805 Best Bet Calendar

CONTINUING

> Through Feb. 14 — Santa Barbara Art Museum to present ‘Looking In, Looking Out: Latin American Photography’ through Feb. 14 at 130 State Street, Santa Barbara. Selected from the museum’s permanent collection, the 47 works explore various aspects of Latin American history and culture. Representing works produced after the 1930s by artists and photographers living and working in Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Guatemala, Mexico and other nations, the exhibit highlights the wide-ranging landscapes of these regions, while also documenting many of the societal changes that have occurred from the 1930s to the present. This also is the final exhibition that Karen Sinsheimer, Curator of Photography, organized before her passing on July 28. The photographs featured in the exhibition serve not as a comprehensive or definitive examination, but as selective and intimate introductions to Latin American points of view, revealing commonalities as well as diversities in cultural identity and daily life.  The subject matter of these works, ranging from indigenous populations, internal conflicts, and a wide variety of circumstances, together form an important part of the SBMA photography collection. On view simultaneously for the first time, these works pose the possibility of an overarching unity, while at the same time resolutely acknowledging the sheer breadth the denomination Latin American photography must be tasked to represent. The exhibit includes: Photographic giants like Raúl Corrales (1925–2006) and Alberto Korda (1928–2001), and those who followed, documented and promoted the dramatic upheaval, humanity, and promise of the Cuban revolution. Corrales’s faceless, regimented soldiers in White Hats, Havana (1960) strikingly represent the unity and strength of the Cuban people. Korda, however, created powerful images of iconic moments to strengthen the leaders of the revolution. In his image Don Quixote of the Lamppost (1959, printed 1998), a sea of people eagerly anticipates a speech by Fidel Castro, demonstrating the then-young leader’s ability to captivate his audience; Mario Algaze (b. 1947), exiled from Cuba in the 1960s, continues to seek out cultural experiences that remind him of his home country as he travels throughout the Americas. His images of Guatemala, Argentina, and Costa Rica capture longstanding traditions still present in contemporary society. As he bears witness to social customs familiar across Latin America, he recreates a nostalgic vision of his former homeland: Mexican photographer Eniac Martínez (b. 1959) moves both within and beyond his home country to capture the plight of the Mixtec people of Oaxaca, Mexico, as they migrate to the United States, as illustrated in Herbal Medicine Tlaxiaco, Oaxaca, Mexico (1988). Rodrigo Moya (b. 1934) continues in the tradition of gelatin silver print documentary-style photography and the populist aesthetic with his images of hardworking individuals. He reveals the individualism and character of his subjects by portraying the determination of hardened Venezuelan guerrilla soldiers in Guerrillas in the Mist, Sierra Falcón, Venezuela (1965, printed 2010); Contemporary Mexican photographer Alejandro Cartagena (b. 1977) investigates urban growth and development with continued attention to the experiences of working-class individuals but through new perspectives. From a high vantage point he studies one aspect of the recent rise of construction projects in Monterrey, Mexico, in Car Poolers 20 (2012), a colorful image of the workers’ daily highway commute. The identical rows of homes of his Fragmented Cities, Escobedo (2008) built as a result of the housing boom, encroach on the mountainside, creating a new landscape for Mexico in the 21st century; and Guatemalan photographer Luis González Palma (b. 1957) innovatively hand-paints the traditional gelatin silver print with black bitumen and sepia tints, rendering the images pieced together inLottery #1 (1989–91) with an antiqued aesthetic?a reference to the 19th-century photographic processes used to exoticize portraits of native Guatemalans. Palma problematizes this historic characterization and instead merges Guatemalan history, traditions, artifacts, and mysticism with his contemporary indigenous subjects. Evolving over the last century, the committed artists in each country have individually shaped the photographic images of Latin America while sharing an aesthetic for the common people. As the countries of the region experience dramatic changes, photography remains a vital vein that runs throughout them, connecting their inhabitants across borders and cultures. Celebrated here for its historical importance, photography continues to be a means of documenting life within the region. This exhibition and accompanying catalogue provide a selection of thought-provoking images that by no means completely articulates the splendor and dynamism of the countries, but highlights the photographers who capture both the unique and widely varied tapestry that is Latin America. Visit www.sbma.net for more information.

