What’s Inside San Jose
Issue 2.0 Spring/Summer 2010
Gianfranco Paoloizzi Chris Esparza David Knight Daniel Fenton Element 151
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Cultivator Notes
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Contributors
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Fresh Start
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Dancing Upon Words
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Element 151
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Clean & Sober, One Day at a Time
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San Jose’s Daniel Fenton
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Ben Alexy
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There is No Failure, Only Life
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Fashion: Park Place
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Left Coast Live
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Song & Story
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David Knight
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Real Produce
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Artist Spotlight: Ben Alexy
cultivator’s notes clean issue 2.0 I love spring. The change of the seasons, blossoming of flowers and slowly warming weather all give me hope. A reminder that things are growing, and moving towards the best time of year: summer (at least for me). Longer days. Brighter days. Spring is the promise of newness. Fresh. Clean. These are the motivating themes behind this issue 2.0 as we look at the shaping San Jose’s future with Daniel Fenton, the reemerging music scene and a person journey to sobriety. Each one of these stories and interviews reflect a coming new season and the hope of Spring.
Daniel Garcia, Cultivator daniel@content-magazine.com
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contributors
Jonathan Sontag Jonathan can’t stop creating. He’s addicted to it, an inspired work-a-holic. Whether it be music, design, or words, he can always be found constructing something artistic. He currently plays guitar in Northern Son while developing his solo music project, Angeles, writes for Content, and helps lead a team of talented individuals currently filming and developing a documentary called “Song & Story”. Listen to Angeles at playtozero.com and Northern Son at http://myspace.com/northernsonmusic
VISUALS Jessy Dewi- Design/Layout jessy@content-magazine.com Brian Jensen-Design/Layout brian@content-magazine.com Amy Iniguez-Design/Layout amy@content-magazine.com Chris John-Design/Layout chris@content-magazine.com
FOOD Dan Moore-Food chefmoore@content-magazine.com
Trina Merry, Arts Editor As a professional artist working in San Jose, Trina Merry provides the inside scoop on the Contemporary Art Scene. She introduces contemporary artists, galleries and art events that help you dig beneath the surface of San Jose. “The Arts are a life-enriching experience. How will people remember San Jose 500 years from now? Our City’s story will be told by what was created.” Whether you’re a contemporary artist, a patron or someone who wants to find the pulse of the City, there’s something cool & interesting for you to discover! “All Hail the Progenitors of Culture!” www.trinamerry.com
James Trujillo James is a writer and musician from San Jose, California. He’s spent many years dwelling in the depths of the San Jose music scene as a performer in various local acts.He’s commonly mistaken as the guitarist for Soundgarden or even “that one guy from Metallica” who happens to have the same last name. In all reality, James is in fact a pretty big Soundgarden fan but didn’t choose an appearance based on Kim Thayil. It just worked out that way. Now James spends most of his time writing on a multitude of subjects and watching an endless amount of “The Simpsons” from his collection of seasons 1-12.
For advertising information please contact: advertising@content-magazine.com Submissions and contributions are welcome. Please read “Submission Details” under the “PARTICIPATE” tab on our website. content magazine is a bi-monthly on-line publication about life and style in San Jose, California. Reproduction, duplication, distribution and remix are encouraged provided you give credit to the material source and artists and allow the same conditions to your contributions. Find out more about our copyright license at creativecommons.org.
WORDS Shadd Williams-Chief Editor shadd@content-magazine.com Jon Havens–Writer jon@content-magazine.com Morgan Kalakosky–Writer morgan@content-magazine.com Michelle Nicole Sodergren-Blogger michelle@content-magazine.com Deanna Wallace-Writer deanna@content-magazine.com Caitlin Robinett-Writer caitlin@content-magazine.com Amber Engle-Writer caitlin@content-magazine.com
FASHION Adrea Cabrera-Style adrea@content-magazine.com
PHOTOGRAPHY Daniel Gies www.danielgies.com Krystal Avedisian www.krystalavedisian.com Anthony W. Patane www.aberrantphoto.com
SHAPERS Daniel Garcia-Cultivator daniel@content-magazine.com Sarah Garcia-Marketing sarahg@content-magazine.com Sobrina Tung-Marketing sobrina@content-magazine.com Keith Hendren-Inventor keith@content-magazine.com Nathan Jensen-Adviser nathan@content-magazine.com Sarah Hale-Sustainer sarahh@content-magazine.com
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Fresh Start Written by Jason C. Helveston Hannah Photo by Junshien Lau Other Photography by Daniel Garcia Layout by Brian Jensen
