Phoenix Center for the Arts: Benesh and Stout Interview

Photo credits, Christiaan Block Photographer

My initial interaction with the City of Phoenix Center for the Arts project was in 2004 at the initial pre-proposal when the late Patty Tax, a City of Phoenix contracts administrator was explaining the project and she emphasized that this was a very special project.  The final building addition Serbin Studio were architect of record on came to a conclusion in the Spring of 2012.

Joseph Benesh's vintage VW bus.  

I wanted to interview Joseph Benesh,the director and Marta Stout, program manager of the Center of the Arts whom I had the pleasure of working with during the Construction Administration last year.  Joseph is one of those characters that brought laughter and creativity to our weekly meetings.  We would be in our weekly meetings with Brycon Construction contractors and program managers from the City of Phoenix and Joseph would challenge us with questions like “What if we did it this way?”

 Photo credits, Christiaan Blok Photographer, Marta is seated at the reception.

Just for clarity sake you might want to keep in mind that JB: Joseph Benesh, MS: Marta Stout and LS: is yours truly, Lara Serbin.

LS: What’s unique about the Center for the Arts for Down Town Phoenix?

MS:  A non profit organization working with a municipality like City of Phoenix. We were able to take over something that was City run. We can brag a little bit here. It is a formula that you wouldn’t think would work but it does for us.  The City owns and maintains the buildings, they are helping us in that sense. We are bringing non-profit arts.

Joseph really injects a lot of spontaneity. Since I started in August of 2011,  I noticed that Joseph had a very clear vision of what he wanted to do.  I like how we stay flexible while we are growing. We can try new things.  I call it growing gracefully.  We are going through growing pains yet we are 37 years old.  That is due to the recent switch in management. We are a little big organization with more wiggle room.  We have to be agile.

JB:  I don’t filter people coming to our Center until we give them a chance. It doesn’t always work out but when it does, great expansion comes from different points of view.  There may be a pottery student that has the best idea about a new upcoming venue.  You never know where inspiration is going to come from.  The diversity of organizations currently like Radio Phoenix.Org, Dulce Dance Company and Roosevelt Row CDC.  

 Photo credits, Christiaan Blok Photographer

LS: How do you see you unique in terms of your programming?

MS:  It is extremely varied. What I see normally is a center that is limited to dance or arts.  We have variety based on information with face to face interaction with the community.  We ask questions like: What do you want? We are so close to Roosevelt Row where there are tons of active artists. People who act, paint, sing and write. We do those things here but I think it is a nice reflection of what the actual community is doing.  We have the theater that we’re trying to activate even further. People are looking for places to perform that they can walk to and catch the light rail. 

One of the things we started is called Family Fridays, which offers open studios.  We want people to know they are welcome to bring a sketch pad, have a seat and take part in the class.

 

Photo credit: Lara Serbin

LS: So you are encouraging some of the parents to sit in on classes?

MS: Absolutely.  If people want to come in during the day and there is a class they want to see, let’s go!  Let’s walk you in and see the instructor interacting with artists. We have  the same students who have taken ceramics class together for 6 to 8 years. It is a mini family. We love to have new people see how much fun we have. You get sucked in.

LS: That is the wonderful thing about the arts, it makes your mind more pliable by  changing your focus.  Do something different like bang on a set of drums.

MS: Yeah, there is no pressure. It’s not like you have to come in knowing how to fill in the blank. Come in, try it, even if you think you are horrible at it.  Your going to make the happiest mistake of your life by trying to paint a tree.  I think of it as a child like experimentation. Kids aren’t afraid to try something.  We give that chance to adults. Kind of loosens you up a little bit.

LS: How have you seen this transformation impact the community around you?

MS: From my position at the front desk, I have been the interface. People are recognizing this is a space that is active, dynamic and for them.  It’s not just a set of historic buildings sitting unoccupied. People walk in and say “Oh, wow there is a new entrance!” We have some who literally stroll in off the park and say “What is this place, I never knew there were doors here?”

