Event committee members, from left, Mari McAlister, Heather Biles, co-chairs Meghan Stoll and Travis Kranz, and Peter Ziegler at Casa del Herrero’s Feria Andalusia Art Show & Garden Fair. 
Committee members Cheryl Ziegler, left, and Carolyn Williams. 
Fine art photographer Robert Stivers. 
Artist Ann Sanders. 
Palmer Jackson Jr., from left, Casa del Herrero docent Lynda Milner, Palmer Jackson Sr. and Diana Waterhouse. 
Supporter Steven Hicks with Casa del Herrero executive director Jessica Tade. 
Loquita chef Felicia Medina prepares a cauldron of gourmet paella. 
Contributing artist Macduff Everton with his wife and fellow artist, Mary Heebner. 
Derek Edwards provides Revell Spirits. 
Revell products on display. 
A colorful and artistic centerpiece.
What is usually a sunny summertime event, this year’s Casa del Herrero Feria Andalusia Art Show & Garden Fair on June 2 was held under cloudy skies with a sprinkling of rain. The 150 guests were not deterred and enjoyed a festive afternoon of artwork, music, food, wine and spirits.
A large cauldron of gourmet paella prepared by Loquita was a welcome and warm dish for the attendees, who also enjoyed Rusack wines and a variety of premium agave tequilas offered by Revel Spirits.
Fifty percent of the proceeds from sales of the displayed artwork was donated by the artists to Casa del Herrero to support the organization’s mission and preservation of the estate at 1387 East Valley Road in Montecito.
The afternoon featured an outdoor exhibition showcasing the paintings and fine art photography by some of Santa Barbara’s finest artists, including Meredith Brooks Abbott, Liz Brady, Erika Carter, Nancy Davidson, Macduff Everton, Henry Fechtman, Rick Garcia, Wyllis Heaton, Lenore Hughes, Virginia McCracken, Ann Sanders, Richard Schloss, Frank Serrano, Garrett Speirs, Robert Stivers, Thomas Van Stein and Ralph Waterhouse.
“More and more, I feel that Casa del Herrero is becoming a touchstone for our community,” executive director Jessica Tade told Noozhawk. “It is the place where important architecture is preserved, where the community gathers, where collaborations take place and where creativity is celebrated.
“I am grateful for our family of supporters who make this all possible.”
Top sponsors included Susan and Riley Bechtel, Karen and Stephen Clark, Travis and Tom Kranz, Nanette and Henry Nevins, Meghan and Robert Stoll Jr., Cheryl and Peter Ziegler, Cynthia and John Hall, the Ann Jackson Family Foundation, Susan and Palmer Jackson Jr., Mari and Patrick McAlister, Janet and John McCann, and many others.
Feria Andalusia event committee members included board president Travis Kranz and vice president Meghan Stoll, who did double duty as event co-chairs, as well as Heather Biles, Karen Jones Clark, Emily Jones, Jen Kelly, Mari McAlister, Janet McCann, Carolyn Williams, Cheryl Ziegler and Peter Ziegler.
The Casa del Herrero (House of the Blacksmith), designed by architect George Washington Smith and completed in 1925, is noted as one of the finest examples of Spanish Colonial Revival architecture in America and is included on the National Register of Historic Places. In 2009, it was designated a National Historic Landmark.
The estate owner, George Fox Steedman, an industrialist, engineer and amateur architect, had a vision for the house and grounds. He assembled an extraordinary team of architects, landscape architects, antiquarians and horticulturists to produce the Casa del Herrero estate.
Today, the 11-acre site is owned and operated as a historic house museum and garden by the nonprofit Casa del Herrero with the goal of preserving the house and grounds, as well as the family’s collection of antiques, books, sketchbooks, drawings and horticultural records. Visits are allowed with reservations.
Click here for more information about Casa del Herrero, or click here to make an online donation.
— Noozhawk contributing writer Rochelle Rose can be reached at rrose@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkSociety, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Become a fan of Noozhawk on Facebook.