The Projection Project

About this time last year, a few of us here at the lofts thought about projecting snowflakes on the buildings during the December '08 Art Walk. Unfortunately, the idea never got past a few rough concepts done in Flash, but hey, it was definitely worth trying.

Enter 2009 and two industry professionals; visual graphics guru Matik and mix-master of Free the Robots/The Crosby fame, Chris Alfaro. Together, along with the Downtown Santa Ana Management District comes a 3D projection project worthy of the pages of Gizmodo. Event info below from the Downtown OC (don't call it that) Life website:

Downtown Incorporated invites you to experience a visual journey through imagination, distorted perception, and holiday ambiance. Using unique animation modules and multiple high-powered projectors the facade of the historic Spurgeon Building will be illuminated in a spectacle of seasonal inspired extreme light and shadow morphing the existing architecture. Motion Graphics Presented by Matik Musical Accompaniments Produced by Chris Alfaro and The Definiens Project Projection performances continue Thursday – Saturday evenings from 7-9pm through December 27th.

What a great show, right? Which gets me thinking–if I can get my hands on an Epson Projector and a portable power supply, I just might have a Left 4 Dead/Modern Warfare art piece for an upcoming Art Walk!



Update: This post was partially published in the OC Register. An online version of the post can be seen here.

Things to do in Santa Ana (Nov 09)

Is it Patchwork season already? Say What--You don't know what Patchwork is? Tsk, tsk.

This Weekend: 

Information below stolen from The Road Less Traveled Store's website.

PaTcHwOrK: 5-Santa Ana
November 15th (sun), 11AM-5PM
Our popular arts and crafts fair is making a holiday return. Over 80 vendors including music, food, DIY booths and lectures devoted to making things. Shop creative * buy local!

Check out this blog for information on current and previous Patchwork events.

Next Weekend:

Next weekend, the First Annual Santa Ana International Music Festival will be taking place in Downtown Santa Ana.

From the website:

Entertainment: various musical styles from all over the world, including world music, country, reggae, latin, african drumming, japanese, flamenco, persian, rock, hip hop, native american, colombian, brazilia and much more...

Where: Downtown Santa Ana 4th Street, Sycamore, Artist Village, Fiesta Marketplace, Yost Theater

When: Saturday November 21, 2009, Noon to 9:00 p.m

Sunday November 22, 2009, Noon to 8:00 p.m

Also, don't forget to stop by the Santiago Art District on Saturday, November 21st. Check out the website for more information and gallery openings.

Things to do This Weekend in Santa Ana

More than most work weeks, this is one I can't wait until it's over. Not because my work computer took a dump on me for a third time in less than 7 months (and yes, it's a PC), but because of the fact that there are so many great things to look forward to this weekend–all in Santa Ana!

First off, the Santiago Art District kicks it into full gear tomorrow night with what is expected to be one of the biggest Art Walks to date here at the Santiago Lofts. With the help of internet sensation Kogi Korean BBQ setting up shop, we're expecting some huge numbers and a fun new audience making a trek to scary 'ol Santa Ana.

Speaking of "Trek", anyone here see the movie yet? Did you catch the Tribble?

On Sunday, my good bud, fellow Lost fanatic and newly anointed Master Food Preserver Delilah Snell will be hosting the Patchwork Indie Arts and Crafts Festival at The Road Less Traveled/Harvey's/Craft Kitchen parking lots.



If you haven't been to a Patchwork event before, I'd highly recommend. First off, it's a free outdoor event less than 5 minutes from the lofts.

Second, if you're looking for some unique gifts or something that sings to your inner-artist, this is the place to find it. Just make sure to bring some pocket cash because I'm not sure if all the vendors will be set up for electronic purchases.

Peering outside my office window, I couldn't imagine a better weekend to support local artists and to just hang out in Santa Ana.

The Santiago Art District takes place tomorrow and every third Saturday of the month from 7-10PM-ish. Galleries at the Santiago Art District are located between Santiago and Poinsettia St, just off Santa Ana Boulevard/Civic Center Drive.

The Patchwork Indie Arts & Crafts Festival takes place this Sunday, May 17th from 11-5PM.

2202 North Main Street
Santa Ana, 92706

(Parking lot across Main Street near the 5 freeway entrance)

Viva La Causa: This Saturday at the Yost Theatre

This Saturday, April 4, Fiesta Marketplace and the Dolores Huerta Foundation present a free showing of Viva La Causa, starting at 6PM and running until 8PM.

