Celebrating 40 Years of Art and Activism

“As an artist, it’s our job to have a purpose. And as landscape painters, [our purpose] is to protect the land,” says Arturo Tello. 

Tello is one of the founding members of The Oak Group, a collective of roughly 26 landscape artists that for the past four decades has combined their creativity with conservation. Their passion for painting on location catapulted them toward activism, becoming one of the first groups in the U.S. to fuse the two mediums together. “Activism is fueled by our love of the land,” says Tello. 

In celebration of 40 years, The Oak Group will return in support of the More Mesa Preservation Coalition (MMPC) with the upcoming exhibit Preserve and Cherish. The fundraiser, inspired by the Carl Sagan quote “Preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we’ve ever known,” will benefit the latest MMPC effort to purchase the remaining 265 acres of unprotected land sitting near Hope Ranch. 

The Faulkner Gallery exhibit, which will showcase work from the majority of The Oak Group’s members, along with some special guests, is the latest in a long line of fundraising events to support MMPC the last few months. 

For the past 25 years, MMPC approached protection of the land from the lens of a friendly educator, informing community members about its potential for sale and raising awareness about the environmental impact of the native species living there. When Valerie Olson first moved to the area 37 years ago, she was immediately struck by the magic of the place. “You will not believe what’s in our backyard,” she recalls telling her husband about the home they’d just purchased just two blocks from the entrance. 

Her passion for the land, which today brings in thousands of visitors a year and is open to bikers, equestrians, hikers, joggers, dog walkers, and more, hasn’t wavered in nearly four decades. “More Mesa became the delight of my life,” she said. At 84, she still tries to get out to the gate every day. “It’s brought so much warmth and goodness.”  

In 2025, MMPC unveiled an extensive analysis on the recreational use and value of the land — finding that more than 50 percent of guests visit the region more than once a week — in hopes to garner awareness and begin fundraising support. Still, for the number of guests who love it, very few are aware of its sale (it was listed for $65 million in April 2025) and potential for development.  

The grassroots organization launched a campaign that changed the longtime narrative from protecting the land, to buying the land. That move came just as MMPC founder Olson left her post as president of the organization, and longtime Vice President Dan Gira took her place. 

The evolving dynamic for MMPC came as a response to the changing landscape — not literally, but figuratively. “We can’t sit back and wait,” says Gira. “More Mesa is just too important.” 

In an atmosphere of weakening environmental laws and pending housing mandates, More Mesa is “sort of a natural target,” says Gira. “If the [California Coastal Act of 1976] is weakened, that could fundamentally undermine the protection of More Mesa.” 

Gira is referencing the bedrock 1976 environmental law that determined California’s coast was a “distinct and valuable natural resource of vital and enduring interest.” Gira, retired from Santa Barbara County Planning and Development, who helped secure a 200-acre donation for the first phase of San Marcos Foothills Preserve, knows all too well that a quick review could dilute his organization’s environmental leverage. Additionally, the state’s mandates for high-density housing could mean that the area’s largest undeveloped, privately owned property in Goleta Valley “is a natural target,” Gira adds. 

With the status shaky on whether Santa Barbara’s most beloved and largest open space public land in the area would be rezoned for housing, the group of volunteers at MMPC opted to evolve.  

Now, MMPC is rallying support from every angle. The team is working with a whole host of supporters, including many Hope Ranch residents, Santa Barbara Foundation and national organizations such as the Environmental Defense Center and Trust for Public Land, the latter well known for helping to secure Goleta’s Ellwood Mesa, Douglas Family Preserve, and Arroyo Burro Park.

In December, the group held a meeting at Rincon Brewery in Carpinteria where Assemblymember Gregg Hart honored Olson. The event, which was attended by 125 supporters, launched the first phase in a series of fundraising events, including the debut of Rincon Brewery’s Save More Mesa Blonde Ale. Since then, the calendar has been full with fundraisers including walks on site with Supervisor Laura Capps, a Doublewide Kings fundraiser concert at the Lobero Theatre, and the upcoming Preserve and Cherish show in partnership with The Oak Group. 

This is the first show The Oak Group has done to support More Mesa in 12 years. That’s not for lack of love of the land, says Tello, or a slump in activism. Over the last decade, The Oak Group has hosted fundraising events to benefit Citizens for the Carpinteria Bluffs, UC Santa Barbara North Campus Open Space, and Foothills Forever Fund — a coalition between Save San Marcos Foothills, the Šmuwič Chumash, and Channel Islands Restoration — raising a combined $3.2 million. Each show is a continued love letter to the land, and the work that The Oak Group labors tirelessly to support. “All of us feel privileged to have a purpose bigger than ourselves,” says Tello. “[Our work] is about expressing a love of the land, and a concern about not losing open spaces that are particularly special.” While he acknowledges change is inevitable, More Mesa has something special, something “sacred,” that’s worth the effort.

Preserve and Cherish will run June 2 through June 29 at the Faulkner Gallery at Santa Barbara Central Library (40 E. Anapamu St.) and online through July 31. The opening reception is Wednesday, June 3, from 4:30-6:30 p.m. The exhibit is free and open to the public. To learn more about The Oak Group, visit oakgroup.org. To discover more upcoming fundraising events in support of More Mesa, visit moremesa.org.