Poetry and Art in Escondido

This past weekend there were two wonderful events at the Escondido Art Partnerships’s Municipal Gallery. And Puna Press was lucky enough to be involved in both.

The first was the release of the poetry and art book, Summation VI, 2014. For the release the artists and writers who comprised the book were invited to speak about their artwork or read their poem from the book. Ted Washington had to pieces in the book and read them both. The concept of summation­ is a very cool one: It begins with a juried exhibition featuring work by San Diego and Southern California regional artists. For the publication, writers choose one (or multiple) of the pieces and write poems inspired by the work. Given that Puna Press is a huge proponent of combining art and poetry, it was wonderful to be involved in this.

The second event, which took place in the evening, was the opening reception for ART RIOT. Ted Washington was chosen to jury this exhibit, and the diverse work he selected by an array of talented artists was beautiful to see all in one place. Awards (also selected and presented by Ted) were given to first, second, and third place, as well as honorable mentions.

A Side note: the art scene in Escondido may be a bit hidden, but assure us, it is there. That same night there were two other galleries hosting opening receptions, live music on the streets, and tons of artist studios in buildings all down the main, unassuming, strip. We sense an up-and-coming artists community here, which is always an exciting thing to see.