Tag archives: Santa Barbara Maritime Museum

In keeping with the celebration of March 2024 as Women’s History Month (spoiler alert!) this column is going to contain some seriously shameless bragging! At the close of this month I’d like to send the memo that, both in a professional capacity and as volunteers, every month of any year Santa Barbara women make huge […]

Santa Barbara Maritime Museum was even more magical than usual when it hosted the “Heist at the Harbor: An Evening of Mystery and Intrigue” gala for 120 guests, which raised around $100,000 for the harborside institution. The boffo bash, co-chaired by immediate past president Sigrid Toye and Cindy Makela, also celebrated benefactors Robyn Parker and […]

There is something very exciting happening at the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum! Of course, there are always exciting things going on at SBMM, however this is something very special to be enjoyed (and loved!) by the entire family. Having opened on Wednesday, February 8th, the Maritime Museum’s new exhibit, ICE BEAR, puts on display a […]

The pier opposite the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum was heaving with guests when the recreation of the 19th century gaff-rigged 110-foot 98-ton steel-hulled schooner Mystic Whaler was recommissioned in its new role – an educational vessel for youngsters, 10 to 18, run by Central Coast Ocean Adventures. Originally launched in Florida in 1967, it spent […]

Santa Barbara Maritime Museum has three new board members – Don Barthelmess, Tom Elliott, and Chad Makela. The 21-member board provides oversight to the stewardship of the harborside organization, and the tony triumvirate brings a unique skill set and experience to the role.

The 2003 epic period war-drama Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World concerns a British captain pushing his ship and crew to their limits in pursuit of a French war vessel off the South American coast. Based on Patrick O’Brian’s beloved series of novels set in the Napoleonic Wars, the film received 10 […]

Santa Barbara Maritime Museum has a new deputy director, Jessica Tade. Tade, who holds a Ph.D. in art history from UCSB, has worked for more than a decade for organizations either promoting the arts or providing access and opportunity to the community. Among other positions, she has served as the director of communications and marketing […]

Santa Barbara Maritime Museum has just opened its latest illuminating exhibit, The Lure of Lighthouses & Dancing Waves, an impressive collection of more than 35 large-scale images and panoramic photographs of waves and lighthouses around the world taken by renowned Emmy Award-winning surfing photographer and videographer Dan Merkel. “I first met Dan when he joined […]

Santa Barbara Choral Society, under veteran conductor Jo Anne Wasserman, was in fine form with its eighth annual Hallelujah Project at the Lobero, which also included Sing! program choral students from the Music Academy and pajama-clad president Scott Reed in a rocking chair reciting ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas. Accompanied by an orchestra, the enthusiastic […]

Social gridlock reigned at artist Colette Cosentino’s Atelier and Gallery on West Anapamu when she opened her latest exhibition in collaboration with former Sunstone Winey vintner Anna Rice, who is using Colette’s artwork for her labels on her wine, including the Brut Rosé and Chardonnay. “It’s the perfect melding,” says Anna, now owner of the […]

Teresa Kuskey Nowak’s birthday bash at the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum may have had an Under the Sea theme, but there was not a flipper or snorkel to be seen when 112 guests descended on the harborside institution for the fun fête hosted by social gadabout Rick Oshay. After margaritas and comestibles on the museum’s […]

Santa Barbara Maritime Museum suffered major social gridlock when the 1917-built vessel Ranger, familiar for leading the annual Christmas Parade of Lights, was officially re-admitted into the Classic Yacht Association’s Southern California Fleet. The 46-foot-long classic wooden fishing boat has been the museum’s flagship since being donated to the harbor-side institution in 1997 by Jack […]

“Whales are Superheroes” according to the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum (SBMM). The museum invited all artists in grades K-6 to submit ocean-related art for a unique exhibit. The artists gave their interpretation of a whale, a whale’s activities, or anything ocean related like kelp, starfish, dolphins, or other sea creatures. Crayons, colored pencils, or markers […]

There were decidedly fishy goings on at the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum when it reopened its exhibit, “Mermaids: Visualizing the Myths and Legends – Photography by Ralph A. Clevenger & Friends,” part of an underwater photography course he taught at Brooks Institute for 33 years. The colorful show, which features 16 images on canvas, was […]

The wild and mysterious ocean has inspired stories of mythical creatures for millennia, but the image of the mermaid remains one of the most popular and iconic throughout time. From the Assyrian goddess Atargatis to the explorers of the new world, mermaids make up the dreams, tales, and deities of many cultures. These fantasies have […]

The Santa Barbara Maritime Museum (SBMM) staff likes to tell you, “You can’t control the wind, but you can adjust your sails.” And so, they did. When they couldn’t have their fundraiser for two years in a row, they pivoted and came up with a different event. This was due to the legendary world-famous surfer […]

History is always in the making. Our actions today become the history of tomorrow. As Chair of the Montecito Association’s History Committee, and through her 50 or so years of community involvement, Trish Davis is helping preserve the history of the area while also helping contribute to it. Trish originally grew up in the San […]

Barely 50 miles from downtown Santa Barbara is one of the most fascinating and important parts of the California coastline. Point Conception is the headland where the coast transitions between north-south and east-west orientation, a very rare delineation that works as a natural division between Southern and Northern California. It also marks the location of […]

There is a wonderful art exhibit of 55 naval paintings at the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum awaiting your visit as soon as lockdown is over and executive director Greg Gorga can unlock the doors. The exhibit was scheduled to open December 3, 2020 until May 30, 2021. It’s sponsored by George H. & Olive J. Griffiths […]

The Santa Barbara Maritime Museum is hosting an extensive collection of 53 paintings that chronicle the accomplishments of the U.S. Navy, from the USS Constitution to atomic bomb tests, and expeditions to the North and South Poles. The colorful show, Arthur Beaumont: Art of the Sea, who was known as the Artist of the Fleet, […]