Local Lowdown: The River’s Journey

Paintings in the Wildling Museum show The River’s Journey: One Year, Six Artists, 92 Miles include work by (clockwise from top left): Holli Harmon, Pamela Zwehl-Burke, Nicole Strasburg, Nina Warner, Connie Connally and Libby Smith.

Paintings in the Wildling Museum show The River’s Journey: One Year, Six Artists, 92 Miles include work by (clockwise from top left): Holli Harmon, Pamela Zwehl-Burke, Nicole Strasburg, Nina Warner, Connie Connally and Libby Smith.

ONE YEAR, SIX ARTISTS, 92 MILES

By Leslie Dinaberg

SIX LOCAL ARTISTS have pooled their talents around one very big idea—our communal connection to and responsibility for our water resources—uniting their unique points of view in a new exhibit, The River’s Journey: One Year, Six Artists, 92 Miles, on view at the Wildling Museum of Art & Nature through July 9.

Initially joining together to experiment with the lesser-known medium of gouache (an opaque watercolor paint), the group— which includes Connie Connally, Holli Harmon, Libby Smith, Nicole Strasburg, Nina Warner and Pamela Zwehl-Burke—is united in a quest to use their art to inform the public about how the Santa Ynez River and the watershed functions and our indi­vidual responsibility to protect its viability.

Rose Compass artists (L-R): Nicole Strasburg, Connie Connally, Libby Smith, Holli Harmon, Pamela Zwehl-Burke and Nina Warner. After the exhibition ends in July, it will travel later in 2018 to Santa Barbara City Hall and Sullivan Goss Gallery. Photo by Monica Wiesblott.

Rose Compass artists (L-R): Nicole Strasburg, Connie Connally, Libby Smith, Holli Harmon, Pamela Zwehl-Burke and Nina Warner. After the exhibition ends in July, it will travel later in 2018 to Santa Barbara City Hall and Sullivan Goss Gallery. Photo by Monica Wiesblott.

“Originally, I was just enthralled with the medium of gouache,” says Strasburg, who saw the potential through the work of artist Thomas Paquette, who had a wilderness-themed show at the Wildling and also has some paintings in The River’s Journey. As Strasburg dug deeper into the subject matter of the watershed, “it became about so much more than painting the landscape.…I just keep reading and researching and discovering new connections.”

The group, now known as Rose Compass (named for the flower-shaped figure on a map and “like the compass rose, our work reflects our individual points of view”), is very dedi­cated to the project. “The three devoted plein air artists have gone out every single Monday for the past two years to paint the water in the area,” says Strasburg.

Libby Smith, Measuring Stick, Alder Creek.

Libby Smith, Measuring Stick, Alder Creek.

They routinely post their musings and progress on the project on the website (rose-compass.com) and are working to secure additional venues to showcase the breadth and depth of their work on The River’s Journey, which visually brings to the forefront questions of stewardship, preservation and conservation.

“Art starts the conversation while providing education and information that can change behavior and expectations at a pivotal moment in our new paradigm of water resource management,” says their collective artist statement. “When artists, scientists and water managers work together, we create a powerful and compelling message that moves the community to make better ecological and civic choices. Awareness, conservation, stewardship and collaboration will all be key to the new paradigm of protecting this resource and ensuring the longevity and viability of our entire community.”

Wildling Museum of Art & Nature is located at 1511-B Mission Dr., Solvang. For more information, call 805/688-1082 or visit wildlingmuseum.org.

Connie Connally, Turkey Vultures.

Connie Connally, Turkey Vultures.

Nicole Strasburg, River Path, Santa Ynez.

Nicole Strasburg, River Path, Santa Ynez.

Holli Harmon, Yellow Kayak.

Holli Harmon, Yellow Kayak.

Nina Warner, Gibralter Dam.

Nina Warner, Gibralter Dam.

Pamela Zwehl-Burke, White Rock.

Pamela Zwehl-Burke, White Rock.

This story was originally published in the spring 2018 issue of Santa Barbara Seasons Magazine.