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Hannah’s grandfather brought the Sim family to America from South Korea to start over. Years later, her father followed suit when he left his job as a mechanic to start his own business. It’s no wonder, having inherited the family’s resilience, that Hannah stepped down from a position as a baker at Sugar Butter Flour in Sunnyvale in 2008 in hopes of finding a more enlivening opportunity in the industry. She would only have to wait three weeks. On her 25th birthday Hannah’s father gave her the keys to the recently closed Bay Street Coffee Shop on The Alameda a few blocks from the HP Pavilion. Coffee machines, furniture, and a prime location became the inheritance of the girl who simply wanted to spread happiness and sprinkle joy in the form of coffees and cupcakes. For a mom-and-pop coffee shop, authenticity must be apparent from the moment a customer walks through the doors. In order to avoid the probable fate of private coffee houses like Bay Street Coffee, Hannah would have to foster a taste, atmosphere, and personality that are all her own. Despite the odds, Hannah Coffee and Sweets was born and, in its infancy, is among the friendliest of downtown coffee shops. It’s nestled in the Cahill apartment complex in San Jose’s Rose Garden district. The bakery showcase welcomes guests into an unexpected elegance. The shop is defined by Hannah’s celebrated red velvet cupcakes and her imaginative “Lollicakes.” The croissant sandwiches and specialty salads on the lunch menu maintain Hannah’s tasty touch throughout the day. Whether morning or afternoon, your requests are brought to your table with a garnish fit for a posh
Hannah Coffee & Sweets
Hannah Sim, Owner
dining experience — strawberry and orange, on the side. It is all about the details and nothing is rushed, no matter if you are there for desert, coffee, or lunch. This is her philosophy by the oven and by the door. The shop’s atmosphere is tempered by the warmth of its host. Hannah’s is not just a place to grab a cup and run. Hannah wants people to think of this as their other living room. Friendship, not finance, is the motivation of Hannah’s enterprise. She believes that details bring joy. She understands that from the shop logo to the frosting on the cupcakes, everything matters. Regardless of what kind of day one might have, Hannah desires for her guest to receive a moment of happiness in her shop and when they leave to feel a sense of belonging and friendship. “Bringing happiness,” she says, “is my purpose in life.” Her shop is a place where you can recharge and catch your breath. It is indeed joyful to walk into the shop and immediately sense the story that gave birth to Hannah Coffee and Sweets. Daily, Hannah works alongside her mother and aunt. Together they display the happiness they desire to give. From a kind welcome to a complimentary mini cupcake, you can’t avoid the shop’s genuine appeal. This family wraps you in the joy they have discovered in starting over. It is a delight which is mindful of the details. Customers are not simply known by their name, but known by their story. Hannah Coffee and Sweets is where the details of your story are not rushed but welcomed into the details of her own. All for the simple pleasure of a cup of coffee and a cupcake. And, if needed, the opportunity to have a fresh start of your own.
754 The Alameda Ste#80
San Jose, Ca., 95126 408-971-1207 7
dancing upon words
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Written by Jon Havens Photography by Daniel Gies Layout by Jessy Dewi
AS A TEENAGER, MARTHA ENGBER ASKED HERSELF IF SHE WOULD BE A “dancing writer or a writing dancer.” She became both. Engber, a selfdescribed “tap-dancing, ballet-jumping, flamenco stomping, jazz-handed kid,” is also a local San Jose author and personal trainer. Enger is the author of two books: Growing Great Characters From The Ground Up, a non-fictional book on the craft of writing; and The Wind Thief, her first work of fiction released this last year. Her latest work takes the reader from the Sahara to South America to Jamaica. Shunning the notion that a person writes what they know, Martha draws more on her imagination. “What I know is when I’m in my story, I’m gone,” she explained. “I’m out there. I am the wind. I am eating that tagine in the Moroccan market. I’m hearing the lap of water on a pier in Brazil. What I know is that I wouldn’t be a nice, normal person if I couldn’t disappear on a regular basis. It’s while I’m out there that I figure out what here means.” Engber found that inspiration for The Wind Thief right here in the Bay Area. “The Wind Thief” is a very unusual love story inspired by a wind storm,” said Engber. “In particular, one of our gnarly Bay Area bags of chaos in which wind seems to come from everywhere.” Sitting in bed one night, she began to wonder if instead of one wind there were many. “Because I’m a backpacking, biking, hiking believer that no matter how much humans think they have a lock on the ability to destroy this world, we’ve got nothing over the kind of power Mother Nature can dish out” she said.
She began to wonder what would happen if the wind decided to wipe out humanity. Thus, The Wind Thief was born. What follows is a thrilling story following two characters as they journey across the world engaging in an apocalyptic war of winds all the while trying to make sense of it all and each other. Engber is currently working on her third book, Winter Light, which tells the story of a young 15-year-old girl in the Chicago suburbs circa 1979 struggling to make her own path while trying to break free from her families destructive lifestyle. A strong proponent of the San Jose art scene, Engber has had book launch parties at Anno Domini and the Kaleid Gallery in downtown San Jose. San Jose has provided a fantastic place to begin a writing career. She describes the Bay Area as “this specific place in the world that allows people to be who they want to be.” Martha believes your identity is formed in settling into this community. “That incredible freedom of thought, movement and identity does to the creative mind what steroids do for the body,” Engber explained. “Combine that with a tremendously rich mix of cultures, thoughts, ethnicities, foods, music, activities and other stimulations and you’ve got an artist’s heaven. Where else, while dreaming up The Wind Thief, could I have signed up for tabla lessons?”
