18-year-old Transforms the Landscape into Basic Forms

When Julie Kellman looks out the window of her father’s Cessna skimming above urban freeways or rural byways, she fixes on pattern and texture over transport and utility. Like Matisse, the photographer Kellman transforms the material world into geometry. ‘My photos are not so much different in subject, but different in quality of line,’ says Kellman, who this year kept advancing higher and higher in the youngARTS competition, recognized by a panel of professional photographers. youngARTS is the core program of the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts (NFAA). Selected in January, along with 140 high school seniors from a pool of 6,000, who originally registered for the contest, Kellman spent a week in Miami, where she was able to work with professional photographers and add to her portfolio. Two months after returning home, the Pacific Palisades resident learned that she had been chosen a Silver Award winner, which carried a $5,000 prize and an exhibition at the Baryshnikov Arts Center in New York City Her talent was further recognized when she was named a Presidential Scholar and spent a week in Washington, D.C. in June.   Twenty students from across the nation are chosen annually to receive this designation, from the fields of cinematic arts, dance, music, photography, theater, visual arts, voice and writing. During those five days in the Capitol, Kellman participated in seminars, visited government officials and elected representatives and attended cultural events’all of it culminating in a White House-sponsored event at which she was awarded the Presidential Medallion by Vice President Joe Biden. Kellman, 18, was encouraged to enter the youngArts contest by her Marlborough photography teacher, Judith Tanzman. ‘She has confidence in students,’ Kellman says. ‘From the point you get your grounding, she says, ‘Apply to contests.” The school also provided support by paying the contest fees, covering one piece for underclassmen and a whole portfolio for seniors. Kellman presented a suite of aerial shots, taken with her Nikon D40X (which she bought with the money she made working two summers at Bentons Sports Shop on Swarthmore). Her initial inspiration to focus on the landscape as seen from the air was a result of flying across the country in her father’s Cessna, stopping along the way to visit colleges. ‘Dad was really great taking back up in the air to photograph both urban and rural landscapes up and down the California coast. Kellman’s work reveals not only the encroaching built landscape, but also emphasizes the graphic qualities. Roads become ellipses, fields seem like perfect rhomboids and neighborhoods match up in chevron shapes. For the first round of the NAFA contest, Kellman sent digital images, but as the field narrowed, judges wanted to see printed work, not exceeding 18 x 24 inches. Kellman’s portfolio makes an impressive statement at 13 x 19 inches. The oldest of three girls, Kellman traces her fascination with cameras to the simple, spontaneous disposable. ‘I used to sit on the bus to Marlborough staring out the window and watching the day to day activity, finding pattern in the mundane.’ She deepened her interest with classes at Marlborough, UCLA’s Design Media Arts Summer Institute and one particularly challenging six-week program at Cal State L.A. summer school for the arts. ‘The course was taught by graduates of the program. My teacher, Mr. Ayers, had us work on self-portraits and then a small series.’ She built her NAFA portfolio in the Marlborough AP photo class’her last at the school, which dictated 10 pieces in breadth’a non-associated subject, and 10 in her concentration, which entailed creating an idea and slowly evolving it over time. Unlike many photographers, Kellman began with digital imaging, visual design and Web-based work, and then got into darkroom and traditional photography. Glad for the traditional approach at Marlborough, Kellman appreciates still photography and has her favorites. ‘I like the way Richard Avedon set up pictures and portraits,’ she says. On the other hand, she likes the spontaneity in Henri Cartier-Bresson’s work. ‘He started the idea of ‘in-the-moment photography.’ In an oblique way, Kellman believes that her parents’ work has influenced her. ‘Dad [Phil Kellman] works with perception as a professor of cognitive psychology at UCLA. He wrote a book on infant perception ‘Cradle of Knowledge,’ (The MIT Press). My mom [Pam Hilpert] is a doctor who specializes in women’s health and radiology. It dawned on me how images are in my family’s life.’ Kellman looks upon this year of her various honors with openness, and perhaps a bit of incredulity, beginning with her first notification. ‘Two days before Thanksgiving I got a phone call informing me that I had been selected for the youngArts week in Miami,’ she recalls. ‘I thought it was a telephone solicitation.’ A major component of the whole experience in Miami, New York and Washington, D. C. was the friendships that bloomed among the other contestants she met along the way. In Miami, we photographers got a different experience from the other artists, who spent the week working in art studios,’ she says. ‘Because you can’t stay in one place for long, we got to go on incredible shooting outings.’ They went through Little Havana, enjoyed caf’ con leche and got a good idea of the local scene. In a sharp contract, they also walked around the tourist mecca South Beach, where they learned a little bit more about the development of the Miami gold coast. ‘The time there with our teachers, who also were judging our work, was great for us because we came together as a group and got to know each other’s work,’ Kellman says of the five photography winners. ‘Rodney was the only guy, and he was already in college at the Pratt Institute. He does more with messages. HIV/A.I.D.s drives a lot of his work. Annie was from Mississippi. She had taken a lot of photos of abandoned buildings and has also followed a circus. Jill was from Yuma, Arizona and wasn’t driven to things other than photography. She wasn’t a scholar, had a 1.3 grade point average, but it showed me that there are a lot of different mindsets about academics. Rachel was from New York and focused on city life. Annie, Jill, Rachel and Julie were chosen as Silver Award winners and went on to New York. Kellman stays in contact with her NAFA friends through a strong Facebook group. She has also been recommended to be an advisor to the 2010 winners next year, which is something she’d like to do. Looking towards her freshman year at Washington University in St. Louis, she displays all the enthusiasm and appetite for many interests, including philosophy and computer science. With that in mind, she enrolled in the college of art and sciences, over fine arts, but no doubt will be recording it all.

