Posted by cafpress on: Thu 23rd May, 2013

Exhibitions on view: September 29 – December 8, 2013

Call For Entries 2013:  Morgan Carter, Julia Hickey, M. Helsenrott Hochhauser, Katy McCarthy, Marco Pinter, and Christopher Ulivo

MCA Santa Barbara showcases six stand-outs from the tri-counties in our annual Call For Entries (CFE) group exhibition, an opportunity that invited the artists to present newly commissioned work in the galleries.

Applicants were selected in Fall 2012 by a panel of distinguished jurors made up of art professionals currently working in the visual arts field including: Jill Dawsey, Associate Curator, Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego; Cesar Garcia, Founder and Director of The Mistake Room, Los Angeles, CA, and the current U.S. Commissioner for the 13th International Cairo Biennale, Egypt; and Ruba Karib, Curator, Sculpture Center, New York, NY

Special thanks to: The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, New York, NY; Casa Magazine, Santa Barbara, CA; The James Irvine Foundation, San Francisco, CA; Joe LaCorte Design, Santa Barbara, CA; Paseo Nuevo Shopping Center, Santa Barbara, CA; Santa Barbara Independent, CA; Santa Barbara News-Press, CA; Santa Barbara Sentinel, CA; and Wayne McCall & Associates, Santa Barbara, CA.

Bloom Projects: Ro Snell, All that is left

Santa Barbara-based artist Ro Snell has been invited to create a new body of work for MCA Santa Barbara’s Fall 2013 iteration of Bloom Projects. All that is left will examine what remains, both physical and abstract, after a process or a period of time. The project considers what is left, not only in the material sense but also in the mind.  Using assembled objects, re-contextualized organic forms, and combined printed images, the body of work will be an installation concerning perception, disintegration, emotion, and recollection.

Born in Malvern, England, UK, Snell currently lives and works in Santa Barbara, CA.  She received her MFA from George Washington University, Washington, DC, and BFA from Brighton University of Art, England, UK.  She has exhibited at The Arts Fund Gallery, Santa Barbara, CA; Atkinson Gallery, Santa Barbara, CA; and Tinsmiths, Ledbury, England, UK. 

Special thanks to: The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, New York, NY; Susan E. Bower Exhibition Fund; Casa Magazine, Santa Barbara, CA; Eric Chirnside, Santa Barbara, CA; The James Irvine Foundation, San Francisco, CA; Jensen Audio Visual, Santa Barbara, CA; Paseo Nuevo Shopping Center, Santa Barbara, CA; Santa Barbara Independent, CA; Santa Barbara News-Press, CA; Santa Barbara Sentinel, CA; and Wayne McCall & Associates, Santa Barbara, CA.

ADMISSION IS FREE

Categories:

Posted by cafpress on: Thu 23rd May, 2013

Thursday, August 1

Forum Lounge: Ellie Ga, FORTUNETELLERS

5 pm Happy Hour

7 pm Performance

American-born artist Ellie Ga presents a narrative-based performance that combines memory with a vast array of documents both created and appropriated, based on a six-month residency on the Tara, a research sailboat frozen into the ice of the North Pole, purposely drifting to gather scientific data. Ga superimposes live storytelling, recorded sound, and still and moving images to conjure up the terms and rituals of daily life in the Arctic night.

ADMISSION IS FREE

Forum Lounge is a series of free, performance-based events that reflect CAF’s mission to sustain and encourage the artistic process by presenting art in the form of exceptional music, dance, video, and other multi-media to our community. The series encourages experiences with unique performance pieces ranging from the theatrical to the avant-garde that are normally found only in large metropolitan venues. 

Posted by cafpress on: Fri 17th May, 2013

Thursday, June 6

Forum Lounge: robbinschilds, I came here on my own

5 pm Happy Hour

7 pm Performance

Moving towards more conceptual themes in their new work, the New York-based robbinschilds draws from an archetypal allegory known as “Man Alone”, which the duo encountered during their residency in New Zealand. Through video installation and performance, robbinschilds exchanges the “man” with “woman” in a feminist reworking of the estranged mythic tale.

ADMISSION IS FREE

Forum Lounge is a series of free, performance-based events that reflect CAF’s mission to sustain and encourage the artistic process by presenting art in the form of exceptional music, dance, video, and other multi-media to our community.  The series encourages experiences with unique performance pieces ranging from the theatrical to the avant-garde that are normally found only in large metropolitan venues.

