Main Street
SharkByte raises money for charities
By Mary Ann Cook
SHARKARTIST: Los Gatan Linda Spencer was one of the artists who decorated fiberglass sharks as part of SharkByte, the public art display in downtown San Jose and some outlying regions. The sharks were recently auctioned off as a benefit for designated charities.
Spencer's contributions were titled "3 Ring Sharkus" and "Cyber Ski Bum." "Sharkus was designed to show what a three-ring circus we live in," says the artist, "jumping through hoops as we do in this valley." Sharkus has an opalescent silvery sheen, heightened by applying 15 different coats of variously colored interference paints.
Sharkus is riding a surfboard with netting attached, a fiberglass rendition of surfing the Net. He's speckled with silver and gold flecks that represent beads of sunlight. The shark was purchased for $2,600 for a beach house. Compaq Corporation was Spencer's sponsor. Seventy percent of the money will go to Cupertino Community Services.
Spencer's second shark, Cyber Ski Bum, drew $1,400 and that money will go to Industry Initiatives for Science and Math Education. The group helps better prepare students for the workplace through hands-on stints in industry and research labs. Cyber Bum was on skis, of course, and was done in decoupage.
The idea was to unite high tech and fun. Printed articles from newspapers and magazines were lacquered to his body and reflected both his high-tech setting and his propensity for play. A cartoon of Bill Gates was inside this shark's mouth with the words "excellent food" affixed to it.
Linda Spencer can look objectively at Silicon Valley these days, because she's moving out. Since working on the cyber sharks, she and her husband are moving to Mt. Dora, Fla., a small town with an active art colony--much like Los Gatos of years gone by, she reports. Without the stress of too much traffic.
LOGO: Los Gatos designer Gary Addiego's work is well represented in the new Big Book of Logos. The winning logos of the LOGO 2002 competition are reproduced and appear in the book. Addiego did the logo for the town's Music in the Park summer series two years ago, donating it to the Arts Commission, and that one was a winner.
His firm is Graphic Images of San Jose. He has also designed winning logos for the Los Gatos firm Telnet Communications, for Sand in Your Shoes Travel Agency and a youth ministry in San Jose. The logo for the annual Fiesta de Arts is also his. Addiego is a graphic designer and printing consultant.
A native Los Gatan, Addiego's most recent design is for the Los Gatos Bocce Club. That one will be much in evidence during the U.S. Bocce Tournament, to be held in May at the Los Gatos club.
DREAM JOB: K.C. Bittleston has recently landed a job as assistant designer for a clothing manufacturer in Los Angeles. It's a role he's been dreaming of and preparing himself for for years. An LGHS grad of '93, he graduated cum laude from Woodbury University in Burbank last year.
Woodbury is one of the few schools to offer a bachelor of science degree in fashion design. Bittleston won a scholarship from the Fashion Industry Guild while in school. He is the son of accountant Susan Bittleston. She and her husband, Greg Snow, own the accountancy firm Snow, Bittleston & Co. in downtown Los Gatos.
You would think K.C. would be well on his way to a lifetime career in fashion--but hold on ... his next goal is to get a doctorate in paleontology.
DINING IN STYLE: The town's assistant planner, Steve Lynch, and his wife, Grace, are pictured in the March issue of Sunset Magazine, dining at La Mere Michelle in Saratoga. It was a special occasion: Grace's birthday. The photo is part of a two-page article titled "Savoring Saratoga."
The article extols Hakone and Montalvo, points the visitor to the Savannah-Chanelle Vineyards on Congress Springs Road and cites restaurants along Big Basin, from the Rose Deli to La Fondue.
BLACK BELT TESTS: The public is invited to witness the black belt testing to be held March 23, noon-3 p.m. at the LGHS gym. Those being tested are Andrew Stafford, George Tretiakoff, Eric Hsieh, Sharlene Su, Derek Su, Jesse Dawson and Steven Dawson. Events include board breaking, weapons, self defense, kicks, sparring and forms.
FASHION SHOW: Vintage fashions--from bustles to flapper costumes--were modeled by Assistance League members at the March 20 luncheon for Los Gatos seniors at the Neighborhood Center.
CHOCOLATE: Rivers of Chocolate, the fundraiser for Social Advocates for Youth, will flow March 24, 2-6 p.m. at the Mountain Winery in Saratoga. Tickets are $75. Call 408.253.3540 for more information.
SAY benefits at-risk youngsters with a variety of programs--shelter, schooling and bridging the transition from foster care to independence.
ANTIQUES: Assistance League's Antique Show and Tell luncheon will be March 27 at Nordahl Hall, Los Gatos. Tickets include box lunch and informal appraisal for $25. For ticket information, call Becky McEntee at 408.354.4051.
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Los Gatos, California Since 1881
