Submit Date: Jan 26, 2022
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City of Napa Boards & Commissions
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Mailing Address (if different than Resident Address above) Length of Residence in the City of Napa:
7.5 years
Length of Residence in the County of Napa:
7.5 years
Registered to vote in the City of Napa?
Yes No
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Caucasian/Non-Hispanic
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Which Boards would you like to apply for?
Public Art Steering Committee: Submitted
Julie Eppich
EPPICHarts Owner
Julie Eppich
ATTACHMENT 1
Upload a Resume
Question applies to Public Art Steering Committee
1 of 5 Members MUST be a Visual Arts Professional. Are you applying as a Visual Arts Professional?
Yes No
Question applies to Public Art Steering Committee
2 of 5 Members MUST be Practicing Professional Artists in any medium. Are you applying as a Practicing Professional Artist?
Yes No
Community Service Experience:
CHILDREN'S MUSEUM OF NAPA VALLEY - Initiated and conceptualized the hardcover art book project, "Creating In Place - A Napa Valley Youth Art Collective", which was published in March 2021, and includes art & literary works by nearly 300 children of Napa County. Every child that submitted work is in the book. I volunteered my time as the editor and graphic designer of this book, and continue to help support the youth of Napa County by marketing, designing the marketing, and organizing events to support the creative efforts in this book and to raise awareness of the CMONV initiative to build a museum in Napa County. CARE FOUNDATION - Volunteered my time in helping to raise funds and have actively participated in building/stocking libraries with books in Cambodia. Our most recent library was completed in 2019. The founder of this foundation is a Khmer Rouge genocide survivor, and he believes reading is what helped him to survive in a refugee/prisoner camp for nearly a decade. I help to raise awareness about his story, the story of the Cambodian genocide survivors and the subsequent immigration of thousands of Cambodians to Long Beach, CA and what they have endured in adjusting to a new life in a new home over the decades. CAMBODIA - A PHOTO JOURNAL EXHIBIT BY JULIE EPPICH My photography exhibit travels where requested to raise cultural awareness regarding the Cambodian Community, their history and survival of genocide. I volunteer my time, money and efforts whenever and wherever my exhibit may be of help to support an event. Upon the invitation of the Consul General of Cambodia, my photography exhibit has twice been included in official celebrations as a means to support and educate communities beyond the Cambodian community itself. The exhibit has also recently been to Austin Texas and Hayward California in support of the Caring For Cambodia Organization, adding another layer of education and visual arts to their events/fundraisers. #PEACEBYEXAMPLE - I have initiated a grass roots campaign called #peacebyexample. My mission is to inspire towards unity and nonviolent means of change and movement forward, regardless of political affiliation or personal beliefs. I feel if we can all live by positive example, I believe we can make the change in the world that most of us want. The mission is to inspire that even a single individual, just by how they live in their daily life, can make great change, even unexpectedly or without exact intent to do so....as there have been many before us that have. My mission and website (which I built) can be found at www.peacebyexample.com Education:
Indiana University, Bachelors in Economics, 1994 Indiana University, Associates in Business Studies, 1990
Julie Eppich
ATTACHMENT 1
Other relevant experience or expertise:
HOSPITALITY EXPERTISE - In addition to my 20 years of experience in international visual arts and events management, alongside my arts background, I have extensive career experience in the restaurant/hospitality industry. I have a distinct understanding of the ongoing economic parameters facing Napa Valley and its local population with regard to restaurants/hospitality. Most significant to my hospitality experience, I managed a $2M a year events program for a 300 seat steakhouse in Miami Florida. I know almost every aspect of running a restaurant from the front-of-the-house perspective. This work experience has taught me to think on my feet, be resourceful, learn how to communicate effectively with clients/guests in almost every imaginable circumstance, and truly understand the challenges the hospitality industry faces on a daily basis. There has never been a more important time for communities, and all its components within, to work together for its success and well-being. Most importantly, I believe art, particularly public art, can help communities evolve, transcend, heal and grow on every level. I also believe art, in many forms, can have a positive and direct impact on the economic success of a community. INTERNATIONAL ARTS - My primary work experience in the arts began during the 3 years I lived in Singapore. During this time, through my work with local Asian art companies, I studied Chinese antiquities as well as contemporary Asian fine art. I had the unique experience of marketing, developing and managing a gallery concept which was ultimately opened in the world famous Raffles Hotel in Singapore. I returned to the US to open my own Asian art gallery in the renowned River North Gallery District in Chicago. I spent close to a decade traveling Southeast Asia seeking out and representing overseas artists, and supporting their works and cultures in my gallery. My experience includes arts marketing, overseas logistical management, events marketing and management, building customer relationships, website development and social media marketing. For more information regarding my desire to be more active in my community thru art, please listen here to my interview with Ira Smith at KVON which includes my guest, CARE Foundation founder Steve Meng. