“Bad Exhibition: Value in Art, opening May 19th 6-10 pm. 4 Sichuan artists and 14 California artists will showcase artworks culminating decades of avant-garde creative practice in China and the USA. While we may expect Chinese and US artists to agree on some shared values, we discover disagreement on values grounded in different aesthetic ideals. These contrasting views, once discussed in detail, reveal how Chinese artists relate to art very differently than their US counterparts. Trans-local art markets ‘inspire’ artists to brand expression, ‘scolding’ them for lack of commitment to singular artistic media or visual language. Exhibition runs through June 23rd. Art City Gallery 197 Dubbers st. 648-1690. www.artcitygalleryandstudios.com.

by Board of Directors of BAA

The Board of Directors of BAA (Buenaventura Art Association)would like you to know about our upcoming changes and where we are in this process. We are very excited about all the new opportunities ahead!

We are starting negotiations for the soon to be vacated Vita Arts Center located in the Bell Arts Factory (Vita will be moving to 28 West Main St.), located on Ventura Avenue. The board and staff have worked very hard to investigate all of our options, including looking at several locations. We are also looking at new programs and exciting new art gallery ideas to help with our mission of supporting art and artists in our community. Ultimately, the decision-making responsibility lies with the board, and we are taking that very seriously!

Bell Arts is already an arts destination in Ventura County. Possibilities there include curating the community room, maintaining open hours for the whole space, helping to coordinate activities, having space for both solo and group shows, the artisan store, more community workshops, talks and demos. We also hope to include a large, flat screen TV with AV hookups to screen art-related videos for informal gatherings and discussion, and to present slide shows of previous exhibits.

This is our chance to reinvent our business model, and who we want to be as a cohesive and sustainable group! We are also looking at collaborating with the Museum of Ventura County, as well as having future goals of online art sales, and our very own Ventura Studio Artists Tour.

The sale of our building (which turned out to be a great investment, thank you Clophine Dooley!), will allow us to build out the new space for what we need. We will also be able to improve our website.

On Saturday, May 19, 5-8 pm (this will coincide with Arts and Eats which usually draws a large crowd) please come raise a glass to all the wonderful years so far, share your stories, and join in the good wishes for our future going forward.

The Avenue area is steadily regenerating and is a cornerstone of the arts in Ventura now. With most of the major art organizations and galleries over on the west side, up and down Ventura Ave. or just off the Avenue we feel like we would be joining a wider group where we can better participate in First Fridays and ArtWalks.

Please join us in the celebration and participation of our future together. 700 E. Santa Clara.

Pastel class on May 26th from 1:30 to 4:30 taught by Tasia Erickson.

Draw a lovely sea life painting . Sea plants, a beautiful turtle and fish with gorgeous colors! It is so much fun. Cost is $64.00 including materials. Can pay by paypal, credit card, cash or check.

Email [email protected] Or call to reserve a spot at 676-1540. Only 8 spots are available.

The VC Arts Collective Studio in Pacific View Mall – 2nd floor just outside Sears.

As a younger generation of contemporary artists begins to emerge, they seemingly follow a less poetic and more pragmatic approach to their work. PROTO_POP is an exhibition that embraces spontaneity and directness in equal measure to the processes of reflection, capitulation, and disguise. The presence of a subject, no matter how enclosed, indirect, or fragmentary, exist in in the heart of each piece exhibited.

Photography, Kinetic sculpture, colorful screen prints, geometric landscapes, light installation, and complex collages embrace the pop art esthetic.

PROTO_POP will be held at H Gallery + Studios 1793 East Main St. The show runs until May 27th. The show is curated by Dab Art. Gallery hours are 1-5pm.

Three library exhibitions throughout Ventura County

Focus on the Masters Learning To See (LTS) Outreach has expanded its reach and offerings to more schools across the west county. Each lesson of this innovative in-school, hands-on art program is inspired by an extraordinary artist from our community. Their new Up Close & Personal Residency includes that artist as a guest in the classroom.

