THOUSAND OAKS, CA - Holocaust survivor Clara Knopfler of Thousand Oaks will speak during a special Yom HaShoah service at 11:25 a.m. Thursday, April 11, in California Lutheran University’s Samuelson Chapel.

Knopfler lived a comfortable life in Transylvania until World War II. She was a high school sophomore when Hungarian Nazis took her Jewish family into custody in 1944. Her 19-year-old brother was shot to death in front of her father, who later perished in a death march. Knopfler and her mother were sent to Auschwitz concentration camp and later to work at camps in Latvia and East Prussia. Fiercely protected by her mother, Knopfler survived and was liberated in April 1945. The two women were the only members of their extended family to survive.

After marrying another survivor, Knopfler immigrated to the United States with her husband and mother. She taught school, mostlylanguages, for three decades. Her life’s mission has been to tell the story of the Holocaust. The University Village resident lectures frequently and wrote a biography titled “I Am Still Here: My Mother’s Voice.”

The full name of the day honoring the victims of the Holocaust is Yom HaShoah Ve-Hagevah, which means Holocaust and Heroism Remembrance Day. It is marked on the 27th day in the month of Nisan, a week after the seventh day of Passover and a week before Yom Hazikaron (Memorial Day for Israel’s fallen soldiers). This year, Yom HaShoah begins at sundown on Sunday, April 7.

Yom HaShoah marks the anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising. The Knesset (Israeli parliament) selected the date in 1951 and adopted the full name in 1953. Although the Israeli government established the date, Jewish individuals and communities throughout the world observe the commemoration.

The chapel is located near the corner of Olsen Road and Campus Drive on the Thousand Oaks campus. For more information, contactCampus Ministries at 805-493-3228.

Buenaventura Art Association announces a Call for Entries for a Collage & Mixed Media Open Competition, to be held at the association’s Harbor Village Gallery in Ventura. The exhibit will run from May 15 through June 10, 2013. Deadline for entries is midnight May 4, 2013. Cash prizes and membership benefits will be awarded at a reception and ceremony on Friday, May 17 from 5 – 8 pm. Artist Peggy Pownall will be the juror.

A mixed media painter, Pownall has been an Artist-in-Residence at Studio Channel Islands Art Center in Camarillo since 2008. With an art degree from Pepperdine University, she has also studied in Italy. Pownall taught art for a number of years, is active in the Los Angeles Art Association, and exhibits her work in various venues.

“I am interested in a visual expression of themes such as identity, longings, personal mythology, iconic memories and the relationship between our interior and exterior existence,” says Pownall. “My paintings are as much about what is buried as what is revealed.”

Using the histori¬cally female art of stitching as an iconic symbol, Pownall’s recent work incorporates pieces of old sewing patterns into frag¬mented parts of paintings that she has disassembled and sewn back together. Pownall explains, “My process parallels the lives of women I admire – labor-intensive, torn apart, rearranged and stitched back together into layered, complex, yet cohesive tapestries which hold together disparate parts in sometimes beautiful, always practical ways.” To see Peggy Pownall’s art go to www.pegpownall.com.

The competition is open to all artists in central and southern California. A prospectus may be downloaded from the Buenaventura Art Association’s website at www.buenaventuragallery.org. Please read all rules and policy information carefully. Entries must be submitted electronically and uploaded online at the same website.

The Harbor Village Gallery is located at 1591 Spinnaker Dr , Suite 117C, (before the big lawn) Ventura. Phone: (805) 644 – 2750. Hours are noon – 6pm. Closed Tuesdays. For more information visit the website at www.BuenaventuraGallery.org.

About the Buenaventura Art Association
Buenaventura Art Association (BAA) is a non-profit arts organization in Ventura – a 58-year-old institution devoted to sustaining Ventura County’s cultural and artistic identity by developing visual artists in all stages of their careers. BAA was started in 1954 by a group of Ventura community, civic and business leaders who recognized the importance of the arts in all communities and wanted to encourage and foster Ventura’s cultural growth. BAA runs two galleries – the Buenaventura Gallery in downtown Ventura at 700 E. Santa Clara St., and the Harbor Village Gallery, 1591 Spinnaker Dr., in the Ventura Harbor Village. BAA also collaborates with Community Memorial Hospital to exhibit art in its ground floor public corridors.

Gregory Freeland

THOUSAND OAKS, CA - California Lutheran University will mark the 50th anniversary of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” with a reading and discussion.

