THE OPEN ROAD

A juried exhibition & related events at the
Judson Gallery of Contemporary and Traditional Art
200 S, Avenue 66, Highland Park, Ca.

May 19 - June 30, 2001

Opening Reception - May 19, 2-5 p.m. (featuring music and refreshments from Galco’s vintage soda pop stop.)

The Arroyo Arts Collective, a community artists’ organization in Northeast Los Angeles, presents The Open Road - a juried exhibition of members’ work commemorating the 75th anniversary of historic Route 66 at the Judson Gallery of Contemporary and Traditional Art. Artwork in all media which is thematically linked to travel, cars, vacation, the roadscape, relocation, romantic adventure and related concerns will be specially selected by artist Gilbert “Magu” Lujan and hung in the historic Judson gallery. The Judson Gallery is attached to Judson Studios, a historically designated structure which was designed at the turn of the last century to house the USC Fine Art Department and now contains world-famous working stained glass studios.

Antique Cars Display & Guest Speakers - June 9, 1-4 p.m. (free)

The adjacent Judson studios motor court will provide a picturesque setting for a display of antique cars on June 19, when Alan Rider from the Auto Club of Southern California and local historian Scott Piotrowski will present informational lectures, sharing intriguing details of mid-century Los Angeles cultural history and stories of the growth and decline of auto travel through the West along romantic Route 66.

Book Signing - June 9

A book signing will be held on June 9 by Abigail Gumbiner for her book, a photo essay entitled Vacant Eden: Roadside Treasures of the Sonora Desert.

God Bless Americana - June 30, 8 p.m. ($10)

...a humorous and wacky slide show by performance artist Charles Phoenix will close the exhibition on June 30. Charles has put together a program of vintage vacation slides from the 40s and 50s and will bring them to life again with his hilariously entertaining commentary.

Tickets: “God Bless Americana” tickets $10 at the door.

The Judson Gallery of Contemporary and Traditional Art is located at 200 Avenue 66, just off
York Boulevard in Highland Park. Gallery hours are Thursday through Saturday, noon to 4 p.m.

POETRY IN THE WINDOWS
VIEWS THE OPEN ROAD

A juried poetry competition
with poems displayed in merchants’ windows
along Figueroa Street between Avenues 50 and 61, Highland Park,
Opening Reception at 125 S. Avenue 57

June 2 - June 30, 2001

Richard Beban, Tina Demirdjian, Tish Eastman, Sesshu Foster, Robert Fritz, Leon Garcia Garagarza, Michael Gonzalez, Jessica Goodheart, Laurel Mitchell Hall, Stephanie Hemphill, Linda Anne Hoag, Terryl Hunter, Kaaren Kitchell, Cheryl Klein, Patricia E. Literte, Manuel Luna, Jeffrey McDanie, Brenda Miller, Majid Naficy, Jim Natal, Jeanne M. Nichols, Sherman Pearl, James Ragan, Jackson Wheeler.

Opening Reception - Walking Tour - Awards Reception - 125 S. Avenue 57 - June 2, 2 p.m.

Twenty-four winning poems in a multilingual competition for Southern California poets will be displayed, in English and in translation into one of the languages of the community, as posters in the windows of merchants along Figueroa Street, the central business corridor of Highland Park. In honor of historic Route 66 (which runs through Highland Park along this section of Figueroa) and its iconic associations with romantic adventure, this year’s competition will feature poems considering travel and journey, either literal or figurative.

2001 marks the occasion of the Collective’s fourth Poetry in the Windows competition - in honor of the nationwide commemoration of historic Route 66, this year’s contest will feature poems that involve travel and journey, either literal or figurative - travel through a physical landscape or through time and space. Jurors this year are noted Los Angeles writers and poets Robert Arroyo, Laurel Ann Bogen, and Ruben Martinez.

Winning poems will be enlarged and mounted as posters in storefront window displays along Figueroa Street, a segment of Historic Route 66 which runs through the business district of Highland Park. The posters, designed to include vintage photos of Route 66, will remain on display through the month of June. Cash prizes will be awarded in a ceremony at the opening reception.

This year’s contest is being directed by well known poet, editor, teacher and performer Suzanne Lummis and coordinated by Suzanne Siegel. In addition to local support Poetry in the Windows has been awarded a generous grant from the National Endowment for the Arts with matching support from the Auto Club of Southern California.

For Information: Call 323 850-8566 or email: info@ArroyoArtsCollective.org
For Press Information email: press@ArroyoArtsCollective.org