Art events for the members of the Solana Beach Art Association

Member News

As we move into December it's hard to believe another year has flown by. The Solana Beach Art Association has had a great year with several events and shows under our belts. High points included the Fall art show, SPARK! at the Solana Beach City Hall Gallery, the Spring Renewal Poetry Reading event at Del Mar's Book Works, and May's Arts in Bloom Artwalk at Flower Hill Promenade.

Member news includes the installation of Christie Beniston's public art sculpture at Lindbergh Field Airport, her community mosaic at Flower Hill, and winning the public art project for the Solana Beach Library. Christie's mosaic should be installed January 2010. Christie and Irene de Watteville each have a teapot on display in the "Teapots, Object to Subject" exhibition at Carlsbad's Cannon Gallery. The exhibition runs November 22, 2009 through January 31, 2010

Amber Irwin's mosaic pieces augmented member Heidi Rufeh's vibrant, abstract canvases at the San Diego Cancer Center gallery and carol Beth Rodriguez contributed delicate hand-drawn sketches for my book on Lilian J. Rice.

My news includes a sold-out lecture, Lilian J. Rice: How the Ghost of You Clings, at the Museum of San Diego History in August and the submission of my completed manuscript to Schiffer Publishing that same month. The book titled, Lilian J. Rice: Architect of Rancho Santa Fe, California will release spring 2010.

If any SBAA members would like to post their arts events or accomplishments please follow the blog and share your news.

Thanks to all for a great year. Next year is already being planned with a poetry event in February, an exhibition on master architect Lilian J. Rice in June, and the SBAA annual art show booked for the Holiday season 2010 at Solana Beach City Hall Gallery.

Happy Holidays to all!

~Diane Y. Welch

The launch of Welch Whispers

So this is the first step in a journey of unlimited potential.

Welch Whispers, named for my popular column in the Rancho Santa Fe Review, has a simple goal, to act as a central place for a meeting of the minds: from fine artists, to literary pals, to designers and to anyone else with a curiosity about our local cultural climate. Despite the myth that persists, that Southern California is a cultural desert, we, the actual professional art community beg to differ. The arts are alive and well in our neck of the woods, despite the fact that NEA grants and Obama's mother lode didn't exactly stimulate us here in the nether regions of San Diego County. But undaunted, artists, writers and designers continue to carve out a living--if not getting rich we are at least getting noticed and this is what this blog is all about. In a word: "visibility".

So join in the chat and keep abreast of news about our local arts from one who is not only talking the talk about the arts scene in San Diego County, but is actually walking the walk. Visit my website to find out more about me and my projects: www.dianewelch.com and become my friend on facebook.