True Art Heist , North Collinwood revisited

Walking by the True Art Gallery in Cleveland's north Collinwood neighborhood this past Saturday evening , I was touched by the tiny child's bicycle locked onto an equally miniature tree in front of the now closed gallery space. The bike's bright purple color with the orange plastic chain that holding it in place served testimony to so much of what is wrong with the sad priorities that occur in the contemporary urban scheme of events today. The Cuyahoga County government sponsored and passed legislation under the aegis of " Arts and cultural initiative". What does it take for some of these funds to find there way to the street level , and help a marginal neighborhood like North Collinwood , retain the sweat equity that Ms. Deveney of True Art Gallery , has placed into the space with help of her partner in the past two years? As stated in the first post here discussing True Art gallery , had suffered an earlier break in in September 2007 . And that not being bad enough , to have to suffer the indignity of a second break in , this one at the hands of a Collinwood neighbor , who was apprehended in a police sting while selling the stolen paintings a few blocks from True Art Galleries boarded up storefront. Insult added to injury. And yes , not all of the paintings that were heisted from the gallery have been recovered as of yet.Those stolen painting that sold were at deep discounted street prices of a fraction of the arts sticker prices , it is not very likely that this stolen art will find it's way back to the members who exhibited at True Art , and became victims along with Ms. Deveney and her partner . Ms. Deveney in her true blue large hearted fashion is working on a benefit for the artists whose paintings were stolen and not recovered. The real victims here are the North Collinwood community which looses one of the start up business's that made an aesthetic difference to those who visited the area. Across East 156Th Street from True Art is the other new start up business Cafe Marika , another sweat equity project attempting to get a leg up in a marginal neighborhood, that has suffered more than it's share of street crime and bad luck recently . Cafe Marika has the old world charm of a cafe in Budapest or Prague , and the pastries , foodstuffs and strong coffee or drink to go along with it. It is the potential success of these start ups that will determine the future of the Waterloo business district and North Collinwood. Down the block from cafe Marika, and True Art exists the Waterloo areas anchor business , The world renowned Beachland Ballroom , ready to celebrate it's eighth year in another six weeks. A record store , Music Saves , and hipster retail shop Shoperooni are the other neighborhood attractions to date. I just can't get the picture out of my mind of the boarded up windows at True Art gallery , and the tiny child's bicycle tied up in front of the empty True Art storefront. Most of us remember our initial " art " attempts from our childhoods , and having had fun from our creative efforts , either set down the paints and brushes , or ran with them for the remainder of our days. In a small city like Cleveland , Ohio today , it appears that many young adults consider themselves " fine artists" , and let you know about their artworks in a variety of mannerisms that need no further explanation. Just have a walk or drive about the Tremont or Little Italy neighborhoods , and get a taste of this " art " flavor. North Collinwood , and Waterloo Road was looking for this sort of flavor with regards to True Art gallery. Shame that they did not have a better chance at success. Though I would imagine that if local Collinwood children were given the opportunity to just be kids working at their " art " projects after school , that a now empty storefront such as True Art would have great value as a community asset in serving as deterrent to the crime oriented streets that surround it. All those millions of dollars collected by Cuyahoga County for it's " Arts and Cultural initiative", do not appear to have found there way to the street level were they may do some real good in struggling communities such as North Collinwood , and it's culture of poverty and crime that victimize our children. Write to your County Commissioners and ask them how we can send our neighborhoods and children an arts lifeline? Book Selling Time! It is not nice to mix politics with anything as far as I am concerned , and when politics and art mix it is never very pleasant. We offer today a copy of Ralph Shikes , THE INDIGNANT EYE , The artist as social critic from the fifteenth century to Picasso. I only wish that more scrutiny was placed upon the dispersal of tax generated funds that's aim are to support an " arts and cultural initiative". Many artists goals throughout history have been aimed at skewering politicians at the end of their ink pens , and for damn good reasons. Art and politics do mix , and it is the artist who justly lampoons or kicks the politicos into the muck they crawl about in that get my vote any day of the week. Thomas Nast comes to mind as the nineteenth century American artist whose work best represents this form of satire that portrays the politicians in their most authentic form. Who is your favorite? Send along yours and we will print them here at a later date.

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True Art Heist, Have a heart!

