CHRISTIAN GARCIA-OLIVO (b. 1988, Santa Barbara, CA) is a process based artist who currently resides in San Diego, CA. His work explores the versatility of acrylic paint as a sculptural medium.  

He uses craft techniques, such as weaving and collage, as a way to examine and challenge contemporary issues, bringing attention to the hierarchy of art media and the ongoing subordination of craft. Recently, Christian was an Artist In Residence at Bread & Salt, San Diego July through September 2020. Past shows include C-Note at San Diego Art Institute; Site Unseen at the Latin American Art Fair;  Palm-Sized Oceans at Permanent Storage Projects in Los Angeles, CA and received Honorable Mention at the Athenaeum’s 28th Annual Juried Exhibition.

"I am interested in the way paint can be manipulated and transformed to create different forms and textures. By forcing a liquid medium to behave in a way that it is not inherent to its natural state, I am trying to control its perception. And by elaborating on craft’s marginalized status in the art world, I aim to address the identity politics of “the other.”"

View more of his work on Instagram

BHAVNA MEHTA works with paper – cutting and embroidering it to tell stories that combine figurative imagery with botanical motifs, text and shadows. Using paper as skin and thread to connect and mend, using cutting and sewing to talk about exposing and hiding, she makes work about relating and remembering.

Mehta has exhibited widely in San Diego and Southern California. She is the recipient of the Artists In Communities grant from the California Arts Council (2017, 2019) in partnership with Art Produce and the Creative Catalyst grant from The San Diego Foundation (2015) with Oceanside Museum of Art.

She has won multiple awards in juried shows and she was one of the San Diego Art Prize emerging artist winners. She collaborates with artists making public art, using paper as a design medium. She has engineering degrees from both India and US and worked as a software engineer for many years before turning to art.

Find more of her work on her website and Instagram.

KATIE RUIZ is a Xicana artist who resides in San Diego, CA. She was raised in Los Angeles and Northern Arizona. Ruiz has a strong connection with nature and often uses natural objects like rocks, shells, leaves and sticks in her weavings and Sculptures.

Ruiz is a painter and sculptor. Her work originally began as figurative and she is known for her blanket series in which she portrays couples standing or lying under colorful Mexican blankets. Geometric patterns and bright colors are reiterated throughout her work. Her travels to 22 countries have influenced her work especially the patterns that are primarily derived from Latin American textiles.

Ruiz’ new work has taken a more abstract approach with playful bright colors, and large shapes and textures. The work is channeled through the subconscious in automatic painting techniques allowing for an other worldly feel.

She was raised with her single mother and younger sister and draws much strength from the strong female figures in her life. Relationships play a strong role in Ruiz’s paintings. Couples are often depicted together or with natural forces such as water, winter or pathways pulling the couple together or further apart.

Ruiz has a Bachelors Degree of Fine Art from Northern Arizona University and a Masters degree of Fine Art from The New York Studio School of Drawing, Painting & Sculpture in NYC. She is faculty with the San Diego Community College District and Athenaeum school of arts. She is a reoccurring visiting teacher for the New York Studio School. She is the recipient of numerous awards including the Mac Connor Scholarship and the Hohenberg Travel Scholarship.

You can also view her work on her website and Instagram.

Best known for her optically stimulating sculptures of twisting paper and drawings of detailed geometric patterns, MELISSA WALTER visually explores concepts concerning Astronomy and astrophysical theories. Walter works as a science illustrator for NASA and that experience has inspired her to visually articulate wonders of the Universe, such as black holes, supernovas, neutron stars, dark matter and dark energy in more abstract approaches.

Walter’s use of sound, dramatic optics and lighting within her sculptural installations embed a transcendent quality to the experience of her work while infusing cosmic energy into ordinary materials such as ink and paper. She translates and materializes the intangible knowledge of the Universe into an aesthetic physical reality for a personal experience.

Walter has completed artist in residence programs at 1805 Gallery and Bread & Salt, and participated in exhibitions at the Smithsonian’s S. Dillon Ripley Center, Quint Gallery, the San Diego Art Institute, Torrance Art Museum, Helmuth Projects and the San Diego International Airport for a temporary exhibition titled Intergalactic Dreaming in 2017. She received her BFA, cum laude from the University of Rhode Island in 1998.

You can also view her work on Instagram and Facebook.

A virtual art walk of Kaori Fukuyama's multi-disciplinary work and a facilitated panel with local creatives

December 3, 2020 at 5:30 PM Pacific

Border is pleased to present our second ENGAGE Art Show & Shindig Light After Dark featuring San Diego-based artist and designer Kaori Fukuyama. The event will be broadcast live from Border's offices at Torr Kaelan in East Village with participants viewing the works via a virtual art walk on their computers or devices using Zoom. The event is open to all ages.

Artist Statement

Living under the seductive sunlight of San Diego for many years, I am inspired by the magical interplay of color and light in both the natural world (sunset, rainbow, dappled forest light) and in man-made environments (spotlights, reflection off a building, neon signs).

