Emeryville Art Exhibition | San Francisco on the Bay

SNEAK PREVIEW: A Change of Art for Linda Lee Boyd & Emeryville’s Art Exhibition
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SNEAK PREVIEW: A Change of Art for Linda Lee Boyd & Emeryville’s Art Exhibition

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SNEAK PREVIEW: A Change of Art for Linda Lee Boyd & Emeryville’s Art Exhibition

Introducing something she knows. Something she painted – Street Scenes

One of the great volunteers for Emeryville’s Annual Art Exhibition is artist, printmaker and designer Linda Lee Boyd. Linda has entered a series of three acrylic paintings in this year’s show, a departure from the Linda we knew – a woodblock print artist.

Linda has been on the board of Celebration of the Arts, sponsor of the annual art exhibition, for 20 years and had volunteered on the Operating Committee several years prior. She first entered her artwork, woodblock prints, in 1992. “Of all printmaking techniques, cutting and printing woodcuts had always felt the most natural to me,”commented Linda.

What is interesting about her woodblock prints is that she liked watching people and had so admired figurative artists like Alice Neal, Lucian Freud, Rembrandt, and Vermeer, that she started with images of her family, friends, and then co-workers. This led to a series of prints of workers. “These prints of workers are observations of the people but are also an attempt to give the viewer a sense of how they feel about themselves and their work.”

When asked why the change in medium for the 2020 Art Exhibition, Linda said, “I’ve been doing woodblock prints for over 40 years. I never learned to paint. This year, I decided to give it another try. I figured out that I had to paint in the same way I do prints – layers of color to make shapes and textures.”

Street Scenes seem to depict glimpses of all our walks during the pandemic – we all know our sidewalks, streets and gutters by heart now. And what led Linda to these themes in her paintings? “I got inspired by looking at the gutters while out walking my dog.” What is she planning for her next effort? Well according to Linda, “I’m still in the gutters!”

Linda is passionate about the Emeryville Annual Art Exhibition. “I love the Emeryville Art Exhibition. It’s a great show every year because of the depth and variety of artwork done by people living and working in Emeryville. It’s a true representation of what a creative community is producing

“Sharon Wilchar, the Project Coordinator, does an amazing job every year pulling together so many different aspects of the show,” continues Linda. “In the recent past, the largest problem has been finding a site for the show. This year, there is no site due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Instead, she has had to guide us through the new territory of an online show through the website, Zoom and Facebook live. I’d like to give a shout-out to US Design Resources, volunteers who are helping non-profits find digital outlets. They have been great opening the new world for us of a totally online art exhibition.”

Street Scenes Series by Linda Lee Boyd:

Street Scene 4 – Street Scene 5 – Street Scene 6. All acrylic on panel 11”x 14” x.5” and listed at $500. More info here: https://lindaleeboyd.com/

Emeryville Annual Art Exhibition

When:

2020 Virtual Exhibition is Online, October 2–November 1, 2020
Live-Streaming Opening Night Party: Friday, 6pm, October 2, 2020

Where:

ONLINE

Public Info:

www.emeryarts.org or 510-652-6122

By Mary Lou Thiercof|2023-09-14T15:29:43-07:00September 23rd, 2020|Tags: Emeryville Art Exhibition, Linda Lee Boyd, Opening Night, Zoom Party|0 Comments

A Tribute to Our Beloved Nora Davis

How I knew Nora

When I first met her, I was producing the Emeryville News, a newspaper for the City of Emeryville and the Emeryville Chamber of Commerce. She always emailed or called me right back when I was looking for an interview or quote for a story. And her quote was always deeply felt and on spot. It surprised me. Not many were like that.

I remember going before the City Council to ask for approval to produce the city’s first race – The Shortest Triathlon Ever with Dr. Warren Strudwick, Bay Area Orthopaedic Sports & Spine. Nora looked me straight in the eyes, giving me her support as I talked. With approval, we went forward and the day of that first race, it was raining. I had prepared a chair for Mayor Nora with balloons tied to it at the finish line. Though it was raining, she said, “Let’s just do it,” and we sat and watched the community straggle in to the finish as the rain poured down. She cheered on every single person. Good thing the race was so short, we did not get totally soaked.

Here is Nora with Mary Lou Thiercof, race coordinator, Hanns Detlefsen, winner at 22 min, 51 sec, and Kurt Brinkman, Council member and annual volunteer.

She was mayor many times over the years, When the America’s Cup came to town, well not exactly to Emeryville, I was planning a Destination Emeryville program to bring visitors to the America’s Cup in SF to Emeryville to dock, stay, dine and play. With my partner Malaga Smith, SF on the Bay planned to design banners to welcome folks and let them know what a fun city they had landed in. Again, I had to go before City Council for approval. I had talked to Nora prior and she loved the idea of the banners. We asked for 156 banners to hang down Powell St to the marina. In the middle of my plea, she said she wanted to see the banners everywhere – all down Shellmound to Bay St and to the Public Market. It was unanimously approved, and we produced and hung over 300 banners depicting all the outdoor sports one can do in Emeryville.

