City Of Davis: Healthy Davis Together Art Banners Convey Public Healthy Messaging And Support Regional Artists

Press release from the City Of Davis:

May 21, 2021 12:53 pm

Healthy Davis Together believes in the old adage that a picture is worth a thousand words. Partnering with local artists, Healthy Davis Together has installed banners around Davis with public health messaging and original art work by area artists in its “Reclaim” campaign that speaks to reclaiming pre-pandemic activities and attitudes by following public health guidelines.

“Partnering with the artists for the Healthy Davis Together banners to create unique, eye-catching pieces not only makes the banners special, but it also supports the arts and creative industries as we recover from the pandemic,” said Mayor Gloria Partida. “The arts and creative work represent an important part of the rich fabric of our community and has a key impact on our economy. This project is a great way for us to show community support in many ways.”

The Healthy Davis Together banners can be seen at the following locations in Davis:

•Veterans Memorial Center (214 E. 14th Street) – “Giraffe in a Flower Bed” by Stephanie Pierson

•3rd & B St. – “Waiting” by Jennifer Lugris

•City Hall complex fence on B St. – “Red Cross Hand of Margrit Haase (108yo)” by Elise Reutinger

•Richard Underpass (temporary cover for Welcome to Davis sign) – “Dawn of the Dying Day” by Jeff Musser

•Davis Community Church fence on 6th St. across from Central Park – “Golden State” by Sharon Norton

Artist Biographies

Jennifer Lugris is a painter originally from North Bergen, New Jersey whose modes of expression and image-making are deeply rooted in her multi-cultural identity as an English/Spanish/Korean/Galego speaker with a Korean-Uruguayan-Spanish-Portuguese background. She holds an MFA from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Her paintings have been exhibited and published internationally and have won several awards. Solo exhibitions include Verge Center for the Arts, Richmond Art Center, Merced College, and Maturango Museum.  
 
Jeff Musser is a painter and muralist holding a BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. His work has been exhibited and collected internationally. Before creating a painting, he uses his own photographs, drawings and other source material to form a collage. He feels the value of making collages comes from stitching together photos as a kind of fabric, extracting information and then providing that cumulative information as a totally different package in the form of a painting. This mode of working took on a special relevance for Jeff while examining his own identity within the construct of race as an American living overseas in China from 2014-2016, and he continues to explore racial identity and related questions in his current work. 
Website: http://www.jeffmusser.com/353365/home/ 

Sharon Norton Sharon credits her early experiences with arts education in schools as having had a profound, positive influence on her life. For this very reason, Sharon is a strong advocate for more art in the classroom to help foster creativity and development on many fundamental levels. As a teen, she exhibited at the Crocker Art Museum and later attended the California State Summer School for the Arts (CSSSA) Visual Arts Program located at Mills College. She uses her degree in Multimedia to work in marketing during the day and continues her fine art painting at night. The painting used for Healthy Davis Together is Sharon’s ten-year-old son having fun dancing the Orange Justice while wearing a facemask. This painting was created to capture the resilience of our youth, time after time, but especially in challenging times. “May we all find strength when looking to our young ones.” Website: https://www.sharonlnorton.com/

Elisa Reutinger is an artist and educator. Alongside her painting and fiber art practice, she has worked extensively with seniors—teaching one-on-one and group art classes through the name “craft-a-la-carte.” She regularly shows her work and the work of her seniors in alternative exhibition spaces, such as Scout Living, Jimmy’s Barber Garage and Studios Eleven Gallery and has participated in a number of craft shows such as SCTA’s Wearable Art Show and The Holiday Show at Davis Arts Center. Many in Davis also know her as an instructor of fiber arts at Davis Arts Center. Website: http://www.elisareut.com/ 

About Healthy Davis Together

Healthy Davis Together is a joint project between UC Davis and the City of Davis to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in our community and facilitate a coordinated and gradual return to regular city activities and student life. Comments and questions are welcome at info@HealthyDavisTogether.org.

Press contact:
Barbara Archer
City Manager’s Office
barcher@cityofdavis.org
Mobile: 530-400-3418

This press release was produced by the City Of Davis. The views expressed here are the author’s own.