Here's the skinny from the back of the flyer:

On a warm evening in 1965, hundreds of Mexican farm-workers packed into a church hall in the small farming town of Delano, California. A momentous decision lay before them–should they join a strike against California grape growers started 11 days prior by their Filipino counterparts?

Would this improve their appalling working conditions in the fields and help them earn enough to feed their families?

Viva La Causa tells the story of how the powerless stood up to the powerful and gained their victory, not by violence and weapons, but by their strong will.

I love a good story when people from different races come together for a greater cause.

The Yost Theatre is located at:
307 N. Spurgeon Street
Santa Ana, 92701

It's like a 10 minute walk from our place, no need to drive folks.

When the show is over, don't forget to check out the Downtown Santa Ana Art Walk.

Art Walk This Saturday (03/21)

Come rain or (moonlight) shine, the galleries at the Santiago Street Lofts come alive tomorrow night to host their monthly Art Walk event, The Santiago Art District.

I'm especially excited about a particular artist named Aaron Kraten showing tomorrow night at Curbside Gallery.

I met Aaron Kraten after February's art walk and immediately took a liking to him. Not only does he produce high quality and stylized works of art, but Aaron, much like yours truly has a penchant for all things video games.

What started off as a brief discussion about the arcade game Street Fighter turned into a two hour orgy of geekiness and nerdom–and I loved every minute of it.

With that said, stop on by tomorrow night and check out the galleries at the Santiago Art District–especially if you want to be schooled by Aaron Kraten in a conversation about video games.

Weekend Events (03/07-03/08)

First Fridays. Fabulous Fun.
TGIFF. City Place retailers invite you to celebrate the first Friday of every month. Hosted from 7pm – 10pm, First Fridays are an evening for the whole family, complete with complementary appetizers, cocktails, live music, art exhibits, and plenty of great deals on one-of-a-kind buys from our eclectic collection of boutiques and shops.

Zoo Birthday
On March 7th and 8th, the Santa Ana Zoo at Prentice Park will celebrate 57 years of fun! There will be music, animal shows, and a huge model train exhibition by the Del Oro Pacific Model Train Club.

Grab a slice of the birthday cake and see Kids are Music, 5 4 U, and other great entertainment. New animals will be coming on exhibit for the occasion, so come out and check out your local Zoo and see what a long way it's come in the last 57 years.

Downtown Santa Ana Art Walk
Is always the first Saturday of every month. Come rain, shine, or holiday, the event will always take place between 7:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m.

Parking can be found in the 'Artists Village Parking Structure' at Third Street and Broadway. Walk through the galleries and studios, see a live performance or just hang out and enjoy the music. It is FREE and you always have a great time.

All information above is recirculated through various sources. I claim no ownership–feel free to pass it along.

This Saturday: It Came From The 80's

Their last show was Peglegs & Pistols–a pirate-themed art show, so you know they know how to have a good time!

Opening Night: January 24th (This Saturday)
7PM-12AM

Phantom Gallery
2736 East Chapman Avenue
Orange, CA 92869

Art Walk This Saturday (01/17)

Tomorrow night marks the third Saturday of the month and the first Art Walk of 2009, and what better way to enjoy the unseasonably warm nights we've been experiencing than to stop on by the Santiago Art District Art Walk.

As usual, the Art Walk kicks off around 7PM and runs late into the night. Who knows, maybe Mayor Pulido might show up this time, but don't hold your breath.

Hey, it's been a while since we've done a poll. See above:

Danny Maika–Music Worth Sharing

A few months ago, a group of Santiago Loft residents stopped in for open mic night at the Vault located below the OC Pavilion/Ambrosia Restaurant.

After a decent amount of painful performances, Danny took the stage and wowed us all with his set and stage presence. I remember saying to the wife on the way home: "I'm sure glad we stuck around to hear that guy!"

Since that night, we've crossed paths with Danny on several occasions including an amazing performance at the Irvine Spectrum Mall on the day after Christmas, and most recently, just a few doors down while performing in a neighbor's first floor studio/workspace.

Aside from his fantastic voice, Danny just has a wonderful persona about him where you'd love nothing more than to see this guy make it.

Perhaps when the weather gets warmer and the Santiago Art District Art Walk picks up again, maybe we can get him to do a live show.

Until then, check out his website or his MySpace page for some soul-warming tunes.

Art Walk and soundDowntown–This Weekend in Santa Ana

Once again, our little community will be putting on our monthly Art Walk this Saturday, drawing in people from all over to witness for themselves some of the wonderful things coming to Santa Ana, not to mention some pretty sweet local art.

