Page 31 - Sonoma County Gazette - May 2019
P. 31

  The Santa Rosa Neighborhood Heritage Mapping Project
The Santa Rosa Neighborhood Heritage Project is a neighborhood-based digital medium map program. The program has been in the making for three- years and is designed as a broad-based community engagement program that works with the city’s existing neighborhoods to create an interactive digital map of sites, places and stories important to the people who live there.
As an attendee I was able to walk into several art studios, talk to the artist and find out the motivation behind the creation of a painting, sculpture and even making art with material and scraps of things that are too many to mention. One of the highlights for me was when I walked into 3-D Edddy’s display of junk art which gave one the feeling they were not alone. His wife, Nassu Born, who is an artist in her own right, shares the studio with Edddy. Along with her own creations she displays the art work of her mother, Helvi Onnia Wamsley. Hanging on the wall in their studio is a life size painting Wamsley created of the Dingle Dolphin which is so lifelike it takes your breath away, To give us even more history there were past issues of the San Francisco Territorial newspaper which was published from 1950-1969 on display.
The project led by Dr. Margaret Purser from the Department of Anthropology at Sonoma State University was started as part of the commemoration of the city’s sesquicentennial celebration and was to be completed in 2018; however the October 2017 fires gave the mapping project
a whole new purpose. “Many people who were affected by the fire contacted me and requested we include as part of the mapping ‘A Fire Memory Map,’ to remember our neighborhoods which motivated me to keep the process open until 2019 for that purpose,” Purser reported.
A series of “neighborhood mapping parties” will invite individual neighborhood residents to public events for adding important places to the digital app through 2019 with a series of more in-depth neighborhood studies that will begin in the 2019. ‘The maps not only provide the history of the neighborhood it also lets you know about the people who live there now, and what is important to them,” she said.
Walking into Luann Udell’s studio gives one the feeling they are visiting prehistoric times. Inspired by prehistoric cave art 15,000 to 35,000 years ago Udell tells ancient stories by her creation of small artifacts using polymer (clay) a modern material that resembles real bone ivory and soapstone. Udell asks, “10,000 years from now, who will know the makings of our hands? And who will know the mysteries of our hearts? Other artistic expressions one was able to explore was fabric art, Mandela’s and an excellent collection of handmade jewelry art, to name a few.
If you think your neighborhood would like to be the site of a neighborhood mapping party. Or if you have any suggestions about particular neighborhood or city constituencies that should be documented in greater detail, you can contact her at Margaret.purser@sonoma.edu or for further information and to read some of the stories already mapped, go to sr150heritage.net
The Out There Exposition was produced by The City of Santa Rosa and funded by the Santa Rosa Tourism Business Improvement Area. On the first Saturday of the month, The Studio is open to the public and is located at 3820 Finley Ave., Santa Rosa. For more information go to facebook.com/ thestudiosantarosa/
Reversing Global Warming:
Introduction to Drawdown Workshop
The Drawdown Workshop is a 2-hour workshop that invites participants
to see both the possibility of reversing global warming and that each has an important role to play in that process. The program is based on Paul Hawken’s book, “Drawdown”, which is considered to be one of the most comprehensive plans ever proposed to reverse global warming. Pachamama Alliance, a global community that offers people the chance to learn, connect, engage, travel and cherish life for the purpose of creating a sustainable future that works for all, created this series of workshops. For more information about Pachamama Alliance and to see the great video of Hawkens explaining Drawdown go to pachamama.org/about/
The Out There Exposition was produced by The City of Santa Rosa and funded by the Santa Rosa Tourism Business Improvement Area. On the first Saturday of the month, The Studio is open to the public and is located at 3820 Finley Ave., Santa Rosa. For more information go to facebook.com/ thestudiosantarosa/
Through the effort of Sonoma County Pachamama Alliance (SCPA) the workshop is happening in Santa Rosa this month on May 9. Prior to the workshop there will be a short street theater piece and a panel of youth activists who will offer views on how to engage our communities, government and especially youth in the hard work of shifting toward a healthy planet
Awards and Acknowledgements:
2019 Woman of the Year: Congressman Mike Thompson recognized Lorez Bailey, Director of Chop’s Teen Club in Santa Rosa. Bailey was recognized
for her work with students to help them succeed. Chop’s Teen Club is a modern, 21,000 square foot facility open to all Sonoma County 7th - 12th grade students after school and on weekends. Chop’s is a free choice facility where teens can experience any number of different program areas during their time at the facility. The mission of Chop’s Teen Club is to provide a safe, fun and productive place where Sonoma County teens engage, connect and discover their true potential. For more information about Chops go to chopsteenclub. org/aboutchops
SRJC Oak Leaf student reporters
At the Journalism Association of Community College state conference in March 2019, the Santa Rosa Junior College (SRJC) student reporters for the Oak Leaf student newspaper received more than 20 awards for excellence in writing and journalism, including the Online General Excellence Award. Oak Leaf faculty advisor Anne Belden was also awarded the Educator of the Year by California Journalism and Media Affiliates.
5/19 - www.sonomacountygazette.com - 31
and equitable life for its entire people. The Drawdown Introduction will be facilitated by Pachamama spokesperson, Nelson Barry. The event takes place at the Arlene Francis Center, 99 6th St, Santa Rosa, from 6-9pm on Thursday May 9. For more information email Connie.Madden@gmail.com
News from the Fifth District
recognized for journalistic excellence
According to a recent press release, on April 11 Congressman Mike Thompson (CA a-05) announced that the federal emergency management agency has awarded 1.4 million dollars to the Santa Rosa city schools to help rebuild the hidden Valley satellite school and Alba Lane farm, and educational farm used by Santa Rosa High School. These funds were rewarded as part of public assistance for the October 2017 declared disaster.
On April 13th, artists from The Studio and 33 Arts in Santa Rosa came together for their second year in a row for the Out There Expo to shine a light on the some of the original art and artists that you may not have known are on display and available in southwest Santa Rosa. During the event participants were able to visit a variety of artist studios for a great visual experience and gain knowledge about the artist’s creative process.
Elaine B. Holtz is co-producer /Host with Kenneth E. Norton of “Women’s Spaces” on KBBF 89.1FM Monday 11-12 noon & 11-12 midnight. womensspaces.com and kbbf.org
Out There Expo hosted by 33Arts/The Studio
 Something to think about: “The question is whether any civilization can wage relentless war on life without destroying itself, and without losing the right to be called civilized.” ―Rachel Louise Carson (1907-1964) was an American marine biologist, author, and conservationist whose book Silent Spring and other writings are credited with advancing the global environmental movement.






































































   29   30   31   32   33