ARTS

Te Southwestern College Sun

6
Aug. 17- Oct. 1, 2011 Vol. 55, Issue 1
Folklorico
club brings
color, passion
By Anna Ven Sobrevias
Staff Writer
Afcionados of Mexican culture have for
years ofered Vivas! for Southwesterns
brilliant Mariachi Garibaldi, but have
bemoaned the absence of a campus ballet
folklorico. Te wait is over.
Folklor Jaguar is stomping its way to los
corazones of the campus community with
its colorful and passionate performances
of Madre Mexicos national dance form.
Members of the ballet folklorico club perform
traditional forms found throughout diverse
Mexico. Each regional dance tells its own,
characterized by distinctive styles and
costumes. Sinaloa, Chihuahua, Nayarit,
Jalisco, Michocan, Veracruz and Chiapas
are all represented by Folklor Jaguar.
Club president Vivian Mendoza describes
Sinaloan music as vivid, bright, exciting,
sexy and firty. Sinaloa dances have sets of
partners, but dancers are not together for
the whole performance. It usually depicts a
suitor wooing a woman. She exaggeratingly
swings her skirt left to right along with her
head, sneaking a peek of her suitor while he
follows her closely, impressing her with his
quick and tempting movements.
Head-dipping is also a famous trait of
Sinaloan dance, said Mendoza. While
supported by her partner, a woman bends
backward with her head almost touching
the foor.
Si nal oa dancers chase women
throughout the dance, but the opposite
Josh Baltezar used to be the
kind of guy who would give
you the shirt off his back.
Now you will probably have
to buy it.
While consumers are sheep-
ishly buying up the common
brands, Baltezar has been
spearheading a creative new
label he calls Clean Clothing.
Baltezar said he saw shirt
designs at some of his fa-
vorite stores and wanted
to create clothing just as
good or e ve n be t t e r.
I wanted to prove to my-
self I could do it, said the
20-year-old business major.
At frst Baltezar branded his
shirts with the acronym JBC
(Josue Baltezar Custom) for
MISAEL VIRGEN/STAFF
HOT SHIRT Josue Baltezar, a 20-year-old business major, created his own clothing
line based on his whimsical drawings. His screen-printed tees are now a hit among SWC
students.
please see Folklorico pg. 7
Faculty show how its done at edgy exhibit
By Gregory L. Ewing
Staff Writer
In the early days of Southwestern
College its visual arts instruction
was sublime. Half a century later the
colleges arts programs are not getting
older, they are getting better.
Looking Back, Moving Forward,
an exhibit which showcased the artistic
talents of the faculty, was a time-
tripping celebration of past and present
faculty members showing students
and the community how it is done.
An artist for more than 30 years,
Instructional Lab Tech George Essex
brought life to his piece about death. A
yellow-eyed gargoyle fxes its haunting
stare on visitors leading them to a
message sprawled in blood ink in a
mirror. It is Twilight Zone meets
Te Shining, a little monster with
his own caution of red rum.
Te piece is also homage and the
mirror is cleverly festooned with
photos in tribute to Essexs family and
friends who have passed away. In the
spirit of Dia de los Muertos, Essex also
salutes fallen members of the U.S.
Armed Forces.
I wanted to bring people closer to
death, said Essex. Basically the piece
is about the very moment that you face
death and remembering those who
have come before you.
Human hair brings authenticity
to the gargoyles look along with the
yellow eyes, he said.
Te gargoyle is the apprehension
that I presume people feel at that
moment when you are about to die,
Essex said.
Jacki e Bar r er a, f i ne ar t s and
photography major, took the full brunt
of the piece.
Although I was unable to sit down
in the chair, I respected the message of
Essexs piece, Barrera said. Tis piece
makes me also look at all the people
who have died and makes me not want
to waste my time.
Professor of Ceramics John Oliver
Lewis tossed convention out the
wi ndow and went i n a di fferent
direction than Essex. Te gifted Lewis
used soft color on what he describes as
an ice cream Michelin Man.
I saw a few students pretending
they were licking it and apparently
other people wanted to have a bite of
it, too, said Lewis.
His work was enjoyed by Andrew
Connolly, an art and studio major.
It is very welcoming and charming,
said Connolly. It has a very whimsical,
cartoon appeal that gives you a very
happy feeling. It reminds me of an
animation of a cartoon and the colors
and shapes are esthetically pleasing. It
is a really good piece.
Sheri Robles said she was impressed
by all the art at the exhibit.
With each art you see, you fnd a
piece of you in it and a piece of beauty,
she said.
FANTASTICAL FACULTY SWC art
professors compelling exhibition featured (top) a
deathly gargoyle by George Essex, (left) an ice cream
man by John Lewis and (above) art student Rebecca
Cribs Critter.
Clean
shirts
pay off
Talented SWC entrepreneur tries on his own business in competitive fashion industry
By Alyssa Simental Online Editor
Low budget,
high marks
for choirs
please see Designer pg. 7
please see Choir pg. 7
PABLO GANDARA/STAFF
PABLO GANDARA/STAFF
MARSHALL MURPHY/STAFF
By Eileen Salmeron
Staff Writer
Southwestern Colleges vocal music
department refuses to sing the blues
despite small audiences this semester
and an even smaller budget. Big talent
and big plans still set the tempo.
Director Dr. Teresa Russell said
there were several factors that led to a
poor turnout at a recent performance,
including the power outage, a Chargers
game and the anniversary of 9/11.
Te Chargers being tied at the end
of the fourth quarter when the concert
started didnt help us, she said. So
I mean I understand, but we get the
date that we get and on September 11
a lot of people had events to go to, so
that didnt help us either.
Ticket sales are important to the
budgets of the Concert Choir, Jazz
Vocal Ensemble and Chamber Singers,
but they have plenty more chances
with upcoming shows on November
10 for Veterans Day and a holiday
performance December 11.
Balboa Parks annual December
Ni ghts on December 2, i s the
singers biggest event and draws
several thousand people. Ensemble
coordinator Maricela Paniagua said
December Nights will end the semester
with a bang.
All of our shows are really fun, but
this is our main event, she said.
Co s t ume , s t a g e s e t up a nd
preparation can be expensive, so the
choirs rely on fund raising to augment
ticket sales. Trader Joes has agreed to
sponsor the choir this year, relieving
some of the pressure of costs.
Russell said the choir collects old cell
phones, plastic bottles and aluminum
cans to recycle for extra cash.
It seems ridiculous, but it is about
$1,000 a year, she said. (We do)
whatever pays for the music and the
travel.
SWC choirs have had performances
i n Aust ral i a, Pari s, Greece and
Carnegie Hall in recent years. Te
Concert Choir was invited to Rome
for the American Festival of Music and
a performance at Te Vatican.
Preparation requires much time
and effort, according to rehearsal
assistant BJ Robinson. Tere is a lot
Looking Back, Moving Forward
a stirring celebration of creativity