The California Oil Museum, in collaboration with the John Nichols Gallery (JohnNicholsGallery.com), is pleased to present “Memories of Cuba: Vintage and Contemporary Photographs and Art”. Rare, original photographs and maps dating from 1892 begin a visual journey through the rich history of the island and people of Cuba. In addition to historic and contemporary photographs there are oil paintings and lithographs by contemporary Cuban artists.

Albumen photographs from the 1890s show an almost unspoiled tropical island. Everyday life through the 1920s and up into the 1950s is explored. Very early photographs of the first months of the revolution show Fidel Castro entering Havana. Che Guevara is shown smoking a cigar.

Oil paintings by outsider Cuban artist Bofill reveal his Santeria beliefs. Two contemporary Cuban photographers show black and white photos of their surroundings. Contemporary photos by travelers Lisa Dodge and John Nichols round out the exhibit.

Most of the historic photographs were collected by John Nichols on trips to Cuba in 2002 and 2008. Additional Cuban art and photographs are always being added to the inventory of the John Nichols Gallery. Works in the exhibit are available for sale through JohnNicholsGallery.com.

WHO: California Oil Museum and John Nichols Gallery
WHAT: Memories of Cuba: Vintage and Contemporary Photographs and Art Exhibit
WHEN: February 19 through May 6, 2012 (The Museum is open Wednesday through Sunday from 10 am to 4 pm)
WHERE: California Oil Museum, 1001 E. Main Street, Santa Paula, CA 93060 (Admission is $4.00 Adults, $3.00 Seniors, $1.00 Youth (6-17)

Cross Pollination, a mixed media art exhibit at Studio Channel Islands Art Center in Old Town Camarillo, will open March 3 with a reception and award ceremony from 4 to 6 p.m.

The exhibit will feature works by 15 artists who have crossed several art techniques and mediums to create something fresh and beautiful. Guests are invited to hear the artists talk about their work at the reception.

Moorpark College studio art professor Cynthia Minet will select the winning pieces.

Participating artists include BJ Fan, Blossom Friel, Karin Geiger, Eileen Hyman, Susan Lasch Krevitt, Arlene Mead, Lucia Grossberger Morales, L. Ford Neale, Gwenlyn Norton, Patricia Post, Peggy Pownall, Bob Privitt, Doug Rucker, Sylvia Torres and Marion Wood.

The exhibit will be open until March 31.

Studio Channel Islands Gallery is open regularly on Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Wednesday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The Artists’ Studios on 2222 Ventura Boulevard are open to the public on March 3, 10am – 4pm.

The Arts Council of the Conejo Valley, "The Voice of the Arts," presents “Connections” in The Galleria at the Hillcrest Center for the Arts, 403 W Hillcrest Drive, Thousand Oaks, 91360. This exhibition will take place March 1– May 30, 2012. There will be an Artists’ Reception at the Hillcrest Center for the Arts Saturday, April 21, from 4 to 6 pm. The public is invited to attend.

This invitational group show will feature art by eleven artists from Los Angeles and Ventura Counties. There will be a variety of media, include painting, photography, mixed media, fiber art, and sculpture. The title of the exhibition, Connections, refers to artists’ expressing unique interpretations of what connects them to their art form, to their lives, and what inspires them to create.

Exhibiting artists in this show are: Iris Carignan, Sophie Chang, Barry Goldberg, Bob Privett, Carolyn Ryan, of Thousand Oaks; Peter Kelly and Melanie Roschko, Westlake Village; Craig Morton, Agoura; Maggie Kildee, Camarillo; Crystal Michaelson, Venice; and Serena Brooks, Los Angeles.

Co-curators for the Galleria and this show are Janet Amiri and Connie Tunick, both Thousand Oaks artists.

"Erosion" by Artist, Helle Scharling-Todd, Photograph by Les Dublin.
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“Bolero” by Artist, Michael Zelcer, Photograph by Les Dublin.
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“Gateway Glass” by Artist, Brian Berman, Photograph by Les Dublin.
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“Fluid And Dynamic" by Artist, Susan Stinsmuehlen-Amend, Photograph by Les Dublin.
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"Nest” by Artist, Robert Eyeberg, Photograph by Les Dublin.
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“Geo” by Artist, Douglas Lochner, Photograph by Douglas Lochner.
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"Wearable Art Detail" by Artist, Teal Rowe, Photograph by Les Dublin.
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What does the Ojai Valley Museum have in common with over 120 museums nationwide? They are all celebrating the 50th anniversary of the American Studio Art Glass Movement in 2012; galleries all over the country are full of light and color reflected, refracted, fused and sculpted in glass by inspired and daring artists.

Glassmaking has been around for thousands of years. In 19th and 20th century America glass was produced in a factory setting with large furnaces, manned by teams of workers. However, in 1962, in a workshop held at the Toledo Museum of Art in Ohio, a small glass furnace compatible with the individual art studio was developed. One of the innovators at this workshop, Harvey Littleton, went on to teach pioneering glass artists, among them Dale Chihuly, who founded the Pilchuck Glass School near Seattle. It is this school that has nurtured the revolutionary vision of glass artists today. Several of the artists exhibiting in “American Glass Works” have spent time at Pilchuck and worked extensively in Washington State.

The beauty and mystery of glass is part of the heritage of Ojai, because of an east coast business mogul, Edward D. Libbey. Industrialist Libbey rebuilt Ojai in the early 20th century with money he made as the owner of the Libbey Glass manufacturing company in Toledo, Ohio. In his role of philanthropist, he also founded the Toledo Museum of Art, where the studio art glass movement later began. The current exhibit at the Ojai Valley Museum pulls together traditional manufactured glass from the museum's Libbey collection and the radically manipulated glass created by local contemporary artists. It is easy to imagine that Libbey, who was always a visionary thinker, would have been proud to see the progress in the art of glass on view in his beloved Ojai.

The exhibit opened on January 21st with a gala catered reception. The gathering of nearly one hundred people included artists from all over the county, collectors, art patrons and art professionals. There has been an increase in visitors to the museum, and the exhibit continues to draw enthusiastic comments. There are over thirty original glass art works in the exhibit, and each artist's relationship with the fluid and often-difficult medium is a unique story.

Brian Berman did not originally intend to become a sculptor, but when a serious business reversal turned his life upside down, he began working with stone sculpture as therapy. Soon he discovered that, buried like a sculpture within a block of stone, an artist was being born. As his art matured, it increasingly reflected his transformation from conflict to inner wholeness. After 9/11, he saw that this evolution in his sculpture could be used in working for peace in the world. Searching for a way to bring the dimension of light into his work, he traveled to the Czech Republic to study glass casting. Czech artists had developed beautiful optical effects as well as geometric forms inside the glass. In Berman's work, light filling the spaces within the form evokes in the viewer a sense of the peace and grace that follows the resolution of conflict.