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ELEMENT
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Written by Tori Scoville & Daniel Garcia Photography by Daniel Garcia & Daniel Gaines Layout by Jessy Dewi
Element 151, Inc. has dared to create a film production company here in San Jose. Maybe I am showing my own insecurities in our city’s ability to sustain the creative industries but I applaud their effects. Actually, I rejoice in their achievements and hope for their success. Because in many ways, their ability to produce quality films and music videos from San Jose is a shout of affirmation for all of us who grow up here: who have talent, who have the ideas, passions, and abilities worthy of Hollywood or New York but love Northern California, the Bay Area, and especially San Jose. Co-founders Frank Door and Chante Cardoso are those type of people; talented, creative and have found a home in San Jose. And, yes, they are successfully producing music videos and films from their offices on Moorpark Ave. With two short films, Whiskey Tears (2009), and Parallels (2010), as well as several stunning music videos for Northern Son, Dizzy Ballon, and Benjamin Winter (http://vimeo.com/6954422) Element 151 is crafting honest and original motion pictures while utilizing the latest in digital cinema technology and traditional film making. Frank “did the LA scene” assisting on productions such as The OC and 24,
but his creative desire to direct pulled him back to Northern California where he came in contact with SJSU graduate Chante Cardoso. Chante also traveled around seeking a career in production and returned here to San Jose. Since 2006, they have worked together as a fun, balanced and sparing team of Director and Producer. Recently the E151 team premiered their independent short, Parallels, at Cinequest 20 this last February. The idea of making this film was brought to their attention by Emilie Germain, who plays the leading role Kate in the 14 minutes psychological short about “finding yourself.” Director, Frank Door, and producer, Chante Cardoso, saw Germain’s passion for the script and knew that they could bring their own twist and visual outlook to the film. “The goal for me as a director” says Frank, “was to have an impact on the audience, to want to watch the film for a second time, and to purely showcase our art in a dark and complex structure, to keep the viewers guessing and trying to follow storyline.” As a producer, Chante, has been able to explore her own creativity and connection with San Jose in last year’s Whiskey 11
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Tears. Written by Chante, this glimpse of the twenty something’s lifestyle is set in the familiar streets of downtown San Jose and demonstrates Element 151’s familiarity and love for our town. “We owe everything to San Jose. It is our great family,” Chante explains. “We want to give back to San Jose with our films. We want to reach out to the parts of San Jose’s culture, art scene, and community. Truth be told, San Jose has always supported us and it is such a wonderful place to have our company based.” For Element 151 everything comes together in their community youth project, the Summer Film Initiative. It is Element 151’s desire to come along side High School students and give them hands on experience in the process and creation of an independent film. Their goal is to inspire the next generation of filmmakers. This summer’s production is entitled Five Proof and touches on the psyche of a high school student in his own world. The production is slated to be shot in 3D and will focus on a mash up of heavy visual storytelling and modern digital cinema techniques.
Element 151 is extending their talents to these students to help them reach their creative dreams. And by producing here in San Jose they also are providing ways for our city to reach her goals to have a vibrate creative industry. E151 dares to make San Jose a place where vision becomes reality, well, at least digital and on the “silver screen.”
Director, Frank Door and Producer, Chante Cardoso. www.151films.com Photography by Daniel Garcia & Daniel Gaines. Shot at the California Theater Thank you to Diane Phillips and Nancy Kilgore of the San Jose Convention & Visitors Bureau
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Clean & Sober, One Day at a Time Being clean is a process. No matter how well you do at keeping your house, your car or your body clean, it will always need to be cleaned again. Getting and staying clean and sober is kind of the same way. Though you initially “get clean,” and stop practicing whatever addictive behavior it is that has been controlling you, the process of staying clean is a daily (sometimes hourly) choice. There are not many people I respect more than those who have struggled with addiction and then chosen to pursue sobriety in the face of nearly insurmountable obstacles. I spent most of my childhood amongst an eclectic group of recovering alcoholics, attending Alcoholics Anonymous holiday celebrations and hearing the tale end of an occasional “meeting.” Some of my most vivid memories of those times was hearing stories of how the people of AA barely survived their dangerous struggles with addiction. There is no ones story I respect and look up to more than that of my moms, who has been choosing sobriety for almost 20 years. At AA meetings, the format is for one person to share their story in three parts: what it was like, what happened, and what its like now. This is my mom’s story, told from her perspective, with little editorial help from me.
What it Was Like I started feeling dirty at a very early age. I can pinpoint it to when my first grade teacher taught me about sin- basically the lesson was that if you did something wrong, it was a sin. When you sinned, she told us, it left a “black mark” on your soul. The only way to get that “black mark” off was to go to confession. Because I suffered from obsessive-compulsive disorder, I began to have the repetitive, unrelenting thought that I was never doing confession right and so I believed that the black marks were not being erased from my soul. Because I believed that I wasn’t doing this ritual perfectly, I believed that I wouldn’t make it to heaven until I burned in purgatory. I even had a notebook to keep track of my bad behavior, hoping that if I could keep a perfect record of it, I would finally somehow do
confession right. With all the black marks I imagined on my soul, I never felt clean. Because of these early beliefs in a legalistic form of religion, I spent most of my life struggling to be perfect. Everything changed when, at the age of 17, I discovered alcohol. From the first intoxication, I felt relief, I felt joy, and for a short while, the voices in my head that condemned me stopped. Alcohol helped me self medicate and to dull the emotional pain- it even helped my shy personality to be more comfortable in social situations. I drank through nursing school, my marriage and my career. I would console myself that I wasn’t an alcoholic because I didn’t drink everyday. I was able to manage my drinking with the help of my husband, who was a “normie” and didn’t drink to excess. For a long time, he had been okay with my drinking because he believed that it helped me to blow off steam. But then things started to change. Slowly, but surely, the alcohol that helped me deal with my life turned on me. I tried to moderate the drinking, which would only last a short while. I would get drunk to the point of blacking out, only adding to the dirtiness I felt. One day my husband told me that a friend had commented that I might be an alcoholic, which filled me with anger. As much as I wanted to deny this accusation, I could not deny that my drinking had spun out of control. Even though those words haunted me, (was I an “alcoholic”?) I didn’t stop my drinking. It became clear that alcohol was at once my best friend and worse enemy. At one point, I did finally find the courage to say out loud to a friend that I thought I might be an alcoholic. Once they had come out of my mouth, those words stuck in the air, frozen in time. I wanted to reach out and get them back. I felt so ashamed.
