Press Release for "Writing This Side of the 405"

              FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 30, 2013
Press Contact: Kathy MacPherson
kmacpherson@otis.edu / (310) 665.6909
Lauren Marsolier, Highway 2, Archival pigment print, 2010
Otis College of Art and Design's Ben Maltz Gallery Presents:
Writing This Side of the 405
A live and online poetry and prose reading of 25 writers from the Westside of Los Angeles in conjunction with the
exhibition Freeway Studies #1: This Side of the 405
LOS ANGELES, CA ‐ May, 2013 ‐ The Ben Maltz Gallery is proud to announce the reading event, Writing This Side of the
405, taking place on Saturday, May 18, at 4pm at The Forum, Otis College of Art and Design. Streamed live online at
www.otis.edu/writing405.
Writing This Side of the 405 is a live and online poetry and prose reading by 25 writers who live and work in the This Side
of the 405 neighborhoods of Venice, Marina del Rey, Westchester, Mar Vista and parts of Santa Monica. Writers in order
of appearance: Linda Albertano, Therese Bachand, Bruce Bauman, Guy Bennett (Faculty), Leonardo Campaner ('13),
Alicia Gaspar del Alba, Dottie Grossman (audio recordings), Jack Hirschman (read by Paul Vangelisti), Rachel McLeod
Kaminer ('13), Michelle Kholos Brooks ('10), Linda Lay ('10), Philomene Long (read by Pegarty Long), Amy Neilson ('13),
Stuart Perkoff (read by Paul Vangelisti), Sierra Qualles ('13), India Radfar, Rachel Schramm ('14), Gabriel Spera, Lara
Sterling ('14), Sarah Suzor ('08), John Thomas (read by Paul Vangelisti), Jean‐Marie Venturini ('06), Diane Ward, Penny
Weinraub ('07), Victor Yates ('14).
Writing This Side of the 405 is curated by Guy Bennett, writer, translator, and professor in the Graduate Writing program
and Liberal Arts and Sciences Department at Otis College of Art and Design, along with Kathy MacPherson, Gallery
Manager and Outreach Coordinator for the Ben Maltz Gallery.
Freeway Studies #1: This Side of the 405 features work by 33 contemporary artists whose studios are west of the 405,
north of the 105 and south of the 10 freeways in Los Angeles. The impetus for this curatorial endeavor was and continues
to be an effort to survey, one studio at a time, the neighborhoods and networks of artists working in Los Angeles.
Freeway Studies #1: This Side of the 405 more info, images, video: www.otis.edu/benmaltzgallery
Freeway Studies project blog: https://blogs.otis.edu/freewaystudies/about/
Location: The Forum, Ahmanson Bldg, Otis College of Art and Design, 9045 Lincoln Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90045
Admission and Parking: Free. Parking in structure on La Tijera.
Information: galleryinfo@otis.edu / 310.665.6909
About Otis: Founded in Los Angeles in 1918, Otis College of Art and Design prepares diverse students of art and design to enrich the world through
their creativity, their skill, and their vision. The College offers an interdisciplinary education for 1200 full‐time students, awarding BFA degrees in
Advertising, Architecture/Landscape/Interiors, Digital Media, Fashion Design, Illustration, Graphic Design, Product Design, Painting, Photography,
Sculpture/New Genres, and Toy Design; and MFA degrees in Fine Arts, Graphic Design, Public Practice, and Writing. Continuing Education offers
certificate programs as well as personal and professional development courses. Additional information is available at http://www.otis.edu.