On November 3, 2024, UUSM hosted a celebration of Beverly Alison, for many years the guiding spirit behind the Art Wall, the church’s long-running program of art exhibitions in Forbes Hall. Beverly’s energy and dedication to the Art Wall led to its great success both as a fundraising endeavor, and as a place to showcase artists whose works harmonize in different and evocative ways with the church’s values and worldview.
To continue Beverly’s work a new Art Wall Committee has been formed, chaired by Gretchen Goetz and Bettye Barclay and assisted by church members Denise Helton, Tom Peters, Roy Patience, and Sheila Cummins.
Last month Beverly spoke with Gretchen about her experience leading the Art Wall and her hopes for its future.
Gretchen: What motivated you to take on the Art Wall and when was that?
Beverly: About 14 or 15 years ago, I was motivated by the desire to increase representation on the Art Wall. I wanted to bring art from other neighborhoods. I felt that artists from throughout LA should be represented on the Art Wall.
What was your primary artistic focus?
I wanted to bring the larger diverse city to Santa Monica though the artists and art from the whole city.
How did you find new artists to show?
I took lots of trips to East LA art shows. My first focus was to get Latino artists represented on our wall. I visited Yolanda Gonzalez’s studio. It was huge and other Latino artists were represented in her studio. I met the artists there, which led to meeting more artists. Trust and familiarity developed and that led to meeting more Latino, Asian and Black artists.
What are your favorite experiences or proudest accomplishments?
The most exciting thing was developing a way to have an opening reception for the shows. It was a brand-new idea. The receptions were warm and informative and wonderfully received by the congregation. At the receptions, church members asked questions about the art and there was great give and take. The artists loved it, and the church loved it.
Cheech Marin heard about the monthly art shows, came and bought two pieces and hung them in his new Riverside Museum. They were Margaret Garcia pieces, and they still hang at his Riverside Museum.
Another accomplishment was financial: the 80/20 split of the sales money really enriched the church. All sales were split 80/20 with the church receiving 20%. Over the years many thousands of dollars have accrued benefiting the church. Also of note, I developed, and Bob Dietz executed press releases announcing the reception/artists bio/church info which resulted in many visitors – some of whom joined the church and continue to come. The office staff assisted in managing the sales money which I collected during the monthlong show. I also collected and turned over all the names and phone numbers of every artist represented during the 15 years to the new Art Wall committee.
What did you learn from running the Art Wall?
The number one thing I learned is to schedule carefully. And to make sure that the artists felt comfortable with how we hung the show. I always hung the art alongside the artists, I only left when the artist was happy.
What is your vision for the future of the Art Wall?
I would like the Art Wall to continue to represent the whole diverse city — and the artists’ view of the world.
Anything else? Any words of wisdom?
It’s so important to keep the Art Wall going. Art can bring diversity, communication and the ability to look deeply at things. People understand each other through art — it’s a wonderful way to think, review and develop a wider vision of how you want to be in the world. Art teaches us how we want to be in the world.
— by Gretchen Goetz and Sheila Cummins
