Tag archives: arts

Art Exhibit Straddles the Intellectual, Spiritual
By Scott Craig   |   August 22, 2023

Celebrated Santa Barbara artist Linda Ekstrom offers a wide range of poetic, imaginative, and spiritual works of transformed fabric, paper, books, and gloves in an exhibition (August 31 – November 11) at the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art. A free opening reception Thursday, August 31 from 4-6 pm at the museum, honors Straddling Circumference…The Art […]

Discounts for Devotees of “The Dark”
By Steven Libowitz   |   August 15, 2023

The annual discount derby for the Santa Barbara International Film Festival next year is going on right now. SBIFF returns to town – or more accurately, dominates the entertainment calendar – from February 7-17, 2024, with its usual slate of celebrity tributes, industry panels, and 200 or so new independent and international films, including daily […]

Jenna Hamilton-Rolle Joins A&L Team
By Richard Mineards   |   July 25, 2023

Jenna Hamilton-Rolle, former director of education at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History and the Sea Center, is the new director of education and community engagement for UCSB Arts & Lectures. She brings many community connections to her new role, including administrators and educators at the Goleta and Santa Barbara Unified school districts, and […]

Dichotomy of Laundry
By Joanne A Calitri   |   July 18, 2023

Artist Colleen M. Kelly and Santa Barbara Poet Laureate Melinda Palacio are exhibiting a collaboration at the Silo Gallery in the Funk Zone from now through July 22. There will be an artist talk on July 15 at 4 pm to discuss the finer details behind the art and poems. Art and poetry are subjective […]

Art in the Club
By Richard Mineards   |   July 4, 2023

The Art Foundation of Santa Barbara took over the historic town club for its annual members’ art exhibition, which featured 45 works scattered throughout the venerable Chapala Street venue. The Santa Barbara Club’s featured speaker was British artist and gallery owner Ralph Waterhouse, who with his wife, Diane, recently opened a new gallery on Coast […]

Local Author Jana Zimmer Sheds Light on Her Four-Decade Journey
By Rachael Quisel   |   June 27, 2023

Jana Zimmer, an attorney and mixed media artist, has recently released Chocolates from Tangier: A Memoir of Art and Transformation by a Holocaust Replacement Child. In it, Zimmer knits together a narrative from her journals, poems, artwork, and the experiences of her parents — both Holocaust survivors. Her artwork, displayed throughout the memoir, engages in […]

A&L Going Strong at 64
By Richard Mineards   |   June 27, 2023

Social gridlock reigned at the Santa Barbara Club when 245 guests converged on the historic venue when UCSB Arts & Lectures, which is celebrating its 64th anniversary, revealed its slate of performances for the 2023-2024 season that features 48 events. These include recitals by Broadway star Audra McDonald and Kristin Chenoweth, jazz legend Herbie Hancock, […]

UCSB Arts & Lectures
By Steven Libowitz   |   June 20, 2023

From DakhaBrakha and The Linda Lindas to Lang Lang and Ballet Preljocaj, UCSB Arts & Lectures’ 2022-2023 season included a luminous lineup of both world-renowned and up-and-coming musicians in a variety of genres, dance companies of far-reaching dimensions, and a full slate of forward-thinking and timely speakers and spoken word artists.  The season was a […]

Event Honors ‘Mixed Up’ Artists
By Scott Craig   |   June 6, 2023

Rae Dunn, a popular Bay Area artist and juror of this year’s annual Tri-County Juried Exhibition, handed out cash awards to local artists on May 18 at the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art. Mixed Up celebrates the multitude of talented artists in our local region.  Dunn reviewed several hundred submissions from area artists for the […]

Arts Alive: Westmont, Waterhouse, and Walking Tour
By Steven Libowitz   |   May 23, 2023

Local artists are the focus of “Mixed Up,” the new exhibit at the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art. The annual Tri-County Juried Exhibition was curated this year by Rae Dunn, popular Bay Area-based ceramic artist, designer, author, and illustrator most recognized for her line of household wares, who will also display a small exhibition of […]

