Spring Break
'Make a Mesa', and make $500
rin Caballero
Daily Staff Writer
- Page 1 of 1
In Spanish, it means table.
Now, the word mesa has a third meaning: $500 to each winner that designs one for the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Joint Library.
This year's "Make a Mesa" contest is awarding three artists to design a table to "commemorate and explore" Latino culture.
Three standard-sized tables will be altered to the specifications of the winning artists, and at least one will be lowered to celebrate the low rider car culture of Latino youth. The lowered car bodies, hydraulics and modified exhaust pipes began in East Los Angeles, and have since become popular with urban youth across all ethnic groups, according to www.brownpride.com, a website devoted to the low rider culture.
Applicants have until April 1 to submit designs, all of which must be appropriate for all age groups. The table must be safe, having no sharp edges or protruding corners, and needs to illustrate a certain aspect of Latino culture, according to the San Jose Public Art Program. While an applicant can submit more than one proposal, each design must be separate, either mounted or drawn directly on a standard 24" X 30" X 1/4" foam core board.
These are available at the Spartan Bookstore and most art supply stores. Each proposal should include a written explanation of design concepts. For all of the contest rules and regulations, go to www.sanjoseculture.org.
Mary Ruben, project manager for the San Jose Public Art Program, said she believes this program is the ultimate step toward creating a "community of the curious." "There's been a great deal of community discussion on this project," she said. "It's a very special approach in public art."
The "blind competition," Ruben said of the "Make a Mesa" contest is open to all majors, all years, and non-students are allowed to participate.
"I hope it opens the door of learning for other cultures," when speaking of the contest, said Alejandro Ramirez, co-chair of MECHA (Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan, or Chicano Students of Aztlan).
He cautioned, however, that some in the Latino community would take offense to the low rider table, because it represents only one aspect of their multi-faceted culture.
Lorena Mata, a reference librarian for the King Library, is one of many in the Latino community who finds the low rider table idea repugnant. She explained that Latino culture in Los Angeles, where the low rider trend originated, is not the same as Latino culture in San Jose.
"When I think low riders, I think East Side," she said. "I'm just not happy with having a low rider table. ... It's something I have no connection with," she said.
Ramirez believes the "Make a Mesa" contest will be a success. For him, the tables signify a long overdue recognition of Chicano contributions to Bay Area history. "A lot of our culture is family, and a lot of it stems from our mothers and fathers and the struggles they went through," he said.
The prize-winning tables will hold their own among the 33 pieces of the "Recolecciones" Collection, which was designed and commissioned by artist Mel Chin. An example of his utilitarian artwork are the "Reflecting Pools", the irregularly shaped bathroom sinks on floors three through eight of the library.
A few more examples of Chin's art are the "Counter" which is the large red LED display on the wall counting the total number of books checked out at the King Library, the "Canary Couch" on the lower level and the "Underground Books" vault, a glass display beneath certain book stacks, containing "banned" or "burned" books throughout history.
To create "Recolecciones," Chin collaborated with artist James Millar, Robert Batchelor, assistant professor at Georgetown Southern University, and Haun Saussy, chair of comparative literature and professor in the departments of Asian languages and comparative literature at Stanford University.
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anonymous852
anonymous852
posted 2/18/05 @ 5:36 PM PST
I would like to correct the Spartan Daily reporter who interviewed me regarding this topic. I, in no way said the project was repugnant. I was born and raised in East San Jose where I saw many low riders in my neighborhood. (Continued…)
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