Artists of Todos Santos

Sunday, March 14th is the first annual “Artist Studio and Gallery Tour” organized by Artists of Todos Santos.  You will be able to visit the Studios of 24 Todos Santos artists, our local Museo Barrio and 11 Galleries.  The studios and galleries will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m..  The artists have working studios ranging from a tarp stretched over some poles or a shady spot under a tree all the way up to elaborate single-use designated buildings.  Some of these are combined with a gallery and some are separate. This unique tour will provide the participant with an intimate look into the working lives of our local artists.  At each studio the artist will be in residence and working to demonstrate his or her techniques.   It is easy to visit the studios/galleries on foot on the town side but you will need a car to visit the studios in el otro lado.  Parking is very limited at some of the locations.  Carpooling is highly recommended.  Please leave your pets at home as they will not be allowed on the tour.  Children are welcome (under 12 are free) and are the responsibility of the adult accompanying them.  Art pieces are fragile and some studios may contain dangerous equipment such as kilns and blowtorches. 

Beneficiaries of the tour are the children’s art programs at both the Palapa Society and Escuela Pacifica.  Tickets, maps and a description of each studio/gallery are available for a minimum donation of 100 pesos at Cafelix on Saturday, March 13th from noon to 3pm and on Sunday, March 14th from 9:30am to 1pm.  Tour participants will receive a 20% discount at 13 restaurants making this an event not to miss.  See you on the 14th!!!!

Artists of Todos Santos finish their season with a bang on March 11th!

Visions Gallery, Cafelix Coffee & Kitchen and Artists of Tods Santos are delighted to announce a final opening party for this season.  Not just art, the opening will feature the lively country/folk/rock sounds of Los Hombres del Norte in a two-hour concert, live at Cafelix!  We'll also be opening our final show of the season with the members of ARTS showing new works and some older favorites.  There will be more of Gloria's wildly creative and imaginative found object shadow boxes and sculptures; photos from Vic and Barbara; more colors of Mexico from Diane; new drawings from Tori; more of those little gems from Roxanne and (gasp, no, it can't be...)acrylic paintings from Mike!  It all starts with refreshments at 5:30PM and music at 6PM on Thursday, March 11, 2010. It's a great way to finish the ARTS season.

Those hardy souls who braved weather more reminiscent of Vancouver than Todos Santos to attend our third "Meet the Artists" talk of the season, on February 11th 5:30 at Cafelix, were treated to a moving talk by Benito Ortego Vargas, a renowned sculptor.  Gloria Santoyo Ruenitz provided a simultaneous English translation.  Benito talked about how he came to realize he was destined to be an artist, the factors that influence him, his approach to his work and the way in which people interact with and come to understand his sculptures.

Benito read a poem he had written to describe his life as an artist (English translation by Gloria):

 

I was thinking and asked myself , Who am I?
What am I as an artist?

Something in me responds:
I am a leaf from a tree
in an immense forest
a face within millions
another human, who laughs and cries
with its existential burden
a wounded child
who is healing, and makes a call to harmony.

I remained quiet,
I felt that behind everything,
inside and outside
there is an enormous vibration
wishing to touch the human heart
it’s life looking for itself.