cannabisnews.com: Merger of Art and Pot
function share_this(num) {
 tit=encodeURIComponent('Merger of Art and Pot');
 url=encodeURIComponent('http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/26/thread26059.shtml');
 site = new Array(5);
 site[0]='http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u='+url+'&title='+tit;
 site[1]='http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit.php?url='+url+'&title='+tit;
 site[2]='http://digg.com/submit?topic=political_opinion&media=video&url='+url+'&title='+tit;
 site[3]='http://reddit.com/submit?url='+url+'&title='+tit;
 site[4]='http://del.icio.us/post?v=4&noui&jump=close&url='+url+'&title='+tit;
 window.open(site[num],'sharer','toolbar=0,status=0,width=620,height=500');
 return false;
}






Merger of Art and Pot
Posted by CN Staff on October 22, 2010 at 15:16:45 PT
By Dan Taylor, The Press Democrat
Source: Press Democrat
Santa Rosa, CA -- On a hillside just outside Santa Rosa, a small band of artists cultivates marijuana plants and assembles artwork side by side. They claim the pot is grown legitimately for medicinal purposes and the proceeds are used to underwrite their nonprofit art organization.The 120-acre site near Hood Mountain is home to twin registered nonprofit organizations, American Medicinals and the Life is Art Foundation. The property owners say they created American Medicinals, which grows medical marijuana for member patients, to support the non-profit foundation Life Is Art and provide artists a place to create artwork.
“Our mission is to share art with the public,” said Life Is Art founder Kirsha Kaechele. “The whole reason behind the farm is to support the art.”Kaechele, 34, says she and her partner, former real estate developer John Orgon, 41, have a list of member patients for whom they grow marijuana. The patients have recommendations from doctors and all are members of the American Medicinals co-op.Kaechele and Orgon bought the property six years ago but only started work there in earnest earlier this year. They moved to Sonoma County from New Orleans, relocating the nearly decade-old Life is Art foundation as well.Their site is just one of several marijuana farms in the vicinity, neighbors said, but the others haven't sought public attention, while Kaechele has. There's been coverage in the New York Times and requests from radio shows in Ireland and Sweden, Kaechele said.“The publicity is good for them, but us neighbors don't want that,” said Catherine Mutuszak, who owns 40 acres adjacent to the Art Is Life property.While most marijuana growers, even those raising it legally for medical purposes, seek a low profile, the founders of Life Is Art want people to visit and see the artwork, and that complicates the situation.The property is accessible only by one long, steep, narrow and winding road, privately co-owned by about 20 property owners along the heavily wooded route. Neighbors report that traffic to the Life is Art barn headquarters already has caused problems.Kaechele and Orgon own a home in the Russian River area, where they say they live full-time and host their guest artists. During the day, artists work outside on the Hood Mountain property or in the barn, they said. But neighbors maintain the Hood Mountain property is occupied full time.“I moved up here for privacy,” said Lauretta Hayes, who has owned property nearby since 1983 and lived there since 1993. “We've had all sorts of trespassers up here. They have an ad in Craigslist about how they're doing an artists' commune up there.”To Kaechele, reaching out to the public is a natural part of what Life Is Art was created to do.“We've chosen very public sites in the past, like the Botanical Gardens or City Park in New Orleans,” she said, conceding those sites hadn't involved marijuana growing. “Our headquarters was a block of abandoned buildings in New Orleans.”Whether Life Is Art is in compliance with medical marijuana laws remains to be seen, said Capt. Matt McCaffrey of the Sonoma County Sheriff's office.“I don't know all the facts of their operation.” McCaffrey said. “We are looking at it.”“Generally speaking, there's no legal excuse or justification for growing marijuana to benefit the arts or anything else. There's no legal exception for that reason,” he added. “There are caregivers who can grow marijuana for people. There are cooperatives growing it for people who have a medicinal use for marijuana.”“We are working with the county and attorneys to comply with California law,” Kaechele said.The legal fate of the Life Is Art foundation could lie in passage of Prop. 19 on the Nov. 2 ballot, although even that is not a certainty. The measure would legalize adult personal use and possession of up to an ounce of marijuana. It also would allow cultivation of a 5-by-5-foot plot of marijuana per private residence or land parcel.It would not automatically permit commercial sales of pot in the state. Rather, it would grant cities and counties the authority to approve, regulate and tax marijuana sales in their jurisdictions if they chose to.It is that last provision that could be useful to a group such as Life is Art, said Valerie Brown, chairwoman of the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors.“It's an interesting aspect for a nonprofit to be dependent upon the sale of marijuana, or the growth of marijuana as their source of revenue. I think that opens up a whole ballpark,” Brown said. “I think what we're seeing is a lot of people going outside the box, thinking the box will be opened on Nov. 2. They may find that if Prop. 19 passes, that the county is going to work fairly hard to come up with rules, regulations and taxing authority.”Under such a scenario, there would be no need to organize as a medicinal cooperative.Meanwhile, Kaechele and Orgon planned to hold the organization's inaugural arts event at the hilltop site this weekend, open by invitation only.Most of the artwork is by artists who have worked with Life Is Art in New Orleans, including embroidery artist Louise Riley of London and assemblage artist Rya Kleinpeter from Los Angeles.The event also will include work by Richmond artist Michelle Wilson, who recently moved to California from Philadelphia. She met Orgon and Kaechele when they toured the di Rosa Preserve museum and sculpture park near Napa, where Wilson's husband, Robert Wuilfe, is curator. Wilson and Wuilfe later visited the Life Is Art site.“I think there's a lot of potential with what they're trying to do,” Wuilfe said. “As somebody who has spent a lot of time trying to raise money for nonprofits, I'm a fan of anybody trying to break out of that mold and find a new way to fund art.”While Kaechele described herself as an “avid gardener,” she said she has never tried to grow marijuana before.“I trim the plants the same way I prune my roses,” she said.The remote Sonoma County location is not only conducive to cultivating marijuana, but an aesthetically pleasing setting for creating art, she said.“We looked at more than 200 pieces of land — in Arizona, New Mexico, Washington, Oregon, Texas and California,” Kaechele said. “This is the most beautiful piece of land that we could find in the whole country.”Source: Press Democrat, The (Santa Rosa, CA)Author: Dan Taylor, The Press DemocratPublished: October 22, 2010 Copyright: 2010 The Press DemocratContact: letters pressdemo.comWebsite: http://www.pressdemo.com/URL: http://drugsense.org/url/yKo2zEQKCannabisNews  -- Cannabis Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/cannabis.shtml 
Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help 
     
     
     
     




Comment #21 posted by FoM on October 23, 2010 at 16:08:08 PT
Ziggy Marley Free Music Download
Ziggy Releases Pro Hemp/Marijuana Song 'A Fire Burns For Freedom'http://www.ziggymarley.com/splash.php
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #20 posted by FoM on October 23, 2010 at 16:01:23 PT
Darkness
I was looking out the window last night at the moon and stars. We don't have a dusk to dawn security light. It is very dark outside particularly in our back yard. I love it that way. 
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #19 posted by Sinsemilla Jones on October 23, 2010 at 15:41:02 PT
Hope - Light Pollution - I hate it, too!
People have decided to put street lights in their backyards that light up EVERYBODY's backyard and they shine in everyone's windows, too.I like the dark.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #18 posted by Paint with light on October 22, 2010 at 22:54:24 PT
UN policy shift
That is a shift of seismic proportions.How could reason break out so clearly and so suddenly?If the last comment...."Consider creation of an alternative drug regulatory framework in the long term, based on a model such as the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control."..........is adopted I may have to change to legal like tobacco.This has been dare week in my community.I've wanted to go out and replace all the red ribbons with green ones.Maybe some year.Legal like alcohol, tobacco, aspirin, tomatoes.......anything reasonable.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #17 posted by Hope on October 22, 2010 at 22:24:33 PT
No... 
"You or anyone else here are always welcome to vent your anger with or towards me."That wouldn't be right. I will tell you if you offend me... and I did. It is resolved. Don't need to vent on anyone or kick the dog or break anything. We all need to know that someone hears us though and that there are others that feel like us, and agree with us and we are not alone...and we have that here and we don't want to lose that until this thing that we are trying to do is accomplished. I'm glad Robin's death mattered so much to you that it made you break your silence. She would have liked knowing that, I'm sure. I miss her, and I know she was miserable... but I'm still a bit mad at her and certainly, very, very sad about what happened. 