Although Robert Eyberg of Ventura is best known for his mastery of stained glass, his most creative new work is represented by the avant-garde pieces in the exhibit. "The Nest" floats in the center of the gallery, and its flame-colored glow seems to hold together the surrounding art, standing like friends warming themselves around a fire. Eyberg pays close attention to his dreams and inner consciousness, and the idea for this piece came to him when he saw a bird's nest in a fellow artist's studio. Inspired to move away from the more masculine, hard-edged forms to open, feminine vessels, he began weaving together glass and wire in an organic way. A similar process is seen in his two "Medicine Bags." It was the form that came first into his consciousness, then later he realized that it was like a medicine bag that Native American shamans wear. Again using otherwise harsh materials like wire and rebar, the form emerged as a container for the spirit, with a central heart.

Until five years ago, Douglas Lochner was the CEO of two highly successful technology companies, and practiced metal sculpture only as a hobby in his spare time. But he reached a turning point in his life, when it became clear to him that he couldn't be a sculptor in the field that attracted him most - public art - and also run his companies. So he took a step unimaginable to most of us, sold his businesses and now devotes himself to sculpture. His daring and sense of seizing the moment makes his artwork highly dynamic. Whether spinning a semi-molten bowl like a glass pizza, or patiently compiling daily notes of his constant experiments, Lochner brings into his art the energy and technical discipline that built his company. His focus on capturing, and then sharing a moment in time, can be seen vividly in his piece, "Azurite": a round, kiln-fused disc is both abstract concept and glass in motion. In the center, a copper inclusion has become translucent in the volcanic temperature.

Teal Rowe attended the Pilchuck Glass School and studied with masters of glass working from Italy. But even the Italians never thought to transform glass sculpture into dresses of wearable fine art. Rowe has sculpted hot glass into clusters of color resembling a sunset in Venice: amethyst, rose, aquamarine and gold encircle the neckline. By the time of the gala, both dresses had been sold. In her exhibit triptych, "Old Irish Limerick," Rowe sculpts heavy chunks of hot, solid core glass into clear, light-filled hands that express the flow of life through the heart. Fused into the sculpture is her memory of a beloved uncle, who taught her as a teenager how to work with her own hands.

Helle Scharling-Todd is a master of the art of mosaic. A native of Denmark, she came to live in Ventura when she married an American biologist. Scharling-Todd works primarily in public art and most of her mosaic installations are found in Europe, but in Ventura County they can be seen at the Avenue Senior Center and the Port Hueneme Library. Influenced by the Bauhaus school of Germany, her art de-clutters forms left over from the past, leaving pure color and shapes full of life. Her unique sandblasted sculptures begin with blocks of ordinary recycled glass. As the artist slowly carves layer after layer into the form, she acts like a natural force to erode a sinuous column. When the viewer moves around the sculpture, light cascades through the layers.

Susan Stinsmuehlen-Amend has been working in glass for over thirty years, and her works are in major museums, including the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Museum of Arts and Design in New York, and the Detroit Institute of Arts. She was Artist in Residence at the Pilchuck Glass School in 2006 and will be there in May of this year as a Hauberg Fellow. Her work shows the evolution of glass from utility to fine art, as she deliberately deconstructs or embellishes traditional glass vessels. This is particularly well illustrated in the exhibit by the Curator’s placement of her "Vocabware" series in the same exhibit cases with Libbey glass hostess sets from the 1950's. Stinsmuehlen-Amend uses the transparency of clear glass as a metaphor for consciousness, and a stream of images migrate through different genres. In her stained glass folding screen, "Pro Rata Lyricism," she takes a form used in elegant Art Nouveau decor and shatters it into jagged bolts of primary colors punctuated by blown glass roundels.

Michael Zelcer has become, almost by accident, a master of a cold-working art in glass, reverse painting. Although drawn to be a painter in his youth, he made the decision to pursue a more practical career as an architectural designer because of his desire to support a family. Twelve years ago he began experimenting with reverse painting on glass and was soon creating one painting after another, inventing his own techniques as he went along. It wasn't until later in this process that he actually identified the history of what he was doing; he was creating paintings unencumbered by knowledge of a glass tradition known as églomisé. This is a difficult and exacting art, very unforgiving of mistakes, with everything done on the reverse of a pane of clear glass. Zelcer uses recycled glass from old storefronts in Ventura and Santa Barbara. His work explores the depths behind appearances: the form of a dancer dissolves into layers of light, and dream-like abstractions move from background in one painting to foreground in another.

The Ojai Valley Museum, established in 1967, is generously supported in part by Museum Members, Private Donors, Business Sponsors and Underwriters, the Smith-Hobson Foundation, Wood-Claeyssens Foundation, City of Ojai, and the Rotary Club of Ojai.

"American Glass Works" will be open through April 1, 2012. The Ojai Valley Museum is located at 130 W. Ojai Avenue, Ojai, CA. Admission: free for current 2012 members, adults - $4.00, students and children 6 to18 - $1.00, children 5 and under - free. Gallery hours are Tuesday - Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 pm; Sunday, noon to 4 pm. Tours are available by appointment.

For more information, call the museum at (805) 640-1390, extension 203, or visit the museum website at http://www.ojaivalleymuseum.org/

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More than two dozen images by famed LIFE Magazine photojournalist Horace Bristol are on exhibition March 3 through May 20 at the Museum of Ventura County Agriculture Museum in Santa Paula. Horace Bristol Photographs: Selections From the 1930s features not only work from his best known Grapes of Wrath series, but other selections from the 1930s period, including such diverse images as a never before exhibited aerial photograph of a Santa Paula orange orchard, and a migrant child pitting apricots. The exhibition is in the Agriculture Museum’s Reiter Affiliated Companies Visitors Center and Calavo Hall.

The public is invited on Sunday March 4 from 2:00 – 4:00 p.m. to a free reception for both the Bristol exhibit and Putting Down Roots: Ventura County’s Immigrant Farmers 1800-1910. “The Plow That Broke the Plains,” a 1936 documentary about Dust Bowl farm practices, is screening at both 2:30 and 3:30 p.m. in Limoneira Hall.

