this month's
CONTRIBUTORS
ALLEN Allen is a freelance writer in
PIERLEONI Sacramento. He worked for The Sac-
"Rail Warriors" ramento Bee as a writer and editor
pg. 30
viduals — all working together to shape our city. We’ve already
seen what can happen when creative and community-centric
voices come together. One example is the concert series pro-
duced by SOFAR Sounds Sacramento, the local offshoot of a
London-based startup that invites music lovers to unusual
spaces — like Phono Select Records in south Sacramento or
Shift Coffee on Del Paso Boulevard. The simple idea that a
musical experience can and should happen anywhere and
everywhere builds on the best models related to inclusivity, ac-
cess and empowerment.
Commitment: Sacramento could become a phenomenal
art and cultural mecca in a way that promotes cultural eq-
uity and a creative economy. A survey of 1,709 Sacramentans
in 2018 led to the Creative Edge: Sacramento’s Arts, Culture
and Creative Economy Plan and affirmed 77 percent of resi-
dents believe it’s important to celebrate and recognize diverse
communities and that the arts are a key mechanism to do so.
Creative Edge details six goals and a host of action steps, but
it’s essentially a toothless tiger without a financial investment
from the City of Sacramento, which could inspire investments
from other sources. We need to offer pathways for cultural ac-
tivities that provide a vital economy for performers, musicians,
writers, artists, designers, art galleries, historical sites, muse-
ums, broadcasters, filmmakers, instrument technicians and so
much more.
As I was reminded during that healing circle, when change
needs to happen, and a path forward feels unclear and uncer-
tain, the arts are a good place to begin. But it takes all of us
coming together and being willing to do things differently to
truly make a change.
Stacey Shelnut-Hendrick is director of education at the Crocker Art
Museum, a department that serves more than 60,000 people annu-
ally through programs like Art Ark, a museum on wheels; programs for
babies and toddlers; studio art classes; and Block by Block. Stacey was
named 2017 Museum Educator of the Year by the National Art Educa-
tion Association.
in the features department for 30
years. “In researching Amtrak and
the 150th anniversary of the Trans-
continental Railroad, I was reminded
that Sacramento was shaped by the
railroad,” he says of his feature story
in this month’s issue of Comstock’s.
“At one time, we were the trans-
portation hub of the West. That still
resonates today.”
JESSICA LASKEY Jessica is a freelance writer and
“Outside's In” professional actress based in Sac-
pg. 36
ramento. “I loved tackling such a
broad topic,” she says of writing
about outsider art in this issue. “Be-
cause outsider art can encompass
so many styles, the research alone
was eye-opening, not to mention the
conversations with so many knowl-
edgeable people from the local art
scene.” Jessica’s work can also be
seen in Inside publications, Sacra-
mento Magazine, Sactown Magazine
and The Sacramento Bee. She is the
founding copublisher of Indomita
Press, an independent local pub-
lishing company she runs with her
husband. Find out more at jessica-
laskey.com.
TERENCE DUFFY Terence graduated with a BFA in
"After the Fire" photography from the Academy of
pg. 62
Art University in San Francisco and
has been shooting magazine and ad
work for the past 15 years. Terence
spent about two weeks in Paradise
to photograph images for the proj-
ect “Beauty From the Ashes,” some
of which are featured in this issue.
“My father asked me what was it like
up there, and I said, ‘If I was to put
it into a collection of words, it would
be horrifyingly beautiful.’ Because
it’s horrifying, but it’s also got its
own beauty. There is a beauty to the
decay of something in its own right.”
To see more of his work, visit www.
terenceduffy.com.
May
May
2019
2019
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