Tag archives: Westmont Ridley Tree Museum

A Fitting Fête for a Lady
By Scott Craig   |   February 20, 2024

The Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art and Westmont Music Department threw a grand party on Jan. 3 in honor of the late Lady Leslie Ridley-Tree, whose generosity benefited not only the college but the entire Santa Barbara community. The Westmont String Quartet played as celebrants enjoyed champagne and crêpe while taking in the stunning ocean […]

Corot Exhibit Honors Ridley-Tree
By Scott Craig   |   January 16, 2024

Lady Leslie Ridley-Tree’s entire collection of Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot artworks – which includes 11 paintings, 12 lithographs, and a drawing – goes on display Jan. 11 – March 23 in the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art. A free public opening reception for the exhibition, Camille Corot to Orthodox Icons: Lady Leslie Ridley-Tree’s Gifts to the Collection, […]

‘5×5’ Art Auction a Big Draw
By Scott Craig   |   January 2, 2024

The Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art’s exhibition and auction of 683 small pieces was a huge success. By the time the gavel came down December 15, the “5×5” fundraiser sold 617 unique art pieces, raising more than $41,000 for the Montecito museum. Ninety-two percent of people who created an account bid on works in the […]

Bidding Underway for Five-Inch Artworks
By Scott Craig   |   December 12, 2023

A lively and enthusiastic crowd packed into the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art for the opening reception of “5×5: Westmont College Celebrating 85 Years” on November 30. There is certainly a lot to see with more than 675 small pieces of art hung in the gallery – all of which are being auctioned off to […]

Art Museum Goes Big with 675 Small Works
By Scott Craig   |   November 14, 2023

The Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art’s most popular exhibition and fundraiser returns to Montecito on Nov. 30 to Dec. 15, offering viewers an opportunity to see and bid on more than 675, small five-inch-square works by regional, national, and international artists. The museum hosts a free, public opening reception on Thursday, Nov. 30, from 4 […]

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 […]

Famed Ceramist Juries “Mixed Up”
By Scott Craig   |   May 23, 2023

The Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art highlights the exceptional talent of local artists in its annual Tri-County Juried Exhibition, “Mixed Up,” from Thursday, May 18, to June 17. The public is invited to a free, opening reception on May 18 from 4-6 pm. Award winners will be announced at 5:15 pm.  Rae Dunn, popular Bay […]

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. […]

‘Entangled’ Exhibit Explores Environment 
By Scott Craig   |   January 17, 2023

The Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art features two artists whose work responds to climate change and our planet on the brink of perilous danger. The exhibition, Entangled: Responding to Environmental Crisis, runs from January 12 to March 25, 2023, and highlights the artwork of Madeleine Tonzi, a New Mexico painter, muralist and printmaker, and GATS […]

Honoring Ridley-Tree, Her Generosity
By Scott Craig   |   October 11, 2022

The Westmont community mourns the passing of Lady Leslie Ridley-Tree, whose generosity made a profound impact on the college and touched the lives of many people and organizations in the Santa Barbara community. She personified what it means to be a true philanthropist. “She’s one of the most remarkable human beings to walk the face […]

Art, Science, Spirituality Collide in Exhibit
By Scott Craig   |   September 13, 2022

Adam Belt explores the point where art, science, and spirituality converge in an exhibition, “Adam Belt: Wish You Were Here,” September 1 through November 5 at the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art. Belt, who was born in Seattle and grew up in Albuquerque, began his career as a landscape painter before shifting his interests to […]

Artists Awarded  at Exhibition Opening
By Scott Craig   |   May 31, 2022

Santa Barbara resident Nadya Brown won Best of Show at the opening reception of the annual Tri-County juried exhibition, Uncanny, at the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum. Brown, who was born and raised in England, won the $1,000 prize for her vibrant, dream-like painting Kafka and the Snowglobe. Westmont alumnus and hyperrealist painter Robin Eley (’01) handpicked […]

Nothing ‘Uncanny’ About Talented Local Artists
By Scott Craig   |   May 24, 2022

The abundance of accomplished artists from the Tri-County area is on full display at the annual juried exhibition in the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art. Westmont alumnus and hyperrealist painter Robin Eley ‘01 juried the show, Uncanny, which is available May 19 to June 18. A free, public opening reception for the exhibition is Thursday, […]

Spring Sing Bounces Back at the Bowl
By Scott Craig   |   April 12, 2022

The 61st annual Westmont’s Spring Sing, a student-performed variety show and competition between residence halls, was back and in person at the Santa Barbara Bowl April 1. It is the longest running tradition on campus and involves more students than any other college event.  For the first time, the Global Leadership Center (GLC) won top […]

Calling Area Artists
By Scott Craig   |   March 22, 2022

The Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art is accepting submissions through April 15 from local artists for its upcoming juried exhibition, “Uncanny.” Westmont alumnus Robin Eley (’01), a hyperrealist painter raised in Australia, is the juror of this year’s Tri-County exhibition, which is open May 19 to June 18. A free, public, opening reception for the […]

Art Exhibition is ‘Amplifying the Between’
By Scott Craig   |   January 25, 2022

Santa Barbara artist Marie Schoeff explores a profound yet unpretentious relationship with nature and spirituality in a new exhibition, “Marie Schoeff: Amplifying the Between” at the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art from through March 26.  Schoeff’s imagery, rooted in drawing, explores the ethereal, a transcendent space in a spiritual realm. Her strong sense of physical […]

Museum Opens a Trove from Its Collection
By Scott Craig   |   November 16, 2021

The Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art, which moved from the confines of the Reynold’s Gallery to its current home in the Adams Center for the Visual Arts more than a decade ago, reveals the enormity of its holdings in “Academic, Barbizon, and Impressionist Artists: Highlights from the Permanent Collection” from November 11- December 18 in […]

New Book Unleashes SB Artists and Their Dogs
By Scott Craig   |   September 28, 2021

Read about the natural bond between dogs and artists in a new book, Santa Barbara Artists and Their Dogs, and see portraits of them in an exhibition through December 18 in the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art’s downstairs gallery. The Art Council of the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art created the book, which will be […]

Museum Focuses on Faculty in ‘Sight, Insight’
By Scott Craig   |   September 7, 2021

The Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum focuses its attention on the college’s talented art faculty in “Sight & Insight: Westmont College Studio Art Faculty Exhibition” September 2 through October 30. The public is invited to a free, opening reception on Thursday, September 2, from 4-6 p.m.  “Our art faculty are all accomplished working artists in their own […]

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 […]