It’s going to be another hot one in San Jose!

Keep an eye out on pets and the elderly. If you’re going to do any outdoor activities, be sure to stay hydrated and if doing lots of physical activity, keep those electrolytes in balance with a sports drink.

If ever, especially at 103 degrees F, you start feeling chills — that’s a really bad thing. It means you are dehydrated. Stop whatever you’re doing and evaluate whether you should continue. I’ve been there on long bike rides and it’s a bad place to be. Be sure to drink before you’re thirsty — if you’re thirsty, it’s too late.

Personally, I think the best activities for weather like this is to check out a museum or two :) The South Bay has some great ones, to name a few:

• If you’ve got kids — there’s the Children’s Discovery Museum
• For the geeks at heart — there’s the Tech Museum of Innovation
• For the art lovers — there’s the San Jose Museum of Art
• For us… ummm… nerds - there’s the Computer History Museum

This is all, of course, an excuse to beat the heat.

If you’re wandering about downtown and happen to come across a giant box pumping various music from orange cones… or maybe you look up to catch a video projected on a wall of planes flying, don’t feel confused. It’s art! Tech-infused art is taking over downtown.

01SJ - by Zero1 is “a global festival of art on the edge” and runs from today, June 4th through the 8th.
[ www.01SJ.org ]

After fighting the odd organization of the 01SJ website, I managed to figure out what exhibits/performances I want to see this week and went geeky and highlighted the map they provide.

First on my list was Incursion. As described on the 01SJ site: “2-channel video projection Commissioned by ZERO1 Sponsored by Applied Materials and the City of San Jose with the support of the Visual Arts Board of the Australia Council for the Arts”

What is projected?

It’s amazing and it runs dusk to dawn everyday of the festival.

It optimistically will be cooler this weekend. If it still isn’t cool enough then head on over to Santa Cruz, where it will be a bit cooler than here. The weather forecasters have San Jose in the upper 80’s and Santa Cruz in the low 80’s this weekend.

The Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk will be having its 101st Season Kick Off this weekend. Saturday and Sunday from noon there will be champion high divers descending from an 80-foot tower and performances by the Amazing Chinese Acrobats, shows alternate every hour.

In addition, this weekend is the River Arts Festival presented by the Santa Cruz Education Foundation. The River Arts Festival is a fundraiser to celebrate and support art in the area’s local public schools. Schools and environmental groups are represented at information booths.

Artists will give insight into various artistic processes including Glass Blowing, Metal Working, Painting, Ceramics and more.

The Festival will feature Sand Painting, Sun Prints, and more for children and adults, lead by professional artists; musical performances; strolling troubadours; food court.

On Sunday 11:00 am the Festival will include the first Santa Cruz Kinetic Sculpture Race. Artists build sculptures on wheels to be raced that are pushed, pulled or pedaled by the artist.

River Arts Festival
San Lorenzo Park, Santa Cruz

Saturday and Sunday, May 17 - 18
11:00 am - 5:00 pm

This weekend May 10 – 11 and next weekend May 17 – 18 more than 300 Silicon Valley artists will welcome visitors to their studios and workspaces.

During this free event, you will view diverse one-of-a-kind works of art, including painting, mixed media, photography, sculpture, jewelry, calligraphy, ceramics, fiber arts, pottery, mosaics, metal work, glass, drawing, printmaking, watercolor, woodworking and more. You will be able to meet with the artists and purchase artworks directly.

This weekend May 10 – 11 visit artist in these locations: East Palo Alto, Ladera, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Loyola, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Santa Clara, and Sunnyvale.

Then next weekend May 17 – 18 visit artist in these locations: Campbell, Cupertino, Gilroy, Los Gatos, Milpitas, Monte Sereno, Morgan Hill, San Jose, and Saratoga.

Silicon Valley Open Studios
Saturday and Sunday
11:00 am - 5:00 pm
Please visit the artists/locations on the appropriate weekend listed above.

A list of all artists with icons depicting their specialty here.

A crude search of artist and locations here.

Locations to pick up a free copy of the Artist Directory and Map Guide here.

A Breath of Plein Air is a current exhibit presented by History San José at the Leonard and David McKay Gallery at the Pasetta House featuring plein air paintings, painting in the open air.

The exhibit features 54 pieces by 25 local artists illustrating scenes of San José, Santa Clara or Silicon Valley.

From the History San José web site:

The art of plein air painting, a French word meaning “in the open air,” became popular in the mid-1800’s, with the invention of paints in tubes. Prior to that paint was made by hand and easels were less portable. As the popularity of natural lighting in painting increased, the French impressionists, and later the Russian and American impressionists, have set the stage as the outdoor style continues to be attractive. This is particularly the case in Santa Clara Valley, where the fair weather is often favorable.

