For the real deal in handmade handiworks, don’t miss the Harvest Festival® Original Art & Craft Show at the Ventura County Fairgrounds October 4-6, featuring more than 24,000 original creations from hundreds of trend-setting artisans and crafters.

Festivities will be in high gear for the 30th anniversary celebration of the Ventura showcase, a treasured tradition recognized as the west coast’s largest and most prestigious indoor showcase, with live entertainment, strolling performers, mouth-watering foods, a Kidzone and pumpkin patch, contests, crafter demonstrations, and more.

Patrons who bring canned goods for donation to Project Understanding will receive $2 off admission. Kids 12 and under are free, and tickets are good for the entire weekend.

“As a family-run business we take pride in creating the ultimate shopping experience that brings people together and gives back,” says Nancy Glenn, owner of the Harvest Festival. “Our showcase is engaging and participatory for all ages. And with our special discount incentive, we’re hoping to surpass last year’s food donation of 4,000 pounds.”

The Harvest Festival is a juried showcase to ensure quality and diversity. Emerging artists whose passions spark new trends provide a limitless array of perfect somethings. Stunning jewelry, clothing, photography, hand-turned wood, ceramics, eclectic art pieces, seasonal décor, Halloween accessories, ornaments, and blown glass, are among the masterpieces on display. Artists can also personalize many items. Festival foodies can sample oodles of tasty homemade sauces, spices, nuts, oils, candies, and baked goods. Local artists showcasing include Ventura residents Katie Adams with Lemon & Lei bath & body collection skin care; Connie Gunderson with Heavenly Accents vintage fabric handbags; Kevin Brown with VB Candles; Linda Fusaro of Santa Barbara: with beautifully crafted jewelry of Fusaro Design, and Hannah Hogan of Westlake Village with Shop Dog Studios handcrafted leashes, collars and festive pet attire.

Live entertainment adds to the festivities with entertainer Captain Jack Spareribs and the Hyjinx Band, joined by the Jack Kalvan Jugglers and other strolling performers.

The Festival collaborates with local non-profits to pay it forward. Anyone who brings non-perishables for donation to Project Understanding receives $2 off admission. The Ventura Boys & Girls Club hosts the parcel check, Macaroni Kid and MyGym Ventura team up for the Kidzone. Rancho Ventura Conservation Trust hosts a nature interactive in conjunction with the pumpkin patch, co-sponsored by Green Thumb Nursery. The Ventura County Star is the official newspaper. The annual Grand Prize Giveaway is a $200 Amazon gift card (register to win on site at the event).

General admission tickets are $9, Seniors (62+) and military are $7, Youths ages 13-17 are $4, and kids 12 and under are free. Tickets are good for the entire weekend. Hours are Friday 10am to 5pm; Saturday 10am to 6pm; and Sunday 10am to 5pm.

Ventura County Fairgrounds 10 West Harbor Blvd.

harvestfestival.com or call 925.392.7300

On Saturday, October 5th, The Space VTA will host an art show and silent auction to raise money for Kids in Need of Defense (KIND). Feeling the need to act in the face of constant news on the refugee crisis, a group of Ventura based artists are fundraising to help vulnerable children at the border.

All money raised will be donated to KIND (SupportKind.org), an organization aligned with UNICEF. KIND works to ensure that no refugee child faces asylum proceedings alone. KIND promotes protection of children in countries of origin, works to address the root causes of child migration, and advocates for policies to improve the protection of unaccompanied children in the United States.

The Ventura fundraising event, named Care, Not Cages, includes artwork generously donated from Jessica Hemmy, Claudia Pardo, Mychal Arata, Maribel Hernandez and other local talents. Care, Not Cages will also feature live acoustic music, and video testimony and animations from children that KIND has helped.