One of the exhibits that I'm excited to check out is The Art of City Building II: Mixed-Income Housing & Transit Oriented Development, presented by Galeria Tufiño.

This exhibit takes a closer look at Santa Ana's current state of housing, and the enormous potential that can come to our city with responsible and creative development.

For more information regarding this exhibit, please check out this page on the Galeria Tufiño website.

More information about the Santiago Art District Art Walk is available here.



Another event that's catching a lot of buzz and will hopefully draw people into Santa Ana is soundDowntown (yes, that's how they chose to spell it).

Details from the website:
soundDowntown 2008 is a one-day music festival on Saturday, November 15, featuring a lineup of over 50 locally and nationally recognized bands, DJ's and performing artists at various venues throughout the Artist's Village of downtown Santa Ana.

soundDowntown runs from Saturday, November 15th starting at 2PM and wraps up Sunday the 16th at 2AM.

More information available here.

Patchwork Sunday (11/09)

Today from 11AM-5PM, The Road Less Traveled Store is hosting Patchwork–a semiannual indie arts and crafts festival that showcases emerging crafters, delicious food (including one of my personal favorites Memphis), and local music.

From The Road Less Traveled website:
Come celebrate the best in locally produced, hand-made & creative goods at our bi-annual fair. Local foods, music, art and goods from over 60 vendors. DIY stations from Harveys & American Apparel. Join the hand-made movement!

You can read more about the Patchwork movement here.

Liberty For All

Santiago Street Loft resident and galley owner Liberty Dickinson will be exhibiting this excellent rendering of our local gem restaurant La Chiquita at The Lucky Own Gallery located in the City Place Lofts tonight.

This piece is part of a collection by various artists called Santa Ana: The Urban Landscape.

Aside from the gallery opening, City Place is also hosting their First Friday tonight (my lovely, but often nerdy wife points out: tonight is one of those rare nights where a first Friday falls just before the second Saturday [Pub Crawl]).

Lucky Owl is located at 103 E. City Place Drive, Santa Ana, CA (across from Main Place shopping center).

First Friday and the gallery exhibit both start tonight at 7PM, and run until 10PM.

"For A Better Santa Ana"

Six months ago I began a little pet project known as the Santa Ana Pub Crawl–A little sociological experiment designed to change the perception of Santa Ana in the eyes of those who have never stepped foot in our town, while at the same time, boosting restaurant sales from the hours of 5PM through 8PM. In essence, a self-funded public relations campaign for the city of Santa Ana and free advertising for the downtown restaurants.

And what better way to lure people into Santa Ana than to offer food and drinks at great prices on a Saturday? When I approached each of the participating businesses with idea of a Pub Crawl, I only asked three things of them:

1. Offer drink/food specials one Saturday a month

2. Distribute, stamp and collect the Pub Crawl Cards

3. Contribute a prize to make the event more exciting

Over the next several Pub Crawls, someone in our "Crawl Group" would run into someone who has never set foot in Santa Ana's downtown. After saying how much fun they are having, they usually follow up with something to the likes of "Wow, I never knew Santa Ana was this cool" or "This is nothing like what I thought Santa Ana was like".

Mission accomplished. Well, kinda. No matter how many good things people like myself try to do for this city, the OC Register still sits in our backyard spewing fuel for brown hatred and ignorant stereotypes, but I digress.

Last week, I decided to extend the experiment and tie it into The Broken Window Theory. In the spirit of the election season, I created a handful of signs reading "Ben Dayhoe: For A Better Santa" with the Pub Crawl URL listed below the tagline. Under the cover of darkness, we set out to stake them around town (example below).

With the help of two awesome neighbors, we successfully "politically vandalized" the city of Santa Ana in an effort to promote the Pub Crawl to residents of Santa Ana, and maybe get a laugh or two (bonus points for offending).
What I found to be interesting was that the signs that I placed adjacent to official candidate and proposition signs remained untouched (with the exception of the sign we placed on the SW corner of Sycamore and Main that was mysteriously removed and replaced with yet another "Michele Martinez for Mayor"), and the signs that were placed on Broadway and E. Seventeenth Street where no other campaign signs resided were quickly removed.

Does the removal of my signs prove the Broken Window Theory? Not at all (but it does make me wonder how much "political graffiti" will remain post-November 4th). But I did notice that once political signs were removed, they were very slow to come back in that very same location.