Born in 1908, Bristol spent time during his teens in Santa Paula and as a young man established his first commercial studio there. During the Depression, Bristol traveled with John Steinbeck through the California migrant camps. His resulting black and white photographs documenting the human toll of the Dust Bowl displacement were published in LIFE magazine in the early 1940s. Bristol’s total body of work was extensive and varied, covering such subjects as World War II, Asia, famous personalities, and the architecture of American industry. Many of the negatives were later burned and the photographs that remained were largely forgotten until 1985, when Bristol showed them to his son 12 years before his death in Ojai, where he had retired. The Agriculture Museum’s exhibit presents photographs from the Museum of Ventura County Collection and from the Horace and Masako Bristol Estate.

The Museum of Ventura County’s Agriculture Museum is located at 926 Railroad Avenue, Santa Paula, California, in their historic downtown, near the Depot and next to the railroad tracks. Hours are 10 a.m.– 4 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. Admission is $4 adults, $3 seniors, $1 children 6-17, free for Museum of Ventura County members, and for children ages 5 and younger. On first Sundays of the month, general admission is always free. For more information, go to www.venturamuseum.org or call (805) 525-3100.

CWAA founder Brenda Clubine

THOUSAND OAKS, CA - California Lutheran University will screen a documentary about the female inmates who brought Battered Women Syndrome to light and host a discussion with one of the women profiled at 7 p.m. Thursday, March 8.

“Sin by Silence” will be shown in the Lundring Events Center on the Thousand Oaks campus as part of the Reel Justice Film Series. The screening takes place on International Women’s Day, which is celebrated each year to mark the economic, political and social achievements of women.

One of the women featured in the film and CLU faculty members will participate in panel discussion following the screening.

The film by Olivia Klaus tells the story of Convicted Women Against Abuse, the first inmate-initiated and inmate-led group in the United States prison system. Formed in 1989 by several women servinglife sentences at the California Institution for Women in Chino for killingtheir abusers, CWAA helped women inside prison break the silence about abuse and begin helping others to stop the cycle of violence.

Led by then inmate Brenda Clubine, the CWAA worked to change a system that did not recognize the intricacies of an abusive relationship and ended up shattering misconceptions about domestic violence. Through carefully orchestrated letter-writing campaigns, media coverage and Senate hearings, the movement gained momentum and, in 1992, Battered Women Syndrome was legally defined. The group’s efforts also resulted in California becoming the first state to permit battered women convicted of killing their batterers to file a writ of habeas corpus challenging their original conviction if sentencing occurred prior to 1992.

Many cases were re-tried and convictions overturned, resulting in the release ofinmates. As of 2010, 25 women had been freed due to the group’s efforts. And the women who remain behind bars continue to work to have their voices heard.

The Reel Justice Film Series, which examines the themes of equality and social justice, will continue April 17 with “Speaking in Tongues,” a film on the country’s commitment to remaining an English-only nation.

The Lundring Events Center is located in the Gilbert Sports and Fitness Center on the north side of Olsen Road near Mountclef Boulevard.

CLU’s Center for Equality and Justice, Department of Criminal Justice, Gender and Women’s Studies Program and Graduate Psychology Program are sponsoring the free event. For more information, contact Sam Thomas at sthomas@callutheran.edu or (805) 493-3693.

VENTURA, CA – One of the world’s best-loved novels, Jane Austen’s classic “Pride and Prejudice”, will be performed for one more weekend – Saturday, Feb. 25 and Sunday, Feb. 26 – at the Poinsettia Pavilion, 3451 Foothill Road.

The play is a production of Ventura County Community Theatre, in association with Performance Theatre for Young Artists. First published in 1813, “Pride and Prejudice” has been adapted for the stage in an original script written by VCCT and PTYA Director Marta Dewey. Filled with drama and humor, the story follows the lives of the Bennet family and other members of 19th-century English gentry as they deal with marriage, morality, upbringing, manners, education and other issues. With more than 20 million copies sold worldwide, “Pride and Prejudice” remains one of the most popular novels in English literature.

Show times at 2 and 7 p.m. Feb. 25, and at 6 p.m. Feb. 26. Tickets cost $15 for adults and $12 for seniors, children and students. A special $10 per-ticket rate is available to school groups of 10 or more students through 12th grade who come to the same performance and make arrangements in advance. To order tickets or for more information, go to www.ptya.org, call (805) 653-1962, or e-mail ptya@sbcglobal.net.

Cottontail Day, Photo by Dan Harding
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Parade of Lights, Photo by Dan Harding
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WINTER 2012

Pacific Gray Whale Watching

January – March 2012

Whale Watching Season is here and it’s a great time to catch a glimpse of nature up close and personal! Island Packers, Ventura County’s official concessionaire to the Channel Islands National Park, is now offering ½-day and all-day whale watching excursions to view these magnificent mammals. www.IslandPackers.com

Channel Islands National Park Spring Wildlife Excursions
February – April 2012

California’s Channel Islands National Park has been nicknamed “The North America Galapagos” as diversity abounds on the Islands and in the giant kelp beds in the Marine Sanctuary. The uninhabited Islands are accessed via boat or plane ride and remain pristine for hiking and kayaking. Visit Anacapa Island for spectacular wildflower blooms and bird watching, and be able to boast to have been to the least visited National Park in North America! www.IslandPackers.com

SPRING 2012

Cottontail Day

Saturday, March 31, 2012, 10 am – 3 pm

Ventura Harbor Village is filled with the sights and sounds of family on the Village Main Lawn. The Cottontail Bunny can be spotted hopping around giving children a chance to shake hands or grab a hug. Other activities include face painting, petting zoo, hands-on arts & crafts, pony rides and so much more. $2 Easter egg hunts are held every 30 minutes for ages 1-7 (weather pending). www.VenturaHarborVillage.com

Harbor is Hopping

Sunday, April 8, 2012, Noon – 3 pm

Hop on over for Springtime celebration and Easter brunch at Harbor restaurants. Kids can take photos with the Easter Bunny, or enjoy live music at the Ventura Harbor Village Carousel Stage. www.VenturaHarborVillage.com

Memorial Day Weekend Happenings

Saturday and Sunday, May 26 - 27, 2012, 1 – 4 pm

Kick off summer with Memorial Day Weekend live music performances by local band favorites throughout the holiday weekend. Admission is free. www.VenturaHarborVillage.com

Ventura Harbor Water Taxi

Memorial Day Saturday, May 26 – Labor Day Monday, September 3, 2012

Ride the Ventura Harbor Water Taxi to the Ventura Harbor Village for shopping, dining, and family fun! “Toot-C” the yellow water taxi runs on Saturdays and Sundays from Marina Park to Ventura Harbor Village. Fee to ride. www.VenturaBoatRentals.com

