A Brief History of Echo Park

Posted by admin | Festival, History | Sunday 7 June 2009 1:25 am

Annalisa Magnusson

Echo Park and its lake have always been a touchstone for the community that grew up around it.

Initially, the area we now know as the park was a natural arroyo that filled with water from a spring-fed stream that originated at Baxter Street and flowed down what is now Echo Park Avenue. In 1868 the Los Angeles Canal and Reservoir Co. dammed the arroyo to make a reservoir that aided in powering a woolen mill at what is now 6th and Figueroa (then known as Pearl St.) and was to eventually serve local residents, walnut orchards and vineyards to the south along Alvarado. The immigrants that worked these orchards and vineyards settled here and began to build small homes along Sunset Boulevard, between Echo Park Avenue and Lemoyne Street. (more…)

FESTIVAL UPDATE

Posted by admin | Arts, Festival | Sunday 7 June 2009 12:05 am

This year’s Echo Park Artists Festival–which will take place on Saturday, Oct. 10– will expand its offerings to include dance and spoken word performances. Local writers SteveAbee and GordonHenderson are working on a line-up of 10 writers to present their work during a two hour, outdoor performance. In addition, entertainment coordinator SonyaMims is working on adding a flamenco dance group as well as a live theatrical performance that will take place on Lemoyne Street at Sunset Blvd. (more…)

ART ON THE AVENUE

Posted by admin | Arts, Festival | Saturday 6 June 2009 1:23 am

ARTISTS ON THE GO

The most notable feature of the intersection of Echo Park and Morton avenues used to be Magic Gas station. Now, the same area is emerging as the neighborhood’s gallery row. By late September, three galleries are expected to be open in side-by-side store fronts on Echo Park Avenue. Joining Ojala Fine Arts & Crafts, which opened in May, will be Delirium Tremens (look it up), at 1553 Echo Park Ave. Owners AaronDonovan and PattyCastillo will open their space in early September with a group exhibition featuring the paintings and drawings of VanArno, StaceyLande, JohnParra and JasonKraus. (more…)

S t u d i o T o u r

Posted by admin | Arts, Festival | Monday 17 April 2000 5:34 pm

John Biggs’ kinetic sculptures have been featured in exhibitions nationally.  His miniature mechanical creations have also been seen in television and feature films.

Annie Buckley’s recent work is a fusion of opposites - a combination of steel with wax and other organic materials to create a body of work that blends the industrial with the organic.

Sharyll Burroughs-Chung discovered a flair for design by helping friends turn dumpy apartments into great spaces. Her work has been featured in the Los Angeles area.

Diane Carlyle is her own wellspring of creativity and inspiration.  Her work encompasses clay, painting and drawing, and poetry - gifts to be shared.

Kory Edwards makes some of his work abstract, some figurative, but he most enjoys incorporating both elements. He is a new resident of Echo Park.

Neil Fenn’s abstract objects include paintings, drawings, murals and wood
constructions.  His pieces allow the viewer to immerse himself in a visually complex, emotionally stimulating experience.

Samantha Grisdale is motivated by the harmonious exchange of power between mind, body and object. The intention is to marry that which is recognizable with unseen forms.

Gordon Henderson is a freeloader and a con-artist who has spent the last several years bothering people and taking their money. He draws, paints and talks some. See Spoken Word.

Jovenes Art Park is a nonprofit organization that helps at-risk and homeless Latino youth through art.

 


Laguna Castle

Ivica Bojcic was born in Dalmatia, in the southern part of Croatia.  He has produced work in drawing, painting and sculpture for more than 10 years.

Martin Cox got his first camera as a teenager. After a road-trip across the Southwest he was inspired to capture the solitude of the desert.

Liz Harmon began to explore visual communication with paint while she was hospitalized.  She is a self-taught artist featured locally.

Tracy Lompa, coming from Envir-onmental Design into Fashion Design, is currently engaged in “fantasy fashion and people,” a process-art installation of slides, nature and sound.

James Mason’s diptych form has been returning compulsively as a symptom of a deep ambivalence.  The latest works combine photography, video and still life.


Echo Park resident-nudist David Leonard enrolled at San Francisco Art Institute after running naked down Alvarado and being arrested. SEE Spoken word.

Marc Linn is a Los Angeles-based artist whose works explore various themes of contemporary mythology.  The interplay of materials illustrates his connection to the spiritual process.

Nancy Lissaman, a teacher, has crossed the boundaries of painting and sculpture to incorporate collage and mixed media.  She is featured regularly in the Los Angeles area.