What Happened My husband and I went through a divorce and that’s when my drinking increased. I promised I wouldn’t drink on the nights I had my children, but I would slug Nyquil to calm my nerves. Then, as if to mark the beginning of the end, I got a DUI. I still remember very clearly being hand cuffed and taken to jail. There I was, 15
a mother of three, sitting on the cold floor questioning other inmates about what would happen to me. I got finger printed, they took my picture… now I had a record and was part of the legal system. When I got home, one of my daughters looked up at me and said “Don’t worry, Mom, I will take care of you.” I had reached a low point I could have never imagined. How did I get here? For so long, I had looked so good to the outside world – a Mid-West transplant in sunny California with three beautiful children, a new house, a successful husband. But there I was, divorced, with a DUI, children who felt they needed to take care of me, and no family to support me through it. I was dying on the inside and had it not been for my children, I would have gladly welcomed physical death. My former husband wrote me a letter and told me he would take custody of our children if I didn’t go into treatment. The thought of losing my children scared me enough to go to a rehab center for a month. I almost immediately started a romantic relationship with a fellow patient – in trying to recover from one addiction, I was immediately faced with another as I quickly became “addicted” to him. When I got out of treatment, we both relapsed and the relationship fell apart. What I had learned in AA became painfully true: “nothing is worse than a head full of AA, and a stomach full of alcohol.” When I relapsed, I couldn’t drink enough to ease the pain. I started going to AA meetings, but I used the program as more of a dating service. Having my attention focused more intently on dating than on getting clean made it take so much longer to feel the relief that was promised in the program. I honestly hated AA- the slogans, the steps, the whole process. I was really only maintaining sobriety for my kids – I had promised them that if I drank again, I would tell them within 24 hours. I felt pinned to the wall with that promise because I knew that if I drank, the kids would blame themselves As I was going through the motions of sobriety, I met my sponsor. Our meeting became a true turning point in my journey toward getting clean. As we got to know each other and I shared my story with her, a closeness and trust developed between us. We started to “work the steps,” which meant admitting that life had become unmanageable and that I needed to turn it over to the care of God as I understood him. We worked on my “spiritual scars,” which meant taking an inventory of my life, what happened, and how it affected me. Throughout this process, I experienced a care and love from my sponsor that I had never known and with her help, I was able to bring my past to the light. It was different than confession had been for me. This time, sharing my struggles and brokenness with another human helped me make sense of my life instead of making me fear for my eternal soul.
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As I was experiencing the beauty of true sobriety and healing with the help of my sponsor and my choice to really work the steps, I was finally able to address the
looming issue of the “higher power,” The Twelve Steps reference a “higher power” and initially I had struggled with what that really meant and even struggled to trust in the idea of a “high power” because of my strict religious upbringing. Though I received a lot of different answers about what the “higher power” meant in my early years of sobriety, I still felt confused. It wasn’t until a fellow addict invited me to a bible study where we did the 12 steps through a Christian lens that I started to get a clearer picture. She brought me the Recovery Bible, which contained all the steps of AA alongside the Scriptures. In studying the Scriptures and talking with other people, I experienced a totally new understanding of God. I came to see that God wasn’t keeping score and that He didn’t hate me- He wanted to offer me His forgiveness and love. This path of understanding led me to a relationship with Jesus, which was better than any amount of alcohol.
What It’s Like Now The tools that AA offered me – the meetings, the sponsors, the 12 steps, the fellowship, the big book – they are all tools that literally saved my life. The program really did work. By working the steps and coming into a relationship with Jesus, I can see clearly that for years I had been filling an emptiness inside of me with alcohol. I believe that a wound has to be cleaned out before it can begin to heal, otherwise the wound can get infected. If you don’t clean the wound thoroughly, it is like covering an abscess with a band-aide. The messiness will spill out. It was the process of cleaning up the emotional and spiritual wounds inside of me and filling it up with the AA program, and eventually with Jesus, that helped my life make sense. The program that I had once hated became my lifeline, and the God that I had once feared became my closest confidant, my great healer, my teacher, and my friend As with everyone, my life still has difficulties, but I have learned how to deal with the messiness of life in a healthy way. I try to give my life to God on a daily basis, focused on doing His will, not mine. It’s not always easy- the winding road of life and struggle and beauty and heartache never goes away. Despite my incredible experience of finally finding healing, sobriety and a relationship with God, the process of staying clean is still a daily choice, which is why we say in the program: one day at a time.
