MIXED MEDIA MIXER SPAWNS A FOLLOWING

Dorian Cohen, the organizer and collaborating artist behind "Mixed Media Mixer" is creating a momentum with a unique cocktail of live music including fusion bands and jazzie folkie songsters, painters doing their art live on canvas and paper onsite, video crews capturing the strokes and rhymes, posting their works on their channels on Youtube. 

Food and drinks are provided, donations accepted and yes, there is also rent to be paid from the proceeds.
A simple formula, a rad idea and awesome event to participate in.
We will post video links as soon as they come available.
For now we have this little collage created by Julia Lazar.

Participating artists, musicians and videographers:

Artists:

Carla Falkner
http://carlafalkner.com/
Danya Aletebi
http://creationdestruction.tumblr.com/
D’arcy Bertrand
http://dearsimone.com/
Zephyr Ian Farris
Andy Greer
http://andygreerart.com/
Marvick Garcia
http://marfackaa.deviantart.com/

Musicians:

Bogg
http://bogg.bandcamp.com/
Pageant Dads
http://pageantdads.bandcamp.com/
Transistor State Analog
http://transistorstate.bandcamp.com/
Rotation of Creation
http://www.facebook.com/RotationOfCreation
Robin Yukiko
http://robinyukiko.com/
Scott Alexander
http://scottalexandermusic.com/scottalexandermb.html

Videographers:

Dorian Cohen
Mauricio Ageno
Taylor Baldschun
James Jackson
Nick Ambe
Daniella Flores
Zac Goldstein
Mikey Garcia

HOT: FIREHOUSE ADELINE ART EVENTS HANGAR

A space for local artists of all disciplines, to co create community and current culture one event at the time. 

2013 is off to an amazing start, beyond our wildest dreams, and we are trying to capture some of the highlights in this post for you.

TURF VERSUS ALL STYLES STREET DANCE BATTLE
Host and creator Johnny5 Turfienz Lopez
Article by Molly Walls

There’s something aggressively personal about watching an experienced dancer move—the dance is an intimate poem proclaimed to the audience, a tribute to who they are and where they came from. 

Turfing, a style of street dance originating in Oakland, incorporates popping, krumping, and flexing, to create a freeform, improvised piece with the grace of ballet and the irresistible rhythms of rap. 

This Saturday Johnny 5, the CEO of Turf Inc. and a member of the acclaimed dance crew Turf Fienz, held a dance battle at the Firehouse South Berkeley location. 

The room itself seemed to be moving, with waves of energy and verve rippling through the crowd, friends conversing through a universal language of rhythm and dance. The crowd’s lively and engaged vibe fueled the dancers to push each performance further, dropping themselves to the floor, manipulating body and motion with an exhilarating fervor. 

The term “dance battle” doesn’t seem to completely convey the collaborative nature experience—the dancers weren’t fighting against each other, but rather using the energy and enthusiasm of their surroundings to create a multi-functional piece, an eye catching array of flawless motion and cadence. 

Turfing, and the myriad of other street dancing styles on display at the event, utilizes the oppressed frustration and intensity of each performer to create a beautiful and deeply personal manifesto, a collage and a conversation urging audience participation and attention. I left Firehouse that night with stunned adoration and eagerness that only such immense energy and commitment provokes.


MIXED MEDIA MIXER
Host and creator Dorian Cohen

Communicate with your community!
If you are interested in art, music, photography or video, do not miss this event!

Artists: Carla Falkner http://carlafalkner.com/; Danya Aletebi http://creationdestruction.tumblr.com/; D’arcy Bertrand http://dearsimone.com/; Zephyr Ian Farris; Andy Greer http://andygreerart.com/; Marvick Garcia http://marfackaa.deviantart.com/

Musicians: Bogg http://bogg.bandcamp.com/; Pageant Dads http://pageantdads.bandcamp.com/; Transistor State Analog http://transistorstate.bandcamp.com/; Rotation of Creation http://www.facebook.com/RotationOfCreation; Robin Yukiko http://robinyukiko.com/; Scott Alexander http://scottalexandermusic.com/scottalexandermb.html

 Videographers: Dorian Cohen, Mauricio Ageno, Taylor Baldschun, James Jackson, Nick Ambe, Daniella Flores, Zac Goldstein, Mikey Garcia

COTTAGE FOOD NIGHT MARKET CELEBRATION
Host and creator: Alex Stone
Article by Alex Stone

Thanks to the Cottage Food Act, foodies who make delicious jams, breads, baked goods and more out of their kitchen can now get licensed to sell them! Join us for a night of food and festivities to celebrate this amazing victory for the local food movement. 

Salted Caramel Cupcake by Teveh, Sweet Life

You can come out and meet the Bay Area homemade bakers, cooks, jamborees, nut butter churners and more and get your hands on these never before sold goods. In addition to these amazing local vendors, we'll have hella music and light refreshments available.
To make everything better, Christina Oatfield from the Sustainable Economies Law Center (SELC) will be speaking and be available for questions you may have about the Cottage Food Law and what it means for any home foodie business you may be thinking about kicking up!

