October is National Arts and Humanities Month, and to celebrate, we want to recognize the 18th Street Arts Center in Santa Monica for its impactful work on communities across California and for collectively raising awareness about the positive impact of the arts and humanities in our state. The archival research of Paul Cornish, a Los Angeles composer and pianist, helps serve as a model for the work these 18 Creative Corps fellows are doing now across California, as part of 18th Street's program.
Recently, Cornish (pictured on the left) captivated an audience with a new musical work that celebrated the vibrant Black community that once thrived in the Virginia Avenue Park area in Santa Monica. "We Were in Santa Monica," composed by Cornish, was presented on July 7, and looked back at the historic ties of the Black community in Santa Monica, exploring the history from the early 1900s to the 1950s along Historic Broadway. "It used to be a thriving Black community," said Michael Ano, Senior Director of Public Engagement with 18th Street Arts Center. "But due to multiple civic changes and gentrification, many of those residents are no longer there."
Through a combination of jazz and recorded audio clips, Cornish, accompanied by supporting musicians as part of a temporary quartet—brought to life a core element of 18th Street's culture mapping work. This type of art requires extensive archival research, and its methodology focuses on uncovering and uplifting the often marginalized and invisible aspects of community treasures.
Cornish, a 2021 Herb Alpert Foundation Make Jazz Fellow artist-in-residence, explored the archives of the Quinn Research Center. “It really got people excited when they heard the audio clips and descriptions of the old neighborhood, combined with the sounds of the guitar, piano, drums, and saxophone," said Ano.
Note: 18th Street Arts Center is a CAC Creative Corps Program Administrative Organization, which is helping to support artists through meaningful art and working with community partners and artists to develop new works and proposals.
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