Repping actors and becoming benefactors: known for Cruise and Hanks, now CAA's cruising for L.A.'s next picasso—and picking up the tab

The common stereotype of a Tinseltown talent agent is a sharp-tongued devil who only cares about his 10 percent, his Porsche and his regular table at the Ivy. However, Creative Artists Agency (CAA)--the powerhouse firm that represents Hollywood elite like Tom Hanks and Tom Cruise--is changing that image by putting its money where the art is. In 2000, CAA began working with five L.A.-area art schools--UCLA, Otis College of Art and Design, Art Center College of Design, CalArts and the University of California at Irvine--sponsoring scholarships for local students, as well as offering career guidance and increased exhibition opportunities--much of it in the famously art-filled CAA headquarters designed by I.M. Pei. Interview spoke with CAA's Michael Rubel, who oversees the program, and Daniel Torres (aka Daino), a scholarship recipient currently attending CalArts, about this surprisingly artful union.

MICHAEL RUBEL

MATT DIEHL: So how did CAA get into the art-scholarship business?

MICHAEL RUBEL: In 1995, new management took over the company. Almost within the same day, the CAA Foundation was established as our philanthropic arm; CAA's new president, Richard Lovett, established it to focus on primary and secondary education. I've been a bit of a maniac in the art and photography world, so the art scholarship program became my baby. We started thinking about what would be the most relevant approach to art in the building that would be consistent with the new company--something different from just putting a predictable print collection up on the walls. L.A. has the best aggregation of art colleges anywhere in the world, so we thought it would be terrific to celebrate the art in the region, establish scholarships and build a new collection based around young local artists.

MD: How did you choose the students?

MR: We picked five schools and let them choose the scholarship recipients according to need and perceived ability.

MD: How has CAA interacted with the students since the program began?

MR: We really try to connect with their lives beyond just saying, "Here's a check." Recently we brought in a panel of local artists and gallery owners to give the students a sense of how to move from the academic environment into the commercial world. There are artists in the program who've gained gallery representation as a result of being in CAA's collection. We haven't wanted to be commercial promoters, but we do want people to take a second look at work they otherwise might not have considered. We are in the business of growing artists' careers.

MD: It's not called Creative Artists Agency for nothing.

MB: Something like that. We're fortunate to earn a terrific living working with terrifically successful clients; to be able to stop for a minute and give back to the community creates real satisfaction within the organization.

DANIEL TORRES

MATT DIEHL: How did you get involved with the CAA program?

DANIEL TORRES: They were looking for people to support, and my school put me down to be considered.

MD: Were you surprised when you got the scholarship?

DT: Very surprised. I was having some financial issues; the school I go to [CalArts] is expensive, so it helped. But that's not all I get out of it: The program gives us opportunities to meet with working artists and gallery directors so we find out what's going on in the art world. Just knowing what goes on in L.A. helps.

MD: What were you trying to communicate in the work that we've reproduced on this page, Artist Kind?

DT: That painting reflects on critics who almost order you to make your work a certain way. I subverted Uncle Sam's "I Want You" image for my own artistic message--that I want to remain an individual. My work is very sarcastic; it can be funny, but mostly it's very political. I find more comfort with traditional mediums, but I'm becoming a lot more conceptual. I'm very influenced by the "low-brow" movement and graffiti artists, people like Robert Williams and Shepard Fairey, but it's important for me to have a message in my work. Nowadays a lot of artists have become afraid to express their political side. I'm interested in global issues, and I try to educate people with my work.

MD: The CAA art program is a way for them to give back to the community. Do you have similar goals?

DT: I'm Latino, so I want to do work that Latin people understand. I want to go back to the community and help kids who need that extra push--my art teacher did that for me in high school. Before I started at CalArts I worked with the AmeriCorps for a year, helping kids with art and music, and I want to continue doing that; it's my passion. I want to do my own small part for the world.

Mall Diehl is a frequent Interview contributor.

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