OPERA PACIFIC
Orange County, California's Resident Grand Opera Producing Company

Financial Position Dramatically Improves During 2006-2007 Season

Strategic planning launched with funding through major grant from James Irvine Foundation

Carmen has highest per show box office gross in Opera Pacific history

Opera Pacific Foundation Formed

Robert C. Jones, President and CEO of Opera Pacific, announced at the Annual Meeting yesterday that the financial position of Opera Pacific has dramatically improved during the past fiscal year - so much so that “Opera Pacific had a significant operating surplus following the 2006-2007 season, the best place that the company has been in recent memory and certainly since 2001.

“Opera Pacific has extraordinary leadership,” said Jones. “Our Chairman Paul Musco offered a $2 million challenge grant that was not only matched, but exceeded with new and increased gifts totaling $2.3 million from fifteen donors. The commitment of Paul and Marybelle, at a critical time in the life of the company, inspired others to provide exemplary support of their own.”

“As a result, Opera Pacific faces its future for the first time in a long time with a sense of real optimism and the ability to finance its activities. The entire community benefits from the leadership and generosity of the Muscos, many generous donors at all levels, and the Board of Directors.”

Much of the new financial stability of Opera Pacific comes from a business plan that Jones developed when he first arrived in the fall of 2004 - with the five-year goals of “stabilize, sustain, and grow.” At that time management and the Board had to quickly stabilize a company that had been incurring annual operating deficits for several years: reducing costs, cutting back on staff and administrative expenses, and reducing the number of annual productions -- in order to keep artistic standards high for all remaining operas.

Significant strides to sustain the company came next through a plan for long-term debt reduction and adoption of strong fiscal control standards and practices maintained by the Board. The company is now poised for growth in the form of added productions, progressive and prestigious programming, and new offerings of smaller form music drama in new venues and educational formats to increase community participation. Growth, however, is dependent on increased revenue from both ticket sales and donations.

Jones said, “The Musco Challenge and successful match has been a cornerstone allowing us to announce these improved financial results today. The timing of this meeting, following on the triumph of a season-opening performance of La Bohème last Wednesday that wowed the audience, fills us with optimism and momentum for the future. It is exciting to turn our thoughts ahead - to The Magic Flute and Susannah, the West Coast Premiere of one of the best and most often performed American operas ever written. Then to next season with The Grapes of Wrath and Salome, highlighted by Deborah Voight's only regional operatic appearance, and then to celebrating the 25th anniversary of Opera Pacific in 2010-2011 with true blockbuster events to be announced.”

In addition to the positive financial results, Robert Jones outlined continued progress in strategic planning. Opera Pacific has engaged NP Strategies, a highly regarded planning organization from San Diego, to help it undertake an extensive review of Opera Pacific's role in the Southern California community as curator and creator of music drama.

NP Strategies is helping Opera Pacific to identify and plan for its role as a strong community resource, further development of its governance structure and effectiveness, and alignment of the company with the growing needs of an evolving population. Support for this capacity-building initiative is made possible, in part, through a major four-year grant from the James Irvine Foundation, awarded to Opera Pacific through a competitive process.

Opera Pacific also announced the formation of the Opera Pacific Foundation, for the purpose of generating and managing a new endowment for the company and to provide arms-length stewardship for restricted major gifts. “There are many forward thinking community leaders who recognize the need for a permanent endowment to secure the future of Opera Pacific as a pillar of the cultural maturity of Orange County, which takes pride in its reputation and quality of life,” said Jones.

“The Opera Pacific Foundation provides additional security that funding for the future will be segregated and independently managed. A strong endowment is the next - and perhaps most important - cornerstone for any institution that is financially secure and ready to grow. It is needed to keep pace with the ever-increasing need for educational offerings, continually elevated standards of artistry, and the technological advances needed to deliver arts to ever evolving consumers.”

The company also achieved its highest gross per performance revenue for its 2006 production of Carmen, featuring the farewell performances of the international star, mezzo soprano Milena Kitic. Ms Kitic, an Orange County resident, was among the newly elected Opera Pacific Board of Directors.

