Archive for October, 2003

Expo 2003 Wrap-Up : Photo gallery, participating groups and DIY articles

Tuesday, October 14th, 2003

The Fourth Annual Expo for the Artist & Musician took place May 4, 2003, at Cellspace in San Francisco.


  • 2003 DIY & How-To Articles


  • Attending Groups A-Z

    Approximately 900 individuals — artists, hobbyists, arts-service workers and the curious — came through the door for a minimal $2 donation.

    Inside they encountered

    90 arts organizations

    – schools, service groups, production companies, nonprofits, small businesses and more — and made personal, creative and professional connections of all sorts.

    2004 marks our FIFTH anniversary — and we have big plans to expand the event beyond a one-day happening into a long-term community-building service.


    RESOURCES



    2003 DIY & How-To Articles



    Take your band on tour, preserve your artspace, throw a benefit event, put your music online … and more.



    Attending Groups A-Z



    From ABBADA Capoeria to YLEM: Artists Using Science & Technology, Expo 2003 presented San Francisco’s “arts ecosystem” in all its diverse flavors.



    Arts Forum San Francisco



    In cooperation with Intersection for the Arts, Theatre Bay Area, 826 Valencia and the Arts Democratic Club, we helped stage the 2003 Mayoral Candidates’ Arts Forum on September 29. Get full

    audio transcipts

    of the forum, and thank you for voting on November 4!



    Feedback



    If you’d like to get involved with Expo 2004,

    drop us a line

    . We welcome donors, volunteers, arts organizations and inspired individuals.



    Subscribe!



    The Expo is expanding to provide year-round services. Join our mailing list for updates!



    Be an Expo Angel!



    If you would like to support the arts in San Francisco through financial donations or pro-bono service, consider becoming an

    Expo Angel

    .



    Articles

    for the 2003 Expo Program

    :


    Toxic Art Materials



    By Nate Orman


    What do those warning labels on your can of paint REALLY mean?


    Preserving Your Artspace



    By Kathleen Diohep


    Dramatic changes in San Francisco’s real-estate market mean new arts opportunities.


    Taking Your Band on Tour



    By Conan Neutron


    The band finally came together … now it’s time to share it with the world.


    Touring Band Budget Chart



    By Conan Neutron


    It’s all about groupies, free food and climate-controlled tour buses, RIGHT?


    Staging a Successful Benefit Event



    By Emily Griffin


    Invites, talent, budgets, promotions — everything you need to know to make the party happen.


    Getting Your Independent Music Online



    By Eliot Van Buskirk


    Who needs Napster? Put your own music online via this trove of technical tips.


    Strategies for Artworld Success



    By Chris Cobb


    Tips for the ambitious among you.

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    Preserving Your Arts Space

    Tuesday, October 14th, 2003

    By Kathleen Diohep

    Just a few years ago, artists were facing evictions and dramatic rent increases. Many venues closed and people lost studios or live/work places. Now, San Francisco is experiencing a real estate space glut.

    Rents have dropped to 1992 levels, vacancy is significant and increasing — SOMA vacancy rates are over thirty percent. Citywide, there are 17 million square feet of vacant space. Now is the time for the arts to take advantage of this dramatic turn of events to preserve current spaces and create new ones.


    Finding a Space


    Do some comparison shopping. Increasingly, listings are targeting artists and “creatives” since there are very few other tenants in the market for many of these buildings. One referral and support resource is the ArtHouse listing service, a telephone hotline of current rental listings. Workspace Ltd. is a new nonprofit-managed project with 54,000 square feet available for artist, artisan and nonprofit uses (see www.workspacelimited.org/ for details). Craigslist.org also has real estate listings.

    If you are seeking a space larger than 1,000 square feet, consider talking to a real estate agent. There’s no cost to the tenant who works with an agent — leasing commissions are paid by the landlord. Agents are able to access information about the buildings and know the current market for lease terms. ArtHouse has a network of real estate agents interested in working with artists.


    Keeping a space


    Once you’ve found a space, read your lease. Your rights as a tenant are detailed therein. Most arts spaces are commercial leases. Unlike residential leases, they are not subject to rent control, and have a wide range of leasing terms.

    Be sure that you’re in compliance with the lease. Many tenants lost spaces because of lease compliance issues that were overlooked prior to the hot dot-com real estate market. But, thanks to the current real estate glut, if you secured your space anytime since 1999, you may be in a position to negotiate for better terms and ask for formal changes in your lease.

    Figure out the rent level per square foot, the obligations for utilities, building improvements and other expenses, and the uses that are allowed in your space.

    Determine if you’ve been complying with the lease, and if you would like to change the terms. You can initiate a discussion about changing lease terms by approaching your landlord.

    Avoid misunderstandings — get it in writing. Many artists already have long-term informal relationships with landlords that have allowed their uses of the space to extend beyond the “letter” of their lease. This puts you at risk of significant rent increases, eviction or misunderstanding.

    Especially in times of high commercial vacancies and low rents, like now, landlords often look the other way when artists live in their studios. But if live/work is not legal in the space, the artist does not receive residential-tenant protections. Remember, live/work conversions are arduous due to the repeal of the live/work code.

    Tenants often tell us that their landlord has promised them a long-term lease, but the actual lease is month-to-month. Try to secure a term lease (one-year, three-year, five-year or even longer), including options to renew and other terms. If work is required in your building to meet code upgrades, you might offer to fund a portion of that work in exchange for a long-term lease with a known rent level. Or agree to pay a higher rent if the landlord improves the space and gives you a longer term.

    As a tenant renegotiating a lease, you can secure the services of a real estate broker or real estate attorney. ArtHouse has a breadth of resources to help the arts community in this capacity, and maintains a referral network of brokers and attorneys as part of its services. California Lawyers for the Arts also has a lawyer referral program that can provide access to real estate attorneys — (415) 775-7200; www.calawyersforthearts.org/.

    If you are in a residential lease, you can seek advice through the San Francisco Tenants Union (www.sftu.org/).


    Kathleen Diohep is the Program Director and Financial Analyst for ArtHouse real-state service for the arts community; (415) 885-1194; www.arthouseca.org/.

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    Staging a Successful Benefit Event

    Tuesday, October 14th, 2003

    By Emily Griffin

    Throwing a benefit for your project or organization is one of the best ways to spread awareness about your work and raise funds.

    Before beginning, it’s important to be absolutely clear on your intention that the event is a fundraiser so that everyone is on board and feeling great about their contribution. Confirm donations of talent and space in advance.


