In and Beyond the Pink

Over and up in Ojai way, the phenom of the “pink moment” is an enduring part of local lore. As the sun sets over the Topa Topa Mountains, a certain cosmic glow of pink hue tickles the sky. It’s the stuff of Ojai myth and natural splendor.

Pinkness prevails in a different way on the weekend of September 13-15, in the form of a unique art-based pop-up event, “The Pink of the Moment,” created and curated by veteran Ojai artist Cassandra C. Jones, whose clean and colorful digital art will be featured along with 13 other artists. The concept arose from a discussion with fellow artist Christopher Noxon about the status of the color pink as an “emotional support color.”

The Pink celebration is a family affair, including the musical menu featuring Jones’s famed husband, Mikael Jorgensen, best-known as the keyboardist for Wilco. Jorgensen also keeps his hand in Ojai musical culture, as deejay at the Ojai Underground Exchange and with such projects as Expandards, slated to perform alongside the Ojai-based band Radio Skies on Saturday afternoon.

Jorgensen will also preside over a special “Ojai Fi Listening Party: The Pink of the Moment Edition,” on Saturday night. While this event within the event costs $20, the rest of the event is free to the public (tickets and info at bit.ly/4g7qcnu).

Meanwhile, while Jorgensen handles part of the musical menu, the Jorgensen kids will be selling lemonade (pink, natch) and popsicles, along with Mom’s “Happy Snack Packs,” Japanese Bites by Naomi’s Kitchen, and, for adult beverage needs, sake by Sawtelle Sake Co.

In this intentionally immersive and highly “in-house” exhibition, artworks are distributed in every room of the host environment, inviting an engagement with the home as well as the art. 

In addition to Jones, the artist list includes Joel Fox, Jennifer Jordan Day, Fanny Penny, Nicholas Ali, Christopher Noxon, Rebecca Odes, Jamie Stratford, Joe Rockwell, Sally England, Cara Bonewitz, Stephanie Dotson, Madeleine Eve Ignon, and Jules Weissman.

An advance statement emphasizes that “by showcasing the work of local artists who live in a place famous for the one moment a day when the sun hits the mountains just right and casts a pink glow over the city, this exhibition aims to bring together our community in honoring the allure of pink in modern times.”

For more information and the schedule of events, see bit.ly/3MqTeB5.