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Now at the CAW

Events

SB School Supply Drive and Ortega Park SB:

Mini Market & Donation Drop Off 
Proceeds Support the SB School Supply Drive

Vendors, Music, Raffle, Art, Glamour Portraits, Coffee, Baked Good, Clothing, Flowers, Hand Crafted Creations, and more!

Sunday, 7/19 from 12pm-3pm

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From the organizer:

CALL OUT to our SB community! We are fundraising for the SB School Supply Drive by hosting a Mini-Market and Donation Drive!

Event details:
Date: Next Sunday, 7/19
Time: 12pm-3pm


Location: Community Arts Workshop (631 Garden St)

We are encouraging monetary sliding scale donations and/or school supply donations at the door. No donation is too small! Come stop by and enjoy vendor pop ups, music, raffle, art, glamour portraits, coffee, baked goods, clothing, flowers, hand-crafted creations, and more!

Huge thank you to our sponsor, Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative, for hosting us! And a special thank you to our supporters:
@cherthismoment @joannamichelles_bakedgoods @adrianalaartista @sbmerch_ @caps_sb @monchisflowers @mundo.infantil.sb @nails.bydaniis @lvsinfusionss @sunanthespace @drinkcafeortega @_lvfash @sofiscraftsmaya

Donate funds to:
Venmo: @ SBSchoolSupplyDrive
GoFundMe: https://gofund.me/09db19bb2

About the Organizer:

We are a local, grassroots collective fundraising for the 7th Annual 2026 Santa Barbara School Supply Drive! This is open to all K-12 local SB youth. For our 7th annual year, we aim to raise funds for school supplies to give back to the youth in our community.

There is a real need for school supplies among underserved youth in Santa Barbara. Your contribution will go towards an abundance of school supplies such as backpacks, notebooks, binders, planners, pencils, pens, highlighters, folders, sticky notes, crayons, colored pencils, and more.

Materials will be distributed to youth and their families on Saturday, August 1st at Ortega Park. We plan to create an empowering space that day, in collaboration with the Ortega Park Steering Committee, that will encourage youth through art workshops, youth activities, entertainment, and more.

Livia Zirkel Presents:

Out From Under the Bed!  

Solo show of work created over the last 30 years

Saturday July 25 & Sunday July 26  1-7pm, artist on site both days

Reception Saturday July 25, 4-7pm

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From the organizer:

Livia Zirkel presents a show of the last 30 years of art-making with drawings, paintings, collages, and monotypes. The show will present a large and varied exhibition of pieces, utilizing every room at the CAW!

Desmadre Media Presents:

The 5th Annual Backyard Boogie

Car Show, Music, Night Market, Food, and More

Saturday August 1st, 4-10pm

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From the organizer:

The Backyard Boogie is back for a fifth annual night of culture! 

Lowriders, art, curated night market, food, and more!

All-vinyl DJ's with special guest Funk Freaks.

All Ages.

Tickets $25-30.

 

Independent article about last year's event.

A portion of proceeds from ticket sales will be going to 805UndocuFund.

Proceeds from sales of beer and wine will support the CAW and the Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative. Thank you so much to Validation Ale and Artiste Winery for their generous sponsorship of this event!

With questions contact Info@desmadremundial.com or 661-417-6022

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Desmadre Media, a project by Alex Ramirez, is an event business that focuses on multicultural events in Santa Barbara. Our main goal is to bring awareness and showcase the talent we have here locally through art shows, concerts, fundraisers, markets, and more. We just want to give a spotlight to anyone who is doing something great in the community.

The Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative Presents:

Artist Studio Survey

Tell us about your art and the space you need to create it.

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The Arts Collaborative is venturing beyond the walls of the Community Arts Workshop to study the possibility of affordable artist studios in Santa Barbara.

 

With the rise in costs for both housing and commercial space, artists are being priced out of historic areas like the Funk Zone and struggling to find replacements.

 

The SBAC has rallied a small group of community leaders to study the need, the possibilities, and the methods for facilitating more affordable studio space for artists. Our group wants to hear from artists themselves to understand the realistic needs of our artistic community for creative work space.

 

Participating in this survey directly supports our ability to make this effort a reality. 

 

We so appreciate your time.

Santa Barbara Printmakers Presents:

Introduction to Relief Printmaking with ”Flexicut”

Saturday, August 8, 2026, 10 am - 3 pm

Relief Printmaking Workshop with Mollie Doctrow and Yasemin Zografos

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From the organizer:

This workshop will include developing sketches into prints by creating quick value studies, carving with different types of tools, & hand printing with blocks.

Santa Barbara Printmakers Series Continues with:

Intermediate Relief Printmaking Two-color Printing with “Flexicut" Blocks

Saturday August 15, 2026 10 am - 3 pm

Take your printmaking to the next level by creating 2-color relief prints.

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From the organizer:

Learn designing for 2-color prints, carving techniques, creating a key block and a color block, registration, and printing techniques.

 

Introduction to Relief Printmaking or prior relief printmaking experience is required.

Erik Solevad Nielsen Presents:

Jami Joelle Nielsen:
An Otherworldly, Rusty Retrospective

August 6-16

Reception: August 6, 5-9pm

Gallery hours 8/7 and 8/14 10am-5pm, or by appointment

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From the organizer:

Join us to celebrate the life and work of Jami Joelle Nielsen (1983–2025). Born in Kansas City, Jami Joelle was a self-taught eco-artist who lived, worked, and exhibited in Santa Barbara, California. Her art combined a reverence for science, nature, and the human experience, challenging destructive patterns of consumerism through mixed-media collage, assemblage, and painting. She sought to create work that speaks to social and environmental concerns while fostering dialogue, education, and collaboration. This exhibition honors her vision of symbiosis, transformation, and hope.

