Tag: Wildling Museum of Art and Nature

Wildling Museum of Art and Nature in Solvang Announces Winners of Third National Juried Exhibition Focusing on California National Parks during Opening Reception

by Community Contributor • September 28, 2023 • Comments Off

SOLVANG —The Wildling Museum of Art and Nature (www.wildlingmuseum.org) is pleased to announce the winners of its third juried exhibition showcasing all nine of California’s national parks: Lassen, Joshua, Redwoods, Pinnacles, Channel Islands, Yosemite, Kings Canyon, Sequoia, and Death Valley all of which are featured in the show. California National Parks: Stories of Water features 37 artists and 39 selected artworks that were juried from a pool of more than 240 submissions by artists across the U.S., competing for $4,000 in awards. These artists reside in nine states including Georgia, Pennsylvania, Utah, Oregon, Arizona, Washington, New Mexico, Nevada, and California. The mediums represented in this exhibition are as varied as the art itself and include oil, acrylic, watercolor, graphite, textile, and photography. The exhibition explores various impacts of water – or the lack of water due to drought – in California’s national parks. Other works capture water’s abundance – particularly in the aftermath of this year’s heavy rains – through a range of waterfalls and rivers.

Wildling Museum of Art and Nature debuts new long-term installation by artist Elizabeth Criss in Michele Kuelbs Tower Gallery through Feb. 2024

by Community Contributor • May 11, 2023 • Comments Off

SOLVANG — The Wildling Museum of Art and Nature is pleased to announce its new 2023 site-specific installation featuring Northridge-based artist Elizabeth Criss, as well as work by glass artist Sari Scheer. Message in a Bottle, designed for the Michele Kuelbs Tower Gallery, is on view May 2023 through February 2024. This long-term installation marks the third iteration of the Museum’s tower installation program, which aims to highlight Southern California artists inspired by the environment and provides an indoor-outdoor art experience for Solvang visitors.

Criss’ proposal was selected from the Museum’s 2023 request for artist proposals focusing on environmental impacts on the ocean.

Through March 6 — Wildling Museum of Art and Nature explores urban wildlife in new exhibition featuring artist Hilary Baker, ‘Wildlife on the Edge’

by Community Contributor • January 1, 2023 • Comments Off

The Wildling Museum of Art and Nature is pleased to announce its upcoming 2022 fall exhibition, Wildlife on the Edge: Hilary Baker, on view from October 8, 2022 – March 6, 2023. The public is invited to attend an opening reception on Sunday, October 9 from 3 – 5 p.m. at the Wildling Museum.

Hilary Baker, Burrowing Owl, LAX, 2019, Acrylic on canvas, 24 x 24 inches, Courtesy the Artist.
Wildlife on the Edge features new and recent acrylic paintings from Hilary Baker’s Predators series alongside a new series of animal portraits on birch wood. From a group of common pigeons to an elusive cougar, Baker’s subjects make themselves at home in urban locales inspired by Los Angeles landmarks past and present. Coupled with Baker’s alternatingly bright and moody color palette, viewers are provided a fanciful peek into the secret lives of their wild neighbors, often hidden in plain view.

Sept. 24 — Wildling Museum of Art and Nature in Solvang to present ‘California National Parks: Stories of Water’ exhibit

by Community Contributor • January 1, 2023 • Comments Off

SOLVANG — The Wildling Museum of Art and Nature is pleased to present its third juried exhibition showcasing California’s nine national parks this fall. California National Parks: Stories of Water will feature 37 artists and 39 selected artworks juried from a pool of more than 240 submissions by artists across the U.S., competing for $4,000 in awards. The public is invited to attend an opening reception and awards ceremony at the Wildling on Sunday, September 24, 2023 from 3 – 5 p.m.

The exhibition explores various impacts of water – or its lack – in California’s national parks through a wide range of media and techniques, from acrylic, oil, and watercolor paintings, to photography, mixed media, and textile art.

