In this Aug. 16, 2010, file photo by Daniel DeBoom, Vice Mayor Suja Lowenthal speaks during the unveiling of Chantilly Clad.

11:01am |The Arts Council for Long Beach is presenting two dates of public art performances and other activities by activating an underutilized public space. 

On Saturday, June 11, and Saturday, June 18, from 2–6 p.m., the space located at the corner of Ocean Boulevard and Lime Avenue where the public art installation Chantilly Clad is located will come alive with live music, symposia, interactive workshops and more, all free to the public.  

Chantilly Clad, which was unveiled in August 2010, provides an open-air venue for community events and features a stage with a suspended lace canopy made of woven nautical rope, a deck made from reclaimed lumber and crane-like armatures in a nod to the city’s maritime history. Chantilly Clad, and Apiana Native Landscaping have spent this past week installing a series of native plant gardens at the site.

The public art site’s new garden will be unveiled during tomorrow’s event on June 11, which will focus on urban gardening. DJ Dennis Owens will provide the daylong tunes, and local band MatteranGhost will grace the stage around 4:30 p.m.

At 2:30 p.m., the reclaimed wood stage will feature a panel of urban gardening experts including: Freya Bardell of Greenmeme; Captain Charles Moore, founder of Algalita Marine Research Foundation and Long Beach organic and owner/operator of Gladys Avenue Urban Farm; Julie James, the local expert on healing herbs; Adriana Martinez, a well-known guerrilla gardener and author of the blog Anarchy in the Garden; and Jimmy Ng, founder of The Growing Experience, an urban farm in North Long Beach that employs youth.

From 3:30-6 p.m.,attendees can participate in a number of free interactive workshops. Bardell and Brian Howe of Greenmeme and Brady Redman of Apiana Native Landscaping will facilitate a community planting of native plants on-site. Moore is bringing handmade, carry-away wooden planter boxes for folks to plant their own salad greens or herbs and take home. James will teach folks how to make seed bombs, which guerilla gardeners-at-heart can throw at empty lots this autumn and watch brown dirt turn to flowering bushes. And local permaculture professional Ty Tessiere will bring worm composting bins and show lookers-on how these wiggly creatures help the composting process.

June 18 is SlangFest 2011, a festival of arts, spoken word and music conceived by Slanguage (Mario Ybarra Jr., Karla Diaz and collaborators) and organized by LA><ART Assistant Director/Curator of Public Art and Programs Cesar Garcia. At 2:30 p.m. Slanguage founders and four spoken word artists will speak and perform about language and voice; and at 4:30 p.m., special guests MC Guess, MC Tyson, Reina, and the Slanguage Noise Band will perform original works to creatively address the topic of language and music.

Throughout the day, DJ Cheebo will spin eclectic Latin sounds while interactive workshops will be offered on breakdancing and recycled art (drawing, collage, and sculpture) by Slanguage Teen Art Council, Homeland Cultural Center and Wilmington Enrichment Community Artist Network. The band YEPA! will take the stage at 5 p.m.

A free bike valet will be offered both days to encouraging attendees to leave their car at home. The event aims to be zero-waste by composting and recycling all of the “waste” from the event. 

Artistic videographers and photographers will document and interpret the events as part of the series’ interactive art slant.

“The intersection of the arts, public space, environmental sustainability and social interaction is where ‘it’s at’ in the urban arena,” Craig Watson, ACLB executive director, said in a statement. “The Arts Council helps promote dialogue and civic engagement through the arts. The ‘A Lot Symposium and Performance’ series is part of a temporary public art strategy that addresses the prevalence of vacant lots and underutilized spaces through site-specific temporary art and programming for each installation. 

“Through these events, we want people to become more educated and inspired on how they can help transform a vacant lot into an attractive space for public gathering, know more about creative work being done in and around Long Beach, and learn about Chantilly Clad.”

Disclosure: Long Beach Post publisher Shaun Lumachi is a member of the Arts Council for Long Beach Board of Directors.