Saturday Stats: San Jose Still the Safest Big City

A new study to find the safest cities for "your wallet and well-being" was released last month by CreditDonkey. They specifically look at the number of violent crimes, total crimes, and ID theft for each 1,000 residents and the variance between the median. They only evaluated "big" cities with populations above 500,000. Guess which city topped the rankings? It was San Jose by a pretty strong margin.

New York came in 5th and San Francisco was nowhere to be seen on the list.

Source: CreditDonkey

Safest Big Cities for Your Wallet, Well-Being

1. San Jose, CA

SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA

• Violent crime % differential from median: -21%
• Total crime % differential from median: -23%
• ID Theft % differential from national average: -21%

San Jose earns the top spot because it’s the only large city in the country to fall more than 20 percent below the national benchmark in all three categories. It also holds the distinction of having the lowest incidence of violent crimes per 1,000 people among all cities with populations over 500,000 considered for these rankings.

What you may not know about San Jose: In response to budget, staff, and crime concerns of late, the city of San Jose launched the RCITI (pronounced “our city”) program in early 2013 to reaffirm the police department’s core priorities. Reducing gang-related crimes and being responsive to residents’ needs are among the program’s key goals. The city reports that gang-related crime fell 28 percent during the first three months of 2013 compared to the same period last year.

2. San Diego, CA

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA

• Violent crime % differential from median: -12%
• Total crime % differential from median: -32%
• ID Theft % differential from national average: -16%

San Diego actually has a lower incidence of crime as a whole than San Jose, but it ranks behind its in-state neighbor because it has higher violent crime occurrences. Still, the statistics for San Diego are impressive considering it’s one of only three cities in the top 10 to have a population greater than 1 million.

What you may not know about San Diego: The city has promoted the concept of neighbors watching neighbors by partnering with Nextdoor.com, a San Francisco-based social network for neighborhoods. Each community has its own website that only those residents can access. They can exchange information about what they’re seeing in their neighborhood, including safety issues.

3. El Paso, TX

EL PASO, TEXAS

• Violent crime % differential from median: -10%
• Total crime % differential from median: -32%
• ID Theft % differential from national average: -12%

The first three cities on this list are the only ones that fall below the national benchmark in all three categories, and El Paso is the last of that group. Its violent crime and total crime differentials are third and tied for fourth best, respectively, among all the cities we considered.

What you may not know about El Paso: El Paso is right on the Mexican border, and the police department has to be especially vigilant to try to prevent Mexico’s high occurrence of drug crime from seeping across it. Of particular concern are “stash houses” that act as temporary drug warehouses to facilitate widespread distribution.

4. Los Angeles, CA

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA

• Violent crime % differential from median: +3%
• Total crime % differential from median: -33%
• ID Theft % differential from national average: +21%

Fourth place goes to Los Angeles largely because it has the second best total crime differential while also having the second largest population. It’s the first city in the top 10 to have more violent crime occurrences per 1,000 people than the U.S. median, but at only +3%, it scores better than most U.S. cities including many of those on this list.

What you may not know about Los Angeles: Crime in Los Angeles has declined over the past decade, particularly the number of incidents involving gangs. The city has two programs that aim to keep youth out of trouble. The A.C.T. program (Abolish Chronic Truancy) looks to spot patterns of truancy as early as possible and coordinate the efforts of administrators, teachers, parents, and students to fix it. And the S.A.G.E program (Strategy Against Gang Environment) educates parents on recognizing signs of early involvement in gangs, improving neighborhoods, and diverting the attention of kids away from gangs.

5. New York, NY

NEW YORK, NEW YORK

• Violent crime % differential from median: +29%
• Total crime % differential from median: -48%
• ID Theft % differential from national average: +5%

By far the largest city in the top 10 with a population of over 8 million, New York ranks fifth because its relative total crime differential is the second most favorable among the metropolitan areas evaluated despite having a higher incidence of violent crime than all but one other city on this list (Tucson).

What you may not know about New York: Reducing crime has been a main priority of Mayor Michael Bloomberg since he took office more than a decade ago. A number of initiatives – some more controversial than others – have been launched during his tenure. Among the most recent is the Juvenile Robbery Prevention Program, which identifies at-risk youth and uses early intervention to dissuade them from committing additional crimes.

