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‘Off Kilter: Power and Pathos’ exhibit on view at USC Pacific Asia Museum
“Off Kilter: Power and Pathos,” on view from July 22 to Sept. 4 at USC Pacific Asia Museum (USC PAM), features the works of Sandra Low, Keiko Fukazawa and Kim-Trang Tran.
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By May S. Ruiz
(mayrchu56@gmail.com
The exhibition is the latest installation in the museum’s effort to provide a place where, through their work, diasporic Asian American artists can examine and address present-day concerns that affect our community.
Rebecca Hall, USC PAM’s curator, explains during a press walkthrough of the exhibition, “Those of you who are familiar with what I’ve been doing here as curator know that my ongoing work with contemporary Asian American artists stems from my desire to focus on a very specific part in Asia, to bring it into L.A. and in the current moment — which has changed in the last couple of years — and to engage with the community. This started with an exhibition called ‘We Are Here’ which opened to great fanfare on March 13, 2020 only to be shut down because of the pandemic. Fortuitously, we reopened it last year during AAPI Heritage month.
“That exhibition highlighted seven Asian American female artists who lived and worked in Los Angeles. I met both Sandra and Kim-Trang then but I wasn’t able to include their work on that show because of our limited space. I was so impressed with both that I wanted to make sure I brought them into the galleries.It was a bit later that I met Keiko after she displayed a piece in our sister museum, The Fisher Museum of Art.
Hall reveals as we approach Low’s displays, “I find Sandra’s work very compelling, but I also find it the most difficult to talk about because it’s so much about being a diasporic Chinese American woman. And I get it, but it’s not my place to talk about that and it’s not my voice that I should be using.
“Her ‘Ma Stories’ came from the disconnect she felt as an Asian American growing up in the San Gabriel Valley. She still lives with her mother, who has dementia, and this series records their day-to-day interaction. In fact, these pieces aren’t so much about art than they are about her relationship with her mother.”
Indeed, when you look at the drawings and read the verbiage, you can imagine the artist reacting to what her mother did or said. The series — however absurd and comical as the illustrations and captions are — is a child’s homage to a beloved mother. You sense that Low wants to preserve all the memories that her parent has lost. Each display is at once hilarious and heartbreaking.
“‘Cheesy Paintings’
pulls from the same experience we see in her ‘Ma Stories.’ Cheese takes on different meanings to Sandra and she plays with
the contrast of cheese dripping on the landscape,” Hall says.
Anyone who has emigrated from Southeast Asia will tell you that dairy products — like milk, butter, and cheese — were rare commodities several decades ago. What a treat it must have been for Low’s mother, who had until then only ever known Cheese
Whiz and Velveeta, to see so many varieties in the grocery store. Her mother’s reaction to the abundance of cheese made a huge
impression and she memorialized that in a fantastically fun way.
In “Pandemic Prints,” Low uses household items. Hall relates, “We were all housebound during the pandemic so she used whatever objects were available, like doilies, to create these images and process what was going on; each print takes you to that moment. This one stands out for me — September 21, 2020: over 200,000 deaths from Covid-19 in the U.S., over 950,000 worldwide. She recorded what happened that day; they are universal and personal at the same time.”
Hall describes as we reach Fukazawa’s gallery, “This is Keiko’s ‘Peacemaker’ series. In ‘Seven Days,’ she selected seven days that had gun deaths and stacked guns; each one has the name and age of the person who died and where it occurred. I think this is an important series in the way she visualizes gun violence so that there’s no way we can remain neutral on this issue. Another part of this series shows the guns used in mass shootings with the state flower wrapped around the gun.”
One display area is devoted to Fukazawa’s work with clay and ceramics, and her time in China. For this exhibition, she has a piece called “Hello, Mao” and five “Perception Plates.” Another set of artworks is called “Circle of Friends” – porcelain underglaze with profile images of reviled world leaders past and pres ent.