CLU students, faculty and community members will read the complete letter at 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 16, in Lundring Events Center. An interdisciplinary panel discussion will follow. Panelists will include Ken Douglas Barrow, an NAACP Ventura County branch member who earned a master’s degree in public policy and administration from CLU; Pamela Brubaker, a CLU professor emerita of religion; CLU political science professor Gregory Freeland; and Ventura County NAACP Saturday School Director Cassandria Slay. CLU students majoring in English, history and religion will then lead a discussion with the audience.

“The letter holds profound significance as a rhetorical literary text, a historical document, an inspiration for political change and a religious doctrine centered around a philosophy of civil disobedience and nonviolence,” said Elmira Tadayon, a senior English major from Thousand Oaks who is organizing the event.

Tadayon, who plans to attend law school this fall, has always been interested in how the law affects social justice. Having read and studied King’s letter in various classes at CLU, she felt it would be a perfect inspiration for an interdisciplinary discussion about social justice.

King wrote the letter on April 16, 1963, from the city jail in Birmingham, Ala. He had been arrested for taking part in a nonviolent protest against racial segregation. He wrote the letter in response to a statement by eight white Alabama clergymen criticizing King and arguing that the battle against racial segregation should be fought in the courts, not in the streets.

CLU’s Center for Equality and Justice (CEQ), Sigma Tau Delta English Honor Society, Phi Alpha Theta History Honor Society and Religion Department are sponsoring the free event with support from the NAACP of Ventura County and the Community Advocacy Committee of Ventura County.

Lundring Events Center is located in the Gilbert Sports and Fitness Center at Olsen Road and Mountclef Boulevard in Thousand Oaks.

For more information, contact the CEQ at cej@callutheran.edu and 805-493-3694.

Santa Paula, CA - Pat Masterson will speak on creative expression and quilting techniques at Second Thursday Gallery Talk at the Agriculture Museum. Event takes place at 2:00 p.m., Thursday, April 11, 2013 and is open to the public. The talk will cover techniques employed in the 20 quilts included in the Museum’s upcoming exhibit, Farm Fresh Quilts. Exhibit will include original, contemporary quilts inspired by local produce, farmers, and farm animals, and will be on display from March 30 through June 16, 2013. Admission to the talk is free for Museum members, $4.00 for adults, $3.00 for seniors, and $1 for children ages 6-17. No RSVP necessary.

Masterson is a long-time member of both the Santa Barbara Coastal Quilters and the Camarillo Quilters. She has studied quilting with nationally-known quilt designers, and her own quilts were featured in a one-person show at the California Oil Museum in 1999. Over the years, she has studied and created traditional quilts, but more recently has started designing contemporary quilts. Masterson is a Ventura native and learned to sew as a child. After earning a Master’s degree and becoming a high school academic counselor, Masterson retired and enjoys spending her free time quilting, painting, gardening, and traveling.

The Museum of Ventura County’s Agriculture Museum is located in historic downtown Santa Paula at 926 Railroad Avenue, Santa Paula, California. Hours are 10 a.m.– 4 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. General admission is $4 adults, $3 seniors, $1 children ages 6-17. Free for Museum of Ventura County members and children ages 5 and younger. Paid events include free admission to the galleries, and the first Sunday of every month is free general admission to the public. For more information, go to www.venturamuseum.org or call (805) 525-3100.

THOUSAND OAKS, CA - Areté Vocal Ensemble will conclude its fourth season at California Lutheran University with a concert of British music by The Beatles and a 20th century composer known for his choral works.

“The British Are Coming! Part II” will be performed at 2 p.m. Sunday, April 14, in Samuelson Chapel. This is the second of two concerts commemorating the 100th anniversary of the birth of the English composer Benjamin Britten and the 50th anniversary of the formation of The Beatles.

The program will include Beatles favorites “Blackbird,” “I Will,” “The Fool On The Hill,” “Eleanor Rigby,” “Come Together,” “We Can Work It Out,” “All You Need Is Love” and “Medley.” Popular songs by Britten will include “Hymn to St. Cecilia, Op. 27,” songs from “A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Op. 64” and “Five Flower Songs, Op. 47.”

Areté is an innovative professional ensemble of vocal artists based at CLU. Music director and conductor Wyant Morton created the ensemble with the goal of performing the widest possible vocal and choral repertoire, including works from essentially all periods of music. Special attention is given to contemporary, experimental, improvisatory, “cross-over” and ethnic music.

