Let's hear it for Peter Gurnz and his Factory for supporting artists from Latin America this weekend with an exhibit titled "Beyond the Unveiled Frontier: Loud Voices from Fresh Latin American Art."  This weekend's exhibit will showcase installations by a dozen or so artists and live performances by performers such as Palenke Soultribe. Gallery Eight has an expansive downtown space and the shows are, even if not all aesthetic tastes gel with your own, entertaining and fresh. The thing that makes the arts thrive in any city is for artists to constantly create and also for others to create spaces to experience this creative output. My hats off to Peter for creating such a dynamic space in today's downtown and for promoting local artists. We need more of this kind of thing if LA is to continue to be viewed legitimately as one of the pillars of modern art & culture. As Angelenos, we need to support these efforts as well. 

Sir Ken Robinson - an author and recognized leader in the development of creativity, innovation and human resources - starts his keynote speech with a joke:

 

A little girl is drawing a picture and her teacher asks her, "What are you drawing?"

The little girl responds, "A picture of God." The teacher says, "That's ridiculous noone knows what God looks like." The child responds, "They will in a minute."

This marked the beginning of the most fascinating, thought-provoking hour-long speech I've heard in my life. Among Robinson's contentions are that "we get educated out of creativity" and that "creativity needs to be valued in our school system as much as literacy."

For over the past 11 years, he's been the voice of Spaceways Radio on 90.7 KPFK-FM. On Friday nights from 8 to 10pm, Niño is the peaceful sage transmitting love and positive vibrations to devoted listeners across the city. Often times, he's accompanied by special
guests including other DJs, live performers, legendary musicians, and most importantly, his nine-year-old son, Azul. Niño's radio show provides an intimate place where music junkies can get their fix of music spanning across various genres. It's pretty spectacular how, no matter where you are - whether stuck in traffic or lounging at home - Niño's 2 hour set makes you feel like you're HOME. For the past fifteen years, Niño has also been making music in all its aspects (as producer, performer, concept nurturer, etc.) He's made over two dozen albums that have received both critical and underground acclaim and he's played a hand in the making of countless more albums. Niño's mission to make music is a spiritual matter as he describes: "I work with a lot of wonderful musicians and songwriters on a wide variety of soulful projects. For me, it's a cosmic thing. I'm being led by a calling in my heart." Niño has an incredible ear and a reputation for nurturing and driving new and existing talent to new heights. His musical projects are extensive including Build an Ark, Ammoncontact, The Life Force Trio, and many more. In Fall 2008, he'll be releasing a record with long-time collaborator, friend, and multi-instrumentalist, Miguel Atwood-Ferguson titled "Suite for Ma Dukes" (Mochilla). He's also busy working on another new recording project titled "Carlos Nino & Friends: High With a Little Help From My" (Plug Research), which will be released in February 2009.