South FIRST FRIDAYS Art Walk Today!

From South FIRST FRIDAYS:

JOIN US for the next South FIRST FRIDAYS art walk on November 1st
from 7–11pm. RSVP

The South FIRST FRIDAYS art walk is a self-guided evening tour through galleries, museums, and independent creative businesses featuring exhibitions and special performances.

• Anno Domini // the second coming of Art & Design – 366 South First St. map

  
  
  Opening reception: The Wind Whips the Palm Fronds new works by Megan Diddie
  Breathing up from the ocean
  To touch the tree covered mountains
  To rain on the forest floors
  The Fog blanketed our vision…
  Now see a car, a pelican flapping by the windshield
  Now see the bramble wrap around the leg
  Now a thousand legs pounding out paths
  Now the forms recoil, the surf slaps the rock
  Phrases meshing images of plants
  into half useful shapes:
  A basket walled on three sides,
  A shawl fraying violently at the end, becoming two
  In air, Bougainvillea vines behind
  A curtain of chimes, pushed by wind
  Clanging against their wills
  Images held, Images remembered
  Now see Flowers in the phone
  Winding through the Fog hung coastal range
  Now trammelling ahead in Flatness
  At rest.
  ~poem by Tim Hogan
  
  
  On view in galleryTWO: Suicide­ a new series by Barron Storey.
  The legendary illustrator and fine artist Barron Storey returns to Anno Domini for his fifth solo exhibition with the gallery. Having lost several people close to him to suicide: mother, her brother, ex-wife, and close friend, Storey began asking others: “Did you know anyone who committed suicide?” So many did. Storey made drawings of each one in his journals….pages and pages of them. The resulting art works on canvas are poignant, beautifully expressed moments of deep despair and the struggle to understand “why?”.
  An illustrator, graphic novelist, fine artist and noted educator, Barron Storey has created award-winning artworks for the covers and pages of Time, National Geographic, Saturday Review, and The Sandman: Endless Nights, among many others including the cover of the classic novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding (1980 edition.) His artworks are held in the collections of the National Air and Space Museum, the American Museum of Natural History, and Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery.
  Storey resides in San Francisco, CA and is a professor at California College of the Arts and San Jose State University.

• Higher Fire Clayspace & Gallery – 499 South Market St. map

  
  
  Elaine Pinkernell creates fine art for the wall and funky functional tableware. Her creativity is contagious! The ‘Pink’ credo… “Pay attention to process. You may just find that the accident along the way pleases you more than the original goal. And make sure you laugh & play along the way!”
  Elaine Pinkernell’s latest works are displayed with new porcelain work by Chi Wong, and a pit-firing exhibit from the Orchard Valley Ceramic Arts Guild.
  Reception for all the artists featured this November will be held in conjunction with South First Friday Art Walk, November 1st from 7-11pm.

• KALEID gallery – 88 South Fourth St. map

  
  
  FLOWERS an André Hart & Al Preciado collaboration
  This is a show about flowers, but it’s not really about flowers.
  It’s an exhibition featuring two artists.
  One a loose, out of control, maniac beast of an artist. The other sublime, controlled and
  precise with each brushstroke.
  One represents generation Y, the other is an archaic relic from the baby boomer generation.
  This is a show about creative construction and destruction and reconstruction.
  This is heaven and earth, good and evil.
  This is an angel flowing out with goodness smashing into Satan with his baleful look.
  This is a wordless, nonverbal explosion of two like-minded individuals exploring in an organic
  and intuitive way the process of painting by the combination of divergent styles.
  This is a show about flowers , but it’s really not about flowers.

• MACLA Movimiento de Arte y Cultura Latino Americana – 510 South First St. map

  
  Rojas, Jorge, Tortilla Oracle, video still
  Art Exhibiton: MAIZE Y MÁS:From Mother to Monster?
  Work by Yvonne Escalante, Yolanda Guerra, Fernando Mastrangelo, Viva Paredes, and Jorge Rojas
  An exhibition that explores the role that corn plays in our current food system and in Latino culture and uncovers the links between food, cultural identity and health.
  Related Event: 7–11pm Tortilla Oracle performance by Jorge Rojas
  Dance Performance: 8–9:30pmLos Lupeños, Mexican folklorico dances

• Phantom Galleries – 376 South 1st St. map

  
  
  Phantom Galleries presents Dysfunctional by Andrew Agutos
  “My canvases are windows into an ideal world imagined in my head. Architectural, geometric structures are surrounded and covered in patterns referencing pop art, abstract expressionism and graffiti. Remixed Warhol-camouflage, iconic cartoon imagery and colors from the fashion world are presented in a synthetic space much like the internet. Organic forms are layered with angular shapes, creating environments that are comfortable, chaotic, inviting and unknown.”