Free Art Show, Silent Auction, Video media, Music, Refreshments
The Space VTA, 1779 E Main St.
https://www.facebook.com/events/878724372485222/

Kaleidoscope Kandeo by Deniz Nicole is on display at the Museum of Ventura County from Saturday, September 28—October 6, 2019. Join in at the Museum of Ventura County on Saturday, September 28, 2019 from 11—7 p.m. for Artwalk Ventura. Come view and play Kaleidoscope Kandeo, and explore the Museum’s other latest exhibit, California Cool: Mid-century Modernism on the Central Coast.

Kaleidoscope Kandeo by Deniz Nicole debuted at Burning Man in 2019 and is a 20-foot-tall faceted teardrop-shaped tower made from bent steel tubing. Clad in iridescent laser-cut paneling, the installation will be a shimmering tear when illuminated at night. Without communal effort the kaleidoscope’s image will remain static. Reflections of the colors and complexity of motion will create a fantastic kinetic kaleidoscopic image. At dusk, the laser cut paneling will reveal backlit patterns of light that make the kaleidoscope a waypoint in darkness.

Free for Museum members, $5 for nonmembers

Studio #79 at the Bell Arts Factory in Ventura is half filled with an 8-foot-tall installation called Prism, an immersive installation/painting that captures the inner child.

This ambitious piece was created by Aliza J. Bejarano, 29, freshly graduated with a BFA from California State University Long Beach with three years of experience in curatorial work based out of Los Angeles, and over ten years in drawing and painting.

Her art comes from insight of a tumultuous history; she has recently published the first of a series of books about one of those traumas – running from the shooter in Nice, France on Bastille Day. The book is available on Amazon, Running and Tumbling, Volume1: The Shock.

She also conducts figure drawing classes.

The Ojai Photography Community welcomes master photographer and educator Christopher Broughton, presenting “Approaches to Street Photography” on Tuesday, September 17, at 7 p.m. in Help of Ojai’s Kent Hall, 111 W. Santa Ana St., Ojai. The general public is invited to attend this free event.

Broughton’s passion for street photography developed during his twenty years as a professor at Brooks Institute. From 2012 to 2016 he led summer sessions in Paris. In his presentation he will share his extensive experience in this genre, breaking down his practice into fifteen key approaches that can be applied to any street from Ojai Avenue to the Champs Élysées.

A nationally and internationally exhibited photographer, Broughton’s work is in the permanent collections of the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, the Toledo Museum of Art, the Crocker Art Museum, and the Quincy Art Center.

For further information on Broughton, visit: https://www.christopherbroughton.com

For information on his street photography workshop, go to:

https://www.ernestbrooksfoundation.org/workshops.html

The Ojai Photography Community, which is devoted to inspiration, camaraderie and education, meets on the third Tuesday of each month, February – November. Monthly free presentations are part of the group’s community service and education outreach. http://www.ojaiphotographycommunity.com/index.html

Robin Nahin, owner of Firestick Pottery, will visit the Ojai Library on Sunday, September 29, at 2 p.m. to teach a hands-on pottery workshop. This interactive workshop will allow participants to learn the basics of working with clay to create art.

Clay is a magical material—use it to turn your fantasy into a real piece of art! Participants can make a bowl, a soap dish, or a planter, or can sculpt their favorite animal. You can take your project home with you or go to the Firestick Pottery Studio to have it kiln-fired.

All ages are welcome to attend. There is no charge, and all materials will be included. Space is limited, and you can make your reservation by calling (805) 272-8760 or by email at [email protected].

This event is free and open to the public.

The Ojai Library is located at 111 East Ojai Avenue in Ojai. Hours of service are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. Friday through Sunday.