She was strong. She was kind. She was empathetic and always strategic. She made Emeryville so much of what it is today and certainly gave Emeryville that ‘let’s just do it!’ attitude that propels it ahead of the trends. She made it all worth it for me to volunteer for the City. And she had the pulse of the business community because she was a good listener and cared about their concerns.

This award is so important that it takes two people to present the award.

In 2011, I headed up the Vision Awards Committee for the Chamber to celebrate its 25^th Anniversary and honor the pioneers and innovators in Emeryville. We determined the designee for the Joseph S. Emery Lifetime Achievement Award – Nora Davis. Here are some of my notes I prepared for the two presenting the award to Nora, Emeryville’s past redevelopment director Kofi Bonner, along with John Gooding, representing the Chamber and business community.

“We have now come to the last but very important Vision Award. The Joseph S. Emery Lifetime Achievement Award. And it goes to a woman who is so close to the hearts of everyone in this room. She was first elected to Council in 1987. She is currently Mayor of Emeryville – Nora Davis!

“Nora Davis has been a strong and consistent leader on the City Council and a voice of reason and stability during debates on critical issues. She has never lost sight of Emeryville’s heritage as a city that was founded as a center of commerce and business and has consistently advanced those principals during Council and Committee deliberations. Always top of mind for her is that a sound private sector economy is essential for the City to be able to provide the high quality of services the residents, business and visitors have come to expect. As a resident of Emeryville for over 30 years, Nora is on numerous committees in the city – always supportive of volunteers involved in making Emeryville a wonderful place to live and work.

“Lucky for Emeryville, Nora had former retail management experience which helped strengthen Emeryville’s economy through business attraction and retention, and keeping business costs low. Her emeritus status on the Emery Education Foundation reflects her involvement and support for our teachers, young students and their families. John Gooding, one of the presenters that evening, had a great story about driving his mom around Emeryville and pointing out the mayor who had parked her car on the side of the road and was picking up trash under the freeway.

“It is our pleasure to award to you, Nora, the Joseph S. Emery Lifetime Achievement Award. Thank you for all that you have given to the residents and businesses of Emeryville. This award is a perpetual award and will be placed at City Hall.”

RIP Nora! I know all of Emeryville already misses you! You will always be in our hearts. All our love from SF on the Bay!

By Mary Lou Thiercof|2020-09-16T20:20:29-07:00September 16th, 2020|Tags: Emeryville Art Exhibition, Opening Night, Zoom Party|3 Comments

Meet Emeryville’s Artists. View their Art. It’s the 2020 Art Exhibition‘s Opening Night Zoom Party!

Keeping in step with current SIP protocol and the challenges of social distancing, the 34th Annual Emeryville Art Exhibition will be presented online, featuring 169 pieces of artwork by 85 Emeryville artists from October 2 – November 1, 2020. 2020 means it’s a virtual exhibition allowing visitors to be socially distanced, yet culturally connected. Online artist interviews, videos, art shop, down-loadable art map, poetry workshop, and more make it easy and fun for you to attend the exhibit and enjoy the live-streamed Opening Night event on Friday, October 2 at 6pm.

“This year has definitely posed some strange and new challenges for all of us, but with so much creativity in our community we couldn’t let this year slip by,” says Sharon Wilchar, Art Exhibition Producer.” The Opening Night Zoom Party will reveal the 2020 contributing artists and their works. We will also announce the recipient of the City’s annual Purchase Award and there may even be a special guest musical performance. We’re hoping the community will join us virtually this year to raise a glass and celebrate the artists thriving in Emeryville.”

Celebrate the City of Emeryville’s vibrant collective creativity and experience a sampling of artwork created by Emeryville artists. Each year a panel of Bay Area art professionals uncover emerging talent, along with new work by established artists and selects the pieces for the exhibition though a jury process. And each year a carefully curated group show features the works of artists and craftspeople who live or work in Emeryville, representing all media, including paintings, sculpture, photographs, prints, ceramics, textiles, video, glass works, and literary arts.

Gary Llamido-Babel Triptich-Mixed Media -48 x 72 x 4

Artists

Contributing artists this year include painters M. Louise Stanley, Frank Cole, Gail Tarantino, Foad Satterfield, Yuzo Nakano, and John W Wood; choreographer Nancy Karp; clay artists Cuong Ta, Jeff Margolin, James Morris, and Bill Schwob; photographers Susan Scott, Troy Ziel, Addie Jenkins, Xan Walker, and Jeannie O’Connor; printmakers Kazuko Watanabe, Julitette Choné, and Erin Fong; Ann Holsberry working in mixed media; sculptors Ken Kalman, Kim Thoman, Cheryl Coon, and Mark Galt; and a special tribute to artist Joseph DiStefano.

Sponsor & Jurors

The Annual Emeryville Art Exhibition is sponsored by Emeryville Celebration of the Arts, Inc. Independent curator and exhibition designer Kathleen Hanna is curator and juror. The other 2020 jurors are Christine Koppes, Curator and Director of Public Programs at the San Jose Institute of Contemporary Art (SJICA), and Kathryn Funk, independent exhibits organizer and curator, formerly with SJICA, Montalvo Arts Center, and Fresno Art Museum.