Hall informs that the inspiration for Tran’s display “Movements: Battles and Solidarity” was a book she read about a fashion show in Versailles in 1972 when the American prêt-à-porter competed against the French haute couture collection. “This multi-media display captures that period from 1972 to 1974 but she makes it very relevant. And so she thought about the protest movement in textile factories in three different locations in the U.S. and all involved women.
“I feel it’s so empowering and so poignant in the way she portrayed labor, women, representation, and power. There are several layers to this artwork: the image on the left on the screen is embroidered and was made in Vietnam; then there’s a visual on how people treat women’s bodies. I also studied textiles and when I saw this for the first time, I had goosebumps on my arms and tears streaming down my face. I knew we had to have this.”
What a blessing it is that Hall has made it her creed to advance the accomplishments of diasporic Asian Americans by ensuring their works are seen and their voices are heard. At a time when the population in Pasadena and Los Angeles is becoming ever more diverse, USC Pacific Asia Museum is leading the way to connect us all.
Sandra Low, ‘A Very Civil Cheese,’ 2019. Oil on Canvas. | Photo courtesy of the USC Pacific Asia Museum
City of Pasadena recognizes Zebreda Dunham as Robert Gorski Access Award recipient
By Staff
LA County may halt mask mandate as COVID stats stabilize
By City News Service
If COVID statistics remain stable, the predicted mask mandate may be paused. | Photo courtesy of Janelle Hiroshige/Unsplash
Zebreda Dunham. | Photo courtesy of the City of Pasadena
The City of Pasadena is proud to recognize Zebreda Dunham as the 2022 recipient of the Robert Gorski Access Award — an award established by the city’s Accessibility and Disability Commission and presented annually to a Pasadena resident with a disability who has made a significant contribution toward improving accessibility and quality of life for people with disabilities. Zebreda was honored on Monday, July 25 at a city council meeting.
Zebreda was born in 1978 with Arthrogryposis Multiplex Congenita (AMC). The symptoms of AMC are physical and can differ greatly in range and severity from one person to another. Typically, individuals with AMC have joint stiffness that affects the range of motion of their legs and arms.
Zebreda’s life has been filled with both extraordinary challenges and achievements. She moved to Pasadena in 2005 and has been a familiar face throughout the city ever since. A self-described “MacGyver,” Zebreda is well-known for her work designing, creating, modifying and adapting a wide range of tools, equipment and devices that support activities of daily living, many of which can be viewed on her YouTube channel, “Zebreda Makes It Work!”
Her work enjoys an international following of persons with disabilities, assistive technology specialists, designers, engineers and service providers working on accessibilityrelated products ranging from simple DIY tools to hightech interfaces. Zebreda has participated in projects hosted by both Google and Apple, and was the first recipient of RESNA's Do-It-Yourself Assistive Technology Contest for her modification of a key turner. In 2015, she was invited to virtually present at the Enable Makeathon hosted in Bangalore, India.
Always with a smile and positive attitude, Zebreda has made Pasadena a more inclusive and welcoming city. Over the last few years, she has helped the city’s Accessibility and Disability Commission initiate Pasadena’s annual Adaptive Sports Festival and integrate accessible features into the Union Street Protected Bike Lane Project.
Zebreda is also an avid sports enthusiast and member of the SoCal Vaqueros Power Soccer Club. She encourages others throughout Southern California to compete in adaptive sports. C OVID-19 case numbers, hospitalizations and deaths continue to show signs of stabilizing locally, Los Angeles County's health director said Wednesday, adding that if the trend continues the county might pause plans to reimpose a universal indoor maskwearing mandate later this week.
Speaking to the Board of Supervisors, Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said she was "relieved" to report a continued drop in the average daily number of new infections, with the past seven days seeing roughly 6,100 new cases daily, down from 6,700 the previous week.
She also noted a stabilization in virus-related hospitalizations and deaths, with an average of 14 fatalities per day being reported — a number that she stressed remains too high.
But she said that, given the steady declines that have been recorded in virus metrics over the past week and a half, "We may be positioned to pause the implementation of universal masking."