• Phantom Galleries – 95 South Market St. map

  
  
  Phantom Galleries presents Heritage of Rural Life in India by Yasala Balaiah.
  Yasala Balaiah an established senior artist was born in India in 1939 & now resides in Hyderabad. Balaiah is also known for his delightful paintings of “Telangana Women,” drawn from the beautiful rural backdrop of his native land. His colorful paintings of brightly attired, dark complexioned, straight nosed strong boned Telangana women, captured with a native candor brings a refreshing whiff of rural splendor.
  One can’t help but admire the artist’s attention to detail and the extensive work that has gone into not just portraying the expressions but their attire too. Use of bright orange, red, yellow and green has a captivating effect. Whether it is a group of women gossiping in the village or farmers with their cattle, each painting narrates a story of the rural life.

• San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles – 520 South First St. map

  
  
  Fiberart International
  This internationally renowned exhibition is considered the premier platform and benchmark for the latest movements and innovations in the ever-evolving field of fiber art. Pushing the boundaries of fiber art, the exhibit showcases works that are both conceptually groundbreaking and visually stunning. The show, which is a west coast premiere, features 40 works from a diverse group of 37 national and international artists, both acclaimed and emerging, and explores a wide spectrum of textile practices.
  
  Cathy Breslaw, Forever Plaid, 2009, Industrial mesh, mixed media, layering and weaving, 17” x 16”
  Translucence: Cathy Breslaw
  Southern California artist Cathy Breslaw’s recent work uses a unique material— an industrial mesh sourced in Shanghai—that she layers, manipulates, and combines to create ethereal abstract hangings.
  Interpretations
  The premier exhibit for our exciting new exhibition program, FiberSpace is Interpretations, which features fourteen cloth panels created by members of the Art Cloth Network. The Art Cloth Network is a nationwide organization of professional artists who focus on the creation of Art Cloth – cloth transformed by adding or subtracting color, line, shape, texture, value or fiber to create beautiful, evocative, and seductive pieces of art. Theses artists believe that cloth in and of itself is beautiful, can invite contemplation, and engage and compel viewers via process, story and tactile appeal.
  Fiber Salon: Etsy Meet & Make
  Join Artist Amy Brown in making mini thread spool charms at the next Etsy Meet & Make Fiber Salon. Thread a spool with bright colored thread or yarn and make your own keychain or necklace charms.

• Seeing Things Gallery – 30 North Third St. map

  Opening reception: For the Birds featuring artists Katherine Levin-Lau & Kelly Detweiler
  
  
  Kelly Detweiler
  Kelly’s work is varied in content and in media. Having started as a ceramist, the mentality creating multiple objects still resonates in his work. The connection to his ceramic past is echoed in subject matter such as vases and vessels throughout the work. The floral and landscape imagery often refer back to his childhood in Colorado and to his extensive travels as an adult. Aside from the obvious influences of his teachers, the work of many European painters informs his work. Picasso and the cubists, Balthus, Bosch, Bocklin, Beckmann and many more can be seen in various pieces. The overriding sense of the work is a fun loving and optimistic approach to making art and experiencing the world around us.
  
