The Spirit is Alive at 75!
2023-09-02 15:00 - 18:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
The Carl Cherry Center for the Arts celebrates seventy-five years of bringing art, music, literature and drama to the Monterey Peninsula on Saturday, September 2nd, from 3-6 pm.

The Carl Cherry Center, originally called the Carl Cherry Foundation, was established in 1948 by Jeanne D’Orge (Mrs. Carl Cherry), to provide arts programing to the Monterey Peninsula and as a testament to the potential of arts in community.
“Our seventy-fifth anniversary provides a chance to reflect on the numerous ways the art center’s exhibitions, classes, events, and school programs have made an impact on thousands of people in our community,” said Robert Reese, the Cherry Center’s executive director. “This landmark anniversary also provides a chance for us to look forward to our future as we continue to provide significant and meaningful arts programs to the community, working towards our vision to make art an essential part of Monterey County.”

Wine and light fare start off the event, with special entertainment that includes a reading by award-winning writer Jane Smiley, Dylan and Dylan preview, and prose and poetry reading by Patrice Vecchione. The celebration will also include performances by several music groups, and a silent auction. “Shared Visions,” a far-reaching exhibition showcasing artists with an affiliation to the artwork of Jeanne D’Orge, will also be on display.Tickets for the event are $65, available on Eventbrite.com or by calling (831) 624-7491. The Cherry is located on the northwest corner of Fourth Avenue and Guadalupe, Carmel.
About Us:
The Carl Cherry Center for the Arts is your place to discover art. Established in 1948 by Mrs. Carl Cherry in her husband’s name, the center provides an accessible and welcoming place to engage with art. We serve approximately 10,000 people every year through a diverse range of programs. The Carl Cherry Center is funded, in part, through grants from the Arts Council for Monterey County, the Community Foundation for the Monterey County, Monterey Peninsula Foundation, the Mitchell Foundation, and private donations.

Special Guests:
Jane Smiley is the author of numerous novels, including A Thousand Acres, which was awarded the Pulitzer Prize, and the Last Hundred Years Trilogy: Some Luck, Early Warning, and Golden Age. She is the author as well of several works of nonfiction and books for young adults.

The Monterey Peninsula’s celebrated bard and biographical dramatist Taelen Thomas collaborates with artists Steve Mortensen, Laura Burian, and Dixie Dixon for a beguiling excursion into the lives, minds and works of two passionate and unpredictable literary geniuses who share a name: Dylan Thomas and Bob Dylan.

For many years, Patrice Vecchione has taught poetry and creative writing to young people through her program, The Heart of the Word: Poetry and the Imagination. She is currently Poet-In-Schools for the Cherry Center’s high school poetry program, and judge of the Elliot Ruchowitz-Roberts Monterey County High School Poetry Awards.

Monterey County Artists Studio Tour
2023-09-30 - 2023-10-08 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
The Carl Cherry Center for the Arts will host 12 artists participating in this year’s Artists Studio Tour. Tour hours will be 11:00am to 5 :00pm on Saturday, September 30 and Saturday, October 7th, 12:00pm – 5:00pm Sunday, October 1st and 8th. The event is free and open to the public.
Artists Showing at The Cherry
September 30 & October 1:
Micheal Armstrong- Impressionist landscape painting Linda Elling- Oil painting
Alan Estrada- Mixed media painting
Katie Mackin- Plein air watercolor
Holly Rose- Fine art lampshades
Jean Vengua- Drawing, painting & collage
Artists Showing October 7 & 8:
Celine Picus- Acrylic & oil paintings
Shaelah Perales- Fine art
Willamina Strupat- Fine art paintings
Gloria Shaw- Fine art monoprints
Kate Warthen- Oil & watercolor paintings
Christine Watten- Painting, multimedia & ceramics Elizabeth A Wrightman- Acrylic, collage & mixed media
Pictured: Mission Basilica – Micheal Armstrong

Toward Abstraction: Paintings by Anne Marchand and Lesley Anne Spowart
2023-10-20 - 2023-11-25 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
Toward Abstraction: Paintings by Anne Marchand and Lesley Anne Spowart opens Friday, October 20th at the Carl Cherry Center for the Arts. A reception for the artists will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. The exhibit is free and open to the public.