The ensemble, which takes its name from the Greek word meaning striving for excellence, focuses on performing the new, the unknown and the unconventional with energy, passion, expertise and virtuosity. Through the combined power of words and music, an uncompromising attention to musical detail and a passion for live performance, Areté offers audiences a joyful, moving, educational and soul-nurturing experience.

Morton is director of choral and vocal activities, chair of the music department and a professor of music at CLU. He also maintains an active schedule as a guest conductor, clinician and adjudicator appearing throughout the United States and Canada.

The chapel is located south of Olsen Road near the corner of Campus Drive in Thousand Oaks. Additional parking is available at the corner of Olsen Road and Mountclef Boulevard.

Tickets purchased online in advance are $15. Tickets purchased at the door are $20.Children younger than 12 are free. For information or to purchase tickets, visit http://www.aretevocalensemble.org.

Ventura, CA – Children take center stage with Woodland Tales, the latest event in the Museum of Ventura County’s series, Family Fun at the Museum. In this performance, the Eckerd Theater Company (ETC) creates a theater-in-the-round atmosphere and shares animal tales based on Native American legends. Stories explain how the turkey got its gobble, why rabbits have long ears, and how frogs lost their teeth. Audience members are encouraged to participate in the storytelling as they sit side by side with the actors. The lively storytelling and intimate setting make this a perfect experience for first-time theater goers. This performance takes place at 3:00 p.m. in the Martin V. & Martha K. Smith Pavilion, on Saturday, April 13, 2013. Admission to the performance is $10 for adults, $8 for children, and includes entry to all Museum galleries. For reservations, please call (805) 653-0323 x7.

Created in 1988, ETC has toured throughout the United States and Canada. They create performances that introduce new audiences to the unique experience of live theater. Performance topics include exploring diversity, multiculturalism, self-worth, loyalty, and tolerance. The company strives to make a personal impact on every person it encounters by instilling respect and appreciation between actor and audience. ETC is the professional theater company of Ruth Eckerd Hall.

The Museum of Ventura County is located at 100 East Main Street in downtown Ventura. Hours are 11 a.m.–5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Admission to the exhibitions is $4 adults, $3 seniors, $1 children 6-17, members and children under 6 are free. Paid events include free admission to the galleries, and the first Sundays of every month are free general admission for the public. For more museum information go to www.venturamuseum.org or call 805-653-0323.

The Museum of Ventura County is inviting visitors of all ages to take a step back in time and join their free community celebration in honor of the Museum’s 100th birthday. The festivities are from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m., Sunday, April 7, 2013 and will include old-fashioned games and crafts, period costume dress-up, and more. Join in a sing-along with barbershop quartet, Take Four, and play with dozens of handmade toys crafted by master woodworker, Gene West. Play areas include bean-bag toss, pick-up sticks, and craft materials for children to create their own keepsakes.

The Museum of Ventura County was founded in 1913 and will be featuring exhibits and events that celebrate the centennial throughout the year. Its latest exhibit, Prized Possessions: A Century of Collecting, features significant objects from the Museum’s extensive collection of art, objects, and documents from the county. The Museum’s galleries will be open from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on April 7 and admission is free all day.

The community celebration is part of the Museum’s ongoing series to encourage art awareness, Free First Sundays. These events take place every first Sunday of the month and include free admission to the general public for all exhibits and events.

The Museum of Ventura County is located at 100 East Main Street in downtown Ventura. Hours are 11 a.m.–5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Admission to the exhibitions is $4 adults, $3 seniors, $1 children 6-17, members and children under 6 are free. Paid events include free admission to the galleries, and the first Sundays of every month are free general admission for the public. For more museum information go to www.venturamuseum.org or call 805-653-0323.

Oxnard College student Danny Lawlor won 1st Place and an $800 scholarship in Buenaventura Art Association’s 7th Annual Collegiate Student Art Competition for his oil pastel painting, “Gold Coast Transit”. The award was announced at a reception for the competition and art exhibit at the Association’s Harbor Village Gallery on Friday March 15, 2013.

2nd Place and a $600 scholarship went to Linda Kennon of Ventura College for her graphite on burned paper work, “Bad Little Robot”. Rylann Smith, student at Cal State University Channel Islands, won 3rd Place and a $350 scholarship for her graphite on paper piece, “Eyeris”.

Honorable Mention and $250 gift certificates to Dick Blick Art Materials went to Eli Suzuki-Gill (Ventura College); Kyle Sallee (Ventura College); Donna Espinoza (Oxnard College); Donna’s sister Stephanie Espinoza (Oxnard College) and Emily Rubin (CSUCI). All winners also received a one-year membership to Buenaventura Art Association with free entry fees and no required volunteer time.

