Cliff Notes
Each week, our regional Cliff Notes columnists Fox Whitney, Alitzah Oros, Melika Sebihi, and Kaya Noteboom pick the most exciting events and exhibitions on the West Coast.
Each One Teach One
Stay Gallery, Downey, CA
December 13, 2024 – March 21, 2025
Buzzing from a belly full of Cuban food, we crossed the street to Stay Gallery. Curated by artist Mike Alcala, Each One, Teach One, offers a warm perspective on the role of artists as educators, mentors, and community members. Featuring 22 artists who share their skills and knowledge with those around them, the exhibition highlights the important connection between art-making, mentorship, and care. These artists embody the philosophy that creativity is not just about personal expression, but about passing on traditions, inspiring others, and fostering growth through collaboration.
While many artists juggle multiple jobs to support their craft, Each One, Teach One emphasizes that artists’ influence goes beyond their individual work. In celebrating the broader impact of artists as educators, community leaders, activists, and family members, this exhibition shows that sharing time, space, knowledge, and care is just as vital as creating art itself. This exhibition invites us to reconsider what it means to be a successful artist—highlighting how thoughtful and spirited collaboration enriches both the artist and the community they serve.
Each One, Teach One also includes the work of children ages 4-12 from the Stay Young! Youth Art Program. This is the first exhibition at Stay that combines the work of students and teaching artists.
Reflection: How do we as artists measure success?
Wonders of Creation: Art, Science, and Innovation in the Islamic World
Part of PST ART: Art & Science Collide presented by Getty
San Diego Museum of Art, San Diego, CA
September 7, 2024 – January 5, 2025
A pinch of existential dread followed me through this otherwise totally gorgeous show. Visiting Wonders of Creation at The San Diego Museum of Art (SDMA) is like being handed a beautifully illustrated map of the universe only to realize just how tiny you are. Inspired by Zakariyya al-Qazwini’s 13th-century cosmography, the exhibition takes you on a journey from the heavens to the earth and ends with humanity, the smallest piece of a truly infinite puzzle.
With its star maps, magic bowls, and ancient astrolabes, Wonders of Creation had me thinking about voids and infinities, and those supposedly alien drones I keep seeing all over Instagram. It’s all a dazzling reminder that humans have always looked up, wondering what else is out there.
I’m living for all of these PST shows, especially Wonders of Creation, which really made me reflect on what it means to be human in such a vast and mysterious expanse of chemicals and stuff. It’s beautiful, thought-provoking, and a little existential. By the end, you’re reminded that while we may be small, our search for connection—to the stars, the earth, and each other—is as vast as the universe itself.
Reflection: If you had to craft your own “cosmic travel guide,” what wonders would you include?