 Arizona Free Arts Mural, painted by 180-200 volunteer artists in 2012.

MS: Well it is new! I explain when and why the addition happened. There is a visibility to it now. People feel welcome especially after the addition of North Entrance and Arizona Free Arts came on Make a Difference Day and painted the mural.  They had so much fun doing it.  It is nice to see a city taking ownership of what is here.  It’s not a matter of “"Let’s just knock everything down to the ground and start over."  We have a gem of an opportunity sitting right here.  It started with Joseph Benesh , City of Phoenix, Brycon Construction and Serbin Studio working together.  I came in just before the construction took off.

 

 Arizona Free Arts Mural, painted by 180-200 volunteer artists in 2012.

  

LS: What makes you particularly proud of the Center for the Arts?

MS: It’s user friendly. My background is theater and one of the things you end up studying is how you can make this approachable. The fine arts is elitist.  We are not. Center for the Arts is accessible and affordable.

It is huge that we are now ADA compliant. Being able to take a student into a gallery who before the addition couldn’t access the second floor.  Now everyone can flow easily to the metal studio, photography studio or theater.  We are part of the new downtown Phoenix revitalization.  I have always been a process type rather than a product minded person.  It is a really neat process to be involved in. It has changed so much since I first got here!

Now it’s like, “Why are all these cars here?”  and I will say, “That’s because we have classes, or a performance going on.”  It is a nice problem to have when students are complaining about parking on a Saturday night!

  

LS: What is the next chapter in the Center for the Arts story?

MS: A solid core of programming where people know us for ceramics, metals and painting programs. Expand what programming we offer based on community feed back. I have been meeting with desert weavers and spinners guild. They are interested in a fibers program. Fiber artists want to come in, rent a loom and knock out some projects.  In just a year we’ve grown from 2 staff members to 5.   We have already met 30% of our projections for Spring classes. We grew over 93% from last year in terms of people enrolling and staying.  Now we can nail down how we handle developing a program and what we put in here based on the feedback we are getting. Nowhere but up!

JB:  In the past I never liked to take credit for my accomplishments, it was always the success of a team.  The success we are experiencing now I can see as a result of all my past theater experience of asking questions.  When I was programming shows for theater seasons I would have to book the shows way out in advance, always forward thinking.

This post is dedicated to the late Patty Tax, City of Phoenix, Contracts Administrator.

Special thanks to Joseph Benesh and Marta Stout! 

Tacoma, Washington: LeMay Family Collection

 I took a lot of photos of historical buildings, bought lots of crazy knee high socks and drank the best coffee while I was in Washington State with my family.  I mostly visited Bainbridge Island, Port Townsend and Hansville. My objective was to take at least one inspired photo per day despite the rain or chilly temperatures.  The inspiration came easily when Jeffrey and I spent the day at LeMay America's Car Museum and LeMay Family Collection.  All the photos on this post were taken from the Family Collection in Tacoma, Washington.  The Family Collection was more interesting than America's Car Museum in Tacoma, Washington.  

Inside the white warehouse at LeMay Family Collection

The tour guide was exceptional.  He had the black jacket and ball cap on the left. He didn't try to win us over with puns or cheesy game show style questioning, he was a passionate volunteer.  It was as if he was changing oil in his garage and we were just leaning against a work bench listening to stories.  I did zone him out at times like when I gazed into a 1950’s convertible and fantasized sha-na-na teens ordering at a drive-thru burger stand.  This guy talked about the cars and trucks like they were family.  There are thousands of cars in LeMay’s collection and we saw a mere fraction.

Once the pack of us stepped through the aluminum threshold, I felt like I had shrunk down and walked through my brothers red Hot Wheels collector case.