I am fascinated by how light affects the way we see, feel, and perceive our surroundings. In the studio, I experiment with various mediums, materials, and scales, observing their interactions with light and exploring how our visual and emotional perception may be influenced by such interactions. The complex relationship among color, light, and shadow is the focus of my artwork, which includes abstract paintings, drawings, sculptures, and site-specific installations.

With the darkness brought forth by the pressing health, political and social justice issues I started wondering about the meaning of my work, if focusing on light was even relevant at all in these times. I then realized that I can use my art as a way to find light in the darkness. Creating art in this period has been very cathartic, unfamiliar from what I’ve done before, but healing in many ways.  

My hope is that each piece evokes a certain memory or experience that serves to remind the viewer of the beauty and magic of the light we encounter in our everyday life.

What is a Virtual Art Walk?

Due to in-person event constraints, we're trying something new (and a little bit daring) this time. The art will be displayed in the Border offices as normal, but participants will join virtually via their computers or devices using Zoom to join Kaori on a tour of her work.

After participating in several virtual exhibits from museums like LACMA, we want to try to make the experience as immersive as possible.

Each tour group will consist of:

• The artist, Kaori Fukuyama
• Three Border employees, called avatars, in-person with Kaori exploring the art under the guidance of a remote participant. Each avatar will be wearing a tablet broadcasting the art walk to the puppeteer and viewers.
• Three puppeteers. Puppeteers are virtual participants, but they have special powers. Each puppeteer will control one avatar in the group. Puppeteers can tell their avatar to move around, look a specific way, crouch or ask a question. We're trying to provide an approximation of an in-person gallery experience.
• Up to 250 viewers. These participants will not be able to give guidance to the avatars, but will be able to follow along with the group. Each viewer will be assigned to a single avatar.

How to be a Puppeteer

When reserving a free ticket for the event, each participant may also elect to join the waitlist to be a puppeteer. In total, only nine viewers will be upgraded to puppeteers (one per avatar for each tour group).

At the start of each tour, the first viewer on the puppeteer waitlist will be given control of the avatar. If the designated viewer is not online, the next person on the waitlist will be selected. There is no grace period. If you want to be a puppeteer, please be early and make sure your technology is working.

Puppeteers will need audio to both hear the art walk and speak to their avatar. Please make sure you have a working microphone and there isn't too much background noise. We want each participant to have an outstanding experience. Please respect the experience of others.

Puppeteers must be at least 18 years old. While you can join multiple viewing groups, you can only be a puppeteer once.

How Each Tour Group Works

Five minutes prior to the start of their ticketed tour time, participants will be sent a link to a break-out room. Participants will then leave the waiting room and join the break-out room. Viewers will be muted during the entire time of the art walk. Puppeteers will be granted audio to speak to their avatars, but the artist will not hear each puppeteer. The avatars will relay the puppeteers' questions to the artist so that all participants can hear the question.

After ten minutes, the tour will conclude, but the break-out room will remain open. Viewers may discuss the tour prior to rejoining the main waiting room for the panel conversation. The tour group break-out rooms will be unmoderated and all participants can speak to each other. Five minutes before the panel, all break-out rooms will be closed.

Schedule

• 5:30 PM Access to the waiting room opens; introduction to Kaori and Torr Kaelan plays on looping video
• 5:45 - 6:30 Virtual Tours
  5:50 - 6:00 Group 1
  6:05 - 6:15 Group 2
  6:20 - 6:30 Group 3
• 6:40 - 7:10 Facilitated panel conversation
• 7:10 - 7:30 Audience Q&A
• 7:30 PM Virtual event closes

The Panel Conversation

A conversation with Kaori and other panelists on the theme will be held after the art walks. The audience will be invited to join the conversation by submitting their questions in the virtual chat during the Q&A once the panelists provide their perspective on the the topic.

We hope this is a group conversation inspired by the artwork and guided by the panelists. We want this panel to be as interactive as possible within the constraints of the virtual medium.

KAORI FUKUYAMA is a multi-disciplinary artist from Japan, who lives and works in San Diego. Her practice spans paintings, drawings, sculptures, and site-specific installations that explore the interactions of color, light and shadow. She works with a variety of materials including paint, paper, yarn, monofilament, and plexiglass in pursuit of a deeper understanding of our visual perception.

Kaori was an Artist-In-Residence at Bread & Salt, San Diego in 2018, recently completed a large-scale public art installation in North Park (San Diego), and is a recipient of San Diego Art Prize 2020. Her work is a part of private collections internationally and has been exhibited at multiple institutions including Oceanside Museum of Art, Laguna Art Museum, San Luis Obispo Museum of Art, San Diego Art Institute, The Athenaeum Music & Arts Library, and William D. Cannon Art Gallery. Fukuyama enjoys teaching at The Athenaeum Music & Arts Library and UCSD Extension, and continues to expand her artistic boundaries.

You can view her work  at https://www.kaorifukuyama.com

BREEANN KYTE KIRBY is a NorCal transplant to San Diego. A former research scientist now writer, she works with scientists and artists, facilitating collaborations that present hard research in beautiful ways.

