Thursday, July 29, 2010

Kling for a Cure Leukemia Benefit Festival – September 25, 2010

Last year, I got to be a very small part of a the Klingensmith’s fight with Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia by volunteering at their First Annual Kling for a Cure Leukemia Festival. (Our friend, Jerrad Klingensmith was diagnosed on June 12, 2008 with Chronic Myelogenous Leukimia in blast crisis phase.) I was amazed at this familiy’s strength, dignity and determination to fight this ugly disease! Rather than sit and wait for a miracle to happen, the entire family went into action to raise funds for treatment. After months of hard work, they put on their first Kling for a Cure Leukemia Benefit Festival. I was totally floored by the amount of love, encouragement and support this family received. I believe they raised somewhere in the tune of $15,000+ at the event.
Last year’s artist and vendor line-up was amazing!
Check out the line-up from last year’s benefit on the klingforacure.org website
This year, through the amazing research and dedication from the City of Hope in Duarte, CA. He has a chance at life with a stem cell replacement. This life saving procedure took place July 29, 2009 and he is on the VERY bumpy road to recovery.
The family is conducting a grass roots movement to get items donated for a raffle and silent auction that they will be hosting at the 2nd annual Kling for a cure benefit music festival being held on Septmeber 25th in Upland, CA. at Memorial Park.
If you are interested in donating toward this cause or for more information, please visit their website at:
http://www.klingforacure.org/
Saludos,
Lorena

Monday, July 26, 2010

Celebrating Latin-inspired Artist: Miranda Tanya Calvin


We love unique and Latin-inspired artists. Check out this beautiful piece as part of her Life’s Lemonaid collection.

Become a fan of Miranda's facebook page

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Get Cultured: The OC Fair…more than Carnival Rides and Greasy Food


Yesterday, I had the opportunity to attend the OC Fair and watch my adorable little friend perform at the OC Fair. She is four and was super excited to get to perform her dance routing on stage!
It was great to see that the OC Fair was not just about carnival rides and greasy food! The Art stage provided a place for kids to learn and have fun at the same time. While we were waiting for my friend to perform, we got to see an Armadillo as well as a snake!

The OC Fair is located at OC Fair & Event Center, 88 Fair Drive, Costa Mesa, CA 92626, and will be taking place from now through August 15th.

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Featured Non-Profit: OCCCA’s Phase 3 After Hours SK project


Artist Igor Minárik (pictured on right) is an artist featured on display now at OCCCA Phase 2 After Hours project in Santa Ana.

The Orange County Center for Contemporary Art (OCCCA) needs help raising funds for the Phase 3 After Hours SK project where OCCCA artists to send their work to Slovakia during September of this year as part of an exchange of artwork. The exhibit will be showcased at Galeria Z, bringing a taste of Pacific Rim creativity to our counterparts in a fairy tales in a town known for its ancient beauty and emerging art scene. Funds are needed for shipping and exhibitions costs.

Monday, July 19, 2010

After Hours: Phase 2 Artists from Slovakia at OCCCA


This weekend, I had the opportunity to visit the Orange County Center of Contemporary Art (OCCCA) in Santa Ana for the After Hours: Phase 2 Artists from Slovakia exhibit with my good friend who was born in Slovakia. I really enjoyed getting to experience a little piece of her culture with her. We had a fantastic time looking at all of the pieces on display and talking with the artist/volunteer managing the exhibit. The artist was so excited that my friend was from Slovakia, she decided to bring out the Slovakian and American flags so she could send a picture back home to her parents under the “Welcome Slovakia Banner” featured at the museum’s entrance!

One of my favorite artists on display was Igor Minárik. His work was so detailed and intricate that I could have spent hours just taking it all in. I loved all of the color, patterns and textures he used to create his one-of-kind masterpieces. Find out more by logging onto OCCCA’s website

I recommend stopping by the exhibit if you get a chance. The exhibit will be on display through July 29th. The OCCCA is located at 117 N. Sycamore Street in Santa Ana.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Palomaya T-Shirt Design Contest

Palomaya launches "Freedom, Strength and Love" T-shirt Design Contest, check out the Press Release

Facebook Store!

The new Palomaya retail storefront is up and running on Facebook. Look under the "Shop Now" tab and all new Facebook orders get a 10% discount.

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Featured Non-Profit: Latina Fashionista®

Their Mission: Latina Fashionista, a project of Community Partners, is a nonprofit organization committed to the advancement of Latinas in the apparel industry by sharing information about education and leadership.

