It is finally time, Loyal Blog Readers. I have been waiting a long time for this event, and I couldn’t be happier that it is finally here. This Thursday is, of course, First Thursday, but it will also be your chance to preview the Grand Opening show for AG2 Gallery. If you aren’t familiar with this gallery from previous posts, AG2 is the first full time gallery space in Santa Barbara dedicated to new art by emerging artists. This won’t be the first time you’ll have seen this kind of art; it has been found in coffee shops and bars throughout town. And thought, the AG2 Gallery does share some space with a coffee shop, this gallery will be bringing a focus on this kind of art that this town has not yet seen.

If, like me, you are a fan of this kind of art and want to see works emerging artists who are experimenting with new genres of artistic production, this venture will need any kind of support you can afford to give.  Make this one of your high priority stops for First Thursday, and make sure to come back on Saturday for the Grand Opening itself.

I’ll see you there. Details below.

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Andi Garcia has finally landed, well sort of , and opening a constant gallery space at 1101 State Street tucked French Press in Downtown Santa Barbara on the corner of State and

Figueroa .

August 1st Thursday, Aug 5th is the preview of Ag2 Gallery grand opening with art works from Portland , San Francisco, Los Angeles and beyond with a significant representation of the Hive Gallery in Los Angeles .
Highlighted in the global mix are Santa Barbara’s own core favorites Dave Cooley, Nomelove, Andy Proctor , Vanae Rivera and Jimmy Bell.

Ag2 Gallery is delighted to have Sino Tequila introduce themselves to Santa Barbara with their own brand of Super Sino Spicy margaritas as an added treat.

Music to be provided for by DeLaVina acoustic and live art painting by Yuki Miyazaki !!

Viva up all your senses this Fiesta week at Ag2 Gallery this 1st Thursday Aug 5th 5- 8pm and Grand Opening celebration featuring debut of TwentyFour Black Birds Artisan Chocolates , Saturday , Aug 7th 5-8pm

Gallery Hours : Mon through Friday 8am to 7pm
Sat and Sun 8am to 5pm
Art Sales by appointment
Andi Garcia 805.637.2521

Gallery Location :
Ag2 Gallery @French Press
1101 State Street , Santa Barbara , Ca 93101

Gallery Blog :
ARTiFAQZ Blog http://artifaqz.blogspot.com/

Here’s the shortlist of places not to miss tonight, which looks to be a beautiful evening despite the rainy forecast  just a day ago.

Firstly, Vanae Rivera will be having a solo show at 19 Blue (19 West Ortega). Vanae was the designer of the first Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative t-shirt and was a huge contributor to the Bar Napkin Biennale at Muddy Waters just a few weeks back.  I can’t say that I remember seeing a show at 19 Blue, but I am excited to see a new venue added to the First Thursday lineup. Vanae’s work is graphic, and street-inspired, and is the kind of edgy work that is all too hard to find in Santa Barbara, so make sure you don’t miss this show.

The other thing that should not be missed tonight is the Forum Lounge with Sanford Biggers at the Contemporary Arts Forum. This is a major event at CAF, and I have been been waiting for weeks for this event. The show starts at 7 tonight, so you’ll have plenty of time to check out your regular favorite First Thursday spots.

I believe that there are also a lot of street performances scheduled for tonight. And I’m sure there are a lot of other great places to check out tonight, so if you want to help get the word out about shows or events that I have missed, please help spread the word by posting a comment on this post.

Calling all (b)artists!

This Saturday at Muddy Waters the Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative will be holding the first of many “belly to belly” events. These events are designed to get people together to make connections and foster future resource sharing and collaborations… they are also supposed to be a blast.

I have been heavily involved with the planning of this event, so I can give my personal assurance that this will be a good time. It may also be an opportunity to get a very unique work of art by an artist whose work you’ve admired for years but couldn’t easily afford.

In the afternoon people are invited to come to Muddy Waters to work on their Bar Napkin masterpieces. Starting at 4pm the napkins will be put on display for a silent auction that will begin at 5:30 and end at 7:30. The proceeds from this auction will go to the SBAC’s direct-to-artist grant program.

