More Fun in Riverside!
Well, we had a fabulous time at the Long Night of Arts & Innovation. How about you? It was wonderful seeing Downtown teeming with activity. The exhibits along Main street between University and Mission were loads of fun, and all of the galleries and museums put a lot of effort into having great exhibits and activities going on. What was your favorite part of the evening?
If you’re looking for fun events this weekend, there is something for everyone. Two events that caught our eye are the Mayor’s Ball for the Arts & Innovation tonight, and the Citrus Classic Bike Ride event tomorrow. Both are events which support great causes. The Mayor’s Ball, which will be celebrating their 35th year tonight, supports the Arts Council, and the Citrus Classic Supports Riverside Educational and Enrichment Foundation (REEF).
MAYORS BALL FOR THE ARTS & INNOVATION:
One of Riverside’s longest running and most exciting annual events arrives with a whole new look as the Mayor’s Ball for Arts and Innovation transforms the sixth floor of Downtown Riverside’s elegant Citrus Tower into a celebration unlike any other. The event highlights the City’s finest artists and arts organizations, along with the technology research and education that have helped make Riverside the Most Intelligent City in the World. Music, performance, exhibition, dancing and a Taste of Riverside-style representation of some of the City’s best restaurants combine with the most unique event location of all time to create a night to remember. Tickets are $75, and all proceeds from the event support the Riverside Arts Council and their Community Arts Partnership program, serving nearly 80,000 residents through grants provided to non-profit arts and cultural organizations. For more information, visit the Arts Council’s Website today or call (951) 680-1345 !
RIVERSIDE CITRUS CLASSIC:
The Riverside Citrus Classic is a fundraising event which was started by the Leadership Riverside Class of 2010. They felt that creating an event which would support our local schools with grants and funding for classrooms was an important endeavor. Little did they know who successful and fun the event would become. Three years later, we’re expecting over 1,000 riders to participate in the event. There is something for everyone! Organized rides include a 100 mile, 50 mile , 28 mile, 7mile, and a Kiddie ride. Come out and enjoy the fun!! They are holding registration in the old Boarders at the Riverside Plaza today from 2-6pm! It is not too late to join the fun. If you’re pre-registered for the event already, beat the crowds and go down today to pick up your number, shirt, and goodie bag.
For more information on the event, visit the City’s Page for the Citrus Classic event.
Riverside’s Long Night of Arts & Innovation
If you have not heard about it yet, get ready to mark your calendar. Next Thursday, October 4th, is an inaugural event you won’t want to miss. The Long Night of Arts & Innovation is going to be an incredible opportunity to actively learn about, and experience first hand how the arts and innovative technology are strong economic drivers for the City of Riverside. This event was created based on a Long Night event that occurs in our sister city Erlangen, Germany. After a visit to Erlangen last year Mayor Ron Loveridge and a delegation from Riverside enjoyed their Long Night event they decided to bring the idea back to Riverside. We have so much to showcase in our community, The Long Night of Arts and Innovation will share all that happens in the art and innovation industries in the city.
From 6pm until midnight you’ll be able to enjoy live demonstrations, performances, exhibits, and hands on activities at over 130 venues throughout downtown Riverside. This will not be just your regular First Thursday event! The University of California at Riverside (UCR), California Baptist University (CBU), La Sierra University (LSU) and Riverside Community College (RCC), along with the Riverside Philharmonic, the Riverside Metropolitan and the Riverside Art Museums will “open their doors” in a centralized downtown location for all those interested in the arts and sciences.
It will be a challenge to not be enthralled for the full six hours of the event. (If you choose to arrive at the start.) You’ll be able to listen to lectures on everything from spiders to Avatar plants, experience the universe through UCR’s Keck telescope, visit the Riverside Philharmonic’s musical petting zoo, watch culinary demonstrations with RCC Culinary Institute and Phood on Main, experience magic shows, Tesla coils and more! For a detailed schedule of everything that will be taking place, here is a printable schedule of all the presentations. You will want to take a look at this schedule prior to going to the event so you can map out your plan for the evening. There is even a handy chart on the last page just for this purpose.
So, come Downtown next Thursday and get ready to experience a plethora of Art & Science.
In case we haven’t convinced you yet, here is a link to the City’s sneak peek video page, . We’ll see you on Main Street!
Riverside’s Levitated Mass Connection
As we mentioned in our post last week discussing Riverside’s quality of life, we have a rich connection to the arts in Riverside. This connection extends out to our surrounding cities as well. Southern California in general is a mecca for artists, and we’re withing driving distance to the hub of arts in both Los Angeles and Orange County.
This past weekend Charlotte’s family took their exchange student into LA to view the sights. This is something we don’t often do, even though we’re so close to the “City of Angels”. One of the destinations on the trip was to see the recently installed exhibit Levitated Mass at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. (LACMA) This piece had a particular interest to us since the core of the installation, a giant boulder, came from the Riverside area. Connie and Roger also journeyed into LA to see the exhibit after seeing Charlotte’s postings on Face Book so it became a virtual Team experience!
Levitated Mass from the “top”
The story of the boulder’s journey from The Quarry in Jurupa Valley to it’s new home on exhibit at LACMA is an amazing one. You may have seen the news last spring when the Boulder was moved under the cover of darkness from Riverside to Los Angeles. However, the real vision for the installation and the search for the perfectly shaped boulder began years before. Artist Michael Heizer first conceived of the idea in 1969. Heizer, who is known for oversize, site specific sculptures, tried his first version of this piece to no avail. The boulder chosen at that time broke the crane being used to move it and the vision was left incomplete. Since that time and after years of searching and study the perfect rock, a 340 ton piece of granite, was located here in Riverside!