written by Kristin Culman photography by Daniel Garcia layout by Brian Jensen
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MR. SAN JOSE: DANIEL FENTON
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Photography and Interview by Daniel Garcia. Layout by Jessy Dewi
I don’t generally think of men in suits in high positions as a welcoming group. But nothing could be further from the truth meeting Daniel Fenton, CEO and president of Team San Jose and San Jose Convention & Visitors Bureau (SJCVB). Mr. Fenton, is warm, friendly and an inspiring visionary. He not only put me at ease but his heart for hospitality can be felt throughout the organization and our City. San Jose’s welcoming and friendly culture is a concern for the SJCVB, Team San Jose, and very much at the heart of Daniel Fenton’s leadership. CM: You have been a part of bringing aesthetics and quality of life together in San Jose. DF: We often think about what a person thinks about San Jose and what are we trying to convey to them. A couple of things we are trying to convey are the issues of what does creativity and innovation really mean. And to some extent, how can you see that, because it’s a concept. That is where I think we have unique ways and opportunities to see things in the Convention Center or see things in the downtown core. Getting the cultural community involved in the future of our city rather just urban planners who think about square footage and how all things line up. Letting people who don’t necessarily think in terms of “how things all line up” look to where the future is and then entice people to want to come here, to want to live here and want to be a part of it. So, “future imaging” for our organization, since we ultimately are a marketing organization, what we are trying to convey that San Jose is a place where all these wonderful minds that think differently exist
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and that is the reason why patents get launched here, that’s the reason why technology happens here, that’s the reason why we have Zero1.org here. All of those reasons come because we are the type of community that has those type of people in it. And because those people are in it, it makes us unique and it make us a fun place to be. And, of course, from our perspective, it makes it a fun place to visit. CM: I would think that the president and the CEO of the visitors center would not be talking about aesthetics. How do you get here? DF: The platform of Team San Jose is a company that was formed on the basis of the arts community, business community, the labor community; the hotel and hospitality community all coming together. It was almost formed within that concept. It wasn’t formed based on being another facilities operator or tourism promoter, it was formed out of, “lets bring these people to together.” Lets have these people sit down and say, “How do we move forward?” So issues like social justice are a big part of our organization. Issues around marketing, issues around what is going to compel someone to come. This, in my 20
opinion, means you really have to think about who you are. You can’t sell the fact that we have a sunny climate. There’s nothing wrong with that but it’s not going to differentiate you from another place. You have to think about what makes you different. So, part of it is that we think about what makes us unique, kind of for a living. And then we try and convey that. In the material we are starting to roll out, you will see us be much more focused on this issue of creativity and innovation and what we call “fun people”. So when you are experiencing San Jose, you will see all these cultures, that really do co-exist well. That is the reason why I/we are not what you might stereotypically think of being as organization. (laughter) CM: Your bring some leadership to this. How did you personally come to this point? DF: I was raised in a household where I used to watch non-profit arts organization get formed on our kitchen table. I have watched my mother and father, who where every activity in the community, make
that world happen right in my own house. So by having that be a part of my family is something I have always wanted to be a part of. I came up the through the hotel business and one of the things I wanted to do in my life was to stay in hospitality. I wanted to stay in this industry because I believe in service and all the things that go along with it. But I wanted to end up in a role where I could be more of an impact in the community and do something that I was raised doing. This has given me the opportunity to do that.
to the table just within the governance of our organization. The fact that we have those members of our board who come to together and say, “How does the business community interface with the labor community interface with the art community? How does that all happen with one origination?” I think that is powerful!
Essentially, we serve people for a living. When someone comes in here and they have large group and they do well and they are successful and the attendance is great and they’re happy, we’re happy. And that is why you get into this business; because you want to see people have great experiences and you what to serve them doing it. At the same time we can do things that are having an impact for San Jose. We can do things that make this community better. Whether it’s bringing shows into the theaters or bringing a unique event to the convention center or celebrating technology because we have great technological thinkers here that we are serving, we have an opportunity to do things. And because of how we are formed we bring different thinking 21
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There is No Failure, Only Life Interview with Gianfranco Paolozzi by Trina Merry. Photography by Daniel Garcia
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If you turn on the news for thirty seconds, you will find a myriad of things to fear- a recession, high unemployment rates, unstable corporations, uncertain state budgets, and Mother Nature gone berserk. How does one live in an environment of fear and change? If you stay tuned to the commercials, corporations and pharmaceutical companies have several solutions for sale. Local artist Gianfranco Paolozzi has some interesting ideas about change, failure and the things we buy only to discard. To Gianfranco, art reflects life. The materials he chooses, his process, and where he exhibits his works finds root in everyday life. He is directed by chance and his compass is his heart.
He uses recycled materials found in his immediate environment, rescuing things that would have been ignored or wasted. Yet his motivation is not to be a trendy “green” artist. Rather he captures in his work what he calls “intentional chances” and welcomes what others see as mistakes or failures. He takes natural materials and make-up free photography subjects and “puts his imagination on top” in the form of liquid or linear markings. It is an emotional journal of his life that tells the story of a human being touched by chance. I caught up with Gianfranco to discuss some of his recent bodies of work.
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Markings Series Gianfranco doesn’t write much so he invented a process he calls “markings” to journal his emotions. “I started to make the lines I wanted in the moment, line after line, repetition after repetition. The diary is a repetition of words- repetition of the letter ‘a,’ the letter ‘b,’ who knows how many times.”
Gianfranco captures an environment over a period of time in a non-linear process that embraces chance. He takes a series of progressive photos from the ground to the sky over a period of a few minutes, mixes the photos up like a deck of cards, and then re-assembles them onto works he calls “collagements.”
He claims no day’s worth of markings is the same and he cannot recall the emotions or stories he writes from the day. It has to be felt in the moment.
“I live my art. It’s about chances. When I take a picture of your foot for example, who knows what’s going to happen by the time I get to your face. There’s the possibility no one will be there by the time I go to shoot the head or that a bird will fly over you. So what is interesting to me is when I combine those images, when I was shooting your foot, the bird wasn’t there yet.”
“Sometimes people say ‘oh the lasagna was so delicious.’ But I cannot remember flavors, how the lasagna tasted a week ago. I’m pretty sure it was delicious but I cannot remember.”