    Date & Venue — It’s all about timing


    When and where to throw your event go hand in hand. Venues such as bars, galleries and community spaces get booked far in advance, so choose a few possible dates at least three months ahead of time. Plan for your event well ahead of schedule and alert key players so there are no conflicting dates.

    Choosing the right space for your event will basically determine its success: consider location, capacity, bar and sound system. Once you’ve found the perfect place, meet with the owner or booking manager to pitch them on the prospect of hosting your fundraiser. Be sure to get clear on all issues regarding costs, security, bar guarantees, ages and hours of operation — you may also want to speak with a promoter who’s had an event there before. Try to find a venue willing to partner with you, so they make money on the bar and you make money at the door. Sign an agreement on the terms discussed — it’s always a good bet to get things in writing so there are no surprises.


    The Budget — It’s all about the Benjamins


    Potential costs in throwing an event include venue rental, performers, promotional flyers, security and door staff. To make a profit, these costs should be minimized or avoided where possible. Communicate with everyone at every step and make sure they know where the money being raised will go. A big income source is the door charge. If the venue capacity is 500, it takes simple math to see what you can charge to reach your goal.

    You can also promote a “sliding scale” entry; it all depends on the audience. If you’re promoting to a young rock or dance music crowd, a higher door fee may turn people away. If you’re promoting to an older crowd for a more exclusive affair, charge more.


    Performing Talent — Here to rock the party!


    The live show/party aspect of your event is what people pay for, but it doesn’t mean you do. There is an abundance of talented bands, DJs, musicians and performing artists who will be more than happy to donate their time to your cause. They’re getting paid with great promotion and exposure to a new audience. And the more diverse the performers are, the more you’ll draw an audience from different tribes in the community.

    Take care of your performers. Hooking them up with drinks, food or gifts from your sponsors will be appreciated.


    Sponsorships — The gifts that keep on giving


    A good way to cut down on initial expenses is to have the community promote their goods and services at your event. Ask local businesses to either donate money or giveaways in exchange for promotional publicity and on-site presence at the event. Initiate a trade with a local print shop where you’ll put their logo on the flyer in exchange for printing costs. Donations like gift certificates, coupons, t-shirts, CDs, books, etc., can be great for a raffle to raise extra cash or as gifts to the people who come.


    Promotions — Get the word out


    The time to promote your event is about a month to two weeks before the date; focus on flyers/posters, Web and radio/print media. Minimize the cost of your promotions. Make some basic photocopied flyers and street posters to display at shops, cafes, clubs, etc. If you have a website, promote the event there and create a simple email to send to your email list.

    Submit the listing to online event sites and approach calendar editors and the promotions departments of radio stations/newspapers to ask if they’d like to help support the fundraiser with on-air/print promotional features.


    Volunteers — People power makes it happen


    The only people that shouldn’t pay to get in the door are the people who have volunteered their time or sponsored it. Break the event down into manageable pieces and recruit leaders for each area: Sponsorships, promotions, set-up, managing talent/lighting, door staff, cleanup crew, etc.

    The more experience you have in throwing events, the more creative you can get with the entire production. Don’t forget: It’s meant to be fun! You’ll feel great after seeing how everyone can make a real difference in just one night.


    Emily Griffin — a.k.a. Ms.E of Future Breaks FM and Electric W.O.M.B. (www.electricwomb.org/) — is a longtime drum & bass/breakbeat DJ and promoter in San Francisco.

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    Participating Groups : A list of organizational attendees for the 2003 Expo

    Tuesday, October 14th, 2003


    21 Grand Arts Group



    449B 23rd St., Oakland, CA 94612; (510) 444-7263; fax: (510) 444-4034; 21grand@21grand.org; www.21grand.org/


    21 Grand is a nonprofit arts organization presenting innovative and experimental visual, performance and media arts. Founded in 2000, 21 Grand features primarily local emerging artists in non-commercial genres. 21 Grand is also available for rentals for art events and fiscal sponsorship for individual artists and unincorporated organizational projects.


    ABADA-Capoeira San Francisco



    3221 22nd St., San Francisco, CA 94110; (415) 206-0650; fax: (415) 206-0651; info@abada.org; www.abada.org/


    Founded in 1991 by world-renowned capoeira master artist Marcia Treidler, ABADA-Capoeira San Francisco (ACSF) is dedicated to preserving and promoting Afro-Brazilian culture. Through inspirational professional performance and instruction of capoeira and related Brazilian arts, ACSF seeks to inspire and empower people to realize their full potential as responsible, confident, productive citizens.


    Art Explosion, The



    2425 17th St., San Francisco, CA 94110; (877) ART-EXPL; artex@big.net; www.theartexplosion.com/


    The Art Explosion is dedicated to providing affordable artist work spaces in an open, supportive environment where artists can explore, create and exhibit their art. We offer individual workspace, community resources and support and exhibition opportunities for a diverse community of both established and emerging artists.


    ArtHouse



    Fort Mason Center, Bldg. C, Rm. 255, San Francisco, CA 94123; (415) 885-1194; fax: (415) 775-1143; www.arthouseca.org/


    Artists and arts groups require space to create — ArtHouse assists in creating these spaces. Our work both supports the arts and supports local neighborhoods. ArtHouse maintains a hotline that contains recorded announcements of live/work, studio, rehearsal, performance and exhibition space for artists and arts organizations.


    ArtNetwork



    P.O. Box 1360, Nevada City, CA 95959; (530) 470-0862; info@artmarketing.com; artmarketing.com/


    Our mission is to empower artists in their business aspirations.


    ArtSF



    880 Harrison St., Ste. 203, San Francisco, CA 94102; (415) 447-8530; info@artsf.org; www.artsf.org/


    Our mission is to create a foundation on which the community of San Francisco visual and performing artists can develop unity and solidarity, promoting prosperity and self-sufficiency as one evolving entity. We seek to purchase a warehouse that will provide space for artists, musicians, dancers, performance troupes, education, performances, a gallery, and community functions.


    ArtSpan



    934 Brannan St., San Francisco, CA 94103; (415) 861-9839; fax (415) 431-4575; www.artspan.org/


    ArtSpan’s mission is to build connections within the SF visual arts community and between artists and the public. ArtSpan programs include: San Francisco Open Studios, Technical Assistance Workshops and Art for Inner City Youth.


    ARTworkSF



    2861 California St. #5, San Francisco, CA 94115; (415) 673-3080; johnnyd@artworksf.com; artworksf.com/


    ARTworkSF provides sales and marketing services for artists and curates exhibits in San Francisco. Our staff negotiates commercial art commissions, illustrations, murals and portraits and has installed over 3,000 exhibits and events. Since 1992 ARTwork has enabled hundreds of artists to gain the skills and exposure necessary to pursue an art career.


