Posts by Bondo Wyszpolski
It’s a Never-Ending Journey
Enamel Paintings by Timothy Tompkins are on view in Manhattan Beach Timothy Tompkins was ten years old when “Star Wars” was released, and the movie changed his life. He attempted to duplicate one of the posters advertising the film, and this instilled in him “that sense of creativity that drives you to want to…
Read MoreI Waltzed with God, but Then I Stepped on His Shoe
A boatload of exotic adventures, dazzling art and significant people, and we’re just getting started. Are you coming along for the ride? Let me put down this drink and I’ll tell you how it began. In Lake Forest a woman from São João del-Rei lamented that Brazilian authors were not better known in this country.…
Read MoreA View from the Bridge: Masquerades and waterways in Venice
Arriving there during the waning years of the 19th century, writers and artists “relished Venice because it was so rarefied and dreamlike, and so inexorably doomed.” Richard Ormond, in Sargent and Italy, also added that these visitors “reveled in the idea of the city as a place of decaying splendor and corroding beauty, of sensual…
Read MoreFurniture Friendly – When what surrounds us reflects who we are
Blair Townsend is a conceptual artist based in Redondo Beach who creates custom-designed furnishings that reflect her clients’ personality, but before I left her studio the other evening she was giving me lessons in how to speak Creole. The occasion of my visit was to learn about Townsend and her work in advance of an…
Read MoreHotdogging 11/7-11/13
Thursday, November 7 Don’t look down Scientia hosts the “Reel Rock Tour” at 7 p.m. in the Hermosa Beach Playhouse, 710 Pier Ave., Hermosa Beach, this being an annual compilation of adventure film shorts that mainly focus on rocking climbing around the world. Tickets in advance are $12 and at the door they’re $15.…
Read MoreArt – “Face to Face: Flanders, Florence, and Renaissance Painting”
Let’s put the fanfare where it belongs, at the beginning. This is a small, exquisite, and intelligent show, accompanied by a catalogue that is a pleasure to hold in one’s hands and to embrace with one’s eyes. It’s also at the Huntington which is an artwork in itself. The premise here is that the paintings…
Read MoreHanging in the Balance – Gina Steiglitz paints a mural for Harmony Works
Suddenly, the carpet was pulled out from under them. “We had to move because the building sold,” says Royce Morales, the owner, with her husband, Mike, of Harmony Works in Redondo’s Riviera Village. “We had been there for almost 18 years, and so it was very traumatic.” After casting their search engines far and wide,…
Read MoreHotdogging 10/25-10/30
Friday, October 25 But no Berlioz The Beach Cities Symphony, under the direction of Maestro Barry Brisk, presents “B is for Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms,” and it takes place at 8:15 p.m. in Marsee Auditorium at El Camino College, Crenshaw and Redondo Beach boulevards, in Torrance. The program features the “Little Fugue in G minor”…
Read MorePhotography – The Window in Photographs, by Karen Hellman (Getty Publications, 112 pp., $24.95)
A window seems an easy enough object to define. It lets in the scenery, the light and the dark, and at the same time it allows us to see what’s taking place outdoors, or to not feel so enclosed. For a photographer, the window – mostly rectangular, vertical, or square – is a readymade frame,…
Read MoreSouth Bay Arts Calender 10/18-10/23
Friday, October 18 Big and bright “Moon Over Buffalo,” presented by the Manhattan Beach Community Church, opens at 8 p.m. in the church theater, 303 S. Peck Ave., MB. The madcap comedy also plays tomorrow (Saturday), as well as next Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., plus this Sunday, Oct. 20, at 2 p.m. Call…
Read MoreMaking Ends Meet – Connecting with The Redondo Beach Art Group
This year the Redondo Beach Art Group is holding its annual Power of Art event in a new location, albeit one that’s conveniently located. “Why at the Elks Club?” says Gloria Plascencia. “We were looking for any venue that would open its doors to us, and would allow us to basically turn everything upside down.…
Read MoreTheater Review – “The Sunshine Boys”
The laughs, or at least the guffaws, begin with the very title. Sunshine Boys? Really? Well, maybe half a century ago. Neil Simon’s 1972 wistful comedy is back on stage, this time at the Ahmanson Theatre through Nov. 3. There’s nothing exceptional about that; Simon’s plays are always being revived because despite the passing of…
Read MoreThis Magic Moment – Cirque du Soleil’s “Totem” opens tomorrow
When you finish reading this fine story, gently put aside your newspaper, step outdoors, and look towards the south, towards the hills of Palos Verdes. You’ll notice a scintillating glow emanating from just over the crest. What’s going on in San Pedro? Simple. The circus has landed. And not just any circus, but Cirque du…
Read MoreHotdogging 10/10/13-10/14/13
Thursday, October 10 I see the light “Victor Raphael: Illumination – from Digital to Sublime” has its opening reception from 7 to 9 p.m. tonight at the El Camino College Art Gallery, 16007 Crenshaw Blvd., Torrance. There’s an artist’s lecture at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 15. Through Oct. 31. Pictured, “Planet.” (310) 660-3010…
Read MoreTheater Review – “Gallery Secrets”
It goes back, I suppose, to a fascination with haunted houses during Halloween or funhouses at seedy amusement parks, but the attraction for site-specific or interactive “theater,” with shows ranging from “The Trojan Women” (performed on the backlot set of “Gilligan’s Island” in Studio City) to “Alma” (set within every nook and cranny of downtown…
Read MoreSouth Bay Arts Calendar 26 – Oct. 2
Thursday, September 26 Art folks The Associates is one of two support groups for the Palos Verdes Art Center and they’re inviting prospective new members to their 6 p.m. meeting today. Just show up. They meet the fourth Thursday of each month. Food and beverages, and then at 7 p.m. fashion entrepreneur Claudia Grau…
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