4th Annual 50-50 Show

Art Center Throws Down the Gauntlet with 4^th Annual 50-50 Show

Nancy Hall for the Sanchez Art Center

We all need a little fire lit under us from time to time. Deadlines can make someone break out in a cold sweat and/or get really, really focused! The Sanchez Art Center’s 4^th Annual 50-50 Show challenges artists to create a completely original work every day for 50 days, and this year 70 California artists will go from panic to brainstorm to full immersion in their mediums, and finally to a gala opening that annually brings thousands of people out to see the results, in this case 3,500 new pieces of art. Phew!

It is as exciting to see the work as it is for the artists to realize they’ve met the challenge, which permits them to use any medium, 2D or 3D, as long as it fits in on 50 6x6-inch squares. Limiting? Yes! In a good way. No two artists approach the task the same way, and the ideas that are born out of the time-crunch-plus-the-format are absolutely stunning. Juror Barry Sakata, owner of B.Sakata Garo in Sacramento (who has shown such greats as William T.Wiley, Manuel Neri, Roy DeForest, Richard Shaw, and Nathan Olivera), chose this year’s participants from a field of 121 entries. The finished works show a level of creativity and depth of vision that only this type of uninterrupted concentration can produce.

An added attraction is that small works means the price of purchase is well within most budgets, which is unusual in such a high-end art exhibition. (I personally own 20 of these diminutive masterpieces and can’t wait to add to my collection!) Many artists will be offering a 10% discount on the purchase of two or more pieces. Go to “Exhibitions” at the Sanchez Art Center website (www.sanchezartcenter.org) for the 50-50 Artists Roster, with links to artists’ websites and blogs.

A ticketed Preview Party will be held from 6 to 7:30 pm on Friday, Aug. 24, followed by the FREE Grand Opening from 7:30 to 9:30 pm. Preview attendees will be able to beat the crowds and view the show in its entirety as well as to select and purchase works in advance of the official opening. After the Grand Opening begins at 7:30, buyers may take their purchases home with them. Preview tickets are $10 in advance (plus service charges) through www.BrownPaperTickets.com/event/250995 (1-800-838-3006), or $20 at the door.

The Sanchez Art Center is located at 1220 Linda Mar Blvd. in Pacifica, CA, about 1.5 miles east of Highway 1. The center was founded in 1996 by a group of artists who repurposed the abandoned elementary school into artists’ studios and galleries designed to accommodate exhibitions of excellence. Now home to the Art Guild of Pacifica and run by the nonprofit Sanchez Art Center, the center offers arts events and activities throughout the year. Galleries are open (during exhibits) on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 1 to 5 pm, and during intermissions of performances at the Mildred Owen Concert Hall. For more information: 650-355-1894; www.sanchezartcenter.org.