Karen Osland will present a talk and show of images on Earth Pigments and Rock Art as part of the Santa Ynez Valley Arts Association’s free Art Salon series 6-7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 5, in Stacy Hall at St. Mark’s in the Valley Episcopal Church, 2901 Nojoqui Ave., Los Olivos.

Recent archaeological discoveries suggest people have been processing earth pigments into paint for more than 77,000 years. A paint-making tool kit discovered within Blombos cave in South Africa, contained red ochre and it is at least 77,000 years old.

A 40,000-year-old hand stencil, outlined in red, was found on a cave wall in Indonesia.

Kakadu, an Australian Word Heritage site, contains paintings created from 20,000 years ago to as late as 1986. The same type of earth pigments and color palettes were used to create the rock art found within the Santa Barbara region.

Rock art is part of our common heritage, regardless of our social, cultural, religious or economic status; the sites and the images they contain were created as part of daily life in the past. These visual expressions of mankind’s ideas are found worldwide.
 
A UCSB graduate, Osland has been an archaeologist for some 30 years, and was an environmental planner at Vandenberg Air Force Base for 18 years. She has been teaching classes on basketry and on the ethnobotany of native California plants for a number of years.

Osland also leads interpretative hikes emphasizing how the California Indians managed their environment. She is a member of the Santa Ynez Valley Arts Association.

Prior to Osland’s talk, there will be a social mixer with refreshments from 5-6 p.m.

— Rebecca Gomez for Santa Ynez Valley Arts Association.