Critics’ Forum
Visual Arts
"It’s the Village Life:" The Atwater Casitas Artists’ Community
By Jean Murachanian
"All Armenians are trying to get back to the Village life. It’s
inside them trying to come out" says artist Sevag Vrej of his
experience working out of Casitas Studios, a newly renovated
industrial building with a high concentration of Armenian artists in
Atwater Village, or "the Village". Sevag was the first artist to
move into the structure about two and a half years ago. At that time
the space was cavernous and scattered with remnant furniture and
miscellaneous supplies from its previous occupant, a pharmaceutical
company. Today the building is about 90% built-out with office and
studio space occupied primarily by artists, although roughly 20% is
rented by satellite companies and non-artists. With its cement
floors, lack of official signage, and re-used pharmaceutical
furniture, the building maintains its industrial past alongside a hip
element brought to life by its current creative occupants.
Located in Atwater Village, California, Casitas Studios is
conveniently situated between the cities of Glendale and downtown Los
Angeles, the major recreational attractions of Griffith Park and
Dodger Stadium, and just minutes from the entertainment industry in
Silver Lake. Atwater Village is an old residential community begun
in 1912 for the successful working class. It became a blue collar
neighborhood of primarily Hispanics and Filipinos and was ignored
until recently by developers and prosperous urbanites because it had
been over taken by street gangs. In fact, it is home to some of the
oldest gangs in Los Angeles, a point which is quite evident from
their names – Rascals, ToonerVille Rifa, and Frogtown. Although
improvements are apparent everywhere, including the highly
anticipated Northeast satellite campus of Los Angeles City College in
the old Van de Kamps building, the gangs are still busy tagging the
neighborhood with signs of rivalries that occasionally end in
tragedy. Bordered on the west by the Los Angeles River, that
quintessentially urban body of water with its banks of cement, and on
the east by railroad tracks, the Village has a definite gritty urban
feel. But it is precisely this combination of ethnic community,
hoodlum menace, and metropolitan lifestyle, mixed with the excitement
of urban renovation that makes Casitas Studios an inspiring place to
work for its resident artists.
But beyond its interesting ambience, what is particularly unique
about Casitas Studios is that about two-thirds of the space is
occupied by Armenian artists. As many of our readers know, when you
place Armenians in close proximity to each other, the result is a lot
of interaction. And when those Armenians are artists, the result is
creative stimulation and networking multiplied. As a bonus, what
often emerges from their contact is the pleasant discovery of common
friends and even relatives. It is in essence a microcosm of an
Armenian village where everyone specializes in a particular skill, is
somehow connected, and shares a common culture. Although they may
hail from many different parts of the world – Armenia, Argentina,
Canada, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon – the resident "Armos" nevertheless feel
a deep ancestral link that makes working together seamless. Of
course there are also non-Armenians that are part of this community,
some of whom have been adopted as honorary Hyes, like graphic
designer Nathan "Nishan" Wong, who generously serves as the
building’s ad-hoc IT consultant.
Casitas Studios came into being when the building’s owner, Dr. Avo
Tavitian, decided to convert the space into offices for the creative
community, with the loose idea of targeting Armenian artists. The
ratio of Hyes grew through word of mouth as each new occupant told
their friends about the unique space. Sevag was the first to move
in. Sole proprietor of Pomegranate Pictures, Sevag is a film
director and editor. Soon he was sharing office space with Roger
Kupelian, owner of Fugitive Studios, whose growth has occurred at
such a rapid pace that he has moved three times within Casitas
Studios to a progressively larger suite. Roger creates backdrop
paintings for the film industry, his most prominent recent work being
for The Lord of the Rings cycle. Sako Shahinian, sole proprietor of
Sako Designs, who moved in about one and a half years ago, was
referred to Casitas Studios by a mutual friend of Sevag’s, Ara
Soudjian. A designer extraordinaire, Sako is well versed in the
design of diverse media, including graphics, animation, fashion,
film, and editorials. When Sevag heard about Sako and learned he was
Hye, a member of AYF (Armenian Youth Federation), and a graduate of
his alma mater, Pasadena Art Center (PAC), he knew he had found the
perfect office mate.
All three of these artists recently collaborated on a large project,
the completion of an unfinished film, Angels, Devils, and Men (ADM),
which Roger came upon while searching for investors for his biggest
endeavor, the development and production of East of Byzantium, a
motion picture about Vartan Mamagonian. ADM was a huge undertaking
because while all the scenes had been shot, the writer and director,
Lindsay Shonteff, died suddenly without leaving much of a script or
storyboard outlining his complete concept of the movie. So Roger,
Sevag, and Sako were left trying to create a story out of the various
filmed sequences. Using their sense of creativity, in an effort to
enhance the plot and its flow, they decided to supplement the picture
with animation. Roger and Sevag served as Associate Producers and
Sako as Creative Director. Sevag edited both the film and the
trailers and Sako designed the logo, website, and animation. They
also hired mutual friend and musician, Barrett Yeretsian, to compose
the music for the soundtrack, though he does not have an office in
Casitas Studios. ADM will soon be making the rounds of the
international film festivals and our artists are optimistic that it
will find a cult audience. So be on the lookout for it in the art
houses and on DVD.
