Gualala Arts Promoting public interest and participation in the arts since 1961
[Note the new dates: This year Art in the Redwoods will be on the second weekend in August, rather than the third.]
Artists:
Download: 2016 Art in the Redwoods Fine Arts exhibit entry form
and see: 2016 Entries received: final list
Sponsors:
Download: 2016 Art in the Redwoods Festival Sponsorship Opportunities
The Art in the Redwoods Festival returns to Gualala Arts Center for the 55th annual event.
Update: Here is the list of
2016 AIR Award Winners
What began among the redwoods on Gualala ridge in 1961 has grown to a weekend attraction for thousands. This popular weekend event features art from near and far along with free entertainment and artists booths. This Festival would not be possible without the the generosity of our Art in the Redwoods sponsors and donors, to whom we give a HUGE Thank You!
Fine Art Exhibit
The heart of the festival is the Exhibit of Fine Art throughout the building, including oil paintings, acrylics, watercolors, pastels, drawings, photographs, sculpture, woodworking, stained and fused glass, jewelry and fiber arts – most of them for sale. Award-winning artwork is selected by the Fine Art Exhibit judges.
For those unable to attend the festival, these works will remain on display through Sunday, September 4.
The Gualala Arts Center is open weekdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and on weekends from noon to 4 p.m. Admission is free.
Hats Off Dinner
This special evening of fine food, wine and art was originally held on Friday night for many years but since its 2007 moved to Thursday and has become the opening event of the annual Festival. After being closed since August 1st to prepare the building, take in and hang the art, the Arts Center will open its doors to the public for the first time to the Hats Off Dinner guests, who will be the first people to view the fine art exhibit and purchase the art before it is judged on Friday.
Hats Off Dinner celebrants will get a sneak peek preview of the Fine Art Exhibit and have the opportunity to purchase art before it is judged, and receive VIP Festival Passes that will admit them to the Friday Champagne Preview and the Festival itself. Tickets to the Hats Off Dinner are by reservation only, and are $150 per person which includes a $100 donation and VIP Festival passes to the Champagne Preview on Friday, August 12 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. and the Festival itself on Saturday or Sunday. Reservations can be made by visiting the Gualala Arts Center or calling (707) 884-1138 and are recommended as it usually sells out.
Champagne Preview
The Champagne Preview is on Friday evening from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. (admission $10). Champagne will be served until 6 p.m. when the judges’ award presentation and critique begins.
Outdoor artist booths will be open for a sneak preview from 4 – 6 p.m. The Fine Art exhibit sneak preview is from 4:30 – 7 p.m. Award presentations and judge’s critique will take place Friday at 6 p.m. in the outdoor amphitheater. Artists should be present to receive awards but are not required.
Festival weekend
The Festival is open to the public on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. for the indoor fine art exhibition and outdoor festival activities. Admission is $6.00 for adults, and youth 17 and under are free.
Festival Schedule
Entertainment
Complementing the visual arts and entertaining Art in the Redwoods patrons each year are music and performance artists, and this year promises to be no different with many favorites returning to the festivities.
The entertainment begins with the Hats Off Dinner musicians Tim Mueller and Chris Doering playing from 6 to 8 p.m. while guests enjoy fine food, wine and art.
Barbara Johannes will play accordion as Art in the Redwoods guests sip champagne and view the over 300 pieces of judged art work. Johannes will play her accordion in the JAMI amphitheater. Her repertoire includes French musette, Latin, Italian, German, Popular, Standards and Cajun. “I’m accustomed to being background music for an event,” says Johannes about her approach to playing the accordion. “I plan to add beautiful music to the ambiance of Art in the Redwoods.” Johannes will play Friday at 5 p.m. and Saturday at noon.