The Lucky sign was the best, it was a man cave trophy bigger than ever. The experience enlightened me.  It made me feel that it is OK to want and have anything you want. Harold LeMay of Harold LeMay Enterprises had a refuse company in the Tacoma, Washington.  His car collecting started in the 1960's when his friend asked him to join a Model T club because it was fun.  All he ever wore was a white t-shirt and jeans and drove a hot pink Tracker for gas economy.  His main focus was to save money in order to buy more cars.  

This was a single story layout and most of the cars were American made, turn of the century and beyond.  I liked all the 1950’s cars.  The guide didn’t stop at each car or I would have clobbered him.

LeMay even collected vintage automobilia, I am surprised he didn’t have an entire service station from the 1950’s in a corner. There were some cars that had the original paper taped to the window from when he bought it!

1959 Pink Cadillac with the fin at it's pinnacle of height and sharpness.  

I learned that after 1959 the point continued to get smaller and finally go away.

1958 Chevrolet Apache Cameo *guess who wants this for their very own?* 

I think trying to describe the collection is beyond this blog.  It is like going to the Grand Canyon to see what a large space is.  You really won't understand until you experience it for yourself.  I have more knowledge on cars than ever before. It wasn't the details that matter.  I do know that the Pearce Arrow hood emblem was designed with the janitor posing with a broom because he was really cut! It was feeling from our tour guide that stays with me.  By the 4th warehouse of cars he wasn't tired of talking about cars. He wasn't winding down at all.  I was ready to scream and run away if he mentioned going into another warehouse.  We were lucky I guess for getting to hang out with someone who knew and loved cars so much. 

 If someone reads this post and knows him, please let me know.

Please Proceed to the Highlighted Route

I just got back from a visit to Motivational Systems to check out the progress for the Way Finding monument signs.  For those of you who don't know about this project you can visit the past blog post here: 

Way Finding Signage for Buckeye  

Panels were being treated with chemicals to achieve a rusted patina finish.  Bob Charette of Motivational Systems was there to meet me.  He was thankful he took advantage of last weeks rain.  He placed the steel pieces outside for a good rain pelting.  Mother nature helped achieve a beautiful finish evenly on the already chemically coated steel. Yes, you have to have the chemical on first, then the rain helps.  I can see that Bob is in that zone of creation when any slight deviation can keep you up at night.

The 3-sided monument sign was erected and waiting for me in the fabrication shop. Bob said my eyes got huge when I saw it for the first time this morning. It was larger than I thought it would be.  It is going to be so perfect when it is installed hopefully this week.  I know it will demand attention.  

Please proceed to the highlighted route.

Historic Main Street Buckeye, Arizona

Legend of the Lost Forts

Pincushion Cacti, Lara Serbin, Iphone, Apple

It's getting cold in Estrella Mountain, Goodyear, Arizona.  There are a couple of red berries left on the pincushion cacti and the native trees are dusty sage green among brownish black mountain.  It is a good time to head for the hills.  I was in my studio of creativity doing my thing when Hannah, Eva and Lily asked me to go on a hike with them. It was late afternoon and the shadows were extreme.  They wanted to take me to their desert forts so we packed water bottles, laced up hiking boots and filled Ziplocs with tons of cheesy crackers. 

Fort II, Lara Serbin, Iphone, Apple

There were three forts on the agenda.  The first was close to home so it was a bit lame.  The four of us were all touching shoulders standing on this gravel slippery slope under a a bramble of a Palo Verde and Eva pronounces, "This is the fort!"  Out of my peripheral vision I saw a striped tail.  Tiger and Penny the cats had followed us.  Penny is easy to spot being solid jet black.  Tiger on the other hand looks like a miniature mountain lion with eyeliner that is always perfect. Pretty much all Tiger does is sneak up on things.  There was nowhere to sit so we moved on. I let them lead me.