Categories:

Posted by cafpress on: Tue 14th May, 2013

Community Event and Fundraiser: Friday, June 28, 5 pm - Saturday, June 29, 5 pm 

Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum  - FREE TO DRAW with registration by June 14.

Artist Reception: Sunday, June 30, 4-6 pm

Sign up today and register to draw with artists of all ages. Artists may draw for any length of time throughout the 24 hours. Prior registration is required to draw.

Various artists and finished works displayed during past From Dusk ‘til Drawn rallies. Images Courtesy of CAF.

CAF is pulling an all-nighter for this 4th annual, 24-hour drawing marathon. Artists work side-by-side with dabblers, providing a rare drawing laboratory for creating, participating in a community-wide art experience. Draw next to local contemporary art luminaries such as Phoebe Brunner, Ann Diener, Dane Goodman, Penelope Gottlieb, Saul Gray-Hildenbrand, Kimberly Hahn, Hugh Margerum, Ethan Turpin, and James Van Arsdale as well as students, community leaders, and others!  Throughout the event, completed works will be sold to the public at one of four prices ($25, $75, $150, and $300, plus tax) and proceeds will be divided between the participants and CAF. Drawing is broadly interpreted and artists of all disciplines, skill levels, and ages are encouraged to join.

An artist reception and final opportunity to purchase artwork happens on Sunday, June 30, 4-6 pm at CAF. Prospective drawers may register for any length of time throughout the 24 hours by contacting Jea Alford at admin@sbcaf.org by June 14.  For more information visit sbcaf.org or cal (805) 966-5373 x101. Collaborative and interactive drawing opportunities allow attendees a chance to participate in the fun. A live video feed provides a window for viewing remotely. Visit sbcaf.org/programs/FDTD for the link on Friday, June 14.

Our dedicated Artist Committee includes: Kathi Scarminach, Mitra Cline, Sarah Seals, and Peter Barnholdt. Special thanks to the following Santa Barbara companies: Art Essentials, Art From Scrap, Ben & Jerry’s, Frame, The Purple Crayon, Paseo Nuevo Shopping Center, and SAVOY Cafe & Deli.

Categories:

Posted by cafpress on: Mon 15th Apr, 2013

5 pm Happy Hour

7 pm Performance

Composer and sound artist Lisa Coons, along with a group of nationally active composers and musicians, bring several contemporary works for violin and cello to CAF for this Forum Lounge. Embracing works informed by the music of disparate genres, the group’s programming choices explore the creative exchanges within, between, and among composition located at the periphery of classical, rock, jazz, and academic musical developments.

Special thanks to: Endever Music Productions, Santa Barbara, CA; Franciscan Inn, Santa Barbara, CA; KCSB, Santa Barbara, CA; National Endowment for the Arts, Washington, DC; Paseo Nuevo Shopping Center, Santa Barbara, CA; Santa Barbara Independent, CA; and Warbler Records & Goods, Santa Barbara, CA. Forum Lounge is presented in association with the Santa Barbara Downtown Organization’s 1st Thursday. 

ADMISSION IS FREE

Forum Lounge is a series of free, performance-based events that reflect CAF’s mission to sustain and encourage the artistic process by presenting art in the form of exceptional music, dance, video, and other multi-media to our community.  The series encourages experiences with unique performance pieces ranging from the theatrical to the avant-garde that are normally found only in large metropolitan venues.

Categories:

Tags: Lisa Coons, SBCAF, music, performance, contemporary art, santa barbara art

Posted by cafpress on: Fri 5th Apr, 2013

Thursday, May 9th at 6PM

Having been described as “resistant to easy reading” in a recent review of her solo exhibition at the Jane Deering Gallery, Joan Tanner is an artist whose work reaches a degree that few Santa Barbara-based artists have reached. Like her creative energy, her concepts are bold and witty. Being inspired by such themes as spatial contradiction, archetypal geometric forms, and raw material, her work spans more traditional mediums as well as newer, multi-media formats.  She has exhibited in numerous museums and galleries, including the Otis College of Art and Design and the Santa Barbara Museum of Art. Her work is in such collections as the Getty Center for the History of Art and Humanities in Los Angeles, CA, and Harvard University Houghton Library, Cambridge, MA.

