A GRIZZLY SIGHT CITY MARKETS ITS BEAR SCULPTURES THROUGHOUT STATE.Byline: CAROL ROCK Staff Writer SANTA CLARITA Santa Clarita, city (1990 pop. 110,642), Los Angeles co., S Calif., suburb 30 mi (48 km) NW of downtown Los Angeles, on the Santa Clara River; inc. 1987. Situated in the Santa Clara valley and nearby canyons, Santa Clarita includes the former towns of Canyon Country, - The elephants might be getting a bigger compound at the L.A. Zoo, but the city of Santa Clarita sends its bears on the road to San Francisco San Francisco (săn frănsĭs`kō), city (1990 pop. 723,959), coextensive with San Francisco co., W Calif., on the tip of a peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay, which are connected by the strait known as the Golden to drum up business. In October, city arts coordinator Michael Marks Michael Marks, (June 1859 – December 31 1907), was one of the two co-founders of the retail chain Marks and Spencer. Marks, who was born in Slonim, Belarus (then part of Russian Empire and Poland) as Michał Marks of Polish-Lithuanian and Jewish ancestry, emigrated and a white acrylic grizzly bear grizzly bear or grizzly, large, powerful North American brown bear, characterized by gray-streaked, or grizzled, fur. Grizzlies are 6 to 8 ft (180–250 cm) long, stand 3 1-2 to 4 ft (105–120 cm) at the humped shoulder, and weigh up to sculpture took a booth at the League of California Cities conference at the Moscone Center The Moscone Center is San Francisco, California's largest convention and exhibition complex. The complex consists of two main underground halls underneath Yerba Buena Gardens, Moscone North and Moscone South, as well the three-level Moscone West exhibition hall across 4th Street. , where the curious stopped by to see what they thought was a polar bear polar bear, large white bear, Ursus maritimus, formerly Thalarctos maritimus, of the coasts of arctic North America. Polar bears usually live on drifting pack ice, but sometimes wander long distances inland. . Marks is the coordinator of the California Bear Project, which began in Santa Clarita in early 2005. The first - and so far, only - completed bear in the project was created by photographer Scott Groller, whose sepia/color 700-photo collage adorns the grizzly standing beneath a spreading oak tree in Heritage Park. The bear - a three-dimensional canvas for artists to decorate that the city hopes will catch on throughout the Golden State - proved to be quite the attention-getter. ``We had more than 40 people stop by, city managers and city council members from all over the state who gave me their business cards,'' Marks said. ``Two weeks ago, we found out that El Monte El Monte (ĕl mŏn`tē), city (1990 pop. 106,209), Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1912. A residential, industrial, and commercial city in the San Gabriel Valley, El Monte manufactures furniture, electronic equipment, semiconductors, is coming on board and getting their own bear.'' According to local legend, a bear reported to be 10 feet tall was shot and killed in 1877 in the Santa Clarita Valley The Santa Clarita Valley is the valley of the Santa Clara River in Southern California. It stretches through Los Angeles County and Ventura County. Its main population center is the city of Santa Clarita. The valley was part of the 48,612-acre (19,672. . The bear was nicknamed ``Monarch of the Valley.'' That bear is said to have been the model for the grizzly that graces the state flag. ``We were right around the corner from the California History Museum'' in San Francisco, Marks said. ``I went there and found some mugs with the state flag on them and put them in the booth so people could see that this bear was the one from the flag, and it just took off from there.'' The bears are formed and sculpted sculpt v. sculpt·ed, sculpt·ing, sculpts v.tr. 1. To sculpture (an object). 2. To shape, mold, or fashion especially with artistry or precision: in a Valencia studio and cost $2,500 each when sold to participating towns. ``Our city manager came across the bear at the conference and was very excited,'' said Jim Mussenden, El Monte's assistant city manager. ``He is very patriotic and thought this would be a good public art project to get started in our city.'' Mussenden said the city is promoting a public arts ordinance that requires builders to set aside 1 percent of a project's cost for public art installations. ``Our bear is being purchased by two Rotary clubs in El Monte to commemorate the groups' 100th anniversary,'' he said. ``We're going to have a competition for students in the four high schools in the area to decorate the bear.'' When completed, the bear will be placed in a greenbelt along one of El Monte's main streets.Sponsors for bears in Santa Clarita, which carry a price tag of $5,000 that includes artist fees, are still being sought. Anyone interested in sponsoring a bear can call Marks at (661) 286-4078. carol.rock(at)dailynews.com (661) 257-5252 CAPTION(S): photo Photo: (color) Kneeling next to the Heritage Park bear, Michael Marks coordinates the California Bear Project, which pitches the idea of every area having its own bearl. John Lazar/Staff Photographer |
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