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ARTS & EVENTS
Drive-Up Movies
Rooftop Cinema Club debuts hybrid cinema experience at Santa Monica Airport
Rooftop Cinema Club is back with a new type of outdoor cinema experience: The Drive-Up at Santa Monica Airport.
By Kamala Kirk
On the heels of its successful drive-in movies at the Santa cinema was born to elevate the movie going experience and accommodate all movie lovers Monica Airport last season, Rooftop Cinema Club is back with a brand-new experience that filmgoers will enjoy. The Drive-Up is a hybrid upgrade to the Drive-In movie theater that combines the very best of open-air cinema with the nostalgia of a good old-fashioned drive-in. The Drive-Up reimagines the outdoor cinema to give guests access to the ultimate viewing experience under the stars, allocating “Lawn Box” ticket holders to drive up, park and have access to a personalized VIP box, complete with dedicated deckchair seating, headphones and a living room setting that can be enjoyed by groups of friends and families. Film lovers will be able to choose whether to drive in or drive up, viewing the featured screening from the comfort of their vehicle or dedicated Lawn Box. The Drive-In option allows guests to enjoy a classic drive-in experience with a dedicated spot to tailgate in front of their vehicle so they can embrace the nostalgia of a favorite pastime. “We wanted to give guests a totally new way to watch movies under the stars, whether they prefer the comfort of their own car and tailgating space or if they’d rather lay back in a ‘living room’ type setting in our new Lawn Boxes,” said Gerry Cottle, founder of Rooftop Cinema Club. “Our hybrid so they can truly be themselves at The Drive-Up.” There are two Drive-In ticket types available with a “Movie Buddy” for up to two occupants and a “Movie Squad” for three or more occupants. Each ticket includes a designated parking and tailgating space, encouraging guests to enjoy the prescreening experience just as much as the movie itself. The Drive-Up is also a dog-friendly experience every day for all screenings. Stay tuned for special menu items and surprises for four-legged friends. All dogs must be kept on a leash at all times and a special relief area will be provided at the venue. Prices range from $32 to $45 for a vehicle, depending on ticket type, screening time and day of the week. For current screenings, Rooftop Cinema Club is offering discounted soft launch pricing. Please check individual screenings for exact prices. Children five and under don’t count as vehicle occupants. Parking spaces will be first-come first-serve and assigned by parking attendants upon arrival.
The Drive-Up at Santa Monica Airport
3233 Donald Douglas Loop S, Santa Monica rooftopcinemaclub.com A hybrid upgrade to the Drive-In movie theater, the Drive-Up experience includes a personalized Lawn Box complete with dedicated seating, headphones and a living room setting or drive-in tailgate next to one’s vehicle.
Light and Space
Casper Brindle’s new art series is on display at William Turner Gallery
By Bridgette M. Redman
Casper Brindle is convinced that he’s putting out some of his best work yet in his latest exhibition at William Turner Gallery in Santa Monica. The artist, who began painting in the 1980s and is a disciple of the Light and Space art movement in Los Angeles, has woven a Southern California influence through all his work, whether the hot rod and surf culture found in his earlier work or the pure light in his latest exhibition. “I think the light in LA is different than anywhere else in the world,” Brindle said. “This will be my best show yet. I’m really proud of this show.” The show is called “Light | Glyphs” and will be on display through November 5. The series contains 25 pieces of which 15 will be shown at William Turner Gallery. “Light is a huge part of my work in general and especially this body of work,” Brindle said. “I would say it is as important as the materials that I use, even more so. These works came to fruition just playing with light and seeing what happens with other materials. I started with light itself and manipulated the materials to do different things and bring different energies.” Brindle, who was born in Toronto, moved to LA when he was 6 years old in the mid1970s and he has lived there ever since. He was an apprentice to the Light and Space pioneer Eric Orr. He has exhibited on a regular basis at William Turner Gallery for more than 10 years and this is his 7th solo exhibition with the gallery. A surfer, Brindle is constantly observing the play of light on water and how it expresses itself with color. Many of the works were done during the COVID lockdowns, something that Brindle said worked out to be a great thing for a lot of artists. “Everything went on the backburner,” Brindle said. “You didn’t have to follow deadlines. You were kind of like, now it is time to really play with ideas and research and do the things that you can’t do when you have commitments and things like that.” To create the works in this exhibit, Brindle used automotive paints, pigmented acrylic and metal leaf. The final works are 3 feet by 3 feet by 4 inches. He used translucent sculptural boxes which he air painted with diffused colors through the frosted surfaces. The light in the colored background reflects in a quietly dramatic manner. In the center of each piece is a glyph, inspired by hieroglyphs that were ancient modes of communication, where symbols or marks were carved in relief to convey ideas. Brindle’s glyph is a threedimensional rectangle that intersects the center of the translucent box. The glyphs have been described as a beacon cutting through fog – quietly dramatic. “I’m fascinated with hieroglyphs and how they used them to communicate,” Brindle said. “I use that as kind of a vehicle to do this newer work with glyphs. They go back awhile in the paintings. There is just something that a spirit bigger than us is speaking to us. When I look at just a single glyph, it is speaking to that bigger power. I found that fascinating to use in the work.” With Brindle’s use of gold and silver leaf to create the glyphs, he feels they really lend themselves to telling a story and he wanted to further the investigation into glyphs with these paintings. Two different processes went into creating the works in this exhibit. With the glyphs, he did a lot of preparation, research and models. The decision-making process was very conscious as from the start he had an idea of where he wanted to go with them. The paintings, on the other hand, had a more Zen approach. Brindle would find himself in a meditative state, a state of calmness where he let the work take over. “It is a meditative state where all of a sudden at the end of the day, you’re like, ‘What just happened?’” Brindle said. “It’s that kind of thing when you’re
PHOTO CREDIT: BRENT BROZA
To create the works in the exhibit, Brindle used automotive paints, pigmented acrylic and metal leaf, and he air painted translucent sculptural boxes with diffused colors through the frosted surfaces.