ELECTION TO THREE-YEAR TERMS - BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Karl Bergstrom
Jay Kunkle
John Dunbar*
Carlos Mollura*
Martin Hubbard
Mark Nielsen*
Robert C. Jones
Barbara Roberts*
Dee Kerrison
Clarence Turner
Gail Kirwan
Fillmore Wood
Milena Kitic*
o Inaugural term

OFFICERS
Sebastian Paul Musco, Chair
David Moore, Vice Chair
Beverly Spring, Vice Chair
Dag Wilkinson, Vice Chair
Fillmore Wood, Vice Chair
Connie Spenuzza, Secretary
Patrick Dirk, Treasurer
Robert C. Jones, President & CEO
Dawn S. Reese, Assistant Secretary & Assistant Treasurer

No Trespassing

Images of El Morro – the photography of

Robert Rooks
Rainey Fine Art -- Balboa Peninsula

Featuring video footage from the documentary “End of Summer – Last Days of El Morro”
A film by Ron Pastucha and Lynn Hackman
Former El Morro residents will be attending

Saturday November 3, 2007 - artist reception
6:00 – 10:00 pm
Exhibition: Nov. 3 – Nov. 30

Photographic images of El Morro
by Newport Beach photographer Robert Rooks

Images of a community that no longer exists. Capturing a moment in California history –
the mythic lore of the California dream that is changing faster all the time. A unique exhibition of photographic and visual imagery documenting the last days of El Morro.

Former El Morro residents will be in attendance to reunite and relive the
memories of the fabled seaside community of El Morro.

“I am excited to present Robert’s photographs in my gallery because of the powerful
images he was able to capture and what this show represents. I was taken in by his desire
to reunite the community of El Morro.

These pictures take us through a time when the people of El Morro had to say goodbye to the lives they once shared and to the home they loved.

“Robert talked about the show being a triangle effect where the El Morro community all
meet together to relate with the photographs, video footage, and one another.

“My passion for connecting people through art matches that of Robert’s, as his vision to
bring them home, in a sense, will be realized. Robert captured on camera those still,
tender moments of the harsh reality of those last days of having to say goodbye to home.”

Lisa Rainey
Rainey Fine Art Gallery

No Trespassing
Images of El Morro – the photography of Robert Rooks

Artist Statement: Robert Rooks – Balboa Island, Newport Beach

A professional photographer for over 15 years, specializing in corporate, professional
sports photography and documentary photojournalism. In addition to being a film maker,
currently developing a feature length documentary film on Illegal Immigration.

www.RobertRooksProductions.com

The idea of doing the “No Trespassing” show came about while working on a documentary film project on El Morro.

I had the opportunity to photograph the last days of El Morro – the abandoned homes and empty lots and the people who stayed until the very last day. I always new El Morro was a special place. It became even more apparent while spending time with the residents during the last days. I realized how much this place meant to them.

I have taken photographs from the ocean at El Morro for years. It’s a place unlike any other. The cold fall mornings with the sun rising over the hills – offshore winds creating these golden plumes of water set against the black backdrop of the point. Very spiritual and inspiring. “When it finally came to an end in 2006, I realized what made El Morro such a special place. It was the people.

El Morro was a community of people who respected the ocean, each other, their lifestyle and the place they called home.” “No Trespassing” is a unique exhibition of still photography, video footage and the interaction of former residents with the imagery and with each other. The show is an opportunity to reunite and relive the memories of El Morro through photographs and video.

It’s an interesting exhibition to have people in attendance who know more about the photographs than the photographer. I captured these moments in time, yet the former residents of El Morro lived these moments every day. Some for generations.

It is a shame to see communities like El Morro disappearing from the California landscape. It is, however, an honor to be a part of an exhibition that celebrates the things that made El Morro such a great community.

Robert Rooks
October 2007

Rainey Fine Art
Balboa Peninsula
105 Palm Street
Newport Beach, CA 92661
Lisa Rainey
949-673-1382
Lisa@raineyfineart.com
www.raineyfineart.com

THE LAGUNA PLAYHOUSE

PRESENTS

Hank Williams: Lost Highway

BY RANDALL MYLER & MARK HARELIK

DIRECTED by RANDALL MYLER

November 13 – December 16, 2007

Casting has been announced for The Laguna Playhouse production of Hank Williams: Lost Highway, the Off Broadway hit musical about the life of country music legend Hank Williams that runs November 13 through December 16 at the Moulton Theatre in Laguna Beach.

