From the Mouth of Youth

I've been in college admissions over 20 years now so you can imagine the amount of times I've ran through the list of criteria for getting into college. Surprisingly (or maybe not) the key factors have not really changed that much over time. Sure at Otis we have a whole additional layer in the from of the portfolio requirement but the rest of it is a familiar refrain- good grades, decent test scores, take solid "college prep" classes, etc. The whole thing can feel pretty top down at points- talking to or at students and their families so it's always nice to see a different take on the issue.

In reading the November/December issue of LA Youth whose motto is "the newspaper by and bout teens" there is a nice piece by Jennifer Carcamo, a 2008 graduate of High Tech High LA and now a freshman at UCLA. Written as an interview with her high school counselor Karyn Koven, Jennifer presents an easy to follow set of suggestions about what students can do from the beginning through the end of their high school careers.

An added bonus for Otis is that we are listed among the schools that Ms. Koven recommends to students who are considering art school! You can read the whole story here. There is a companion article about Jennifer's own college search that is also a good read.

Robert Irwin- This is What I Do

Jason Schmidt's new book "Artists" (Edition 7L) features Robert Irwin ('50) among others in their native element- making and talking about their work. In Sunday's Los Angeles Times Arts & Music portion of the Calendar (F3) Irwin's entry in the book is featured along with that of Chris Burden.

In the story when prompted by Schmidt "I'm here to take a picture of you doing what you do" Irwin- pictured at work at his drafting table- is quoted as saying "This is what I do."

18" one one hand later...

Last June, Kent Twitchell's ('77 MFA) mural "Ed Rucha Monument" was unceremoniously and abruptly painted over. The six story piece, which adorned the side of a downtown LA building, vanished after a work crew for the Job Corps re-painted the exterior walls.

Just as quickly as the mural was covered, the effort to restore it began. While the legal process grinds along- Twitchell is suing the building owners- a parallel effort was undertaken to try and reclaim one of the artist's most loved murals.

In the Saturday Los Angeles Times Calendar section (E2) it was reported that a square of paint 18" x 18" had been removed and Rucha's hand was once again visible- the first small test to see if removing the remainder of the top coat is viable.

LA Times Reviews Mario Ybarra Jr's new show

Christopher Knight describes Mario Ybarra Jr's ('99) new show at Anna Helwing Gallery as "...rather too diffuse. But when it hits, it clears the fence." The review appears in today's Calendar section on page 30 and it can also be seen on the paper's website.