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1kgyx65arqFPo52RlB-M-zdHEWFGS2_L-/view PERFORMING ARTS MANAGEMENT - I am the West Coast Representative/Booking Agent for a roster of world class performing artists / musicians & dance companies. One of my key roles when booking these artists into theaters and live music venues is working together with the venues and supporting the artist's role in engaging in the communities where they perform. All of our artists are a part of our extensive Arts In Education catalog comprised of many levels/offerings of community outreach and engagement programs.
GRAPHIC DESIGN - for book publishing, brochures, email blasts, social media - Adobe, Mailchimp, Constant Contact, Microsoft Publisher.
Additional Questions
What is your understanding of the role and responsibility of this board? To work as a team to assist in developing public art programs and their trajectories, as well as to advise the City Council Of Napa about placing funding for public art programs and installations that positively and directly support the well-being of our Napa community.
Have you ever attended a meeting of this board? If so, how many? No
What duties of this board are most interesting to you?
To attend meetings, and collaboratively engage with a variety of community art organizations for a common cause - supporting Napa Valley thru the arts. I would look forward to hearing ideas / initiatives / long term goals and how we can work together to achieve the goals.
What activities of this board are least interesting to you? I have never served on a board, so I am honestly not sure.
Julie Eppich
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What programs or projects would you like to see improved or implemented? Having lived in Napa for almost 8 years, it has been incredible to see the growing movement of public art and creative programs and the imprint it has had in the public realm of our community. I would be honored to support the existing trajectory, and to colloborate with the tremendous initiatives already in place.
Project Templates/Ideas: # 1: A PASSPORT ART SERIES featuring multi-cultural artists from different countries around the world - sharing their cultures/stories/art with the Napa community, bridging understanding and compassion thru a diverse approach. This could be quarterly, bi-annually or annually.
There could also be a sister program to this where we bring Napa County culture/local artists to other countries in a 'art-exchange' program. The artists we bring in could also visit our schools in structured community outreach programs. #2: NAPA ARTWALK - quarterly. First Fridays are common and successful in larger cities. I feel that Napa County could structure and be successful at a quarterly artwalk (ArtWALK Summer / ArtWALK Fall / ArtWALK Winter / ArtWALK Spring - engaging in our downtown businesses & tasting rooms. This could be a single weekend, each quarter, with a Friday night opening walk, where we put local artists works into 'host' businesses (i.e. our existing retail businesses/tasting rooms/hotels and/or galleries), and where the works would be on display for Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
If a business wants to keep the work up longer it is at their discretion, but the 'host' business would sponsor an artist only for the specified weekend, therefore not interfering with their own business, but benefiting from a cohesive marketing effort - art/business/city would work together for marketing/community/business exposure in support of local/regional art scene. Our current and next generation of creatives need a cohesive way to support each other, safely gather and to be inspired to join in and actively support the evolution of downtown Napa and Napa County. #3: ARTNAPA - I have conceptualized and written a 4 day template for a world class international art fair which includes engaging local restaurants/wineries/businesses/community/culinary components all from within our own community. We have Bottlerock and Festival Napa Valley, both amazing and successful festivals - our world-class destination and diverse community is more than capable and ready to host a world class art festival like a mini Art Basel, Art Miami, Tokyo international Art Fair or TEFAF as it is held in NYC. I believe Napa can hold a world class, yet intimate cross-over genre fair bridging international art & cuisine and bringing an 'ArtNapa' to the international forefront of art festivals. IMMERSIVE DOMES: Immersive experiences are gaining momentum around the globe (i.e. Van Gogh Immersive Exhibit). Domes are a great way to join the momentum, can be temporarily installed with a single large dome, or a small 'city' of a variety of dome sizes. Domes are an AMAZING way to bring Art / Music together, can be a ticketed entrance for revenue, and can have many types of experiences during a set amount of time (i.e. 1 or 2 months). What is projected on the walls can be evolving and ever-changing as well as the variety of music experiences inside the dome....think of it as art/music pairings. Sponsored events within the domes (lunch/dinner/receptions/wine tasting) can also be pre-sold to help with the upfront cost of installing/operating the dome, then followed up by ticket sale revenue.