Blue & Humpback Whale Watching

June – September 2012

Seasonal feeding patters offers views of these extraordinary mammals during summer in the Santa Barbara Channel. Island Packers, Ventura County’s official concessionaire to the Channel Islands National Park, has special all day whale watching excursions to Santa Rosa Island with a visit to Painted Cave on Santa Cruz Islands north Shore. www.IslandPackers.com

National Marina Day

Saturday, June 9, 2012 11 am – 2 pm

Learn through interactive activities about marina resources, boating safety, fishing industry, and more. Experience the marina lifestyle through family fun and meet local stewards of the Ventura Harbor. www.VenturaHarborVillage.com

SUMMER 2012

Summer Sounds Concert Series

Sundays, June 24 - Labor Day Sunday, September 2, 2012, 1 - 4 pm

Soak up the sun while listening to an array of music ranging from Jazz & Soul to Pop & Rock to a blend of Caribbean & Reggae during the Summer Sounds Concert Series every Sunday from 1 to 4 p.m. on the Ventura Harbor Village Carousel Stage. www.VenturaHarborVillage.com

7th Annual Pirate Days Festival

Saturday and Sunday, July 21 - 22, 2012, 1 - 4pm

Return to the mystical times when the pirates roamed the seas during the 7th Annual Pirate Days Festival. The event features professional pirate live-action shows, pirate themed activities, treasure hunts, pirate costume contests, pirate vendors and much more. Admission and parking are free. www.VenturaHarborVillage.com

Steel Drum at Carousel Stage

Saturdays in July 2012, 1 – 4 pm

Fun beachy sounds surround while shopping, dining, or relaxing in the Village. Steel drums kick off the good times July 7. www.VenturaHarborVillage.com

Making Strides Against Breast Cancer 5K

Saturday, August 18, 2012, 8:30 am start

Join in the campaign to support more birthdays at the third annual Making Strides Against Breast Cancer 5k fund raiser and pancake breakfast for Ventura County. Making Strides is a non-competitive 5k scenic morning walk, beginning early Saturday, August 18, 2012 at Ventura Harbor. http://MakingStrides.acsevents.org/ventura

Arts in the Park

Saturday and Sunday, August 18 – 19, 2012, 10 am – 6 pm Sat. / 10 am -5 pm Sun.

Local artists display amazing glass work, jewelry, sculpture, hand created crafts and more outdoors at Ventura Harbor Village Main Lawn during a fun-filled summer weekend. Street chalk artists create “Chalk for Charity” pieces along the Village Promenade to support FOODShare, plus live music, and junior art competitions throughout the weekend. Produced by Ventura Chamber of Commerce. Admission and Parking are free. www.VenturaChamber.com

Chiefs Along the Channel ~ Pontiac, GMC, Buick, Oldsmobile Car Show

Sunday, August 26, 2012, 10 am – 4 pm

Buicks, Oldsmobile, Pontiacs, and GMC Pickups will be on display on the Ventura Harbor Village Main Lawn for car enthusiasts of all ages to enjoy. Presented by The Channel Islands Chapter of the Pontiac Oakland Club International, Chiefs Along the Channel Car Show includes live music, raffle prizes, a 50/50 drawing, and a final award ceremony. Free admission for spectators. Contact Tom Maloney, President, (805) 443-2919 for information & vehicle registration. www.VenturaHarborVillage.com

Labor Day Weekend

Saturday and Sunday, September 1-2, 2012, 1 – 4 pm

Live music from 1 – 4 pm, Saturday & Sunday at the Village Carousel Stage. Soak in the summer sun in the Village setting. www.VenturaHarborVillage.com

Responsible Dog Ownership Day

Saturday, September 8, 2012, 10 am – 2 pm

Agility demonstrations, live music, local kennel clubs and rescue groups gather at the Ventura Harbor Village Main Lawn to celebrate the deep bonds between dogs and humans. Learn the importance of being a responsible owner on National Responsible Dog Ownership Day and have fun with furry friends! Produced by Ventura County Dog Fancier Association and the American Kennel Club. www.VCDFA.com

FALL 2012

Ponies by the Sea ~ Mustang Car Show

Sunday, October 14, 2012, 10 am – 3:30 pm

Mustangs from all eras will sparkle and shine lined up on the Ventura Harbor Village Main Lawn for the Ponies by the Sea Car Show. Free for spectators, registration fees to display vintage and modern vehicles are donated to local non-profits. Award ceremony includes People’s Choice Classes, Best of Show, Best Paint, Best Engine, and many more. Free admission for spectators. www.TriCountyMustangClub.com

Kinetic Sculpture Race – (Benefiting the Turning Point Foundation)

Saturday, October 20, 2012, 10:20 am - 4 pm

Amazing people-powered and hilarious works of art designed to travel over an exciting all-terrain course will race through Ventura Harbor, Saturday, October 20 from 10:20 am to 4 pm. The creative vehicles will trek through such challenges as a harbor water launch, sand mounds, figure eight race track and huge mud pit before making it to the finish line. Free Admission and free parking. www.KineticRace.com

Ventura Restaurant Week

Sunday, November 4 - Friday, November 9, 2012

During Ventura Restaurant Week’s third annual celebration of fine local cuisine, discover new restaurants and enjoy all your favorites at a discounted price! Choose from over 35 local restaurants and get a great multi-course meal for either $20/person or $20 for two people (not including tax and tip). Try Ventura Harbor Village participating restaurants for lunch and return for a different selection at dinner! For complete listing of City-wide participating restaurants visit www.VenturaRestaurantWeek.com

Channukah Festival

Sunday, December 9, 2012

Celebration of the season includes live music, Judaica boutique, hot Latkes, family fun, and lighting of a Grand Menorah. Presented by Chabad of Oxnard and made possible by the Jewish Federation of Ventura County. Free Admission. www.ChabadofOxnard.com

Ventura Harbor Holiday Parade of Lights & Fireworks

Friday and Saturday, December 14 - 15, 2012, Boat Parade 7 pm

Ventura Harbor celebrates the season with its 36th Annual Holiday Parade of Lights & Fireworks on Friday, December 14 and Saturday, December 15. The theme for the two-day fun filled event is “Jingle Jungle” and includes a carnival, seaside shopping and dining followed by the lighted boat parade & fireworks show in the evening. Free Admission www.VenturaHarborVillage.com

Winter Wonderland & Sidewalk Sale

Saturday, December 15, 2012, 1 - 5 pm

Rediscover the joy of holiday shopping while wondering through a festive holiday village at the popular Ventura Harbor’s Winter Wonderland & Sidewalk Sale held Saturday, December 15 from 1- 5 pm.

