"Crush" to be held at the 18th Street Arts Center, May 19th

18th Street Arts Center

EVENT
ANNOUNCEMENT

CRUSH, an artisanal wine, art and food tasting event benefitting 18th Street Arts Center.

May 19, 2013
2-5pm: General Admission, $45
1-5pm: VIP, $55

Tickets are on sale at: 18thstreetcrush.eventbrite.com

1639 18th Street
Santa Monica, CA 90404
Phone: (310) 453.3711
Fax: (310) 453.4347
Email: office@18thstreet.org
Website: www.18thstreet.org

Gallery hours: 11am-5:30pm, M-F
Office hours: 10am-6:00pm, M-F

18th Street Arts Center is calling all urban foodies, wine loving enthusiasts and art aficionados for its benefit event CRUSH, on May 19, 2013. Held in the heart of Santa Monica, CRUSH celebrates the best of locally produced art, food and music along with a selection of fine wines. With a variety of small bites from 10 restaurants and trend-setting chefs, 2 Master Chef Finalists, 12 award-winning wineries, a leading sommelier, specialty cocktails of fine spirits, live music, a collaborative exhibition and open artist studios as well as Crash Courses to educate, CRUSH is well-poised to provide attendees with a delightful, engaging cultural experience.

The event is a steal; with general admission tickets priced at just $45 and VIP tickets that provide priority entrance for $55. Tickets may be obtained online at 18thstreetcrush.eventbrite.com. CRUSH attendees will not only feel great because they’re spending a Sunday afternoon sipping in the sun, tasting culinary delights, interacting with artists and exploring significant artworks while listening to talented young musicians, but also because they know that all proceeds benefit 18th Street Arts Center, a 24-year old, influential non-profit arts organization in Santa Monica. Young Jazz musicians from the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts will appear and as a special treat, NBC’s ‘The Voice’ music-reality show contestant, Orlando Napier and his R&B power trio will be the headline music act at CRUSH. Between band sets, artist and DJ, “Fresh + Sunny” will fuse an array of musical styles to keep the crowd movin’.

For this year’s CRUSH, 18th Street, aims to keep the focus on fresh, seasonal foods, sustainable practices and the local community of farmers, chefs and wine-makers. Participating wineries ranging from big to small are featured at CRUSH, including recognizable brands, such as Hitching Post Wines, local favorites like Colcanyon Estate Winery in Malibu, and Rosenblum Cellars in Alameda. Smaller winery Turiya Wines, also featured at CRUSH, produces ultra, boutique wines from the Central Coast of California and plans to present its rare, fine wines, both blends as well as extremely small releases of single cultivars.

CRUSH attendees also have the special opportunity to explore the multi-faceted installation, Forêt Intérieure/Interior Forest, by Los Angeles-based artist Alexandra Grant based on an ongoing exchange with the iconic French author, poet, playwright and philosopher Hélène Cixous. Grant’s exhibition focuses on Cixous’ book Philippines as a source for imagery, centering on the repeating thematic of the forest as a profound shared space. The exhibition is a collaboration that encompasses works from a series of public drawing sessions, reading groups, artist collaborations and a large-scale, site-specific installation. In addition, the resident artists and organizations that work and create daily at 18th Street open their studios for attendees to experience works in progress. Such artists include internationally-recognized installation and environmental artist, painter and sculptor, Lita Albuquerque; documentary and experimental filmmaker Michael Barnard, as well as Southern California’s boldest center for new performance, Highways Performance Space. In addition, visiting Italian award-winning filmmaker, Gianpaolo Bucci and Nepalese public art, installation and photography artist, Hit Man Gurung will also have their studios open for attendees to visit.

Tickets are on sale at: 18thstreetcrush.eventbrite.com. A list of participating Wineries, Wine Experts, Restaurants, Leading Chefs, Food and Drink can be found at: www.18thstreet.org

2012 BAM Festival, 18th Street Arts Center

Installation and drawing during the collaborative exhibition, "Forêt Intérieure / Interior Forest"

2012 BAM Festival, 18th Street Arts Center