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Beyond the libations, Downtown’s District Wine is quickly becoming a go-to new place for community art—thanks in part to curator and CSULB grad Sally Lee and owner Mark Dunton’s new vision with the brick walls that adorn the space.  

“We’ve had art in here before—local art, things we liked,” Dunton says. “But nothing quite like this. The first thing our regulars said was, ‘Wow.’”

With being the owner and founder, along with his wife, Dunton hadn’t had time to really curate the space.

“We knew we wanted a comfortable, second living room feel, but we didn’t have the time to research and find what fits,” he says.

Martin 3That’s when Sally Lee came in. In early 2014 she approached Dunton with a plan of attack.

“Only Long Beach artists,” Lee says. “I wanted a lot of community involvement.”

Lee’s plan is to have a rotating gallery every two to three months, noting that “there’s a lot of art in Long Beach that people just aren’t seeing.” Keeping this thought in mind, she is curating work that can also be seen in the custom table tops at Redondo and Broadway restaurant, The Attic.

“At first I was nervous, but Sally really knows our space and our vibe,” Dunton says. “We wanted to invest in the community. It’s opened up a whole new gateway.”

The current show features an eclectic mix from photographers Jay Diebel [pictured top] and Martin Vielma [pictured above left, below], contrasting colorful high fashion photography with black and white photojournalism respectively. This combination of photographers has produced such a positive response that this is actually their second rotation featured on the walls at District Wine.  

“We weren’t ready to see it go,” Dunton says of the first time the exhibit was to come down.

Diebel, who has worked with brands such as Ezekiel, is focused more on high fashion and colorful contrasts. Where as Vielma’s brand of photojournalism features many high profile bands such as Beck and The Shins. Accompanying Vielma’s stunning photos are also his hand made frames.

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In the coming months Lee plans on involving more customer and community involvement, as well as changing the vibe just enough to be fresh, but also maintain that home-y feel Dunton has cultivated.

“There are a lot of different ways to show your art,” Lee says. “But really my biggest goal is to get art a home that loves it.”

The closing show will also feature new signature champagne cocktails that Dunton believes will set District Wine apart as well.

“Not a lot of people do that,” he says about the champagne cocktails. One of the featured drinks is the Raspberry Beret, featuring, of course, raspberry sorbet.

The closing show will be from 6PM to 9pm Sunday, November 16. With several shows already booked and planned for the future, Sunday will be the last time to see these two artists featuring their works on District Wine’s unique brick backdrops.

“Excited to see what we can hang up next,” says Dunton.

District Wine is located at 144 Linden Ave.

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