The second fort was a switching station of one main artery wash and smaller ones bleeding off.  There were different stages of Palo Verde hanging over us some dead and gray but mostly daiquiri green.  It was a cool stone room with a web of green above.  It was pretty genius but too close to the road.  It had armored rock sides with an easy slope to lean back on.  Just as I was getting comfortable, we were departing.

Decaying saguaro, Lara Serbin, Iphone, Apple

The third fort was over the ridge and had been abandoned for some time.   There were artifacts at this one.  A tiny plastic hand sanitizer bottle, a broken wooden foot stool with a heart cut out, and a wooden swing hanging from a tree.  Penny found the Powder Room immediately.  Tiger copied Penny.  It was obvious where the play stove top was with a carefully placed row of crescent shaped rock pile.  I hiked up further to see the sun glow off the ribs of a decaying saguaro.  

We wanted one last adventure before the sun went down so we hiked to the summit above.  Lily was lead as usual and proceeded to fly up the mountain. 

On the shadow side of the Estrella Mountains, Lara Serbin, Iphone, Apple

At this point I made the mistake of looking down and the parent switch was flipped to ON.  I rallied the troops and commanded them to take baby steps.  Really, it was me who needed to chill.  As we trekked down the boulders for safer ground, Lily proclaimed she had to GO.  I said just go behind that big vertical boulder, "It is the perfect place!"

Lily hiked carefully over the rugged boulders commanding us to not watch, "Don't even look over here!"  We were patiently waiting when Tiger stealthily hopped gracefully over the pathless slope to the high vertical perch that was shielding Lily completely from view.  Tiger sat on the apex with her paws perfect and close together and her tail switching in curiosity. She lowered her owl like eyes at Lily doing her business and asked, "So, what are you doing?"

Lily popped up and wanted to be annoyed but couldn't pull it off. We all laughed on top of a monster pile of rock.

That's Totally Cool and Hot

Pantone Fashion + Home

Color fascinates me.  When I play with color I feel like it is one of my core purposes for living.  I feel especially cool and hot when I wear turquoise and red together.  

Words for AQUA BLUE.

Infinity

Compassionate

Coolness

Sky

Oceans

Words for RED.

Exciting

Energizing

Sexy

Dynamic

Powerful

Magnetic

Motivating

The Vashon Island Coffee Roasterie, Washington State

Mix Aqua and Red on this porch door and see what kind of charm it adds to the old wood floor.  It also helps that the air smells of fresh roasted coffee and they sell chia seeds in bulk.  Who knew?

Standing on a granite boulder today.

My eyes do a dance when I see Heat Miser and Snow Miser. 

It's the cool mixed with hot concept that makes this color combination so interesting for the eye.  OH GREAT...Why did I do it! Now I have that everlasting tune in my head!  I just bought these Ozonesocks in Old Town Glendale yesterday.  Oh, now you want the mary janes.

MetLife blimp at the Goodyear Airport

The red against the blue sky is striking.  Try to imagine an olive green blimp.  It would have a totally different effect. You would think we were being invaded or something?!

PREMIEREVISION featured in View Textile Magazine Issue 84

Saturated Space

The red hair bends towards orange so we are dealing with complimentary colors. The blue eyes look bluer against her cool skin tone and Raggedy Ann hair.  Pretty.

Plateau, Land and Peoples of the Colorado Plateau, Summer 2000, page 37, Rio Grande 1950. 

John Wayne gets it done. Don't forget it!

Saturated Space is a new find for those of you who like color.

Would you wear this dress?  That's what I thought!

Proenza Schouler Ready to Wear 2013

Plateau Journal, Land and Peoples of the Colorado Plateau, Summer 1997. Eugene Sekaquaptewa in his cornfield. Photo by Stephen Trimble. Special gift by Richard Shepherd.

Eugene totally has it going on! Does he know this? Go tell him.  Maybe Eugene likes red because he lives in a village on a Hopi mesa of northeast Arizona.  He wants a good crop of corn.  Those people living closer to the equator are more drawn to warm and/or bright colors. Color Symbolism & Trends, Leatrice Eiseman, page 128. 

