In partnership with the Santa Barbara Art Association (SBAA), Art at the JCC will host a juried show at the Jewish Federation’s Bronfman Family Jewish Community Center Aug. 25-Oct. 16, featuring about 100 works from various genres submitted by SBAA members and selected by Judge Jana Brody, of the Squire Foundation.
The Jewish Federation plans to honor founding and longtime members of Santa Barbara’s first Art Association, including its longest-standing member and local icon, Margaret Singer.
The opening reception will be 2-4 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 25, at the Jewish Federation’s Bronfman Family JCC, 524 Chapala St. The reception is free and open to all.
In addition to showcasing up to 100 pieces by local artists, the reception will offer wine, hors d’oeuvres, live folk music by the Sweet String Sisters, and a screening of Margaret Singer: Seeking Light, an award-winning short documentary film.
The life of the late Margaret Singer, (who would have been 98 on June 11) is celebrated and honored in the film, which was premiered at the Santa Barbara Jewish Film Festival.
Movie synopsis: Born and raised in Frankfurt, Germany, at the age of 17, tragedy and turbulence flung Margaret Singer far from her roots. With courage and purpose she bent darkness into light utilizing her gifts as an artist and poet and her innate sense of truth and joy.
Following her own compass, Margaret broke every mold of expectation for a woman, an immigrant and a refugee. She has created a body of work that that will inspire generations.
For more about Singer, visit: https://jewishsantabarbara.org/margaret-singer, https://jewishsantabarbara.org/portraits-of-survival/survivor-stories/margaret-singer, or
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpF6Cj6d-wQ&t=44s.
The Squire Foundation is a nonprofit empowerment foundation, dedicated to civic and educational programs for artists, curators and all manner of creative people.
Founded some 60 years ago, the Santa Barbara Art Association is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization including more than 500 artists who exhibit their original works in diverse media at local venues such as the Faulkner Gallery in the Santa Barbara Public Library and Gallery 113.
For more information, visit https://jewishsantabarbara.org/art-at-the-jcc or call 805-957-1115.
— Julia Solomon for Jewish Federation of Greater Santa Barbara.