Highlights include faux snowfall every 15 minutes, a full carnival with rides and games, visits with Santa & Mrs. Claus, live reindeer, Dickenson Carolers, and more! The 36th Annual Parade of Lights & Fireworks to follow! www.VenturaHarborVillage.com

Ventura Harbor Village is located just minutes off the Historic 101 and Highway 1 along California’s Central Coast. Take the Seaward Ave. exit, left on Harbor Blvd., and right on Spinnaker Drive. 1583 Spinnaker Drive, Ventura, CA 93001

For more information call the Ventura Harbor Event Line: (805) 477–0470, ext. 5 or visit www.VenturaHarborVillage.com

Jeanette Cole

Rendering of new building to be constructed
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Front of museum showing how the new signage will look
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The Santa Paula Art Museum is pleased to announce $1 million gift from Lecil “Lee” Cole and Family to honor his wife, Jeanette, who was a docent and a great supporter of the Museum. The gift will establish the “Jeanette Cole Art Center” at the Santa Paula Art Museum. Jeanette was one of the first docents at the Santa Paula Art Museum and she unexpectedly passed away on September 3, 2011. “Jeanette was so grateful to all the many people that worked so hard to make the Art Museum a reality and to Jennifer Orcutt Heighton for doing such a great job managing the museum. Jeanette really wanted the museum to be a success and this donation on her behalf will help make that happen” said Lee Cole.

Jeanette was born in Louisberg, Missouri on December 20, 1940 and she came to California with her family in 1954. She attended Santa Paula High School, graduating in 1958 and on October 5 of that same year, she married her high school sweetheart Lecil “Lee” Cole. In 1960 Jeanette began work with Santa Paula Savings and Loan, where she rose through the ranks and was ultimately promoted to insurance agent for the company. She retired in 1985 to devote more of her time to helping expand the family’s ranching operations and her hobbies. She was devoted to her grandchildren and cherished every moment spent with them. Jeanette was a tremendous advocate for the Museum, one of its first docents, a great salesperson in the gift shop and she always took the time to talk to museum visitors.

“We are absolutely overjoyed with the extremely generous gift from the Cole family that will carry the name of Jeanette Cole, our cherished friend and docent”, said Bill Orcutt, President of Santa Paula Art Museum Board of Directors. Orcutt went on to say “the gift will help make a lasting contribution to the arts in Santa Paula and serve as a permanent reminder of Jeanette and all she contributed to the community.”

The Santa Paula Art Museum has come a long way in three short years. In May, 2009 restoration and renovation of the Limoneira Building on Tenth Street in Santa Paula began and eight months later, on February 14, 2010, the Santa Paula Art Museum opened in a completely restored and renovated building. Since that time SPAM has acquired over 60 new works of art, produced over 14 curated shows using works from the Santa Paula Art Collection, local artists and the award-winning annual “De Colores Art Show”. This year 4,500 people visited the museum over 40 people volunteered their time to serve as docents.

The success of the Museum has created a new problem – more space is needed for community art programs, classroom and conference space for art lectures and other cultural events, meeting space and additional storage space for the growing collection, as well as an elevator to access the mezzanine and basement. Phase II expansion plans include building a new Art Center and Courtyard which will serve as a new multi-purpose gathering space with a performing arts stage for the public to enjoy various multicultural functions.

The SPAM Board plans to use the generous $1 million Cole gift as part of this capital expansion and to seek grant funds to complete the project. The Cole gift will enable implementation of the Phase II and the Jeanette Cole Art Center expansion to get underway. Phase II Expansion consists of:

New Two-Story Art Center - $1,580,645
Museums Courtyard - $585,350
Total Cost - $2,165,995

Weaver at the foot loom 2011, Photo by Centro Bii Daüü, Zapotec Arts Center Oaxaca
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Wool skein dyed with indigo 2011, Phto By Centro Bii Daüü, Zapotec Art Center
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Textile from MVC Exhibit from Bii Daüü, Zapotec Arts Center
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Thousands of years of Mexico’s creative tradition are reflected in the Museum of Ventura County’s upcoming events and three exhibitions running February 25 through May 27, 2012, at their Ventura location.

Two of the exhibitions celebrate the art of music and sculpture: Music before Columbus: the Collection of Luis Perez, featuring rare Pre-Columbian musical instruments from Mesoamerica, and The White Instruments: Recent Creations by Luis Perez, modern wind and percussion instruments sculpted in clay. The Pre-Columbian inspired pieces are used by Perez to compose and record contemporary music. Perez will give a related presentation:

The Pre-Columbian World of Music, Dance & Ritual: Lecture by Luis Perez

Sunday, March 11

2:00 p.m.

For much of his life, Mexican-born musician Luis Perez has researched and studied Pre-Columbian music, mythology and ritual, archaeological artifacts, and the living musical traditions of Mexico. During the lecture, Perez will talk about a selection of musical instruments featured in the Music Before Columbus exhibition, as well as demonstrate their unique sounds.

Admission is $5 and includes entrance to all galleries. Museum members are free. For reservations, call 805- 653-0323 x 7.

The exhibition Hilos de la Vida / Threads of Life, features woven pieces from the Bii Daüü Zapotec Arts Center, as well as Time and Space, modern interpretations by Zapotec weaver and artist Porfirio Gutierrez of Ventura. Accompanying events include:

From Tradition to Innovation: The Weavers of Teotitlán del Valle

Sunday, March 25

2:00 p.m.

Guest artisan Lorenzo Bautista of the Bii Daüü Zapotec Arts Center in Teotitlán del Valle, Oaxaca, and local artist and weaver Porfirio Gutierrez will come together to discuss the designs, techniques and the process involved in the creation of their textiles.

Admission is $5 and includes entrance to all galleries. Museum members are free. For reservations, call 805- 653-0323 x7.

Dyeing Demonstration

Sunday, April 1

1:00-3:00 pm

A whole spectrum of colors can be obtained from plants, animals and fungi. Join guest artisans Mariano Sosa and Lorenzo Bautista as they explain the use of organic materials in creating natural dyes and demonstrate the process of dyeing yarns for weaving. Artist Porfirio Gutierrez will be demonstrating weaving techniques in the gallery.

The event and museum admission are free (all first Sundays of the month are free admission for the general public, at both the Museum of Ventura County in Ventura and its Agriculture Museum in Santa Paula).

"Woven Lives”: Documentary Film Screening

Thursday, May 10

7:00 pm

Drawing upon the beauty of the people and landscape of Oaxaca, Mexico, "Woven Lives" provides a look at contemporary Zapotec weavers from six different villages in the region. The documentary by Carolyn Kallenborn celebrates the colors and techniques of thee unique textiles and illustrates how the art of weaving cloth has helped the Zapotecs retain their culture and identity for thousands of years.