David Hastie, the General Manager down at Memphis thinks that someone may have actually stolen my some of my signs. He told me in an email last week that people were actually running out into the center median and to take pictures with my signs. How rad is that?

Stolen or not, I'm very flattered. In my six+ years as a professional designer, NO ONE has ever taken a picture with anything I've created, let alone stolen my work. I say awesome–awesome to the max!

This Wednesday, I'm hoping to meet with the Downtown Business Council in hopes to receive funding to further promote the Pub Crawls. It's been a fun and humbling experience for me and I hope that the Pub Crawl continues to grow, chipping away at the stigma that's associated with our great city of Santa Ana.

The next Pub Crawl is this Saturday, November 8th. I hope you'll join me for a drink.

One last note, I'd like to thank my neighbors Dallas, Chris and Krissy for letting me "politicize" your front yards, as well as "Lando" and "El Diablo Blanco" for helping plant the signs.

www.santaanapubcrawl.com

Hello to you Suzanne Broughton and Family!

Thank you for putting together this awesome clip :)

Original post here.

Art Walk This Saturday (10/18)

Tomorrow night marks the third Saturday of the month, which means it's Art Walk time at the Santiago Street Lofts!

In recent months, I've noticed a rise in elected city officials attending the Art Walks which means we're on their radar. Though, the true measure of our success will be whether or not we can get them to come back in December.

If you missed last month's Art Walk, check out some photos I snapped here.

Art Walk Photos: 09/20/08

Art from the HiveArt from the Hive (street view)

Candid Art

Curbside Gallery

J. Lewis Gallery

Liberty Fine Arts

Salu Gallery

Sipho's Gallery

Galeria Tufiño

Strong Island Designs

August Art Walk

Last month we had a great turnout for our July art walk. Local restaurants Bistro 400 and Jason's Downtown Restaurant pitched in with much some needed refreshments and treats for our guests.

This Saturday, August 16th brings yet another art walk full of good times and then some.

Even with the help of the downtown restaurants, it's hard to predict how busy art walk nights will be. In recent months, our community has worked extra hard as a unified team to promote this monthly event. Why? Because we can't wait for the city to bring the fun–just ask the downtown loft residents who've been here 5 years and counting.

And though the success of our art walk is due to many factors like our residents, I'd like to take the time to thank some of the websites that helped get us on the map:

OC Now
The OC Art Blog
The City of Santa Ana Calendar
The French Park Website
Yelp (thanks Brian!) - taco lady does rock

Big July Art Walk

Tomorrow night kicks off the first event of our three-part summer art walk series: "Summer Groove".

There will be a live band jamming in the courtyard, DJs spinning on the streets, and drinks being served from our downtown friends Bistro 400.

Art Walk starts at 7PM. For more information, visit the newly updated (thanks Mrs. Dayhoe) Santiago Art District website for more information and links to the gallery websites.

Download our Summer Flyer here.

Ooh! The Colors!

About a month ago, this "peace" caught my eye as I was driving south in the car pool lane on the 55 freeway. To get a better look at the work, I had to pull off the freeway and backtrack being that it wasn't exactly facing the commuting traffic.

Graffiti of this caliber is rarely seen in Santa Ana. Luckily, I had my handy-dandy point-and-shoot cause I knew this one was a keeper.

The businesses along the 55 freeway are frequently subject to gawdawful "attempts" at graffiti art. The Pool Tables USA building alone (facing the southbound side of the 55 freeway) is often abused by graffiti of sub-par standards (at best), which are eventually painted over only to be a clean canvas for the next amateur waiting in the bushes.

Note: In the last two years, I've seen this building having been painted over several times. I wonder when the property owner will consider a wall-crawling vine to help reduce the all too frequent attacks and help cut back on his/her trips to the Home Depot paint department.

If the "KND" (Kings Never Die) signature on the top right looks/sounds familiar to you, then you probably remember the infamous "22 Tagger" who a few years back, terrorized CalTrans and the 22 freeway with his mark.

Now I'm not trying to justify whether or not this should be considered art (though I personally think it is), or whether "nicer" graffiti should be condoned, but rather wanted to share an interesting photo of true graffiti culture existing in Orange County.

I'm sure if this artist were to shift their talent onto a stretched canvas, they'd be able to make some serious money at our monthly Art Walk.

June Art Walk

If you're looking for something to do tonight, come stop by our Art Walk starting at 7PM–and don't forget that next month's Art Walk is going to be HUGE!