Gallery Spotlight: Galerie Eye

Location: 4620 Carpinteria Ave., Carpinteria

Owners: Brent and Suzi Freitas

Date of Opening: November 30, 2007

Focus: Brent and Suzi Freitas have been working to bring together art and nature for over 10 years through their garden design business, Eye of the Day. Now they are launching the next step in this endeavor: Galerie Eye-an art gallery situated in a corner room of the garden center. “I wanted to do a show that reflected the natural feeling of the store,” explained the show’s curator, John Faulkner. Galerie Eye’s first show, “Eyes Open,” incorporates vessels with rounded, pleasing forms in a pastel palette; realistic soft seascapes; and vibrantly-hued, surreal versions of traditional nature scenes. The show embodies a melding of art and nature, and seems to parallel nature’s diverse plethora of form, color, and mood.

Upcoming Exhibition: Galerie Eye’s inaugural show, “Eyes Open,” opens today-Friday, November 30th-with a public reception from 5 to 8pm, and runs through January 2008. The show features work by Santa Barbara-based artists Marilee Krause, Rick Garcia, Nancy Taliaferro, and Phoebe Brunner, in addition to artists sponsored by the William T. Colville Foundation.

Hours and Contact: Mon. and Wed.-Sat. 10am-5pm; Sun. 10am-4pm. Closed Tuesday. Call 570-9454.