Admission is $5 and includes and includes entry to all museum galleries before the screening. Museum members are free. For reservations, call 805- 653-0323 x 7.

The Museum of Ventura County is located at 100 East Main Street in downtown Ventura. Hours are 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Admission to the exhibitions is $4 adults, $3 seniors, $1 children 6-17, members and children under 6 are free. For more museum information go to www.venturamuseum.org or call 805-653-0323.

'High Flying Surfer' by Robert McFall
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'Maui Blue' by Robert McFall
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'Maui Sunset Fire' by Robert McFall
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Photographer Robert McFall at Descanso Gardens
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The Ojai Photography Club welcomes photographer Bob McFall to its first official meeting of 2012, which takes place February 21 at 7:00 PM, in Help of Ojai’s Kent Hall, 111 Santa Ana Street, Ojai, CA. He will present two short photo presentations: one about the Glendale Station Fire and subsequent flooding, and another about Kite Surfing in Maui. Following the presentation, he will critique images submitted by club members, using his own unique perspective, to help members see their work from another point of view.

McFall spent 35 years as a Park Superintendent, Director of Parks and Recreation, and Assistant City Manager for the city of Glendale, and always with camera in hand. His interest in landscape and event photography earned him recognition as the unofficial city photographer, and his work can be found throughout the community in private homes, offices, businesses, and public spaces.

Having recently retired and relocated to Ojai, McFall has formed “Lifescapes Photography,” to fulfill his passion for capturing the beauty of nature and people photographically. His style is a “though the lens,” ambient light approach and his images are as he found them in real life, perhaps with minor color correction, glitches or cropping. Visit his website at: http://bobmcfallphotos.com/

The Ojai Photo Club meets on the third Tuesday of each month, February – November. Visitors are always welcome, but only members may submit images for critique. For more information, please visit http://www.ojaiphotoclub.com/

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Ventura County Potters' Guild invites members and the community to a pottery demonstration and talk by Ojai Artist Richard Flores at the Ventura Senior Center located at 420 East Santa Clara Street, Ventura, Monday, February 20, 2012, 7 - 9 pm. Refreshments, FREE

Flores will demonstrate and discuss his beautiful decorative yet functional ceramic forms, glazing and firing methods. He has a home studio in Ojai and is a member of the Ojai Studio Artists and the 3-D Fine Arts Professor at the College of the Sequoias. Flores regularly has workshops at the Beatrice Woods Center for the Arts where is artistic works are regularly on display. His work concerns, "the connectedness of one thing to another, the resulting balance between differences and the passionate exploration of life's textures expressed through art...

link to video for Ojai Studio Artists http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gP1VHtHsBJI

Soloist David Mason

THOUSAND OAKS, CA - California Lutheran University will present a free all-Tchaikovsky concert at 2 p.m. Sunday, March 4.

The University Symphony will present “The Tchaikovsky Project” in Samuelson Chapel.

Selections include the classically styled, Mozart-inspired “Variations on a Rococo Theme,” Opus 33 for cello and orchestra, featuring senior music major and cellist David Mason of Ventura. The 50-member student ensemble also will perform Tchaikovsky’s first notable work for large orchestra, the ultra-romantic Symphony No. 1 “Winter Daydreams.”

Music professor Daniel Geeting will conduct.

The chapel is located south of Olsen Road near Campus Drive on the Thousand Oaks campus.

Donations will be accepted. For more information, call the Music Department at 805-493-3306 or visit http://www.callutheran.edu.

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From Malibu to the Ventura County line, the Santa Monica Mountains bring to mind beautiful hiking trails and amazing coastal view homes. But in 1917, when homesteaders Lauretta and John Spurgeon Houston arrived in what is still a remote corner of Ventura County, life was much tougher. Rediscover their story on Thursday, March 1 at 5:30 p.m., when the Museum of Ventura County presents the free lecture The Story Within The Story: Behind the Scenes of the Journal of Ventura County History.

The museum’s Research Librarian Charles Johnson takes the audience behind the scenes of the newest publication of the “Journal of Ventura County History,” which focuses on the struggles of the Houston family. Johnson describes the rediscovery of “The Big Ranch Fight” an article about the homesteaders published 57 years ago, and introduces the “village” of people who helped him bring their story to a new generation of readers. He is joined by Linda Valois, National Park Service, Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, who has lived and worked in the area for over a decade and who describes current efforts by the National Park Service to preserve the area’s history through research and oral interviews.

Museum of Ventura County members are automatically members of the Ventura County Historical Society, so they are encouraged to not only come for the presentation, but to vote on updates proposed for the Society’s Articles of Incorporation.

“The Journal of Ventura County History” is published twice yearly, and is one of the benefits of museum membership. Copies of the new issue may be purchased at the March 1 event or reserved through the museum store by calling (805) 653-0323 ext 316. Since 2008 “The Journal of Ventura County History” has been a joint venture of the Museum of Ventura County and Moorpark College. Prior to that, the museum’s Historical Society published it for 53 years as “The Quarterly.”

The Museum of Ventura County is located at 100 East Main Street in downtown Ventura. Hours are 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Admission to the exhibitions is $4 adults, $3 seniors, $1 children 6-17, members and children under 6 are free. For more museum information go to www.venturamuseum.org or call 805-653-0323.

Thousand Oaks, CA - The world-renowned NEXUS percussion ensemble will present a free concert at California Lutheran University on Friday, March 2.

Themusicians dubbed the “high priests of the percussion world” by The New York Times will perform at 8 p.m. in Samuelson Chapel on the Thousand Oaks campus.

BobBecker, Bill Cahn, Russell Hartenberger and Garry Kvistad are revered not just for their virtuosity and improvisational skills, but also for their ability to create extraordinary music out of just about anything including Swiss cowbells, Chinese drums, Tibetan prayer bowls, Middle Eastern hand drums and Southeast Asian water buffalo bells.

After more than four decades of continuous collaboration, the four master percussionists have amassed a repertoire ranging from military music to the novelty ragtime of the 1920s and from the haunting rhythms of Africa to ground-breaking compositions by some of the world’s leading composers. Japanese master Toru Takemitsu composed one of their signature pieces, “From me flows what you call Time.” This work, written with each NEXUS member’s personality in mind, was premiered at Carnegie Hall’s centennial celebration in 1990 with Seiji Ozawa conducting the Boston Symphony Orchestra. In 2005, Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich composed “Rituals” for NEXUS and the IRIS Chamber Orchestra.