  
  Katherine Levin Lau
  I am a perpetual student of nature. My explorations have taken me to physical places such as tide pools and forests and my learning broadened by museums and books. I am filled with wonder at the beautiful, horrific, bizarre and puzzling intricacies of nature.
  In 1992, I saw my first “curiosity cabinet” at the Royal Palace in Prague. These cabinets, sometimes called wonderkammen, gained popularity with a new breed of collectors during the renaissance and later were the precursors of our modern museums. Originally the hobby of the social elite; the collections became more publicly attainable when men like PT Barnum realized the monetary potential and purchased, displayed and scattered these collections for his own gain. It was wonderful to see the Prague collection, intact and still in all its chaotic glory. A large étagère dominated the room with curved glass doors and shelves crammed to the top with objects. The collection was jumbled with no clear order; stuffed birds, statues, coral, and animal’s paw, dried flower specimens, a shrunken head, turtle shells, a dried puffer fish piled one on top of the other, vying for attention.
  My current body of work reflects the impact of this visit to Prague. I have collected images from nature and anthropology and use these as elements in a personal iconography, (for instance, the crow always represents self). I try to utilize a nonsymmetrical balance and juxtapose images of contrasting origins in homage to the Prague cabinet’s jumbled shelves.
  All the images are hand painted on a zinc plated and printed by many runs through the press. The original paintings are monochromatic and have been enhanced with color layered using viscosity techniques. Often the ghost of one image is used to begin the next print.
  Katherine has shown her works at the following galleries; Branner-Spangenburg Gallery in Palo Alto, Walter Bischoff Galleries in Berlin and Zell Germany, Lowe Gallery in Atlanta, Georgia and SOMA Gallery in San Diego just to name a few. Her selected public collections are in the following locations; the San Jose Museum of Art, Triton Museum of Art in Santa Clara, VillaHaiss Museum of Art in Zell Germany, San Jose Hilton Hotel/City of San Jose, Crocker-Kingsley Museum in Sacramento, Ministry of Belgium Permanent Collection and San Jose State University.

• Works San Jose – 365 South Market St. map

  
  Force129
  
  Niftyvee
  Outside Inside Out
  Force129 and Niftyvee create a site specific installation with recent mixed media artwork that demonstrates the convergence, clash, and collaborative influences between contemporary and street art in and around their domestic environment.

• ZERO1 Garage – 439 South First St. map

  
  
  Patent Pending
  Patent Pending, is a group exhibition that uses patents as a starting point to investigate the relationship between artists, ownership, and invention. This exhibition will feature artworks by contemporary artists that have either resulted from, or led to, a patent that the artist has either received a patent for or is patent pending. Participating artists are Maggie Orth, Catherine Richards, Phil Ross, Daniel Rozin, Scott Snibbe, and Camille Utterback & Romy Achituv. As inventors and innovators, artists change the way we look at and interact with the world. Like the entrepreneurs and inventors who have defined Silicon Valley, many artists have patented interfaces, processes, and creations with broad uses beyond their art practice. Patent Pendingcontinues ZERO1’s exploration of the relationship between artists and invention and goes behind the artist’s experiences navigating the patent system to reveal the complexities of owning and sharing ideas in contemporary times. Patent Pending was inspired, in part, by the changes in U.S. patent law that went into effect on March 16, 2013 and repositioned the United States patent filing system from a first-to-invent to a first-to-file system, as well as in response to plans to open a U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in Silicon Valley. Throughout the exhibition, as a means to explore the role of patents in creative communities, ZERO1 will bring together the arts, entrepreneur, and legal communities in dialogue around what the changes to the U.S. patent system mean for inventions and inventors in Silicon Valley and beyond.

• Cafe Stritch – 374 South First St. map

  
  No Walls Between Us: An Exhibition of Jazz Photographs by Kathy Sloane
  Work culled from over 30 years of jazz photography by Kathy Sloane, including images from her 2011 book Keystone Korner: Portrait of a Jazz Club.

• Caffé Frascati – 315 South First St. map

  
  A collection of art work upstairs and downstairs of 12 adult artists from Employment and Community Options, a nonprofit organization that educates and empowers adults with developmental disabilities with the skills to reach their goals.
  First Fridays is Caffe Frascati Opera Night presented by First Street Singers, with the Bay Area’s finest opera singers performing your very favorite classical arias and duets live in the cafe!

• Discover San Jose – 150 South First St., Suite 103 map

  
  
  This month YOU are our featured artists… and for a good cause! Stop by DSJ on Friday, pick up a paint brush and contribute to a progressive, one-of-a-kind community art piece that will be auctioned off for two great downtown causes: Christmas in the Park and Downtown Ice.
  The theme: “San Jose: Wish You Were Here” In other words, what is “home” to you? What makes San Jose special in your eyes? Is it a place, a favorite local event or pastime, an intimate gathering spot with friends or your favorite spot to watch the sun set in this amazing climate? Let’s show the world why San Jose is the best city to live, work, play and stay!
  We’ll supply the paint, brushes and canvass. YOU supply the creativity!

