A Monarch butterfly along the Santa Monica Boardwalk on Friday, July 9, 2010.



A Bloomingdale's banner flies over Santa Monica Bay on Friday advertising its grand opening at Santa Monica Place on August 6, 2010. Fashioned after New York City's Soho location, Bloomingdale’s Santa Monica will anchor the Santa Monica Place shopping center. This contemporary men’s and women's specialty store will occupy over 80,000 square feet of selling space, and each level is designed to capture the diversity and culture of Santa Monica while adding a distinctive Bloomingdale's presence. 

Members of the public participate in Santa Monica Civic Center Park's Community Workshop + Open House + Site Walk on Saturday, July 24, 2010. The workshop was held on the project site, directly across from City Hall. This workshop was the first in a series that will give the public an opportunity to meet the project team, become familiar with the site, and engage in a number of activities that will yield input to help shape the parks.

The planning and design process that will turn seven acres of open space in Santa Monica’s Civic Center into two important new public parks is beginning. Community members are encouraged to make their mark by visiting the project website at www.smciviccenterparks.com, taking the online survey, and attending a community workshops.

As envisioned in the City’s Civic Center Specific Plan, the new parks will be located directly in front of and across the street from Santa Monica City Hall, 1685 Main Street. They will provide a vital connection between the Civic Center area, the Santa Monica Pier and Palisades Park. James Corner Field Operations was selected to lead the project design team.

Whether or not members of the public can attend the workshop, all are encouraged to complete a brief on-line survey at www.smciviccenterparks.com, and sign up for the project interest list to receive notices of future meetings.

Questions can be emailed to ccs@smgov.net.



Jovanotti (aka Lorenzo Cherubini) performs during the 26th Annual Twilight Dance Series at the Santa Monica Pier on Thursday, July 22, 2010.

Jovanotti fills stadiums in his native Italy and throughout Latin America. He sets out this summer to bring his synthesis of rap and rock to festivals across America. Jovanotti’s music has transformed from its early roots in hip-hop and rap to a broader hybrid, incorporating pointed lyrics which address philosophical, religious, social, and political issues, more typical of a singer-songwriter, Italian cantautore tradition.

He has recorded eleven studio albums, the four most recent releases reaching #1 in Italy. Over the past twenty years Jovanotti has collaborated with Brazil’s Daniela Mercury, Sergio Mendes and Carlinhos Brown, and recorded alongside Ben Harper, Michael Franti (Spearhead) and Bono (U2). Jovanotti appears on several international compilations, most notably Red Hot + Rhapsody, a 1998 tribute to George Gershwin, on which he performs "I Got Rhythm." His song "Piove" is featured on the CD Peppers & Eggs from the soundtrack of the TV series The Sopranos.

Singer/songwriter Jace Everett performs during the 26th Annual Twilight Dance Series at the Santa Monica Pier on Thursday, July 22, 2010.

Indiana-born, Texas-raised, singer/songwriter Jace Everett became enamored by both gospel music and the works of Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings in his teenage years. Jace's upbri...nging in the evangelical church and his far-flung travels are apparent in his songs: “The church is where I learned about music, played bass and did my first real public singing where the girls thought I was really cool. I’ve always been attracted to emotionally and spiritually mature themes, both philosophically and musically.”

Jace's song 'Bad Things' is the “theme” song, heard over the opening title montage of True Blood, HBO"s most successful series since The Sopranos. As the third season begins, Jace Everett releases his own new album “Red Revelations” and hits the road playing these songs. Everett’s music evokes the complex, vividly emotional terrain of his diverse influences; Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis, Ray Charles, Jim Morrison, Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash and Marvin Gaye; and springs from the same sources of inspiration, contradiction and risk.

Chilean hip-hop artist Ana Tijoux was born in France to a French mother and a Chilean father while they were living in exile during the Pinochet dictatorship. After the country’s return to democracy, the family moved back to Chile. While studying literature in school, Anita began immersing herself in Santiago’s hip-hop underground. Rhyming first in French, then later in Spanish, Tijoux found “…a platform to talk about all kinds of things" in a way that was cathartic.

Santa Monica Police Activity Members and Santa Monica Boys and Girls Club memberstake photos at McGrath Family Farm during Santa Monica Bay Human Relations Council's Kids With Cameras Summer Photo Workshop on Wednesday, July 21, 2010. The class is taught by photojournalist Fabian Lewkowicz.