New to this year’s festival is the Black Irish Band, playing from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday in the Redwood Grove picnic area. For 22 years this band has created an original sound like no other, performing traditional and original music. Hailing from the historic American Gold Rush country, the four-member Black Irish Band has a musical style as timeless as the rugged landscape of the west, a tribute to the many lives spent building a world we now take for granted. The band focuses on presenting exciting and up-beat acoustic music that appeals to all ages. Many of the original works written by the band are based on Celtic history and the group has a large compliment of traditional maritime and railroad music, as well as ethnic tunes in their repertoire. The Black Irish Band excels at Irish & Scottish, Italian, and American folk music with an assortment of original songs and traditional western ballads.
Also new to the festival this year is the Fort Ross Chorus, performing on Sunday from 12:30 to 1:15 p.m. in the JAMI Amphitheater.
The White Hackle Pipe Band returns to perform for the 13th straight year. The band has delighted festival goers since 2003 by marching through the festival grounds on their way to the JAMI Amphitheater, where they perform with bagpipes, flutes and drums, filling the redwoods with traditional Scottish music. The band will start their march through the Festival grounds Saturday at 10:45 a.m. and give a second performance at 3 p.m.
Perennial favorites, the Ernest Bloch Bell Ringers return for their customary two shows in the Coleman Hall. Performing Saturday and Sunday at 1:15 p.m. the Ringers will play a wide variety of music, from classical to popular tunes. Karl Young playing his shakuhachi, a Japanese flute, joins the bell ringers in the haunting “Sakura,” a Japanese folk song. Cyndy Solomon plays her recorder on “Valley of Peace,” a lovely song written for handbells and flute. Singing is always a big part of any bell concert. Linda Bostwick and Rachel Kritz will harmonize on “Do Re Mi” from the Sound of Music, and the audience will be invited to sing along the second time through. Rachel also leads the audience sing along on “Chim Chim Cher-ee,” from Mary Poppins. Sita Milchev will sing the beautiful song “Through the Eyes of Love,” from the movie Ice Castles. The bell ringers greatly enjoy being a part of Art in the Redwoods, and are performing for the 12th straight year.
John Micka, a 34-year resident of our area, is self-taught on classical guitar. His has been on a personal teaching journey of over 20 years and he has even started making guitars. “If I had known how difficult the journey was I might not have taken it on,” John says. “It has been very rewarding, and I hope you enjoy my music as much as I enjoy playing.” John is another veteran of many Art in the Redwoods Festivals past, and will perform in the Mohr Mezzanine Sunday at 11 a.m.
Adding a different sort of entertainment, Eric Wilder will return to the Fairy Circle in the Meditation Grove again this year to enthrall listeners with stories of Kashaya history on Saturday at 2:15 p.m. Eric’s magical weaving of words in the middle of the Fairy Circle is a literal example of art in the redwoods!
The Tessa Howard Dance Troupe is another returning favorite. Comprised of Tessa Howard, Ling-Yen Jones, Jon Handel and Fred Von Almen, these veteran dancers will perform a contemporary abstract dance routine portraying nature – the sun, the moon, the clouds and the ocean waves. Two dance performances will be featured in the Coleman Hall on Sunday, the first at 11:45 a.m. and the second at 12:15 p.m.
Another favorite artistic offering of Art in the Redwoods is the chance for Festival goers to become artists themselves by visiting the Gualala Arts Clay Studio. This fully featured studio offers visitors a chance to sit at the potter’s wheel and learn how to make and decorate hand-built ceramic items. The clay studio will be open on both Saturday and Sunday 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., and is located downstairs in the Arts Center.
Once again the popular Mendonoma music ensemble will bring its distinctive sound to this year’s Art in the Redwoods, appearing in the JAMI Amphitheater Sunday, Aug. 14 from 2:15 p.m. to 4 p.m. BAKU will take a break at 3 p.m. for the PPQG Quilt Raffle drawing and the announcement of the Most Popular award, then will resume their concert and bring the Festival to a close at 4 p.m.
BAKU is dedicated to the art of spontaneous composition, combining contemplative, ambient structures and melodies with a strong yet relaxing rhythmic pulse. “Jambient Soundscapes,” their self-styled musical hybrid, is a fusion of jazz, Afro beat, Middle Eastern and other influences and rhythms. BAKU was selected as the name of the group to honor the capital of Azerbaijan, which marks the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe and the region’s diverse rich cultural and musical influences. For the band, every performance is a celebration of discovery as they joyfully take themselves and their audience on an unpredictable and unforgettable musical journey. BAKU is comprised of Harrison Goldberg on saxophones and percussion, Chris Doering on guitar and guitar synthesizer, David French on electric upright bass and percussion, Nancy Feehan on cajon and percussion, and Tim Mueller on guitar.
No matter what your taste is in music, dance or other entertainment, there is something for everyone every day of the Art in the Redwoods festival!
Live music and dance will be presented on the auditorium stage, in the outdoor amphitheater and by strolling musicians throughout the festival weekend – most of it performed by local musicians and dancers.
Enjoy our fabulous selection of food and drink booths, including fresh baked pizza from our outdoor brick pizza oven located in the picnic area next to the bandstand! Gualala Arts Culinary Group offers a great grill, salads and soups. Beer and wine are available for purchase. Your sweet tooth will have lots of choices between home-made cakes, cookies and a great ice cream bar.
Robert Holmes Sculpture Exhibit and Sale
This year’s Art in the Redwoods Festival is offering a once in a lifetime opportunity to view and purchase many pieces by internationally acclaimed sculptor Robert Holmes, a long-time patron of Gualala Arts, who passed away on March 11 of this year.
Thanks to the efforts of Holmes’ two daughters, Jana Holmes-Jerman and Pat Church, pieces from his personal collection will be offered for sale at the Hats Off preview dinner and during the AIR weekend event. Holmes achieved international status in 1978 when the Feingarten Galleries, the same gallery that brought Rodin’s work to the United States, accepted some of his bronze sculptures, for which he was best known.
The pieces range in size from the miniature collection through small, life-size, to monumental versions of his sculptures. These priceless objects can be purchased for as little as $800. The complete collection can be viewed on-line at robertholmessculptor.com. There is also the capability to virtually place any commission in a setting of the prospective buyer’s choosing.
Jim Pollare from Bronze Plus foundry in Sebastopol, the authorized custodian of the Holmes molds and the judge of this year’s AIR three-dimensional entries, will also be available to answer questions and assist with commissions.
Since Holmes and his wife Edith first moved to Sea Ranch in 1981, he was associated with Gualala Arts. He helped hang AIR shows in the ’80s, then located in the Gualala Community Center, up on the ridge in an airport hanger and at the current location of the Gualala Arts Center. Currently, several of his pieces are on the arts center grounds, including his first donation, “I Am”, which overlooks the De Prima terrace. It was the Holmes’s hope that it would be the inspiration for a sculpture garden to attract both well- known artists and patrons to Gualala Arts.
This show is an extraordinary parting gift to the art center and a unique opportunity for local patrons to honor the life of an exceptional artist who chose to live in our community.
Quilt Raffle
Purchase your raffle tickets at Gualala Arts Center and the Dolphin Gallery. Tickets are $5 each, three for $10, or seven for $20.
Gualala Arts thanks PPQG for its many year’s of support to the Young Artists Scholarship Fund with this Quilt Raffle. To see the 2005 through 2014 Quilt Raffle quilts, visit the 2014 AIR Quilt Raffle History page.
Vendors offer variety of artwork, jewelry, clothing
Over 35 artists will showcase their wares at the Art in the Redwoods Festival starting Friday, August 12 for the Champagne Preview at 4 p.m. and again from 10 a.m. Saturday and Sunday, August 13 and 14.
“Jewelry always tops the list with the largest number of artists,” says Walt Rush, Art in the Redwoods vendor coordinator, whose own Rogue Wave Studio creations will be on display. Rush says he is influenced by his coastal surroundings and the metals and stones with which he works.