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #16 posted by Hope on October 22, 2010 at 22:13:31 PT
Roses are my favorite flower...
Gardenias, too...but I wouldn't be surprised if these rose growers, suddenly growing medicine, didn't put up some really big yard lights they keep on all night, all around their place, too.Maybe not, though.I got a bee in my bonnet about that.*smiling*
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #15 posted by Hope on October 22, 2010 at 22:07:20 PT
Forget about it...
Too much other stuff to tend to. Not important.This might be important though.UN expert calls for a fundamental shift in global drug control policyhttp://transform-drugs.blogspot.com/2010/10/un-expert-calls-for-fundamental-shift.html
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #14 posted by Paint with light on October 22, 2010 at 21:08:37 PT
comment #10
I took no personal offense from your comments about the light.I have felt bad recently because you became collateral damage in one of my posts.That is the main reason I have stayed away.It seems my words were getting misinterpreted a lot.As always, thanks for your words.Peace.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #13 posted by Hope on October 22, 2010 at 21:06:41 PT
 :0)
Thank you.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #12 posted by Hope on October 22, 2010 at 21:05:10 PT
I've been thinking about everything in the world
and remembering stuff. My life flashes before me about three times a week. (smiling)I had a hard time with that artificial light, all night long, every night, business change in my life. Many people have built homes near me in the last twenty or so years, and before that there weren't so many. Adjusting to it has been a major part of my life and I smile when I think about all the adjustments.I'm a star and sky watcher and moonlight gazer... and I've been griping about the lights for years. Forgive me for my outburst.I'm really not gritting and grinding my teeth about it... I'm smiling about it. But when I reread it, I see that you can't see my smile.Painting with light has always been a beautiful expression and thought to me. That's why I've always liked your moniker.I hope I'm not disparaging you. I don't feel disparagingly towards you.Oh my lord! I just realized all my spell checks are not working. No wonder I'm typing along so well. I'm not!I'm must go... I'm about to go indecipherable.Sorry. Carry on. 
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #11 posted by Paint with light on October 22, 2010 at 20:59:50 PT
venting
You or anyone else here are always welcome to vent your anger with or towards me.For now at least I am strong and able to handle it.In another thread I was reading about Michelle and the reference to MBC.Right after we lost her was when I decided I could no longer keep silent.Maybe there are other voices out there that now that will join in the chorus.I may sing off key every now and then but I always sing with great enthusiasm.Legal like a full moon night.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #10 posted by Hope on October 22, 2010 at 20:49:06 PT
I hope, because of our recent disagreement
you don't take my words and meanderings to be a slap at you or at light. Certainly it's not conscious. I'm sorry if it's unconscious!About disagreeing with each other. Most of us around here agreed to disagree peaceably a long time ago.Everybody around here can go off topic anytime they wish. When I think about some of the things I read in these articles, my eyelid starts twitching. I can't express my feelings about them like I would like to. But I can still babble... but I'm very thankful for those saying what I think I would like to say if I could think to say anything legible.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #9 posted by Hope on October 22, 2010 at 20:41:25 PT
  :0)
I was griping about all the lights in my "Neighborhood".I'm used to it now, but I remember when a starry night or a moonlight night was more beautiful when it wasn't decimated by a hundred twenty streetlight size yard lights as far as the eye can see, which is common in the country in these parts now. I've grown accustomed to it, but it wasn't easy. Just griping.I'm only prattling and babbling on because I want to say something to you guys, but this stuff, bitching to high heaven about the injustice, immorality, stupidity and waste of the wod, always hurts and I can't stand so much hurting and anger so much right now.
 
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #8 posted by Paint with light on October 22, 2010 at 20:23:08 PT
light pollution?