David Meanix is the eighth of nine children and a recovering Catholic. He is also an upstanding homosexual and loves living in Echo Park.

Kevin O’Connor’s use of religious iconography began to appear after a harrowing family vacation in Puerto Rico ?’some offense was taken’ when first exhibited in North Philly.

Onramp is an independent digital arts access lab.  The focus is to engage youth and artists in creative projects that utilize the multi-faceted aspects of digital technologies and reflect our diverse and growing community.

Peter Ortel is currently at work on his first 35mm film, a collaborative work.  Ortell lives and works in Echo Park with his wife Donnette and an Albino Cattle Dog named Hunter.

Nick Radell creates sculptures and furniture out of wood, neon and steel.  Although the neon medium is a visually demanding one, Radell incorporates it with delicacy.

Peter Shire’s colorful sculptural teapots have received worldwide acclaim and he has continued to explore circus-like playfulness in furniture and sculpture.

Michael Spalt began to make guitars after exploring painting, photography, and work in the film industry.  The work straddles the divide between functional and formal objects.

Dauna Whitehead’s dream-like images of local landscapes and architectural landmarks are included in many prominent collections and have illustrated several publications.

 


Wolff-Young Studio

Dori Atlantis’ work delights in contrasting textures, the patina of age and the tactile qualities of the materials. She teaches art to visually impaired and blind adults.

Richard Bruland was born in Lima, Peru, and has lived in Switzerland. His abstract paintings infer a sense of place, always reaching out to a wider audience.

Karen Frimkess Wolff has been following a thread of realism, searching for a language of transformation, balancing sound and silence, passing thought and the permanence of fixed form.

Ronald Layne Young is an architect and California native. His practice specializes in residential, small commercial and tenant improvement projects all over the Los Angeles area.

M u s i c a n d P e r f o r m a n c e

Posted by admin | Arts, Festival | Monday 17 April 2000 5:33 pm

Ryeland Allison navigates listeners through musical odysseys with his hybrid blend of acoustic and electronic sounds.  He has created music for motion pictures and the sound library Distorted Reality.

Lisa Black recently settled in Echo Park.  Her performative work has been featured all over the Midwest, Italy, Poland, Romania, Brazil and Belgium.

Bombshell, a moody pop ensemble, was created two years ago by Zoë Poledouris (vocals, guitar), Mel Dillon (vocals, bass), and Andy Davenhall (vocals, drums).

Crib is Devin Sarno, a man and a bass-line.  Echo Park native Sarno is an experimental musician and founder of independent record label win, which releases work by local musicians.

Andy Davenhall has toured nationally as both a solo artist and singer/songwriter for Sister Psychic.  Andy most recently played with Seattle band Dodie and currently performs with Bombshell.

Mack Gecko works as a scientist for cash.  He spends his time writing songs that tell the stories he heard in his travels. He plays gigs when he can find them.

Fleshpot is Eric Johnson and Margaret Yen, a Eurasian, country, folk, pop ensemble.

Grace Lacques has mastered the art of theater without words.  Her characters appeal to children and people of all ages. Lacques, mother of two, is a poet, teacher and radio producer who has appeared locally.

Santa Maria is Jeff Chayette (guitar) and sublime vocalist Marta Santa Maria, recently moved to Los Angeles from Spain.  The band also features Vince Tividad (bass), Cornell Fowler (percussion) and Mike Acosta (saxophone).

Bradley Martin is a singer/songwriter originally from Columbus, Ohio. His unique style of poetic acoustic music is evocative and poignant.

Red Hill is Jason Myers (guitar), Harvey Lane (saxophone), Richard Luther (keyboards), Anand Bennett (mandolin, violin), Bill Torma (bass) and Mark San Fillipo (drums). After thirty years, Red Hill has incorporated a variety of cultural influences in their highly original compositions.

Ray Sandoval is a composer and guitarist who combines Latin, Brazilian, classical, world and jazz music into a fresh new sound.

Troi is Michael Fitzpatrick (bass, vocals), Vanessa Ove (guitar, vocals), Cisco Huette (percussion), Jamie Farrow (keyboard) and DJ Syndicate M.D.  Their sound is a free-spirited, energetic fusion of ambient grooves, reggae beats and rock power.

Madelynn Von Ritz, storyteller, is also a musician, singer and songwriter.  Her love of performance and working with youth has taken her stories to children all over Los Angeles.