WHAT GOES UP MUST COME DOWN: A Farewell to 530 South Coast HighwayAwake Service: December 14th, 2024 | 5:00 PM - 7:00 PMBurial Site Programming: Begins January 2025Gallery hours are 12-5 p.m. Monday through Saturday (Holiday hours may vary)From the organizers:OCEANSIDE, CA — Something about this cycle of gentrification feels permanent, like the tide has turned and will never recede. For generations, Oceanside was the city to come back to—a sanctuary where the rhythm of life was steady, the waves welcoming, and roots ran deep. But now, for many generational renters and working-class families, the city has become unrecognizable, slipping further away with each passing year.In collaboration with artist Marisa DeLuca, Hill Street Country Club invites the public to honor and mourn the Oceanside we once knew. Our exhibition and community gathering, What Goes Up, Must Come Down, reflects on the loss of affordable housing, familial spaces, and cultural authenticity in the face of aggressive gentrification.About the Artist: Marisa DeLuca is an Oceanside-based artist whose work delves into themes of home, displacement, and identity through mixed media, including painting, sculpture, and photography. A recent graduate of San Diego State University, Marisa’s art bridges the deeply personal with the universal, offering a lens into the transformative moments of her own life while reflecting on broader social changes.Her practice is rooted in memory and materiality, often using repurposed and site-specific found objects to tell stories of resilience and loss. Marisa’s recent works have focused on familial spaces and the erasure of community identity, exploring the psychological and socioeconomic impact of displacement on those most vulnerable to the sweeping changes of gentrification.Solo Exhibition by Marisa DeLuca: As part of the farewell programming, Hill Street Country Club is proud to present a solo exhibition of Marisa DeLuca’s work. Titled “What Goes Up Must Come Down”, this collection reflects on the impermanence of home and the emotional landscape of leaving a place behind. The exhibition, running from December 14, 2024, til Escrow Closes, will showcase Marisa’s poignant mixed-media installations and oil paintings that capture the tension between lost futures and the inevitability of change.An Oceanside Transformed: As Hill Street Country Club faces displacement from its beloved home at 530 South Coast Highway, many farewells are tied to California’s Ellis Act, which allows property owners to evict tenants in order to "withdraw" properties from the rental market. This policy has been increasingly exploited during the pandemic to issue no-fault evictions, often under the guise of minor renovations.Between 2020 and 2023, California saw a 40% rise in no-fault evictions, with cities like Oceanside disproportionately affected as landlords sought higher returns from an influx of wealthier residents. Policies originally designed to provide flexibility for landlords now serve as catalysts for widespread displacement, uprooting families, artists, and small businesses.Marisa and Hill Street share a profound connection to this transformation. The pier fire and subsequent renovations, a poignant metaphor for the city’s prioritization of tourism and affluence, parallel the displacement of its long-standing community pillars.Looking Ahead:During the Burial Site Programming beginning in January 2025, Hill Street Country Club will share its future plans and vision for supporting Oceanside’s creative community. As we transition to a new chapter in Barrio Logan, we remain committed to Oceanside’s artists, audiences, and the legacy of fostering cultural engagement.Hill Street will continue beloved programming such as the Oceanside Zine Fair, High Tea Music Festival, and Gentry Fries, ensuring these initiatives remain rooted in the city. We also aim to explore new opportunities, including land acquisition for a permanent community art center near the coast, offering studio spaces and a creative hub for future generations.Our commitment is steadfast: to amplify local voices, preserve authentic storytelling, and provide spaces for creativity and connection in Oceanside, even as the city evolves.A Funeral for the Oceanside We Knew:Join us on December 14th, from 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM, for an awake service celebrating what once was. This gathering will honor the memories we’ve created in this space: the laughter, the art, the collective dreams that gave life to our gallery and community.14 Years of Labor, Love, and LegacyHill Street Country Club has been a beacon for Oceanside’s creative community for 14 years, providing an accessible and authentic space for artists and neighbors to connect, create, and thrive. As we commemorate our contributions to Oceanside’s cultural landscape, we invite you to reflect with us on the power of community art spaces and the cost of their loss in the face of gentrification.Hill Street Country Club thanks you for being part of this journey. Let us celebrate the Oceanside that shaped us, even as we prepare to move forward. Together, we honor the past and embrace the future, knowing that every ending seeds a new beginning.
