Spotlight on…Corridan Gallery

By Lynne Simpson

Abstract painter William Fedderson and his wife Karen, a
landscape oil painter, are the proud owners of the Corridan
Gallery, a Santa Barbara spot little known to the general public
but highly valued by artists. With an inventive dream and a calm
though serious drive, the couple has successfully transformed a
simple gray 1920s craftsman-style house at 125 North Milpas Street
into a cozy haven of creativity. Corridan has professional gallery
lighting, classical music seeping in from behind the walls, and a
strategically placed display space in which visitors of all levels
of artistic knowledge can view and appreciate various works.

The gallery, which will take part in the fifth annual Santa
Barbara Studio Artists Open Studio Tour on Labor Day weekend, hosts
exhibits of all genres, including abstract art, photography,
contemporary art, and sculpture. Exhibits often run for two months
at a time, with periods of open art displayed in between. The
Feddersons pride themselves on consistently hosting up-and-coming
artists, and hope to bring creative awareness to Santa Barbara by
showing existing regional fine art. From the busy street outside,
look for the fenced-in manicured English garden with blooming
lavender and roses, notice the featured art set out on the front
lawn easel, and know that hospitality awaits you inside. With a “my
house is your house” attitude, the Feddersons know that art just
gives so much to people. They love nothing more than knowing that
people can likewise give so much back to art.

The Corridan Gallery, which will host a gala reception for the
Open Studios Tour on Friday, September 1 at 4 p.m., is at 125 North
Milpas Street. Call 966-7939 or see corridan-gallery.com.