In addition, Dustin Sherron, Jessica Porter (CSUCI), Elham Omidvar, Aide Sandoval (Oxnard College), Dylan Gasaway, Shabnam Farahani (Ventura College), Cheyenne Summers, Chrystal Kuper (Moorpark College), and Makenzie Goodman (Brooks Institute) all won Merit Awards and a membership to Buenaventura Art Association.

The juror for the competition was Bob Privitt, professor emeritus and former chair of the art department at Pepperdine University. Privitt’s humor, after a 40-year career teaching art at the college and university level, put the students at ease as they nervously waited for the award results. In a short talk before the award announcements, Privitt advised, only half-jokingly, that students “stay away from art teachers.” He reminded students to follow their own artistic paths after accepting or rejecting the counsel of others.

Sponsors of the competition were the Stanley & Jessica Prescott Trust, Scripps Howard Foundation, and E.J. Harrison & Sons, Inc.

The exhibit of student art, including all of the award winners, continues until April 15, 2013 at the Harbor Village Gallery, 1591 Spinnaker Dr , Suite 117C, (before the big lawn) Ventura. Phone: (805) 644 – 2750. Hours: noon – 6pm. Closed Tuesday.

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Janet Neuwalder will discuss the evolution of her work from traditional wheel thrown and hand built vessels to her current mixed media work and sculptural wall installations. Images will include the rigorous investigation of and revaluation of the meaning of "containment" and how Neuwalder was able to develop a new language in process and a rethinking of ceramic materials. Much of her recent work is large-scale sculptural wall installations. The work is assembled from hundreds of fragments that seemingly float on the wall, creating a visually active topographic surface. The work expresses movement, playfulness and a sense of history and time.

Neuwalder received her BFA from the Kansas City Art Institute in Kansas City, Missouri and a Master of Fine Art from Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. Neuwalder has been exhibiting her work nationally since 1984. She has taught art at numerous universities and colleges throughout the United States. She currently maintains a studio in Ventura, CA and teaches at Cerritos and Pierce College. Free. All are welcome!

WHO: THE VENTURA COUNTY POTTERS’ GUILD
WHAT: "Teapots to Sculptural Installations" by Janet Neuwalder
WHERE: Ventura Senior Center
420 East Santa Clara Street
Ventura, CA.
WHEN: March 25th, Doors open at 7pm, lecture and power point presentation begins at 8pm
http://www.vcpottersguild.com/
Also: Facebook...Ventura Pottery Gallery

Camarillo, CA - CSU Channel Islands (CI) and the Ventura County Library are pleased to announce the 2013 CSU Channel Islands Lecture Series, a free, regular event featuring speakers from the CI faculty at the E.P. Foster Library in downtown Ventura. The series is a new initiative inviting the public to learn more about the research and work of CI professors and to engage in discussions on a variety of timely, thought-provoking and regionally relevant topics. Faculty lectures are also held monthly at the Grant R. Brimhall Library in Thousand Oaks.

“We’re excited to be able to share the fascinating work and dynamic presentations of our faculty with the public in Ventura and Thousand Oaks through our Library Lecture Series,” said Dr. Karen Carey, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, Arts & Sciences at CI. “We hope these lectures give members of the community the enjoyment of being a CI student for an evening in a free, convenient setting.”

"We are thrilled to partner with CSU Channel Islands for this series,” said Sara Roberts, Senior City Librarian at E.P. Foster Library. “Our community can only benefit from these educational opportunities."

All lectures will be held at 6 p.m. in the Topping Room at E.P. Foster Library, 651 East Main Street, Ventura. At the conclusion of their hour-long presentations, the speakers will engage in Q&A with the audience.

Following are currently scheduled speakers, topics, dates, times and brief bios:

"Early Farm Worker Housing on the Oxnard Plain”

Monday, April 1, at 6 p.m., with Dr. Frank Barajas, Professor of U.S. History

Dr. Barajas specializes in the history of Southern California. He has published peer-reviewed essays on agricultural labor in Ventura County, the Sleepy Lagoon Trial, the Oxnard schools, and the 2004 implementation of a civil gang injunction in the City of Oxnard. In addition to his book, Curious Unions: Mexican American Workers and Resistance in Oxnard, California, 1898-1961, Professor Barajas has published opinion essays in Amigos805, The History News Service, The Bakersfield Californian, and the Ventura County Star.