• Downtown Yoga Shala – 450 South First St. map

  
  
  Paths and Portals photography by Marco Zecchin
  Hiking as a child in the Santa Cruz Mountains, lead me to find the subtlest of paths and enchanting hollows and portals. These youthful sensibilities remain embers under the ash of time fanned by the breath of chance and inspiration.
  These days the flicker and sparks of these moments are fodder for my camera. Moments in the presence of magic – if not the mystical. Finding mysterious paths or portals into…

• Good Karma Vegan Café – 37 South First St. map

  
  
  Phantom Galleries presents Five Zero Five by Ashley Gulizia at Good Karma Vegan Café.
  Inspiration is drawn from bright colors, striking shapes, and nature. It is the random things and places that spark perspective. Beauty is all over the place – even the rarest of places. Using light to manipulate dramatic scenes, the world becomes surreal. Opening thought to where beauty lies.

• The Metro Gallery – 550 South First St. map

  
  
  Metro Gallery presents Nature Unraveled Photography By Dharmesh Desai
  Dharmesh Desai is an artist with a long lingering passion for photography, travel and the outdoors. He is known for his rustic journeys where curiosity and a self-taught, impeccable eye for detail allow him to capture the beauty that surrounds him. Dharmesh has framed moments and images of places, things, and beings in some of the most beautiful parts of the world.
  Ever since Dharmesh can remember, he has always had profound respect for nature. He would venture to wilderness camps every chance he got, and be marveled with his surroundings. He wished he could share these breathtaking sights with others but didn’t have the resources.
  Then in 1997, his first year living in Utah, Dharmesh took a trip to Bryce Canyon National Park and brought along a disposable camera. He printed pictures at Walmart and showed one of them to his friend and respected colleague Matt D’Alessandro. “I always admired Matt’s photography, so I picked my favorite picture to show him – just to see what he thought. He said I had a good eye and that made me think twice. It was my ‘ah ha moment’…” recalls Dharmesh. After that, Dharmesh bought a real camera and hasn’t looked back.
  Dharmesh Desai lives in San Jose, CA. He is a Software Engineer and lives with his partner Claire Umeda and her daughter Eva. When he’s not rocking the keyboards at the next hot startup in Silicon Valley or slowly making his way up and down the 101, 280 and 87, Dharmesh enjoys spending quality time with friends and scoping out his next photo-centric adventure.

• Mezcal Restaurant – 25 W. San Fernando St. map

  
  
  Mezcal Restaurant presents an art exhibition by J. Danniel
  Through his paper mache sculptures and his paintings, J, Danniels portrays just how close a relationship Mexican people may have with death. He reminds us of those words by Octavio Paz, “We Mexicans make fun of death, we caress her, we play with her but, always with the utmost respect.”

• Pho69 – 321 South First St. map

  
  
  Phantom Galleries presents Rocks, Waves & Clouds by Matthew Seigel at Pho69.
  Similar to traditional Asian scrolls, Matthew’s paintings capture the impermanence of an idea or location. His new paintings were inspired by the natural beauty of a low tide walk along Maine’s rocky coast.
  Overwhelmed with the colors, forms and relationships of rocks, the sea and sky, Matthew immediately set up an impromptu studio on his father’s farmhouse porch. The result are these modern, vibrant scrolls, acrylic on synthetic rice paper, hung on aluminum rods.
  Matthew invites you to experience Maine.

• Psycho Donuts – 288 South Second St. map

  
  art work by Kori Thompson
  Psycho Donuts in downtown San Jose is a quirky donut shop and art gallery. The gallery displays top local artists and has an ongoing exhibit featuring the work of John Renzel, Lacey Bryant, Nicolas Caesar, Murphy Adams, Christine Benjamin, Michael Foley, Michael Borja, Valery Milovic, Carlos Villez, Eric Joyner, Laura Callin Bennett, John Hageman and Robert McColley!