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Collagement Series
Roundels and Gianfranco at Red Berry Cafe
Roundels Series
People in San Francisco were surprised to learn Gianfranco’s series “Roundels” were not ceramics. When Gianfranco discovered discarded label and sticker paper rolls in the dumpsters at his day job, he fell in love and felt compelled to save them. “I fall in love easy. I don’t know how I’m going to use these things, all I know is its wasted paper and they are round and I don’t know where to put them all.” How he created the roundel was through necessity and chance. “There’s a hard cardboard around the outside that compresses it maintains its nice round form. As soon as I took the middle out, the round paper starts to make some decision about how to go into the middle. In a few days they started to bubble and make their own movement. Two or three of them popped and I lost them. There were some with curves and I had to find a
way to stop those things. If I don’t do something, I will lose all of them. I had a bucket of Elmer’s glue and I put it all over them. When I came back the next morning, solid! I had a nice Roundel that looked almost ceramic. It’s one of the most delicious experiments I’ve ever had.” He put his markings on them, first in pen like his journals, and then in liquidized rubber.
Jack-in-the-Box Series
Gianfranco is filling up his studio with boxes from the kitchen to create a series of work based on the idea of the Jack-in-the-box. He takes pictures of a subject in the same method as his collagements, places them at random on the box, and then allows the shape of the box to dictate the shape of the work. He cuts off leftover photo corners and mimics any holes or cutouts in the box. Then he names the work after the subject such as “Kat-in-the-box” or “Lacey-in-the-box.”
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Sofia in Wonderland
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Elina in the Box
In Memory of My Father: My Father Will Die in Three Years, 1978
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In Memory of My Father: My Father Will Die in Three Years, 1979 32
In Memory of My Father: My Father Will Die in Three Years, 1980 33
Photography by Krystal Avedisian Styling by Adrea Cabrera Models: Maggie Lenihan & Gabe Cortez
When spring comes around you can always smell it in the San Jose air. A combination of rain cleaned air, sprouting Almond blossoms and warm concrete make an aroma that silently awakens us all. This issue we see these clean intoxicating smells with floral motifs, leopard prints, gingham and Linens. We encourage our readers to get inspired by what spring brings and what Park Place Vintage Boutique has to offer San Jose.
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Vintage linen creme embroidered dress
Her: Vintage Multi-Colored Flower Dress Olive Gloves Peach Heels
Him: Yellow Stripped Button Down Dress Shirt Vintage Suitcase Set
Him: Creme Button down knit shirt with butterfly collar Her: Lace Dusty Pink 1960’s cocktail dress with bow Light Salmon Beaded Bracelet Peach and gold studs
Him: Black Fedora Flip glasses
Her: Leopard double breasted trench Black gloves Red handbag with umbrella
Linda Waltrip began selling vintage clothes at garage sales 26 years ago, and as the interest grew she rented spaces in local antique stores. Somewhat surprised that others shared her desire for vintage furniture and clothes, she very quickly expanded enough to open her own store on Park Ave downtown San Jose. Now in Willow Glen, Linda’s love for all 20th century style provides not only a fun place to browse, but a great spot to find clothes and furniture that beats foreign self-assembled warehouse, mall racks hands down. Park Place is part museum, part landmark and surely part hip. But most of all it is Linda’s passion and personality being shared with her community.
Park Place Vintage 1318 Lincoln Ave. San Jose, Ca 95125 408 294 9893 tues-sat 11-6 sunday 1-5
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LEFT COAST LIVE Written by Jon Havens Photography by Daniel Garcia Layout by Jessy Dewi
Every year, 12,000 people travel from all across America to hear music by over 1,400 performers during a four-day period. With more than 80 venues from which to choose, listeners have the opportunity to see a host of new faces and acts. The event is heralded by musicians and fans alike. It began as the dream of Austin’s music lovers, a dream that eventually became “South By Southwest.” It took years to become what it is today, but with patience and dedication South By Southwest became one of the country’s biggest music festivals. The dream lives on, but this time it does not reside with southerners in a town that was virtually unknown by the music industry just 20 years ago. The dream is occurring right here in San Jose. Last June, more than 5,000 people made the pilgrimage to downtown San Jose to attend a fiveday event known as “Left Coast Live.” The festival’s theme was “The Sound Of Things To Come.” Monday through Thursday featured discussion panels on the future of the music industry, an outdoor cinema, and free concerts. Left Coast Live culminated on Friday
night with performances from nearly 100 bands at 35 different venues in downtown San Jose. The festival was well received by music lovers and festival-goers alike. Founder Chris Esparza felt the pressure in managing such a huge endeavor for the first time. “About a month out, I kept having nightmares,” said Esparza. “We have this five-day event. There are over 500 band members involved. Forty businesses were personally invested. The city was invested. I kept wondering if anyone was gonna show up. If I let them down, I might as well move.” Esparza did not disappoint. The festival was a huge success. Esparza is no stranger to the music scene. After spending some time in San Francisco and traveling the world in the late 80’s, Esparza decided to return home to San Jose. It was here that he opened the Ajax Lounge in 1991. Ajax Lounge hosted some of the greatest acts of our day — the Fugees, Ben Harper, Cake, The Roots — well before they were internationally known. Anyone who attended one of these shows in the early 90’s can attest to the energy, creativity, and well attended concerts during that time. 39