    Axis Dance Company



    1428 Alice St., Ste. 201, Oakland, CA 94612; (510) 625-0110; fax: (510) 625-0321; info@axisdance.org; www.axisdance.org/


    AXIS Dance Company’s mission is to create and perform high-quality contemporary dance that is developed through the collaboration of dancers with and without disabilities. AXIS teaches dance and educates about collaboration and disability through community outreach and educational programs. AXIS is committed to promoting and supporting physically integrated dance, locally, nationally and internationally.


    Bay Area Buzz



    P.O. Box 5549, Berkeley, CA 94705; (510) 547-7607; fax: (510) 547-7129; info@bayareabuzz.net; www.bayareabuzz.net/


    Bay Area Buzz is a free, bi-monthly magazine dedicated to covering and promoting the diverse Bay Area music scene. Through features, reviews and interviews, our mission is to spotlight the best new bands, encourage our readers to support them, and to facilitate the cross-pollination between the underground and the mainstream.


    Black Rock Arts Foundation



    1900 Third St., 2nd Fl., San Francisco, CA 94107; (415) 626-1248; jess@blackrockarts.org; www.blackrockarts.org/


    Our mission is to reintroduce the culture-bearing relevance of art back to the civic arena and moving its primary meaning to one of civic importance, not monetary.


    BorderZone Arts, Inc.



    borderzone@earthlink.net; www.borderzonearts.org/


    BorderZone Arts is a community-based international arts and cultural organization, founded to address the needs of Indigenous and historically under-represented artists who have not been given the attention they deserve in contemporary art worlds. We promote and facilitate exchange among artists and arts organizations in San Francisco with other national and international organizations.


    COMEDY on the SQUARE



    Shelton Theater, 533 Sutter St. (at Powell St.), San Francisco, CA 94102; (415) 771-4201; www.comedyonthesquare.com/


    We’re a group of comedy/variety artists presenting performances in a 72-seat venue in Union Square. Join our “Sunday Family Fundraisers” — we provide the theater and show, you provide the marketing and ticket sales through your organization. We split the income 60/40: 60 percent to you, 40 percent to Comedy on the Square.


    Crucible, The



    1260 7th St., Oakland, CA 94607; (510) 444-0919; www.thecrucible.org/


    The Crucible is an arts education nonprofit organization fostering collaboration of arts, industry and community. Through training in fine and industrial arts we promote creative expression, reuse of materials and innovative design, while serving as an accessible arts venue through classes, workshops, lectures, gallery exhibits, community events and youth programs.


    Dandelion Dancetheater



    2705 Alcatraz Ave. #101, Berkeley, CA 94705; (510) 676-4939; www.dandeliondancetheater.org/


    Dandelion Dancetheater is a postmodern dance-theater company based in the San Francisco Bay Area that, under the direction of Kimiko Guthrie and Eric Kupers, collides raw, emotionally driven athletic and lyrical movement with theatrical scenes and gesture to explore the essence of what it is to be human.


    daniland



    P.O. Box 16158, Oakland, CA 94610; (510) 301-5741; dani@daniland.com; www.daniland.com/


    daniland is a company working to “make stuff happen” for music and spoken word performers. daniland offers management, booking and consulting to performers, as well as booking some of the finest performances in the East Bay.


    DJ Project, the



    440 Potrero Ave., San Francisco, CA 94110; (415) 487-6714; thedjproject.com/


    The DJ Project is a youth leadership program that harnesses the power of hip-hop and urban culture to teach critical thinking, audio production, entrepreneurship, job readiness skills and community accountability. Our program cycles culminate with a retail-ready CD, music video and community celebration.


    dreams by degrees



    1619 Grant Ave., San Francisco, CA 94133; (415) 733-8080; www.dreamsbydegrees.com/


    dreams by degrees is a San Francisco-based independent record label and Web design studio. In 2003, dreams by degrees will release the color series, featuring new music and art inspired by the colors blue, orange and white.


    East Bay Youth Band of the Young Performing Arts Alliance



    236 29th St. #6, Oakland, CA 94611; (510) 444-4857; www.ebyb.org/


    The East Bay Youth Band (EBYB) is a new youth performance ensemble for East Bay youth in grades 6-9. We want to meet the growing needs for music education and performance opportunities for middle school youth while strengthening the joy of music and creative skills in a highly supportive group.


    EventMagic



    640 Masonic Ave., San Francisco, CA 94117; (415) 810-2432; www.eventmagic.com/


    EventMagic offers a variety of affordable event services including PR and videography, talent booking and much more. We recently acquired Custom Scenic Studios and now offer creation of custom staging, lighting and backdrops. Projects and clients range from local theater and musical groups, nightclubs, film festivals and corporate event planners.


    The Field San Francisco



    968 Page St. #5, San Francisco, CA 94117; (415) 252-5670; www.thefieldsf.org/


    The Field is a support/service organization for independent artists, providing peer-based workshops in developing new work and career development. The Field is committed to serve all artists — emerging, established and from diverse cultures and aesthetic perspectives. To this end, The Field does not engage in any curatorial activity, maintaining an open, non-exclusive forum.


    FiftyCrows



    1074 Folsom St., San Francisco, CA 94103; (415) 551-0091; www.fiftycrows.org/


    Our mission is to open hearts and minds through the sharing of documentary photographic essays, then to provide the means by which an individual can engage in compassionate and positive social change.


    Film Arts Foundation



    145 Ninth St. #101, San Francisco, CA 94103; (415) 552-8760; filmarts.org/


    For 27 years, Film Arts Foundation has served as incubator, educator, cheerleader, consultant and community to thousands of independent film and video makers, through seminars, equipment and post-production facilities, a monthly magazine, information resources, exhibitions, an annual film festival, a grants program, networking events and much more.


    Foundation Center, The



    312 Sutter St., Ste. 606, San Francisco, CA 94108; (415) 397-0902; www.fdncenter.org/


    The Foundation Center supports and improves philanthropy by promoting public understanding of the field and helping grantseekers succeed. The Center provides access to a free library and learning center in San Francisco, which includes databases and directories that can help connect individual artists with funding. The Center also regularly offers free grantseeking classes.


    gigslist.org



    care@gigslist.org; www.gigslist.org/


    Arts Employment Magazine and employment and arts marketing resource directories.


