PEOPLE, PLACES & EVENTS Cont’d

Artist in Residence: Debra Friedman

Continued from page 23

Debra confesses she has always loved small objects that represent larger objects. This love led to her making and collecting miniatures which are displayed in her house.

She has also always admired Asian art. Visiting Muzeo Museum and Cultural Center in Anaheim, she discovered an exhibit on Chinese Brush Painting. These works inspired her to take Saddleback College Emeritus classes in this genre and to focus on this art form. Studying Chinese Brush Painting for three years, she is getting more proficient in some subjects, such as flowers, but still finds animals especially challenging.

Debra has taken several other art classes, including workshops at Art A Fair in Laguna Beach, to enhance her skills. She has been very generous about sharing her knowledge, giving workshops in mosaics, Chinese Brush Painting, and embellished frames at Casta.

Dancing and orchestrating choreography for Casta’s Variety Shows is ever still an ongoing passion.

Jeronimo Tunnel Mural

Article and photo by Jeff

McCoy

If you have walked the Oso Creek Trail recently, then you have noticed that the corrugated walls of the tunnel beneath Jeronimo Road have been brightly painted with alternating orange, blue, yellow-green, and purple stripes. Mission Viejo’s latest public art project is titled “Tunnel Vibrations.” The mural uses the art and science of color to create an optical illusion where the tunnel walls appear to vibrate. This occurs when high-contrasting colors like blue and orange are placed side by side.

According to Allison Tran, the Library and Cultural Services Supervisor for the city, “The design of the tunnel was a collaborative effort between the Assistant City Manager and the Cultural Services Department. A professional design team spray-painted the stripes, then a group of community volunteers added geometric shapes to complete the project.” Each of Mission Viejo’s more than 20 public art pieces not only enhance community aesthetics but they have an educational component that promotes the city’s mission of life-long learning opportunities for its residents.

Walkers may experience color vibrations as they stroll through the newly painted Jeronimo tunnel

Casta del Sol walkers and runners may have also noticed that more than two dozen trees have been planted along the entrance to the Oso Creek Trail near Gate 2. The tunnel mural and the recent landscaping project represent the continued effort of Mission Viejo to develop the Oso Creek Trail system and its Core Area Vision Plan.

Chain Mail and Me

By Liz Rickett, photos by Darrell Holdaway

Pliers are used to open jump rings to make the chain mail

Disclaimer: I am not crafty. I am not patient. However, I was intrigued by the premise and promise of making jewelry from chain mail so off I went to a meeting of the Jewelry Making Club led by Joe McFaul. I found myself in the Arts and Crafts Room with Joe, President of the Lapidary Club Rich Banks, and eight other eager students.

Joe explained the history of chain mail. He used large plastic rings to demonstrate how to use “jump rings” to make chain mail. Armed with a handout, two baggies of rings and two pairs of pliers and under the guidance of the ever-patient Joe and Rich, we began to make chain mail to be formed into earrings.

It took time and several attempts but two hours later, I had made a pair of chain mail of earrings from chain mail and was on my way to making a bracelet.

If you are interested in making jewelry, the Lapidary/Jewelry Making Club meets every Friday at 1 p.m. in the Arts and Crafts Room at Rec Ctr 1. Call Joe at (949) 981-7824 to find out about future classes. Look for information in the Casta Courier and eblasts from the office.