Point Arena artist Ling-Yen Jones’ finely hand-crafted pieces will once again be on display. Jones works mainly in silver, semi-precious stones and pearls. The Ling-Yen Designs style ranges from traditional to modern.
Another coast resident, Rhoda Teplow, makes jewelry from beads collected from her travels to China and Africa, and each has a story and history.
Other jewelry artists will be traveling from near and far to showcase their artwork, including a booth by Jerry and Fran Harr of Palo Cedro, CA. The Harrs return with their wearable metal art fine jewelry. Mendocino will be represented by Hillary Schneider with her Pearls of Wisdom Design collection, and artist Stephen Nepove brings designs from Little River. Gualala’s own Joan Rhine Designs will display, as will Adornable beaded jewelry by Carol Bernaus of Oakland and artist Ellen Athens.
Point Arena artist Siobhan Elder shares her “evocative, sensual, spirited silk scarves,” each one hand-painted and made to last as wearable art. Rozann Grunig of Highway 1 Designs will offer her unique fabric art pieces, combining fabric and photography that incorporate her beautiful pictures, as well as her photography itself. Patti Walters Wells from Carmel Valley will display clothing and jewelry, as will Kelseyville’s Tess McGuire who returns with her collection of loom- knitted chapeaux. Nicolette Kaliebe will offer her hand-painted and very functional leather art including many unique handbags. The Pacific Piecemakers Quilt Guild will be displaying their members’ quilts, and also be selling raffle tickets to win the AIR Quilt Raffle prize, the “Moon Glow” quilt, also on display.
Woodturning artist Paul Maurer of Cloverdale is back and will be in good company with artists Fritzie Seidler, selling his whimsical yet functional bird houses, and Steve and John Crowningsheild of Mendocino Heritage Furniture. Erwin Ludwig will bring function and art together with his cutlery holders.
There are seven ceramic and pottery booths including returning artists Nancy Morgan of Three Dog Pottery from Healdsburg, Alexis Moyer of The Pot Shop in Philo, and Harald Eric Nordvold of Viking Pottery in Santa Rosa. Returning for a second year to the Festival are ceramicists Bonnie Belt from Willits and Jan Maria Chiappa, a local artist who adds a “whimsical touch” to all her pottery, along with scarves for every season and other mixed media works from her Which Craft Workshop in Gualala.
There are many more glass artists this year, including festival fixture Cynthia Myers of Mendocino, who will have her etched glass pieces for sale in her usual spot in front of the DePrima Terrace. Fleurette Sevin of Walnut Creek will feature recycled glass art, and fused glass art by Gila Sagy of Concord will also be available. Drew Arnold from Arroyo Grande brings his Oceans Art Jade collection of one-of-a-kind jade pieces from fine jewelry/carvings to natural sculptures. Misty Leppard features work using fused or kiln-worked glass.
John Fletcher from Fort Bragg will show off his metal art and wall hangings. Joining John are several other artists including Robert Rhodes of Creekwood Studios, Fine Art by Don Antram of Roseville, Island Goddess artist Sarah Scott of Petaluma, Erin Keller of Mendocino, Julie DeRossi with the Starcross Monastic Community in Annapolis, and Lil Bartholo of Petaluma.
The vendor area will again feature a Community Lane, returning for the third year. Intended to support the Go Local movement, this special area expects to showcase local service organizations and clubs such as Action Network, the Redwood Coast Humane Society, Go Local Mendocino Coast, North Coast Artists’ Guild, Gualala Arts Basket Guild, Life Drawings Group, Pacific Piecemakers Quilt Guild, Voter Registration and others.
Festival Map
Exhibit Judges
Art in the Redwoods 2016 Judges:
Tom Durham, Shannon Benine and Michael J. Pollare
Gualala Arts is pleased to have three distinguished and capable judges for this year’s Art in the Redwoods Festival. Tom Durham, Shannon Benine and Michael J. Pollare will bring a diverse set of art backgrounds and experience to the difficult yet rewarding task of determining the winners of the many AIR awards.