    Gilman Street Project



    P.O. Box 1058, Berkeley, CA 94701; (510) 524-8180; www.924gilman.org/


    924 Gilman Street is an all-ages volunteer-run collective that has presented underground art and music since December 31, 1986, in Berkeley.


    Grass Shack Events & Media



    1045 Mountain Blvd., Oakland, CA 94611; (510) 595-6921; fax: (510) 595-6913; www.grassshackroad.com/


    A full-service event and media production company, Grass Shack Events & Media has years of combined worldwide corporate event experience including hotel contracting/management, audio/visual, set design and media creation through videos, graphics, presentation solutions and so very much more.


    H.E.A.R. Hearing Education and Awareness for Rockers, Inc.



    1405 Lyon St., San Francisco, CA 94115; www.hearnet.com/


    Hearing Education and Awareness for Rockers is a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising awareness of the real dangers of repeated exposure to excessive noise levels such as attending concerts, unsafe use of stereo earphones, and playing amplified systems too loudly, which can lead to permanent and sometimes debilitating hearing loss and tinnitus.


    Hip Hop Slam



    P.O. Box 5124, Berkeley, CA 94705; (510) 658-4293; hiphopslam.com/


    A Bay Area mixed-media company specializing in archiving, turntablism and hip-hop music. Includes website and three 100 percent independent record labels: Hip Hop Slam Records, Chip Shop Spam Records and C.O.D. Records.


    Independent Arts & Media



    PMB 821, 601 Van Ness #E, San Francisco, CA 94102; (415) 820-1607; www.artsandmedia.net/; www.newsdesk.org/


    Independent Arts & Media is a nonprofit sponsoring and service organization for public media and community arts. Our projects include the journalism website Newsdesk.org, the email newsletter News You Might Have Missed, and Expo for the Artist & Musician. We also offer fiscal sponsorship and affordable editorial/production services.


    Institute for Unpopular Culture



    1850 Union St., #1523, San Francisco, CA 94123; (415) 986-4382; ifuc.org/; artfreedomday.org/; punkrockorhestra.com/


    The Institute for Unpopular Culture is a 501(c)(3) that supports artists of all genres, and sponsors subversive or “unpopular” artistic visions, alleviating artists’ needs to cater to public tastes and opinion in order to survive. IFUC has supported Holly Hughes, Julia Butterfly Hill, Jan Svankmajer, Creativity Explored SF and the Punk Rock Orchestra.


    Jazz in Flight



    P.O. Box 20551, Oakland, CA 94620; (510) 763-4663; www.jazzinflight.org/


    Jazz in Flight is a not-for-profit presenting creative music in the Bay Area since 1987. Our focus includes a monthly jazz concert at Yoshi’s; the renowned Eddie Moore Jazz Festival (paying tribute to the late drummer); and Children in Flight, an free African performing-arts education program. Musical submissions should include tape or CD plus publicity information.


    Kearny Street Workshop



    934 Brannan St., San Francisco, CA 94103; (415) 503-0520; www.kearnystreet.org/


    Kearny Street Workshop produces and presents art that enriches and empowers Asian Pacific American Communities. Our vision is to achieve a more just society by connecting Asian Pacific American artists with community members to give voice to our cultural, historical and contemporary issues.


    KFJC 89.7 FM



    12345 El Monte Rd., Los Altos Hills, CA 94022; (650) 949-7260; fax: (650) 948-1085; www.kfjc.org/


    KFJC’s mission in life, as much as we can agree on such a thing, is to be a conduit for new and interesting audio art and information, especially the sorts that are unavailable elsewhere. We strive to carry the best of many styles of music and relevant public affairs programming. In short — less speak, more freak!


    KUSF 90.3 FM



    2130 Fulton St., SF, CA 94117; office: (415) 386-5873; studio: (415) 751-KUSF; www.kusf.org/


    KUSF is made possible by more than 100 volunteers from all facets of the San Francisco Bay Area community. We are dedicated to independent, underground, archival, specialty, local and eclectic/free-form music, information, ideas and public affairs programming that are marginalized by commercial media.


    KZSU 90.1 FM



    Box 20190, Stanford, CA 94309; studio: (650) 723-9010; www.kzsu.org/


    90.1 FM KZSU Stanford is a 500-watt (and net streaming) nonprofit community radio station providing any and all types of audio programming to the Bay Area.


    Little Kids Rock



    21 Oxford St. #2, Montclair, NJ 07042; (973) 746-8248; www.littlekidsrock.org/


    Little Kids Rock provides free instruments and free lessons to kids in our public schools. We focus on a rock and roll curriculum and teach kids to compose their own music. Each year we release a CD. Supporters include Bonnie Raitt, BB King, Bob Weir & Carlos Santana.


    ME’D1.ATE Network



    936 Divisadero St., San Francisco, CA 94115; (415) 440-1754;
    www.me-di-ate.net/


    ME’D1.ATE is a creative network inciting innovative ideas and activities through the collaboration and interaction of people from diverse art disciplines. ME’D1.ATE exposes these ideas and works to new and diverse audiences — building a forum that bridges thoughts and creations while inspiring progressive action and dialogue.


    Mission Creek Music Festival



    ray7@pacbell.net; www.mcmf.org/


    The Festival takes place at various venues around San Francisco, May 23-May 31 and June 5. This year it has expanded to include more venues, more events and more styles of music. Please stop by the table and submit your music for MCMF 2003.


    Motogirl Productions



    4644 Geary Blvd., PMB 182, San Francisco, CA 94118; (415) 876-2800; www.motogirlproductions.com/


    Motogirl Productions provides a variety of services to working musicians in the Bay Area, including booking, promotion, production and development. Please see www.motogirlproductions.com/ for more info.


    New College of California



    766 Valencia St., San Francisco, CA 94110; (415) 437-3460; www.newcollege.edu/


    New College focuses on interdisciplinary education in arts such as dance and movement; live performance-installation; street and political theatre; music and jazz. Students learn to use media in education, community organizing, therapy or social movement activism, as well as in solo and group production. We strongly emphasize collaboration, improvisation and cross-disciplinary work.


    New Langton Arts



    1246 Folsom St., San Francisco, CA 94103; (415) 626-5416; www.newlangtonarts.org/


    New Langton Arts cultivates experimental and innovative contemporary artworks in visual and media arts, music, performance, literature and interdisciplinary projects while encouraging broad public appreciation and access to the art of our times.