Van Zeiler has been cast in the lead role of Hank Williams, the music icon who touched the hearts of millions in his short career. Zeiler portrayed Williams in previous productions of Lost Highway in San Diego, Nashville, New York and Arizona. He played the title role in Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story in London and on UK/US tours. He has extensive NY and regional credits at Lincoln Center Directors’ Lab, Looking Glass Theatre, CAP21, Transport Group, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Dallas Theatre Center, Arizona Rep, Kansas City Rep, New Harmony Theatre, Ordway Center, Princeton Rep, and Cortland Rep. Film/TV: “All My Children,” “Guiding Light,” “Tad,” “Families at War” (BBC).

Other cast members include Mississippi Charles Bevel as Tee-Tot, Margaret Bowman as Mama Lily, Stephen G. Anthony as Hoss, Myk Watford as Jimmy Burrhead, Marc Baczynski as Leon Loudmouth, Mike Regan as Fred “Pap” Rose, Russ Weaver as Shag, Stephanie Cozart as the Waitress, and Regan Southard as Audrey Williams.

Director Randal Myler was nominated for a 2003 Outer Critics Circle Award (Best Director) for Hank Williams: Lost Highway, which he co-wrote and directed. He also wrote and directed the hit musical Love, Janis and received a Tony® nomination for It Ain't Nothin' But The Blues, which he co-authored and directed at Lincoln Center. He has examined the lives of The Mamas and the Papas (Dream a Little Dream), frequent co-writer Mark Harelik’s grandfather (The Immigrant), and John Denver (Almost Heaven and Back Home Again: A John Denver Holiday Concert). Regionally he has directed throughout the United States, including The Kennedy Center, the Mark Taper Forum, the Arena Stage, Actor's Theatre of Louisville and many others.

Hank Williams: Lost Highway is a musical tribute that traces the brief but stellar career of country music icon Hank Williams, who touched the hearts of millions of people through his memorable mystique as a performer and the simple spell of his yearning songs. Packed with familiar melodies, including “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry” and “Your Cheatin’ Heart,” the show recounts Williams’ often lonely journey from backwards Alabama obscurity to super-stardom at the Grand Ole Opry. Though his life ended tragically, Williams’ legend lives on through songs that celebrate the tenderness of the heart and the hopefulness of the human spirit.

“Over the past 15 years The Laguna Playhouse has become one of the West Coast’s premier producers of small and mid-sized musicals, and Hank Williams: Lost Highway continues that tradition,” said Laguna Playhouse’s Artistic Director Andrew Barnicle. “The show was a hit Off Broadway, and I think it will strike a chord with our audience.”

Hank Williams: Lost Highway - Performance & Ticket Information:

Ticket Prices: $25 to $65

Previews:
Tuesday – Friday, November 13 – 16: 8:00 p.m.
Thursday, September 15: 2:00 p.m. & 8:00 p.m.

Opening Night Gala:
Saturday, November 17: 7:30 p.m.
(By invitation only and press night)

Regular Performances
November 18 - December 16, 2007
Tuesday – Saturday evenings: 8:00 p.m.
Saturday & Sunday matinees: 2:00 p.m.
Sunday evenings November 25 & December 9: 7:00 p.m.

FOR INFORMATION & TO PURCHASE TICKETS:
BOX OFFICE: 949.497.ARTS (2787), ext. 1
GROUP SALES: 949.497.2787 ext. 229
WEBSITE: www.LagunaPlayhouse.com

MOULTON THEATRE

606 Laguna Canyon Road

Laguna Beach, California 92651

Walt Disney Pictures Presents ENCHANTED and Disney's Enchanted Experience

Exclusively at the El Capitan Theatre, Hollywood this Holiday Season

November 21 - January 6

In celebration of Walt Disney Pictures' ENCHANTED -The El Capitan Theatre will usher in the holiday season with DISNEY'S ENCHANTED EXPERIENCE from November 21 through January 6. DISNEY'S ENCHANTED EXPERIENCE is a giant 24,000 square foot attraction filled with activities for the whole family and built from real sets and props from the movie.

Guests will first see Disney's ENCHANTED at the historic El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood, and immediately following the film, will enter DISNEY'S ENCHANTED EXPERIENCE, where they can:

Meet all the Disney Princesses - Snow White, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Ariel, Belle, and Jasmine - and the newest princess, the heroine of ENCHANTED - Giselle. See real props, sets and costumes direct from the movie, including the actual Enchanted Ballroom set.

Go behind-the-scenes with a unique art exhibit showing how the ENCHANTED filmmakers were inspired by classic moments from Disney films.