Studio Channel Islands Art Center (SCIART) is hosting its annual Art à la Mode Gala, 5:30 p.m., Sept. 7, at the Saticoy Country Club, 4450 Clubhouse Dr, Somis. The Art à la Mode Gala offers an evening of gourmet dining, an opportunity to see inspirational artists demonstrating their craft and a chance to walk away with a work of art or other item from the live and silent auctions. This year’s event honors Dr. Joseph (Joe) Halcomb III and his wife Joani Halcomb as the recipients of the 2019 Medici Award, SCIART’s highest recognition, for their support of the arts, artists and the art community. The Art à la Mode Gala is SCIART’s largest fundraiser with all proceeds going to support its art education and outreach programs, and contemporary art exhibitions.  Tickets are available online at http://bit.ly/SCIART_2019_Gala or by calling 805-383-1368. For more information or to submit an auction item or donation, contact Peter Tyas [email protected] or call 805-383-1368.

“Abstractions,” the next exhibition at the Buenaventura Gallery, slated Aug. 29-Sept. 22 in Ventura, will feature a range of nonrepresentational works by Buenaventura Art Association members.

Whether painting or sculpture, abstract art doesn’t set out to describe the world we see, but rather it uses form, line, color, pattern, texture, composition and process to explore the inner world of both the viewer and the artist. Juror for “Abstractions” will be Tony MacIsaac of Ventura, who studied painting and drawing at UC Santa Cruz and Washington State University, and who owns Traveler Cafe.

An opening reception for both shows will be 6-9 p.m. Sept. 6 as part of Ventura’s First Friday gallery crawl.

Also featured during these dates will be several paintings by Ventura artist Gina Niebergall on the gallery’s Triangle Showcase.

Buenaventura Gallery, in Studio 30 at Bell Arts Factory, 432 N. Ventura Ave., is open 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Thursdays through Sundays. For more about the 65-year-old BAA nonprofit cooperative and its programs, visit www.buenaventuragallery.org or call 805-648-1235 during gallery hours.

Focus on the Masters (FOTM) Arts Archive & Library, together with Cumulus Media and Jordan Laby, present FOTM’s 25th Anniversary Celebration For the Love of Art on Saturday, September 14, from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., at the Four Points by Sheraton in Ventura. The Celebration is a benefit in support of Focus on the Masters’ award-winning arts education programs including the Learning To See Outreach, a sequential in-school and community outreach art program for at-risk youth and Title 1 schools.

“Our 25th Anniversary is such a tremendous milestone!” stated Founder and Executive Director Donna Granata.

Guests will experience an expansive 75-foot interactive FOTM timeline chronicling the last quarter century of local artists, art history and notable events.  The event will be full of “art for all” including FOTM’s famed $20 Celebration Mystery Bags filled with all kinds of art related treasures worth at least $50, unique live and silent auction items and the chance to win an original serigraph by Mary Michel.

FOTM has served the community for over twenty-five years through their educational arts programming. Since that time, their Learning To See program has brought compelling lessons to over 250,000 students throughout Ventura County.

Program director Aimee French explains, “The local artists featured in every Learning To See lesson serve as strong role models. Students learn that every artist has their own story and that they persevered in pursuit of their passions.”

Everyone will enjoy the great comradery, delicious food, music, live and silent auctions all For the Love of Art in support of FOTM’s community outreach. Tickets for the event and for the opportunity drawing for an original serigraph by Mary Michel are available on line at www.FocusOnTheMasters.com or by calling 805.653.2501.

Mary-Gail King and Gerald Zwers will display their artwork in a show titled “Synergy” at Fox Fine Jewelry from September 12 to November 11, 2019 with an Art Reception on September 14 from 6 – 8 pm.

A teacher of Intuitive Painting, Mary-Gail King takes her own “intuition” method to heart, letting her creativity lead her in new directions. She likes to paint with mindfulness, and collaborate with other artists. Her artwork can be representational or abstract, or sometimes a combination of the two, as she balances color and light.

From a young age, Gerald Zwers has been passionate about art and learning. He decided to keep art a hobby and pursue formal education outside of the arts. As a well-rounded entrepreneur, he still manages to be a prolific artist, known to regularly produce over 100 pieces per year (his record is over 1000!). One of his biggest driving forces as an artist is to mindfully create work that will spread goodness and joy.