Local readers may be familiar with Casitas Studios by way of an open
house held in March 2007, which also highlighted Vahe Berberian’s
Milagros, small colorful images painted on metal, a format inspired
by an old Spanish tradition. A hip event with food and music, the
opening was attended by an eclectic crowd of over two thousand,
including Serj Tankian, lead singer for System of a Down (SOAD), and
successfully showcased the enormous talent of each artist. The
occasion also allowed the occupants to get to know one another as
well as each other’s clients. Interestingly, Sako landed a large
project from the March happening when a friend he already knew hired
him after actually seeing his work that night.
The event may have even propelled Serj to hire some of the artists to
create visual imagery for his first solo album, Elect the Dead,
released in October 2007 to rave reviews. Roger and Sevag, already
friends of Serj, were each asked to make a music video, while Sako
was asked to design the album website, create graphics for a limited
edition CD, and add imagery to Sevag’s music video, which was also
filmed at Casitas Studio. Reacquainting himself with Sako’s work,
Serj remembered the haunting posters Sako had created for SOAD’s 2004
and 2005 Souls concerts.
Sometimes collaborative work arises when the artists least expect
it. For instance, when Roger was casting parts for the publicity
photos and film teasers needed to market East of Byzantium, he ended
up finding the perfect cast right under his nose at Casitas Studios.
After interviewing loads of commercial actors, Roger realized he
already had Vartan right there in resident artist Dro Arzooian,
complete with sturdy build and full beard. In the end, he cast most
of the major roles for marketing purposes from Casitas residents, or
affiliated family and friends.
Casitas Studios even houses a husband and wife team, Talene
Gureghian, owner of ALSO, a graphic design firm, and Andrew Hall,
photographer. Family connections extend across the hall as well,
since Talene and Sevag are cousins. Also a graduate of PAC, Talene
recently completed a major project, a catalogue for Lexus
automobiles, for which Andrew did the photography and Sako the
retouching.
Besides collaborating on various projects and referring business to
each other, the resident artists also benefit from sharing
recommendations for preferred vendors. For example, rather than
using trial and error to find a good animator or printer, designers
can simply walk down the hall and ask another artist for a good
referral. Needless to say, this streamlines their efforts and
enhances the quality of their work.
Like Atwater Village itself, the occupants at Casitas Studios are an
eclectic mix – The Fitness Forum (private gym), Anna Yepremyan
(florist), Imasu by Kellynishimoto (fashion designer), Ruzz
Photography (portrait photographer), AIM Marketing (advertising
talent agency), Kluger (architects), Dro Arzooian (fine artist),
Yithzhak Dalal (photography), The Atwater Playhouse (live theater and
method acting school), and most recently, Bodies that Work (yoga
studio). In addition, the second floor houses a team of lawyers,
Avo’s administrative staff, and until recently the Los Angeles office
of the Armenian Reporter. With such a variety of businesses, the
atmosphere can be quite lively, with fashion models clacking down the
halls on their way to a fashion shoot, actors milling around
anxiously awaiting their audition at the Atwater Playhouse, and gym
patrons sprinting through on their way to their next appointment.
All this leads to some antics from the occupants, including lots of
head popping at the first sound of high heels, rounds of basketball
in the hallways, and the circulation of animated note cards
illustrating quirky occurrences in the building. Their camaraderie
also extends beyond the walls of Casitas Studios, with lunch outings
in the urban neighborhood and bike rides along the L.A. River bike
path. They even share in major life events, sometimes by
contributing their own talents as seen in the upcoming wedding of
Andrew and Jennifer from AIM, for which Ruzz will provide the
photography, Kelly Nishimoto the bridal gown, and Anna Yepremyan the
flowers.
Casitas Studios is a dynamic place where members of a small primarily
ethnic community are working, playing, and in some cases even living
together for the common purpose of creative expression. As Roger
indicated, many of the Armenian tenants have an ingrained sense of
old-world thinking modified by a modern outlook, a combination which
makes their collaborative efforts . . . effortless. Perhaps it is
precisely this intersection of rural Armenian village and urban
Atwater Village that one finds so compelling in these resident
artists.
All Rights Reserved: Critics’ Forum, 2008. Exclusive to the Armenian
Reporter.
Jean Murachanian is a Ph.D. candidate in Art History at UCLA.
You can reach her or any of the other contributors to Critics’ Forum
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