Scale a rock wall, jump in a bounce house, play in a video arcade, and compete in games of skill themed to the movie, such as Narissa's Poison Apple Toss, Central Park Bounce, Bus Stop Boogie, and Nathanial's Taxi Game - a competitive race around the streets of New York with a radio controlled taxi.

Be in the movie - KODAK photographers will take pictures of guests and place theminto different scenes from the film.

Guests can scan a card at each photo location and download their pictures at home via a free website created exclusively for DISNEY'S ENCHANTED EXPERIENCE photos. Dress up like a Princess in Andalasia's Fashion Dress-Shop. Enter to win an exclusive Vera Wang Evening Gown.

And much more - It's over 3 hours of fun! FOR TICKETS CALL 1-800-DISNEY6

DISNEY THEATRICAL PRODUCTIONS TO DEBUT TOURING STAGE VERSION OF DISNEY’S PHENOMENALLY POPULAR

TO PLAY KODAK THEATRE 16 PERFORMANCES ONLY! DECEMBER 12-23

A new touring stage version of HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL will play Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center for 16 performances only, December 12 to 23. Presented by Disney Theatrical Productions, the division responsible for such smash Broadway hits as The Lion King, Beauty and the Beast and Mary Poppins, HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL is based on the 2006 Emmy Award-winning Disney Channel Original Movie.

Priority seating for HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL is available for groups of 15 or more by calling 1-888-DISNEY6 or 323-308-6333. Single tickets will go on sale October 20.

This new touring stage adaptation of Disney’s HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL is directed by Jeff Calhoun (Big River). HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL features a book by David Simpatico (adapted from the original movie script by Peter Barsocchini), and a score including all the songs from the original soundtrack plus two new songs. The touring company includes a live orchestra and a cast of 34 professional performers.

Commenting on the announcement, Thomas Schumacher, President and Producer of Disney Theatrical Productions, said, “Our stage version of this great property has been mounted as a direct response to overwhelming demand. As someone who has been passionate about theatre since I was a kid, I am thrilled that we are touring this remarkably popular title as a fully realized stage production, and most certainly introducing countless young people to the world of theatre for the very first time. You can’t ask for more than that.”

Schumacher adds, “It is a great joy and privilege for us to be able to produce and present the Disney Channel’s enormously popular property on stage. Rich Ross, president, Disney Channel Worldwide, said, "To have the great characters, movie and music from our Disney Channel Original Movie adapted for this professional theatre tour is an honor and we hope it will provide an opportunity to introduce kids to the arts."

Disney’s HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL is a contemporary musical comedy about a popular high school basketball star and a shy, academically gifted newcomer who discover they share a secret passion for singing. When they sign up together to audition for the lead roles in the school musical, it threatens East High's rigid social order and sends their peers into an uproar.

In a desperate effort to maintain the status quo, the "jocks," the "brainiacs" and even the drama club regulars are soon hatching convoluted plots to separate the pair and keep them offstage. By defying expectations and taking a chance on their dreams, however, the couple inspires other students to go public with some surprising hidden talents of their own.

The creative team for this new touring stage production of HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL, in addition to aforementioned director Calhoun, are choreographer Lisa Stevens, scenic designer Kenneth Foy, costume designer Wade Laboissonniere, lighting designer Kenneth Billington, sound designer Duncan Robert Edwards and music supervisor Bryan Louiselle.

“HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL” premiered on Disney Channel U.S. on January 20, 2006 and posted the highest ratings for a Disney Channel Original Movie up until that time. It went on to become a smash hit internationally and, in 2006, aired on 26 Disney Channels and free-to-air broadcasters worldwide, reaching over 100 million viewers in over 100 countries. It was also the first TV movie to be offered on the iTunes Music Store.

"High School Musical" delivered the #1 album of 2006, the year's #1 TV movie on DVD, licensed amateur and professional touring stage productions, a best-selling junior novel, a popular consumer products franchise at mass retailers, a themed show at Disneyland Parks and Resorts in Anaheim, Orlando and soon, Paris, a sold-out 42 date arena concert tour in North America and soon, Latin America, starring most of the cast, and a touring ice show premiering in late 2007. Adding to its success, it won the two Emmy Awards, a DGA Award, Television Critics Association Award, an Imagen Award, a Director's Guild of America Award and a Humanitas Prize nomination. Its soundtrack received a Billboard Music Award (Soundtrack of the Year) and was nominated for an American Music Award in the Favorite Album (Pop/Rock) category.