ADMISSION IS FREE

The smART Talks program serves to increase awareness of local artists through a series of three annual lectures by Santa Barbara-based artists. The series, begun in 1996, was created in honor of Helen Rosenberg, mother of Susan Rose, and grandmother of Julie Weiner, and honors artists who live and work in the Santa Barbara area.  

Categories:

Posted by cafpress on: Thu 7th Mar, 2013

Thursday, April 4

5 pm Happy Hour
7 pm Performance
Referred to by the Los Angeles Times as "an utterly engaging performer," Davy Rothbart, a frequent contributor to National Public Radio's “This American Life,” will read hilarious and heartbreaking excerpts from his acclaimed magazine Found, and essays from his book My Heart Is an Idiot.

ADMISSION IS FREE

Forum Lounge is a series of free, performance-based events that reflect CAF’s mission to sustain and encourage the artistic process by presenting art in the form of exceptional music, dance, video, and other multi-media to our community.  The series encourages experiences with unique performance pieces ranging from the theatrical to the avant-garde that are normally found only in large metropolitan venues.

Special thanks to: Endever Music Productions, Santa Barbara, CA; Franciscan Inn, Santa Barbara, CA; KCSB, Santa Barbara, CA; National Endowment for the Arts, Washington, DC; Paseo Nuevo Shopping Center, Santa Barbara, CA; Santa Barbara Independent, CA; and Warbler Records & Goods, Santa Barbara, CA. Forum Lounge is presented in association with the Santa Barbara Downtown Organization’s 1st Thursday. 

Categories:

Posted by cafpress on: Thu 7th Mar, 2013

Saturday, April 13, 6-8 pm
Opening Reception
Join us for the opening of THINGS THAT TURN YOUR BRAINS TO MUSH and Bloom Projects: Glen Fogel, Recent Video

Exhibitions on view: April 14 - June 16


THINGS THAT TURN YOUR BRAINS TO MUSH featuringDavid Cooley,Petra Cortright, Yoon Chung Han, Katy McCarthy, Chris Silva, Tellef Tellefson, and Jonny Troyna


“...people have always had a tremendous fear about the impact of new technology on language. When the printing press was first invented, people thought it was an instrument of the devil that would spawn unauthorised versions of the Bible.“ - David Crystal, author of Language and the Internet  

Culture and language evolve faster than individuals can adapt. Parents worry when their children participate in “new” media. This reluctance is of course not new. From their inception, cartoons and television were purported to “turn kids' brains to mush”.  This conventional wisdom spawned years of cultural criticism revolving around the supposed “negative effects” of television, cartoons, and later, the Internet. In his book Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man Marshall McLuan famously said, “Each innovation is not only commercially disrupting, but socially and psychologically corroding, as well.”  Today, there is still fear of the corruption of “traditional” English by the widespread adoption of communication tools like Twitter and texting, which make regular use of abbreviations and shorthand. One only has to think of LOL (laughing out loud) or YOLO (you only live once) which are pervasive terminology shortcuts to traditional communication.

The artists in this exhibition create work that addresses society’s reluctance to embrace new media and language. They will explore this phenomenon through the lens of a complex and rapidly growing medium: the animated GIF (graphics interchange format).

An animated GIF is a multi-frame (moving) image that can be viewed in any web-browser. Used to add motion to simple icons in early web-design, the GIF has metastasized into something more culturally complex.  Today, a GIF may be a savvy response in a comment thread, a stand-alone visual joke, or a simple act of teenage vanity. GIFs have become mesmerizing cultural artifacts, and like all such new media they are controversial to the status quo.  

Artists such as Jonny Troyna investigate repetition, expectations, and correlation via projected loops, while Petra Cortright’s work suggests a passive and possibly ambivalent attitude towards consumption of media, narcissism, and community. By showcasing work that uses the GIF as a point of reference—whether it be projected, painted, sculpted, or pixelated—the 7 artists in this exhibition challenge audience to think critically about the “fear of the new” in a broader cultural and historical context.

Special thanks to: The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, New York, NY; Casa Magazine, Santa Barbara, CA; The James Irvine Foundation, San Francisco, CA; Paseo Nuevo Shopping Center, Santa Barbara, CA; Santa Barbara Independent, CA; Santa Barbara News-Press, CA; and Wayne McCall & Associates, Santa Barbara, CA.

