In October of 1990 I was asked to edit and provide art direction for a relatively new bimonthly entertainment guide for Tulare County, Southland Magazine. By August of 1994, I had secured a Small Business Association loan and ended up purchasing the publication. I immediately revamped it into a monthly arts & events guide, South Valley Arts, and broadened its tri-county distribution [Tulare, Kings and Fresno].
Specifically, I wanted to focus a meandering spotlight on various local artists, local poets, and local writers by featuring them in one way or another in the pages of SVA. The Central Valley region has long been an unseen reservoir of talent and creativity that went all but unnoticed statewide, let alone on location! It was with these thoughts that I was able to meet and work with incredibly talented artists, photographers, poets, writers, promoters, entertainers, and other contributors to push the envelope of creative journalism into the eastern foothill and south Central Valley regions of California.
Let’s call it a grand experiment that lasted a decade. Yes, I paid off they SBA loan in full and was turning a small profit, however . . . it proved difficult finding dedicated sales people. I suspended publication with a final issue in May of 2000 and went on to other projects--looking first at the northern Sierra foothills then further west to Sonoma County for some fresh ocean air and coastal hikes. To date, newspapers and periodicals from the Central Valley region have yet to adequately cover the kind of content found in the pages of South Valley Arts in its heyday.
Special thoughts and appreciation here to: John, Shelly & Cheryl Cross, Jim Bodley, Milly Gann, Trudy Wischemann, [the late] Wilma Elizabeth McDaniel, Betty Blanks, Lillian Vallee, Roman Loranc, Jana Sanders, Ellen Gorelick, Jana Botkin, Dan and Libby Humason, David Richardson, Steven Louis Ball, Scott Shaver . . . and others for their efforts in seeing and believing! The list is truly endless. These and many other friendships were formed through the collective efforts focused on nurturing SVA along the way.
Following are covers of a few of the many issues--from day one as Southland editor & art director, [depicted at the top of this page] through my years at the helm of SVA. Hope they’re as fun to scroll through visually as it was to pick out ones to share. Eventually, I’ll get them all scanned in and archived here, before the newsprint self-destructs! In those days, computer hard drives weren’t nearly big enough to store all the back issues . . .
more covers to follow once scanned for archiving . . .
Each issue was tabloid size [approx. 11.5" x 13.75"] on webfed newsprint. At times, special inserts for county fairs, artist studio tours, festivals, or other regional events were coordinated for additional coverage.
Below are samplings of some of my favorite spreads from previous editions and inserts of South Valley Arts. Again, I hope to eventually scan and archive a good number of “oldies” here--before the newsprint up and fades away. Enjoy a nostalgic glimpse at local artists, local poets, and local writers from the South-Central San Joaquin Valley during its press runs through the waning years of the past century . . .
re-visit again--more to be scanned and archived . . .
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