EDITOR’S NOTEBOOK

Jennifer K Mahal

I had to help make a very hard decision on Thursday. Actually, five

very hard decisions. As one of three judges for the Westside Boys & Girls

Club’s 2001 Fine Arts Exhibit, I had the privilege of helping to pick out

five artworks done by children to send on to the club’s regional

competition.

All of the participants in the art show are winners to me.

When I got to the Boys & Girls Club that night, I had no idea what to

expect. Branch Director David Lewis ushered me into the Homework Room,

next door to the small hallway gallery. A gaggle of curious, happy,

nervous kids chattered as I sat down, my business suit making me feel out

of place in this T-shirt and jeans crowd.

For the next five minutes, I accomplished a lot. I stared at the

smiley-faced art posted on the board, read my ABC’s and decided that I

like the Disney’s Hercules poster with his arms raised better than the

one where he’s peeking out from behind a column. Since I wasn’t sure who

was a parent and who was a judge, I didn’t want to start any

conversations that might cause me to lose my impartiality.

Then Bob White, a local artist and one of the judges, arrived and,

sensing that I was probably here in the same capacity as he, proceeded to

introduce himself. At which point I also met Julio Espiritu, also a local

artist and the third judge.

White teaches art in Costa Mesa. Espiritu creates portraits for a

living and does political art for himself. His daughter, Alma Espiritu,

is the one who teaches art to the Boys & Girls Club kids. I can’t draw,

save for stick figures and very boogly haunted houses with ghosts that

look like they escaped from Pac Man.

As my drawing skills actually approach those of a 6-year-old -- and

that’s probably being generous -- I felt like the “one of these things is

not like the other” song. That in mind, it was amazing that we agreed on

the five who will continue on in the competition -- which goes through

regional, national and then international levels.

There were works in four mediums -- pastels, monochromatic drawings,

watercolor and multicolored drawings. The pastels category had enough

entries to be subdivided by age, creating a winner for the 9 and younger

set and a winner for the 10 to 12 set.

Walking through the short hallway gallery, I was amazed by the skill

and creativity shown in the works. The very first one, “Galaxy” by

Lilian Grigalva, was a piece I would be proud to place on my refrigerator

door any day. Grigalva showed a colorful universe on a black background,

using yellows, oranges and blues to show her vision in pastels.

Another one of her works, “Christmas Time,” gave the vision of

ornaments and flowers on a pine green setting, a detail of a tree or a

wreath. Although we chose Daisy Martinez’s “The Dying of Night” -- a

creative abstract with a sense of shape and color -- for our winner, I

wished we could have picked more than one for the 9 and younger set.

It was the centipede on Ashley Guadarrama’s palm tree in “The Jungle”

that caused me to pick it for the pastels ages 10 to 12 category. The leonine creature climbing a tree was cool, but it was the insect that won

me over. It was like the teeth in Everardo Luna’s “The Dragon.” The

teeth, though not enough to help him win the category, were enough for me

to stop and take a second and third glance at his scary monster.

The monochromatic category came as quite a surprise, with three works

showing a lot of promise in their young creators. Javier Rivera’s “Winter

Fantasy” was a scene that Currier and Ives would have liked. The house in

the woods with snow-covered trees was a pretty picture.

But the judges all agreed that Beatrice Calderon’s two works -- “Cry

Now, Smile Later” and “The Mask” -- were impressive enough that one

should win. The shading and the concept behind “Cry Now, Smile Later,” a

woman crying while lowering a mask in her left hand, made it our top

pick.

Daisy Martinez made a good showing in the watercolor category, with

two entries. However, Everardo Luna’s “Jason’s Mask” was the one we chose

to honor. It is how it sounds, a vision of the mask out of “Friday the

13th.” The lines of it were done sure and strong and the color choices --

white mask with red stripes on a blue background -- stood out.

In the multicolored drawings category, “Simple Beauty” won out. Though

perhaps less complex than many of the other artworks, this Diana Alvarez

drawing of a a blue vase painted with a red flower with purple flowers

sprouting from the top was my favorite.

Ashley Guadarrama’s “Harvest Time,” which depicted bunnies bringing in

a grain harvest, was very clever and well executed. Cindy Garcia’s “Home

Sweet Home” was also well done, showing a table with flowers in a room

with art on the walls. Of all the categories, the multicolored drawings

one was the most difficult for me to judge. They were all so good.

Telling the assembled crowd who would be going on to the next level

and who would not was a little sad. Not because any of the kids looked

unhappy. More because I wanted to give each and every one of them a blue

ribbon for putting so much work into their art.

As it is, the kids may get a kind of blue ribbon prize out of it after

all. I heard White asking if it would be OK for him to come in one day

and give an art demonstration to the kids gratis. “I’d like to give

something back,” he said.

This was the first year the Westside Boys & Girls Club has done a fine

arts exhibit. I think it was a rousing success. I hope they call me again

to judge it next year.

-- Jennifer Mahal is features editor of the Daily Pilot. She may be

reached at (9490 574-4282 or by e-mail at o7 [email protected].

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