Ferrer said earlier a new indoor mask mandate would be imposed on Friday if the county remains in the "high" virus activity category — with a new daily virus-related hospital admission rate higher than 10 per 100,000 residents. That number as of last Thursday was 11.7 per 100,000.
Ferrer said Tuesday that if the county is at least approaching the 10 per 100,000 residents level by Thursday, it would "trigger a reassessment on the need to reimplement an indoor masking mandate."
She stressed during her presentation, however, that transmission of COVID-19 remains high across the county, and the virus is still a leading cause of death, killing more people in the first six months of the year than drug overdoses, the flu and traffic crashes combined.
But the idea of a renewed indoor masking mandate has generated opposition, including from the Los Angeles County Business Federation last week and on Monday from county Supervisor Kathryn Barger, who said she believes in the effectiveness of masks, but not of mask mandates. Barger repeated Tuesday that she does not believe there is any "empirical data" proving that a mask mandate will be more effective than what the county does now — which is strongly recommend masks. "I am adamantly opposed to mandating the masking, because I truly do believe it's going to have the opposite effect," Barger said.
Barger earned support Tuesday from Supervisor Janice Hahn, who said she fears imposing a universal mandate "will be very divisive for L.A. County." "I honestly believe there are a significant number of the population who are not willing to accept mask mandates at this point," Hahn said. "And many of them, the ones that have contacted me, pointed out that we do have more tools now than we had at the beginning of the pandemic. "... Personally I'm worried ... that we're losing the trust this time of a portion of the public that's actually been with us up to this point," she said, noting that the city of Beverly Hills announced Tuesday it will not actively enforce a mask mandate if it is imposed.
Hahn suggested that the county consider simply expanding the list of places where masks are still required to include grocery stores and pharmacies, rather than all indoor spaces. Ferrer said her department would consider the idea.
Masks are still mandated in indoor health care facilities, transit hubs, on transit vehicles, airports, correctional facilities and shelters. A universal mandate would spread the requirement to all indoor public spaces, including shared office spaces, manufacturing facilities, retail stores, indoor events, indoor restaurants and bars and schools.
On Tuesday afternoon, the cities of Long Beach and Pasadena — which both have their own health departments separate from the county — announced they will not be imposing mask mandates. "The (Long Beach) Health Department strongly encourages people to practice personal responsibility and common-sense measures to protect themselves, their loved ones and the greater community from COVID-19," according to a statement from Long Beach. "People are advised to mask indoors when in public places, conduct rapid testing before and three to five days after social gatherings and choose outdoor activities where possible."
Both cities said they would continue to monitor the COVID situation. Pasadena officials said they would "consider appropriate public health actions to protect our community as the situation changes."
While Ferrer conceded that a universal mask
LA County supervisors expected to advance sheriff ballot measure
By City News Service
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors gave preliminary approval Tuesday to an ordinance placing a measure on the November ballot that would give the panel authority to remove a publicly elected sheriff from office for cause.
The board approved the ordinance without discussion on a 4-1 vote, with Supervisor Kathryn Barger dissenting. The ordinance will return to the board for final approval on Aug. 2, then be placed on the Nov. 8 ballot.
The ballot measure would give the board the power to remove a sheriff "for cause" on a four-fifths vote of the five-member panel. "Cause" is defined as "a violation of any law related to the performance of their duties as sheriff; flagrant or repeated neglect of duties; a misappropriation of public funds or property; willful falsification of a relevant official statement or document; or obstruction of any investigation into the conduct of the sheriff by the Inspector General, Sheriff Civilian Oversight Commission, or any government agency with jurisdiction to conduct such an investigation."
Although board members supporting the measure denied it was political in nature, the move is a clear response to repeated clashes with current Sheriff Alex Villanueva. Villanueva has repeatedly clashed with the board, accusing members of defunding his agency at the expense of public safety, while also rebuffing subpoenas to appear before the county's Civilian Oversight Commission.
