Public Art News Archives - Santa Clarita Arts

“The Living Quilt” Temporary Art Projection Coming to Newhall Crossings Courtyard

JANUARY 6, 2023

“The LIVING QUILT” Temporary Art Projection Coming to Newhall Crossings Courtyard
Temporary Video Projection on Display January 27-29

Become part of the next temporary public art piece in Santa Clarita when you step into “The Living Quilt,” a new collaboration between the City of Santa Clarita and California Institute of the Arts’ Professor John Hawk. Students in Professor Hawk’s Videographics class will create a “living quilt” by combining abstract colorful moving imagery that will be projected onto a wall in the Newhall Crossings courtyard near Laemmle Theatre Newhall. “The Living Quilt” will be on display from January 27-29, from sundown to 10:30 p.m.

“The Living Quilt” is a patchwork video creation featuring the work of Professor Hawk’s students and will also feature a public engagement element. A live video camera will be directed toward members of the public viewing the display, and its signal will be incorporated into the art to truly generate a “living quilt.”

The concept of the project centers around quilt making as a communal activity for American frontier women, which became popular during the early 19^th century. These social events, known as quilting bees, also meant that quilts could be completed in a matter of days instead of weeks or months.

To learn more about public art in Santa Clarita and to stay updated on all things arts throughout the year, follow ArtsinSCV on Facebook and Instagram and visit SantaClaritaArts.com.

Press Release – Endangered Fossils by Judith Modrak

OCTOBER 11, 2022

“Endangered Fossils,” a New sculptural Artwork, Installed at West Creek Park
Sculpture Connects Viewers to Mother Earth

Santa Clarita residents have a new temporary public art piece to enjoy following the recent installation of “Endangered Fossils,” which is the latest sculpture to join the City of Santa Clarita’s Public Art collection. “Endangered Fossils” can be viewed at the northwest corner of West Creek Park, located at 24247 Village Circle Drive in Valencia.

“Endangered Fossils” is by New York artist Judith Modrak and has traveled to Santa Clarita following its display at Flushing Meadows Corona Park, the site of two 20^th-century World’s Fairs, in Queens, New York, as part of New York City’s Public Art program. The sculpture represents an imagined archaeological excavation and the discovery of a new organism. The painted aqua-resin casts were inspired by fossilized trilobites, brachiopods and crinoids, which bear a strong resemblance to modern crabs, clams and starfish. They reflect both the past and the present as a reminder of what existed but is now gone.

“The sculpture pays homage to our beloved Mother Earth at a critical time requiring everyone’s involvement,” explained Modrak. “The project considers the origin of the ecosystem we inhabit and our role, relationship and responsibility to that environment. The larger concept was very much about the fossil record in light of climate change, which is causing many species to tragically become extinct. Even fossils are ‘endangered.’”

The City of Santa Clarita’s annual Public Art Report calls for two new sculptural public art pieces to be added each year to the temporary collection. Each artwork will remain on display in the City for three years, after which a new artwork will be installed in its place.

To learn more about public art in Santa Clarita and to stay updated on all things arts throughout the year, follow ArtsinSCV on Facebook and Instagram and visit SantaClaritaArts.com.