“Evolution of Surfing and the Culture Surrounding It”

Wednesday, April 24, with Professor of Art Jack Reilly

Professor Jack Reilly attributes his career as an artist largely to surfing. He began surfing in the mid-1960s at the age of 14. Later, as a surf shop owner and board painter, he discovered his love for art, prompting him to leave the beach to study painting in Paris and earn his M.F.A. at Florida State University. Reilly is an internationally renowned artist, widely recognized as one of the key players in the Los Angeles art scene and the “Abstract Illusionism” movement. He has continued surfing as an important aspect of his life, while maintaining his art and teaching careers. In addition to chairing CI’s Art Program, Reilly also teaches a course called "Zen of Surfing.” Throughout Reilly’s 47 years of surfing, he has observed many cultural shifts, from the surfer as “outlaw” to the worldwide acceptance and professionalism of the sport. Reilly will also discuss how innovative technologies are involved in the production of surfing equipment, along with the extensive use of the Internet in long-range wave prediction and the observation of surf local conditions.

“Tearing the Fabric: Exploring and Predicting Elevated Vertebrate Road Kill from Ventura County to Louisiana to the Middle East”

Wednesday, May 22, with Dr. Sean Anderson, Professor of Environmental Science & Resource Management

Sean Anderson is a broadly trained ecologist who has tackled environmental questions from Alaska to the South Pole. His energetic and innovative teaching efforts have garnered local and national recognition and spawned the eponymous “Sean Anderson” character (played by Josh Hutcherson) in Warner Brother’s Journey to the Center of the Earth film franchise. He will share results from his ongoing 7-year survey to document the location and diversity of road-associated mortality across coastal Southern California. The roadkill study focuses on hard-to-detect species of concern and small vertebrates, as well as enabling successful crossings and reducing vertebrate mortality events.

All lectures are free and open to the public, with complimentary parking behind the E.P. Foster Library. For more information, visit http://www.vencolibrary.org/locations/epfoster or call the library at 805-648-2716.

To learn more about the Lecture Series at the Thousand Oaks Library, visit www.toaks.org/library or call the library at 805-449-2660, option 5.

About California State University Channel Islands
CSU Channel Islands (CI) is celebrating 10 years of education, innovation, growth and community enrichment during the 2012/2013 academic year. We salute our faculty, staff, students, alumni, supporters, and partners who continue the CI mission of a student-centered education emphasizing international and multicultural perspectives with interdisciplinary and experiential service-oriented learning.

Together, we are solving the problems of today, preparing the leaders and innovators of tomorrow, and contributing to the vitality of higher education.

CSU Channel Islands – A Decade of Distinction

Lifelong art educator and award-winning Ventura painter Gerd Koch will give a wide-ranging talk about abstract art from 5:30-7 p.m. April 11 at the Buenaventura Gallery in downtown Ventura.

“Making the Invisible Visible, a Personal Vision and Journey” is the first in a planned series of art appreciation presentations at the Buenaventura Art Association’s downtown and Harbor Village galleries. Admission is free, but reservations are recommended. To secure a place, RSVP to 648-1235.

Koch will trace the “journey from realism to abstract-expressionism,” from Rembrandt’s loose brushwork late in life through the contributions of more recent artists such as Monet, Van Gogh, Duchamp and De Koonig. He’ll also discuss the evolution of his personal artistic vision and use examples of his work, art by his partner, Carole Milton, and pieces in the gallery to examine abstraction as an art style. A question-and-answer period will conclude the evening.

A 2011 recipient of the Ventura County Arts Council’s Art Star Award for Lifetime Achievement, Koch has taught art since 1953, including 32 years as a Ventura College instructor and seven years at UCSB Extension. He has been instrumental in the development of generations of Ventura County artists and has led many European art tours over the years.

Koch is also a prolific painter, in watercolors and oils, who joined the National Watercolor Society in 1955, won the society’s top purchase award the following year, and has three times been elected an annual juror by its membership. His works have been exhibited in dozens of museum, solo and two-person shows from 1956 to the present and are in many museum and private collections.

He will be featured during Ventura’s July ArtWalk in a Vita Gallery exhibition of many of his paintings from the collection of Peter Cannon. Koch and Milton also plan a joint show, “Our Journey Together,” in September at Studio Channel Islands Art Center in Camarillo, for which they’re producing a 40-page hardbound book that includes some photos of that journey.

The next scheduled art talk will be June 20, 2013 at the art association’s Harbor Village Gallery given by interior designer Karen Grace. Grace will discuss art and color and their roles in enhancing home and office.
The Buenaventura Gallery, 700 E. Santa Clara St., is open 11-5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. Its phone number is 648-1235. Visit the website of the nonprofit artists’ cooperative at www.buenaventuragallery.org.