Board Chair Holly Mitchell and Supervisor Hilda Solis introduced the motion calling for the ballot measure. Mitchell said during the July 12 meeting that the issue goes beyond Villanueva. "The issue of sheriff accountability before us is both urgent and systemic, having impacted past generations of Angelenos, but also with important consequences for the future," Mitchell said. "Unfortunately, the county has had long and troubling history with sheriff oversight and transparency."
The motion by Mitchell and Solis referred to previous sheriffs Lee Baca, who was sent to federal prison on corruption charges, and Peter Pitchess, who "resisted any involvement in the first internal investigation of deputy gangs from outside the department."
Villanueva has blasted the proposal as unconstitutional. He sent a letter to the board earlier this month saying the measure "would allow corrupt board members to intimidate sheriffs from carrying out their official duties to investigate crime." "This motion is a recipe for public corruption, particularly when `cause' remains so broad and undefined," the sheriff wrote. "Allowing political appointees with an agenda to determine `cause' is fundamentally flawed. "... It appears you are making yourselves the judge, jury and executioner for the office of the sheriff, nullifying the will of the voters. This illegal motion seeks to undermine the role of the sheriff and render the office subordinate to the Board of Supervisors. On its face, your proposed ordinance language is not a proper reading of the law and will be challenged on these multiple grounds."
He called the move an effort to derail his reelection bid. Villanueva is facing a Nov. 8 runoff with former Long Beach police Chief Robert Luna. All five members of the Board of Supervisors have endorsed Luna.
Barger, in voting against the proposed ballot measure on July 12, questioned the impetus behind the move, calling it politically motivated. She asked why it only targets the sheriff and not other county leadership positions. She said in a statement after the vote the proposal creates a "slippery slope for the Board of Supervisors to override the will of the voters."
Mitchell denied that the proposal was politically motivated. "At no point since being elected to this position have I ever speculated about what motivates a member to bring a matter before us," Mitchell said.
Supervisor Sheila Kuehl conceded during the July 12 meeting that the board probably would not have brought up the proposal had Villanueva "not been so egregious in his behavior." "It is an important thing because this particular elected office is more powerful," Kuehl said. "I don't see the assessor getting people killed. It is not for me just about this sheriff. It's really about the ability to hold someone accountable when they have a very powerful position."
According to the motion, despite efforts to provide oversight of the department, "the board has nevertheless been limited in its ability to serve as a sufficient check against the sheriff's flagrant disregard of lawful oversight and accountability."
The Republican National Committee issued a statement blasting the proposal as "another prime example of how Democrats like to change the rules when they don't get their way." "Not only is Sheriff Villanueva an elected official, he's one of the few who has been willing to stand up to the board for reducing law enforcement funding and effectively endangering the lives of Angelenos," according to the RNC. "... This decision from the L.A. County Board of Supervisors would attempt to bully the elected sheriff into doing what they want and would be yet another blow to a free and fair democracy, thanks to California Democrats."
Villanueva is a registered Democrat.
Sheriff Alex Villanueva speaking at the annual Consular Forum in May 2022. | Photo courtesy of LASD
Mask mandate
Continued From Page 9 mandate might potentially be delayed based on case and hospitalization numbers, she took issue during her presentation with what she called "myths and misinformation" being circulated in the community -- including the idea that masking mandates don't work, or that there is no data to support them.
Ferrer reiterated results of studies she has cited in the past — a Pennsylvania study that found counties with mask mandates had 35% lower COVID infection numbers than those that did not; and an Arkansas study that found 23% lower case rates in school districts with mask mandates.
She also referenced numbers showing sharp increases in worksite COVID outbreaks since Los Angeles County lifted its earlier masking mandate and an increase in outbreaks at schools when mask mandates were lifted at campuses.
In addition, she again pointed to other well-known health-related mandates -- such as no-smoking laws, seat belt requirements and long-standing vaccination mandates for children to attend schools.
