Annual Student Exhibition: Long Day’s Journey Into Art

The opening reception of the “Annual Student Art Exhibition: B.A. Graduates” on May 14 was the culmination of the journey art students at California State University, Dominguez Hills have taken, from halfway around the globe to the local community colleges, to get to this point in their lives. Gilah Yelin Hirsch is happy to be someone they meet along the way.

“After all these years, you’d think I’d be jaded, but I’m more thrilled every year,” says the professor of art who has been on campus since 1973. “From the first day in beginning drawing or painting, everyone expresses themselves uniquely in what they choose, how they execute their work, and how they begin to form a trajectory that’s irreversible from the first minute. For me, the exciting thing is to watch these unique journeys of individuality and expression. There’s nothing like it.”

In one of the richest shows ever in the University Art Gallery, students’ work, ranging from motion graphics and web design to sculpture and paintings filled the space. Commenting on how the students were charged with installing the show themselves, graduating senior Gina Salas says the experience was “so much fun.”

“We spent long hours, but it was well worth it because we got to do it together,” she says. “We were all acting as one gigantic family, helping each other out, it was great.”

Kathy Zimmerer, director of the University Art Gallery, says that the opportunity to learn to display their work was valuable for studio and graphic artists alike.

“The design students have to know how to do a presentation,” she says. “But, the studio artists will be exhibiting — we hope — so they need to know how to do an installation, putting wires on their paintings, and how to prepare them, or if they have sculpture, how to find the right kind of pedestal, how to place it, and how to light it. It gave them experience in putting together an exhibition and installing it. It looks very cohesive and unified because of that.”

Preliminary sketches for a large-scale mural project for the Watts Health Center, coordinated by Hirsch and her painting students, were also on display. The 18 student volunteers working with Hirsch on the Watts Health Center mural were recognized during the reception by Patricia Brown, an administrator from the hospital, for their participation in the project.

“This is the first school I approached. It was divine [intervention],” she says. “I’ve seen a lot of enthusiasm. These students are very inspired about volunteering their efforts to bringing up the community and that says a lot to me because young people are not on that [same] page.”

Hirsch is proud of the students, alumni and faculty who are participating in the Watts Mural Project, which will be created on campus this summer and installed at the facility later this year.

“We have two teams now, all of whom are gifted artists on their own,” she says. “The collective process of working on it is a whole endeavor into community understanding. To be able to work for the greater good and what will enhance the whole [project] is a very important part of this process all on its own.”

The evening’s awards ceremony began with the Artist of the Year Award, presented to Maria Flores by Eugenia Blackburn, chair of the City of Carson Fine Arts & Historical Commission. A monetary award accompanied this honor.

Flores, a double major in liberal studies and studio art, says she enjoys “the whole environment, of activity, and doing things with your hands.” She hopes to incorporate her art training when she becomes a second or third grade teacher.

“With TV and all the media, kids have a really short attention span and you have to compete with that,” she says. “I want to get that into the classroom, to be able to show them pictures and how to do things with their hands.”

The Designer of the Year Award was presented by Russ Skrable, president of Standard Wire and Cable in Rancho Dominguez. The university’s students have been designing the company’s catalog since 1991. Ernest Tulabut, who also designed the class schedules for CSUDH’s 2008-09 academic year, received the $250 award.

Two Excellence in Design Awards were presented, one to Rocio Cedillo by Michele Allan, chair of the art department and associate professor of graphic design, on behalf of Schafer Logistics, Inc., and another to Kelvin Reyna by Bernard Baker, emeritus faculty, on behalf of Walser’s Art Supply in Torrance.

Jim Keville, assistant professor of art, presented the Excellence in Studio Art Award to Mai Iwase on behalf of Lyon Art Supply in Long Beach. The award came with a $50 gift certificate to Lyon. Lastly, Summer Studios Arts Academy (SSAA) in Lomita awarded $100 scholarships to three continuing students. David Parsons, adjunct faculty and SSAA’s executive director, presented the Academy’s Excellence in Design Award to Heather Johnson, the Excellence in Studio Art Award to Nicole Adams, and the Excellence in Art History Award to Christopher Avery.

Seniors graduating with honors in their major were announced by their professors. Louise Ivers, professor of art, introduced Phyllis Ann Quinn, art history. Allan announced four design students: Carmen Escobedo, Adriana Saucedo, Louise Wain, and Shawn Watson. She also announced Ivers’ retirement from Cal State Dominguez Hills after 37 years in the art department.

“Annual Student Art Exhibition: B.A. Graduates” continues until May 21. The University Art Gallery, on the main floor of the university’s LaCorte Hall, is open Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is free. For more information on the University Art Gallery, click here.

- Joanie Harmon

Photos above: Mai Iwase came to the United States from Nagoya, Japan to expand her artistic skills. The aspiring painter is also honing her abilities in sculpture in her current work for
www.back-drop.com, a custom manufacturer of motorcycle seats.

Andrew Wokabi, arrived in Los Angeles from Kenya, seeking a university to pursue his bachelor's degree in art. A participant in the CSUDH Watts Mural Project, he hopes to begin working on his M.F.A. at USC after graduation.

Maria Flores incorporates autobiographical aspects of her life into her sculptures, including her "Self-Portrait" (pictured at top left on wall). The aspiring elementary school teacher hopes to bring her art experience to the classroom.

Jose Pina, a Carson native, followed in his sister's footsteps to Dominguez Hills. He says that his self portrait wire sculpture, "Breaking Out," depicts his desire to "break out of the norm and find my own path."

John Daniel, a graduating senior in graphic design, pays homage to his mother's Trinidadian heritage with the images used for a class project of creating a deck of playing cards. He has been admitted to the New School of Architecture in San Diego and will begin his studies there this summer.

Gina Salas, who graduates in graphic design this spring, looks forward to a career in the fashion industry, using the skills she learned at Dominguez Hills. She celebrates her retro style with various projects, including a deck of playing cards with Hollywood icons and advertisements for coffee and films.

Photos by Joanie Harmon