100 GRAND at Sullivan Goss (ART FOR $1,000 OR LESS)

100 grand at sullivan gossLooking for something special for an art lover (or yourself)?  Sullivan Goss Gallery’s annual 100 Grand exhibition is the place to shop. Featuring 100 quality works of art for $1,000 or less, the exhibition has become well known as “an incubator of emerging talent, an entryway for beginning collectors, a holiday celebration in the art community, and an ever timely reminder that everyone’s life is improved by the addition of original works of art.”

The exhibition officially opens on 1st Thursday in December (12/3) and is one of the area’s must-attend events of the year. The 100 GRAND show features paintings, drawings, photographs, assemblage and sculpture by emerging and established artists. Contemporary Curator Susan Bush was able to secure work from many of last year’s best-selling artists, but there are also 17 new artists who have never before shown with Sullivan Goss.

Artists on view include: Meredith Brooks Abbott, Benjamin Anderson, Scott Anderson, Sean Anderson, Kit Boise-Cossart, Ken Bortolazzo, Aron Bothman, Liz Brady, Lisabette Brinkman, Phoebe Brunner, Pat Calonne, Chris Chapman, Patricia Chidlaw, Cathy Clemens, Connie Connally, Maria Costa, Tom de Walt, Jeanne Dentzel, Joseph Di Sipio, Alia El-Bermani, Kathleen Elsey, Pamela Enticknap, Peggy Ferris, Kee Flynn, Pausha Foley, Jon Francis, Valori Fussell, Rosemarie Gebhart, Nancy Gifford, Dane Goodman, Robin Gowen, Ruthy Green, Skye Gwilliam, Jason Hadley, Bay Hallowell, Holli Harmon, Derek Harrison, Jim Hodgson, Ingrid Holden, Cynthia James, Frank Kirk, Mary-Austin Klein, Kathleen Klein-Wakefield, Philip Koplin, Marilee Krause, Dan Levin, Mark Lozano, Laurie MacMillan, Larry McAdams, Sara McCook-Woodburn, Virginia McCracken, Susan McDonnell, Barbara McIntyre, Svetlana Meritt, Julie Montgomery, Theil Morgan, Zoe Nathan, John Nava, Jon Ng, Lisa Pederson, Angela Perko, Chris Peters, Hank Pitcher, Ian Putnam, Maria Rendon, Joan Rosenberg-Dent, Lindsey Ross, Blakeney Sanford, Susan Savage, Marie Schoeff, Susan Shapiro, Lanny Sherwin, Elena Siff, Nicole Strasburg, Marlene Struss, Tracey Sylvester-Harris, James David Thomas, Susan Tibbles, Dug Uyesaka, Thomas Van Stein, Sarah Vedder, Deborah Veldkamp, Nina Warner, Roe Ann White, Monica Wiesblott, Paige Wilson, Vani Winick, Karen Zazon, Abigail Zimmerman and Michele Zuzalek.

The opening takes place on 1st Thursday, December 3 from 5 – 8 p.m. at 11 E. Anapamu St.

 

—Leslie Dinaberg

Originally published in Santa Barbara Seasons Magazine on December 1, 2015.

100 GRAND, 2014: (100 WORKS FOR $1,000 OR LESS)

Sullivan Goss 100 GrandIt’s that time of the year again: the sixth annual 100 GRAND exhibition at Sullivan Goss.Featuring 100 quality works of art for $1,000 or less, the exhibition has become an incubator of emerging talent, an entryway for beginning collectors and a holiday celebration in the art community.

Last year, almost a thousand people attended over the course of the evening.  December’s 1st Thursday at Sullivan Goss has become one of the area’s must-attend events of the year- a chance for artists and collectors to get together, network, and celebrate the accomplishments of another year in art.

The exhibition runs from December 4 to February 1, 2015, and features paintings, drawings, photographs, assemblage and sculpture by emerging and established artists that are priced to sell and sized (for the most part) to fit into smaller spaces.  For this year’s exhibition, Contemporary Curator Susan Bush was able to secure work from many of last year’s best-selling artists, but there are also more than 20 new artists who have never before shown with Sullivan Goss.