    The Nocturnes Night Photography Website



    P.O. Box 29074, The Presidio, San Francisco, CA 94129; (415) 824-1653; www.thenocturnes.com/


    The Nocturnes Night Photography Web site serves as a resource for information about Night Photography and its intersection with all things Nocturnal — music, literature, other night imagery, poetry, pop culture and science. We offer workshops, full moon gatherings, online gallery space, art exhibits and competitions and an online forum.


    Other Minds



    333 Valencia St., Ste. 303, San Francisco, CA 94103; (415) 934-8134; fax: (415) 934-8136; www.otherminds.org/


    Other Minds is one of the leading presenters of contemporary music in the United States, bringing leading contemporary composers to Bay Area audiences — Philip Glass, Meredith Monk, Robert Ashley, Tan Dun, Lou Harrison and others. As a leading advocate for avant-garde music, Other Mind’s essential work is to expand and reshape what constitutes serious music.


    Pacific Rim Sculptors Group



    1340 Peralta Ave., Berkeley, CA 94702; (510) 527-140; www.lucidart.com/pacificRim/website/


    Pacific Rim Sculptors Group increases public awareness of sculpture through public and private sculpture exhibits and encourages artistic diversity and excellence by providing a network in which artists meet, show their work, exchange ideas and address issues.


    Patrick Simms Studios



    1306 Mission St., San Francisco, CA 94103; (415) 863-9326


    Patrick Simms Studios provides the in-house 24 track recording facility at the American Federation of Musicians Local 6. We also operate a private rehearsal studio, offer music lessons daily and operate an affordable PA rental component.


    Performing Arts Workshop



    Fort Mason Center, Bldg. C, Rm. 265, San Francisco, CA 94123; (415) 673-2635; fax: (415) 776-3644; www.pawsf.org/


    Performing Arts Workshop is dedicated to helping young people develop critical thinking, creative expression and basic learning skills through the arts.


    Planet Drum Foundation



    P.O. Box 31251, San Francisco, CA 94131, Shasta Bioregion, USA; (415) 285-6556; www.planetdrum.org/


    Planet Drum was founded in 1973 to provide an effective grassroots approach to ecology that emphasizes sustainability, community self-determination and regional self-reliance. Planet Drum Foundation — an innovative voice for bioregional sustainability, education and culture.


    Propellent / Gooferman



    1284 Dolores St. #1, San Francisco, CA 94110; (415) 377-4465;
    www.propellent.com/; www.gooferman.com/


    Propellent is an art and production collective focusing on the advocacy and promotion of fringe art, particularly the chop-hop tradition (eclectic, pop culture-infused, performance-centric audio and visual collage). Our flagship artist is the band Gooferman, pioneers of performance-based chop-hop. Our mission is to make San Francisco the world’s chop-hop capital.


    Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center



    275 5th St., San Francisco CA, 94103; (415) 541-8580; www.rencenter.org/


    Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center is a nonprofit organization providing comprehensive training and support services to socially and economically diverse women and men in the Bay Area who want to start or grow their own small businesses.


    Renegade Productions/Trucco Lighting & Sound



    70 R Woodland Ave., San Rafael, CA 94901; (415) 459-5399; renegadeproductions@hotmail.com; www.truccols.com/


    Trucco Lighting & Sound and Renegade Productions have joined forces this year to provide sound, stage and lights to the world in a much larger capacity. With over a decade of experience in production, we can provide great gear with great engineers at a great price.


    RE/Search Publications



    20-B Romolo St., San Francisco, CA 94133; (415) 362-1465;
    www.researchpubs.com/


    We publish counterculture books focusing on neglected history and insurgent creativity.


    Rhythm & Motion Dance Center



    1133 Mission St. (between 7th & 8th streets), San Francisco, CA 94103; (415) 621-0643; www.rhythmandmotion.com/


    Rhythm & Motion Dance Center reflects the spirit, progressive values and diverse aesthetic of the San Francisco dance community. We offer an array of dance and movement classes including dances of the African Diaspora, Hip-Hop, Salsa, Rhythm Tap, Tribal Belly Dance and Yoga, and an exhilarating dance-based workout program.


    Rocket Words



    1050 Stanyan St. #3, San Francisco, CA 94117; (415) 731-6468; www.rocketwords.com/


    Writing to help artists and arts-related businesses get the word out about their work, their performances and their services.


    San Francisco Art Institute



    800 Chestnut St., San Francisco, CA 94133; (415) 771-7020; www.sfai.edu/


    The San Francisco Art Institute provides its students with a rigorous education in the fine arts and a preparation for a life in the arts through an innovative, intensive studio environment, a vital liberal-arts experience and engagement with the world at large.


    San Francisco Center for the Book



    300 DeHaro St., San Francisco, CA 94103; (415) 565-0545; fax: (415) 565-0556; www.sfcb.org/


    The San Francisco Center for the Book is a nonprofit organization which provides a home for Bay Area book artists and is devoted to teaching the many arts and crafts that go into making books, including letterpress printing and bookbinding. Our workshops foster learning at all levels, from introductory classes to year-long courses.


    San Francisco Media Archive



    275 Capp St., San Francisco, CA 94110; (415) 558-8117; fax (415) 558-8116; www.sfm.org/


    The San Francisco Media Archive is actively dedicated to the preservation of film and related media. Our archive is composed of over 20,000 films, videotapes and media materials, many accessible via our online database. We offer media preservation and digital archiving internships, public screenings and seminars.


    Sanitary Fill Artist in Residence Program



    501 Tunnel Ave., San Francisco, CA 94134; (415) 330-1415; fax: (415) 330-1392; www.norcalwaste.com/artist_in_residence.htm


    The goal of the AIR Program is to use art to inspire people to recycle more and conserve natural resources. Sanitary Fill Company gives local artists the opportunity to make art from San Francisco’s refuse. The company provides studio space, 24-hour access to the waste stream, a monthly stipend and a solo exhibit.


    SCRAP (Scroungers’ Center for Reusable Art Parts)



    834 Toland St., San Francisco, CA 94124; (415) 647-1746; fax: (415) 647-1744; www.scrap-sf.org/


    SCRAP stimulates creativity and environmental awareness through the reuse of discarded materials. Our goals are to maximize the diversion of materials from the solid waste stream, collect and redistribute reusable art materials to educational organizations and the general public, and educate the public and school children in the art of creative reuse.


    Songs Inspired by Literature (SIBL) Project



    2601 Mariposa St., San Francisco, CA 94110; (415) 553-3330;
    www.siblproject.org/


    Songs Inspired by Literature is a creative nonprofit producing advocacy and educational materials exclusively for the literacy movement. We use music as a vehicle to engage, inspire and reinforce the magic of literature and the power of reading.


