Bio/Mass: Contemporary Meditations on Nature

April 17 - September 5, 2021

First Floor Main Gallery

Artists are observers and interpreters of what they see around them, whether it is a social concern, the natural world, the built environment or their own unique vision. Often artists work in series, exploring a particular topic as they deeply observe their subject over time. For artists, this repetition can serve both as a meditative practice and a means of learning and understanding.

In this exhibition, artists were chosen who create work in series, examining some aspect of nature. They may be examining patterns in nature or the same location over a long period of time. Some combine and recombine singular elements that accumulate into a fascinating and revealing artwork or body of work.

These artists have transformed their fascination with deep observations of their individual environments into works that help us to see the beauty in the details of our world, celebrating both quiet and dramatic moments in nature.

Plein Air Painting Weekend with Libby Smith and Kevin Gleason

Visit the Wildling for a Plein Air Painting Weekend with artists Kevin Gleason and Libby Smith taking place Saturday, June 26 and Sunday, June 27, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Inspiring visitors to get outdoors is at the heart of the Wildling Museum’s current Valley Oak Gallery exhibition, Art from the Trail: Exploring the Natural Beauty of Santa Barbara County. Libby Smith and Kevin Gleason are among the 27 local artists featured in the show, which celebrates the outdoor treasures of the Central Coast. The two artists will be bringing their talents to the museum for live painting demonstrations, providing visitors with a behind-the-scenes look at how artists bring outdoor inspiration to the canvas.

Rose Compass Artists Panel Discuss The River's Journey

Past Programs/EventsRuben MislangJune 3, 2018Connie Connally, Nina Warner, Nicole Strasburg, Holli Harmon, Libby Smith, Pamela Zwhehl-Burke

Gouache Painting Workshop with Libby Smith and Nina Warner

Past Programs/EventsRuben MislangMay 9, 2018Libby Smith, Nina Warner

The River's Journey

Six artists joined together, aligned around the lesser-known medium of gouache (an opaque watercolor pronounced "gwash"), to tell the story and challenges of the Santa Ynez River and Watershed. Locally, we have all been touched in some manner by the long-term and continuing drought in the Santa Barbara region. While somewhat relieved by the winter rains of 2016/2017, the drought likely will be continuing and as of January 2018 Lake Cachuma, which provides water for Santa Barbara and other communities, is already under 39% capacity and dropping.

Celebrating the National Parks of California

Celebrating the National Parks of California explored nine national parks located within the state of California through a juried exhibition: Joshua Tree, Yosemite, Redwood, Sequoia, Kings Canyon, Lassen, Pinnacles, Death Valley and Channel Islands (there are a total of 27 monuments, parks, seashores and more administered and preserved by the National Park Service. The show celebrated and discussed wilderness, nature and preservation of the parks and provided an opportunity for artists to display and sell their work. Fifty-one artworks in a wide range of mediums and styles were included in the diverse show .

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