Summer Arts Visual Art Preview

Nights and 1st Thursday may occupy our summer evenings, but the wealth and diversity of art on view this season will lure us into the cool sanctuary of Santa Barbara’s museums and galleries all summer long.

On the Art of Remaining Upright: Terezin Series, 2007

On view before traveling to the Czech Republic, Jana Zimmer’s monotypes incorporate historical documents, writings, and family photos and artwork with other techniques and media including collage, Chine collee, fabric, pencil, and oil bar as a way to honor and communicate her family’s experiences during the Holocaust. Thu., June 21-Thu., July 5; open Mon.-Thu., 9am-5pm and Fri., 9am-4pm. Opening reception: Thu., June 21, 5:30-6:30pm. Jewish Community Center, 524 Chapala St. Call 957-1115 or visit JewishSantaBarbara.org.

Visions of the Boreal Forest: Artists Deep in the Northern Wilderness

This exhibition features paintings, sketches, photographs, and scientific information from the 2006 Wilderness River Expedition into the Boreal Forest. Artists, scientists, writers, and conservationists canoed down Canada’s George River for an 18-day, 140-mile river journey to capture the wonder and heighten awareness of threats to the continent’s largest uninterrupted forest. Be among the first to preview the show before it travels to the Smithsonian Institution in 2008. Wed., June 27-Sun., Sept. 9; open Wed.-Sun., 11am-5pm. Wildling Art Museum, 2329 Jonata St., Los Olivos. Call 688-1082 or visit wildlingmuseum.org.

Made in Santa Barbara: Contemporary Photographs

Santa Barbara’s reputation as a photographic community is justly deserved, as the city is home to a renowned photographic school, a museum that consistently offers fine art photography in its programming, and an abundance of photographic talent. This exhibition consists of more than 100 spectacular images from 45 Santa Barbara-based photographers. The images are organized thematically, from such classic genres as landscape and portraiture, to urban and altered landscapes, documentary images of war and protest, and new media. Sun., July 1-Sun., Oct. 7; open Tue.-Sun., 11am-5pm. Santa Barbara Museum of Art, 1130 State St. Call 963-4364 or visit sbmuseart.org.

Arts Mentorship Exhibition, Part II

The Arts Fund’s Arts Mentorship Program allows high school-aged aspiring artists to work closely with professionals to develop their technical skills, produce a portfolio of artwork, and gain insight into career possibilities in the arts. The exhibition showcases the art of students working with Ron Robertson in assemblage and with Pamela Larrson-Toscher in classical oil painting. Thu., July 5-Fri., July 27; open Tue.-Fri., noon-5pm. The Arts Fund, 205-C Santa Barbara St. Call 965-7321 or visit artsfundsb.org.

Andy Warhol Presents

Fascinated by the intersection of art and commerce, where pleasing aesthetics translate to sales, Andy Warhol articulated a dazzling world of haute couture in his droll illustrations for New York’s elite fashion industry. Exclusively at the University Art Museum at UCSB, this exhibition spotlights a selection of these window displays from the influential pop artist’s successful early career as a commercial illustrator. Wed., July 11-Sun., Oct. 7; open Wed.-Sun., noon-5pm. Opening reception: Thu., July 12, 5-8pm. University Art Museum, UCSB. Call 893-7564 or visit uam.ucsb.edu.

Sonotube Forms: Contemporary Art and Transport

This exhibition salutes the cardboard shipping tube as a symbol of efficiency in the art world and elevates this humble yet indispensable product-vital for efficiently transporting invaluable pieces of art-to an objet d’art in its own right. Thirty-five artists were sent a Sonotube with a request to return it to CAF with an artwork and installation instructions, including the shipping tube itself. Sat., July 14-Sun., Aug. 26; open Tue.-Sun., 11am-5pm and Sat., noon-5pm. Contemporary Arts Forum, 653 Paseo Nuevo. Call 966-5373 or visit .

From the Camargue in France to Sleepy Hollow in New York, from the coast of Maine to that of California, Lynn H. Butler photographed the countryside from horseback, forging a visual plea to witness and protect that which is unique about the natural world. Thu., Aug. 2-Sat., Sept. 1; open Tue.-Sat., noon-5pm. Patty Look Lewis Gallery, 25 E. De La Guerra St. Call 965-2525 or visit .

A pivotal contribution of artists of the mid- to late-20th century was to debunk the exclusivity of fine art through printmaking. This group exhibition features prints and edition artworks by prominent 20th-century artists, including Billy Al Bengston, Richard Diebenkorn, Sam Francis, Philip Guston, Robert Motherwell, James Rosenquist, and Wayne Thiebaud. These peintre-graveurs revolutionized the august medium of printmaking, thereby making fine art accessible to a broader community. Thu., Aug. 2-Sun., Sept. 16; open Tue.-Sun., 11am-5pm. Edward Cella Art+Architecture, Ste. 3, 10 E. Figueroa St. Call 962-5900 or visit edwardcella.com.

Miserere et Guerre

Westmont’s Reynolds Gallery opens its next season with a selection of 30 pieces from Georges Rouault’s important 20th-century print cycle. Begun in 1914 and completed in 1927, the series remains a complex expression of the artist’s spiritual response to war and strife. Thu., Aug. 23-Thu., Oct. 18; open Mon.-Fri., 10am-4pm and Sat., 11am-5pm. Westmont College’s Reynolds Gallery, 955 La Paz Rd. Call 565-6162 or visit westmont.edu/reynolds_gallery.