Walt Disney Studios announced it will develop a feature film based on the movie for release in 2008. HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL will play Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center for 16 performances only from December 12 to 23. It plays Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings at 7:30 pm; Saturday matinees at 2 pm; and Sundays at 1 pm and 6:30 pm. There is a special Thursday matinee on December 13 at 2 pm.

Tickets for HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL range in price from $20 to $70. VIP Ticket Packages are also available. The package includes a souvenir program and parking and is priced at $125. Priority seating for HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL is available for groups of 15 or more by calling 1-888-DISNEY6 or 323-308-6333. Single tickets go on sale October 20. For more information, visit highschoolmusicalontour.com.

About Kodak Theatre -- Kodak Theatre is the crown jewel of the Hollywood & Highland Center located in the heart of historic Hollywood. The 3,400 seat theatre opened in November 2001 and soon thereafter became known to more than one billion people across the globe as the first permanent home of the Academy Awards®. As a first class live entertainment venue, Kodak

Theatre has hosted a range of prestigious artists and events including Alicia Keys, Celine Dion, Prince, Elvis Costello, Barry Manilow, Stevie Wonder, Harry Connick, Jr., Melissa Etheridge, Dixie Chicks, Tyler Perry, American Ballet Theatre and various touring Broadway productions. Notable television and awards events at Kodak Theatre have included the American Idol finals, AFI Lifetime Achievement Awards to Tom Hanks, Meryl Streep, and George Lucas, Latin GRAMMY® Awards, ESPY Awards and BET Awards.

Kodak Theatre is operated by TheatreDreams. TheatreDreams and its affiliated companies, which also own and operate The Legendary Chicago Theatre, are led by Tony Award®-winning principals Lawrence J. Wilker, Jill Wilker, Joan A. Alper, William W. Becker and Michael Alper. Formed in 2001, TheatreDreams has co-produced three hit Broadway productions: Urinetown: T

he Musical, winner of three 2002 Tony Awards®; Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods starring Vanessa Williams and winner of the 2002 Tony Award® for Best Musical Revival; and Neil Simon’s The Dinner Party starring Henry Winkler and the late John Ritter. The company is actively developing original works and productions throughout the English-speaking entertainment world to nurture and produce the highest quality entertainment for both the United States and abroad.

Artist Robert Mah

At Marion Meyer Contemporary Art

October 13 – November 11, 2007

354 N. Coast Highway • Laguna Beach • CA • 92651 • USA • 949.497.5442
marionmeyergallery.com

The Accidental Process: Robert Mah’s New Paintings

By Tyler Stallings

Robert Mah is a painter for whom a controlled spontaneity is paramount. He works in a tradition of painting that extends back to the early twentieth century, encompassing a timeline of artists beginning with Wassily Kandisky to Piet Mondrian to Jackson Pollock. Like them, Mah shares a pursuit of painterly passion through abstraction. More specifically, reminiscent of the action painters of the New York School from the 1950s and 60s, he approaches the canvas as an arena in which to perform. The paintings, then, are less about their “objectness” and more about being a record of the process itself.

Incorporating the accidental mark is a chief characteristic of the action painters, or abstract expressionists, and of Mah’s work. It is the stray drip or splatter on the canvas that can suddenly send an artist down an unexpected path. It is this journey that fulfils Mah in the studio, and it is the layers of this journey as seen in the deposits of the paint, by which a viewer can take passage too.

Mah first started painting seriously when he joined the faculty at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, in the Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering as an Assistant Professor in Microbiology in 1963. While there, he enrolled in several art classes. This was a period of time at the tail end of abstract expressionism’s reign in art circles around the country, while Pop Art was just beginning to raise its head. Perhaps, for Mah, it was AbEx’s defining spontaneity, the sense of tapping into the subconscious, and even the seeming artlessness, that suggested a kind of accessibility, and a contrast to the rigors of the scientific method.

Without a doubt, it would have been exciting to be aware, while it was still unfolding, of the first truly original school of painting in the United States. Abstract expressionism established the vigorous creativity of a post-World War II America, and one that was not inhibited by Europe’s dominance and its aesthetics in the art world before the war.
A change in career appointment from UNC to University of California, Los Angeles, brought his artistic production to a halt in 1970. A daily two-hour commute from Huntington Beach to UCLA and a young family left little time for creative output in this direction since his attention was focused on research, teaching, and administration. His retirement from UCLA in 1995 gave him the opportunity to return to his artistic journey. He has picked up from the point of his first inspiration in 1963, again assuming an artistic practice that is committed to emotional honesty and a trust in intuition as guide for the hand and brush.

