Over our first season, we published hundreds of articles, produced twenty-two short documentaries, and aired three hour-long television episodes. We traversed the cultural landscapes sprawling across our state from the metropolises to the towns, between the coast and the desert, across the border, and into the mountains. On New Year's Day, we will be airing a three-hour Artbound Marathon which will feature all of our episodes mashed up into one explosion of Southern California arts and culture. But for the next few days, we will be reliving some of the most read articles by our contributors, breaking down the most popular articles by county and discipline. We hope you enjoy catching up on all the artistic discussions and activities that make California the creative capital of the world!
Hell's Union: Motorcycle Club Cuts as American Folk Art
A new exhibition at UCR ARTSblock features defunct motorcycle club vests and their colorful club patches that represent a unique form of American folk art embodying the freedom and nonconformity symbolized by bikers.
Images of The Salton Sea: California's Lost Riviera in Three Cinematic Adventures
Several recent cinematic works reveal an astonishing depth of riches in the stories of the people whose lives are staked out along the Salton Sea.
From Beefcake to Skatecake: Masculinity in the Swimming Pool
From beefcakes in bikini bottoms to skater bros flipping tricks in empty pools, various depictions of masculinity are manifest in photographs of backyard bodies of water from mid-twentieth century through the late 1970s.
An Inland Empire Afterlife: Immortality, Cryonics, and a Giant Marilyn Monroe
Is death the end of life or a gateway to a hereafter? Tyler Stallings examines immortality in the Inland Empire.
Mr. Nolan Builds His Dream House: Palm Springs' Cary Grant House, The Backstory
The Palm Springs and L.A. homes of past celebrities reflect personal histories more interesting than those that derive from subsequent tenancies by members of the glitterati.
Weekly Video Vote Winners from Riverside County
With your help, our editorial team reviewed and rated the most compelling weekly articles. One of these articles was passed along to our video production unit, who produced a short-format documentary based on the selected story. Every week, a new video debuted online. And every other month, we compiled the best online material to create a broadcast television episode. Check out all the 2012 head-to-head matches on our vote page.
- Tio's Tacos: Riverside's Folk Art Wonderland
- Future Perfect: The Midcentury Modern Paintings of Danny Heller
- Date Farmers: Desert Detritus Becomes Chicano Pop Art
- Steel Modern: A History of Steel Houses in Palm Springs
Dig this story? Vote by hitting the Facebook like button above and tweet it out, and it could be turned into a short video documentary. Also, follow Artbound on Facebook and Twitter.
Top Image: A view of Riverside County from Mt. Rubidoux. | Photo: Thomas Bougher/Flickr/Creative Commons License
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Architecture/ Design
California becomes an international export by redefining the concept of city and home.
Community Arts
Through workshops, education and placed based projects, art is the connective tissue of a community.
Cultural Politics
Funding bubbles, cultural deserts and the politics of access to the arts in the 21st century.
Film & Media Arts
At the shadow of the entertainment industry, video artists and underground filmmakers take a stand.
Literature
Noir, sunshine and dystopia create a multi-ethnic narrative that is read, watched and admired around the globe.
Multi-Disciplinary
Multi-hyphenate works that combine disciplines, remix dogmas, and reinvent the wheel.
Music
A dialogue between cultures, the music of our state serves up the California dream like no other artform.
Visual Arts
Breaking away from the European and New York vanguard, California reinvents the art world.
