{"id":1543,"date":"2017-03-01T01:41:32","date_gmt":"2017-03-01T01:41:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lbpost.com\/articles\/life\/arts-culture\/grab-bag-studio\/"},"modified":"2017-03-01T01:41:32","modified_gmt":"2017-03-01T01:41:32","slug":"grab-bag-studio","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/hi-lo\/art\/grab-bag-studio","title":{"rendered":"Grab Bag Studio Opens as All-Female Contemporary Art Collective in Long Beach’s Eastside"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Photo courtesy of Grab Bag Studio. From left: Stephanie Libanati, Kelly Hamilton, Brittany Mojo, Shea Vititow and Natalie Mik.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

A new contemporary art collective, studio and exhibition space has opened in Long Beach\u2019s Eastside area by the name of Grab Bag Studio.<\/p>\n

What looks like an unassuming storefront window rewards those curious enough to step through the door of 2626 East 10th Street with a surprising and wonderfully chaotic explosion of color and creativity.<\/p>\n

The space is run by five women, all artists in their own right, Shea Vititow, Natalie Mik, Kelly Hamilton, Brittany Mojo and Stephanie Libanati, who saw an opportunity to build a community around the art-making process and provide a space to foster \u201cpromotion, participation and exchange for contemporary artists and curators by offering art exhibitions and education in addition to offsite projects.\u201d<\/p>\n

Vititow, who has occupied the space since May using it for her own practice, had the idea to open it up to four friends and colleagues from the art community. The painter acknowledged that while many of them show and sell art in Los Angeles, they were also local to Long Beach.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of us drive up and commute to LA to show and do our work, but then we\u2019re all here,\u201d said Vititow.<\/p>\n

\u201c[…]Bridging the gap between Los Angeles and Long Beach and hosting events and coming out with a program that really draws from the community, was something that we felt very strongly about,\u201d Mik added.<\/p>\n

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Photo by Asia Morris. Work from the Transparent Memory Booklet Workshop with Sara Chao earlier in February.<\/em><\/p>\n

The space is organized to highlight the artist\u2019s process alongside current exhibitions. The decision not to hide the studio space where the collective works, or clearly separate the studio space from the gallery, was intentional and a way to give access to contemporary art from a slightly different perspective than how a more traditional gallery space would operate.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s this tendency in art to place things on these figurative hierarchical platforms,\u201d said Mojo. \u201cBe that like a blue chip gallery (galleries that focus on selling the work of already well-established names), or some fancy art fair. I think in that respect having the work of other artists, of our friends, the people that inspire us to make our own things within the space, it immediately brings it more to a casual level, which I think is really important right now for artists that are not showing in blue chip galleries, that aren\u2019t supported by art institutions.\u201d<\/p>\n

The two artists showing in Grab Bag Studio\u2019s first exhibit, Sara Chao and Michael Nannery, were encouraged to experiment and try new things, as will each future artist who participates in an exhibition. At Grab Bag, it\u2019s as much about the process as the end result, where artists can come in to try things that they haven\u2019t been able to previously.<\/p>\n

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Photo by Asia Morris. Detail of Sara Chao\u2019s installation, <\/em>Sari-Sari Store.<\/em><\/p>\n

Chao\u2019s installation, Sari-Sari Store<\/em>, is a site-specific work representing a traditional Filipino neighborhood convenience store, a work of art inspired by the passing on of her grandmother who ran one herself.<\/p>\n

\u201cSara hasn\u2019t really even done an installation and she just had all these ideas, and just needed the space to do it,\u201d said Mojo. \u201cAnd I hear that all the time, that people just don\u2019t have the space.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nannery\u2019s exhibit, Breathing Together<\/em>, supported Grab Bag\u2019s mission to incorporate community. An artist and curator living in Long Beach, he rearranged the work to fit the front gallery space, a group of varying houseplants all contained in vessels made by other artists.<\/p>\n

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Image courtesy of Grab Bag Studio.<\/em><\/p>\n

The closing reception for both exhibits, which you can read more about here<\/a>, will take place on Saturday, March 4 from 5:00PM to 8:00PM. Check out the Facebook event page here<\/a> for more details.<\/p>\n

The name Grab Bag Studio includes two aspects of the actual definition of the term. The first, \u201ca container from which a person chooses a wrapped item at random, without knowing the contents,\u201d fits the collective\u2019s mission of offering an element of surprise to visitors.<\/p>\n

\u201c[…]When people come in, we want to provide some sort of surprise to them as part of what we\u2019re doing,\u201d said Mik. \u201cBecause if everything is within expected boundaries then there can be no progress, so if there is a little bit of surprise, then there will be progress.\u201d<\/p>\n

The second, \u201can assortment of miscellaneous items,\u201d described the studio\u2019s policy to focus on creating and welcoming a diverse community to the space.<\/p>\n

\u201cGrab Bag is something where different things come together, when we talk about diversity and being welcoming, and especially representing underrepresented groups, we speak about diversities,\u201d Mik continued. \u201cAnd Grab Bag is all about little things coming together and creating something that is even bigger, so this really speaks to us.\u201d<\/p>\n

The five founders certainly fit the description of a miscellaneous assortment, as well, with each having her own unique practice. Mojo<\/a> is a sculptor and ceramicist, Mik<\/a> is a curator, performance artist and sociologist, Vititow<\/a>\u00a0is a painter, Hamilton is a photographer and web designer and Libanati<\/a> is a printmaker and seamstress.<\/p>\n

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Photo by Asia Morris.<\/em><\/p>\n

How the group works together in such a small space has been a learning experience, but in the month since the studio officially launched, they\u2019ve been able to glean only positives from the decision.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s important for me to say that there\u2019s this kind of myth around the solitary artist\u2026,\u201d Mojo said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe like that, too, but we thrive on being alone together,\u201d Vititow added.<\/p>\n

\u201cOr just having another eye to [look at your work], having that fluid conversation that surrounds your practice is something that I haven\u2019t had since school,\u201d Mojo said.<\/p>\n

\u201c[…]When people come together and share their thoughts or work together[…] it\u2019s mind opening sometimes and you see the world, you see your own art practice from a different perspective and that\u2019s very nurturing for yourself and for the other person, too,\u201d said Mik.<\/p>\n

Grab Bag\u2019s next exhibition will feature works by Baltimore-based mixed media painter Matt Wolf<\/a> and New York-based installation artist and painter Leeza Meksin<\/a>, on Thursday, March 16. For more information, visit the event page here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Image courtesy of Grab Bag Studio.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cI think what\u2019s unique about us is we\u2019re an all-female collective,\u201d said Mik. \u201cAnd that creates a very special synergy and work environment and a very unique approach for other people when they see us and talk to us and build a relationship with us. We feel very strongly about diversity and representing underrepresented groups of all kinds of cultural [backgrounds].\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGrab Bag is kind of an art project in itself,\u201d said Mojo, and the entire community is invited to be a part of it.<\/p>\n

For more information about Grab Bag Studio, including workshops and upcoming exhibitions, visit the website here<\/a>\u00a0and Facebook page here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Grab Bag Studio is located at 2626 East 10th Street.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

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