Artists who’d like to paint outdoors are invited to attend Plein Air Days at History San José, on Sundays, May 4, June 15, July 20 and August 17.

The Leonard and David McKay Gallery at the Pasetta House opened in 2005, completely restored and transformed into an exhibition space.

History San José is a 14-acre park featuring a town atmosphere, with free rides on historic trolleys, exhibit galleries and 27 historic buildings.

A Breath of Plein Air
The Leonard and David McKay Gallery at the Pasetta House
History San José
1650 Senter Road

Friday – Sunday; through September 21
12:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Admission: Free
Parking $6.00

San Jose’s SoFA arts district is an art-lovers delight. On the first Friday of the month (tonight) some of the baddest galleries in town are Free and open to the public.

Tonight - 8pm to ??

See: South First Fridays

This ‘photo’ an artists rendition - with permission - the “WORKS”

I know we need the rain, but today was miserable! The forecast calls for an 80% chance of precipitation for this weekend. Ugh! In the need of a warm getaway, but unable to leave town, I’m planning to visit the enticingly mysterious (dry) Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum.

In addition to the collection of artifacts, this Sunday kicks off an exhibition relevant to the disappearance of honeybees. A phenomenon I have been following for sometime now.

‘Vanishing Pollinators’ in the Museum Lecture Gallery.
Opening reception: Sunday, January 27 @ 3:00pm.

Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum
1342 Naglee Ave
San Jose, CA 95191

Monday - Friday: 10:00am - 5:00pm
Saturday - Sunday: 11:00am - 6:00pm

$9.00 general admission*
$7.00 seniors 55 and older and students with I.D.
$5.00 children ages 5 - 10
free children under 5
* $1.00 discount on general admission for members of AAA, AAM, KQED, and Military

Please note: Visitors 17 and under will not be admitted without a parent or chaperone at least 18 years of age.

Only Non-flash photography is allowed inside the museum.

In Book Arts, the container works with the content. Some of the books are narrative, some contain poetry, and some have no words, but tell a story through illustrations and images. Book Arts is about making books by hand. It encompasses the traditional techniques of bookbinding, papermaking, calligraphy, and letterpress as well as the capabilities of electronic media. It touches on many other forms of contemporary art, including printmaking, photography, painting, sculpture and mixed media.

This Saturday, October 20, is the 6th Annual Book Arts Jam at Foothill College where over 50 exhibitors will display unique and limited edition books, ‘zines, handmade paper, fine art prints, assembled ephemera and bookworks that challenge conventional views of what it means to “be a book.”

Visitors will be able to connect directly with letterpress printers, prominent regional artists and craftspeople, and representatives of Bay Area book arts organizations.

Bay Area Book Artists will provide a “behind-the-scenes” look at the creative processes, tools, and techniques used in book arts providing demonstrations of numerous book arts skills including sewing a fine binding, making gelatin prints, capturing images using a pinhole camera, folding a book out of a single sheet of paper, and more.

6th Annual Book Arts Jam
Foothill College, Campus Center
12345 El Monte Road, Los Altos Hills

Saturday, October 20
10:00 am - 4:00 pm
Free admission, parking $2

Directions, best parking, printable map here.

During my last visit to The Tech Museum I was able to speak with Mayor Chuck Reed. Curious to know what The City of San José planned to focus on now that the plug wires had been pulled on the Grand Prix, I took this opportunity to ask.

Mayor Reed seemed enthusiastic about the time that could now be spent on ZER01, or in the case of San José - 01SJ.

It just so happens that there will be a ZER01 event tonight at the San José City Hall Rotunda. Artist Camille Utterback will unveil Abundance.

ZER01 Event
Abundance - Projection Artwork - Tonight 8:00 PM
September 28 - October 6

In San José June 4-8, 2008
01SJ

* Thanks to elkit for the photo.

As I walked into The Tech Museum of Innovation, for a special preview of the new Body Worlds 2 & The Three Pound Gem exhibit, I did so with an open mind.

I was pleasantly surprised to find the exhibit, even though in some cases staged with humor, tastefully done. This collection of human plastinates is an enlightening and informational look at our bodies.

The message that ’smoking is bad for you’ is an old one that is often ignored, but there is no ignoring the preserved black smoker’s lung. It will grab your full attention. Moving through the exhibit I was not put off. To the contrary, I was struck with the marvel that is life. I came away from the presentation with admiration for Dr. Gunther von Hagens scientific contribution.

The Exhibit opens September 27, 2007
For Tickets

I would like to thank The Tech and Body Worlds for a most enthralling tour and press conference. They have brought a not to be missed hit show to San José.
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