" We wuz robbed" , goes the fan's old saw concerning an umpire's errant call in baseball. So wuz the True Art Gallery on East 156th Street near the intersection of Waterloo Road in the North Collinwood neighborhood of Cleveland , Ohio. Robbed of what you might ask ? Sure enough , the computer , and telephones , and the galleries stereo system . Though wait a cotton pickin' minute. The thieves also disassembled an entire art show that was hanging on TrueArt's gallery walls.The paintings , their price tags and printed descriptions. All gone. If I did not know one of the galleries owner's Joanie Deveney well I would expect an inside job or some form of absurd dada art prank. As difficult as book's have become to sell in this modern world , the original works of art , such as the one's stolen from TrueArt make selling books seem a walk in the park in comparison to selling a new artists works. Ms. Deveney has a great heart and spirit , is a fine Mother , and creative artist in her own respect , which makes this all the more of a dilemma for her, having no insurance to cover this theft..... Our Cuyahoga County Government has made it their business to establish via an earlier sin , [ cigarette ] tax to provide funds for a County wide arts and cultural initiative. It appears that most of the initial taxes collected from this arts oriented sin tax have been forked over to " major arts organizations with multi - million dollar budgets" , who would have imagined that combining politics and the arts would have gilded the already fat lilies of those that have in the arts ? Be this as it may , it would sure be a pleasure to see some of this " arts and cultural initiative money" , come to the aid of TrueArt , or any other nascent art gallery , community arts center , or any street level art or cultural organization willing to stick their necks out for the good of a community and it's citizens. I suppose that while we are at it the near west side book store Six Steps Down , just six storefronts north of the West Side Market could qualify for some of these " arts funds". Six Steps Down is a non profit , and it's principal worker Michael O' Brien , has served twin occupations as social worker for west 25Th streets needier cases as well as it's only retail book store. Ms. Deveney and her partner James Tomko of True Art Gallery are tacitly a for profit enterprise , though the North Collinwood neighborhood they exist within has more than it's share of crime and negative street activity on a regular basis than it's councilman Michael Polensek would have you believe. In an article by da p.d.'s Karen Sandstrom from Septemeber 29 , 2007 entitled " Can Waterloo Road be Cleveland's next Tremont?" , Polensek is quoted referring to the perceived nature of crime in the Waterloo neighborhood , " The neighborhood is one of Cleveland's safest , but it's still an urban neighborhood." Polensek made that bold statement when True Art Gallery had been broken into the first time in mid - September 2007 , a few days prior to Ms. Sandstrom's article. Barely four months have passed and another break in occurs at the same said gallery , this time with more dire consequences than the first heist which resulted in the theft of power tools. Councilman Polensek might brag on North Collinwood being one of Cleveland's safest neighborhoods , though in the context of Cleveland being one of the top ten least safe major cities in America on a perennial basis , he ain't saying that much! As for the thief or thieves that stole the artworks. Good luck in fencing these works of art! You thieves would have been better off stealing bags of frozen catfish or authentic logs of processed cheese from the local big box store instead. At least you could have been eatin' for your cheatin'.... Time has arrived for us small fry citizens who do care about the efforts of the true human spirits that make it their business to open and operate art galleries such as True Art , or book stores such as The Book Store on West Twenty Fifth Street to speak out to the political types who hold the purse strings for public funds ostensibly used to fund the " arts". Write a letter to your County Commissioners with your suggestions. I make my suggestion that True Art Gallery and The Bookstore on West 25Th Street be assigned some of these arts funds on a basis to allow them to continue to operate as storefronts in a city whose storefronts are as often as not empty and lacking any activity.Cultural assets they are. Assign some of these " arts funds " , as well to the children of Cleveland , Ohio and it's suburbs as an after school diversion program featuring arts activities as an alternative to drugs, crime, and the streets that currently encourage those activities. Perhaps a benefit of sorts to help out the True Art gallery cause would be in keeping with this enlightened " arts" spirit. We will be happy to donate books for a benefit if it comes to pass. In the meantime give with your heart to the owner's of True Art . Ms. Deveney surely would not ask , so I will on her behalf. Perhaps the other art galleries doing business in Cleveland currently would help one of their own by organizing donations for a benefit auction to help the plight of True Art and their plight. Most artists that enter into the gallery business lead with their hearts not their business acumen. Time has come for the Cleveland arts community to aid one of their own who is hurting and in need. Book Selling Time! A large volume we offer today by Huntington Cairns , entitled THE LIMITS OF ART. one thousand four hundred seventy three pages of prose and poetry , compiled by Cairns for the acclaimed Bollingen series of books published by Princeton University Press. Setting all that aside , this thick tome covers the gamut of verse from classical to modern times , and would serve as great companion if stranded on a desert island , or stuck in the likes of a fallen city such as Cleveland , Ohio today.

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