NEXUS created the musical score for the National Film Board’s award-winningdocumentary “Inside Time.” The group also created the chilling score for the Academy Award-winning feature-length documentary “The Man Who Skied Down Everest.” TV and radio broadcasters such as CBS, PBS and CBC have regularly featured the ensemble.

The Toronto-based quartet has performed with every major symphony orchestra in Canada and the United States, as well as with orchestras in London, Birmingham, Germany, Tokyo, France, Norway, Taipei and Finland. It was the first Western percussion group to perform in the People’s Republic of China.

The chapel is located south of Olsen Road near the corner of Campus Drive in Thousand Oaks. Additional parking is available at the corner of Olsen and Mountclef Boulevard.

CLU’s Artists and Speakers Committee is sponsoring the concert. For more information, contact Melissa Maxwell-Doherty at 805-493-3228.

THOUSAND OAKS, CA - The California Lutheran University Theatre Arts Department will present “Almost, Maine” the first weekend in March.

The romantic comedy by John Cariani will be staged at 8 p.m. March 1, 2 and 3, and at 4 p.m. Sunday, March 4, in the Black Box Studio Theatre on the Thousand Oaks campus.

On a cold, clear, moonless Friday night in the middle of winter, all is not quite what it seems in the remote, mythical town of Almost, Maine. As the northern lights hover in the star-filled sky above, residents of Almost find themselves falling in and out of love in unexpected and often hilarious ways. Knees are bruised; hearts are broken. Love is lost, found, and confounded. But the bruises heal and the hearts mend – almost. In nine charming vignettes, “Almost, Maine” inventively explores the mysteries of the human heart, touching audiences with laughter, heartbreak and hope.

Advanced theatre arts students are producing and directing the production with department chair Michael Arndt advising. The productioncrew includes director Jeremy Hanna, a junior theatre arts major from Newbury Park; lighting director Shaun Hara, a senior theatre arts major from Honolulu; scenic director Seth Kamenow, a senior theatre arts major from Simi Valley;stage manager Sarah McKee, a freshman theatre arts and mathematics major from Sunnyvale; and assistant stage manager Erik Groth, a junior music major from Newbury Park. Ally Crocker, a junior theatre arts major from San Diego, is in charge of costumes.

Cast members include Jessica Butenshon, a junior theatre arts major from Astoria, Ore.; Lara Emery, a freshman from Cedar Park, Texas; Berlin Galvan, a freshman business economics major from Palmdale; Kelsey Goeres, a junior communication major from Santa Maria; Martin Gonzalez, a junior theatre arts major from Hesperia; Patty Jaramillo, a freshman theatre arts and psychology major from Van Nuys; Aubrey Kaye, a freshman computer and theatre arts major from Camarillo; Erik Klein, a sophomore theatre arts major from Newhall; Brenden MacDonald, a junior theatre arts major from Simi Valley; Chris Malison, a sophomore theatre arts major from Visalia; Will Cowles Meyer, a freshman theatre arts major from Spokane, Wash.; Michelle Miller, a freshman theatrearts major from Ukiah; Nolan Monsibay, a freshman music major from Burbank;Emma Peterson, a freshman communication major from Kansas City; Tommy Schofield, a junior theatre arts major from Edmonds, Wash.; Cooper Smith, a freshman English major from Trabuco Canyon; Alyssa Soto, a senior theatre arts major from Moorpark; and Stephen Wardle, a junior communication major from Reno, Nev.

Admission is free. The Black Box Studio Theatre is located in the Theatre Arts Building on the north side of Memorial Parkway. For more information, call the Theatre Arts Department at 805-493-3416.

Patricia A. and Peter Adler

THOUSAND OAKS, CA - Noted sociologists Patricia A. and Peter Adler will present “Self-Injury: The Silent Epidemic” on Thursday, March 1, at California Lutheran University.

The talk at 7 p.m. in Lundring Events Center will draw on a 10-year longitudinal study that included 150 interviews with self-injurers from all over the world and analysis of more than 30,000 Internet posts in chat rooms and other communiqués. Self-injury, or the deliberate destruction of one’s own body tissue, includes cutting, burning, branding and bone-breaking.

Patricia Adler, a sociology professor at the University of Colorado, Boulder, and Peter Adler, a sociology and criminology professor at the University of Denver, published their findings in August in “The Tender Cut: Inside the Hidden World of Self-Injury.” Their research follows self-injury from its early days, when people engaged in it alone, to the present, where a subculture has formed via cyberspace. The practice emerged from obscurity in the 1990s and spread dramatically as a typical behavior among adolescents. The Adlers argue that self-injury is not a suicidal gesture, as long considered, but instead a coping mechanism, a form of teenage angst, an expression of group membership, and a type of rebellion. It’s a way of converting unbearable emotional pain into manageable physical pain.

The husband-and-wife team has written and taught aboutdeviance, drugs and society, and the sociology of gender, children, work, sport and leisure. They are the co-authors and co-editors of many books including “Peer Power,” “Paradise Laborers” and “Constructions of Deviance.” They also have edited the Journal of Contemporary Ethnography. Together, they served as co-presidents of the Midwest Sociological Society and received the 2010 George Herbert Mead Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Society for the Study of Symbolic Interaction.

The free lecture is the second in an annual series established by the estate of Paul and Eleanora Culver of Lake Sherwood. CLU’s Center for Equality and Justice, Pearson Library and departments of communication, criminal justice, political science, psychology and sociology are sponsoring the event.

Lundring Events Center is located in the Gilbert Sports and Fitness Center on the north side of Olsen Road near Mountclef Boulevard. For more information, contact Adina Nack at nack@callutheran.edu or 805-493-3438.

“Mystical Unfolding” oil on canvas, 48” x 36”, Carole Milton.
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Over decades as life partners and art colleagues, Ventura artists Carole Milton and Gerd Koch have exhibited their works widely, but never at the same place and time.

That situation will be rectified soon with the Feb. 28 debut of “Gerd Koch and Carole Milton: Together,” a joint show at the Buenaventura Gallery through March 24. An opening reception is planned from 4-7 p.m. on Saturday, March 3.

Koch and Milton each paint brilliantly colorful abstract visions, primarily in oil on canvas and often large, though their subjects and processes diverge widely. They will exhibit some recent works and some picked from their pasts in this show. It’s planned as sort of a grace note in their harmonious partnership, in celebration of love, art and their shared history. Longtime Ventura College art teacher Koch, who was a founding member of the nonprofit Ventura artists’ group (as well as many other local arts organizations), says the gallery’s intimate surroundings fit the “Together” theme well.