ADMISSION IS FREE

Categories:

Tags: Culture, language, David Cooley, Petra Cortright, Yoon Chung Han, Katy McCarthy, Chris Silva, Tellef Tellefson, and Jonny Troyna, adapt, inception, tv, cartoons, television

Posted by cafpress on: Thu 7th Mar, 2013

Wednesday, April 10, 6 pm


Synthesizing artistic and ecological concerns, Penelope Gottlieb’s paintings are visually alluring while teetering on an apocalyptic brink. Her detailed renderings of both real and imagined plant and animal life are derived from notions of loss, language, and the fragility of nature. Gottlieb’s compositions reflect the detailed renditions of historical studies of botany, yet upon closer examination are vibrant abstractions referencing early modernist ideals. The artist states, “My work tries to sound an alarm about the grim prospects of a future in which extinction is a way of life.”

Penelope Gottlieb received her MFA at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Exhibiting widely, her most recent exhibition was at Edward Cella Art+Architecture Gallery in Los Angeles in 2012. Her work is in various collections including the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, CA.

ADMISSION IS FREE

The smART Talks program serves to increase awareness of local artists through a series of three talks a year by local artists about their work, careers, and creative process. The series, begun in 1996, was created in honor of Helen Rosenberg, mother of Susan Rose, and grandmother of Julie Weiner, and honors artists who live and work in the Santa Barbara area.

Posted by cafpress on: Thu 21st Feb, 2013

Thursday, March 7

Forum Lounge: Kat Galasso, An evening with Kat Galasso

5 pm Happy Hour

7 pm Performance

Choreographer and media artist Catherine Galasso presents a series of live two-person dance tableaux throughout the gallery, created in response to the current exhibitions, A Handful of Dust and Bloom Projects: Molly Smith, Root. Using the raw material of human gesture, the tableaux will explore both primitive physicality, as well as the body as a sculptural object. Catherine will draw from her existing “repertoire,” as well as create new material on site.

ADMISSION IS FREE

Forum Lounge is a series of free, performance-based events that reflect CAF’s mission to sustain and encourage the artistic process by presenting art in the form of exceptional music, dance, video, and other multi-media to our community. The series encourages experiences with unique performance pieces ranging from the theatrical to the avant-garde that are normally found only in large metropolitan venues.

Special thanks to: Endever Music Productions, Santa Barbara, CA; Franciscan Inn, Santa Barbara, CA; KCSB, Santa Barbara, CA; National Endowment for the Arts, Washington, DC; Santa Barbara Independent, CA; and Warbler Records & Goods, Santa Barbara, CA. Forum Lounge is presented in association with the Santa Barbara Downtown Organization’s 1st Thursday. 

Categories:

Posted by cafpress on: Sun 20th Jan, 2013

Categories:

Tags: Lynn Edwards Harris, Zackary Drucker, Forum Lounge, performance, art

Posted by cafpress on: Wed 9th Jan, 2013

Saturday, February 9, 2013

8:00pm-Late

653 Paseo Nuevo, Upper Arts Terrace

Join Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum for a dazzling evening of arts and culture

 This year's Artistic Director, David Maldonado, will create a glimmering setting with an array of festive delights, including:

-Perfume Mixing

-Chocolate, Champagne, and Cheese Tastings

-Valentine's Crafts

-Photo Booth

-Dancing

-Tempting Raffle items such as jewelry, wine, and original contemporary artworks!

VIP Admission $115 members | $125 non members

Your ticket includes open bar, light appetizers, four free raffle tickets and a keepsake photo

General Admission $70 members | $80 non members

Your ticket includes open bar and light appetizers

Tickets available at sbcaf.org

Sponsors as of 1/4/13: Aveda, DJ Lisa Slavid, Eva Gutierrez Printing, Jessica Foster Confections, Montecito Journal, Santa Barbara NewsPress, Santa Barbara Independent, Patrón, Samy’s Camera, Straight Up Cocktails, Thoi Vo Jewelry

Posted by cafpress on: Tue 2nd Oct, 2012

Come to Your Senses Cocktail Party: October 5,  5-7 pm at CAF Satellite @ Hotel Indigo, 121 State Street

Beware the hobby that eats. –Benjamin Franklin

A unique and unforgettable series of events, Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum's Crave: Art, Food, and Social Experience kicks off its 1st event with a sexy, sensual cocktail party that will highlight sight, sound, smell, touch, & taste! Join us for amazing Pali Wine tastings and delectable appetizers from Spare Parts chefs Alvaro Rojas and Weston Richards while experiencing lively music, cutting-edge art, and special treats like airbrush tattooing!