Three new LTS exhibits feature artwork created by students at Harrington Elementary School in Oxnard, Elmhurst, Montalvo & Sheridan way Elementary Schools in Ventura, and Meiners Oaks, Mira Monte and Topa Topa Elementary Schools in Ojai.

Exhibit sites and dates:

• Oxnard Library from May 1 – 31, 251 South ‘A’ St., Oxnard
• Hill Road Library from May 3 – June 1, 1070 S. Hill Road, Ventura
• Meiners Oaks Library from May 14 – June 31, 114 N. Padre Juan Ave., Ojai

FOTM’s award-winning in-school art program, Learning To See Outreach, inspires our youth using the lives and works of our extraordinary FOTM documented artists from our community.

www.FocusOnTheMasters.com. For more information about Learning To See, contact [email protected] or 653.2501.

Have you ever been moved by a painting and wonder who is this artist and what moves them? On May 3rd Ventura Fox Fine Jewelry is providing the opportunity to hear from two such artists at their Art Talk. The speakers will be Andrea Vargas, locally known in for her courageous renditions of life, and Florencia Ramirez, author of Eat Less Water, who as a researcher and Oxnard mother discovered that the solution to worldwide water shortages is in our kitchens.

On May 3, 6-7pm arrive early to enjoy the Andrea Vargas and Christine Leong exhibit. Stay a little longer to have your book signed or to acquire some art or jewelry.

Arts & Eats will be held in downtown Ventura on Saturday, May 19 from 6 – 8pm. Fifteen galleries, restaurants and shops open their doors for art receptions and complimentary tastes. The event is free to the public.

Venturans Kenny Backer, Steve Cattanach, and Denise Dewire will display their local photography in “Ventura Vistas” from May 17 – July 8, with an Art Reception on May 19 from 6 – 8:00pm. Musician Corinn Conant will sing and play guitar during the reception. See http://www.foxfinejewelry.com/pages/arts-eats for gallery shows information:

Fox Fine Art Jewelry, 560 E Main Street, 652-1800.

Local, award-winning fiber artist Karen Payton has taken her fabric portraits to the windows of the Coastal Communities Cancer Center at 2900 Loma Vista (and Joanne).

Karen Payton has a background rooted in the apparel industry but currently splits her time between creating art and working in digital marketing. She has been collecting fabric and old clothing for years and searches for harmonious colors and patterns to complete her work. Many of her images include hand embroidery using thousands of colored stitches to render beautiful, soulful portraits. Embroidery is one of the best ways to personalize fabrics. Karen is extremely talented at embroidery, with most of her designs being from her own mind.

After two close friends began treatment for cancer, Karen was drawn to the opportunity to display her work at the hospital. “If I can bring even a moment of joy to patients and their families, it would mean so much.” Karen’s art will be on display in the windows until June 8.

After seeing the impact of these fabric portraits upon the patients in this center, perhaps more people around the country would like to do something similar to put a smile on some people’s faces. People don’t even just have to create portraits, they could also look at personalizing clothing or other pieces of fabrics. Beginners can always get their machine embroidery designs online if they’re not too sure what designs to use. There are websites online that offer multiple designs, guaranteed to make some people smile. All people would need is an embroidery machine and they would be ready to go. Putting smiles on the patient’s face is so rewarding, so it might be fun to follow in Karen’s footsteps and do some embroidery of your own.

Buenaventura Gallery member Wendy Winet won First Place for Mixed Media at the 2018 Santa Paula Art Society Show. This historic show had its 81st annual exhibit recently. Entries from all over So. California are hung in categories of Oil/Acrylic, Watercolor, Photography, Mixed Media and Pastels. Congratulations to Wendy.

This wonderful and whimsical bird is just a small sampling of the exciting art of Jaime Baker. To see much more of his work go to Way Outta Line Caricatures on Instagram and Facebook.

Also on Exhibit at the Buenaventura Gallery is Stories A Mini Open Competition now through April 14

Come see the award winners and read the stories behind their creation!

Amanda & Vinny: An Isla Vista Night First Place by Julie English

“I opened a Snapchat from a friend and said immediately…”

Come view the rest of the story.