Tag archives: Santa Barbara Museum of Art

When Amada Cruz took over as Santa Barbara Museum of Art’s new Robert and Mercedes Eichholz Director and CEO about 13 months ago, she had a clear idea of how she viewed the museum’s evolving role in the community.  “I see a lot of value in the arts beyond the aesthetic,” she said in these […]

The venerable Santa Barbara Club hosted a fascinating talk by Santa Barbara Museum of Art docent Lori Mohr about the State Street institution’s latest exhibition featuring the art of the late uber philanthropist Leslie Ridley-Tree and her husband Paul. There are 58 works in all, of primarily 19th century British and French provenance. After her […]

Violinist Jessica Guideri, concertmaster of the Santa Barbara Symphony, and Amy Tatum, the orchestra’s principal flutist, head half a block south of their normal Granada Theatre venue to play a series of pop-up performances in the galleries of the Santa Barbara Museum of Art on August 25. The pair of musicians will play a combination […]

On the wings of his curated Santa Barbara Museum of Art exhibition of the Ridley-Tree Collection, Contemporary Art Curator James Glisson,PhD, has moved into a new role as the museum’s Chief Curator. He was appointed to the position by Eichholz Foundation Executive Director Amada Cruz, who said in her press release, “I am delighted that […]

The artworks from the collection of Paul and Leslie Ridley-Tree will be honorably on view in the Santa Barbara Museum of Art’s McCormick Gallery, July 7 through November 3. The exhibition is titled A Legacy of Giving: The Lady Leslie and Lord Paul Ridley-Tree Collection. During installation week, I interviewed the exhibit’s curator, James Glisson, […]

Lady Leslie and Lord Paul Ridley-Tree, considered one of Montecito’s premier philanthropic power couples, generously supported the Santa Barbara Museum of Art for more than a quarter of a century. To help fulfill SBMA’s mission to integrate art into the lives of people, the Ridley-Trees made major gifts to aid in acquiring art to build […]

The Santa Barbara Museum of Art Women’s Board held its second fundraising “Art à la carte” soirée at the University Club.  The SBMA Mercedes Eichholz Director and CEO Amada Cruz, along with the SBMA Women’s Board President Isabel Wendt, welcomed the guests as they arrived at the reception on the outside patio and lawn area. […]

Pulitzer Prize finalist, culture critic, producer, and screenwriter Xochitl Gonzalez is a staff writer at The Atlantic and the author of its newsletter Brooklyn, Everywhere, about class, gentrification, and the American Dream. Her debut novel, Olga Dies Dreaming, was a critical fave in 2022, while the follow-up, Anita de Monte Laughs Last, came out this […]

The Santa Barbara Museum of Art Women’s Board held its first of two fundraising soirées, titled, “Art à la Carte,” at the University Club on Monday, March 25.  The lovely event featured an in-depth artist talk with Iraqi American abstract artist Vian Sora, and the museum’s Contemporary Art Curator James Glisson,PhD.  The opening cocktail hour […]

Santa Barbara Museum of Art held its annual fundraiser titled, “Artful Affairs: Seasons of Change, Midwinter Night’s Dream,” on Saturday, February 24, at the museum galleries. The coveted upscale attire event saw the mix of art and music, as the SBMA joined with the Music Academy for a collaborative affair, accented with art themed hors […]

To round out Black History Month, the exhibit by Janna Ireland, titled Janna Ireland: True Story Index, is up through June 2 at both the Santa Barbara Museum of Art and the Museum of Contemporary Art SB. The exhibit was co-curated by SBMA Curator of Photography and New Work Charles Wylie and MCASB President Frederick […]

Starting off Black History Month I attended the lecture by Joan Kee PhD, JD on “The Geometries of Afro Asia: Art beyond Solidarity,” on Friday, February 2, the Art Matters series at SB Museum of Art. Kee is a Professor of Art History, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. The lecture title, the same as her […]

Twenty student artists were honored by the Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara during a presentation and reception at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art. Chosen as winners of the organization’s 2024 Art Scholarship Competition, each received a scholarship and their selected art submissions are exhibited in the museum’s Family Resource Center through February 12. A […]

On Thursday January 17, the Santa Barbara Museum of Art [SBMA] Women’s Board held its annual New Members luncheon at The University Club downtown. The event was chaired by Board Vice-President Christine Nachman with her team Emiko Kirshman, Floral Design, and Linda Wortham, Floral Presentation. The luncheon began with formal photo ops of the Executive […]

John Densmore, the renowned drummer and founding member of the legendary rock band The Doors will be talking about his book, The Doors Unhinged (Rev. November 2023) with Andrew Winer at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, on Sunday, January 28, as part of his national book tour. If we are lucky, he may perform […]

In a most progressive move, the Santa Barbara Museum of Art (SBMA) has acquired the iconic artwork, Den Hvide Dør (The White Door), 1888, oil on canvas, by artist Vilhelm Hammershøi (1864–1916), and has dedicated it in honor of Larry J. Feinberg, the SBMA distinguished Robert and Mercedes Eichholz Executive Director and CEO, who was […]

The Santa Barbara Museum of Art (SBMA) Board of Trustees held its sponsor supported Black Tie Autumn Dinner titled “Art’s Artful Affairs: Seasons of Change” at the museum on Wednesday, November 15, from 5:30 to 9 pm. The elegant event commenced with a champagne and wine reception in the museum’s Ludington Court Gallery amidst the […]

It’s two for the price of one at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art with a duo of new exhibitions. Shape, Ground, Shadow: The Photographs of Ellsworth Kelly, as well as Flowers on a River: The Art of Chinese Flower-and-Bird Painting 1368-1911, Masterworks from the Tianjin Museum and the Changzhou Museum, have just opened. Shape […]

Artist Anthony Sonnenberg’s current Santa Barbara Museum of Art exhibition WARES! Extraordinary Ceramics and the Ordinary Home explores expressions of power through decoration within various cultures. In the lecture, The Power to Be, Sonnenberg discusses how personal, social, and political power dynamics are expressed through decorative decadence and excess, including an over-embellished palace, an ornate […]

What is Art if not Pivotal? This week, I talked with the Robert and Mercedes Eichholz Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Santa Barbara Museum of Art (SBMA), Larry J. Feinberg PhD, at his office about the legacy of his brilliant leadership since being appointed in 2008. Under his progressive vision, we find his […]