Tom Durham, Director of Fine Arts Sculpture, Academy of Art University of San Francisco. Originally from Charleston, SC he received an MFA from the University of Minnesota and has taught a various Universities, UCLA C of C, U of M and Tulane. Durham was honored to receive the Lorenzo de’Medici award for sculpture in Florence Italy. The sculptures he creates have a renaissance style that includes portraits and figures in both bronze, clay and stone. The figures are often a hybrid of human and animal that allude to mythology but used to express personal and social ideas.
Shannon Benine is an American artist whose work simultaneously investigates the state of social documentary photography while it explores manifestations of disease, wars and the energy crisis in American life. Drawing from years of intensive research, Benine combines photography, video and sound to create multimedia installations that engage the viewer in a discussion and debate about America’s politically charged history.
Benine holds an MFA in Photography from the University of Illinois at Chicago and a BFA in Photography and BA in Interdisciplinary Visual Arts from the University of Washington in Seattle. She lives in the North Bay of San Francisco and works as an Assistant Professor and Director of Photography & Media Arts in the Department of Art & Art History at Sonoma State University in Rohnert Park, California.
Born in 1962, bronze sculpture artist Michael James Pollare was raised and educated in Illinois. He graduated from Western Illinois University in 1984, earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Studio Art with a minor in Earth Sciences. Meteorology, cartography, paleontology, and geography were and still are his passions.
He creates three types of bronze statues and fine art – bronze fountains, wall reliefs, and full-round bronze statues. He has twenty years’ experience in copper based alloy manufacturing and production, but will work in aluminum when weight is a consideration. Small oil paintings are incorporated with natural patina in his bronze wall pieces and full-round sculptures. His bronze sculpture works on both miniature and monumental scales. This artist creates 10 original designs a year. Most are one of a kind, but some can be replicated using the lost wax casting method and also can be enlarged.
Mr. Pollare resides in northern California, where he operates a commercial bronze art foundry.
The Art in the Redwoods Festival is honored to have this talented crew of judges for this year’s fine art exhibit.
Artists: How to Enter
The Art in the Redwoods Festival, the most popular and largest north coast art show in California, will take place on the 2nd weekend in August; the Fine Art exhibit runs through Labor Day weekend. Artists and artisans are invited to show and sell their works and to compete for generous awards, which include cash prizes and ribbons.
The 2016 Art in the Redwoods Fine Arts exhibit entry form, complete with entry rules, available category options and list of awards, is available for download and at the Gualala Arts Center (707-884-1138).
Entries must be postmarked by the 2nd Monday in July. The first 420 entries will be accepted; entries received after that will be put on a waiting list. You must be a member of Gualala Arts (you may join when turning in your form), and there is $10 fee for each piece with a maximum of 2 pieces per artist. The artwork must be dropped off in person on the first Sunday in August. We do not accept mailed artwork.
The outdoor artist vendor booth spaces are handled directly by Gualala Arts. The non-refundable jury fee is $10, the space fee is $150, and Gualala Arts will receive a 10% commission on sales. The application must be postmarked by March 15.
A fifteen minute booth sitting service will be available to artists who are alone. Additionally, artists with booths will receive complimentary food tickets.
The 2016 Vendor booth registration form is available on our website or by calling Gualala Arts at (707) 884-1138. Applications must be accompanied by images of artwork, plus image of booth.
For more information please call (707) 884-1138 or e-mail to info@gualalaarts.org.
Important Dates
March 15
Vendor booth application deadline
2nd Monday in July
Art Exhibit entry deadline
Sunday of 1st weekend in August
Drop off artwork
2nd weekend in August
** Art in the Redwoods Festival **
September 5 – 6
Pick up artwork