    Soul Clap Records



    20 Ramona Ave., San Francisco, CA 94103; (415) 551-7762; www.soulclaprecords.com/


    We are a newly formed record label in San Francisco devoted to releasing music and spoken word that has heart, passion and consciousness. We want to support the music community by being a unique and insurgent label that partners with a diverse cross-section of music practitioners and music lovers.


    SoundSafe



    870 Market St., Ste. 1258, San Francisco CA 94102; www.soundsafe.org/


    Our mission is to develop a center for live music, dance, music rehearsal and art in San Francisco, to contribute to its support; and to further music education and appreciation.


    Southern Exposure



    401 Alabama St., San Francisco, CA 94110; (415) 863-2141; www.soex.org/


    Southern Exposure provides innovative emerging artists with opportunities to exhibit in an accessible environment. Each year, Southern Exposure works with over 500 artists and 100 urban youth, presents 14 to 16 exhibitions in its two galleries, and collaborates with schools and community organizations through its Artists in Education program and Youth Advisory Board.


    SPARK/KQED-TV



    2601 Mariposa St., San Francisco, CA 94110; www.kqed.org/spark/


    KQED has teamed up with BAVC to produce SPARK, an arts initiative that includes a weekly television series, a new-media program, and educational outreach. SPARK will spotlight Bay Area performing and visual artists and arts organizations, provide a mechanism for artists to record and archive their work, and connect viewers to arts experiences.


    Taking the Leap



    1506 62nd St., Emeryville, CA 94608; (510) 653-1655; www.takingtheleap.com/


    Our mission is to help artists build flourishing careers, teaching them to successfully negotiate the labyrinth of the art world, while maintaining the integrity of their art.


    Utrecht Arts Supplies



    149 New Montgomery St., San Francisco, CA 94105; (415) 777-6920; fax: (415) 777-6957; www.utrechtart.com/


    Art supply retailer for 50 years, providing professional quality materials direct from the manufacturer. Open seven days a week!


    Visual Aid



    731 Market St., Ste. 600, San Francisco, CA 94103; (415) 777-8242; fax: (415) 777-8240; visaid@visualaid.org; www.visualaid.org/


    Visual Aid supports professional artists with life-threatening illnesses who reside in the nine-county Bay Area. Visual Aid provides a variety of direct services including a Voucher Program and ArtBank for free art supplies, and an active Exhibition Program.


    Watchword Press



    840 Valencia St. #3, San Francisco, CA 94110; (415) 407-2952; www.watchwordpress.org/


    Watchword Press is a nonprofit publishing house dedicated to producing, publishing and disseminating cutting-edge literary works to the public. We seek to publish emerging writers who are generally underrepresented by the larger, market-driven commercial publishing houses.


    Weekly Weird News and FILTH



    sethmalice@hotmail.com; modernpirate.com/


    FILTH Newspaper is a locally produced Underground Newspaper. Dug up from its ashes with the new WAR calling its name, Filth provides a forum for People in and around the Bay Area to Bitch and Gripe anonymously, as the editors take on all the Flack. The new issue will be out on the streets mid-April.


    Women Environmental Artists Directory



    wead.dreamfish-creative.com/


    We promote national and international networking among eco-artists. Our “Directory of Women Environmental Artists” serves curators, administrators, writers and researchers, other artists, etc. At the yearly Bioneers Conference (the largest and most influential conference on ecology and social justice) we promote integration of art and artists into eco/environmental projects on every level.


    YLEM: Artists Using Science and Technology



    P.O. Box 749, Orinda, CA 94583; (415) 647-8503; www.ylem.org/


    YLEM is an international organization of artists, scientists, authors, curators, educators and art enthusiasts who explore the intersection of the arts and sciences. We strive to bring the humanizing forces of art to science and technology using computers, kinetic sculpture, interactive multimedia, holograms, robotics, 3-D media, film, video and more.

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    Taking Your Independent Music Online

    Tuesday, October 14th, 2003

    By Eliot Van Buskirk

    Many music groups in the Bay Area are pretty tech-savvy, and count at least one former dot-commer among their ranks. But chances are you could still stand to learn a bit more about how to rip, record and/or encode your music for the Internet.

    If you’ve been recording your music onto your hard drive with multitrack recording software (Pro Tools, CoolEdit, Logic, etc.), your first step is easy — master your project and mix it down as a series of uncompressed files (WAV files on a PC, AIFF on a Mac).

    But your source will most likely be physical: a CD, 7-inch single, LP, rehearsal tape, DAT or some other source. Here’s how you turn those into 1s and 0s, using free or open-source software.


    Rip your CD or demo


    Mac people already know that iTunes is the ripper of choice. Windows users may want to try Exact Audio Copy (EAC) — it’s free, creates great-sounding rips and can sometimes read scratched CDs. Download and install EAC from www.exactaudiocopy.de/. Make sure Lame.exe is on your hard drive, or download it from one of the sites listed on the EAC website. L.A.M.E. stands for “Lame Ain’t an MP3 Encoder,” which is true — it’s just a codec (or COmpression DECompression algorithm, which crunches file sizes while preserving most of the original sound). Codecs are useless without a host program like EAC — and EAC can’t make MP3s without a codec.

    When EAC is ready to go, rip the songs you want — make sure the file is saved as a WAV, 32 kbps for lower quality, 192 kbps for higher quality. Choose the “Normalize” function to keep the volumes consistent — too often, amateur MP3s sound quieter than commercial albums.

    The saved WAV files (AIFF with Mac/iTunes) can be chopped up into Amazon.com-style 30-second samples or turned into RealAudio, Ogg Vorbis or whatever format you or your label/distributor prefer (see “Editing,” below).


    Record from vinyl, tape, DAT, etc.


    Any decent sound card has an analog line-input (1/8th-inch stereo jack or dual RCA/stereo jack) or digital optical input, but the ones that process audio outside of the computer case ($30 Griffin iMic for Mac and Windows) or come from pro audio manufacturers sound better. No matter what you’re using, connect your source to the line input, choosing the digital option if there is one. If your source is vinyl, make sure to run the signal through your amp or pre-amp first in order to boost the levels.

    When it’s all connected, set the levels and record as WAV or AIFF.

    If you don’t have professional recording software, try Audacity — it’s free, open-source and stable (Windows/Mac/Linux versions at audacity.sourceforge.net/). Use it to record the stereo tracks and edit them into separate files. The program exports to WAV/AIFF as well as MP3 (as with EAC, Audacity on Windows needs Lame installed in order to export to MP3).