Since its first come first serve, buyers are encouraged to arrive early and to act fast.

ARTISTS INCLUDED:  Meredith Brooks Abbott, Benjamin Anderson, Scott Anderson, Ken Bortolazzo, Aron Bothman, Liz Brady, Lisabette Brinkman, Phoebe Brunner, Pat Calonne, Chris Chapman, Dorothy Churchill-Johnson, Connie Connally, Jeanne Dentzel, Mehosh Dziadzio, Naneki Elliott, Kathleen Elsey, Pamela Enticknap, Peggy Ferris, Kee Flynn, Jon Francis, Valori Fussell, Nancy Gifford, Dane Goodman, Robin Gowen, Amanda Grandfield, James Taylor Gray, Ruthy Green, Bay Hallowell, Holli Harmon, Tracey Sylvester Harris, Derrek Harrison, Wyllis Heaton, Cynthia James, Jow, Scott Kahn, Philip Koplin, Mary-Austin Klein, Marilee Krause, Elizabeth Ladacki, Dan Levin, Mark Lozano, Laurie Macmillan, Larry Mcadams, Virginia McCracken, Susan McDonnell, Svetlana Meritt, David Molesky, Zoe Nathan, Lisa Pederson, Angela Perko, Chris Peters, Hank Pitcher, Ian Putnam, Erik Reel, Maria Rendon, Brad Reyes, Joan Rosenberg-Dent, Blakeney Sanford, Caren Satterfield, Susan Savage, Marie Schoeff, Susan Shapiro, Lanny Sherwin, Elena Siff, Leslie Lewis Sigler, David Skinner, Nicole Strasburg, James David Thomas, Susan Tibbles, Dug Uyesaka, Taj Vaccarella, Sarah Vedder, Deborah Veldkamp, Tom de Walt, Nina Warner, Vani Winick, Roe Ann White, Monica Wiesblott, Abigail Zimmerman and Michele Zuzalek.

The opening artist reception is 1st Thursday, December 4 from 5 – 8 p.m. at Sullivan Goss Gallery, 7 E. Anapamu St. in downtown Santa Barbara. To see a video about the exhibition click here.

—Leslie Dinaberg

Originally published in Santa Barbara Seasons on December 2, 2014.

Small Images 2014 at SBCC’s Atkinson Gallery

Small ImagesThe Atkinson Gallery hosts the 30th annual Small Images exhibition juried by Tif Sigfrids of Tif Sigfrids Gallery in Los Angeles. A juried competition featuring regional artists working in all media, the exhibition’s only constraint is size—all works must be 18” or smaller in every dimension. The diminutive scale of the works necessitates both intimacy and concision resulting in a dynamic exhibit that invites viewers to “take a closer look.”

The Atkinson Gallery was tremendously pleased with the enthusiastic response to Small Images from artists this year. The exhibition gathered an unprecedented amount of attention even before opening, with 372 pieces by 177 different local artists submitted for consideration. This was a significant increase in participation from the 246 pieces by 121 artists received in 2013.  From these submissions, Sigfrids selected 39 works from 29 artists including Esther Alinejad, Adrienne Allebe, Penny Arntz, Pamela Benham, Kit Boise-Cossart, Linda Branch, Phoebe Brunner, Lynn Coleman, Ralph Corners, Rob Decker, Rick Doehring, Benjamin Eckert, Elizabeth Flanagan, Diane Handloser, Holli Harmon, Marilyn Kandus, Fredda Leiter, Sara Lytle, Laurie MacMillan, Patrick McGinnis, George Sanders, Nicole Strasburg, Iben Vestergaard, Tio Vivo, Stephanie Washburn, Dorene White, Bill Woolway, Samah Yasin, and Pamela Zwehl-Burke for display.

Awards, including a $1,000 first prize, will be announced at 5:30 p.m. during the opening reception. This year’s exhibit is made possible with generous support from the Robert and Mercedes Eichholz Foundation.

Opening reception in October 3, from 5-7 p.m.

Exhibition will be on view from October 3–31.

—Leslie Dinaberg

Originally published in Santa Barbara Seasons on September 28, 2014.