Community, Diversity, Sustainability and other Overused Words

Articles written by Sterling Roberts


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  • Lizzo: A Millennial Favorite, turns "Haters into Congratulators."

    Sterling Roberts, Observer Staff Writer|Sep 29, 2019

    Lizzo is exactly what millennials need. Melissa Viviane Jefferson, or stage name Lizzo, is a singer, rapper, and actress who rose to stardom earlier in 2019 with her hit song "Truth Hurts." While she's not new to the music industry, Truth Hurts was actually released in 2017, she has only recently been considered a household name. Time Magazine elected her as one of their artists to watch in 2014 and five years later, Lizzo debuted her album Cuz I Love You on the Billboard 200 chart at number...

  • Artist Timothy Uriah Steele creates "an apology to the spirit" of Bombay Beach

    Sterling Roberts, Observer Staff Writer|Aug 18, 2019

    Having grown up in both a cult and suburban Americana, artist Timothy Uriah Steele provides a unique and provocative journey with his work to showcase transcendence. When asked for his personal definition of transcendence, he described it as a "means to pass beyond the confines of an everyday...reality into something that's beckoning you into something other or... a broader perspective of life and what it means to exist." Instead of the results of before and after or known and unknown, Steele...

  • Hits and Misses: A Tourist's Perspective on Los Angeles after 30 days here

    Sterling Roberts, Observer Staff Writer|Jul 22, 2019

    As a tourist, I see California in a different light than as someone who's from here. For instance, the concept of the greater Los Angeles area is a bit peculiar to me because I see each place in LA as a completely different city with really no similarities. To me, Santa Monica is completely different from Malibu which is completely different from Venice which is the opposite of Beverly Hills. But, in my time here, I've realized that my perspective as a tourist could potentially provide locals or...

  • Chinatown Restaurant Review: Zen Mei Bistro, a great budget dining experience

    Sterling Roberts, Observer Staff Writer|Jul 18, 2019

    Zen Mei is an authentic Chinese restaurant located in Chinatown in Downtown Los Angeles. It is a family run business which has been owned by Michelle Liu for the last seven years. The restaurant is small but quaint and while there isn't air conditioning, Zen Mei translates to really beautiful, and that's exactly what the food is. When first walking in, customers are greeted and allowed to choose where they'd like to sit. After sitting down, a waitress brings a kettle of green tea to enjoy with t...

  • My Time with Portrait Artist Don Bachardy

    Sterling Roberts, Observer Staff Writer|Jul 14, 2019
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    According to Merriam-Webster, exceptional is defined as better than average or superior. To me, 85 year old Don Bachardy fits that definition to a T. He is well renowned and has his artwork in many museums, such as the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C. and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. I have now spent quite a bit of time with the well known portrait artist: I observed him paint a colleague, I have now sat for him twice, I toured his home, and I plan on stopping by again to...

  • Exhibit Review: LACMA's Material Art from China

    Sterling Roberts, Observer Staff Writer|Jul 14, 2019

    The Los Angeles County Museum of Art currently has awe-inspiring exhibits which range from Picasso's portraits to their famous Urban Lights structure to some fun pop art to the exhibit which will be reviewed today. Shown on the second level of the Broad Contemporary building, the exhibit's full name is The Allure of Matter: Material Art from China. The name doesn't lie. Each installation is unique in not only the design, but the material used. There is not simply paint on paper in this exhibit....

  • ShakeAlertLA Backlash After Strong Earthquakes in LA

    Sterling Roberts, Observer Staff Writer|Jul 12, 2019

    In what I thought would be a privatized business, ShakeAlertLA, which has been heavily criticized in the last few days, was actually created by the city of Los Angeles and its Mayor, Eric Garcetti. The app which is available on the App Store or Google Play ties into the national ShakeAlert system to inform users on earthquake activity. The recent critiques that ShakeAlertLA has gotten has been in light of the two recent earthquakes in California, the 6.4 on July 4 and the 7.1 on July 5. The...

  • Woman Finally Finds Her Father Because of Genetic Testing

    Sterling Roberts, Observer Staff Writer|Jul 9, 2019

    When sending a sample of your DNA to a database to find your genetic ancestry, you expect to maybe find a surprise in that ancestry. But, what you don't expect to find is a new family. Just last year, Diane Tousley found her genetic father through ancestry.com. He had been a user since 2012 and she had joined in 2017, but she became aware that she had a genetic match in 2018. Born in Vietnam in 1968, Tousley came to the US with her mother in 1975. At 6 1/2 years old, Tousley got on a cargo plane...