    Editing


    If you want to make 30-second samples, open the song in Audacity and highlight the section you wish to sample. Use Audacity’s “Export Selection” function to save the samples as MP3s.


    Distribution


    The coolest online distribution technique I’ve ever found involves wrapping your MP3s, album art and liner notes into a software package that can be uploaded to a Web page. When someone clicks the link to the package, the MP3s download to their hard drive, decompress themselves, find the person’s CD burner and burn themselves onto a blank CD, playable on any stereo. They can print out the liner notes and art and create an official copy of your CD out of their own raw materials. Visit www.immediatek.com/ to download NetBurn Client, the shareware that allows you to do this yourself.

    Keep your CD package at a secret or password-protected location on your website, and ask people who want to buy it to email you for instructions. When they’ve sent you the money over Paypal, walked your dog, written a decent haiku, or fulfilled whatever other requirements you have in mind, email them the URL of the CD and tell them to click it after inserting a blank CD into their burner. Soon they’ll have a physical copy of your music, complete with cover art and liner notes.


    Open licensing options


    If you decide to offer downloads of your MP3s for free, it doesn’t mean you have to forfeit your ownership of the music completely. Mark your free downloads with seals from the excellent Electronic Frontier Foundation (www.eff.org/), CreativeCommons.org, or one of the licensing organizations listed on the EFF’s chart (www.eff.org/IP/Open_licenses/licensechart.html).

    These let you specify usage rules easily, so that the general public can trade your work on P2P (peer to peer, like the late Napster program) sites, use it in their own commercial works, and make as many copies as they like, as long as they attribute the work to you and leave a link to your webpage embedded in the file.

    Whew … we covered a lot of ground there. Hopefully you have some new ideas on how to package your music for Internet distribution. Once you have your music stored in these formats, your promotional ingenuity is the only limit to how far your music can reach.


    CNET senior editor and columnist Eliot Van Buskirk is the author of the Internet-audio bible “Burning Down the House: Ripping, Recording, Remixing and More!” (Osborne/McGraw-Hill).

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    Strategies for Art World Success

    Tuesday, October 14th, 2003

    By Chris Cobb

    If you’re an artist and you want to succeed, the first thing to do is define what success means to you.

    Does it mean learning how to be better at what you do? Selling the coral necklaces you make? Maybe you want to be on TV or be featured in a New York Times article. Whatever your definition of success, you’ll need to concentrate on one thing: relationships.

    In the art world it’s especially true that if you cultivate and maintain good relationships, you’ll usually be rewarded with loyalty. Remember, that person you snubbed at a party might end up being on a committee that gives out grants — grants that you may be applying for. And the more you help others get what they want, the more people are willing to help you out.

    If you’re interested in being represented by a gallery, the first thing to realize is that a gallerist is your business partner and hopefully your friend. In general, don’t approach a gallery unless you have done the background work and research to ensure you are talking to the right people — those who understand what you are doing creatively, are willing to make time for you, and will give you advice and support you in your plans.

    Go to openings and look at what other people are doing so you’ll know what’s out there and where you might fit in. If you take your abstract watercolors to a gallery that sells bronze cowboy sculptures, you’ll be told that your work is not a good fit. But don’t be discouraged — you can meet all sorts of people at openings who may share your interests. Important relationships can develop from actively checking out the local scene.

    Once you’re confident about your work and have chosen some potential venues, apply to as many as you can. Look for “open calls” where you can submit work to a gallery, annual “introduction” shows and listings in art magazines from galleries that are looking for artists.

    A standard application package consists of a cover letter, a resume with details like where you went to school and what shows you’ve been in, a slide sheet and a slide list. If you’re proposing an installation, you’ll want to include detailed plans for your idea as well. Above all, try to keep it simple.

    Contests are also a way to gain visibility, but avoid paying fees unless you like the organization and want to contribute to it. By the same token, telling people that you got a grant or won a contest generates interest in what you do.

    If you just want to show without the hassle of the gallery scene, approaching cafs or other small places in your neighborhood might be a way to go. Contact whoever is responsible for dealing with the art there. If selling your art is a high priority, however, going through a gallery is often your best bet.

    For the price of submitting to a few shows you could also become a member of several local nonprofit art organizations. Good places to check out are Southern Exposure, the Lab, New Langton Arts, POND, Intersection for the Arts and the Headlands Center for the Arts. As a member, you’ll be kept up to date on cool shows in town and will be able to widen your network.

    The Bay Area art scene is famous for its many alternative galleries. Artists, poets and musicians often get together and put on shows of their own. Some do it in book stores or cafs, while others empty out their apartments and have one-night shows. You can do something similar at small expense and it’s a great way to bring together all the friends you met at art shows.

    Most importantly, make interesting work and build a reputation. The more solid your work is, the more likely someone will notice you. Many artists tend to show their work before it’s ready. Sometimes the desire for exposure overcomes the desire for quality, and that’s understandable. But what you want to hear is that it was a great show; being hasty can have the opposite effect. Take some time to talk to people, check out the local scene, assemble a good application package, make your plan and then go for it.


    Chris Cobb is a San Francisco artist and contributor to Flash Art International, Leonardo Magazine, RiM Magazine and the local art webzine Stretcher.com/.

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    How to Go on Tour : (Without killing your bandmates and losing your ass)

    Tuesday, October 14th, 2003

    By Conan Neutron

    If you’ve accomplished the feat of actually getting a band together, you’re naturally inclined to want to share it with the rest of the world.

    Unfortunately, what most people don’t realize is that the world of luxurious tour buses, endless free drugs and copious sex is nothing more then an illusion propagated by the media.

    But if you enjoy seeing places far from home, meeting cool people, and love the culture of music, you’re doing the right thing.


    Booking


    Everybody but masochists and the neurotically friendly hates booking. It’s a thankless, terrible job. Fortunately, there are ways to make life easier. The Internet is an incredible resource for booking and touring. Pollstar.com, Google and your favorite webzine that features tour dates will all become your friends very quickly as you become painfully familiar with places you’ve never seen before.

    Nine times out of ten things are easier and quicker if you approach venues by telephone — especially because not all the great venues out there have even figured out how the “information superhighway” works, let alone have an up-to-date calendar.

    Before trying to book a venue, talk to other bands — bands you like and/or sound like. See who your favorite bands play with when they go to a particular town, check out their music, make contact, tell them about yourself and that you’re a fan, and offer to trade shows. The key to successful touring is the buddy system — that’s how underground music works. You can also “snipe” for shows — that is, find the places where bigger bands are playing and attempt to get on their bill. Your success with that can vary greatly.

