The Gift of Art: Past and Presents, on display until Aug. 11 at the University Art Museum, catalogs important donations to the campus collection. The exhibit is quite illuminating, and I mean that literally. The movable walls that had divided the gallery into constricting subsections in the past have been moved aside. This open space lets in more natural light from the side window, and also allows the viewers to feel as if they are in a single room. Suitable for a sweltering summer season, the museum’s show emphasizes this idea of light and space in both the presentation of objects and the selection of shown works. The central space contains one architectural construction, one side room contains etchings and drawings and the other contains architectural drawings. One work symbolic of the idea of open space and illuminated areas seems rather strange and unorthodox. Printed on a ¿ass disc 2 feet in diameter are the words, “Ber- nie Boylan Den.” Another disc, entitled Wendell Phelps Kitchen, is placed in another part of the museum. This particular project was part of an eight-piece original work called The Lighting Specialists. The artists, Kate Ericson and Mel Ziegler, interviewed eight lighting specialists who worked for General Electric, among them Bemie Boylan and Wendell Phelps. The ar­ tists then asked the specialists about specific light bulbs they used in their homes. The discs were manufactured and illuminated by the same type of light fajulbs as those used by the specialists. Thus, the light bulb shining on the “Bemie Boylan Den” disc is the same type of light bulb used by Bemie Boylan in his den. DJAMEL RAMOUIVDulj N n u i “In this case,” said Elizabeth Brown, University Art Museum curator, “there’s a ha- P p + P y q q Sam Garchik Discusses the University Art Museum's Exhibition I I I I v J I I t ? I I I I I U O O of its Permanent Collection, The Gift of A i t Pist and Presents. logen bulb of specific specs that is in our track illuminating this disc.” Indeed, the bulb This is a hard thing to try to describe in a piece of writing, but the next tíme you feel is different from the others used in the show—but Ido not recommend looking for it. It like drawing something, try drawing two separate scenes on both sides of a piece of will make you temporarily blind, and will effect how you view the rest of the art. tracing paper and you’ll Know what I mean. Light affects many of the paper drawings as well. One drawing, by the 18th-century The exhibit highlights two remarkable individuals who passed away recently. His­ Italian master Giambattista Tiepolo, has separate scenes on each side of the paper, and tory of art and architecture Professor David Gebhard and Ruth Schaffner took steps to because of the dual illumination, the work can be seen from both sides. The scenes ensure that the University Art Museum was a valuable resource to our community and were not intended to be part of the same work of art; rather they were intended to be to art collecting in general. studies for larger, separate pieces. Because of the cost and rarity of paper at the time, Gebhard’s influence can best be seen in a section of the exhibit that examines ar­ necessity dictated maximum use. The two works compliment each other well, and chitectural drawing. One strength of this exhibit is a set of drawings by two European while they seem to counter each other with a crossing fluidity, the transparency of the immigrants to Los Angeles. Kem Weber and R. M. Schindler worked in the Los Angeles paper makes the pieces more complex. area in what many consider to be the region’s Golden Age, the mid-1930s to the mid-1940s. One of Weber’s drawings, of a penthouse for the early Walt Disney Co., is brightly colored and shockingly simple, perhaps reminiscent of a scene described in a Ray­ mond Chandler novel. It portrays a simple elegance associated with the America of the post-Depression, pre-war era, in which Los Angeles County was more of a collection of stylish small locales than a vast megalopolis of smog-infested freeways. In addition, these prints reflect a time when an avant-garde Los Angeles culture was emerging as a dominant force in American artistic ideologies. “People like Schindler and Weber were Eastern Europeans who came to Southern California and set the trend,” said Sharon Major, public relations director for the Uni­ versity Art Museum. While modem architects were busy creating a new Eden in the coastal California de­ sert, orange growers were working on an inland empire. Orange crates have tradition­ ally been praised and collected for their unique slice of California optimism. One artist included in the show, Ben Sakoguchi, challenges the glorification of modem society and the imperial agriculture domains created through the domination of the fruit industry. Four of his orange crate oil paintings were given by Don Trevey, as an addition to last year’s Ken Trevey bequest. The Ken Trevey collection of American prints is highly fea­ tured in the print portion of the exhibit, but nothing approaches the wit of the Sakogu­ chi works. Sakoguchi, an American of Japanese descent, spent seven years working on the topic of post-colonial orange crate labels. One of the four depicted here is entitled “Stone Age Brand,” and shows a squadron of B-52s. Another fruit crate label entitled “Chile Today,” hints at United States imperialism. Other titles shown are “Oakie Brand,” which shows a migrant family on their way to California, and “General DeWitt Brand,” which shows a military officer in the foreground and a prison camp in the background. Many of the works shown appear for the first time at UCSB. The opportunity to view DJAMEL RAMOUL/Daily Nexus these valuable university possessions should not be passed up. —Sam Garchik 2A Wednesday, July 3,1996 Daily Nexus m S H k This Should his master's voice Keep You Busy Protest Songs * My Mend's mom has a problem. She listens to Cypress Hill all the fuckin’ time. That wouldn’t be a problem, ex­ cept she won’t have a conversation with you without quoting from the album. It's really cute at first, but it gets really annoying sometimes. Like the other day, I was calling my Mend — let’s call her NildrfEinstein—from a gas station. She lives in LA., so I had. to pay $1 for two minutes and her mom starts go­ ing off about how the cops are trying to take her crops. I dofft think she understands that crops refer to mari­ juana,, she just knows that kids like Cypress HOI. “Mre. Einstein, could I speak with Nikki? I’m on a pay phone.” “I know how it is, the pigs are frying to blow your house down.” “OK; thanks Mrs. Einstein, could I please speak to Nikki?” I think she told me to maintain, and then a few sec­ onds later Nikki picked up die phone. “HeUo?” “Yoirknow, I’m a member of the Columbia House re­ For many people, the home computer is just a $2,000 deck of cards. But the modem cord club. Ifyour mom joins, she can get a bunch of new home computer can do way more than take care of the shuffling and dealing in a pleas­ CDs, and I’U get two for free. I’ll give her one of the free ant game of solitaire. Doom, from ID Software, introduced millions to the three- ones, too.” dimensional, first-person shooting game. In the years that followed, ID released Doom In ¿he background I heard a chant of "Duke, Duke, II, Heretic and, just this last week, Final Doom. Duke of....” Nikki told her Mom to shut up and then told Many other software companies followed with imitations ranging from the ultra- me, "You know that Columbia House is not really a club. violent Rise of Triad, from Apogee, to LucasArts’ innovative Star Wars-related Dark That membership thing is a big fucking lie. They pretend Forces. they care about you, but I won’t join any club that forces It seemed as though ID had been beaten at their own game with the release of 3D me to choose one category of music I plan on listening to Realms’ Duke Nukem 3-D in June. The graphics have a higher resolution than any for the next few years.” other shooter to date, and the various backgrounds keep the game from becoming “Yoj* sound like you’re in a good mood.” monotonous, the main problem with Doom. “I just quit my job.” Unlike Doom II, the player can duck and aim up and down as in Dark Forces. This “Serious?” is in addition to a glance feature, which allows a quick look without wasting the time to “Yeah.” A pause. “I got fired.” move. “Why?” With the press of a button, Duke Nukem 3-D players can turn 180 degrees, and “Because my boss is a fucking idiot who stared at my there is a chase view that enables you to see your character in action. Built into the chest all of the time.” game are speech taunts such as, “Damn, I’m good,” and my favorite, “Your face, your “Like how?” ass, what’s the difference?” These taunts are all accessible when you network the game ' “like,' it was dbvious.