Two threads of abstraction loop throughout Mah’s recent body of paintings: one is architectonic, and the other is lyrical.

Orbs and rectilinear forms intermingle in Lunar Movements (2006), while rows and columns of forms interlock in Linear Chromatography (2007). Both titles reference scientific terms. The former examines the phases of the moon and its gravitational effects on Earth; while the latter references a laboratory technique involving the separation of the components in a mixture. On one hand, Mah shows us how he finds poetry in these scientific references, as if trying to make unfamiliar to himself that which was very familiar to him for so long in his occupation. Knowing that Mah was a scientist, these architectonic abstractions feel personal. It is as though Mah attempts to challenge the taxing of his mind by the rational, mathematical, and logic of science. In a sense, he has moved from a scientific laboratory of controlled conditions to his studio, an artistic laboratory with an unrestricted setting.

In these works, Mah challenges the illusion of depth and perspective that so many abstract painters have grappled with since the early twentieth century. This is most evident in Linear Chromatography. The puzzle of rectangles remains on the surface but at its center is a wash of paint with a slight horizontal line. Suddenly, the center rectangle suggests a window opening out onto a rainy landscape that stretches into the distance. Though there is the suggestion of recognizable imagery outside the confines of the painting, Mah’s hopes that it is just one level on which to engage his work.

Mah’s second approach is through gesture and lyricism. In works such as Above the Treeline (2006) and Sky Mountain (2007), his paint handling is loose. It appears as though he is simply spilling paint onto the canvas. In fact, his methodology involves the use of brushes and more unorthodox tools like a spatula and a ladle. He uses the ladle to more or less control his spills and to dilute the paint with water to give different effects of density and tonality.

The titles and images in these works reference aerial perspectives. The viewpoint is from that of a bird or an airplane. In Above the Treeline, gradations of black paint suggest a foreground, middleground and background for a landscape. A thick application of blackish paint suggest a thicket of treetops, apropos the title, while a thin, grey wash suggest mist enveloped mountains in the distance. The aerial perspective is traditional among Chinese landscape painters in the ink-and-wash tradition. A connection to this tradition is reinforced by Mah’s exclusive use of black paint and its handling like ink from a well.

In this tradition, there was never a demand for a dutiful observation of reality. Rather, in order to distinguish the main subject, the background might even be omitted altogether, simply leaving it vacant. But the apparent spontaneity or economy of line was due in part to knowledge of how reality worked, so to speak. In this manner, these Chinese painters could disregard such knowledge when they approached their silk or rice paper with ink and brush. Similarly, one feels that Mah is able to act outside the bounds of his scientific training that requires a different kind of strictness, and even outside the bounds of art history once he sits down at his easel.

Perhaps Mah’s consideration of artistic traditions from the East came from his tutelage by the celebrated ceramicist and sculptor, Toshiko Takaezu in Penland, North Carolina in the early 1970s. She exercises a spontaneous approach toward glazing by circumnavigating a vessel while applying a glaze without restraint through pouring and painting. This approach balances her more systematic process of a building her famous closed-topped vessels with stacked coils of clay. She embraces a technique that several ceramists had assumed on the west coast, most notably Peter Voulkos. They were inspired by the Japanese aesthetic in ceramics of accepting accidents in glazing and firing as important to the final outcome. This influence, when combined with the impact and stimulus of Abstract Expressionism in the U.S., produced a new approach towards ceramics, specifically towards the vessel and its functionality.

One of the connections between Mah’s two bodies of work is that both reference the landscape. On one hand, you have Mah’s architectonic works, suggestive of windows, tunnels, and overlapping buildings. And on the other hand, you have the gestural works that are suggestive of mountains and trees. They reimagine the classic theme of man versus nature when considered relative to one another.

Compositionally, even though the titles ground the work with references to an observable reality, neither people nor animals populate the scenes. Only the remnants of culture with the rectilinear forms or the secluded, wild landscape at the tops of mountains are apparent.

A reductive palette is perhaps the most daring aspect shared among all the works. Like the notable Abstract Expressionist, Franz Kline, only gradations of black paint are used in the majority of Mah’s recent work. It would appear that his goal is to restrict a certain number of choices, especially when viewed in contrast to his early work that involved layers of a multitude of colored paints. By taking color out of the equation, he can focus on the relationship between the forms, and the interplay of improvisation and discipline between spills and geometric forms.

