Enjoy the San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden for free on Jan. 17. The Garden is offering free admission to all visitors from 10 a.m – 4 p.m. The normal admission cost of $5 for adults and children over 12 will be waived. This is a great opportunity to spend time outdoors and learn about native plants. There will be a guided sketchwalk with a garden docent at 11 (weather permitting). Paper and basic drawing supplies will be provided, but participants are encouraged to bring their own. The garden is located at located at 3450 Dairy Creek Road in San Luis Obispo, inside El Chorro Regional Park. If you can’t make it out on the 1, , the next free day is on Saturday, February 12. For more information, send an email to dara@slobg.org or call 805-541-1400 x 302.
The Cal Poly College of Architecture and Environmental Design presents “Julia Morgan, Architect: Challenging Convention,” which is open to the public Saturday, Jan. 15, through Friday, Feb. 11.
The exhibit features curated artifacts from Special Collections and Archives at Cal Poly’s Kennedy Library and highlights original drawings, photographs and correspondences from Morgan’s personal and professional papers.
The exhibit reveals Morgan’s integration of diverse and seemingly unrelated styles and technologies as she fostered collaborative relationships with her clients. Additionally, many artifacts will be brought to life by actors, featuring a series of voiceovers that tell the story of the challenges Morgan encountered in Paris and throughout her career.
The show takes place at Cal Poly’s University Art Gallery in the Dexter Building (No. 34), Room 171, and will remain open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. An interactive virtual tour mirrors the exhibition online and will also be open to the public through April 30.
Morgan was the first woman to be accepted to and graduate from the prestigious architecture program at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. In 1904, she became California’s first female licensed architect and continued to break gender barriers throughout her career.
As one of America’s most prolific architects, Morgan designed more than 700 buildings, including Hearst Castle in San Simeon, California. In another first, she was the initial woman to receive the American Institute of Architects Gold Medal, the profession’s highest honor, bestowed posthumously in 2014.
The Morro Bay Art Association a workshop in abstract drawing and painting with artist with Vicky Hoffman on January 31 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
This workshop introduces attendees to abstract drawing and painting. You will explore color, texture, shapes and mark making that will improve composition and improvisation. This workshop is designed to expand your ability to enjoy and respond to abstract art. This is the one workshop that requires a minimum of 8 people, so sign up early. The class is $75 for members and $85 for non-members. Reserve your space online: https://artcentermorrobay.org/index.php/shop
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Discover California Central Coast Pastel Society’s new online exhibit, with vibrant contemporary and classical paintings in varied styles and themes. Find exhibit, workshop, membership, paint-out dates, and event info at 3cps.org/3cps-online-show.
The Grammy Award-winning vocal ensemble Chanticleer and two Cal Poly choirs present a concert at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 1, in Miossi Hall of the Performing Arts Center.
The concert, titled “Beauty of the Day,” after Nico Muhly’s composition of the same name, is the world premiere performance by the combined choral groups.
Chanticleer was hailed as “the world’s reigning male chorus” by The New Yorker, and it is known around the world as an orchestra of voices. Founded in San Francisco in 1978 by singer and musicologist Louis Botto, the group has sold more than a million recordings and performed thousands of live concerts to audiences worldwide.
Chanticleer’s repertoire is rooted in the Renaissance but has expanded to include a wide range of classical, gospel, jazz and popular music. It has a deep commitment to the commissioning of new compositions and arrangements.
For the concert, Chanticleer will perform repertoire from its current tour, and the Cal Poly choirs will perform preview selections from their upcoming March 12 Winter Concert. PolyPhonics will perform a movement of Caroline Shaw’s “To the Hands,” and the Chamber Choir will perform a movement from Dieterich Buxtehude’s “Jesu Membra Nostri.”
At the end of the concert, the choirs will join Chanticleer for the premiere of “Beauty of the Day,” Muhly’s composition which was commissioned by Chanticleer. The piece will feature university organist Paul Woodring on the Forbes pipe organ. Muhly is well known for his commissions for both classical and popular musicians, and he has written two operas for the Metropolitan Opera in New York.
Director of Choral Activities Scott Glysson conducts the Cal Poly Choirs. Woodring is the accompanist for the choirs.
Tickets are $24 and $35 for the public, and $15 for students. Event parking is sponsored by the PAC. Tickets are available at the Cal Poly Ticket Office between noon and 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday. To order by phone, call 805-SLO-4TIX (805-756-4849).
SLO Library presents a topical film series highlighting issues of representation in film on Jan. 14 in the Community Room from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. The featured film is the landmark 1932 film, “Freaks.” Professor Paul Marchbanks of the Cal Poly English Department will introduce the film and facilitate discussion after the showing. Dr. Marchbanks specializes in representations of disability in literature and film. For more information, send an email to mmatta@slolibrary.org. The SLO location will also host “Tattooed and Tenacious: Inked Women in California’s History” Jan 24 through March 19 in partnership with Exhibit Envoy. From the upper-class women who started the tattoo craze to the working-class Tattooed Ladies who performed in circus sideshows, this exhibit puts the foremothers of modern tattooing in the spotlight. Through photographs and personal histories, this exhibit uncovers the fascinating and largely unknown story of women and tattoos before WWII. A show-stopping mannequin, hand-drawn by current Bay Area female tattoo artists and specially commissioned for this show, highlights how far women and tattooing have come.
Gallery at Marina Square features Craft Artist Carole McDonald Mondays, Wednesdays-Sundays, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. through Jan. 29. As a native Californian, Carole McDonald started her art career working in the film industry. Her oil paintings reflect the vibrant colors tranquil feelings of the Central Coast where painting is a daily joy. Stop by at 601 Embarcadero Suite 10, Morro Bay.
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The online Jewish Film Festal streams twenty films and you have twenty days ending Jan. 30. The lineup includes feature films, documentaries, and shorts from around the planet celebrating the Jewish experience. The cost is $50 all-access, $25 three-movies, or $10 one-movie. For more information and to get tickets, go to https://www.slojff.com.
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