Area Meeting: Slingshot Art – Panel Discussion

Area Meeting Presented by the Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative 

Area Meeting, the dynamic gathering of artists, creators, and community members, will meet again on Tuesday, August 11th at the Community Arts Workshop. Area Meeting is designed as a rallying point for local creatives offering an invigorating evening of artistic presentations, lively discussions, and thoughtful feedback—plus a table of curated snacks that bring people together in the spirit of collaboration and inspiration.

August’s Area Meeting will host a panel discussion representing Slingshot Art Studio, a nonprofit progressive art studio that supports the creative practice and professional interests of artists with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) in Santa Barbara. The studio team, Kelly Bold Cottrell, Jessica Schlobohm, and Zoe Van Beurden will speak about the aspects of the program, its history, and the ethos of progressive practices to reveal more about this distinct and increasingly impactful sector of the contemporary art world. The discussion will be led by guest moderator, Lucy Bell, MFA UCSB, an artist working in painting, text, and social practice, queering traditions of ritual, memory and space. 

Panelists

Kelly Bold Cottrell received her BA in Liberal Studies with a minor in Visual Art from Cal State Monterey Bay and has worked for Alpha Resource Center since 2013. She has been the Studio Manager at Slingshot since 2020, where she oversees daily studio operations and serves as case manager for each enrolled artist. 

Jessica Schlobohm studied at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, before completing her degree at the College of Creative Studies at UC Santa Barbara. She earned a BA in Studio Art with an emphasis in sculpture, then went on to receive an MFA in Fine Art from Goldsmiths, University of London. She has been the Gallery Director at Slingshot since 2021, where she oversees artist representation and community engagement.  

Zoe Van Beurden is a Santa Barbara-based artist who blurs the boundary between memory and environment through painting and drawing. She received her BA in art from UC Santa Barbara and currently works as the Lead Teaching Artist at Slingshot / Alpha Art Studio, supporting the creative practices of artists with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). 

After a short break and snack, the post-panel crit will include Dylan Long and Madison Gobbell, current artists working at Slingshot Art Studio.