Empowering and Supporting Individuals with Mental Illness
By Ann Pieramici   |   May 23, 2023

May has long been recognized as National Mental Health Awareness Month, yet never before has the issue of mental health commanded the national conversation as urgently as it does today. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy has made mental health his top priority, declaring it “the defining public health crisis of our time,” much like when Dr. […]

Shaw, Sō and Soil 
By Steven Libowitz   |   April 25, 2023

Pulitzer Prize-winning composer and vocalist Caroline Shaw and the chamber music-redefining ensemble Sō Percussion weren’t planning on recording an album full of songs together back in 2019. Rather they were in the studio to lay down tracks for Shaw’s quartet “Taxidermy” and the Dawn Upshaw collaboration Narrow Sea – which later won a 2022 Grammy […]

Art Museum Offers ‘a space of her own’
By Scott Craig   |   April 18, 2023

A large crowd packed into the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art to see the stunning capstone projects of six senior art majors on April 6. A Space of Her Own – which features art projects ranging from paintings to prints, and from photography to sculptural installation – will be on display through May 6 at […]

Waterhouse Gallery Takes a New Stand in Montecito
By Amélie Dieux   |   April 4, 2023

After having contemporary, abstract, and fine art galleries color the town of Montecito, there’s another one on the horizon ready to captivate your senses. The Waterhouse Gallery, located at the Coast Village Plaza (1187 Coast Village Road, Suite 3, formerly the Scoops store), is where traditional contemporary works engage your art spirit, delight your eyes, […]

Conference Examines Liberal Arts, Climate Change
By Scott Craig   |   March 7, 2023

The 21st annual Conversation on the Liberal Arts explores how a liberal arts education can prepare us for the future, March 2-4 at the Global Leadership Center. “Educating for the Unknown: Liberal Arts in the Age of Climate Change,” sponsored by the Gaede Institute, attracts teachers, administrators, and students from around the country.  “We’ll spend […]

Talk Explores ‘Street Art Now’
By Scott Craig   |   February 28, 2023

G. James Daichendt, art critic, curator, art historian, and dean of the colleges at Point Loma University, examines how street art is changing the art world and how we engage art in a free public lecture, “Street Art Now,” on Thursday, Feb. 23, from 4:30 to 5:30 pm at the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art. […]

A Seat at the Table
By Gwyn Lurie   |   February 7, 2023

Anita Hill never wanted to testify before the Senate Judiciary committee. In fact, despite a stellar academic record, you probably would not know the name Anita Hill if not for veteran NPR Legal Affairs Correspondent Nina Totenberg. The same way you wouldn’t know the Watergate Hotel, if not for Woodward and Bernstein. How it came […]

A Trio of Stellar Shows
By Richard Mineards   |   February 7, 2023

UCSB’s popular Arts & Lectures series has been working overtime with three major shows in the last week, two at the Granada and a third at the more intimate Lobero. Mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato’s EDEN, a call to action to build a paradise for today fertilizing, nourishing, and protecting the pure bliss that is Earth, with […]

Changing How Art Matters: Exclusive Interview with SBMA’s Eik Kahng
By Joanne A Calitri   |   January 31, 2023

We are most honored to have spent time doing an in-depth interview with Eik Kahng PhD, Deputy Director, and Chief Curator of the Santa Barbara Museum of Art (SBMA). Preferring to concentrate on work minus the accolades, she graciously accepted to do it between curation, establishing new high-caliber art education programming for our town at […]

CAMA
By Steven Libowitz   |   January 24, 2023

Community Arts Music Association of Santa Barbara, aka CAMA, is deservedly well-known and cherished for its commitment and ability to bring the finest classical musicians from around the world to Santa Barbara, a cultural coup of musical riches that would normally be beyond the means for such a small community.  It helps that it all […]