He probably feels refreshed in that aqua camp shirt. As water is so necessary and precious to the preservation of life, humans are inexorably drawn to the lustrous surfaces because they are connected in "ancient memory" to bodies of shimmering water.  Color combination with luster is an irresistible lure.  Color Symbolism & Trends, Leatrice Eiseman, page 129.

But then Dad always said that blue stars were hotter than red stars.

Way Finding Signage for Buckeye

Today I am selecting font colors for Way Finding Signs for the Historic District in Buckeye, Arizona.  This project was first called to the attention of the Buckeye Main Street Coalition in February of this year.   Finally, they are being constructed by Motivational Systems Inc., a local signage company.

I want to make sure the font is more on the lighter side of things so it really reads against the dark rusted metal background.  We initially decided to go with the colors that make up the Town of Buckeye logo of pink, purple, blue and yellow.  It really works.

We selected materials such as contrasting rust stained steel in keeping with the look and feel of Buckeye.  The frames will be constructed with a rusted pipe steel and the panels will be made of a treated steel corrugated panel.  If you drive along MC85 you will see a patchwork of weathered building materials.  It is important to show there is progress with new construction but also a nod to the Buckeye heritage of using what you have on hand. 

Above is one of the many sun burnt weathered relics you will find along MC85 headed west.  

This is the former Eastman Cotton Gin that will continue to inspire future designs.  The best results come from up-cycled materials mixed with new when it comes to revitalization for Main Street Buckeye.

We incorporated aspects that we liked from the current welcome signage. The font is a standard for Down Town Buckeye.

Here is the final design that is being built. There will be 12 new monument and freestanding signs by the first of 2013 to help you navigate your way to Historic Buckeye.

Pinky Promise

It was a dark and stormy night. I was beat and ready for bed as I roll tucked out of Lily's bunk and  she firmly commands me, "Mommy, I must have a toga for school tomorrow."  It was more firm than changing out batteries in her remote kind of tone.  She wanted to be ready for her third grade Greek party.  I sat back down on her bed and thought, "I have never made a toga!".  How hard could it be, I could just wrap her in a sheet.  Lily had jumped out of her bed and was putting on tights and her white tennis dress to be ready.  I was thinking of the gold leaf crown that seems very Greek. *did they really wear those?*  I didn't have silk green leaves or gold spray paint.  My mind was searching all my craft bin membrane for ideas. 

As my child was winding up with excitement and hope for a toga I remembered that I had gold metallic duck tape and pipe cleaners.  As I left her I looked at her and said, "I can't believe I am doing this." She quietly smiled as I was measuring her head with my sewing tape measure as she was trying to go to sleep. *her head is the same size as mine?*

I searched through the craft bins and pulled out wood clothes pins but that would be a pain to wrap with gold tape and too heavy.  I spotted the bag of egg carton cut ups that I almost threw away.  I took out my X-acto blade and just started cutting.  Did you ever realize how soft and easy it is to cut an egg crate? You should seriously try it with a fresh blade.

 I was done with the crown in 30 minutes!  I love when ideas come together easily using things on hand.  My little client was beaming in the morning!

I ended up making one for myself while Lily was at school and I had an order for another after I made an appearance at lunch.  This little girl in Lily's class asked so nicely that I couldn't say no.  She asked Lily if she could pinky promise that I would make her one.

Thanks to Ellie Marder I also had this 1960's killer necklace for the Toga Party - no I am not photo-shopping the diffuser out. I have sweet potatoes to go make. You are thinking how Greek my house looks...

So after I wore my crown all day *even to Costco* I bought every color of duck tape. Think of the possibilities...neon orange and turquoise crowns!  Lady Ga Ga will be calling!

Shoogey Doogey liked the pipe cleaners. 

Happy Thanksgiving!