Artbound and Southland Sessions, two locally produced arts and culture original series by public television station KCET, were granted eight first-place awards by the LA Press Club at the 14th annual National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards. Several of the winning programs featured artwork by CalArts alums and faculty.
The Diversity in the Entertainment Industry, Broadcast Award was granted to “The Watts Towers Arts Center,” the fourth episode of Artbound’s 11th season. Established in the 1960s, the artist-founded center “has been a beacon of art and culture in the community for decades.” Among the artists whose works were featured in the broadcast were 1995 CalArts honorary degree recipient Betye Saar and Chouinard (56) alum Noah Purifoy.
The award for Soft New Feature – Over 5 Minutes went to “Ellen Reid’s Griffith Park Soundscape,” an Artbound segment highlighting Pulitzer Prize-winning composer and CalArtian Ellen Reid’s (Music MFA 11) GPS-enabled audio tour SOUNDWALK. Encompassing more than 20 miles of Los Angeles trails, Reid’s work was designed to take the listener through Griffith Park, with a particular focus on the Griffith Observatory and the Hollywood sign.
“‘In Plain Sight’: 80 Artists Take Over the Skies in Support of Immigrant Rights,” an episode of KCET’s Southland Sessions series, won the award for Other Fine Arts Feature. On Independence Day weekend in 2020, a coalition of 80 artists sent a fleet of skytypers over detention facilities, immigration courts, borders, and other historically significant sites to send messages protesting against immigrant detention. Among the artists involved in the coalition were CalArtians Cassils (Art-IM MFA 02), Beatriz Cortez (Art MFA 15), Raven Chacon (Music MFA 04), Edgar Arceneaux (Art MFA 01), School of Art faculty Harry Gamboa Jr., Arshia Fatima Haq (Art MFA 05), Gala Porras-Kim (Art MFA 09), Robert Russell (Art MFA 06), and Zackary Drucker (Art MFA 07).
The honors recognized the “KCET team” collectively, which includes CalArts alum Juan Devis (Film/Video MFA 96), the station’s chief creative officer.
As digital content and social media producer, Taya enjoys lifting up the stories and accomplishments of CalArts' students, alums, and faculty. She fancies herself a visual artist but is really more of an overzealous collector of art supplies.
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