  • New Restaurant in Venice, Yours Truly, Now Serves Brunch!

    Sterling Roberts, Observer Staff Writer|Jul 8, 2019

    There's a new brunch spot in Venice! Yours Truly, previously the restaurant Soltaire, opened up three months ago for dinner and three weeks ago started serving brunch. Yours Truly has a fun millennial vibe thanks to the colorful art and flashy patterns. The interior is bright and there are plants inside adding an additional pop of color. For instance, each table has a succulent and there is a large tree inside near the entrance. You can tell the restaurant was designed with a keen eye on...

  • Drag Queen Story Time at the Beach to Celebrate Pride Month

    Sterling Roberts, Observer Staff Writer|Jul 8, 2019

    This past Friday morning, Santa Monica hosted a special event to celebrate Pride Month. Viewers were able to meet at the library to hop on the Pride Bus to get to the event on the beach. The event was held right outside of the Annenberg Community Beach House and was arranged in part by the Santa Monica Public Library. At the event there was a tent provided by the library with books that could be checked out using the honor system as well as goodies being given out such as bandanas, leis, and...

  • What is Tacotopia? Can You Find Hot Sauce on Instagram?

    Sterling Roberts, Observer Staff Writer

    If you love tacos, you'll love Tacotopia. While from the name it seems like it could be a taco restaurant, Tacotopia actually an art installation presented by hot sauce brand Cholula, or as they phrase it on their website, an "instagrammable amusement park disguised as a pop-up museum." Inside, there are over 25 experiences to try! These line the walls on all sides in bright colors with fun themes. Just to list a few, there is a foam pit mimicking guacamole, an avocado chair, a salsa bar, and a...

  • Can a Southern Girl Find Peace and Contentment, at a SoCal Awards Show Gifting Suite?

    Sterling Roberts, Observer Staff Writer|Jun 27, 2019

    I, a nineteen year old North Carolinian, attended a gifting suite for the BET awards this past Saturday morning in downtown Los Angeles. "What is a gifting suite?", you might ask. Well, prior to this venture, I didn't know either. Because I feel that many people are unaware of what a gifting suite would entail, I'm breaking down its ins and outs. Let's start with a definition: a gifting suite is an event which is connected to a particular awards ceremony to entice celebrities into promoting...

  • The Politics of Pastrami: Fromin's Celebrating 40 Years, Signs Lease for the next 20 years

    Sterling Roberts, Observer Staff Writer|Jun 27, 2019

    If you live in Santa Monica, you know Fromin's. Whether you're a regular at the deli or someone who simply drives past the restaurant on the way to work, you have most likely heard of this Wilshire Blvd eating spot. As a self proclaimed family restaurant, they have become a staple in the community for 40 years. Fromin's which first opened its doors in Encino was started by Dennis Fromin in 1962. At one point, Fromin's had four locations but has since decided to only have one location Santa...

  • The Downfall of Art: An Interview with Seidman Gallery's Cathy Seidman

    Sterling Roberts, Observer Staff Writer|Jun 27, 2019

    Having been in the art and framing business for 25 years, Cathy Seidman has witnessed the downfall of art. Cathy, and her sister, Connie, own the Seidman Gallery in Culver City. When asked how she feels about the way art is going, Cathy replied that she was pessimistic. She claims that there are two sides of the downfall of art: when regular people began putting art in their homes and when the television took the place of art above the fireplace. As experts in decorating homes and corporate...

  • Rising Actor's Scuffle at The Victorian Leads to Battery Charge

    Sterling Roberts, Observer Staff Writer|Jun 25, 2019

    At 6'2" and 170 lbs, stuntman Jacob Tandy is not a guy you want to pick a bar fight with. On January 5, 2018, rising actors Tandy and Zach Chitwood entered into a bar fight in the Santa Monica based event venue and bar, The Victorian. Both Tandy and Chitwood are pursuing acting careers, with Tandy specializing in stunts and Chitwood in modeling. In what seems to be an alcohol induced scuffle, Chitwood got hit over the head with an approximately four inch tall glass by Tandy, resulting in an alle...