World travel, art creation and art appreciation are central to their life together, which they describe as a shared process of growth and experimentation. Milton and Koch met in the 1970s at Ventura College when she, a returning student pursuing educational interests after having raised a son and daughter, took his painting class. Koch also conducted European art tours; Milton first went in 1976 as a student and has returned with him many times over the years since as a guide.

They love to peruse galleries and museums together, attend most area art shows and exhibits, and strongly promote local art and artists. Last year in conjunction with the Ventura County Arts Council, the couple inaugurated a grant program for professional artists with two $3,000 awards in December.

Launching and guiding young artists has been Koch’s life work. Born in 1929 in Detroit, he came West after earning his bachelor’s degree in fine art at Wayne State University in 1951, founded an artists’ commune in the Upper Ojai Valley the next year, and began his long teaching career a year after that. He was a professor of painting and drawing at Ventura College in 1960-61, then taught adult school classes for a few years as he honed his knowledge of art history and techniques. After earning his MFA in postgraduate work at UCSB in 1967, Koch returned to the Ventura professorship, which lasted until his 1999 retirement. There he helped to mentor the careers of generations of prominent local artists.

His 60-year career as an artist has included solo and group shows in prestigious venues near and far, a long list of awards and honors, and purchases by many museums, public and private organizations and collectors. Koch also has been a member of the National Watercolor Society since 1955, serving three times as elected juror of its annual international exhibition.

Locally, his creative imprint is on such local arts groups as Studio Channel Islands Art Center, of which is he co-founder and a board member, and Focus on the Masters, on whose board he also serves. Koch has curated dozens of exhibitions over the years at SCIAC, the Ojai Art Center and Ventura College.

Carole Milton was born in Seattle and grew up in Yakima, Wash. She attended the University of Washington for a year before taking a secretarial job at an airline, where travel opportunities ignited and enflamed her lifelong love of antiquities and art.

Her painting career began later, after motherhood, with the Ventura College art classes. With Koch’s encouragement, Milton continued her studies at UCSB, from which she earned a bachelor’s degree in studio art in 1981. Her solo exhibition that same year at the university was the first in a long and growing list.

Milton, who calls herself an expressionist and a colorist, says she engages in “a visual dialogue as my paintings evolve.”

She begins the abstract works by chance, splashing diluted oil paints on the canvas outside her studio at their hilltop Ventura home. Once back inside, Milton experiments, often by spraying water over the pale colors, then pursuing those promising paths that emerge with more vivid hues from her palette, applied with brushes or even paper towels.

Examples of both noted local artists’ powerful visual imaginings will be exhibited in this unique show at the Buenaventura Gallery, 700 E. Santa Clara St. in downtown Ventura. Hours are noon-5 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays. For more about the show or the Buenaventura Art Association, call the gallery at 648-1235 or visit http://www.buenaventuragallery.org.

The 2012 Ventura Music Week runs from Feb. 15 – 19 and features dozens of local and national bands in popular venues around the city of Ventura. Musical genres include rock, blues, jazz, pop, country, Latin jazz, punk, rockabilly and folk. Many events are free or low cost and open to all ages. A full list of participating musicians and venues is available at www.venturamusicweek.com

Ventura Music Week is produced by the City of Ventura Community Development Department in partnership with the Ventura Visitors and Convention Bureau, the Downtown Ventura Organization, the Ventura Harbor Village and Totally Local VC.

Highlights of 2012 Music Week include:

Local Rock Picnic: a free, all-ages music, art and community event in Plaza Park on Saturday, February 18 from 11:00am – 6:00pm will showcase diverse young talent. Bands performing include SkaDaddyz, We Govern We, La Vonettes, D. on Darox & the Melody Joy Bakers, Larusso, Skick, Shaky Feelin’, Zachary James and the All Seeing Eyes, The Grittys, Eyes on the Skyline, Valpurgis, Red Terrain, and Kismet.

Grammy-winning Latin jazz ensemble, Spanish Harlem Orchestra, kicks-off the Ventura Music Festival Season on Saturday, February 18, 8pm at the Ventura High School auditorium. Directed and composed by world-renowned pianist, arranger and producer Oscar Hernandez, the Spanish Harlem Orchestra’s music is original, bold and sassy, yet true to classic salsa rhythms. Tickets available at www.venturamusicfestival.org or by calling 805-648-3146.

On Sunday, February 19, starting at 3:00 pm, Totally Local VC and Zoey’s Café are sponsoring the Wrap Party & Jam with B. Willing James hosting. Free.
“Ventura Music Week has the potential to grow into a major showcase for local and national musical talent. Our reputation as a music town continues to grow,” said Ventura Visitors and Convention Bureau Executive Director Jim Luttjohann.

Step away from the screen and enjoy some quality time with Ventura’s local musicians. Visit www.venturamusicweek.com for the complete list of musicians and venues.

This release is available on the City of Ventura website at www.cityofventura.net.

“Within each and every seed lies immeasurable potential and limitless possibility. To ponder this, and to hold a seed in your hand without even the smallest sense of humility, is to tragically miss the point.” – Winston Lacewing

Ojai, CA - Spring is coming, and what better time to gather in the beautiful Ojai Valley to share seeds! All gardeners and farmers – both current and aspiring – are invited to join in the fun on Saturday, February 25, at 1:00 p.m. Bring your seeds, bring your stories, and bring your passion for growing food to the Chaparral Auditorium located at 414 E. Ojai Ave., Ojai.

Ojai’s First Annual Community Seed Swap will begin with a short talk by Justin Huhn, co-founder of All Good Things Organic Seeds – southern California’s bioregional seed company. Justin will share the basic “how-to’s” for beginner seed-savers and delve into the importance of seed saving to any community.

The tradition of sharing seeds is as old as agriculture itself. Seed is both our common cultural heritage and a living natural resource. In this modern age of the centralization of power and consolidation of our food supply, the simple act of saving seeds has become an important act of resistance and social empowerment. The responsibility is ours to preserve, steward, and share our bioregional genetic resources.

Bioregional resilience cannot exist without a local, sustainable agriculture. The resilience and longevity of any sustainable agricultural system relies on the stewardship of genetically-diverse, locally-adapted seeds. The time is NOW to come together and collectively protect that which sustains us all!

If you have a substantial offering of seeds to share and would like table space for your seeds, please arrive no later than 12:45. This event is hosted by All Good Things Organic Seeds and the Ojai Valley Green Coalition. We hope to see you February 25 at Chaparral. For more information, please contact Justin Huhn at 805-758-3184 or agtoseeds@gmail.com. To learn more about All Good Things Organic Seeds go to www.agtoseeds.com.