Creating an exhibit for the Millard Sheets Center for the Arts is an exhilarating process which both takes and gives energy to its designer. First, an overall theme is chosen and agreed upon by all involved in the complexities of its production. I have found from my many years as an artist and designer that creating within the framework of what exists is more productive that trying to force a design into a space which it does not fit. The framework is made up of the available budget, the facility in which it will be shown, the creative capabilities of staff and preparators, and the time frame scheduled. In the case of exhibits for Millard Sheets Center for the Arts at Fairplex (MSCAF), a wonderful support system is already in place. Fairplex, in recognizing the importance of the exhibits we produce for our specific Fair audience, provides a budget which allows us to do our job well. The MSCAF building is a wonderful 12,000 square foot gallery with large rooms, high ceilings, and an adjacent patio space for exterior events. Our “A” Team of talented people rises to every creative occasion I throw their way. And lastly, we are given ample time to prepare for the September show-time and Labor Day opening.

As I worked on the research for this year’s exhibit and its theme, I began to narrow down the vastness of its subject matter and discovered that there was one thread which ran through these three centuries of growth and discovery - invention. And I began to discover the connections between ancient inventions and modern ones. These exciting innovations will be displayed throughout the exhibit and will give viewers of all ages insight into where ideas and products came from. My hope is that some will walk away with their own new creative ideas bubbling in their minds. Perhaps a brand new inventor will be inspired to generate something that will better humankind.

We begin actual construction in July and won’t rest much until opening on Labor Day weekend. Other new and exciting developments are in the wings at MSCA, so stay tuned to our website and don’t hesitate to get involved. Again, I solicit your thoughts, ideas, and suggestions about the past, present, and future of the Center’s function and progress.

Best and thank you for your continued support, Tony Sheets  

Tony Sheets - 2010 Exhibit Director

I grew up in the innovative artistic community of nearby Claremont, surrounded by professional artists including my father, Millard Sheets. While this is my fourth year as exhibit director for MSCAF, he directed exhibits here for twenty-five years, 1931 to 1956. Because of his long and successful career with the Los Angeles County Fair, the Fine Arts Building was named after him in 1993. As kids we spent every summer at Fair, pretending we were helping Dad, while mostly running off to enjoy the sights and sounds of the Fair.

This year’s exhibit is an extension of the 2009 Making of Art exhibit, and will bring us from the 1700s to the 1900s. It will highlight the Industrial Revolution as it spread from Europe to the United States, and touch on the beginnings of the computer age. It will feature steam power and innovative processes which created new materials, and show how a simple punched card changed industry. It also changed what artists portrayed in their art and the methods and mediums they used to create it. This new age social change brought on the creation of a middle class, which in turn became the sustaining force of the artist community with their fresh purchasing power. The underlying them of the exhibit will definitely be change.

At this point in time I am thoroughly engrossed in the designing and execution of this year’s Fair exhibit which will run from Labor Day weekend until October 3, 2010. Once I have this exhibit up and running I will begin narrowing down the theme for next year from the three or four show concepts I have running around in my creative happy cloud. I will continue to post updates here and I encourage comments regarding the concept and development of this exhibit, or perhaps ideas for future exhibits. Please feel free to email your thoughts to me at tonysheets@oigp.net .

Best and thanks, Tony Sheets

The First 30,000 Years
Millard Sheets Center for the Arts at Fairplex  2009

Making of Art

As the current exhibit director for MSCAF I am pleased to present a brief overview of this year’s fair-time exhibit about the making of art. I have been connected with the arts for my whole life and grew up spending my summers at the fair while my father was creating exhibits in what was then called the Fine Arts building. In the early 1900s the name was changed in his honor to the Millard Sheets Gallery. I have been on that board of directors for the past number of years, and became the exhibit director three years ago when we celebrated the 100 year anniversary of dad’s birth with an exhibit honoring his life as an artist, muralist and architectural designer. His great love for horses became the stimulus for the 2008 exhibit, Hoofprints.

This year we celebrate the arts in the first of two consecutive exhibits about the processes used for the making of art through the ages, starting when humans first began creating. My goal is to construct a setting in which visitors to the gallery can see and understand how people from past times and cultures shaped the raw materials from the earth into art forms. At first they used only their hands, but soon they were inventing the tools and methods to better create expressions from their own imaginations. This combination of hands and imagination is what sets humans apart from any other creatures on earth. While other living things may have high degrees of intelligence, none possess the uniqueness of imagination.

We end this year’s exhibit in the early 1700 at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, where we will pick it up next year and bring it to modern times. This exhibit will include the primary mediums and techniques used in the artistic expressions of ancient world civilizations, through the Middle Ages, and to the end of the Renaissance. I will continue to post updates on our web site and I encourage comments regarding the concept and development of this exhibit, and about exhibits of the last two years, or perhaps ideas for future fair shows.

Best and thanks, Tony Sheets