    Approach the booker willing to do their job for them. It sucks, but it works. “Hey, we’re looking for a show on this date with this local band, do you think you could help us out?” goes a lot farther than “Do you have a show for us, some band you’ve never heard of from who knows where?”

    It also shows that you’re smarter then the next band and willing to go the extra mile. This will get you noticed at the better venues, and makes for a good first impression. Some bookers love it when you have a few dates to throw at them, and some aren’t flexible at all. Try to be ready for anything, including plenty of flakiness.

    Get everything in writing — addresses, names, payment, etc. If it’s a door deal, what percentage is yours? If it’s a flat fee, how much do you get there? Does the venue take a cut of the merch sales? Don’t be afraid to ask the important questions. Find out beforehand and get it in writing, so when the sleazy ex-con reprobate at the venue tries to convince you it’s different than what you’ve been told, you can tell him where to stick it.

    Be ready to send lots of demos and press kits out to potential bookers. It doesn’t have to be a work of art, but it should describe who you are and what you’ve done with a minimum of hyperbole, and clearly list the date or dates you want.

    Ok, so you’ve got the tour booked. Cool, but you’re not done yet.


    Promotion


    Now it’s all about promotion. Assume that every place you play is going to do NOTHING to promote the show. Seventy-five percent of the time you’ll be right; the other twenty-five percent you’ll be pleasantly surprised. Track down local college or pirate radio and send them your music — try to arrange to play live or give an interview if you can. Is there a local Internet music discussion group or message board? Check them out and let people know you’re alive.

    Research local music papers, find a writer that you like and make contact. Send them a package and see if they’ll do a preview or review. If you have a friend in town, send them flyers or posters to put up, or ask them to make some. You could very well spend a decent chunk of change sending this stuff out, but every bit of energy and money used to promote the show can increase your visibility.


    Travel


    Your chosen vehicle is going to be your home away from home for the duration of your trip. So once you’ve begged, borrowed or stolen your van, be willing to spend money on oil changes, get the wiper blades replaced, rotate the tires and get everything checked out — an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure for a blowout on a freeway 2,000 miles from home. Get something big enough to haul all of your equipment, personal belongings and people — and that won’t break down on hills or in the desert.

    Enjoy yourself. Space your drives apart, make sure that everybody gets time to themselves. Realize that sometimes a bandmate’s “funny” habit becomes impossible to deal with on the road, so, think patience and respect. Realize that, for a short time, anyway, this is your world, and you’re spending 95 percent of your day preparing for that half hour where you go out there and do what you’re driven to do.

    It’s what separates the hobbyists from the diehards, and it’s harder then hell, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world.


    Conan Neutron is from Oakland, CA, writes stuff and plays in the touring artsy noisy rock band Replicator (www.replicator5000.com).

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    Toxic Art Materials : What Every Artist Should Know

    Tuesday, October 14th, 2003

    By Nate Orman

    For casual hobbyists and professional artists alike, art supplies have become such familiar materials that one rarely stops to seriously consider their specific ingredients.

    Somehow we reconcile the uneasy suspicion that everything causes cancer with the memory of that kid eating crayons in kindergarten.

    In reality, art materials should be approached with informed caution.

    Toxic substances such as cadmium, lead, chromium and cobalt provide the most vibrant colors, but repeated exposure can cause serious harm.

    Painters, printmakers and ceramicists regularly use solvents and glazes that are hazardous.

    We rely on the warning labels to guide us in which supplies we choose and how we use them, but those labels supply incomplete and potentially misleading information.

    According to Merle Spandorfer, artist and author of “Making Art Safely,” “Just because a product is on the market does not mean that it is safe or that the label tells the while story.”

    Current federal labeling standards exist as a result of the 1988 Labeling of Hazardous Art Materials Act, which requires labels to state known acute and chronic effects caused by chemicals.

    Labels are largely based on the standards pioneered by an industry group, the American Society for Testing and Materials, and are certified by the Art and Craft Materials Institute (ACMI), another industry group.

    California’s Proposition 65, passed in 1986, reiterated these labeling requirements with a significant change: While the federal law is enforced by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, Prop. 65 allows citizen groups and individuals to file lawsuits against companies that label their products inadequately, making up for the government’s lack of enforcement.

    Unfortunately, the language used in labeling has precise legal meanings which can differ from common usage.

    The current labeling system comes in three forms: “AP” (Approved Product), “CP” (Certified Product) and “Health Label,” all of which signify that the product is properly labeled according to the legal requirements — not that it is safe.

    There are several keywords to look for:

    • WARNING signifies that the substance is toxic with short-term effects
    • CAUTION means that it’s toxic and a chronic hazar
    • DANGER indicates that the material is highly toxic
    • POISON means that it is highly toxic if ingested.

    These terms are relatively straightforward, but another one, NONTOXIC, is less so than you’d expect.

    The legal definition of “toxic” is determined by animal testing whereby evaluators give a single “dose” to each of a group of rats.

    If less than half have died after two weeks, the product is labeled “nontoxic.”

    According to this system, as Dr. Michael McCann, former executive director of the Center for Safety in the Arts points out, even asbestos could be deemed nontoxic.

    Testers also overlook the effects of chronic exposure when they assume that individual artists will be working with smaller amounts of toxic substances than their industrial counterparts — which doesn’t account for situations where artists work and live in a common space.

    Other expressions are similarly misleading.

    “Use with adequate ventilation” indicates that the product contains toxic material that becomes airborne during use — but remains below acceptable danger levels if appropriate ventilation is used.

    Often this is an expensive and impractical proposition in an artist’s living space.

    “Biodegradable” simply indicates that something breaks down into non-polluting substances, but the original product can still be toxic and unsafe.

    “Natural” describes the origin of the substance but makes no claims about its toxicity.

    “Almost any of these art materials can be a problem at home,” says Monona Rossol, a leading art safety expert, in her practical book, “The Artist’s Complete Health and Safety Guide.”

    As if that weren’t enough, there’s also the fact that these tests rarely take into account the use of materials by children, who can’t make safety choices and are more susceptible to toxins at lower doses.

    Fortunately, artists can make informed choices.

    Manufacturers are required by law to furnish a detailed “Materials Safety Data Sheet” if you simply write or call them at the address and telephone number provided on the product in question.

    More safety information can be found at the Arts, Crafts and Theater Safety website, www.caseweb.com/ACTS/.


    Nate Orman is a local printmaker, cartoonist and graphic designer. More information about labeling and Nate’s other work can be found at www.wayout.com/.

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