The exhibition features individual works by Anne Marchand and Lesley Anne Spowart, reflecting their interests in figuration and abstraction and serial processes across a range of media. The exhibit explores issues related to isolation, creative adaptation, novel ways to connect and a vision for the future. Taken together, these paintings straddle the line between representation and abstraction, revealing how ordinary objects often serve as a point of departure for an artist’s abstract vision, or, alternatively, how an artist’s abstract forms may subtly suggest recognizable elements.
The exhibit will run through Saturday, November 25th. Gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday from noon to 4:00 p.m.
VISIT ONLINE EXHIBIT

About the Artists:
Lesley Anne Spowart was born and raised in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. She attended the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, receiving her B.A. in Art History in 1979. During her time there, she assisted in installing the work of Richard Fleishner, Sol Lewitt and Larry Bell. Relocating to Davis, Ca., shortly thereafter, she began her graduate studies in Art History at UC Davis, continuing graduate work at UC Riverside and Cal State Fullerton, where she went on to install works by Beatrice Wood, Viola Frey and John Buck. Her education in Art History, Exhibition Design and Museum Studies has strongly motivated her to create and display her own work.
Lesley has shown her work in galleries on the Monterey Peninsula in solo and group shows. Among these are Gallery Mar, Carmel; American Art Gallery, Carmel; Marjorie Evans Gallery, Carmel. Her work is found in corporate and private collections both here and abroad.
Anne Marchand was born in New Orleans. She majored in art at Auburn University, graduating with a BA, and then earned an MFA from the University of Georgia. Her early artistic focus was the figure, and she was especially drawn to the work of Francis Bacon for his expressive paintings of the human body. Marchand’s other early influences include 20th century modernist painters, the Abstract Expressionists, and the work of Carl Jung, with his reflections on dream imagery and psychological states. She credits her upbringing in New Orleans for her sensitivity to, “a sense of awe at the power and majesty of nature.”
In 2005, Marchand’s Ellipsis paintings, with their arcing lines and vivid color, expressed her desire to create “cosmoscapes”, inspired by deep space. Mystical themes came to the fore in the paintings, stimulated by readings by Garcia Lorca, Kandinsky, and Rumi. Travel to India brought a range of new color palettes and fabrics that she incorporated into her work.
Beginning in 2010, Marchand began experimenting in paintings with acrylic mediums and interference and pearlescent pigments. With these materials, qualities of radiance and light became active metaphors reflecting an inner state of being. Images of planets from the Hubble telescope inspired the painter to introduce circular imagery into her work. The nebulas and galaxies suggested biological structures, and Marchand realized the connection between space and the body as manifestations
Pictured: “Blue Squared” – Lesley Anne Spowart

Make Merry at The Cherry Art Sale
2023-12-08 16:00 - 2023-12-16 16:00 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
Make Merry at The Cherry, our annual pop-up art sale, is open now through Saturday, December 16th, during gallery hours: Wednesday through Saturday from noon to 4pm or by appointment.
Proceeds will support the Cherry’s ongoing contribution to the arts community of Monterey County. For more information about this event, please call (831) 624-7491.
Image, top: Untitled – Peter Hiller

The Cherry Trio and Friends
2024-01-01 15:00 - 16:30 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
PERFORMANCE SOLD OUT
The Cherry Trio — Elizabeth Gaver (baroque violin), Penny Hanna (viola da gamba) and Michael Peterson (harpsichord) — return to The Cherry for their annual New Year’s performance on Monday, January 1st, at 3:00pm. Tickets are $30, available on eventbrite.com or by calling (831) 624-7491.
The trio, with David Wilson (baroque violin) and Francis Toldi (dulcian), will perform Italian and English music from the seventeenth century – sonatas by Dario Castello, Giovani Batista Fontana and Antonio Bertali, a canzona by Girolamo Frescobaldi, harpsichord solos, and descriptive pieces for viola da gamba by Tobias Hume.
Francis Toldi – Dulcian

David Wilson – Baroque Violin
The dulcian is a double reed woodwind instrument from the Renaissance and predecessor of the modern bassoon. It is a versatile instrument – played quietly, it has a sweet, vocal sound suitable for chamber music, but it can play loudly and join the consort of outside instruments. The concert program includes three trio sonatas with melodic parts for two violins and dulcian.
Please join us after the concert for a reception.

