One of the most unique and highly anticipated group art shows of the year is about to grace the walls of the WAL Public Market Gallery in downtown Sacramento’s bustling R Street Corridor. In the exhibit If You Do Me, I’ll Do You, 22 local artists are invited to create portraits of each other using a wide range of mediums after picking names out of a hat and getting to know each other a bit. Just some of the artists involved are (in no particular order): Sarah Marie Hawkins, Shaun Burner, Melinda Arendt, Waylon Horner, Gioia Fonda, Jesse Vasquez, Melissa Uroff Millner, Nathan Cordero, Bryan Valenzuela and others. The concept of the If You Do Me show can be traced all the way back to 2003 when Mike Rafter, Olivia Coelho and Tim Tinker conceived the idea for a Fool’s Foundation show. Bows and Arrows also hosted one back in 2009, and then WAL revived it in 2015, so that makes this year’s just the fourth time it has ever happened. There is an opening reception for the exhibit this Friday, Aug. 5, 2016 from 6–8 p.m. It’s free and all ages are invited to come out and enjoy the local creations amongst the group of artists. The exhibit will be up for two full months, all the way through Oct. 5, so you’ve got plenty of time to stop in and check out the work and peruse all of the other local businesses that make up Sacramento’s coolest indoor marketplace. Learn more at Walpublicmarket.com or Facebook.com/WALPublicMarket.

It wasn’t long ago that we were bumming out on Bows and Arrows closing, but now we’ve got some really good news to pass along about the building space and the people involved. Not only will one of its co-founders, Trisha Rhomberg, be re-opening Bows and Arrows in a new location later this summer along the R Street corridor (more on that in a later issue of Submerge), but the other founder, Olivia Coelho, is partnering with some longtime friends of hers to open an entertainment venue in the space formerly occupied by Bows (1815 19th Street, Sacramento) that will be called Witch Room. Witch Room will feature local, national and international bands. All shows will be 18-plus, they will offer a selection of beer/wine/bar food and it will only be open on event nights. Coelho and her Witch Room co-founders, which include Liz Liles (who plays in the rad band G. Green), Liz Mahoney (who plays in the equally rad band Screature) and Mark Kaiser (also a musician and founder of record labels Omnibus and Mt.St.Mtn), have been feverishly working on the space with help from family members to build a new stage, paint, rearrange stuff, and generally give the place a whole new identity.

“It wasn’t pre-meditated,” Coelho told Submerge of the plan to open Witch Room. “I know it probably seems like it was, but this came together so fast. I ran into Liz Liles at a house party in Davis and we just started talking and I was like, ‘Lets meet with Liz Mahoney tomorrow.’ Then once we met with Mark he was like, ‘Alright so tomorrow we’re building at the site, and you’re doing this, and you’re doing that…’ Those three have been booking shows and playing in bands their entire lives. It just seemed like we would be stupid not to try.”

Submerge was lucky enough to see the work in progress last week and we are very excited about what the future holds for Witch Room. With the new stage, new layout, new crew booking shows (plus some old faces like Drew Walker, who will be handling sound), we think it’s going to be a really awesome place to see live music. Speaking of, they already have seven solid shows listed on their website (Witchroomsac.com), the first of which is Tuesday, March 25, and features five sick bands. Hit up their website or Facebook.com/witchroom to learn more and view upcoming shows.

One of Sacramento’s most beloved arts and entertainment businesses, Bows and Arrows, recently announced that they will be closing at the end of January. The vintage shop/art gallery/music venue/cafe (yes, it’s a lot of things rolled up under one roof, that’s what makes it so special!), located at 1815 19th Street and co-owned by local artists Olivia Coelho and Trisha Rhomberg, posted to Facebook on Jan. 1, 2014, saying, “Our last month will be January, and we want it to be the best month ever.” They went on to say, “Although it breaks our hearts to think of losing our dream come true, we are both ready for new adventures. So please come celebrate this crazy experiment that two artists conspired to create with love in our hearts for our community.” The exact reason why Bows is closing is unknown thus far by local media outlets (not even The Bee or the Business Journal reported on why it’s closing in their pieces on Bows this week), but the fact of the matter is that Bows will be severely missed by local music and art enthusiasts. We here at Submerge absolutely loved all the unique and eclectic art shows that Bows hosted (you can only take so many galleries boasting paintings and photographs of the fucking Tower Bridge for so long!), so we will miss those most, along with their amazing back patio and killer live bands, too. While it is still unclear what the two will be up to next, we’re pretty sure that Rhomberg, at least, will open a new spot sometime this Spring. “Spring will be a new chapter for sure,” Rhomberg wrote on her Facebook page. “I’ll always find a way to try to engage and support the creative community and have plans for a new space opening in Spring with some rad Sacramento entrepreneurial friends!” As soon as more details are revealed about their future plans, as well as who/what will take over their current space, we’ll be sure to update our readers. For now, take a look at our calendar section or visit Bowscollective.com to see their line-up of events for their final month. There are some great bands playing, cool art on the walls, local beers on tap and tasty food to boot. Let’s send Bows off in style! And a huge special thanks to Coelho, Rhomberg and all of Bows’ staff for all that they’ve done (and will no doubt continue to do) for the local arts community.