Back to March 2012 and the boulder’s 11 night journey from the Quarry in Riverside to LACMA. Connie went out to see the giant rock as it rested during the day on one of the legs of it’s journey. The logistics of getting it to LA were quite extensive. People came out in droves just to see the spectacle of a 340 ton boulder being moved through the city streets and freeways. Just to give you an idea as to the size of this piece, here is a picture of the truck it took to get the boulder from point A to point B.
Moving the Monolith
While the boulder, or monolith as LACMA has been calling it, is one component of the artwork, the 456-foot-long slot beneath it and the surrounding environment complete the entire Levitated Mass installation. According to the artist and LACMA the installation ” speaks to the expanse of art history, from ancient traditions of creating artworks from megalithic stone, to modern forms of abstract geometries and cutting-edge feats of engineering.”
Looking up from the underside of the monolith.
One of the most remarkable things about this piece is being able to walk under the boulder as you walk along the trench. It is a very awe inspiring perspective.
Overall, a visit to Los Angeles and LACMA is a great adventure. If you have children, there is a great program at the museum where children under 18 get in free, and they can bring an adult “guest” in with them for free! The Levitated Mass is not the only exhibit there that children will enjoy, there are plenty of activities to keep everyone in the family occupied.
The entire installation encompasses much more than just Riverside’s boulder.
For those of you looking for more information regarding the Levitated Mass installation, check out this time elapsed video of the installation site construction. Time Lapse Video Of Levitated Mass Construction
Enjoy!!!!!
International Connections
The city of Riverside has had International Connections ever since we established our first sister city relationship with Sendai, Japan over 60 years ago. Riverside has been a leader in Sister City programs ever since.
The Sister City Sign was placed in front of White Park during the Sister Cities International Conference which Riverside hosted in October of 2011.
We have a total of eight sister cities currently. They are:
- Sendai, Japan (1957)
- Cuautla, Mexico (1968)
- Ensenada, Mexico (1976)
- Jiangmen, People’s Republic of China (1997)
- Gangnam, Republic of Korea (1998)
- Hyderabad, India (2000)
- Obuasi, Ghana (2008)
- Erlangen, Germany (2011)
The International Relations Council of Riverside coordinates and works with our sister cities to plan exchanges of people, technology, information and talent. In 2010 the committee created a brochure to let cities know of all the features our City has to offer which is also a great resource for new residents and visitors to the city.
This year Charlotte’s son participated in a sister city exchange program with our sister city, Erlangen. Currently her family is also hosting a student from Erlangen. This is the third year we have had students travel from Erlangen for an exchange program, and this year is by far the largest. We have 15 German students who all arrived to our fair city last night. They are looking forward to exploring Riverside and Southern California, as well as attending school at North, Poly and King High Schools once school starts at the end of the month.
For more information on Riverside’s International Relations Council, visit the City’s Webpage here. If you’re interested in hosting a foreign student, be sure to let us know! We’re excited about this wonderful opportunity for all of our students on both sides of the exchange.
Riverside’s Quality of Life
We have lived in Riverside for over 40 years. Over this time span, the City has gone through multiple metamorphoses, both good and bad. We’ve all seen the most recent one happening over the past decade. With venues such as the newly renovated Fox Performing Arts Center and the Culver Center of the Arts which have both contributed greatly to the revival of performing and visual arts in town, Riverside is beginning to get noticed. We have thousands of performers and hundreds of arts organizations in our region that could benefit from a stronger local participation in the arts.
The Culver Center of the Arts is an amazing venue right in the heart of Downtown
The City of Arts & Innovation
The City’s tagline has been in use for 3 years now and we’re beginning to see the benefits of living in the City of Arts & Innovation. In the past, Riverside has been a mecca for home buyers who came here solely for the affordable homes. When compared to LA or Orange County, we were always the more affordable option. But there is a new force driving the economic development of Riverside and the Inland Empire as a whole these days. The region seems poised for a lot of exciting changes and developments, all of which are sure to enhance our quality of life.
It is not just a question of supporting the arts, it boils down to a question of supporting the quality of life here in the Inland Empire. Mayor Loveridge credits the City’s strong support for the arts as a key boost and energy driver for our City’s Renaissance efforts as we create a city that is the place to be not just because of affordable housing, but because we have a quality of life which makes it enjoyable to be here.
We couldn’t agree more. Arts & culture, education, and entertainment are key reasons to love Riverside. We currently have a sustainable network of art, music, entertainment and education. With the positive things going on in Riverside, it is a wonderful place to call home. The California Arts Council is taking notice, The Culver Center of the Arts is continuing to produce innovative arts projects, The Fox Performing Arts Center is bringing a variety of performers to town, and the Universities are growing and expanding, including plans for UCR’s Medical School. All of these efforts will continue to enhance our quality of life here in the City of Arts and Innovation.
How is your quality of life in Riverside? We’re curious to hear what your favorite things to do in town are. Leave us a comment and tell us what you enjoy. Whether it is the fabulous parks, great outdoor spaces and places, or the art scene, we would love to hear from you about your choice Riverside activity. Keep the conversations going! Join our Blog Riverside! and encourage others to as well.
The Ransom-McKenzie Team 