January 13, 2016 Table of Contents Goodbye, Flax: Art Supply Store Moving To Oakland ............................................................................................................. 2 Better Together: Father‐Son Duo Share Passion for Art ......................................................................................................... 3 The Running Painter ................................................................................................................................................................ 5 No Medium is Too Challenging for Sophomore Artist ............................................................................................................ 7 Nonprofit of the Week: ACTS Seeks to Embrace, Equip, Empower Holland Youth ................................................................ 8 Why Does the CIA Keep Its Art Collection Secret? .................................................................................................................. 9 Ex‐Inmate Finds Redemption in Art ...................................................................................................................................... 10 Art Isn't Just Good For The Mind, It's Good For The Body Too ............................................................................................. 12 Airport Employees Caught Red‐Handed in Art Theft Scheme .............................................................................................. 14 Creative Parents Make Art a Priority in Family Life .............................................................................................................. 15 French‐US Art Dealer's 'Dallas‐Upon‐Seine' Tax Fraud Trial Opens ...................................................................................... 18 Classic Art and Frame Closing ............................................................................................................................................... 19 Famous Painters Did Not Do Their Best Work While Grieving, Study Says .......................................................................... 20 When Plein Air Painting is Illegal .......................................................................................................................................... 21 Art Feeds to Expand Therapeutic Art, Creative Education Efforts to Northwest Arkansas .................................................. 22 2 __________________________________________________________________________________________ Goodbye, Flax: Art Supply Store Moving To Oakland SAN FRANCISCO, CA: Fans of Flax Art and Design were heartbroken when we first broke the news that the art supply store's Market Street location could be demolished to make way for a new mixed‐use building. Now, news comes that after more than a year of searching for a new space, owner Howard Flax will move the store across the bay to downtown Oakland. The move comes ahead of a new development which, as we reported in August 2014, would see a nine‐story, 85‐foot tall building rise on the site. A year ago, Howard Flax told us that the store wasn't expected to vacate its Market Street location until February 2016 at the earliest. His wishlist for a new space included a parking lot, at least 15,000 square feet of space to work with, a central location, and a loading dock for large deliveries. While it's not a long list, finding an affordable retail space with those specifications in San Francisco proved nearly impossible. But downtown Oakland, with its plethora of empty storefronts, was a perfect fit. "The move to Oakland became simple," Flax told us. "City officials on both sides of the bay wanted us, but in SF we couldn't find the right combination of location, affordability, public access and proper zoning, and that's after a 1.5 year search." And so, after an arduous hunt, Flax finally secured a new location 15th and MLK Drive, in an old building that used to be home to the All Power Indoor Soccer Arena. Large rolling doors can be used for deliveries, and the location is an eight minute walk from the 12th Street BART Station. At 14,500 square feet, the new space is roomy (though not as big as the Market Street location), and a small parking lot to the rear of the building on 15th crosses that requirement off the list. Flax tells us that the the art supply store will begin moving its warehouse and offices into the new space on February 1st. Though a concrete date hasn't been confirmed, the retail store will likely close in that timeframe, and its inventory will travel across the bay February 16th‐21st. "Our moving sale will start soon," Flax told us. "The move itself we want to have happen very quickly to minimize disruption on the business and our customers." The Oakland Flax location will begin serving the East Bay community in March. Though the move will happen quickly, San Francisco fans won't have to commute to Oakland to get their Flax fix: there's also the new Fort Mason Flax location, which opened this fall. "Despite the smaller footprint, it's amazing how much product we can fit," Flax told us of the new space. "City College classes start soon out of their Fort Mason campus and we are looking forward to serving all those students ... I think it will be an excellent SF location for us for many years to come." Hoodline: http://bit.ly/1PoHgkq January 13, 2016 3 __________________________________________________________________________________________ Better Together: Father‐Son Duo Share Passion for Art HYDE PARK, UT: For Jeremy Winborg, there really was not another option when he chose to create art for a living. That’s what happens when you’re the son of well‐known artist Larry Winborg. The father‐son duo share a studio in Hyde Park, in a second floor loft on the mountain bench with a fantastic view of the Wellsvilles and Cache Valley. The room is lined with windows and furnished in warm colors, with paintings hanging from and lined against the walls. Their work benches mirror each other, and a billiard table takes up another corner. A lot of people ask how the two can work together, as it’s not always easy being in business with family. For the Winborgs, that’s not really a problem. “We get along good,” Larry says. “We enjoy the relationship we have as father and son, we work together as artists.” It’s nice to work with someone who is also an artist and can offer perspective during the creative process, Jeremy says. “If I’m working on a painting, I can be stuck on something that makes the painting incomplete, and he’s able to come over and tell what’s wrong with it, what needs to be done,” he explains. The 73‐year‐old elder Winborg celebrated his 50th‐year artist’s anniversary a month ago, marking from the time he graduated with a Master’s of Fine Art at Utah State University. However, he says he decided he wanted to be an artist back in the first grade, growing up in Idaho. “I’ve always wanted to be an artist, always really loved it,” Larry explains. Larry spent many years of his career as an illustrator, and he had an art studio at one time for several years in Salt Lake City with his brother. Now, he does commissioned work and art shows with his son. Their gallery, Winborg Masterpieces in downtown Logan, represents them both. They also have had artwork featured in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter‐ day Saints’ magazine, “The Ensign,” and in other church works. Larry bounces around between different styles, working in oils much of the time, though in the past few years he turned to abstract work. Abstract, for him, is like music without words. Father and son don’t collaborate as much as they did when Jeremy was younger, but they are contracted to do a series of murals on the wall of a building in downtown Logan, visible on the east side of the Center Street Grill parking lot from Main Street. The first mural, up now, was created by Jeremy and is titled “Baby Steps,” featuring a family in a rustic kitchen. The son, modeled after Jeremy’s 2‐year‐old, is walking to his father, whose arms are outstretched to receive him, as his mother watches. The next in the series of murals will be one created by Larry, entitled “Flying Sparks,” including a father and son in a blacksmith’s forge, where the father is teaching the son how to make a knife. That will likely replace “Baby Steps” on the wall this spring. January 13, 2016 4 __________________________________________________________________________________________ The idea behind the project is mentoring, Larry explains. “I think we could all remember that everyone needs help, and needs to be mentored,” he says. “I’ve always had a saying of, ‘There isn’t anyone you can’t learn something from.’ So, if someone’s willing to teach you and you’re willing to learn, then you can learn from everyone.” Larry, who cites mentors like the late Utah artist Harrison Groutage, is a mentor himself. Growing up, Larry’s children had free reign of his studio, and he supplied them plenty of materials. The same goes for his grandchildren. “People ask, ‘How did you teach your kids to paint?’ And I didn’t. I just gave them the paints, the brushes, and the canvasses and the paper and said, ‘Go for it,’ and I encouraged them, praised them,” he says. The whole family is involved in some kind of art, be it weaving, painting or photography. Two daughters have a business called Winborg Sisters Design, producing art decor for children. Jeremy’s kids, who have an art heritage from their mother and father, are budding artists, down to his 2‐year‐old.