SAN JOSE, California (July 8, 2015)— Inspired by the galactic images of Diana Thater’s “Beta Space” installation, the San Jose Museum of Art’s next ArtRage will take on a science fiction theme. ArtRage: Sci Fi, on Thursday, July 16, from 7 to 10 PM will feature live music by Jean Baudin, interactive space games courtesy of the ggSJ (good games San Jose) and South Bay Button Mashers, an LED art-making activity, and more. Attendees are encouraged to come in costume or space-inspired attire to show off at the photo booth. A specialty cocktail, as well as beer and wine, will be available for purchase, and Café Too will be open for food and soft drinks. Tickets are $5 (2-for-1 for members) and are available online at sjmusart.org/event/artrage-sci-fi.
Jean Baudin, known for his unique, melodic compositions and versatile technique, is one of the world's most celebrated extended-range bass players. Baudin has recorded and performed across the United States, Europe, and Japan. His solo bass videos on YouTube have garnered more than 20 million views. Baudin plays an eleven-string bass, with a six-octave range including three strings lower and four strings higher than a normal bass. He uses a two-handed tapping style that showcases the instrument's full range of low, deep bass notes as well as high treble notes. An avid gamer, Baudin is also known for incorporating classic video game songs and sound effects into his performances. In addition to his solo work, Baudin formed the bands Nuclear Rabbit and Element of Surprise and recently traveled to Sweden to finish a new recording with the band Voodoo Gods. He has also scored the music for the documentaries "The Space Invaders: In Search for Lost Time" and "100 Yen.”
South Bay Button Mashers (SBBM) is an in-person gaming club that brings together fans of all games and all systems. ggSJ (Good Game San Jose) is an association of local video games organizations including SBBM, Rockage, and the SJSU Game Dev Club. The group will be at ArtRage running some beloved sci-fi games and fun activities. SBBM will set up Halo: The Master Chief Collection and some indie sci-fi games like Starwhal, Assault Android Cactus, Stardust Vanguard, and more.
For the current exhibition Beta Space: Diana Thater, the artist created a dramatic light and video installation in SJMA’s central skylight gallery. For the immersive installation, Thater used film footage of dung beetles (or rainbow scarabs) in the Sonoran Desert around Tucson, Arizona. Larger-than-life moving images of the iridescent scarabs float across the barrel-vaulted ceiling of SJMA’s soaring central skylight gallery. Directly below this starry scene, a 16-by-20-by-8-foot box emits a soft yellow light like that of the sun. The entire gallery is infused with cosmic blue light—a metaphor for the dung beetle’s perspective of the cosmos. Long interested in the mysteries of the night sky and of the natural world, Thater was inspired by a recent study that revealed that dung beetles use the Milky Way for nocturnal orientation. Also on view are video walls with two works: Visual Voyage: Milky Way to the Virgo Cluster, 2015, and Aquarius Halos, 2015. Thater gathered digital animations of the Milky Way and the greater galactic neighborhood from leading astronomers and astrophysicists from throughout the world and galaxy formation and evolution at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Thater synchronized on two video arrays—each comprised of nine screens—these scientific visualizations of deep space and galactic time.
Beta Space: Diana Thater is sponsored by Applied Materials, the Myra Reinhard Family Foundation, Melanie and Peter Cross, and Theres and Denis Rohan. Display technology is provided by Samsung Semiconductor, Inc.
SAN JOSE MUSEUM OF ART
The San Jose Museum of Art celebrates new ideas, stimulates creativity, and inspires connection with every visit. Welcoming and thought-provoking, the Museum rejects stuffiness and delights visitors with its surprising and playful perspective on the art and artists of our time.
The San Jose Museum of Art is located at 110 South Market Street in downtown San Jose, California. The museum is open Tuesday through Sunday, 11 PM to 5 PM and until 8 PM or later on the third Thursday of each month. For more information, call 408-271-6840 or visit www.SanJoseMuseumofArt.org.
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Programs at the San Jose Museum of Art are made possible by generous operating support from the David and Lucille Packard Foundation, Yvonne and Mike Nevens, a Cultural Affairs grant from the City of San Jose, and the Richard A. Karp Charitable Foundation.