It was also a time when San Jose’s music scene flourished. “If you were in your twenties, you lived in an apartment for $300 a month,” said Esparza. “You rode your bike everywhere downtown. There were no cliques at these shows. You would see the business guy next to the hairdresser next to the punk rocker. They all hung out together.” But all of this changed during the economic boom in the late 90’s. Rents shot up but many incomes remained stagnant. The affordability of the live music scene during the weekends began to decline for the twenty-something set. “The cost of living is tough on a 25 year old,” said Esparza. “It’s tough to buy a beer and see live music. Big houses and crazy busy lives don’t make for cramped apartments and time for art anymore.” The Lounge Bar closed and Esparza opened up Fuel. But instead of bringing the energy that Ajax encompassed in the early 90’s, Fuel operated more for private parties and corporate business functions. “There was a desert of an interesting creative crowd 40
that dried up,” said Esparza who later sold Fuel (now occupied by the Blank Club) in 2001. Then Esparza opened Neglee Park Garage in 2006. He also began Giant Creative Services, which puts on events like “Winter Wonderland” and “Big Band And BBQ.” It was at this time that a local music organization called South Bay Live approached him. “They wanted to address the dying ecosystem of live music in San Jose,” said Esparza. “We agreed that we wanted to create a festival unlike anything that’s been in town before.” The goals was to initiate a musical renaissance. But the only way the festival could work was if people supported the vision of community and economic development through arts and cultural events. After two years of communications and 15 volunteers on board, “Left Coast Live” was born. The festival was a huge success. Planning has already begun for this year’s event. “We’re going to make it a six-day event this year,” said Esparza. The festival will retain the theme of “The Shape Of Things to
Come,” offering panels and free concerts throughout the week. Instead of one huge night of music the festival will stretch into Saturday. “We are asking the question of how do we blow people away but have a lot of fun while doing it,” said Esparza. With creative components like a beer garden and the main stage residing in the Ramada Inn Hotel parking lot, this year’s festival is rising to a whole new level. “It’s going to be a big spectacle,” said Esparza. “We’ve got a lot of interactive pieces.”
the meantime we can take what is given to us: a great music festival this summer that promises to hold many surprises. Left Coast Live will take place from June 21-26 in downtown San Jose. For more information go to www.leftcoastlive.com
The future of Chris Esparza and Left Coast Live looks promising. But Esparza knows San Jose needs more venues. “There is a definite need for a venue that holds 500 to 800 people,” said Esparza. Currently the Civic Center holds 2,800 people and the California holds 1,000. “I would love to see five more venues open,” Esparza noted passionately. “I want it where Tuesday you can have four choices on where to see live music and on Saturday you have seven.” We can only hope for such a dream to come to fruition. In 41
Song & Story featuring Northern Son written by Jonathon Sontag layout by Brian Jensen photography by Nicholas Pantages
“Song & Story” is a documentary by the songwriters of San Jose. Currently filming, a few friends are working together to tell a story through the words of local musicians. Jonathan Sontag, Daniel Sontag, Ezra Gordan, and Matt Carmassi are working together to shape this documentary due to be released in the fall. View a trailer for the film featuring Northern Son at content-magazine.com and the band’s music page at myspace.com/northernsonmusic.
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Play
Stop
On any given night, the members of Northern Son find themselves singing, writing, or reminiscing about music. They live it, they breathe it, and crave it more than most. Whether it be sailing on a radio song, covering tunes from Tom Petty, The Beatles, John Cougar Mellencamp, or composing a never ending list of original material, these five friends chase the satisfaction that only a song can bring.
Jeff Carmassi from Northern Son explains, “Something that’s catchy to the ear is always in the melody.” Focusing on this aspect of writing, the voice and emotion rise above the foundation of a song, making room for something memorable to be said. The melody, the poetry, the reflective rhythm for life we all share.
After grabbing a drink with Northern Son at Carry Nations in downtown Los Gatos, we headed out to Tyler and Justin Florence’s house. The two brothers in the band previously taped a live TV performance of The Heartbreakers. Queued up and ready to go, everyone instantly found their place on the couch with a dim but dedicated posture, eagerly awaiting the first song. Petty and his boys caught the attention of this young northern Californian band as if it were the first time they’d ever heard songs like “You Wreck Me”, “Refugee”, or “Free Fallin’”. Sean Ghavi, keyboardist for Northern Son, talks about how Tom Petty strives to “prove something to someone that isn’t listening, to someone who doesn’t care”, and through the pain they share, both songwriter and listener can find a way out.
Pause Songs like these never die. They grow brighter as the days and years grow old. It’s not just the chords, and it’s not just the words; it’s the stories they tell that makes them truly beautiful. Fictional or vulnerable, a good songwriter always puts a little piece of their own story into the music they create. Deep, dark, and terrifying, or uplifting, easy-going, and soft; the greatest songs catch not only the ear, but the heart, history, and soul.
Rewind Ten years ago, the scene in San Jose was thriving. Punk rock and hardcore exploded into the headphones and car stereos of every teen to twenty-something in the bay area. We couldn’t get enough. We started bands, played shows, and drove up to San Francisco to check out groups like Face to Face, Sunny Day Real Estate, and At The Drive In. As great as those bands were, a decade can dramatically change the playlist of a youthful generation. Still, a central theme holds true.
A little less than a decade ago, Jeff and I played in a punk band called Fan5. Throughout the filming and interviewing for this documentary, we’d laugh about the days in the studio and on the road. We had too many good times to count. Crab leg food fights at the Atlantis Hotel in Reno, weekly shows at the Campbell Gaslighter, and the time the owner of Drivethru Records asked us to walk on his back during a showcase interview. Which he apparently also asked Tyler from Northern Son who went down south to showcase his previous band, My Former Self. Diving deeper and deeper into the history of where our musical interest was born, and where it stands today, we noticed that what seemed dormant for quite some time, has begun to see the light of day. Those who put down the guitar for a job or degree are tuning up for a new chapter, a new verse in the song they’ll never stop writing.