Breeann writes in all genres; you can see some of her online work in places like The Scientist, City Creatures, Orion blog, and Diagram as well as her personal blog. Her popular science book on the human microbiome is forthcoming from MIT Press.

STACEY EDELSTEIN is a design leader and co-founder of Raygun, a social impact design studio based in San Diego. At Raygun Stacey is committed to developing creative solutions and design-driven stories for companies and causes in pursuit of the public good, with clients including Mingei International Museum, the Women's Refugee Commission, and the UCSD Center for Community Health.

Prior to founding Raygun, Stacey was the website editor and lead designer at StoryCorps, a national nonprofit that records, shares, and preserves the stories of everyday Americans.

She also serves as the San Diego City Organizer for Tech Ladies, a global organization of over 50,000 members working to advance women in technology. As City Organizer, she conceptualizes and hosts inspiring live events for the San Diego community, featuring guest speakers and panels with prominent local leaders and change makers. Connect with Stacey on Instagram and LinkedIn.

The event may be over, but you can still view the artwork by appointment Mon-Fri 9 AM–4 PM. The last day for viewings is Wednesday Nov 27, 2019.

November 20, 2019 at 5 PM Pacific

Torr Kaelan
416 13th St.
San Diego, CA 92101

Border is pleased to present our inaugural ENGAGE Art Show & Shindig Creative Inspiration: Tracing lines between cities and memories featuring San Diego-based artist and designer Arzu Ozkal. The event takes place in Border's offices at Torr Kaelan in East Village. A selection of complimentary wine, beer and light snacks will be offered during the event. This is an 18+ adult-only event.

Tickets are limited and you must have a ticket for admission!

The artwork will be indoors, but the panel and general event will be in the outdoor courtyard. Please bring appropriate warmth as it may be San Diego chilly.

Artist Statement

These images are exploring the cartographic perspectives of quasi-fictional landscapes; where past and present are not two separate entities. The complexities of social life juxtaposed with other speculative political discourses looking over a desert under quarantine, seeking alternative modes of being. One panel includes traces of architectural relic, objects defined by light, and facades covered with encrypted signals. Second panel documents diachronic and synchronic memories; changing qualities of a frozen moment. I believe all design is performative without any distinctive edge. It is a process of interpreting, re-constructing, and re-writing with cacophonous blends of various elements, forms and type.

Schedule

• 5:00 PM Doors open
• 5:15 - 6:00 Group guided viewings with Arzu
  5:15 - 5:30 Group 1
  5:30 - 5:45 Group 2
  5:45 - 6:00 Group 3
• 6:00 - 7:00 Panel conversation
• 7:15 - 8:00 Group guided viewings with Arzu
  7:15 - 7:30 Group 4
  7:30 - 7:45 Group 5
  7:45 - 8:00 Group 6
• 8:00 PM Doors close

Viewing the Artwork

We want to give every attendee dedicated time to view the artwork and discuss it with the artist. Upon arrival, you may sign up for an ENGAGE group. Groups are limited to 10 people and are available on a first come/first serve basis. Attendees may join more than one group, permitting everyone has a chance to view the art at some point.

If you plan on drinking alcohol, please bring a valid ID. Only those with a valid ID will be given a wristband.

The Panel Conversation

A conversation with Arzu and other panelists TBD facilitated by Stacey Edelstein from Raygun on the theme. The audience will be invited to join the conversation as well once the panelists provide their perspective on the the topic.

We hope this is a group conversation inspired by the artwork and guided by the panelists and facilitator. We want this panel to be as interactive as possible.

ARZU OZKAL is a Turkish born, San Diego, CA based artist, designer, and researcher whose work focus on design’s role in looking for forms of creative and critical outcomes through participation and collaboration.

Ozkal is a founding member of Home Affairs, an interdisciplinary art collective focusing on creative projects about a range of issues impacting women's lives. Since 2011, they have been working together with women from Turkey, Europe, and USA to design platforms of social exchange. Ozkal co-edited with Dr. Claudia Pederson, Gün: Women's Networks a DIY book project investigating informal networks and their extension into digital media with the aim of gaining understanding of the sociocultural conditions impacting women's participation in contemporary culture (2013).

​Ozkal's work has been exhibited nationally and internationally in Athens, Istanbul, Barcelona, Ghent, Amsterdam, Berlin, Los Angeles, New York, and beyond. Her writing has appeared in publications such as Photoworks Magazine UK, Afterimage: The Journal of Media Arts and Cultural Criticism and the forth-coming book, Collaboration in Design Education by Bloomsbury Academic.

​Ozkal was born in Ankara, Turkey. She received her MFA from the Department of Visual Studies at University at Buffalo (SUNY) and BFA in Graphic Design from Bilkent University. She is currently Associate Professor of Graphic Design at San Diego State University. Ozkal's latest limited edition publication with Tricia Treacy, Situated Between can be purchased here.

Studio: https://www.contrary.info/

Situated Between: https://www.situatedbetween.com/