How would you approach improving these project(s) or program(s)? More coordination in crossover marketing amongst all the Napa arts organizations - supporting the overall arts efforts in our community whether the organizations are working directly on a project together or not.
Wondering if Press Releases for existing festivals/installations/programs are going to major International Arts magazines / publications?
Are you involved in any organizations or activities that may result in a conflict of interest if you are appointed to this board?
no
Please list two local references and their phone numbers:
Julie Eppich
ATTACHMENT 1
How did you learn of this vacancy?
Other
Julie Eppich
ATTACHMENT 1
Julie R. Eppich
EDUCATION Bachelor of Arts Degree in Economics, Indiana University, USA, May 1994 Certificate in Business Studies, Indiana University, USA, May 1990
ARTS/ARTS EVENTS
10/18 – current Owner, EPPICHarts, Napa, CA www.eppicharts.com - Oct 2018 - Launched home based arts company with inaugural exhibit at a well-known downtown Napa wine tasting room, The Wine Thief. Inaugural show is a Cambodian photo journal exhibit by Julie with images taken in 2003. This exhibit included pictures of the famous ancient city of Angkor, Cambodian daily life, Cambodian children, and the floating villages. The exhibit was designed to be a cultural and educational experience with a combination of travel/journal notes and educational background about Cambodia and its historic structures. The exhibit was designed to be gallery style or in a mobile configuration. - Nov 2018 and Nov 2019 - Cambodian photo journal exhibit traveled to Long Beach, CA at the invitation of the Consul General of Cambodia as part of the 65th anniversary celebration of the independence of Cambodia. - Julie has begun to support the mission of the CARE Foundation by raising money to help build libraries in rural Cambodia. Julie travels to Cambodia to help set up and participate in the inaugural ceremonies of the libraries, as well as contributing to the purchase of learning materials. - Sept 2021 – Cambodian photography exhibit was selected to be a part of the Cambodia Town Film Fest in Long Beach, CA
- Caring For Cambodia Foundation – selected Cambodian photography exhibit to accompany fundraising galas in Hayward CA and Austin TX Fall 2021
- Develop, Manage and Execute Private Dining & Events program for local winemaker 4/17 – current Owner, Team Rescue, Napa, CA www.teamrescue.club - Julie’s son, 11-year-old Zion Micah Lee, founded a universal awareness campaign in 2017 (when he was 7) for kids to rescue, save and protect animals and wildlife. Team Rescue is based on Zion’s artwork depicting wildlife animals. These artworks have been transferred onto t-shirts, hats and prints and are available at booth events as well as Team Rescue’s online store. Team Rescue has partnered with the Napa Wildlife Rescue and donates a percentage of all proceeds to that organization.
