Press Release 6.30.03

Internationally Recognized Artist Fellows To Exhibit at Triton Museum of Art

San Jose, CA, June 30, 2003 – Arts Council Silicon Valley recently awarded six local artists with fellowships for their artistic contributions to the field of Literature and Visual Arts. “Pallets and Prose,” an exhibit featuring the work of these artists, opens at the Triton Museum of Art in Santa Clara on July 12 and runs through September 7, 2003. A reception, which is open to the public, will be held on July 17 from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Triton.

003 Artist Fellows: isual Artists (Painting, Drawing & Printmaking)

Terry Acebo-Davis, Palo Alto

Richard Godinez, San Jose

Barbara L. Leventhal-Stern, Palo Alto

Literary Artists (Creative Non-Fiction & Short Stories)

Mary Eastham, San Jose

Kristen Dena Iversen, San Jose

Christopher D. Fink, Los Gatos

Arts Council Silicon Valley awarded the fellowships to recognize these professional working artists and to assist them in pursuing creative work with a $3,000 unrestricted grant and the opportunity to exhibit at a local venue. The artists were selected by professionals in their respective fields to have the highest level of artistic merit. This year’s application pool was extremely competitive with 51 applicants.

“We are pleased to honor these distinguished artists living and working in Silicon Valley,” stated Bruce W. Davis, executive director of Arts Council Silicon Valley. “It’s especially gratifying to collaborate with the Triton on this exhibit to showcase the artists’ significant works.”

The program, which awards artists annually in rotating categories, (next year’s categories include Performing Arts: Stage Directors; Visual Arts: 3 Dimensional Works) is supported through the Arts Council’s PARTNERS Grants Program. It provides an avenue for corporations, foundations, individuals and government agencies to invest in artists and arts organizations in Silicon Valley. Major donors include California Arts Council, the County of Santa Clara, the City of San Jose, The Peninsula Community Foundation, Lockheed-Martin Missiles & Space, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, The David and Lucile Packard and, ArtsChoice, the Arts Council’s workplace giving program.

Incorporated in 1983, Arts Council Silicon Valley is celebrating its 20th anniversary as an independent regional arts agency, providing funding, advocacy and services to the region’s arts organizations and artists.  As the official state/local partner with the California Arts Council and the County of Santa Clara, Arts Council Silicon Valley is now the largest nonprofit arts council in the state. Over the past 11 years the Arts Council has distributed nearly $6.5 million to local arts and cultural organizations, individual artists, schools and community groups.

Triton Museum of Art is located at 1505 Warburton Ave., Santa Clara;  Open Mon. – Sun., 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.; 408-247-3754; www.tritonmuseum.org

Artist Fellows Reception, July 17,  6 – 8 p.m. 

Artist Fellows to Exhibit

Visual Artists ( Painting, Drawing & Printmaking)

Terry Acebo-Davis, Palo Alto: Acebo-Davis’ painting and printmaking work reflects the intersection of her American and Californian upbringing with the cultural expectations of being Filipino. According to this artist and lecturer, the content behind being “Pinay” drives her aesthetic explorations. Acebo-Davis has received numerous awards and has exhibited across the country and in the Philippines, Belgium, Manitoba and Germany. The artist and her work have both been profiled in many articles and publications nationwide.

ichard Godinez, San Jose: Godinez’s paintings and drawings address issues of cultural, socio-political and historical concern. According to the painting and drawing instructor, recent events, including September 11, have caused him to rethink connections between these themes. His counter-representation challenges widely held beliefs on progress and privilege. Godinez took first place at Matrix International 98, received the Award of Excellence at the California State Fair, and has won numerous other competitions for his artwork. He has exhibited extensively throughout California.

Barbara L. Leventhal-Stern, Palo Alto: Leventhal-Stern considers herself a visual storyteller who is drawn to how broad historical events shape the smaller space of our personal lives. Interested in history, Leventhal-Stern researches old documents, photos and books to understand the contextual nature of people and places.  She won the North American Print Competition at Boston University and has been reviewed in a host of publications. Leventhal-Stern’s artwork has appeared in many shows across the country and in Yugoslavia, Taiwan, England, Holland, Brazil and Spain.

Literary Artist (Creative Non-Fiction & Short Stories)

Mary Eastham, San Jose:  An award-winning short-story writer and poet, Eastham’s work has appeared in Glamour, Pearl, Paris Transcontinental and numerous other publications. She’s received first place prizes for her stories and poems from a plethora of notable literary organizations including the American Pen Women’s Literary Contest and the California Writer’s Club. Eastham is in the process of completing a short story collection, Squinting Over Water, and her poetry collection, The Shadow of a Dog I Can’t Forget.

Kristen Dena Iversen, San Jose: Iversen is an award-winning writer of creative nonfiction focusing on environmental issues. The assistant professor of English at San Jose State University received the Colorado Book Award for Biography and the Fifth Biennial Barbara Sudler Award for the best book written on a Western American subject. Iversen has published a myriad of short stories and articles nationally and been the recipient of many awards.  An agent currently represents her current manuscript, Full Body Burden. Iversen has appeared on the Today Show, NPR, Fox News, A & E Biography and the History Channel.

Christopher D. Fink, Los Gatos: Fink, a one-time journalist for Associated Press, has been published in a host of journals and reviews including Clackamas Literary Review, The Cream City Review, North Dakota Quarterly Review, as well as academic publications. He is currently the contributing editor for Steinbeck Studies, the nation’s leading academic journal of Steinbeck scholarship. Fink, an assistant professor of English at San Jose State University, has received several 2000 Pushcart Prize nominations and won many awards including the 2000 Walt Ciezynski Award for best published fiction.

For more information about Artist Fellowships, click here: http://www.artscouncil.org/grants/grants/forindividual/artist.asp