• South First Billiards & Lounge – 420 South First St. map

  
  art work by Efren Alvarez
  All in One is a collaborative art exhibition between three members of a family. In their first family show, this unit of artists—mother, son, and father utilize different media and expressions, which is evocative in their artwork. Cristina Velazquez (mother) is a mix media seeker. Pedro A. Alvarez-Velazquez (son), at his early 15 years of age has accumulated a vast portfolio of images captured through his different lenses. Efren Alvarez (father) is a painter, who uses the traditional medium of oils to expose highly satirical messages on border issues.

• Studio Climbing Gym – 396 South First St. map

  
  
  The Studio Rock Gym presents photography by John Eric Paulson.
  John Eric Paulson’s images are often cityscapes of Europe with the colors of the Russian painter Kadinsky and the detail of Estes, a photographic realist.

• TechShop San Jose – 300 South Second St. map

  
  Eleanor Lawson is an industrial artist and human experience designer, born and raised in the Bay Area, she is inspired to create artful ways of life by finding the intersection between aesthetics and every day functionality.
  Eleanor’s work experience includes volunteering as a set painter for Palo Alto Players, a comic book print production designer for SLG publishing. She then went on to graduate from the Industrial Design program at San Jose State. At SJSU she took particular interest in studying methodologies of product manufacturing applied to local production and distribution
  At Techshop, Eleanor’s work deals with using Autodesk Inventor and 3D printing, as well as mixed media and interactive interactive sculpture.

• Art Ark Gallery – 1035 South Sixth St. map

  
  
  Opening reception 6-9pm: The More the Merrier IV: Salon-Style Art Exhibition & Sale
  This year’s The More the Merrier IV Salon-Style Art Exhibition will showcase the work of 51 bay area artists working in variety of mediums and styles. In the tradition of the French salon-stye exhibition design, participating artists are encouraged to install as much art as they can within their allocated space. The gallery will be packed with art to dazzle the eyes and stimulate the senses. The majority of artwork on display will be priced under $200 and art may be purchased directly off the walls on the evening of the art openings. Come to see the art, meet the artists, mingle with friends and family, listen to live music performed by local musicians and enjoy the food, fun and festive atmosphere!
  Participating artists: Carol S. Aaron, Alan Bayudan, Andrew Bayudan, Laura Bennett, Mary Berry, Marconi Calindas, David Canavese, Shone Chacko, Jason Challas, Nauhxa Chavira, Dotti Cichon , J. Duncan Cook, Nathan Cox, Susanna Davy, CarolannEspino, Roberto Fierro, Peter Foley, Sonia Garcia, Gilbert Gonzales, Larry Harrell, Karen Holaday, Colleen Hubbard, Gloria Huet, Laura Kachelmeyer, Barbara Kirst, Malia Landis, Christine Latta, Elaine Lujan, Karen McCann, Gwen Mercado-Reyes, Peter Moen, Andrew Muonio, Christine Oliver, Avery Palmer, Michael Pauker, Gianfranco Paolozzi, Elizabeth Patrician, Lee Petty, Nora Raggio, Valerie Raps, Chauncey Rasmussen, Aimee Santos, Dana Seeger, Rtystk Shavers, Mashaal Sheik, Joseph Skowrinek, Robbie Sugg, Silvia Taylor, Zoe Todd, Roxanna Walker, Jeff Wilson, Gayle Yankee, Emily Yin
  With Live Music by: Mark Davis Accordion Duo.

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween San Jose! So where is the best place to go Trick-or-Treating? Willow Glen? Evergreen? Almaden? Post in the comments.

Photo is from the Annual Halloween Doggie Social & Costume Parade in Willow Glen

Awesome New Mural!

Check out the new mural below in the Japantown area!  Empire Seven Studios and Guadalajara Restaurant are throwing a party to celebrate this Friday from 5-7pm. I can't wait to see this in person.

