood’s nicknames are nearly as diverse the population of this San Francisco neighborhood, notorious for drugs, crime, homelessness, and prostitution. But as those of us who live here know, when you look closely into grit and grime, the Tenderloin has a certain magic of its own, and since the first days of the City it’s been a home to artists, writers, and musicians.
If you’ve ever felt the inclination to brave these rough streets in search of any creative treasures they may hold, now is the time to act on it, because you will be rewarded. Thanks to the vision of Bay Area native Lance Fung, and the collaborative efforts of almost 80 local, national, and international artists, city nonprofit organizations like the North of Market Community Benefit District, and neighborhood residents, the Tenderloin is a wonderland.
The Wonderland Project is a multi-site, grassroots exhibition intended to engage, stimulate, and nurture the Tenderloin community, celebrating its unique diversity through 16 contemporary art installations throughout the neighborhood. In Fung’s words “this project is so embedded within the fabric of the community and the work is truly coming from the people.”
Home Away From Home is a portable structure installed at McAllister and Larkin streets that explores ideas of home and mobility. Its creators, including Barry Beach, Colby Claycomb, John Melvin, Kit Rosenberg and Izumi Yokoyama, used drawings made by kids at the Tenderloin Boys and Girls Club as inspiration.
Offstage features cocoon-like sculptures perched atop the Warfield Theater and Show Dogs Café created by a group of artists including Melkorka Helgadottir, Christophe Piallat and Brandon Truscott.
Fear Head is a large-scale mural designed by Roman Cesario and Mitsu Overstreet and installed by a large team of local street artists. The work delves into the themes of fear that revolve around the Tenderloin.
Other works include Down The Rabbit Hole, a graphical and metaphorical depiction of the working and living environment of a young girl who is hostage to the underground sex trade, and Reflect/Xions, which aims to awaken passersby to their own existence and participation in the space. And these are just a few. You’ll have to overcome your own fears of the Tenderloin’s reputation to find and experience the rest of these eye-opening artworks on your own.
The exhibition is free and open to the public and will run through November 15th with the hope of Wonderland 2 next year.
–Sara
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Bye, Bye Bay Bridge. Hello Bay Line?
As most Bay Area residents are well aware, one of our most viable means for commuting into and out of the city, the Oakland Bay Bridge, has been undergoing an extensive metamorphosis. In an attempt to bring the bridge up to current seismic safety standards, following the devastating Loma Prieta earthquake, the California Department of Transportation has been working around the clock on a new East Span from Oakland’s shores to Yerba Buena Island.
But what will happen to the current, National Register of Historic Places identified, East Span structure? Plans call for its demolishment and relocation of specified sections of the legendary bridge to museums, in order to satisfy historic preservation requirements. A curious approach, as my understanding of historic preservation typically doesn’t involve demolition.
Ronald Rael and Virginia San Fratello of Oakland-based Rael San Fratello Architects suggest a different solution. Save the old bridge and transform it into an elevated urban park and mixed-use development called the Bay Line, purposefully reminiscent of the newly-opened High Line park in mid-Manhattan. Also considered a pipe dream at the time it was conceived, The High Line converted a long-abandoned elevated railway into a stylish pedestrian park space. It has since been embraced by the public and preservationists alike as a bold, new step in urban planning utilizing pre-existing city infrastructure for a more eco-conscious future.
As reported by SF Streets Blog, Rael proposes an upper deck outfitted with a 1.9 mile bike and pedestrian path, 15 acres of garden space, tennis courts, and even a climbing wall. The lower deck would generate enough capital to offset its maintenance through mixed residential and commercial retail units, in addition to cultural amenities such as museums and amphitheater.
Cross section, showing upper and lower deck usage. Image by Rael Fratello Architects.
Proposed garden/orchard. Image by Rael Fratello Architects.
A bold proposal, yes. But is it likely? The Metropolitan Transportation Commission doesn’t seem to agree and laughs off its feasibility. It seems certainly worth consideration though. And, if the above renderings aren’t appetizing enough, the hundreds of millions of dollars saved should whet the State’s whistle.
Where do you stand on The Bay Line?
—Michael
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A Hot-Tranny Press
Remember when reality talent shows were in limited supply and Project Runway was television worth demanding? When Michael Kors made more than cameos and Heidi Klum had not just cleavage but clout? When “fierce” was a but a glimmer in the gay lexicon? It feels like a lifetime ago, pun intended.
For anyone hoping to relive past PR glory in perpetuity, treat yourself to season 4 on DVD and feast your style on former winner Christian Siriano’s new book, Fierce Style: How to be Your Most Fabulous Self. If you can wait until Tuesday, Oct. 13, even better—because from 2-3 p.m., Mr. Siriano himself will be on hand to put his John Hancock on your very own copy at Saks Fifth Avenue in Union Square (floor Two).
All attendees are encouraged to read the first paragraph of the book aloud to Siriano while using their best Tim Gunn impersonation. OK, so we made that last part up. But we can’t help it; we’re dying for drama à la the old days. Bring it!
For more information about the book signing, visit Saks.com. Saks Fifth Avenue is located at 384 Post Street in Union Square, San Francisco. The signing will take place on floor Two. Space is limited so please RSVP to 415.438.5411.
— Kay
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Just Say “Yes” to Asian Fast Fashion
San Francisco’s fast-fashion scene has gone full-on fusion with the launch of YesStyle boutique in Stonestown Galleria. The store’s grand opening marks the first exclusively Asian retail concept to set up shop in a mainstream mall location in the United States. This is thrilling new territory for mass fashion in the Bay. Not only is YesStyle’s presence furthering global fashion consciousness, now we plain-Jane and yawn-John U.S.A.s can get our Tokyo, Seoul, and Hong Kong fashion on, without having to leave the mainland.
Some of the store’s more notable brands include Googims, colorful T-shirts and hoodies with cuddly Korean cartoon illustrations; the multi-layered femme-eclectic drapery of Dodostyle; Osaka’s Buden Akindo, offering what the Japanese do best—”churning” contemporary urban style and Japanese culture; and Namitatsu, evolving the East-meets-West tradition by combining ancient Japanese art with modern surfer culture. YesStyle also offers designer fashion collaborations from the likes of Dirk Lui, Koogi, and Dean Clau.
Even better, any American shopper who’s died a little each time she’s attempted to wedge into diminutive Asian fashions will be pleasantly surprised; while the store itself may be small, many of YesStyle’s fits are a generous “one size,” accommodating a wider variety of … well, to put it delicately, wider body types.
Then there’s the price. Yours truly brought home a pair of men’s football-inspired trousers with origami-fold pockets for under $30 (like the white ones on the gentleman pictured above, only in black). And I’m already craving my next steal, a faux-fur cardigan best described as a streamlined version of a real fur chubby, for the lean price of $55.
YesStyle is located on the upper level of Stonestown Galleria, 3251 20th Ave, in San Francisco, 415.661.8390. You can also shop the store online. For more YesStyle flavor, check out some of the store’s fan compilations over at Polyvore.
— Kay
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About
Culturcosm is your online authority on the climate of trend throughout the Bay Area. Your roving reporters are taking to the streets and chasing down the real story. Be it stormy or serene, torrid or just plain tragic, we will break it down before you hit it up. Stay tuned. There's a new trend breaking every minute.
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Michael, founder / editor-in-chiefmichael@culturcosm.com
Kay, founder / contributing editorkay@culturcosm.com
Sara, trendcaster / managing editorsara@culturcosm.com
Heather, social commentatorheather@culturcosm.com
Taylor, music trendcastertaylor@culturcosm.com
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