-Photo by Nicholas Wray

Fat Face inside the new Bows and Arrows

1815 19th Street, Sacramento

I’d exercise caution when saying to your friends, “Get your Fat Face on!” They might take it the wrong way. Preface it by letting them know that it’s actually a good thing and you’re not attacking their winter waistline. Fat Face is the name of Jaymes Luu’s sandwich and gourmet popsicle business that has recently closed shop in Davis and will now be take residence in the new Bows and Arrows space (1815 19th Street, Sacramento). Luu describes the name of the business as a funny term for enjoying really good food, but in very humble way. It’s a term that she and her friends came up with that’s a very fitting definition, considering that Luu’s food is both good and humble.

On the Fat Face website, Luu encourages customers trying her popsicles to be “adventurous” and to “challenge their palates.” This might seem like a disclaimer for the out-there kind of flavors, but who wrote the rules on what a popsicle should be, anyway? Luu has been pushing the boundaries with her frozen confections, and the boundaries have never tasted so good. Among some of her more popular flavors is the Kaffir limeade and avocado, an interesting concoction for the title of “most popular.” Apparently fans of Fat Face have taken the challenge.

Fat Face’s previous location was on L Street in Davis, a small space where she not only served her signature popsicles, but also cranked out delicious sandwiches to boot. Grilled cheese with beer poached figs, smoked salmon, cola braised pork sandwiches or asparagus-filled breakfast “sammies” are some of the fun and sometimes wonky menu items that can be found at Fat Face. Ingredients are seasonal and specials can change on a whim, depending on who Luu has heard a suggestion from that day.

“[I get suggestions from] a lot of people I work with or customers will come up and be like, hey I think you should make this-and-this popsicle,” says Luu. “That will spark me to make new flavors.”

Luu is currently working on a mango and sticky rice popsicle and one of her newest flavors is something she calls the “bacon and egg.” Luu describes it as a “very yolky vanilla custard with a ginger bacon caramel.”

At the new location, Luu plans to extend her menu by playing off of the beer and wine list that Bows and Arrows owners Trisha Rhomberg and Olivia Coelho have been piecing together. The potential for crafting some small plates has sparked an interest for Luu, and she’s already got some ideas in mind.

“I want to have a pickle plate, fun popcorn; I’m trying to have more fun bar food like olives, but figure out how to make that more interesting than just olives,” says Luu.

When Luu decided to collaborate with Rhomberg and Coelho, she was drawn to their commitment to the project and how serious they were about making it all come together. They already had a building locked down, a kitchen in place and agreed to take on the build out. If all that wasn’t appealing enough, Luu also just simply liked what the whole thing was about.

“I appreciate their vision for what they want to do and what they want to bring; a community they want to create with their art stuff and their music,” says Luu.

The feeling was mutual.

“We went to eat lunch at Fat Face in Davis…walked in and loved everything about it. Super simple, sophisticated food that was local, seasonal, farm to table, scrumptious ingredients–really interesting flavors mixed together. The presentation was really humble but it was really good food,” says Coelho.

There’s something about Fat Face that Sacramento just hasn’t seen yet. It’s hard to put a label on and difficult to pigeonhole or compare with another cuisine. With the amount of support that was shown by Sacramento at the first annual Mobile Food Truck Festival, it’s clear that we love walking up to a truck to get something tasty. And wasn’t that idea born from the jingle of the neighborhood ice cream truck or paletero cart? Luu herself was at that festival, conducting a sort of Sacramento dry run, and her line was as long as the rest. Looks like we’re in for a fun summer. Now go get your Fat Face on.

