Works by young local artists will fill Buenaventura Art Association’s downtown Ventura gallery for the next few weeks, thanks to three concurrent shows to run until March 11.

Entries in the 11th annual Collegiate Student Art Competition will be presented in the main gallery, three student winners of the last year’s BAA contest will have the Red Wall section, and a special Focus on the Masters exhibition of art by area students will be in the Clophine Dooley Gallery.

BAA’s yearly Emerging Artist Cup competition for students at a Ventura County college or university awards $3,000 in prizes: $800 for first place, $600 for second, and $350 for third in the form of scholarships to their schools; plus five honorable mentions that include $250 gift cards for art supplies. The prizes are sponsored by the Scripps Howard Foundation, Jessica and Stanley Prescott Trust, and others.

Top prize winners also get a free, one-year membership in BAA and no competition entry fees for a year.

The juror for this show is Bob Privitt, a Thousand Oaks artist and professor emeritus at Pepperdine University, where he taught art for 25 years. The awards will be announced at a gallery reception 3-5 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 18.

The Focus on the Masters show will feature art by local elementary and middle school students from its 2016 in-school Learning to See outreach program. These classes are taught by Aimee French.

Buenaventura Gallery, 700 E. Santa Clara St., is open 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays. For more about the artists’ cooperative group and its programs, visit the Buenaventura Art Association website, www.buenaventuragallery.org, or call 648-1235 during gallery hours.

Focus on the Masters (FOTM) is pleased to announce that ten artists have been selected for FOTM formal documentation by a distinguished jury for the 2017 season.  An artist will be featured monthly beginning with Jane Mulfinger, on Sunday, February 19 from 4 to 5:30 p.m. as part of FOTM’s popular Artist Spotlight interview series, now in its twenty-second year.  Each artist’s interview will be filmed before a studio audience at Levity Live, 591 Collection Blvd., located at the Collection in Oxnard.

“The Levity Live venue is perfect! We could not have asked for a better location!” exclaimed founder and executive director Donna Granata. “Not only is it a state-of-the-art nightclub that meets all our technical needs, the location will offer our patrons a comfortable place to experience our programming while enjoying delicious food and beverages.”

The nine artists have been selected for formal documentation owing to the artists’ mastery of their craft, respect from their peers and their historic role in the life of our artistic heritage.

The series will kick off the season with A Conversation with Jane Mulfinger on Sunday, February 19 at 4:00 p.m.  Mulfinger uses site-specific installations, performance and sculpture to examine and comment on the human condition.

Admission to the Artist Spotlight interviews is free for FOTM members; general admission is $10, seniors and students with valid ID $5. Guests with military ID attend free of charge.  For membership information, visit www.FocusOnTheMasters.com.

To support the costs associated with the documentation of each artist, FOTM enlists the help of generous donors who wish to sponsor or co-sponsor a Spotlight Interview.  Full sponsorship is $1,200; co-sponsorship is $600.   AfterGLOW Special Events will be planned after each interview. February’s AfterGLOW will take place at Copper Blues, Levity Live’s on-site specialty restaurant.  If you would like to sponsor an artist or host an AfterGLOW in your home, call Mary Galbraith at 653.2501 or contact FOTM by email at [email protected].

Working Artists Ventura will present Balm, taking place at WAV Theater Gallery, featuring the art of Rima Muna. WAV, is designed for artists and creative businesses. The Artist’s Reception for Balm will be held on Thursday March 30th, 6 to 8pm. The official Artist’s Reception “opens” the show and celebrates the artist’s accomplishments.

With over 12 pieces of art to see, there is a lot of art to capture your interests!

Show runs until through April 30th. The WAV Theater Gallery is located at 175 S. Ventura Ave.

“Balm means healing and soothing. Let your spirits be soothed and healed by art.” – Rima Muna

The Ventura County Potters’ Guild welcomes Kevin Wallace, Director of the Beatrice Wood Center for the Arts in Ojai. Wallace will offer a presentation on developing a career as a ceramic artist – including creating an artistic identity, working with galleries, photography, pricing, and promotion. He will demystify the art world by sharing his experience in managing galleries, working with museums and running an art center. He is the author of numerous books, including Transforming Vision: The Wood Sculpture of William Hunter; River of Destiny. Many aspects of this talk will be applicable to all artists.

The Ventura Avenue Adult Center 550 N. Ventura Ave.

