Community Spotlight: Val & Tim
“You know, there’s a saying that opposites attract. We are opposites in a lot of ways. There’s friction, but maybe we like friction.”
Valerie arranges a snack for them in their living room. The walls are adorned with Tim’s paintings and photographs, telling a story of their lives. Their part-Norwegian Forest cat Byrdlady mews affectionately at their feet.
”Our friends call us the Bickersons because we love to bicker,” Tim looks at Valerie and laughs.
Valerie and Tim first met in Hartford, Connecticut. After dating for some time, Valerie decided to study metal smithing, while Tim wanted to be in California. In 1982, Tim drove across the country from Hartford to Los Angeles, on his brand new BMW motorcycle, determined to pursue a film career. Although Tim and Valerie were separated, he suggested she move in with him after she finished her degree.
Val holds up a brooch she crafted. The piece is a black, ragged shell juxtaposed with a glossy, cut quartz. Her art explores the powerful, unseen forces of nature that twist and combine objects together in harmony. “There’s friction, but maybe we like friction. As artists, conflict is necessary. I’m interested in contrasting opposites,” Valerie explains.
Valerie’s art is centered around the theme of structure—industrial and natural forms going through states of chaos and change.
Tim and Val live part-time in the desert and part-time in the Arts District. Spending time in the desert provides Valerie inspiration for her pieces. Her work is often a love letter to California’s outdoors. From lush orange leaves to the rugged beauty of the desert landscape, these motifs are meticulously crafted into metal jewelry.
Valerie looks out the window onto the Fourth Street Bridge. The structure looks like a larger version of her piece Tiara for a Walk on Fourth Street Bridge. The headpiece is inlaid with pearls, reminiscent of the twinkling light posts and adorned with flowers, a recognition of nature being all-encompassing. Her other Bridge-inspired art piece is public and can be seen catching the wind on poles around the neighborhood, hanging over the pedestrians walking by. The Arts District Medallions are an allusion to the trillium pattern lining the Bridge.
Tim and Val married in 1997. As wedding gifts, Tim gave Valerie a microscope and Valerie gave Tim a telescope. One gift brings focus to details and the other to vastness. It’s a beautiful metaphor for the perspectives they offer each other.
Like Val, Tim was never one to hold still. Tim got his start in Hollywood, which eventually spanned into 30 years of film work—including being a part of a team that pioneered CGI technology. He was always a major player in bringing art into communities from hosting free concerts to funding cameras for filmmakers. His philanthropy extends to the Arts District where he ran the District Gallery for 10 years, giving over 20 artists a space and giving back to the community over a million dollars through special use conditions.
Through his various accomplishments in his film career and nonprofit initiatives, Tim still says his proudest achievement is planting over 300 trees in the Arts District, including 11 ginkgo trees on Vignes Street and over 100 various types of trees from Second to Fourth Streets. “The hardest part was the paperwork, actually,” Tim chuckles.
Tim fondly recalls an older time when he and Valerie had cut a hole through their ceiling to host rooftop parties. They lived freely and planted both trees and deep roots within their community. When they exit their building, they are always met with warmness and familiarity.
”It’s nice to see a lot of friends and to live in a neighborhood with people who are still here.”
Today, Valerie is teaching 3D design to students at the Pasadena City College. Tim can be found most days at Wurstküche sitting in the sun enjoying a beer.
This May, Valerie’s art will be on display at the Freehand Gallery exhibit California Jewelers.
