Photo courtesy of Oakland North
Oaklanders are hungry. For food, and drinks and what not, but also for just…more good stuff in to happen in the town.

Michael McDermott, We’ll Rescue you (Salvation) (2007)

Upon opening our doors this morning at the gallery and hearing the ominous swarm of helicopters still hovering nearby, we felt compelled to express our support of those Oaklanders who have been occupying downtown for the last few weeks.

We love our bikes here, so of course we are quite excited about Pedalfest (happening right around the corner from the gallery) this weekend! Pedalfest is a free celebration of all things bike on Saturday, October 22, 2011 from 10 am – 5 pm at Jack London Square. Some going on throughout the day include:

• Handmade show featuring bikes and gear by Soulcraft, Inglis, Retrotec, Black Cat, Caletti, Rebolledo, Steelman, Paragon, Paul and more
• Vintage bike show showcasing the beauty and history represented by local collections
• Entertainment including a trials demo by Giant Bicycles’ Chris Clark, a BMX show by the Clayton bikes team, Dirt jump demo by Andrew Taylor and other pro riders from the SF Expo AT showdown
• The Whiskey Drome: Enjoy the show or ride the mini velodrome yourself. Just a warning: it can be habit forming
• New Belgium beer garden, all proceeds donated to Walk Oakland Bike Oakland and East Bay Bicycle Coalition
• Live music provided by a Rock the Bike pedal-powered sound stage
• Vendor area featuring clothing, food, and local shops representing their brands
• Kids’ zone with pedal-powered amusement rides, bike powered spin art, bike decoration station, Childrens Hospital safety program and a bike parade led by Red Tricycle

Also, those of you who dwell across the bay will be delighted to know that the ferry is offering FREE rides to Pedalfest for bicyclists! (Limited to 80 bikes per ferry departure—just board the boat at the San Francisco Ferry Building Gate E with your bike and ride for free!).

Don’t forget to stop in at Swarm if you’re near. And if you ride your bike, as you should, make sure to take advantage of our lovely bike rack that just turned 1 years old this September (thanks, city of Oakland!)

It seems only natural that ex-officio marketing person for the neighborhood, Svea (Swarm’s director), would take on the neighborhood newsletter, The Call!! Published by the Jack London District Association, the newsletter comes out every two months and features columns highlighting restaurants, events, news and the fine folks who live, work and play in the JLD!

Special thanks to Neven Samara for the  fabulous redesign.

If you are interested in advertising, or have interesting ideas for content, don’t hesitate to send your inquiry or suggestion to: thecall@jlda.org.

Summer Solstice screen-printed poster by Paul Morgan. First 20 people through the door get one for FREE! Otherwise for sale $20!

Looking for a good way to ring in summer? In case you have not yet heard, we have something great in store tomorrow night at the gallery…

Photo credit Tamara Palmer/SF Gate

Thanks so much to these two great food carts, the Boffo Cart and Jon’s Street Eats, for serving up some delicious and inventive dishes last night during our collector’s event here at the gallery. For those who haven’t sampled the Roasted Peppers and Bellefiore Mozzarella Calzone or the Ahi Tuna Roll and a dessert of Butterscotch Pudding, it would be in your best interests to Twitter-stalk these guys to find out their next stop (or, for the Luddites among us, desperately run around the hippest street corners & finest farmer’s markets in the Bay till you track them down).

Do you dream of the day where you can meet all the Swarm Studio artists? Join us this Sunday, March 6th, from 11am to 6pm for Swarm Open Studios!

They can be an elusive bunch—some known to hide out during the daytime only to paint masterpieces at the wee hours of the night. This weekend is your chance to chat with the artists (and see their paint-splotched clothing and cute dogs) and view all the artwork they usually have squirreled-away in the depths of their studios.

We hope to see you then!

John Casey and Derek Weisberg made our lives easier and interviewed each other about their collaborative work for upcoming experimental show, “THINGS ARE EXPANDING.” This work - and all others - can be viewed in person at Swarm Gallery, December 11, 2010 - January 16, 2011. Opening is Second Friday, December 10, 6-8PM, featuring live musical performances by SUNDAY GHOST and JOE MINTZ. More info here.

John: Have you collaborated with many artists? Name some examples.

Derek: I guess I have collaborated with a lot of artists in the past. In college, there was a group of friends who all got together and worked on things together, very fluid and casual. I also worked a lot with my friend and very talented artist Percy Feils. We did a few two-person shows together with many collaborations. Last year I did a show at Hatch Gallery with my friend James Kirkpatrick. We collaborated a bunch. Being a sculptor primarily, collaborations can sometimes have a kind of limitation for me and an artist I am working with, because it may  need some particulars; space, facilities, a knowledge of material etc. It isn’t let’s just sit down and pass some paper back and forth. With that said, it can also make for some interesting work and push each of us into new ways addressing our work. I have also worked with other ceramic artists, Crystal Morey, Ben Belknap,  and several others. For sculptors, or people who work in ceramics, I guess that it’s more like passing paper back and forth, because we are all familiar with the material. However, it doesn’t guarantee that making those visual and content decisions will be easy.

For the holiday week, Swarm Gallery hours follow:

OPEN: Wed 12-5

CLOSED: Thurs + Fri.

OPEN: Sat-Sun 12-6pm.

Have a very happy holiday!

John Casey, Jane Elliott, Bert Bergen, Jake Watling and Heidi Cregge

Artists are always looking of ways to get paid. By “getting paid” I am not solely talking about getting handed grubby cash for our work (although that is arguably the best way). I’m talking about really getting rewarded. The best rewards are receiving acknowledgment in a field where acknowledgment is often only available at a distance. Like, by gallery goers who have little to no relationship with the artist. Every little bit of reward is necessary in order to help us float from one island of hope to the next, because, brother, it is tough out there. As an artist, we search a dark ocean of isolation for bright beacons of community and appreciation and fun. And what about art appreciators who want to experience one-on-one relationships with artists, but have no venue to be connected with the person making the work? It is armed with this agenda that we have launched Drawing Wednesdays at Levende in Old Oakland.

Dave Higgins, Alissa Goss, John Casey and Brük Dunbar, Jane Elliott, David Seiler and Bert Bergen

As I write this, Drawing Wednesday is in its third month and every week it gets a little bit more popular. 827 Washington Street is where you will find us between the hours of 4 and 7 (Happy Hour includes $3 draft beer) at Levende, a super-classy joint in what is one of the nicest neighborhoods in our fair city. The line-up is different each week as ten to fifteen Bay Area artists meet on a long table to scratch out some Live Art for the gathered host and commune with each other. For a brief and shining moment, the bar is transformed into a critically massive studio space where art is not something displayed in a gallery, but is actually a living thing integral to a new and yet strangely familiar vision of urban community.

Drawings by John Casey, Jake Watling and Jane Elliott.

And the rewards are reciprocal. Want to start or add to an art collection for less than, gulp, a $100? Some of the most critically acknowledged local talent is there, selling their work for beer trade! As co-host of the event and organizer of the artists, I want to foster a unique and special sense of inclusion and acceptance. Don’t be intimidated by the group setting: If you are an artist and would like to be a part of the event, come on by and introduce yourself. A lot of our artists are Swarm artists (and staffers!) so it makes sense that I will be running regular and exclusive updates about this event on this blog. For a complete look at the drawings, check out http://www.oaklandsweetart.info. Hope to see you at Drawing Wednesdays at Levende!