Frame of Mind - Photographs by The ImageMakers
2024-01-12 17:00 - 2024-02-17 16:00 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
“Frame of Mind,” an exhibit of photographs by the ImageMakers, will open with a reception on Friday, January 12th, from 5-7 pm. The event is free and open to the public. A second opportunity to meet the ImageMakers will be held Saturday, January 27th, from 2-4pm. The exhibit will run in the gallery through Saturday, February 17th. Gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday from noon to 4pm or by appointment.
VISIT ONLINE EXHIBIT
“A Moment in Time” – David J. Gubernick
Participating Artists:
Debra Achen , Mary Aiu, James Atherton, Richard Cannon, Ginger Chih, David Clarkson, Matt Connors, Rita Costa-Hollmann, Annelies de Kater, Dixie M. Dixon, Eduardo Fujii, David J. Gubernick, Tom Hierl, Oliver Klink, Gary Lopez, Craig Lovell, Jeanne Marino, James Mickelson, Carolyn Moore, Rick Murai, Robert Nielsen, Kevin Osborn, Mark Overgaard, Peter Paluzzi, Kenneth Parker, Maria Prince, Robin Robinson, Bob Sadler, Dennis Segers, Jacqui Turner, Greg Weeks, Gary Wilson, Steve Zmak
“Dance of The Lusitano” – Mary Aiu
About The ImageMakers:
The ImageMakers, formed in 1996, is a local group of professional and serious amateur photographers, brought together monthly for the past 26 years by our love and passion for photography, and a willingness to share and explore new directions and perspectives. The founders created a venue where they could exchange ideas about the rapidly evolving world of contemporary photography, as well as review and discuss new work in progress by their fellow artists. ImageMakers meets monthly to share work, accepting and encouraging all approaches to producing fine-art photographs. The goal of the ImageMakers is to ensure that photography, as a vital art form, will continue and thrive on the Monterey Peninsula.
We are a diverse group with varied interests ranging from, but not limited to, traditional black-and-white photography and printmaking, infrared, alternative processes and multimedia, hand-colored digital prints, and digital imaging. We value our diversity and support each other’s growth as photographers, through our monthly meetings, mini-workshops, tutorials, and group shoots.
ImageMakers currently consists of 66 members representing the best of the West Coast and the Monterey Peninsula’s tradition of photography, as well as new and alternate approaches to image making. Many of our members have had individual exhibitions in various galleries, museums, and art centers, and have their work in numerous national and international private and public collections. At least ten members have had one or more books published of their photography, fifteen members teach photography classes and workshops, and many have had their work published in various venues. As a group, we have had exhibits in and around Monterey County including the Center for Photographic Art, Carmel; Carl Cherry Center for the Arts, Carmel; Harvey Milk Photo Center, Carmel; Maritime Museum, Monterey; Pacific Grove Art Center, Pacific Grove; Alvarado Gallery, Monterey; Spectrum Gallery in Fresno.

Pictured: “Cruising” – Bob Sadler

2024 Thinking Out Loud Regional Art Competition
2024-03-02 - 2024-03-30 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
The Carl Cherry Center for the Arts is proud to announce Thinking Out Loud 2024, a regional art competition that challenges high school students to create works inspired by their lives. Each year, students from across Monterey County are invited to display their artwork across a wide range of media for exhibition in our gallery.
VIEW WINNING ENTRIES
Thinking Out Loud will open with a reception for the student artists on Saturday, March 2nd from 2:00 – 4:00PM. The event is free and open to the public. Gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday from noon to 4 p.m. or by appointment. The exhibit will close Saturday, March 30th.

Established in 1948, the mission of the Carl Cherry Center for the Arts is to enhance the quality and diversity of artistic, educational and cultural programs in Monterey County by encouraging public programs and interactions between artists and the community.
Thinking Out Loud is made possible, in part, through a grant from the Arts Council for Monterey County, Monterey County Board of Supervisors, and funds from:
Carmel Woman’s Club
Carmel-by-the-Sea Rotary
Community Foundation for Monterey County
Gibson Family Foundation
Monterey Peninsula Foundation
Pebble Beach Company Foundation
Yellow Brick Road Benefit Store

Pictured: “Self Portrait” – Kayla Green, Monterey High School
Thinking Out Loud Regional Art Competition 2024

RE/Aligned: A Visual Journey in Collage
2024-04-12 17:00 - 2024-05-11 17:00 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
RE/Aligned, an exhibition of collage spanning a range of themes and media, opens Friday, April 12th at the Cherry Center with a reception for the artists from 5 to 7 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.
Artists in this multi-media exhibit include: Tracey Adams, Lisa Hochstein, Claire Lerner, Will Marino, Julia Nelson-Gal, Catie O’Leary and Robynn Smith.
VISIT ONLINE EXHIBIT
Bridging a range of materials and mediums, the breadth of the Cherry exhibition documents how collage’s use of bits and pieces of applied materials is unique in its ability to capture physical moments of time and place. The exhibit includes the created or found materials of the Central Coast of California, its colors, forms and ephemera. Collage has the ability to bring a tactile, physical experience of human history into the presence of the viewer. As an artistic tool, this wide-ranging medium mixes high and popular references and offers a vibrant, innovative connection to cultural context.
The exhibit can be seen Wednesday through Saturday, from noon to 4 p.m., or by appointment through May 11th. The Carl Cherry Center is located at the corner of 4th and Guadalupe, Carmel.
Pictured: “Gone Fishing” – Julia Nelson-Gal