Words by Adam Saake – Photos by Nicholas Wray

Sacramento is home to a large community of artists that continue to thrive with the help of each other as well as the trailblazing efforts of people like Trisha Rhomberg and Olivia Coelho. The 30-something, young business owners partnered in November 2007 to open Bows and Arrows, a vintage fashion store that over the years evolved into a multi-use space. The 17th and L street location was home to many Second Saturday art openings, some of the most amazing yet quietly talked about music shows, Pearl Records vinyl shop, Thunderhorse Vintage, a moped shop, the Junkee shop and most importantly a meeting place for young creatives who had a place to congregate and share ideas. And as much as Rhomberg and Coelho loved their space that they had poured so much of themselves into over the years, these two entrepreneurs were still hungry to expand and do even more. So, on June 4, Rhomberg and Coelho will open an even more ambitious version of Bows and Arrows at a new location at 1815 19th Street in Sacramento.

“We had been enjoying our Second Saturdays, our arts shows and our music shows a lot at our old location. We thought that it would be nice to focus more on the art, have a different building, a nice focused area for an art gallery and be able to serve beer and wine,” says Coelho.

The two began what would be become a tedious, yet invaluable learning experience as they searched for the perfect space to carry out their new and improved vision. Coelho had experience finding buildings, but on a smaller scale, when she opened her first vintage boutique Olipom. She sought out a second building for Olipom after the first building suffered fire damage in 2006. But the amount of blood, sweat and paperwork that was required to get their new space, a charming ivy-covered building located in the R Street corridor, up and off the ground was eye-opening.

“What the problem is, is that there are all of these rules. If a building looks really cool, but it’s in an area where you need to provide parking to the public and there’s no parking then you can’t do it,” explains Coelho.

ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) requirements along with city codes are very strict when it comes to opening a business like Rhomberg and Coelho’s. It’s not just parking but, for example, how many bathrooms are required and what size they need to be. Even something minute like a .5 percent shift in the grade of their concrete leading into an entrance was a huge expense to correct.

“We thought that people had been using that door for a long time. What’s the big deal? We had to tear out the whole front and re-pour that sidewalk,” says a frustrated Coelho.

It’s not that Rhomberg and Coelho are annoyed that they need to make their new business handicapped accessible, it’s that there are so many requirements; so many road blocks in the way and each one adds more and more money to their tight and dwindling budget.

“You just start burning through your money. You think 80 grand is a lot of money and it’s just not. It’s shit,” says Coelho.

The City of Sacramento has employees that Coelho says are “really sweet people,” it’s just the “rules that are devastating.” The new Bows and Arrows plans to have live shows as well, something they’d be continuing from their previous space. This time around, though, things will be a lot more legitimate and more in tune with how an actual live music venue operates. That means that Bows has applied for an entertainment permit since their occupancy is over 49. These permits aren’t easy to come by, if they are even able to acquire one at all, and they’re expensive: $1,400 a piece and non-refundable. On top of that, the permit requires that two security guards, approved by the Sacramento Police Department, be on duty for all the shows. Again, having security at shows isn’t the issue, it’s the cost associated with those requirements.

“If we have 30 people come, they each pay $3 and we make $90 off the door and we pay $250 out to security…we’re at a loss every time we try and have a show,” says Coelho.

But Rhomberg and Coelho aren’t here to bitch and moan and not do anything about what they don’t agree with. Both owners have made their presence known at Midtown Business Association mixers, Midtown Merchants meetings where Coelho is a board member, and they even sat down and had a beer with Councilman Steve Cohn. After an MBA mixer, Rhomberg and Coelho, along with a group of local movers and shakers all sat down with Cohn at Midtown’s Streets of London.

“He had no idea how hard of a time we’re having trying to showcase local musicians. We’re not busting windows out of places. We’re not these wild and crazy people, but there’s nowhere to have it,” says Rhomberg.

They’re both extremely passionate about not only making some real changes themselves, but also about empowering and inspiring the young artists and small business owners to do the same.

“There are sympathetic ears, but they can’t hear you screaming when you’re at a house party with all of your friends. How is anyone in power supposed to know that there are all these disgruntled young people in town who aren’t up to no good?” says Coelho.

Rhomberg says that things like being able to talk with Cohn, attending the MBA mixers and having their voices be heard are all great opportunities to take some steps forward in the right direction. She fears that if more spaces, like the new Bows and Arrows, which will have a gallery to feature local and emerging artists, don’t begin opening and flourishing more often, then our artists community will find homes elsewhere.

“How are we ever going to have our own creative class if everybody feels they need to leave and go to San Francisco or Portland or Los Angeles to make a living in an arts industry? We have to keep our creative class here. We have to provide them jobs and we have to provide them venues to showcase their talents so people know about them,” says Rhomberg who along with Coelho is also a working visual artist.