- Zion is the youngest member in the history of the Napa Chamber of Commerce - Julie schedules and implements speaking engagements for Zion so that he may learn how to connect, network and be involved in his community. Zion has spoken at his school assembly, on the radio 4 times, given laptop presentations to the board of directors for the Napa Wildlife Rescue, Sonoma Ecology Center Marine Mammal Center, has been the keynote speaker at Napa Chamber of Commerce Leads Over Lunch, and the Kiwanis Club. - Julie organizes events for the children with the Team Rescue Club Membership program. These events are field trips for the children to go out with educators and learn how activists, environmentalists, scientists, and animal rescue organizations go about protecting our planet.
- Team Rescue has had booth exhibits at two Napa Chamber Business Showcase events, two Earth Day Napa events, two Napa Wildlife Rescue call for volunteer events, the Sonoma Ecology Center Day of the Child celebration
8/18 – current West Coast Representative, Siegel Artist Management, Wilkes-Barre, PA www.siegelartist.com - Agent representative - booking performances for a roster of 28 performing artists in a variety of music and family programing genres including classical, jazz, bluegrass, world music, science, culture - Services a 7-state territory, with direct contact to performing arts centers, musical/theatre venues, universities, community centers
- Agency has specialty in booking Arts In Education programs alongside live performances - Attends regional arts conferences as a representative for Siegel Artist Management 5/97 – 2/05 Owner, The Eastern Gallery, Chicago, IL (Asian Art Gallery) - Planned, marketed and implemented numerous art gallery events, several of which included collaborating with top local restaurants and various types of musical entertainment - Designed numerous invitations and implemented numerous direct mail programs - Designed ads and press releases for such magazines as Chicago Magazine, Where Magazine, Chicago Reader, Chicago Social, Architectural Digest, Elle Decor, Metropolitan Home - Controlled all bookkeeping, inventory control, balance sheets, P/L statements, invoicing and sales tax payments with Quickbooks program
- Organized and wrote business plans and budgets, including cash flow projections, income projections and break- even analysis
- Organized and planned several gallery shows in which represented artists were brought in from such countries as Vietnam and China
- Handled freight logistics for numerous imports from China, Vietnam, India, Singapore - Handled shipping and insurance for art sales to clients on national and international level - Traveled extensively sourcing art and antiques throughout Southeast Asia - Serviced several clients with Asian inspired interior design, art installations - Responsible for all store design, display and show installations - Represented roster of artists from countries such as Singapore, China, Vietnam, India, USA ATTACHMENT 1
5/98 - 9/01 Owner, Easthetics, Chicago, IL (Asian Home Furnishings, Retail)
- Traveled extensively to India, Indonesia and Philippines working with furniture and silk manufacturers developing own line of home furnishings and own label of fabric products including quilts, bedding, wall tapestries - Planned, marketed and implemented several unique art installations with cocktail receptions - Hosted famous National Geographic photographer Steve McCurry for his book launch with a sit-down dinner reception on-site, including publishers, book retailers, and journalists - Managed staff to run day-to-day operations of retail store - Prepared extensive partnership agreements with attorney - Responsible for all store display, design and show installations - Designed and had produced overseas several custom furniture pieces
5/95 - 1/97 General Manager, Exotica Fine Art Gallery, Raffles Hotel, Singapore, Republic of Singapore
- Main responsibility was to increase art and antique sales, manage day-to-day business operations while the director/owner traveled to source for product
- Other responsibilities included inventory tracking and control, preparing monthly sales reports, tracking invoices and handling all bank deposits, credit card deposits and outstanding accounts receivables correspondence - Handled all aspects of freight forwarding for overseas client purchases - Participated in the planning and design of all direct mail invitations and announcements, solely responsible for mailing list entries and maintenance which resulted in an additional 10,000 addresses for company usage
