The 9^th Annual Ventura Art and Street Painting Festival (VASPF) is back at the Ventura Harbor Village.  Sept. 7^th& 8^th for an amazing weekend to enjoy art, street painting and the beauty of the Ventura County coast.   

Thirty-five artists will be showcasing their work in the artist’s area near harbor restaurants, including paintings, pottery, photography and jewelry all available for purchase. Additionally, the sidewalks along the water will be the canvas for approx. 35 street artists who will be creating colorful chalk pastel murals ranging from approximately 10×5 ft. to 10×10 ft in size.

Featured Artist Clif Gold will be returning to the festival for a second time. Gold is a color-blind artist based in San Jose and makes his own pastels into a unique color system for his art. He is known for creating whimsical lines and pattern illustrations at West Coast festivals. 

Children can join in and create their own art as well in the Children’s Chalk Area run by The Boys and Girls Club of Ventura County.  For $10 kids get a small box of chalk and a sidewalk square where they can create their own colorful work of art.

The festival is a fundraiser for local charities hosted by Ventura County Art Events, Inc. To date, the organization has donated $60,000 to FOOD Share of Ventura County. For more event information, visit www.venturaartfestival.com/ or www.facebook.com/vtaartandstreetpainting/

A conversation with Ichiro Irie Sunday, August 18, 2019 3 to 4:30 p.m., Museum of Ventura County
100 E. Main St.

Ichiro Irie was born in Japan and reared in the Westside of Los Angeles. He is an artist, independent curator and art educator.  He studied film and communications at UCSB, earned an M.F.A. at Claremont Graduate University and was the recipient of a Fulbright Fellowship where he completed a residency in Mexico City.  In 2009, Ichiro opened an artist-run space in Los Angeles called JAUS (pronounced “house”), that deliberately refused to limit itself to any specific genre, aesthetic or theoretical parameter.

As an interdisciplinary artist, Ichiro’s work explores a wide range of issues and spans a variety of media. His meticulously detailed ink drawings of junkyards, crashed cars and other unexpected sites of contemporary destruction, pair brilliant technical facility with a brooding interest in the darker cultural dimensions of consumption and waste.

Irie currently lives and works in Los Angeles and teaches at Oxnard College and Ryman Arts on the campus Otis College of Art & Design. Irie has organized over 40 exhibitions and has exhibited his work internationally in galleries and museums including, Los Angeles, New York, Mexico City, Tokyo, London, Warsaw, Frankfurt, Berlin, Rotterdam and Buenos Aires.

Free to FOTM members, $15 for public; $10 for seniors.

The Artist Spotlight is open to students attending as a class assignment free of charge. FOTM is happy to assist with tracking attendance and sign-in sheets. Reservations required. To RSVP visit www.FocusOnTheMasters.com or call 805.653.2501. Sponsored by Paula Spellman

To learn more about Ichiro, visit vhttp://www.ichiro-irie.com/

You might say that they will Bowl You Over with hundreds of hand-made, unique, sculptural, decorative and functional bowls at the new show at the Ventura County Potters’ Guild Gallery. Over thirty artists will put their original styles on bowls for salads, ice cream, cereal, pasta, center pieces, serving, and even some dog bowls. Colors will match every pallet and the multi-colored ones are perfect for those who can’t decide.

The Beauteous Bowl Bonanza is a one-day event on Saturday, September 7 from 11 AM to 6 PM. The Gallery is located at 1567 Spinnaker Drive in Suite 105 in Ventura Harbor. Meet the artists and to learn about the technical elements and creative inspirations of each piece.

And to register for a free raffle ticket to win a lovely decorative bowl donated by Sandy Swanson. Stop by the galley any time after September 1 for a free raffle ticket.