driving and then all of a sudden, you’re at your destination and you don’t remember how you got there. That’s the same feeling I get when I make the works. The day starts and then it is 8 p.m. and I’ve got to go home.” Brindle said he doesn’t typically have a preconceived idea of what he is going to do with the paintings. He lets them paint themselves. “It’s a constant trance-like state of making right and wrong decisions along the way,” Brindle said. “I don’t say I’m going to do a blue painting. I just start and make a number of decisions along the way and just kind of paint these paintings.” Throughout the years and with individual paintings, his choice of materials has always changed and shifted, evolving until he gets to where he is now. “That’s part of the process,” Brindle said. “The best part about making art is the process. Things are changing all the time until you get to a place where you are like, now I have it. I know what this is about.” The trance-like state is one that he shares with those that experience his work. Brindle said he’s had a lot of reactions to his art, but the most common one is a sense of lightness and calm — a sense of their bodies decompressing and entering a meditative state. He stressed the importance of seeing his three-dimensional work in person. It’s the only way to experience its depth and the way the light shimmers and moves. The large paintings shift as a person walks by them, inviting viewers to pause, to explore perception. This is Brindle’s first major show since the pandemic delayed an earlier showing at the William Turner Gallery in 2020. He invites patrons to come and lose themselves in his meditative works, to let art minister to their hungry souls.”
What: Casper Brindle Light | Glyphs exhibition Where: William Turner Gallery, 2525 Michigan Ave., Santa Monica When: September 11November 5 www.williamturnergallery.com In the center of each piece is a glyph, inspired by hieroglyphs that were ancient modes of communication, where symbols or marks were carved in relief to convey ideas.
Whimsical Creatures
By Nicole Borgenicht
Little objects come to life in the world of French artist Godeleine de Rosamel. De Rosamel begins with ebauche, which means “a sketch” in French. In addition to sketching, de Rosamel often experiments with her ceramic pieces combining wood, rock and metal in unlikely places as first steps. The finished figures may have a log running sideways out of a creature or odd shaped rocks piled up on its head. A mini tree with semi-circle shapes for leaves is complementary with the animal beside it that appears to grow similar ridges popping out like hair or armor. De Rosamel utilizes symmetry in shapes and ideas, but never stops at too silly an idea. She said planning is not always the answer. “Fun just comes out by consequence,” De Rosamel said. “I’m very happy people respond.” And respond they do – ROSEGALLERY at Bergamot Station Arts Center in Santa Monica works with de Rosamel to keep her art in stock. “Each collection of sculptures does have a limited time frame in the gallery,” said Sophi Winnikoff, associate director of ROSEGALLERY. “Godeleine has some dedicated collectors, all of which are excited to see her newest work. Her work is also widely known. While it’s impossible to pinpoint the schedule, the sales of her work are often a mix of returning clients and new individuals who happen upon her installation at the gallery like you did. It’s difficult to walk in the gallery, see her work and not want to take one of these small ceramic friends, home with you.” A few intriguing elements characterize the inventive world of de Rosamel. For instance, the creatures are neither male nor female. Maintaining her freedom, the artist does not feel the creatures or their vegetation needs to be bound by human characteristics or the world in which we live. The creative forms live in what de Rosamel described as a “magical habitat.” “Her sculptures hold a great amount of expression, something French artist Godeleine de Rosamel’s inventive ceramic sculptures are currently on display at ROSEGALLERY at Bergamot Station Arts Center in Santa Monica. that doesn’t come around every day,” Winnikoff said. “Each scene has a particular feeling and emotion. While all the creatures seem to live in the same world, they have their own lives. This allows clients to have specific connections with the individual sets. While theoretically they may appear similar, truly each is individual.” The clay pieces and glazes are fired in kilns and de Rosamel is experimenting with glazes. Her glazes are either slick or multi-toned, not all with an even overlay but each one maintains a natural feeling. The life forms are balanced whether leaning or straight up with the demeanor of assuredness. Her fantasy creatures have a sense of outright confidence and existence. At present, de Rosamel is building pieces as large as 20 inches tall. The larger pieces will be presented at ROSEGALLERY sometime in mid-2022.
ROSEGALLERY
Bergamot Station Arts Center 2525 Michigan Ave., B-7, Santa Monica, 310-264-8440 rosegallery.net