- Responsible for all customer follow-up by co-coordinating deliveries, providing a detailed and well-written description of the piece purchased as well as providing other articles and background information useful in educating the client about Chinese antiques - Responsible for majority of store display and show installations - Assisted owner in implementing a gallery concept in the world-famous Raffles Hotel
RESTAURANT/EVENTS/MANGERIAL
9/14 – 6/21 Kitchen Door, Napa, CA - Waitress
08/13 – 06/14 Makoto, Bal Harbor (Miami), FL – Waitress, Upscale Japanese Cuisine - Stephen Starr restaurant – widely respected East Coast based restaurant group - Extensive testing required in order to complete training process (9 tests) - My service was consistently requested by management for VIP tables - Unusual style of fine dining service with multiple plates, Japanese style service - Service required detailed and coordinated table management for a successful dining experience - Extensive wine list including sake, mixology program
02/09 – 08/13 Rare Steakhouse, Miami Beach, FL – General Manager, Events Director - Managerial: Possess all keys, opening/closing duties, weekly tip spreadsheets, daily cash reconciliation, daily venue report, server check outs - Managerial: front desk operations: monitor daily and special event reservations in OpenTable, floor planning, server assignments, email/phone/fax correspondence with guests - Managerial: liquor/wine inventory maintenance, liquor/wine vendor relations, order placing - Events: follow up on leads, menu creation based on budgets, email/phone correspondence, contracting, planning and implementing, logistics, coordinate with executive chef all stages of each on-premise event - Managerial: Responsible for the accounting/processing of a unique cultural weekly banquet program consisting of PREPAID Friday Dinner/Saturday Lunch reservations ranging from 150-650 PREPAID meals each Friday/Saturday combined. Accounting includes gathering individually signed credit card authorization contracts, invoicing and processing charges. Provide weekly reconciliation report to owner including deposit detail and sales analysis using Quickbooks. Annual sales of these events total nearly $ 2 Million/year.
01/08 – 02/09 Quinns, Fine Dining, South Beach, FL – Dinner Server
01/06 – 01/08 May Street Market, Fine Dining, Chicago, IL – Dinner Server, Wine Inventory Control
- Dinner server, American contemporary cuisine with European influence, Micros POS system - Helped to open restaurant, implementing service standards and systems - Consistent high sales amongst staff
- Responsible for wine inventory maintenance and daily updates of wine list & glass pours - Assisted General Manager/Partner in maintaining high standard of service on the floor - Restaurant offered a la carte menu as well as 7 course tasting menu with wine pairing options
ATTACHMENT 1
10/04 – 1/06 Bin 36, Fine Dining, Chicago, IL – Dinner Service - Dinner server, American cuisine, OpenTable reservation system, Aloha POS system - Consistent high sales amongst service staff
- Attended mandatory weekly wine training to support extensive wine list by the glass and bottle - Fine dining service included detailed knowledge of 50 wines by the glass from around the world, which were also available in 12 specific flights
- Dinner service included having extensive knowledge of the following consumer options: a la carte menu, 30 cheeses for cheese course selections available either a la carte or in specific flights, 4 course tasting menu with wine pairing options - Quarterly detailed mandatory tests on 50 wines by the glass, 12 wine flights, 30 cheeses, 6 cheese flights, and the new quarterly menu specs written by chef for the a la carte menu 7/04 – 10/04 Butterfield 8, Supper Club, Fine Dining & Upscale Club, Chicago, IL – Dinner/Cocktail Service 11/03 – 7/04 Allen’s New American Cafe, Fine Dining, Chicago, IL – Manager/Events Marketing - Evening Manager; responsibilities including staffing, event marketing & coordination, wine sales
ADDITIONAL WORK EXPERIENCE
8/93 - 8/94 Maple Leaf Farms, Milford, Indiana
Largest Producer of Whole-Body Duck, Foodservice & Retail Distribution - Duties involved keeping customer informed of product availability, delivery times, price changes, promotional periods and items, acting as a liaison for the regional/direct sales representatives - Solely responsible for tracking all orders and preparing a weekly report of shortages and problems for the Corporate Distribution Manager
- Trained to handle all military accounts (domestic and overseas) which included handling all overseas contracts and pricing, payment/credit problems and invoicing - Other responsibilities included phone sales and order entry ATTACHMENT 1