Through Oct. 16 — ‘Sedgwick Reserve: A Conservation Story’ Coming to the Wildling

by Community Contributor • January 1, 2023 • Comments Off

The Wildling Museum of Art and Nature is pleased to announce Sedgwick Reserve: A Conservation Story, on view through October 16, 2023 in the Valley Oak Gallery. The public is invited to attend a reception with the artists on Sunday, April 16th from 3 – 5 p.m. at the Wildling.

Unknown to many visitors, and even some local residents, Sedgwick Nature Reserve is an important gem nestled in the foothills of the San Rafael Mountains in the Santa Ynez Valley. One of seven reserves managed by the University of California Santa Barbara Natural Reserve System, Sedgwick is among the largest and most diverse reserves of its kind in the country. Comprised of just under 6,000 acres, or about 9 square miles, Sedgwick hosts several different kinds of habitats: oak savannah, coastal sage scrub, chaparral, gray pine forest, vernal pools, and two different watersheds. Managed by UCSB, Sedgwick has become a world-class research, conservation, and education facility.

Through Nov. 12 — Wildling Museum of Art and Nature partners with award-winning artist Mara Abboud for joint exhibition and fundraiser

by Community Contributor • January 1, 2023 • Comments Off

SOLVANG — The Wildling Museum is pleased to partner with award-winning artist Mara Abboud in presenting Mara Abboud: Visions of Beauty, an exhibition and fundraiser supporting the Wildling on view through Nov. 12, 2023 in the Valley Oak Gallery.

Abboud has been honored with the prestigious “Artist of the Year” award by the Academies Des Beaux Arts (New York, 1977), “Artist of the Year” by the Santa Barbara Arts Council (Santa Barbara Arts Festival, 1987), “International Artist of the Year” by the International Women’s Conference (Santa Barbara, 1998), and the AMAL “International Artist of the Year” (Washington, DC, 1998).

Wildling Museum of Art and Nature announces milestone mortgage payoff, new horizons for the growing cultural institution

by Community Contributor • November 17, 2022 • Comments Off

The Wildling Museum of Art and Nature is proud to announce a new milestone – this fall, the Museum paid off its mortgage in full. The Wildling is now debt-free thanks to a number of special supporters and careful fiscal management, an achievement now poising the Museum to plan for its next chapter as a growing Santa Barbara County cultural institution.

The Wildling Museum was founded in 2000 and purchased its building at 1511 Mission Drive in Solvang in 2017 with a $1.6 million loan from the Adams Legacy Foundation, after making a $1 million down payment. This ambitious effort was generously supported by dozens of donors, and the private family foundation set a 10-year timetable for repayment.

Wildling Museum of Art and Nature debuts new yearlong installation by artist Kerrie Smith in Michele Kuelbs Tower Gallery

by Community Contributor • April 21, 2022 • Comments Off

The Wildling Museum of Art and Nature is pleased to announce a new yearlong, site-specific installation featuring Santa Barbara-based artist Kerrie Smith. Portals & Pathways, designed for the Michele Kuelbs Tower Gallery, is on view April 2022 through February 2023.

Smith’s multisensory installation features flowing banners printed with Smith’s vivid abstract paintings inspired by daily walks along Santa Barbara’s More Mesa. Interspersed are sheer banners featuring personal poetry hand-stamped with wooden blocks carved by Smith. Circular “portals” hang from floor to ceiling adorned with Smith’s photography of local flora and fauna, as well her paintings and impressions of the trails that surround More Mesa.

Wildling Museum announces second annual Earth Day poetry competition open to county adults and youth, Climate Change: Our Impact, in collaboration with CEC

by Community Contributor • February 17, 2022 • Comments Off

The Wildling Museum of Art and Nature is pleased to announce its second annual Earth Day poetry competition with this year’s theme, Climate Change: Our Impact. Santa Barbara County writers of all ages are invited to use poetry to interpret the effects of climate change and our role in a variety of ways, with separate judging categories for youth (ages 17 and younger) and adult writing submissions. The competition is intended to honor Earth Day while highlighting the importance of standing up to protect the planet’s dwindling natural resources and working against the threats of climate change. The deadline to submit work for consideration is Monday, March 21, 2022 at 5 p.m.