June 4 will also be the first gallery opening with a stunner of a show from San Francisco-based artist Hilary Pecis. Pecis recently had a spread in Juxtapoz Magazine, and she’s represented by the exciting Guerrero Gallery located in the San Francisco’s Mission District. Her work is collage constructed from found Internet images, piled and manipulated to form impossible landscapes and designs. Her work will fit in perfectly with everything going on in the new space that Coelho says will be based off of their taste and aesthetic.

“When it really comes down to it, it has to be something that we’re drawn to and inspired by,” says Coelho.

Part of that draw and inspiration is behind the partnership with Jaymes Luu of Fat Face, who will be taking over the café space to do her signature sandwiches and gourmet popsicles. Friend Becky Grunewald, local writer and foodie, took the Bows duo to Davis where Luu was operating inside a very small space. Grunewald wanted to show them what could be done without a hood inside a smaller kitchen, the one similar to the Bows and Arrows kitchen. It turned out to be a serendipitous meeting where the three hit it off immediately.

“We liked her right off the bat and it just seemed like such a nice cohesion. It was like love at first sight,” says Coelho.

In no time Luu was on board and the vision for the new space was complete. The collaboration of Bows and Fat Face will be fruitful no doubt. Rhomberg and Coelho have been working, along with some trusted palates like sommelier Michele Hebert, on assembling a wine and beer list for the café. Delerium Tremens, West Coast IPA and others are among the beers being considered for the list along with four draft beers. With Luu’s food that is packed with unique flavors, you might see some interesting parings taking place.

“I want to do that, and I know Olivia and Trisha want that. I’m definitely going to work toward that,” says Luu.

It all seems like a lot going on: the café, the music venue, the gallery and of course the thing that started it all, the vintage fashion. If local fashionistas are concerned that Rhomberg and Coelho have lost their focus when it comes to the clothes, fear not, because they will be merely focusing their inventory so more shoppers can feel comfortable while browsing the racks.

“There’s a very specific breed of people that…want to see everything they can see. But the majority of people get very overwhelmed…and I feel like in order to make the shopping experience more enjoyable and more intimate, we had to edit the selection,” says Rhomberg.

Whether you’re a hardcore shopper or casual, a beer drinker or prefer wine, a lover of art and music or you’re creative juices flow from food, the new Bows and Arrows has something for you. And when it all boils down, it started with two young creative minds with a passion for all the things they love and a loyalty to the city they live in.

“I want everything. I want to literally, physically surround myself with amazing beer, good music. I want to be sewing and making handmade clothes, I want to look at vintage clothes for inspiration. And I want to show my art and show my friends’ art. I want it all and I want to share it all,” says Rhomberg.

The new Bows and Arrows, located at 1815 19th Street opened June 4, 2011 with an exhibit by Bay Area artist Hilary Pecis.

Submerge got word recently that Olivia Coelho and Trisha Rhomberg from Bows and Arrows are teaming up with Sean Stout of Terroreyes.tv to form a record label, so we just had to investigate. After exchanging a couple e-mails with Coelho and spending 15 minutes inside Bows and Arrows picking Rhomberg’s brain, it has been confirmed. Be on the lookout for MYTHLAB some time in early 2011. “We just want to support our local friends and talent,” Rhomberg said. “You can talk, you can get each other pumped up all the time and be into each other’s stuff and be at everybody’s shows, but if you don’t take physical action to make real change and create a physical space for us to gather and share ideas, we might always just be this loose cosmos of artists, but I want us tight. It’s the only way to grow.” She confirmed that they have seven artists (which I agreed not to divulge, yet) ready to release material through their newly formed label, and trust me–it’s stuff to get excited about.

Bows and Arrows is moving to their 19th Street location in the near future (Rhomberg said they are aiming for a March 1, 2011 opening) and with the move comes a major expansion in their business model. Not only will they continue to sell vintage and repurposed clothing at the new location, they will also show art, host live music in conjunction with their label’s releases and offer food and drinks. In fact, Davis’ Fat Face was recently confirmed to run the café section! Seems like a lot to handle, especially with the addition of the label and all, but Rhomberg jokingly assures us they can manage it. “We are the get shit done girls.”

Sacramento Designers Look to Remove Small City Stigma

Words by Michaela Pommells
Photo above by Nick Avey

If you haven’t been a part of it, you may not know Sacramento’s fashion scene is as alive as it is. It reaches far beyond the chic boutiques on the Midtown grid. A dynamic class of needle and thread craftsmen make up a strong community of local designers. Yet, while they wipe sweat from their brow in the name of fashion, they can sometimes be overshadowed by the stigma of working in a smaller city.

