From the official press release:

MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL APPOINTS TWO TO THE CITY OF SAN DIEGO
COMMISSION FOR ARTS AND CULTURE

January 25, 2010 – San Diego, CA – Mayor Jerry Sanders announced the appointment of two new Commissioners to serve on the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture. “We acknowledge and appreciate these individuals and their willingness to give their time, talent and expertise to serve the City of San Diego,” said Sanders.

Larry Baza is a professional arts administrator with more than 32 years experience in advocating for the arts at the local, state and national level. He was recommended by Councilmember Marti Emerald and will replace Claire Anderson.

Baza has served on the boards of various non-profit arts organizations and provided his expertise as a panelist for arts commissions and foundations. In his professional career, Baza has directed and managed San Diego arts organizations and businesses including Centro Cultural De La Raza, Sushi Performance and Visual Arts, Fingerhut Gallery and Community Arts of San Diego.

His wealth of knowledge and experience includes affiliations, consultancies, site visits and panel participation with various arts organizations including the National Endowment for the Arts, California Arts Council, California Association of Local Arts Organizations, Chicano Federation of San Diego County, National Association of Latino Arts and Culture and the San Diego Community Foundation.

Currently, Baza is a partner in Noel-Baza Fine Art Gallery in Little Italy. He lives in North Park.

Todd Figi has a long and distinguished career as an arts and culture patron, advocate, entrepreneur and civic leader. Through his career in the art, gift and design industries, he became affiliated with many business and trade organizations and was recognized as a leader and generous donor including being named Man of the Year by the Young Presidents Organization and Man of the Year in the Gift Industry by amfAR (American Foundation for AIDS Research.)

His lifelong interest in the arts led him to be an avid collector of Latin American paintings, drawings and sculpture from masters including Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo. Locally, he has served on the boards of the San Diego Museum of Man and the Museum of Contemporary Art, where he served as President from 2008-09.

Figi was nominated by Councilmember Kevin Faulconer and will replace Courtney Ann Coyle. He lives in La Jolla.

The mission of the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture is to vitalize the city by integrating arts and culture into community life while supporting the region’s cultural assets and showcasing San Diego as an international cultural destination. For more information please call the Commission office at (619) 236-6778 or visit the Commission website at www.sandiego.gov/arts-culture.

See San Diego furniture maker Joseph Bedford’s latest as he hosts award winning illustrator and painter Blair Thornley (New York Times,
Forbes, Vanity Fair, Raygun) in the Coalesce gallery space in the in the north end of Little Italy.

The gallery is attached to Joe’s excellent small woodworking shop Bedford Built, so if you’re interested in unique, artisan furniture from an emerging master of the art, visit Joe tonight and ask for the tour!

Blair Thornley at Joe Bedford's Coalesce Gallery

Starting September at Subtext in San Diego’s Little Italy.

Click through the image to check it out!

Subtext, September 2009

We met up with the managing director. She talks about the event and its history. This yearly event is hosted in Little Italy and brings many local artists to the event.

• this FRIDAY night #SanDiego #art thnx @john_hiemstra paintings, Little Italy this Friday July 10! http://aweber.com/b/1lsAQ #
• thnx @sdmetalsmith #FaceBook invite http://bit.ly/10QtT1 LifeChain debut this Fri #SanDiego Little Italy, comment even if you can't come! #