In a more recent work, Harnessing Hydrodynamic Turbulence (2007), Mah brings his varied working methods into a singular composition. Here he lays down his signature spill. Then, clearly, inspired by its resemblance to a waterfall, he takes a route that does not place it within the context of a lofty mountainside, but instead places it squarely within the confines of the man-made world. He does so by painting an overlay of rectangles and polygons onto the spill. These forms suggest an hydroelectric dam that is referenced in the title. It is the one man-made structure that can mimic a soaring mountain wall that is accompanied by an occasional and controlled release of a graceful cascade of water. In this new work, it is clear that Robert Mah has, indeed, discovered his special vocabulary.

Tyler Stallings is the director of University of California, Riverside’s Sweeney Art Gallery. His writing and other curatorial work can be viewed at www.tylerstallings.com.

The Orange County Museum of Art AND THE NEWPORT BEACH FILM FESTIVAL Announce Cinema Orange fall Film Series

Celebrate “Cool” with Independent Films and Art on Thursday Evenings at OCMA

The Orange County Museum of Art and the Newport Beach Film Festival proudly announce the fall lineup for their popular Cinema Orange film series. Cinema Orange spotlights independent classic and contemporary feature-length documentary films from around the globe. This season’s programming includes films that celebrate midcentury art, design, and jazz; coinciding with the premiere of the new exhibition, Birth of the Cool: California Art, Design, and Culture at Midcentury.

Cinema Orange features Helvetica, an independent film that explores typography, graphic Design, and global visual culture; The Sophisticated Misfit, a groovy documentary on the life of contemporary artist, Shag; and Let’s Get Lost, a rare documentary on the life of elusive jazz musician Chet Baker. Interactive question and answer with filmmakers to follow select screenings. Films screen at the museum’s Newport Beach location and are free with paid museum admission. Galleries are open until 8 pm on Thursdays; $10 general museum admission includes access to the galleries until 8 pm.

October 11, 7:30 pm Helvetica (2007 / Documentary / UK / 80 minutes) Directed by Gary Hustwit Helvetica encompasses the worlds of design, advertising, psychology, and communication, and invites us to take a second look at the thousands of words we see every day. Focusing on the proliferation of a single typeface that celebrates its 50th birthday in 2007, the film examines the larger context of how type affects our lives. The film is an exploration of urban spaces in major cities and the type that inhabits them, and a fluid discussion with renowned designers about their work, the creative process, and the choices and aesthetics behind their use of type. November 8, 7:30 pm The Sophisticated Misfit (2007 / Documentary / USA / 59 minutes) Directed by Marc Chervinsky Featuring Shag, Whoopi Goldberg, Paul Frank, Patton Oswalt This documentary explores artist Shag's world of midcentury furniture, wet bars, and jet-set L.A. style. He embraces a simpler time, but his artwork is filled with subtle winks acknowledging that this period wasn't so simple. Director Mark Chervinsky to participate in a post-screening Q&A. December 13, 7:30 pm Let’s Get Lost (1988 / Documentary / USA / 120 minutes) Directed by Bruce Weber Nominated for Oscar, Best Documentary Feature Featuring Chet Baker, William Claxton, Jack Sheldon, Chris Isaak This rarely screened documentary charts jazz trumpeter Chet Baker's meteoric rise, precipitous fall and sadly diminished end, inter-cutting footage from Baker’s musical heyday and the last years before his untimely death.

Cinema Orange is curated by Leslie Feibleman, senior film programmer and director of special programs & outreach, Newport Beach Film Festival. Media sponsorship is provided by Squeeze OC. Image credits: Still from Helvetica; Still from The Sophisticated Misfit; Still from Let’s Get Lost.

MUSEUM INFORMATION
The Orange County Museum of Art in Newport Beach is located at 850 San Clemente Drive. Hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday, with extended hours Thursdays from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Admission is $10/adults; $8/seniors and students; children twelve and under and OCMA members are free. Third Thursdays are free. For more information, call 949.759.1122 or visit www.ocma.net.

NEWPORT BEACH FILM FESTIVAL INFORMATION
The ninth annual Newport Beach Film Festival will run from April 24^th through May 1st, 2008 and will showcase over 350 films from around the world, including feature length narrative, documentary, short and animated films that will compete for both Jury and Audience awards. www.NewportBeachFilmFest.com