> Through Feb. 28 — The Santa Paula Art Museum will present the 22nd annual “De Colores Art Show: Campesinas” through Feb. 28 at 117 N. 10th St., Santa Paula. Admission to the reception is $4 for adults, $3 for seniors and free for museum members and students. Call 805-525-5554 or info@santapaulaartmuseum.org for more information.

DOWN SOUTH

> Continuing — Visit http://www.fridakahlotheater.org for more information on upcoming events at the Frida Kahlo Theater in Los Angeles.

> Continuing — Visit http://www.molaa.com for more information on upcoming events at the Museum of Latin American Art in Long Beach.

ONGOING

> Hospice of Santa Barbara will be providing a free support group for those grieving the death of a loved one by suicide from 5:30 to 7 p.m. the first and third Wednesdays of the month beginning February at Hospice of Santa Barbara, 2050 Alameda Padre Serra Suite 100, Santa Barbara. Facilitated by Mary Ransom, MFT in this group, members will share their grief and develop strategies for coping with their loss. To register, please call 8050563-8820, ext. 110. For more information, visit www.hospiceofsantabarbara.org.

> St. John’s Cancer Center of Ventura County presents a variety of ongoing meetings each month at 1700 N. Rose Ave., Suite 145 in Oxnard. Meetings include:

— Colorectal Cancer Support Group: second and fourth Thursdays of each month from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Co-sponsored by the American Cancer Society. Facilitated by MaryAnna Palmer, MS, MFT.

— The Color of Love Group: first and third Thursdays of each month from 7 to 8:30 p.m. This group is designed to allow cancer patients and their families to express themselves through art. Facilitated by local artist Kathleen Hagen, who has over eight years of experience in leading this group.

—  Latina Breast Cancer Support Group: first and third Thursdays of each month from 12 to 1 p.m. Facilitated by Rosie Hernandez, MSW.

— Latino Cancer Support Group: fourth Friday of each month from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Co-sponsored by The Wellness Community. Facilitatedby Mario Cepeda, MA.

To see a full list of classes and support groups, click here To see the monthly calendar of events, click here

> First and third Tuesdays of every month — VFS @ the MUSEUM 2011 Screening Series, 7 p.m., Museum of Ventura County, Museum of Ventura County, 89 So. California St., Ventura. Ticket info: $10. 805-653-0323.

> Second and fourth Tuesdays of every month — Breakfreee.org is sponsoring free sessions on finances from 6 to 8 p.m. the second Tuesday and the fourth Thursday of each month at 415 W. Fifth St., Oxnard (6 to 7 p.m. by appointment and 7 to 8 p.m. for walk-ins). Supported by California Lutheran University. Call Carlos R. Delgado, certified public planner, at 805.816.7387 / Consultas con Breakfreee.org, services gratuitos, 6 pm a 8 pm, 415 W. Fifth St., Oxnard. Contacto Carlos R. Delgado, asesor financiero, 805-816-7387.

> Every Wednesday — Los Empresarios chapter of Business Network Int’l holds its weekly business meeting from 7:30 to 9 a.m. every Wednesday at Sugar Beets Restaurant and Grill, 455 So. “A” St., downtown Oxnard. For more information about BNI in Ventura County, visit www.bni-vc.com, or call 805-850-0157.

> Every Friday — Live South American Music, Featuring Wayeri, 6:30-9:30 p.m., Cafe Buenos Aires, 1316 State St., Santa Barbara. 805.963.0242. Free Admission. Click here

> Every Saturday — The Catholic Church of the Beatitudes in Santa Barbara welcomes the community to join a weekly mass to embrace spirituality, diversity and celebration at 5:30 p.m. Saturdays at First Congregational Church of Santa Barbara, 2101 State St., Santa Barbara. The Catholic Church of the Beatitudes is dedicated to non-violence, inclusion and Interdependence, the church reported in a media release. All are welcome at the table. Reverend Suzanne Dunn, Pastor, and Reverend Jeannette Bertalan Love who serve this community are two of the approximately 50 ordained Roman Catholic Womenpriests in the United States. Call the Pastor at 805-252-4105 or visit the website at www.beatitudes-sb.org