There are already more than 100 people who have confirmed their attendance on the event’s Facebook page. I know that there are a wide range of artists (not all of whom are visual artists) that will be contributing napkins to the event, some of whom are very well known in town. However, we encourage everyone to take part.

I also happen to know that some extremely awesome SBAC t-shirts will make their world premiere at the event. These t-shirts will be sold for $20 (also to benefit the SBAC), so make sure to stop by an ATM before you come because Muddy Waters doesn’t take plastic.

We are also looking for any donations of supplies to help out with the event:

We are looking for white bar napkins, golf pencils, and art supplies for Saturday. We’d rather recycle or use what’s out there than buy more.

If you have access to any of these things please contact me at: nathan@sbartsblog.com

Also, if you would like to contribute to the event but can’t make it on Saturday, feel free to work on a napkin in advance and bring it (or have it delivered) to Muddy Waters on Saturday.

Here is a partial list of the artists whose napkins you can expect to see at the silent auction (I’ll update this list as more artists confirm).

Hugh Margerum                      http://www.hughmargerum.com/
Vanae Rivera                           http://www.maryandthemachine.com/
Bob DeBris                               http://www.bobdebris.com/
Jane Callister                           http://www.arts.ucsb.edu/faculty/janec/
Keith Puccinelli                       http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xcHtBffHGqA
Penelope Gottlieb                    http://www.penelopegottlieb.com/
Dane Goodman                       http://www.sbcc.edu/art/website/index.php?page=faculty&contact=25
David Starkey                          http://www.vimeo.com/5294834
Bob Mask                                 http://www.west.net/~bobsart/
Elizabeth Folk                          http://www.elizabethfolk.com/
Jim Connolly                            http://www.jimconnollymusic.com/
Sheryl Schroeder                     http://www.schroederville.com/
Anna Abbey                              http://www.myspace.com/radannabbey
Clay Bodine                              http://fishbonsb.ning.com/
Dominique Reboul                  http://fishbonsb.ning.com/
Ben Anderson                          http://www.benjaminanderson.com/
Sean Anderson                        http://www.seananderson.com/
Jimmy Bell                               http://www.jimmybellart.com/

UPDATE:

Colin Gardner (Chair, UCSB Art Department)   http://www.arts.ucsb.edu/content/colin-gardner
Ann Diener                              http://www.anndienerart.com/
Jeff Shelton                              http://www.jeffsheltonarchitect.com/

UPDATE #2

Molly Hahn                              http://mollycules.com/
Kimberly Hahn                       http://www.kimberlyhahn.com
James Van Arsdale              http://www.jamesvanarsdale.com/
Ken Bortolazzo                      http://www.sullivangoss.com/bortolazzo_ken/
Joe LaCorte                            http://www.josephlacorte.com/
Robert Redfield                    http://www.redfieldpictures.com/

If you are an artist who wants people to know that you’ll be at the event, just post your name in a comment on this post.

Sheryl Schroder TROUBLE

Just in through the grapevine: This upcoming First Thursday (Feb. 5th) the Blackbird Gallery will host a show by Sheryl Schroeder and Vanae Rivera. The Blackbird Gallery is located at 29 Parker Way in Santa Barbara, on the same block as the Santa Barbara Roasting Company. I have to admit I have never actually been on this street, but I have been meaning to find the Blackbird Gallery since I heard that Jimmy Bell had been having shows there. You might remember that I recently posted on Jimmy Bell’s show at Red’s last month. After a bit of research I found that he had shown his work previously at this place I’d never heard of, the Blackbird Gallery. This new show is the perfect excuse to finally go check the place out for myself.  I hope to see lots of people there.

Vanae Rivera's Marybird

And on a side note, make sure to check out the Rumble Art Fair which is located almost directly across State Street from the Blackbird Gallery. I went to the opening night and was pleasantly surprised to see how well attended it was. I was also pleasantly surprised at the quality of the art.  One specific highlight is the work of Benjamin Anderson, whose epically sized paintings are nothing short  stunning. There are other wonderful things there to check out so while you are out supporting the local art scene, make sure to put both the Rumble Art Fair and the Blackbird Gallery on your itinerary.

And don’t be bashful about posting your comments to let us know what you think.