IF YOU HAPPEN TO BE shopping Downtown in the next few weeks, be sure and drop by the Ventura Visitors and Convention Bureau and the nearby Museum of Ventura County's temporary headquarters to look at the beautiful hand-painted chairs from local artists that were donated to the Ventura Musical Festival's auction.
Every year Festival organizers ask local artists to hand-decorate various items for their annual fundraiser and the results are always stunning. This time simple wooden chairs were transformed into wow by our resident creative types. Many of the artists were inspired by the Russian theme set by this year's Festival.
Half the chairs will be displayed at the VVCB, 10 S. California St., and the other half at the Museum of Ventura County, 89 S. California St., through Jan. 11. The collection will then be broken up and displayed separately in other locations throughout the county.
The "Musical Chairs" will be auctioned off on Saturday, March 14 at the Festival's White Russian Nights event at the Four Points by Sheraton Ventura Harbor. Festival organizers say the funds raised by these works of art provide an integral part of the Festival's operating revenue. Tickets for the event go on sale in January. Call (805) 648-3146 for more information or visit www.venturamusicfestival.org.
The Ventura Music Festival has become a renowned signature event for our city and has certainly helped put us on the map as a cultural tourist destination.
IN OTHER ART NEWS: Community Memorial Hospital has now officially become part of our "New Art City" with an exhibition by more than 60 local artists in the public areas of the ground floor of the hospital. The exhibit runs through March 1. It is a joint partnership between Community Memorial Hospital, Buenaventura Art Association, Leadership Ventura (Ventura Chamber of Commerce) and Community Memorial Healthcare Foundation. All the work is for sale and benefits the CMH Community Foundation as well as Buenaventura Art Association and the artists.
Marie,
Thank you for your nice comment!! I really enjoyed painting on the chair! It is an honor to be selected by the Ventura Music Festival!
I chose to paint “Sunset Impression� because I was inspired by the Russian Impressionists. Impressionism was suppressed in Russia as a foreign and decadent art, but Russian artists never stopped painting in this style. They could not resist the impressionist technique and pallet. In this manner, they were also expressing the feeling of their Russian Soul and going beyond the parameters of the conventional art and social repression. The struggle for recognition and the passion for their art ensured its survival while hidden to emerge as one of the most beloved art forms.
Hilda Kilpatrick never ceases to amaze. She continues to outdo herself every time. Congratulations Hilda! Your chair was absolutely gorgeous! A treat.
Un beso.
WOW! You must go see these amazing chairs. A few years ago the Festival featured violins as the objects on which artisans created scenes and inspirations but these chairs have trumped all prior year's endeavors. Seeing them all together is especially important and you can do that for a few days at the Visitor Center (downtown corner California and Santa Clara) before they get divided up and start a countywide tour. Makes me wish my dining room could hold 15 chairs!