To purchase tickets to Come to Your Senses Cocktail Party, visit cravesb.eventbrite.com
$45 CAF Members| $55 General Admission

Come to Your Senses Cocktail Party is presented in association with the Santa Barbara Conference & Visitors Bureau and Film Commission and Santa Barbara Downtown Organization’s epicure.sb.

Co-Chairs: Candyce Eoff, Joanie Hudson, and Stevie Mason. Event Committee: Nicole Biergiel, Karla Blancas, Miki Garcia, Jaquelyn Klein-Brown, Kristin Palmer, Eileen Rasmussen, and Nancy Wall.

Sponsors as of September 20: Casa Magazine, dj.colormap, Candyce Eoff, Firestone Walker Brewing Company, The Henry Wine Group, Hotel Indigo Santa Barbara, Pali Wine Co., Santa Barbara Independent, Santa Barbara News-Press, Spare Parts Bistro, and Stevie Mason Designs.

About the series:
Crave: Art, Food, & Social Experience
Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum presents Crave: Art, Food, & Social Experience. Food, like art, builds bridges between people. The sharing of food inspires communal behavior akin to art's capacity for dialogue and understanding. Creating an exchange between culinary and visual nourishment, Crave is passionate inquiry through food, thought, and exciting visual imagery.

From early still–life paintings of Renaissance feasts to Rirkrit Tiravanija’s contemporary performances involving Thai cuisine, there is an established tradition of artists considering food to explore aesthetic ideas and encourage critical engagement. Crave comprises a series of artist–orchestrated, themed meals as an innovative form of cultural outreach and hospitality that results in resonant, cultural experiences. Food is an increasingly impassioned topic; the politics of how and what we eat have emerged as critical issues of our time. Now more than ever, food issues are ripe to be examined through the artistic lens.

To purchase tickets for other Crave events and for more details visit cravesb.eventbrite.com.

Categories:

Tags: sbart, sbarts, Crave, art, social experience, food, sblifestyle

Posted by cafpress on: Fri 6th Jul, 2012

Friday, July 20 – Saturday, July 21, 6 pm–6 pm

Join CAF for its third annual 24-hour drawing marathon. For only $5, you can watch professional and amateur artists, youth and adults, drawing and making art side-by-side. Show your membership card and receive free admission!  All drawings made will be sold to the public at one of four affordable prices ($25, $75, $150, and $300, plus tax); proceeds are divided among the drawers and CAF. Drawing is broadly interpreted and works by artists of all disciplines, skill levels, and ages are expected to grace the walls throughout the 24-hour event, so attendees are encouraged to return to see it all unfold and secure that one-of-a-kind artwork. Collaborative and interactive drawing opportunities allow attendees a chance to participate in the fun and a live video feed allows remote viewers to watch artists' progress. Visit http://www.sbcaf.org/programs/FDTD/ for the link on Friday, July 20.  On Saturday from 2–6 pm, attendees may purchase Pinkberry’s delicious frozen yogurt at CAF and 20% of the proceeds will be donated to CAF.
 
Artist Reception: Sunday, July 22, 4–6 pm
FREE to attend and purchase remaining artworks, listen to music by DJ Color Map, and celebrate the artists' efforts.

Special thanks to: Casa Magazine, City 2.0, Crushcakes, The Daily Sound, DJ Color Map, The Graphic Vendor, The Handle Bar, Montecito Messenger, Renaud's Patisserie & Bistro, Santa Barbara Chicken Ranch, Santa Barbara Independent, Santa Barbara News-Press, Savoy Cafe & Deli, and Trader Joe's.

Categories:

Posted by cafpress on: Fri 8th Jun, 2012

Thursday, July 5th

5 pm Happy Hour: Wine provided by La Tour Wine Merchants and music by Warbler Records & Goods
7 pm Performance

Artists from the Uppur Bunk Collaborative Art Space will orchestrate an experimental performance that humorously considers the social nature of the so-called art world.  At CAF, the audience will wander through an interactive art experience that involves “schmoozing and boozing” one’s way to the upper echelons of the art world.  All ages welcome, however parents should be advised that alcohol is present.

Viewing of UCSB MFA 2012 Exhibition: Headgear for Tony between 5 and 7 pm.

Following the performance at CAF, Uppur Bunk hosts Afterparty, a second dynamic art event held at their space in Goleta, Friday, July 6 from 8 to 10 pm.

Categories: