Tag archives: artists

The Little Town That Could
By Lynda Millner   |   July 8, 2021

I wish I had thought of that title, but Leslie A. Westbrook did in an article she wrote about Carpinteria. It deserves a rerun because their Art Center in the middle of downtown (855 Linden Avenue) is a happening place and one that everyone can enjoy. They just welcomed in a new executive director, Linda […]

Exhibit Spotlights Area Artists ‘At the Edges’
By Scott Craig   |   June 24, 2021

The creative works of 31 local artists are front and center in the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art’s new show, At the Edges: Tri-County Juried Exhibition, on display through June 19. Visitors are welcome Monday through Friday between 10 am – 4 pm, while the exhibition is open. Before coming to campus, guests will be […]

Riding Life’s Waves: Gail Steinbeck Continues to Innovate
By Zach Rosen   |   June 17, 2021

The course of life can be as wild and unpredictable as crashing waves. Yet, with a little curiosity, practice, and a touch of tenacity, one can weather the waves, surfing on top of their crest as you face the flow of life.  For Gail Steinbeck, she has been surfing the waves of life since she […]

Tale of the Hobo Artist: John Dwight Bridge Enters Existential Crisis That Leads Him Around the World
By Hattie Beresford   |   May 20, 2021

In the early 1920s, the artist John Dwight Bridge was a popular and important force in the cultural renaissance fostered by the Community Arts Association. Having proven himself in earlier productions of the Community Arts Players, he may have reached his apex when he took on the role of Nicola, the Bulgarian manservant in George […]

First-Ever Artist in Residence Joins Santa Barbara Botanic Garden
By Nick Schou   |   May 6, 2021

From April 21 to June 27, 2021, the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden will welcome Canada-born artist Libby Holland as its first-ever Artist in Residence. For eight weeks, Holland will immerse herself in the garden’s native plantings for an exploration of “blooming where you’re planted and allowing yourself to be free” with her collection “Grow Wild.” […]

The Oak Group: Artist Activists
By Leslie Westbrook   |   April 29, 2021

Summerland boasts an array of natural beauty. The sea is the most obvious asset, but gently rolling hills dotted with wild mustard, when rains and Mother Nature have cooperated, and other spots beckon nature lovers and wildlife, including Brandt’s cormorants, which I will get to in a moment. The landscape has long lured artists with […]

Art Graduates Persevere in ‘Untold’ Exhibition
By Scott Craig   |   April 22, 2021

During a year in which the world’s art galleries and museums have been closed, 13 graduating art majors overcame innumerable obstacles to offer their capstone art projects on April 8. The exhibit, which includes oil paintings, drawings, collages, digital illustrations, sculptural installations, prints, photographs, videos, and stop-motion animation will be on display through May 8 […]

Lotusland Art Sale
By Kelly Mahan Herrick   |   April 22, 2021

In an effort to rethink traditional in-person fundraising efforts, Lotusland has announced a new benefit event, Sanctuary.  Earlier this year, 36 local artists were asked to create new work inspired by Lotusland. The artists were given three days to visit the Garden and only eight weeks to create, capture, and complete their muse at Lotusland. […]

A Life in Focus
By Katherine Stewart   |   April 22, 2021

From photojournalist in Tennessee to two tours as Second Lady to a new start in Montecito, Tipper Gore has had a remarkable journey To spend time with Tipper Gore – even by phone, as I did, thanks to COVID-19 safety restrictions – is to marvel at the vivid tapestry of her life. As the nation’s Second Lady […]

The Constant of Change
By Gwyn Lurie   |   April 22, 2021

Why do people who can live anywhere so often choose to live here? With its recent influx of newcomers, some fear Montecito is changing. I suppose it’s true that every new resident – even every new visitor – puts a mark on a place, bringing with them their unique story, their aspirations, their values. It […]

Arts in Lockdown #24: Artist Baret Boisson
By Joanne A Calitri   |   April 1, 2021

Baret Boisson is an American artist currently working from her studio in Carpinteria. Her renowned series, “Inspiring Greatness,” which opened at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis in 2016, continues to this day with a new portrait of Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman, commissioned by Lisa Loiacono Lloyd. The series began humbly with her passion […]

Thomas Reynolds Gallery
By Lynda Millner   |   March 25, 2021

There’s something new at 1331 State Street: the Thomas Reynolds Gallery near the Arlington Theatre! The Gallery was founded in 1994 in San Francisco in the Pacific Heights neighborhood and was known for contemporary California art and artists. I met with Thomas Reynolds the other day and he said, “I am also an editor-publisher and […]

Plaza Granada Breaks Ground
By Richard Mineards   |   March 11, 2021

A new pathway to the historic arts district in downtown Santa Barbara, Plaza Granada, broke ground near the venerable theater. The project, costing nearly $2 million raised from donors and theater board members, will totally transform the parking lot behind the Granada and the pedestrian walkway into a safer, more accessible, and aesthetically pleasing space […]

Arts in Lockdown #22: Bi-Racial Arts Champion Entrepreneur & Mom Ashley Woods Hollister
By Joanne A Calitri   |   March 11, 2021

The multi-faceted bi-racial Ashley Woods Hollister is an arts champion and curator, and supporter of the Santa Barbara nonprofit community. She’s served on the boards of Explore Ecology, on the Santa Barbara Mental Wellness Center since 2007, and just joined the board of the Foundation for Climate Change Action. She is the co-founder of T.W. […]

Museum Exhibits, Sells 450 Art Pieces
By Scott Craig   |   December 10, 2020

The Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art celebrates its 10th anniversary with a fundraising exhibition, “5×5: Celebrating Ten Years,” which features about 450, five-inch-square works of art from December 3-18. The art will be available for purchase through an online auction at westmont.edu/museum/5×5 that ends Friday, December 18, at 5 pm. The exhibition, which benefits the […]

Art Gifts to Find New Home at Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art
By Scott Craig   |   November 19, 2020

The Forest Foundation, which has supported the arts and education in California and Illinois since 1963, is donating several sculptures and more than three dozen pedestals and sculptural stands to the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art. Museum officials are working with Brander Vineyard to create a long-term sculpture exhibition at the Santa Ynez winery. “Navigating […]

SBIFF: Grappling with Graphics
By Steven Libowitz   |   November 18, 2020

Last year marked the 50th anniversary of John Van Hamersveld‘s iconic “Crazy World Ain’t it” emoji – it was called an illustration back in 1969 when Van Hamersveld created his first versions of the drawing at Bellevue Studio on Bonnie Brea in Echo Park and went on to develop the idea for a T-shirt graphic […]

UCSB Arts & Lectures’ House Calls: Just What the Doctor Ordered
By Steven Libowitz   |   September 24, 2020

UCSB Arts & Lectures is by far the area’s busiest arts organization, presenting in the pre-pandemic era upwards of 100 public events every academic year, not to mention add-ons in the summer. So, naturally A&L is stepping to the front of the line again as the COVID-19 crisis passes the six-month mark. After transferring its […]

Graduating Seniors Art Exhibition Goes Online
By Scott Craig   |   August 20, 2020

Twelve Westmont art graduates, unable to exhibit their artwork at the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum on campus in May due to COVID-19, are displaying their senior projects virtually. “Adjacent: Westmont Graduate Exhibition 2020” is available in person at the museum only to the artists and their families by prior appointment. The exhibition, including a virtual tour, […]

Arts Lockdown Series Part 3: Skye Gwilliam and Dari Mos
By Joanne A Calitri   |   August 20, 2020

It’s 2016 and a millennial Santa Barbara gallery owner and multi-medium visual artist is seated writing furiously in his journal at the Café Rendez-Vous des Amis in Montmartre, once home to 19th century artists Gauguin, Monet, Degas, and Cézanne. Also sitting there is a chic femme artist-musician from Belarus studying philosophy at Sorbonne University Paris. […]