SANTA PAULA, CA – “Old Hands, New Works”, opening March 23, 2013 at the Santa Paula Art Museum, is an exhibition shared between long-established Ventura County artists Michele Chapin and Susan Petty. Their latest works reflect strikingly new approaches and motivations brought to form by expert hands. An opening reception will be held Saturday, March 23 from 4 to 6 p.m. Admission to the reception is $10 for SPAM members and $15 for non-members. The exhibit runs through July 14, 2013.

“Michele Chapin’s most recent body of work is as refreshing and rare as her spirit,” says Museum Director Jennifer Heighton. An award-winning stone sculptor, teacher and community arts activist, Chapin works out of her open air “Stoneworks Studio” in Ventura. Her inspiration comes from found organic objects such as shells, flowers, bones, the figure, and Mysticism. Michele’s sculptures are captivating in color and sensual in form. Several of her latest pieces were carved by pushing a piece of stone past what is structurally possible. This aggressive working of the stone created a new variety of shapes unlike anything she has done before.

Fans of painter Susan Petty will also be pleasantly surprised by the new direction that her work has taken. As Susan put it, “the work in this show has come about as a meeting of life and art.” With photographer Bill Dewey’s “Waves” series as her muse, Petty used the chaos and motion of waves as metaphors for changes in her own life. Each artwork is an expression of a different emotion. And while Petty’s new drawings and paintings are quite distinct from her previous works, her art is as breathtaking as it has always been. Together, Chapin and Petty demonstrate that “old hands” and life experience can produce truly innovative art.

Reservations for the opening reception are recommended. Please contact the Museum at (805) 525-5554, or email info@santapaulaartmuseum.org. The Museum is located at 117 North 10th Street, Santa Paula, CA 93060. The Museum’s regular hours are Wednesday through Saturday, 10 AM – 4 PM, and Sundays, 12 PM – 4 PM.

Publicity Images: “Spirit from the Other Side” by Michele Chapin, Italian Alabaster on Mexican Marble, 2008, Collection of the artst; “Untitled” by Susan Petty, oil on canvas, 2013, Collection of the artist.

The Museum of Ventura County’s Agriculture Museum will be showcasing a new exhibit, From Field to Factory, Oxnard’s Beet Generation, from March 30 to August 11, 2013. The exhibit will include never-before-exhibited photographs of the American Beet Sugar Factory in Oxnard, which was the world’s second largest beet sugar producer upon completion in 1898, and tales of the boom town that sprang up practically overnight around the factory. The photographs illustrate the rise of one of Ventura County’s most important historical crops: Sugar beets. A beet wagon fully-restored by Santa Paula resident, Richard Cummings, will be on display. Artifacts from the factory, as well as tools from of the beet trade, will also be on display.

Visitors are invited to attend the opening reception on Saturday, April 6, from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m, which will celebrate two exhibits, From Field to Factory and Farm Fresh Quilts. Event will include sweet treats, no-host bar, and beet-related contests. Admission to the reception is $5.00 for the general public and free for museum members. RSVP to 805-525-3100.

Along with the opening reception, the Agriculture Museum will host several events focused on the sugar beet industry. On Sunday, April 14, at 2:00 p.m., CSU Channel Islands Professor of History, Frank P. Barajas, Ph.D., will present Oxnard Labor History. Barajas is the author of Curious Unions: Mexican American Workers and Resistance in Oxnard, California, 1898-1961. Admission to Barajas’ lecture is $5.00 for the general public and free for museum members, and includes entrance to all Museum exhibits. RSVP to 805-525-3100.

The Museum of Ventura County’s Agriculture Museum is located in historic downtown Santa Paula at 926 Railroad Avenue, Santa Paula, California. Hours are 10 a.m.– 4 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. General admission is $4 adults, $3 seniors, $1 children ages 6-17. Free for Museum of Ventura County members and children ages 5 and younger. Paid events include free admission to the galleries, and the first Sunday of every month is free general admission to the public. For more information, go to www.venturamuseum.org or call (805) 525-3100.

THOUSAND OAKS, CA - After completing a weeklong performance tour of Colorado, the California Lutheran University Choir will present a concert on campus in Samuelson Chapel at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 2.

The CLU Women’s Chorale will join the choir for the annual Home Concert.