Check out this inspiring young Latina Fashionista® Success Story:



Find out more about this non-profit organization at: http://www.latfas.org/

Sunday, July 11, 2010

Latina’s with A Passion for Fashion and Helping Others

On Friday, I had the opportunity to meet with some of the Fashion industry’s brightest ladies over a fabulous dinner at Rush St. in Culver City. We each shared our personal stories and talked about our common purpose: Latina’s with a passion for fashion and helping others.

I left that meeting inspired and ready to conquer the world! Imagine a world where 23 million Latinas can join together as a singular force, to love and help one another and make a difference. As my colleague, Ana Lydia Ochoa from Padma Media and Marketing pointed out, “Watch out world here we come!” Stay tuned for exciting news in the weeks to come!

Friday, July 9, 2010

Celebrating Frida Kahlo


“I paint my own reality. The only thing I know is that I paint because I need to, and I paint whatever passes through my head without any other consideration.”
~ Frida Kahlo

Celebrating Frida Kahlo’s Legacy
Earlier this week, we celebrated Frida Kahlo’s birthday. She was born on July, 6th 1907. It’s been fifty-five years since Frida’s passing and her legacy continues and she continues to inspire many, especially within the artist community.
As I was remembering Frida this week, I referred back to my favorite Frida book entitled Kahlo by Andrea Kettenman (info. available at www.taschen.com) and smiled as I came across the page that highlighted the fact that in the early 1940’s, she gave back to her community by teaching at a School of Painting and Sculpture under the administration of the Ministry of Public Education were students were taught practical techniques and were sent out into the streets of Mexico to receive their inspiration from Mexican reality. Many of the students came from low incomes so tuition and materials were provided free of charge.
According to her students, “What she taught us, fundamentally, was love of the people, and a taste for popular art.” I love to hear stories about Latina’s giving back.
Watch this video by Artist Amalia Mesa-Bains talks about the reception of Frida Kahlo's work in San Francisco. Enjoy!

This weekend, we encourage you to celebrate Frida Kahlo’s legacy by visiting one of the many museum’s featuring her works of art in your area:

LACMA ~ Los Angeles County Museum of Art
5905 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90036
http://www.lacma.org/programs/awmcoconuts.aspx

SFMOMA ~ San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
151 Third Street (between Mission and Howard)
San Francisco, CA 94103
http://www.sfmoma.org/artwork/15228
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
151 Third Street between Mission + Howard Streets San Francisco, California 94103 USA

We also encourage you to support your local artists and the following organizations that support art education for young Latino community:
http://www.angelsgateart.org/donate.html
http://www.lamoa.net/u-help-details/

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Google celebrates Frida Kahlo's 103rd birthday


This tradition of "Google doodles" to mark holidays, birthdays and other special occasions goes back to 1999.
In order to make Kahlo's birthday a happier one, however, the Google artists seem to have taken some liberties to make the 1940 self-portrait upon which the doodle image appears to be based a tad more festive -- and perhaps to skirt the need for copyright approval.
Instead of the necklace of thorns the artist wears in the painting that most closely resembles the doodle, Google has outfitted her with a necklace made of bone that's seen in another self-portrait. Also understandably absent are the bloody droplets and scratches seen on Kahlo's throat in the thorn-necklace image. And the Google birthday girl sports a rich blue robe, replacing the drab greenish-brown one in the original.

Sunday, July 4, 2010

Happy 4th of July


I used to think that Freedom meant living in a free country where freedom of speech was part of our nation's constitution. Today, I am grateful to live in such a country but I am also grateful that I've had the opportunity to experience personal freedom.
Personal freedom is probably one of the biggest gifts I've received in my life. I used to be imprisoned by my own limiting beliefs, one of which was allowing other people's personal opinions about me define who I was. I constantly did things to get other people's approval and I did so at any cost. I desperately needed validation in order for me to feel good about myself. I had no self-esteem, no self-worth. Fortunately, I reached a point in my life where I had to make a decision to either change or continue living my life according to what I thought other's wanted me to be.
I got myself some help and turned my life around! Today, I am as Free as a bird! or a dove (that is Paloma in Spanish) my inspiration for 'paloma' in Palomaya, not to mention the other great things that a dove represents including love and freedom.
Today, I often feel like the happy and carefree part of my childhood and enjoy the same child-like wonder. I have many dreams and aspirations and will continue to dream BIG!