Great Start to 2006
It’s a good day…
It was with absolute bliss that I agreed to a dinner date with a very dear old friend tonight. It’s wonderful to know that some friendships withstand time and circumstance. Lookin’ forward to sharing a bottle of wine with you tonight Dr. BN!
History continues in a new location or… the new face of American Art…
The Togonon Gallery opens its doors next month. R and I, well mostly R, I’m more like a silent partner, have gone into partnership with fine and contemporary art dealer and curator Julina Togonon. Needless to say, a good size chunk of my meager resources is invested in this pot, and R has a new job as assistant director of the gallery. But I don’t mind at all. I believe in this gallery, and I believe history is being made. The Togonon Gallery has been around for over 10 years. They specialize in representing emerging artists (or artists of color), that is to say, the new breed of artists who receive the least representation in the art world, which, despite what it claims, is still very much white dominated. When I say breed I mean a new generation, and generation can span up to 50 years.
Why is it so important to represent Filipino American, latin American, African American, asian American artists? Because we are a permanent part of American culture and American art, because we are part of what makes the landscape what it is, and because our experience needs to be reflected in its institutions. I never knew there were brilliant Filipino American abstract expressionists, they were never mentioned in any of my art history classes. It was all about de Kooning, Rothko, Gorky, Pollock and, one of my favourites, Clifford Still. It was all about the white guys. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a big fan of the abstract expressionists. I can stare at Still’s No.1 1957 for hours and hours (which I have done, it's in SFMOMA) and keep finding meaning and get swept away by emotions the colors invoke within me. Powerful stuff his works are. But I had never known that there was also a Leo Valledor, son of Filipino immigrants who worked the fields in Monterey, grew up in San Francisco, attended the California School of Fine Arts (now called the San Francisco Art Institute) on scholarship, and has an extensive body of work that reflects his relationship with color and jazz among other things. I only found out via exposure to the Togonon Gallery. His works can be found in various galleries, private collections, and I believe the de Young purchased a few pieces as well.
I call Julina the Betty Parsons of our generation. She is helping the careers of many artists, continually cultivating, educating, inspiring. Some of the works of artists in her stable are in the de Young, the SF MOMA, the Oakland Museum, etc. There is a new generation of art collectors… we are it. We want to see our history, our culture, our take on what it means to live and be part of this country reflected in the art, represented, elevated. She is making this happen. She’s a tiny woman, very smart, a dynamo full of unrelenting energy, and she is unquestionably earnest. She’s the kind of woman you want on your side, representing you in the world of high art. She told me once, “History will remember those who have made an impact in the institutions, and we are part of history. Our history needs to be known and remembered.”
I’m very excited about the opening next month. There will be 2 or 3 opening parties. Like I’ve said before, I love any excuse to drink wine and talk about art and “art” and meaning and “meaning”. Plus, i just love a really good soiree. The opening party for friends and family is Feb. 18, from 2 – 6pm (I think). The Togonon Gallery is now located at 77 Geary St. San Francisco.
On a side note, the art the Togonon gallery sells is extremely reasonable. But once an artist is in a museum, the prices go way, way up. For my part, I’ve vowed that someday, I will have a Leo Valledor on my wall. A piece of history, a piece of work by a remarkable artist, which I and my children will be able to look at and discuss and gleam lessons and understanding, for hours on end.
It was with absolute bliss that I agreed to a dinner date with a very dear old friend tonight. It’s wonderful to know that some friendships withstand time and circumstance. Lookin’ forward to sharing a bottle of wine with you tonight Dr. BN!
History continues in a new location or… the new face of American Art…
The Togonon Gallery opens its doors next month. R and I, well mostly R, I’m more like a silent partner, have gone into partnership with fine and contemporary art dealer and curator Julina Togonon. Needless to say, a good size chunk of my meager resources is invested in this pot, and R has a new job as assistant director of the gallery. But I don’t mind at all. I believe in this gallery, and I believe history is being made. The Togonon Gallery has been around for over 10 years. They specialize in representing emerging artists (or artists of color), that is to say, the new breed of artists who receive the least representation in the art world, which, despite what it claims, is still very much white dominated. When I say breed I mean a new generation, and generation can span up to 50 years.
Why is it so important to represent Filipino American, latin American, African American, asian American artists? Because we are a permanent part of American culture and American art, because we are part of what makes the landscape what it is, and because our experience needs to be reflected in its institutions. I never knew there were brilliant Filipino American abstract expressionists, they were never mentioned in any of my art history classes. It was all about de Kooning, Rothko, Gorky, Pollock and, one of my favourites, Clifford Still. It was all about the white guys. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a big fan of the abstract expressionists. I can stare at Still’s No.1 1957 for hours and hours (which I have done, it's in SFMOMA) and keep finding meaning and get swept away by emotions the colors invoke within me. Powerful stuff his works are. But I had never known that there was also a Leo Valledor, son of Filipino immigrants who worked the fields in Monterey, grew up in San Francisco, attended the California School of Fine Arts (now called the San Francisco Art Institute) on scholarship, and has an extensive body of work that reflects his relationship with color and jazz among other things. I only found out via exposure to the Togonon Gallery. His works can be found in various galleries, private collections, and I believe the de Young purchased a few pieces as well.
I call Julina the Betty Parsons of our generation. She is helping the careers of many artists, continually cultivating, educating, inspiring. Some of the works of artists in her stable are in the de Young, the SF MOMA, the Oakland Museum, etc. There is a new generation of art collectors… we are it. We want to see our history, our culture, our take on what it means to live and be part of this country reflected in the art, represented, elevated. She is making this happen. She’s a tiny woman, very smart, a dynamo full of unrelenting energy, and she is unquestionably earnest. She’s the kind of woman you want on your side, representing you in the world of high art. She told me once, “History will remember those who have made an impact in the institutions, and we are part of history. Our history needs to be known and remembered.”
I’m very excited about the opening next month. There will be 2 or 3 opening parties. Like I’ve said before, I love any excuse to drink wine and talk about art and “art” and meaning and “meaning”. Plus, i just love a really good soiree. The opening party for friends and family is Feb. 18, from 2 – 6pm (I think). The Togonon Gallery is now located at 77 Geary St. San Francisco.
On a side note, the art the Togonon gallery sells is extremely reasonable. But once an artist is in a museum, the prices go way, way up. For my part, I’ve vowed that someday, I will have a Leo Valledor on my wall. A piece of history, a piece of work by a remarkable artist, which I and my children will be able to look at and discuss and gleam lessons and understanding, for hours on end.
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