Monday February 27 Doors open at 7 pm. Program begins at 7:45 pm

Local artist Josif Constantinos Palmoutsos was born in Lima, Peru in 1947. His Father, Constantinos Josif Palmoutsos was a Greek Merchant Marine Officer, his Mother Graciela Silva Jara was a Peruvian Flamenco Dancer. When Josif was a little over a year old, he and his parents left Peru. The next 4 years were spent on Merchant Ships while living all over the world.

At 5 years old they sailed to Ellis Island, and docked in N.Y. and eventually ended up in Ventura. He attended High School of Art & Design, NY, Los Angeles City College and UCLA.

In speaking about his work he says “My artwork is mostly 3 dimensional it is mixed media, almost entirely using recycled/upcycled material. These days it is being called ‘Green Art’. The Artwork is on the large scale such as my  15’ Praying Mantis at the Government Center. A lot of the subjects, are not of this world. My art tends to be whimsical rather than serious. “

His studio is located at 110 N Olive St , Unit F in Ventura.

Buenaventura Art Association has announced the award winners of its 31st annual Open Competition .

First place was awarded to sculptor Carson Pritchard for her stainless steel sculpture, Astinite. Second place was awarded to Kay Zetlmaier for her oil painting, Dutch Drawbridge, Amsterdam. Third place was awarded to watercolor artist Linda Shaner for her painting of a throng of butterflies entitled A Lotta Lepidoptera.Four Honorable Mentions were awarded to Nora Yukon, Julieanne Case, Kimberly-Ann Talbert, and Anette Power respectively.

The competition was open to all professional and amateur artists in Southern California and the Central Coast working in all media.

Santa Barbara painter Karen Fedderson served as juror.

The 31st Annual Open Competition is on exhibit now through Feb. 11 .Buenaventura Gallery, at 700 E. Santa Clara St., is open 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays. For more information about this competition and other BAA art opportunities and programs, www.buenaventuragallery.org, or 648-1235.

The City of Ventura and E.P. Foster Library are pleased to sponsor the ninth annual “Art Tales,” a free “creative writing contest inspired by art.” Writers worldwide in three age categories are invited to visit the library, or the contest website, and choose the artwork that inspires them to create and enter their own poem or short story, 500 words or less, by April 4 for cash and other prizes.

Teachers and writers may contact Art Tales Curator Tobie Roach at [email protected] or 658-4759 to request printed copies of lesson plans for their classes or to answer questions regarding the contest. Or download all materials at www.cityofventura.net/arttales including high resolution reproductions of featured artworks, lesson plan with entry rules, featured artist bios, waiver form, model poems and past anthologies for great examples in prose and poetry.

Selections from the City of Ventura Public, Temporary and Municipal Art Collections are rotated annually to a special second floor exhibit space near the library’s rear (children’s) entrance  in an effort to make them more accessible to the community. Each year, the Ventura Public Art Manager/Art Tales Curator selects 4 to 6 artworks to display at the library, illustrating a particular theme.

Dab Art has several exciting events coming up! Three exhibitions curated by Dab Art will be opening in the upcoming months; Vanishing Oasis, a solo exhibition by Janet Milhomme exploring the Salton Sea through mixed media. Back to The Future, another solo exhibition of retro abstracts by Krystal Becker, and Good Bokeh our  international juried photography exhibit. At H Gallery + Studios (1793 E Main). Dabster Arts is also offering affordable art classes in all genres of art.

Amy Jennings has been a lover of nature and all things beautiful since childhood.   She would spend endless hours coloring, drawing, painting and making craft projects.  Art classes were always her favorite growing up!

After getting her Associate’s Degree in Interior Design, she worked as an Interior Designer in her hometown of Bakersfield before moving to Santa Barbara to live near the ocean.  Always a beach girl at heart, she now resides in Ventura.

When she is not busy painting or decorating – she can be found doing something active like playing tennis, hiking, Pilates or riding her cruiser bike near the beach – always with Gigi the dog in the basket.

The Harbor Gallery is having a promotion for February, “Hearts for the Arts”, they are seeking donations of $1.00 for the purchase of a Valentine Heart on which the donor can make a dedication to a loved one.  These Hearts will be taped to their wall or they may purchase a Heart with an original painting on it.  All donations will be to Buenaventura Art Association for our mission on continuing to bring art to the community through scholarships and classes.

Also, beginning in Feb. the Gallery will feature one artist and his/her work.