The truth is Sacramento is home to artistic talent defined by relentless creativity and eccentricity. Here to relinquish the unaware from what some may perceive as local fashion doldrums are three capital city designers. Here are their insights on the local fashion scene and how they plan to breathe life into it.

Trisha Rhomberg is part of the local fashion scene’s legacy and future. Originally from St. Louis, she has developed strong roots in Sacramento. A self-taught seamstress, she began creating and selling her garments out of recycled materials while a studio art student at Sac State. In 2003 her clothing line, Pretty Trashy, was birthed in a downtown garage. She began selling Pretty Trashy at Olipom, a Midtown boutique owned by Olivia Coelho. Five years later, Rhomberg co-owns popular vintage boutique “Bows and Arrows” with Coelho and sells Pretty Trashy in over a dozen stores across the country and one in London.

She describes the current conditions as “Slowly rumbling…small tremors before the quake. Lots of talent [with] little things happening.” You’ll find no disillusionment in her voice as she describes what needs to happen to stimulate the local crowds.

“We need bigger venues to get involved, enough talent to fill a theater, enough support to fill the seats,” Rhomberg says. “Shows need more respectable stages. We have to reach out to the people who may not seem to know or care what’s going on in the little Sac fashion world and take a chance. You have to go after what you want. I’ll go get them. I’m going to find a bigger prettier stage to display our works of art.”

Incorporating a plethora of local artists to infuse their talents in the streets of Sacramento looks to be Rhomberg’s mission. She has linked with other local artists such as Lacadia Olson of Cuffs Urban Apparel and Deeda Salon, among others. She’s participated in innumerable local fashion shows with more in the works. She’s a likely candidate to lead the budding fashion scene in Sacramento.

Benzo Couture Photo by Jeremy Scott

To help further the crusade is Mercedes Ben, owner and designer of Benzo Couture. She officially began her fashion career two years ago. An apparel design student at Sac State, her ambition stretches far beyond the city limits.

Ben’s short presence on the local front doesn’t come with little experience. She’s lived in a handful of major cities before coming to Sacramento. She speaks of her time spent in New York, Los Angeles and Denver as the force behind many of her creations. The relationships she has formed through her travels allow her to display her art to many audiences. She will be showing her work with Betsy Johnson in an upcoming show in Denver.

Ben has seen a lot of change since hitting town. She watches with a close eye as more local designers emerge, striking interest with local boutiques and residents. She sees fashion events getting more crowded and respected. Ben’s sentiments are not unlike Rhomberg’s. Ben believes local designers can form a more unified front.

“I believe people love seeing the shows but there is still a lot of work that Sacramento and our small design community has to do to ever get it to the level of much larger cities,” Ben says.

Benzo has her sights set high. Her enthusiasm is seen in her efforts to expand as an international brand with results benefiting Sacramento.

“I will always show in Sacramento, but in order to put Sacramento on the fashion map, the rest of the world has to be exposed to the talent that is here,” she says.

Designer Jesus Medrano Photo by Andrea Telles

Whenever an industry is in need of change, hope often lies in its youth — not youth represented by a numerical digit but instead the kind that’s refreshing, unpretentious and optimistic. That is precisely what you will find in Jesus Medrano. He sees so much potential in Sacramento’s future he refuses the notion that it’s at all dull.

“I see Sac as the next L.A. or San Francisco,” he claims. “Soon designers from out of town will want to come here. All it needs is everyone to believe in it. It can be achieved we just have to change a few things. And I feel it’s happening already.”

Born in Mexico, Medrano comes to Sacramento from Los Angeles. His love for fashion was developed as a youngster by watching his trendsetting sister. He equates much of the slow-moving fashion scene to a lack of designers appreciating its art form. He wants local designers to get the communities feet wet with innovative shows and practical designs.

“Let’s not scare everyone with crazy fashions, let’s give them stylish wearable garments,” Medrano explains. “I think some Sacramento designers are pushing people’s interest away with things that they might not understand yet. I feel that if we want Sacramento to become addicted to fabulous fashions we have to give it to them in small doses.” Medrano realizes a hunger for fashion around town and has every intention of harvesting his fashion career in Sacramento.

Sacramento’s fashion scene undoubtedly has a steady pulse. Yet, so much talent lurks in the city’s streets waiting to be uncovered. An alliance between artists, local business owners and community members appears vital. These designers each have the potential to be Sacramento’s white knights. Those of us waiting for everyone else to get on board will have to put our faith in their hands.