The varied program will feature works performed during seven Colorado concerts. One featured work is “Magnificat,” which was composed by Englishman Ralph Vaughan Williams for chorus, piano, flute and mezzo-soprano solo. Senior music major Susannah Ruth of Thousand Oaks will be the soloist. Another is “O Magnum Mysterium,” a multimedia work written by U.S. composer Libby Larsen for chorus and pre-recorded seven-track solo voice with sitar, vibraphone and bells, and laptop computer.

The concert will include works by contemporary composers Javier Busto, Ola Gjeilo and Kenneth Jennings and music for choir and saxophone featuring musician Nicole Hovland of Canyon Country. As always, the program will conclude with folk songs, spirituals and gospel songs.

Wyant Morton, chair of the Music Department, will conduct the 50-voice choir.

Founded in 1961, the CLU Choir is the university’s premiere choral ensemble. It has toured throughout the United States and in England, Italy, Norway and Sweden. It has performed at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome and at Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall in New York City. The choir has earned a reputation for its commitment to performing the finest in choral literature from all eras in the original languages. While dedicated to performing works that represent the university’s Lutheran heritage, the choir also embraces innovative new music and multicultural pieces.

The chapel is located south of Olsen Road near Campus Drive on the Thousand Oaks campus.

Donations will be accepted. For more information, call the Music Department at 805-493-3306 or visit callutheran.edu.

A collection of contemporary quilts inspired by fresh fruits, vegetables, flowers, farms, and farmers will be featured in a new exhibit called Farm Fresh Quilts. Exhibit will be on display at the Museum of Ventura County’s Agriculture Museum from March 30 to June 16, 2013. Exhibit includes 20 one-of-a-kind pieces, contributed by 15 quilters from Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. Visitors who attend the opening reception for Farm Fresh Quilts, on Saturday, April 6, from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m., can also see the Agriculture Museum’s new sugar beet exhibit, From Field to Factory: Oxnard’s Beet Generation. Admission to the reception is $5.00 for the general public, free for museum members. Event includes sweet treats and a no-host bar. RSVP to 805-525-3100.

Along with the opening reception, the Agriculture Museum will host several events focused on quilting. Quilter Pat Masterson will host a Second Thursday Gallery Talk called Ag-Inspired Quilts, on April 11 at 2:00 p.m. Masterson will talk about the varieties of creative expression and quilting techniques employed in the 20 original quilts on display. General admission is charged for Second Thursday Gallery Talks and museum members are free. No reservations are required.

Children are encouraged to learn about quilting and enjoy the exhibit during our Free First Sunday activity on June 2, from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. During Quilt Blocks for Kids!, volunteers will help children work with paper, fabric, and art supplies to create colorful quilt blocks. Participants will learn about geometric shapes and colors as they create pieces they can take home. A colorful handmade quilt of California scenes will be on display so children can add their own quilting stitches with a needle and thread.

The Museum of Ventura County’s Agriculture Museum is located in historic downtown Santa Paula, at 926 Railroad Avenue, Santa Paula, California. Hours are 10 a.m.– 4 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. General admission is $4 adults, $3 seniors, $1 children ages 6-17. Free for Museum of Ventura County members and children ages 5 and younger. Paid events include free admission to the galleries, and the first Sunday of every month is free general admission to the public. For more information, go to www.venturamuseum.org or call (805) 525-3100.

Camarillo, CA - CSU Channel Islands (CI) invites the public to join in a weeklong celebration honoring the late labor leader and civil rights activist César Chávez. A series of events are planned on the CI campus and at Café on A in Oxnard throughout the week of March 25, leading up to César Chávez Day on the 31st.

The events are intended to engage students, faculty, staff and community members in a shared celebration of Chávez’s life, legacy and core values. Throughout the week, CI students will also participate in activities promoting service, advocacy and volunteerism.

A detailed listing of free, public events is provided below.

César E. Chávez: A Legacy of Service: Photo and Art Exhibit Opening and Reception

Wednesday, March 27, 5 - 7:30 p.m., John Spoor Broome Library, CI campus

Join us for the debut of two exhibits that pay powerful tribute to the memory of César Chávez. Photojournalist Jess Gutierrez has captured the spirit of Ventura County farmworker communities for over three decades. Artist Xico González honors labor leaders of the United Farm Workers movement in celebration of the 50th Anniversary. The event will include a 6 p.m. panel discussion moderated by Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the United Farm Workers (UFW) union with César Chávez. A reception will follow at 7 p.m. Limited complimentary campus parking will be available. Follow signs to event parking. Please RSVP to the exhibit opening at: https://csuci.wufoo.com/forms/r6r2q7/. For more information, contact Dr. Frank Barajas at frank.barajas@csuci.edu.