Supervisor Sheila Kuehl lashed out at people who object to mask-wearing, referring to them as "snowflake weepies."
Charles Manson's half-sister drops bid to oversee late cult leader's estate
Charles Manson in 2011. | Photo courtesy of Picryl
By City News Service
estate.
However, Freeman has filed court papers stating that probate of the Channels shouldl be denied because it was created "as a direct result of undue influence exercised by (Channels) over (Manson) and is not, and never was, the will of (Manson)."
Davis said after Monday's hearing that if the Manson Jr. birth certificate is found to be valid, the judge will have to determine the validity of the purported Manson will Channels produced.
Manson suffered from heart disease and other ailments before he died in November 2017 at age 83.
Manson and members of his outcast family of followers were convicted of killing actress Sharon Tate — who was eight months pregnant — and six other people during a bloody rampage in the Los Angeles area in August 1969.
The Manson clan also stabbed to death grocery
magnate Leno La Bianca and his wife Rosemary La Bianca the night after the Tate murders.
Manson was convicted of seven counts of first-degree murder and one count of conspiracy to commit murder in the deaths of Tate, the La Biancas, and four other people at the Tate residence — coffee heiress Abigail Ann Folger, photographer Wojciech Frykowski, hairdresser Jay Sebring and Steven Earl Parent, who was shot in his car on his way to visit an acquaintance who lived in a separate rented guest house on the Tate property.
Manson and followers Charles "Tex" Watson, Leslie Van Houten, Patricia Krenwinkel and the late Susan Atkins all were convicted and sentenced to state prisons in 1971. Manson also was convicted in December of that year of first-degree murder for the July 25, 1969, death of Gary Hinman and the August 1969 death of Donald Shea.
Manson and the others originally were sentenced to death, but a 1972 state Supreme Court decision caused all capital sentences in California to be commuted to life in prison. There was no life-withoutparole sentence at the time.
Manson was denied parole a dozen times.
The half-sister of the late Charles Manson Monday dropped out of what was a three-way contest to permanently run the late cult leader's estate, whittling the field down to Manson's self-professed grandson and a onetime Manson pen pal.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Ruben Garcia granted a request by Dilair Nafoosi, an attorney for Nancy Claassen of Spokane, Washington, that Manson's half-sibling's petition be denied "without prejudice," meaning it can be refiled later. Nafoosi said he was making the decision based on a June 17 minute order by the judge in which Garcia found that Claasen had not presented any evidence rebutting Jason Freeman's claim to be the son of the late Charles Manson Jr., who Freeman maintains was Manson's son.
Under California law, when someone dies without a will, their children and grandchildren take priority over siblings when it comes to deciding beneficiaries.
Garcia said in his June findings that more litigation was needed to determine whether Manson Jr. was indeed the elder Manson's son. He did not rule Monday on the validity of Manson Jr.'s birth certificate filed with the court July 19 by lawyer Alan Davis and whether it provides proof he was the son of the late cult leader. Davis represents Dale Kiken, a lawyer and the current temporary special administrator of the Manson estate. Kiken is advocating for Freeman's kinship claim.
The birth certificate produced by Davis and obtained from the Los Angeles County RegistrarRecorder/County Clerk's Office states that Manson Jr. was born April 10, 1956, in what was then known as Los Angeles County General Hospital to Manson Sr., then 21, and Rosalie Jean Willis, who was 18 years old at the time.
Manson Jr., also named Charles Jay White, committed suicide in June 1993. In his findings, Garcia said he concluded that Freeman is Manson Jr.'s son based on a February 1986 finding by an Ohio judge in which Manson Jr. was ordered to pay child support payments to Freeman's mother.
Neither Michael Channels, the former Manson pen pal, nor any of his attorneys appeared for Monday's virtual hearing, so the judge postponed the any further proceedings until Aug. 12.
In their court papers, Channels' attorneys state that Manson's 2002 will, filed in Kern County in November 2017, names their client as the person Manson intended to administer his