The Ventura County Potters Guild is a non-profit organization. Monthly meetings with presentations are open to the public. The gallery is open daily from 11 – 6. For more information, visit us at www.VenturaPottersGuild.org and Facebook at www.facebook.com/VenturaCountyPottersGuild

Ventura County Potters’ Guild Gallery featured artist Terry Wilson Thru August 31, 2019. Meet the artist August 12, 20 and 29th, 2:30 – 6 pm

Wilson creates beautiful forms from the imprint of nasturtium leaves and more objects from nature. In her own words: “I am an artist in Ventura having worked in a variety of media over the years, usually exploring nature and abstractions drawn from patterns found throughout the plant world. I have a BA in Art from UC Irvine (1975), where I studied ceramics under John Mason.I work in porcelain and hand build my pieces. I am also a silversmith and lapidary artist.”

Ventura Harbor Village
1567 Spinnaker Drive Suite 105
Ventura  (805) 644-6800
Open Daily 11am-6pm

Vita Art Center is pleased to present The Drawing Room, A group exhibit featuring 15 contemporary artists for whom drawing is the major focus of their work. Until August 23.

28 West Main St.www.vitaartcenter.com

Hours: Wednesday thru Saturday 11am – 4 pm

New BAA Members’ Show

BAA Member Artists present a special exhibit of their work at Harbor Village Gallery & Gifts, located in the Ventura Harbor Village shopping complex. Harbor Village Gallery & Gifts is operated by a co-op of BAA artists, selling original art, artisan jewelry, fine crafts, wearable art and accessories, greeting cards and more. Open daily 11-6.

Member Show Juror: Gerald Zwers

Exhibiting until September 8, 2019

The winners of the Ventura County Fair poster contest were unveiled in our last issue. These are the winners.

Photos by Bernie Goldstein

A biologist by training, Lorna started painting realistic plein air almost 30 years ago in Yosemite.

Lorna is one of eleven resident members of the Harbor Village Gallery.

Running concurrently with this exhibit is a new BAA (Buenaventura Art Association) juried member show with a reception Saturday,July 20 6-8 p.m. Refreshments will accompany the merit award ceremony at the reception.

Nature is in the forefront for two new exhibitions July 25-Aug. 25 in Buenaventura Art Assocation’s Ventura Avenue gallery space, Studio 30 at Bell Arts Factory.

“From the Desert to the City and Back Again” is the title of Darlene Roker’s solo photography display.

It is paired with “Root and Branch,” a juried show featuring artworks by BAA members that have trees as the primary subject of paintings or using parts of trees — bark, wood, twigs, leaves — in mixed media or assemblage pieces.

A reception for both will be 6-9 p.m. Aug. 2 as part of Ventura’s monthly First Friday gallery open house.

Buenaventura Gallery 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 nonprofit cooperative and its programs, visit www.buenaventuragallery.org or call 805-648-1235 during gallery hours.

Sunday, July 21, 2019 – 3 to 4:30 p.m. Museum of Ventura County
100 E. Main Street

An Artist Spotlight by Focus On The Masters. Omar d’León is from Managua, Nicaragua and is regarded as one of the most renowned Nicaraguan painters and poets. He studied at the Escuela Nacional de Bellas Artes in Nicaragua under his mentor Rodrigo Peñalba

His early works were inspired by the cross-hatching technique of the frescoes of Pompeii.  Omar’s unique style infuses multiple layers of paint, oil, wax and scoring in a cross-hatching pattern that creates an illusion similar to pointillism.

The artist uses a knife like a paint brush, creating scores at different angles and pressure which controls the amount of light that is reflected and creates the illusion of a three-dimensional quality in his works. Omar’s love for his country and its people are reflected in sensuous fluid forms.

Today d’León’s work can be found in many collections world-wide. Join for this timely and insightful interview. To learn more about Omar, visit https://omardleon.blogspot.com/

Free to FOTM members, $15 for public; $10 for seniors.

Special invitation to educators and students: The Artist Spotlight is open to students attending as a class assignment free of charge. FOTM is happy to assist with tracking attendance and sign-in sheets. Reservations required.  To RSVP visit www.FocusOnTheMasters.com or call 805.653.2501.