Revoltoso: The Art of Xico González

Thursday, March 28, 7 p.m., Café on A, 438 South A Street, Oxnard

Brash, evocative, and never shy, Xico González's "Revoltoso" features silkscreen posters created in support of numerous political causes, but mainly the fight for immigrants' rights. His art overturns conventional thought and popular images to make his audience react in visceral ways. An activist/organizer as well as an artist, González uses his artistic skills to benefit his community and contribute to the long dialogue of art, activism and the legacy of the Chicano Art Movement.

Rhyme for a Reason II: Social Justice Poetry Slam

Thursday, March 28, 8 p.m., Café on A, 438 South A Street, Oxnard

Nationally recognized, award-winning Chicano poet, author and playwright Paul Flores is coming to Oxnard to speak his rhyme. A past performer on HBO’s Def Poetry Jams, Flores weaves spoken word, theater and hip-hop around issues of social justice.

This weeklong celebration is made possible by CI’s Centers for Community and Multicultural Engagement; the Chicana/o Studies, Communication, and History programs; the John Spoor Broome Library; Project ISLAS; Instructionally Related Activities funds; Laborers' International Union of North America-LIUNA-Local 585, Ventura; Cabo Seafood Grill & Cantina; Xavier Montes; and Marie Gregorio-Oviedo.

For more information, please contact Pilar Pacheco, Associate Director, Center for Community Engagement, at pilar.pacheco@csuci.edu or 805-437-8851.

About California State University Channel Islands
CSU Channel Islands (CI) is celebrating 10 years of education, innovation, growth and community enrichment during the 2012/2013 academic year. We salute our faculty, staff, students, alumni, supporters, and partners who continue the CI mission of a student-centered education emphasizing international and multicultural perspectives with interdisciplinary and experiential service-oriented learning.

Together, we are solving the problems of today, preparing the leaders and innovators of tomorrow, and contributing to the vitality of higher education.

CSU Channel Islands – A Decade of Distinction

California State Old Time Fiddlers District 8 will meet Sunday, March 10 and 24, 2013 from 1:30-4:30pm at the Oak View Community Center, 18 Valley Road, Oak View. Join fiddlers for an afternoon of listening and dancing to Country Western and Bluegrass music. No admission or parking charge. Refreshments available. For more information and to find out about upcoming workshops go to calfiddlers.com or call 805-797-6563.

Bring the children down to the Agriculture Museum in Santa Paula for a toy farm-animal themed scavenger hunt. Event takes place from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, April 7, 2013. Participants will be challenged with clues leading to each animal’s location. Every child who participates will be given a small complimentary prize, and winners will be eligible for either a grand prize or entry in opportunity drawings. Museum volunteers will be available to help young visitors join the fun.

The scavenger hunt is part of the Museum’s ongoing series to encourage agricultural awareness, Free First Sundays. These events take place every first Sunday of the month and include free admission to the general public for all exhibits and events.

The Museum of Ventura County’s Agriculture Museum is located in historic downtown Santa Paula, California at 926 Railroad Avenue. Hours are 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. General admission is $4 adults, $3 seniors, $1 children ages 6-17. Free for Museum of Ventura County members and children ages 5 and younger. Paid events include free admission to the galleries, and the first Sunday of every month is free general admission to the public. For more information, go to www.venturamuseum.org or call (805) 525-3100.

Photograph by Kevin Wynn
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Photograph by Kevin Wynn
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Photograph by Kevin Wynn
Enlarge Photo

Photograph by Kevin Wynn
Enlarge Photo

Photograph by Kevin Wynn
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Kevin Wynn, Ojai wedding and portrait photographer, will present “Portraits – From Headshots to Environmental Portraits” at the March 19 meeting of the Ojai Photography Club. Wynn will discuss lighting, lens selection, angles, composition and communication.

Wynn is an international award-winning photographer and travels from coast to coast for destination weddings and portrait clients. He is based in Ojai where he lives with his wife and two kids. He describes his work as stylized portraiture. In his words, “I love how a photograph can bring out so much emotion in people. A split second frozen in time can make us laugh, cry, fall in love again.” To see examples of his stunning, timeless and elegant photography visit: http://kevinwynn.com/

The public is invited to this free presentation. The meeting will begin at 7 p.m., at Help of Ojai’s Kent Hall, 111 Santa Ana St., Ojai, CA. For additional information on the Ojai Photography Club visit: http://www.ojaiphotoclub.com/