To kick off 2026, artists of the Cypress Gallery are putting together a tribute to winter’s cozy and serene delights. Simple Pleasures will be up from Jan. 2 to 25. “As January brings some of the darkest and coldest days of the year, take a moment to find comfort in the simple pleasures that make […]
Arts
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Art Spot on Wheels hosts mixed media classes for kids
The Solvang studio Art Spot on Wheels is hosting two six-week-long art camps for kids starting in January. For ages 7 to 12, the fun begins on Jan. 12. Each week, instructors teach a new medium and allow students to explore their own creativity. The class will meet on Mondays from 4 to 5:30 p.m. […]
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Christine Fossemalle’s passion of four decades is still going strong
Every day when Christine Fossemalle arrives and parks across the street from her dance studio, she sees her name on the sign. It never gets old, even though the studio is about to turn 40 next summer. “When I look at my sign, Fossemalle Dance Studio, I smile every time,” the owner told the Sun. […]
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Flying Goat Cellars presents exhibit by contemporary artist
Reena Howmiller’s art show, titled What Lies Beneath, is up at Flying Goat Cellars in Lompoc through January. She created colorful, abstract paintings and scarves made with Indian silk that are inspired by her other artwork. The scarves are “colorful, wearable art to swaddle one’s decolletage in an affordable luxury item,” Howmiller said in an […]
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Enjoy holiday movies at the Santa Maria Public Library this month
Friends and families can see three movies during winter break in the Santa Maria Public Library’s Altrusa Theater. The showings will each last an hour and a half. To kick things off, the library will show Elf on Dec. 23 at 3:30 p.m. alongside interactive activities designed to help the audience engage with select scenes, […]
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A nonprofit’s residency program merges creativity and nature
Somewhere on the 1,000-acre Jalama Canyon Ranch, there comes a point when the oak canopy clears, giving way to manzanitas. Standing on a ridgeline among vegetation and rolling hills, the vista reveals the ocean in one direction and the Santa Ynez River in the other. The scene at the Lompoc ranch is like a microcosm […]
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Lompoc library organizes bilingual story times
Books and Bubbles is returning to Ryon Park in Lompoc on Dec. 19 at 10:30 a.m. The bilingual story time is geared toward toddlers and preschoolers, with games, singing, and bubbles. The upcoming theme, pajama story time, is a first for the program, run by the Lompoc Public Library. Representatives from Sleep in Heavenly Peace, […]
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Gallery Los Olivos artists participate in a communal exhibit
The annual group show at Gallery Los Olivos will be featured through January 2026. It’s an optional show for artists who are members of the gallery and will showcase a wide variety of work including photographs, paintings, sculptures, and ceramics. The show is called a Winter Celebration to encapsulate the diversity of media. “We try […]
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One artist’s inspiration transformed a hay barn into a modern gallery among vineyards in Santa Ynez
In Indonesian, indah means beautiful. Artist Max Gleason and his wife have traveled to the country multiple times, and in 2022 they lived there for six months. Having learned a little bit of the language, indah stuck with him. “The word indah I thought was—no pun intended—a very beautiful sounding word, and the fact that […]
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Santa Barbara Master Chorale performs at Gainey Vineyard
Catch a family-friendly holiday performance on Dec. 14 in the vineyard with a glass of wine for the adults and cookie decorating for the kids. Headlining is the Santa Barbara Master Chorale, which will sing traditional Christmas carols featuring conductor David Lozano Torres and pianist Heather Levin-White. The program is scheduled for almost an hour […]
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El Ermitaño comes to PCPA
The Mexican Christmas play, El Ermitaño, returns to Santa Maria on Dec. 12 and 13. The hour-long show, hosted by the Pacific Conservatory Theatre (PCPA), is performed in Spanish and filled with music, comedy, and tradition. PCPA is partnering with actors from Tierra Blanca Arts Center, a nonprofit dedicated to offering multicultural art programs to […]
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Santa Maria residents produce and star in award-winning Filipino film
In the Philippines, umbag means punch. It’s also the title of an independent Filipino-American movie produced by a Santa Maria resident, Rose Dumadara Koerner. Unlike traditional executive producers, she was also involved in many more of the nitty-gritty details. After being displeased with the first cut of Umbag, which follows two estranged sisters who go […]