We'll have have the live musical stylings of Tommy P as the evening continues! Check him out on Facebook here: www.facebook.com/tommypimusic
Sliding scale donation $0-5 at the door and no one turned away for lack of funds! Your donation will toward the space and ensuring that this market can continue to happen in the future!



HARMON STREET STUDIOS ART & MUSIC SHOW
Host and creator Jacob James
Article by Melody Webster

On a crisp night in February, many gathered from around the area to listen to local bands and view four local artists work at the Firehouse Adeline Art Hangar, in a show put on by Harmon Street resident Jacob James. “I wanted to put on the show basically to unite all of the local artists and musicians that live/work at the Firehouse Collective and to promote our work to residents in the area.” 

With a turn out of more than 50 people, the atmosphere was bright and collaborative throughout the night. Local painters Alexis Mosqueda, Lili Ishida, and Marlena Mendoza hung their work along with photographer Melody Webster.

Photo by Melody Webster

Photo by Melody Webster

The painting themes ranged from surreal to portraits, and Marlena Mendoza showcased her textile craft in a mini installation where her paintings were hung.
Three bands provided exceptional music for the evening. Teenage Sweater, originally from Santa Rosa, is compiled of two young men with a drum set and sampling machine. Their music is a mix of heavy percussion and chillwave/pop beats that is entirely organic and unique. Following them, Frozen Family played. Frozen Family is a band originally started by Harmon St. resident Harry Selik and a friend of his. Currently, the band is now compiled of four members who play a smooth blend of alternative and folk genres. To cap off the night, We Are the Men performed a great set, unfortunately cut short due to noise complaints.
Jell-O shots, beer, and sangria were offered with a suggested donation and kept the energy of the night alive. Ultimately, this show weaved together several aspects of the Collective’s talent and values while showcasing the local artists and musicians to the rest of the community.
If you want to see more of those featured visit these links:
Melody Webster: http://melodyrosephotography.tumblr.com/
Marlena Mendoza: http://l-e-m-o-n-m-i-l-k.tumblr.com/
Frozen Family: https://www.facebook.com/thefrozenfamily
We Are the Men: https://www.facebook.com/pages/We-Are-The-Men/
Teenage Sweater: https://soundcloud.com/teenagesweater

Posted by julia lazar, let us know what you think, your comment counts.

Art commentary by Molly Walls

I don’t know at what age art became untouchable. In my early years, art was about passion and making mistakes—messy blurs of paint and crayons, wildflowers bleeding and blooming out of watercolor and ink. But at a certain point, some separation occurred, a layer of self judgment and discrimination between myself and the work, like looking through frosted glass.

The world around me seemed to confirm this criticism—art had a distinct stigma, sets of unspoken rules on how to view it, how to experience it, and how to create it. Gone were the days of childlike wonder, where everything beautiful and everything ugly could be transformed.

Since interning at Firehouse, art has begun to shed this layer of pretension and division, and become an experience again—something to be excited about, a way to ask a question or receive an answer, a way to release and to give. 

Tom Franco’s Art Attack at the YBCA embodied this playful collaboration. 

Performers experimented and communicated through their work; the line between the viewer and the artist blurred until every guest was participating in some larger piece, a sustained and pure moment of beauty and expression. 

I began to notice this collective experience with Sha Sha Higby’s moving sculpture performance, her intricate costume and the ambient sound filling the room melded together to create a lyrical and captivating narrative—a conversation between the audience and the artist. 

The absence of a stage and the inclusive seating encouraged this creative progression, and each consecutive artist used the space to converse and to give, without the removed or condescending aura that contemporary art can sometimes emit. In short, the evening brought me back to the art of my childhood—sidewalk chalk kisses on the knees, every living thing as moving, breathing sculpture—but with the maturity and artistic acumen of adults. 

Art can fill a moment, give time a heavy ripeness, sound, light, and movement rushing together in eloquent freedom, and the Art Attack took full advantage of this possibility for collective experience and collaboration.

Posted by Molly Walls

From Portland, Molly studies liberal arts in Vermont at Bennington College

To view Mollie's photography click here.

Comments are always welcome, let us know what you think.

ART FOR SCHOOLS FUNDRAISER IN PIEDMONT

Firehouse Art Collective directors Tom Franco and Julia Lazar were invited to collaborate. With onsite live painting projects to be auctioned off live.
Silent auction goes on of super cool creative birdhouses and other intriguing tidbits goes on while champagne and wine flows and the locals mingle.

The irrepressible and dynamic Karen Stanton generates the annual "Birdhouse Auction Gala" hosted by Piedmont residents and parents in their upscale, short of posh estates, and is crazy successful pulling the right peeps together in support of Art in public schools of the district.

This year she got Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day to donate a signed guitar and other rock'n'roll paraphernalia, where half of the proceeds went to Billie Joe's old high school  in the Rodeo district in Oakland.
Cool we say!

Was an awesome day and people donated great funds for the arts to continue in public high schools these parts of town. Thanks Karen!!! really.
Special thanks to our friend Andre Salcido, a pro auctioneer in Alameda, for coming out to help.