Fast Forward Among the many talented bands in San Jose, Northern Son has found their place. They’ve tapped into the simplicity and magic of songwriting, exploring a timeless effort to step outside the troubles and worries of everyday life. They recently finished a music video for their song, “Love Will Find a Way”, shot by local video production company, Element 151. Playing show after show promoting their first full-length album, “Wider Skies”, while constantly writing new songs for their next release, are proving to follow a dream that many musicians and storytellers share; a chance to sing, to be heard, and to one day become great.
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Written by James Trujillo Photography by Krystal Avedisian Layout by Jessy Dewi
////////// David
Knight
The Silicon Valley. It’s what we’re known for. But every once in a while there comes a time when the city will take notice of the summit encompassing our great valley. Like the days when the Cactus Club reigned supreme and all the history that went along with it. There was a rumor that Nirvana played a show there to a crowd of around 10 people, one week before hitting the top of the charts. If you take a look at the history of San Jose’s music scene, you’ll see that it had its share of crowning points. I’d like to hope that there is another resurgence on its way, and David Knight, formerly of the band Day One Symphony, is becoming a part of it. As I sat down with David over a couple drinks we reminisced about the “good ol’ days” and spoke briefly concerning the quiet dispersal of a band that seemed to be on the rise. “I think the car accident we were in and that whole period was very traumatic. I think that’s one of the reasons we didn’t tell anyone. We just sort of politely exited the building…because there was still a lot of emotions involved.” The car accident of which David speaks occurred on a day when all involved were in good spirits. They had recently confirmed an opening slot at Live 105’s annual BFD concert at Shoreline Amphitheater and were on their way to see Dredg perform live in San Francisco. Knight was behind the wheel when it all happened. A car quickly swerved to avoid hitting a motorcyclist while going northbound on 101 and, slamming into the side of their car, pushed them over the dividing median. Before they realized what had
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happened, they were in a t-bone collision with an oncoming taxi-cab, leaving David pinned inside the car with a broken leg and a collapsed lung. Knight suffered the most severe injury but all members sustained injuries worthy of hospitalization. With the band unable to fully recover from the trauma in a musical sense, David and two other members of Day One Symphony began pursuing other musical interests. “Polyluv sort of emanated from a drunkenstoned haze”, says Knight. We had discussed the bands brief existence in a bit more detail, like how they came up with their name at a party one night while discussing the virtues of polyamory, but also came across a few more sexually infused topics; such as, a rumor I had heard about his career of writing pornography in high school. “I did [laughs]. That’s a genre in creative writing that I don’t think a lot of high-schoolers were involved in at the time. So, I figured I would be the one pornographer on campus. I don’t even know how it started. I think I wrote – well, I know how it started – my dad had lots of porn mags lying around the house,” admits Knight. “Some of my friends who were in relationships would actually commission me to write pieces. So I wrote some pieces until I got into my first relationship. And then I felt really guilty.” As we sat on the patio of Firehouse No. 1, in lovely San Pedro Square, the cool night air suddenly turned to a brisk chill as San Jose Shark fans began to fill the streets. They had just beaten the Minnesota Wild in a 45
5-2 victory, and it was as if the emptying of the Shark Tank had pulled out the chilled air of the ice rink to bring an extra layer of frost to the downtown breeze. After partaking in another round of drinks, we began to speak on a range of topics concerning why he started his venture as a solo artist, as well as his musings on what inspired a deeper change in his thought process. “Music’s always just been a translation of my anxieties more so than my ‘joy’ of life, although that gets in there increasingly these days. I tend to address a lot of my political viewpoints, a lot of my attitudes about society, about relationships, about drugs…about my mom passing away. Sort of the traumatic things that have happened in my life, they get put into the music that I’m doing. Since I’ve started going to Malaysia on a routine basis, that’s also been a huge inspiration, too, and changed things around for me.” David’s first outing to Malaysia took place in 2007, when he went to visit an old college friend who was working in Kuala Lumpur on the musical score for a theatrical production of “The Tell-Tale Heart,” directed by his friend Gavin Yap. In return for his services, Yap offered to purchase him a ticket back to Malaysia the next time he wished to return. “When I got home, I had a renaissance of sorts in my approach to recording,” says Knight. “When I was thinking about what kind of a record I wanted to make, I was indulging all of these more politically correct types of albums I could do. But, a lot of my views, particularly in this day and age, don’t seem to be entirely popular in terms of what sells. I’ve always had a bit of an adversarial relationship with human beings. Our power structures, our sense of self-importance as it’s related to the environment and things like that. I have a lot to say. Some of it’s a bit angry. I’d rather not just be that guy ranting on Facebook or to my friends. So this album is destined to be, probably, the most incendiary, the most aggressive thing I’ve done or have embarked on. It’s not going to be metal. It’s just in [lyrical] tone, a lot more pointed, a lot more sarcastic and witty. So that’s kind of where I’m coming from, and also, at this stage in my solo career, if you wanna call it that, I really feel a strong impulse to do something that’s to the point, that people can grasp instantly what it is and how it makes them feel.” Knight expects his next effort, a full-length entitled “Sycophant”, to take him anywhere from six months to a year before the entire process fully takes shape. Until then, you can keep up to date through his websites: www.sleepcomabath.com www.facebook.com/david.l.knight 47
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Artist: Ben Alexy
Contact: benalexy@yahoo.com
Artwork Photography: Austin Loney
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www.content-magazine.com