  Dr. Mark and Mrs. Marie Stafford of Pacific Palisades are pleased to announce the marriage of their daughter, Natalie, to Scott Tenzer, son of Bert and Regina Tenzer of Malibu. The bride-to-be earned her bachelor of arts degree in psychology from Loyola Marymount. She is a graduate of Cal State Northridge, where she received a master of arts degree in early childhood special education. She is currently employed as a program supervisor for Inclusive Education and Community Partnership and is pursuing her board certification in behavior analysis. The groom-to-be is a production manager for the business news television program, ‘Heartbeat of America.’ He is also pursuing a music career in film composition. The couple, who will marry on July 31 at the Bel-Air Bay Club, are looking forward to a honeymoon in Tahiti.

Tracey Hiete, daughter of Mary and Kurt Hiete of Pacific Palisades, married Jimmy Smith, son of Margaret and the late Frank Smith of Cootamundra, Australia, on Saturday, June 13. The wedding ceremony took place at the Turtle Bay Resort on Oahu, Hawaii. A dinner/dance reception was held in the Sunset Room, overlooking Turtle Bay. The bride’s sisters, Tiffany Fedorczyk and Terri Linville, were matrons of honor. Sister-in-law Jen Hiete was a bridesmaid. The best man was longtime friend Tim Russell. The groomsmen were Justin Dooley, Wayne Geber and Paul Limbrey. After graduating from the University of Australia, Jimmy played professional rugby for seven years. Currently, he works as a sports announcer on radio and TV for the Australian national rugby team. Tracey is a graduate of Corpus Christi, Marymount High School, and Duke University, which she attended on a tennis scholarship. After playing professional tennis for several years, she moved to Australia. She is currently selling Trimble software. The newlyweds honeymooned in Hawaii and now reside in Sydney.

By MICHAEL AUSHENKER Staff Writer For Palisadians driving down to Comic-Con International next week, the pop culture extravaganza, which showcases the latest in movies, television, video games, and, oh, yeah, comics, returns to the San Diego Convention Center July 22”July 26. One cartoonist you’ll be hearing a lot about this year will be Stan Sakai. Sakai has been attending for 30 years, but this convention will be particularly memorable, as Comic-Con”in the midst of celebrating its own 40th anniversary”will honor 25 years of Sakai’s comic-book series ‘Usagi Yojimbo.’ Currently reaching issue #123, ‘Usagi Yojimbo’ tells the tale of the titular samurai bunny; a genial book featuring an adventure-seeking warrior in the middle of 17th century Japan. Such characters as the lovely Mariko, mentor Katsuichi, Gen the Bounty Hunter, Shingen the Neko Ninja, Stray Dog, the wizard Kitsune, and Spot the Wonder Lizard have joined the ‘ronin rabbit’ on his journey. ‘The politics and the culture of Japan had changed at that time,’ Sakai explains regarding his interest in this era of the country’s history. ‘Foreign traders coming in, Samurai culture. It was very exciting, very turbulent. Not politically, as the shogun had unified the country, but sociologically very turbulent.’ Over the decades, ‘Usagi’ has been distributed by four different publishers, but the product has always been Sakai’s vision. ‘I own the characters,’ he says. ‘My publisher has no input. It’s pretty rare in comic books to have that autonomy.’ Sakai sets the tone of his book, which is for general audiences. ‘Basically, I write for myself,’ Sakai says. ‘These are the stories that I would like to read. It’s more instinctual there are certain. The violence is toned down and it’s never gratuitous.’ Since the mid-1990s, ‘Usagi Yojimbo’ has been published by Dark Horse Comics, best known for such Hollywood-adapted comics as ‘The Mask’ and ‘Hellboy.’ Over that time, ‘Usagi’ has shared some history and storyline crossovers with another anthropomorphic-hero series, ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,’ both in comic book and animated cartoon form (Comic-Con will also honor the Ninja Turtles’ 25th anniversary next week). In 1991, Sakai fast-forwarded his characters for ‘Space Usagi,’ a futuristic spin-off. The Oregon-based Dark Horse will be going all out to celebrate ‘Usagi”’s 25th this year. In addition to the regular series from Dark Horse Comics, this summer will see a new trade paperback collection, ‘Bridge of Tears’ (collecting issues #94 through 102 of Sakai’s series); and a self-contained, fully painted, 64-page graphic novel in November, ‘Yokai.’ ‘Yokai are the demons, ghosts and goblins from Japanese culture,’ Sakai says. ‘My editor, Diana Schutz, suggested for the 25th anniversary let’s do something special. I told her I’d need three months, she gave me 2 and a half months, finished it in less than that.’ In addition to Dark Horse’s plans, former publisher Fantagraphics will collect all of its early ‘Usagi’ comics”seven trade paperbacks’ worth””in a massive 1200-page, two-volume slipcase special edition. ‘Usagi’ is not the only comics Sakai works on. For 25 years, Sakai has moonlighted as the letterer on MAD magazine cartoonist Sergio Aragon’s’ long-running hit comic-book series, ‘Groo the Wanderer.’ For about as long, Sakai has lettered Sunday editions of ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’ syndicated newspaper strip. ‘I do it mainly because I get to work with [‘Spider-Man’ co-creator and writer] Stan Lee,’ Sakai says. Sakai has many fond memories of attending Comic-Con: ‘I remember Jack Kirby’s 70th birthday party at the basement at the Hotel San Diego, which is no longer there. And when the convention was held at the El Cortez Hotel, Sergio singing at the top of his lungs, probably ‘Lady of Spain.” Sakai emphasizes that he does not feel confined by ‘Usagi”s period-piece backdrop. ‘I can do whatever type of story I want to: mystery, romance, horror, humor,’ Sakai says. ‘I can do any type of genre I want. And this is without the interference of a publisher.’ The recently wrapped ‘Traitors of the Earth’ story arc incorporated a Western concept, zombies, in the form of a resurrected defeated samurai army. And his process has not changed much over the years. ‘With the major story arcs, I know what will happen months from now,’ he says. ‘But figuring out what happens next month, that’s the hard part.’ He relishes the research process, which can mean trips to the Pacific Asia Museum in Pasadena, or the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachussetts, ‘which has a wonderful Japanese wing. ‘The research comes from necessity,’ he continues. ‘I use it as part of the story.’ His upcoming story ‘Shoyu’ will feature how soy sauce was made in the 17th century. Published in 12 countries, ‘Usagi’ has won every major industry award, including the Inkpot, three Will Eisner Awards, a Harvey Award, and two Spanish Haxtur Awards. Sakai is nominated for yet another Eisner this year in the Best Continuing Series category. The series was also honored in 2003 by the National Cartoonist Society. This winter, Sakai and Aragon’s will be guests of a convention in Finland, and Sakai will continue to Japan, where he was born but has only visited once as an adult. Born in Kyoto, Sakai grew up in Hawaii, where he received his fine arts degree at the University of Hawaii. In 1977, his continuing study led him to Art Center College of Design, located in Pasadena, where he now calls home with wife Sharon and their children, Hannah, 18, and Matthew, 17. Sakai adds that Hannah, an artist and manga enthusiast, will attend her 19th Comic-Con this year. A photo was taken of Lee with Hannah at her first convention, age six months. ‘Next time I went to Stan’s office,’ Sakai recalls. ‘The photo of Hannah and Stan was right there next to Stan and President Reagan.’ [DROPCAP] Comic-Con’s 40th year will prove a landmark one for Japanese culture in comics and cartoons. In addition to Sakai’s honor (and, arguably indirectly, the Ninja Turtles), revered animator Hayao Miyazaki (the creator behind feature animated films ‘Princess Mononoke’ and the Academy Award-winning ‘Spirited Away’) will make his first Comic-Con appearance. Fueled on the samurai movies and Kurosawa films he used to watch growing up, Sakai began sketching his Usagi character (loosely based on the ronin Miyamoto Musabia, a warrior, philosopher, poet and painter who lived in the 17th century) as far back as 1982. After the character debuted in an anthology comic in 1984, Sakai decided to make a series of it. The anthropomorphic ‘Cerebus,’ one of the most successful independently published comic books of all time, made waves at the time. Sakai decided to make his entire cast of characters animals: ‘I drew a rabbit with is ears up and I just loved his design.’ ‘Usagi’s design has changed a lot,’ Sakai says. ‘He’s taller, has a bump on nose, he’s not as cute and cuddly. I think the stories have become more sophisticated. I’ve matured as a storyteller.’ ‘I usually do short stories, which lead up to long story arc, and back to short stories again,’ Sakai says. ‘Older readers prefer the longer arcs. But short stories are a good place for new readers to jump on board.’ ‘Everything is done by hand, even the lettering,’ Sakai says. ‘I love the feel of the Bristol board and I love having the original art. There seems to be more of the personality of the creator in there.’ Sakai befriended MAD legend Aragones early in his relocation to California simply by finding him in the phone book. But ‘Usagi’ is a solitary creation. Sakai does not tend to share his ideas or pages with his fellow cartoonists beforehand. He recalls with some mirth of a lesson learned the hard way some years back. ‘I showed Sergio my artwork for my kite story. He took it over to a corner and looked at it, came back and said, ‘Oh it’s a good story!” After the issue came out, people told me, ‘I liked how the way you drew Groo.’ Sergio had secretly drawn his character into a crowd scene on one of my pages. And I didn’t know until after it was published!’ Sakai will be stationed at table # 4906 in the Dealer’s Room at Comic-Con International. He will also sign books at the Dark Horse table, where a 25th anniversary ‘Usagi’ poster will be distributed. Sakai will also appear on the following panels: ‘Groo the Wanderer,’ Thursday, July 23?2:30-3:30 p.m., Room 8; ‘Graphic Novels Sense of History,’ Saturday, July 25, 5:00-6:00 p.m., Room 8; and ‘Stan Sakai: 25th Anniversary of Usagi Yojimbo,’ Sunday, July 26, 1:30-2:30 p.m., Room 8.

Author Harry Medved, best known as the co-author, with older brother Michael Medved, of the ‘Golden Turkey Awards: The Worst Achievement in Hollywood History’ books, will discuss film locations in the Santa Monica Mountains when the Chautauqua Series continues on Tuesday, July 21, 7:30 p.m., in Temescal Gateway Park, 15601 Sunset Blvd.   The event, which will include a short video presentation of movie clips, is sponsored by the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy and presented by the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority. ‘I’m going to talk about how you can use movies as a tool to help plan your mini-getaway in Santa Ynez Canyon,’ says Medved, who is director of public relations at Fandango.com. The Palisades High alum notes that since Thomas Ince shot silent movies (from 1911 to 1919), various films have been shot in Santa Ynez Canyon, which today encompasses Palisades Drive and the Highlands. ‘The Post Telegrapher,’ which Ince shot with Francis Ford and was released in May 1912, is one of the movies shot in the Canyon.   The neighboring Santa Monica Mountains have doubled for Africa (Paramount Ranch in the first 3-D movie, ‘B’wana Devil’), Korea and Wales (Malibu Creek State Park in ‘M*A*S*H,’ and ‘How Green Was My Valley,’ respectively). Shooting in the Santa Monica Mountains reached a fever pitch in the 1960s and 1970s, before private land held by Paramount and 20th Century Fox was sold. Still, filming in the mountains persists, as attested by a ‘True Blood’ shoot in recent weeks, across from Malibu Creek. Medved adds that, to his knowledge, the only movie shot in Temescal Gateway Park has been ‘The Number 23’ starring Jim Carrey (2007). One of the features Medved brought to Fandango’s Web site is its ‘Summer Movie Guide’ section, where people can plan visits to locations used in the filming of such motion pictures as ‘Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen’ (San Pedro), ‘Land of the Lost’ (Trona Pinnacles) and the upcoming ‘Iron Man 2’ (Sepulveda Dam). Following the lecture, Medved will sign copies of the book he co-authored with his PaliHi pal, Bruce Akiyama, ‘Hollywood Escapes: The Moviegoer’s Guide Exploring Southern California’s Great Outdoors.’ The Chautauqua Series meets the third Tuesday of every month at 7:30 p.m. Meet at the Rubell Memorial Lawn. (Please note: Culture in the Canyon will move its programs to this location for July and August.) Free admission and parking. Open to the public. Coffee will be provided.