Mixed-media artist Jasmine Gonzalez moved to Lompoc on a whim in 2017 and fell in love with the town immediately.
“Lompoc is like if you had to find a place on the map in California that felt like a small-town vibe that you would get in a TV show,” Gonzalez told the Sun.
She pointed to Lompoc’s “eccentric quirks,” like flower fields and launches from Vandenberg Space Force Base, that stood out to her after she moved.
One thing that was not as obvious to her was the art scene, she said, which was “rather stagnant.”
Gonzalez—who goes by the artist name Manic Creative because art feels “so much bigger than my name”—set out to grow the local art market. Eight years after moving to Lompoc, she is the co-founder of two social clubs, a Lompoc Valley Art Association board member, and the featured artist at the Cypress Gallery for a second time. Her current show at the gallery, Creating Through Chaos, runs until Aug. 24.
At the heart of all her endeavors is building a sense of community for herself and those around her.
“I feel like it makes you a well-rounded person to be involved in things within your community, especially if it’s something you’re passionate about,” Manic Creative said.
To begin immersing herself in the Lompoc art scene, she set out with a friend to create Pot Mamas Social Club in 2021. They organized social events featuring local artists.
“We were building the parties that we wanted to basically go to,” Manic Creative said.
The club helped bring people together with events that emphasized the Lompoc art scene. They hosted art and flower fairs and helped organize vendors for the Lompoc Chalks Festival put on by the Lompoc Theatre Project.
Manic Creative then founded the Lonely Plover Social Club to initiate more community events. The highlight is the Lompoc art walk, which started almost two years ago.
The art walk is held on the first Thursday of every month in downtown Lompoc with the goal of connecting artists, businesses, and residents. During the event, visitors experience an open gallery throughout downtown filled with artwork, live performances, and do-it-yourself activities.
“It’s cool to see people get excited about where they live and their community and their fellow artists, and to be in that energy once a month renews that creative spirit,” Manic Creative said.
Her work has always been chaotic, which informed the title of her newest show at the Cypress Gallery. The show is a representation of what it looks like when the artist creates through chaos, but it also runs deeper than that.
“It’s sort of just this overload of creative energy that I’ve been working through, and I’m sharing it with people because I think it’s important to share growth,” she said. “If more people can harness the vulnerability to share, there would be more healed people walking around feeling better in their own skin because they can express themselves genuinely.”
Manic Creative does not view chaos negatively but rather strives to find the value in it.
While gallery visitors can see Manic Creative’s artistic chaos, they’re also invited to create their own through interactive exhibits. A tall gumball machine spits out fortunes when prompted, 3D glasses alter the layers of collages, and a giant cardboard picture frame envelopes its subjects with smoke and flames.
“I’ve had my experience with my art, and I’m sharing it, not just so that you can look at what I’ve done, but also hopefully be inspired and then continue to create through the chaos,” Manic Creative said. “I think it’s kind of insane that we can just make things. It doesn’t need to exist, but if you want it to, it can.”
Manic Creative likes making big, bold statements with her art, which takes a bit of audacity and delusion, she said. Often her work continues to build momentum when she is chasing the “mania,” until she’s left with her next creation.
The mask on the cover art for the show is one example. It’s made of cardboard, toilet paper, disco tiles, and paint.
“I made that from nothing,” she said. “I think that magic comes from allowing yourself to sort of snowball into ideas and to lean in and follow a flow state.”
That magic is also something Manic Creative sees in the Lompoc community, which continues to inspire her.
“I find out what all of these other really rad artists have been up to and the different creative installations that are happening in our town. It’s just so cool,” she said.
One way she gives back is by teaching art to teenagers at the YMCA.
“As teenager, I wish I had the ability to just go and be creative for a couple hours after school and decompress,” Manic Creative said.
She wants everyone to be able to make art and support each other, too.
“There’s enough room for all of us to succeed,” she said. “We just have to party more.”
Reach Staff Writer Madison White at mwhite@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Aug 21-31, 2025.
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