I missed the part in the article where it said they are producing light pollution for their neighbors.I can understand the problem with the road but not the rest.Legal like art
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #7 posted by FoM on October 22, 2010 at 19:54:10 PT
A GOP-Led Congress Bodes Ill for D.C. Autonomy
Excerpt: A rightward-leaning Congress might even want to revisit old business such as the riders on appropriation bills prohibiting needle exchange and medical marijuana programs that Democrats wisely eliminated. URL: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/22/AR2010102205448.html
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #6 posted by The GCW on October 22, 2010 at 19:27:23 PT
Eye opener,
20-year-old Woman Becomes Top Cop in Violent Mexican MunicipalityBy CNN - Thursday, October 21 2010 http://www.cannabisculture.com/v2/content/2010/10/21/20-year-old-Woman-Becomes-Top-Cop-Violent-Mexican-Municipality"Some headlines are hailing her as the bravest woman in Mexico. Marisol Valles Garcia, all of 20 years old, says she's just tired of everyone being afraid.Valles Garcia, a criminology student, became the police chief this week of Praxedis G. Guerrero, one of the most violent municipalities in the border state of Chihuahua. She was the only person who accepted the top job in a police force whose officers have been abducted and even killed."Yes, there is fear," Valles Garcia said Wednesday in an interview with CNN en Español. "It's like all human beings. There will always be fear, but what we want to achieve in our municipality is tranquility and security."There's good reason for the fear. Just this past weekend, a 59-year-old local mayor, Rito Grado Serrano, and his 37-year-old son, Rogoberto Grado Villa, were killed in a house in which they they were hiding in nearby Ciudad Juarez. Another area mayor was killed in June."Cont. w/ photoWhat a shame. Who doubts Her fate?
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #5 posted by The GCW on October 22, 2010 at 19:23:25 PT
Allen is bad juju.
"BISHOP RON ALLEN (President, International Faith-Based Coalition, speaking in a church): It is because Satan has tried to make us think and have tried to make us believe that it’s nothing." -from comment #4: Allen is working for the devil, doing evil.Biblically cannabis prohibition is known as the "Sin of the Priests" in Malachi 1:6-14 and it exposes exactly what He's doing.http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Malachi+1&version=NASBSaying the table of the Lord is defiled and to be despised is bad juju.The 1st page of the Bible, where God indicates He created all the seed bearing plants and says they're all good is where it is also said to be food / meat.Allen, is separating people from receiving the spirit of truth.-Because We are to expose evil-The Green Collar Worker
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #4 posted by FoM on October 22, 2010 at 18:01:42 PT
PBS: Legalizing Marijuana: Religion and Ethics
October 22, 2010Excerpt: BOB ABERNETHY, host: On November 2, voters in Arizona and South Dakota decide whether to legalize marijuana for medical use, as 14 states and the District of Columbia already have. Meanwhile, in California, where medical marijuana is legal, voters are deciding whether to decriminalize recreational marijuana use. Is marijuana a gateway to harder drugs? Lucky Severson reports from Los Angeles.BISHOP RON ALLEN (President, International Faith-Based Coalition, speaking in a church): It is because Satan has tried to make us think and have tried to make us believe that it’s nothing. Isn’t that just like the enemy? That it is less harmful than alcohol. Isn’t that how Satan comes in the back door to make you think that one sin is greater than another? You all have to say “amen.”URL: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/episodes/october-22-2010/legalizing-marijuana/7325/
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #3 posted by Hope on October 22, 2010 at 15:50:41 PT
Statute of limitations on once growing a pot plant
I did not know that.From the article in Comment 1:"However, Figueroa said the collective remains illegal under federal law. Based on the size of the operation, Life Is Art founder Kirsha Kaechele and her partner John Orgon could be hit with a mandatory five-year federal prison sentence if convicted, he said.Although President Obama has pledged support for medical marijuana, the collective could be prosecuted under a future administration. The statute of limitations is five years, he said."
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #2 posted by Hope on October 22, 2010 at 15:46:53 PT
Roses?
Knows nothing about growing pot?Great.Why do they seek out something serene and lovely, just to change it into something else entirely and destroy it? Like all the people that move out from the towns and put big lights all over the country. They make it were it's not so easy to see the stars at night anymore.Scaredy cats, I guess. The least they could do would be to have a switch, and use it, to turn them off when they weren't actually using them for light... instead of just wastefully polluting the night sky.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #1 posted by FoM on October 22, 2010 at 15:18:37 PT
Related Article From The Press Democrat
Pot-for-Art Plan Raises Legal QuestionsOctober 22, 2010URL: http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20101022/ARTICLES/101029826
[ Post Comment ]


Post Comment