Area Meeting

The Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative Presents:

Area Meeting

A Place for Creative Exchange

Tuesday, August 11th, 6-8pm

$12

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Area Meeting will meet again on Tuesday, August 11th at the Community Arts Workshop. August’s Area Meeting will host a panel discussion representing Slingshot Artist Studio, a nonprofit progressive art studio that supports the creative practice and professional interests of artists with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) in Santa Barbara. 

Area Meeting is presented by the Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative and welcomes guest Moderator Lucy Bell. Bell will interview Gallery Director, Jessica Schlobohm, Studio Manager Kelly Bold Cottrell, and Teaching Artist Zoe Van Beurden. They will discuss the aspects of the program, its history, and the ethos of progressive practices to reveal more about this distinct and increasingly impactful sector of the contemporary art world. The discussion will be led by Lucy Bell, MFA UCSB, an artist working in painting, text, and social practice, queering traditions of ritual, memory and space. 

Panelists

Kelly Bold Cottrell received her BA in Liberal Studies with a minor in Visual Art from Cal State Monterey Bay and has worked for Alpha Resource Center since 2013. She has been the Studio Manager at Slingshot since 2020, where she oversees daily studio operations and serves as case manager for each enrolled artist. 

 

Jessica Schlobohm studied at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, before completing her degree at the College of Creative Studies at UC Santa Barbara. She earned a BA in Studio Art with an emphasis in sculpture, then went on to receive an MFA in Fine Art from Goldsmiths, University of London. She has been the Gallery Director at Slingshot since 2021, where she oversees artist representation and community engagement.  

 

Zoe Van Beurden is a Santa Barbara-based artist who blurs the boundary between memory and environment through painting and drawing. She received her BA in art from UC Santa Barbara and currently works as the Lead Teaching Artist at Slingshot / Alpha Art Studio, supporting the creative practices of artists with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). 

 

After a short break and snack, the post-break panel will include Dylan Long and Madison Gobbell, current artists working at Slingshot Art Studio.

 

Area Meeting welcomes anyone who has ever craved deeper understanding of the artistic process. Whether you’re an avid gallery-goer left with lingering questions after a show, a fledgling creator in need of community insight, or a seasoned artist seeking fresh perspectives, Area Meeting breaks down the barriers that so often keep art appreciation at a distance, allowing attendees to trade insights, debate ideas, and consider new approaches.

Not Half Bad Theatre Company Presents:

The Story of War

A Comedic One-Man Show! Back by Popular Demand!

August 14th, 15th, and 16th at 8pm

Tickets $28

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From the organizer:

After a sold out run in the spring, the Story of War is back. The Indy Award winning show returns for three nights. Join us before the show for a party in the CAW courtyard featuring everyone's favorite animatronic, the world famous ZOLTAR! There will be wine, beer, snacks, and games starting at 7:15pm.  

About the show: When Wathel Rogers, the inventor of animatronics, separated from the Disney company, he set out to create the greatest animatronic show of all time. His creation told the history of warfare, and he called it The Story of War. This is that show. Dillon Yuhasz takes you on a journey from the stone age to modern times as both man and animatronic robot in this strange tale of violence, greed, and dancing pirates.

With questions e-mail: nothalfbadtheatre@gmail.com

Jennifer Bi Presents:

Portrait Drawing Class

5 Mondays 6-9pm Aug 17-Sept 14

Skilled Instruction on the Fundamentals

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From the organizer:

Where do your eyes go first in any figurative artwork?
What makes a portrait look three-dimensional?


In this 5-week deep dive on portrait drawing, we'll first identify *what* we're drawing: the anatomical structures that make up the human head. Then, we'll put that to practice by drawing from a live model.


We will build from 5-10 minute sketches to a 1-hour long complete portrait.

Lectures, demos in charcoal, and individual feedback will be offered. A variety of drawing materials/paper will be provided, though you're welcome to bring your preferred drawing tools. Bring a notebook to take notes!

Mondays 6-9pm, Aug 17, 24, 31, Sept 7, 14 2026
Location: Community Arts Workshop, 631 Garden St
Tuition: $300

...

 

Jennifer Bi is a figurative artist and sculptor based in Santa Barbara. She studied fine art drawing and sculpture at Academy of Art in San Francisco in 2024.

 

Examples of her work can be found at www.jennifer-bi.com

Use the CAW

The CAW collaborates to empower and provide affordable space for art projects of all kinds. Have an idea? Use the CAW.

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The Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative works to maintain the CAW as a "blank canvas" for as wide a diversity of arts uses and users as possible, providing space and collaborating with project initiators to make their ideas a success for the benefit of the broader community, and supporting and cultivating collaborations between artists and arts organizations, community groups, the business community, non-profit organizations and the entire community.

Find out more about how you can use the CAW here: 

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The SBAC facilitates the use of the CAW by artists, nonprofits, and community groups of all types; fostering exploration, conversation, collaboration, and connection to further its mission to sustain and grow all forms of the arts in Santa Barbara. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed are the users’ own, and do not necessarily represent those of the Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative. The SBAC welcomes all in the work to sustain and grow the unique cultural ecology of our community.

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