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Empire Seven Studios (E7S), a local Art Gallery & Boutique located in San Jose, CA, recently established the E7S Mural Project. It’s a collaborative effort amongst local artists under the direction of the E7S team: Juan Carlos Araujo & Jennifer Ahn (Owners/Founders) and staff William Moran (Muralist, Project Manager), Luis Medellin Ochoa (Operations Manager). We are currently involved in the expansion of our dream at Empire Seven Studios, seeing art reach out into the streets and into our surrounding neighborhoods. We have developed this program as an idea amongst local artists to somehow get involved with the community and create an awareness of an artistic presence in the public. The E7S Mural Project’s focus was to spread awareness of the rich artistic culture that lives and breathes in San José. We are proud to say with the help of friends and local supporters, we have achieved the 4th mural in the neighborhood; one of which is the largest mural within this project. We would like to give a special “thanks” to everyone who has enjoyed participating in the production of these murals, and especially to the local neighborhood for embracing them. This hand painted mural is the design of lead artist, Jesus Rodriguez. The process was a collaborative effort amongst local artists William Moran (E7S Project Manager/Muralist), Abel Gonzalez, John Barrick, Ivan Gonzalez, Emillo Gallegos and Tamiko Rast. The design itself is inspired by Meso-American structural design, which has played a big part in Art culture of San José. Businesses and neighborhoods throughout the City have welcomed such pieces and the significance of this particular piece stems from the message in the title “La Gran Cultura Resonance.” Its English translation “The Grand Culture Resonance” is a tribute to its size and amplitude of design in its representation of an artist and his/her roots in the San José Art culture. Within the design is the face of the Maize God. Once held as one of the highest of God’s among the Mayan People, it was worshiped for the gift of the crop Maize (corn). There is a famous story in which the tribal leaders would hide the corn seeds from their people, which can be found as reminder to the people of this neighborhood today; that treasures such as this monumental piece by volunteer artists, should not be hidden, but shared and appreciated. Thoughts on the design and work by Jesus Rodriguez: “The initial approach to the space was one at the request of the owner with a Mayan Calendar occupying the wall top to bottom. With the obstructions of windows and lights it proved to be difficult to imagine, so instead I decided to take the idea and work with the architectural design of the Meso-American Era, as well as use influences of the ceramic statues that were made in those times. My first impression of the space was to occupy it with structural pieces that resemble large stones and create a few sculptural designs out of some of the available spaces that would allow me to do so. Upon the completion and approval of the design, William Moran and I vigorously worked to complete the sketch on the entire wall, which took a little over 24 hours to complete. Into to the 4th day we were blessed with the volunteer work of, Abel Gonzalez, John Barrick, Ivan Gonzalez, Emilio & Serena Gallegos, Tamiko Rast, Jennifer Ahn, and Carlos Araujo. It truly helped with the completion of the project that was finished in a matter of two weeks thanks to them. I look at this project as a monumental piece and it is greatly rewarding for not only the opportunity to design and paint such a large piece but also in sharing the experience of painting with all the other artists.” Special thanks to: ·       Dora Jacquez, Guadalajara Restaurant owner & Gloria Flores, building owner, for allowing us to share this with the community. ·       Stephen Ray Gordy, community leader, for his anti-graffiti clear coating. ______________________________________ Friday, November 1st from 5-7pm We would like to invite you to come out to the unveiling of this new mural. There will be food provided by Guadalajara Restaurant and a Firestone Beer Sampling  Guadalajara Restaurant 452 E Empire Street, San Jose, CA 95112 (between 10th and Empire Streets)

Petition for a Levitt Pavilion at St. James Park

A new petition has been kicked off to build a stage at St. James Park that would host 50 free live-music events each year. This would help revitalize the park, bring more people Downtown, and increase entertainment options for those that already live and/or work Downtown. The cost also seems quite reasonable for the amount of benefit it would add to one of our key parks.

To learn more about this proposal and sign the petition, click here.

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Levitt Pavillion is a foundation that focuses on transforming urban public spaces that are blighted into thriving Destination Centers through High Quality FREE music and entertainment events held all year long.  The Levitt Foundation has already expressed a sincere, written interest in adding a Levitt Pavillion in St. James Park and even intends to provide a healthy initial contribution of $500,000 with ongoing support and Funding every year, FOR THE LIFE of the Park.  The Levitt Model has already been proven in six other Major markets and radically transformed areas known for high crime activity to safe, fun, exciting family oriented environments.  The Levitt Model has also had a huge, positive economic impact in the markets that they reside in, filling vacant retail spaces, enhancing open park spaces, and attracting new residences.