Writing to Discover Inner Strength
2024-04-21 13:00 - 15:00 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
Writing to Discover Inner Strength
with Nina Solomita, MFA
The act of writing leads to discovery. Many people are not fully aware of their thoughts until they write them down. This class continues our exploration of the imagination as our greatest ally connecting us both to our deepest selves and to others. In these challenging times, it’s easy to lose track of this powerful companion and to become subject to outward distractions that sap our strength.
The writing exercises are designed to encourage a reconnection with your source of power in a gentle, relaxed, even playful way. Allow yourself the time to reach inward toward your own hidden resources and invite the imagination to speak, surprise you, and reveal its treasures.
All are welcome, although class is limited in size. If interested, please email Nina as soon as possible at ninasolomita@gmail.com.
Date: Sunday, April 21, 2024
Time: 1:00-3:00 p.m.
Place: Carl Cherry Center, 4th and Guadalupe, 4th Ave, Carmel-By-The-Sea
Fee: $40.00 (If fee is a hardship, discounts available. Inquire in email.)
Nina Solomita, MFA is a writer, editor, and coach. She has assisted writers in a variety of
projects for over 25 years. For more information, go to ninasolomita.com.

Elliot Ruchowitz-Roberts Monterey County High School Poetry Awards 2024
2024-05-18 14:00 - 16:00 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
The Carl Cherry Center for the Arts is pleased to announce the Elliot Ruchowitz-Roberts Monterey County High School Poetry Awards 2024. The program was designed to recognize and promote excellence in high school poets and develop an interest in creative expression through the written word.
A reading and ceremony honoring this year’s award-winning student poets will be held 2:00pm on Saturday, May 18th, at the Carl Cherry Center for the Arts, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel.
The program (formerly the Robert Campbell Monterey County High School Poetry Awards) was renamed last year to honor Elliot Ruchowitz-Roberts, who provided inspiration and writing instruction to thousands of area high school students.
Cherry Center Poet-in-Schools:
Patrice Vecchione
Our teaching poet this year is Patrice Vecchione, the author of two collections of poetry and three nonfiction books, most recently My Shouting, Shattered, Whispering Voice: A Guide to Writing Poetry & Speaking Your Truth. Patrice has taught poetry in local schools and elsewhere for many years. patricevecchione.com.
Sponsors:
The Elliot Ruchowitz-Roberts Monterey County High School Poetry Awards are held each year in conjunction with Thinking Out Loud, the Cherry Center’s annual high school art exhibition. Both programs are made possible through funding from:
Arts Council for Monterey County
Carmel Woman’s Club
Carmel-by-the-Sea Rotary
Community Foundation for Monterey County
Friends of Patrice Vecchione
Gibson Family Foundation
Monterey County Board of Supervisors
Monterey Peninsula Foundation
Pebble Beach Company Foundation
Yellow Brick Road Benefit Store

Reimagined Realism
2024-05-24 - 2024-06-22 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
Reimagined Realism, an exhibition exploring three unexpected approaches to defining contemporary realism, opens Friday, May 24th with a reception from 4:30 to 6:30 pm. The event is free and open to the public. Artists’ Walk-through, free and open to the public, will be held Saturday, June 8th, 2:00-4:00 pm.
Curated by Darcie Fohrman, the three distinct artistic perspectives utilize fine art’s established traditions to fissure and reconstitute social narratives. The individual artists adapt and layer popular subject matter into contemporary social narratives that both celebrate and critique our assumptions about natural forces and cultural environments. The integration of past and present, the inclusion of extraordinary objects and the juxtaposition of unlike elements, are just a few of the ways the three Monterey County painters conjure the mysteriousness of everyday reality. Often using exquisite detail and unusual perspective, the artists convey the wonder of observable reality.
The exhibit can be seen Monday through Friday, from noon to 4 pm. or by appointment through June 22nd.
Exhibition sponsored by Chris and Robin Sawyer
About the Artists:
Kirstine Reiner Hansen’s work focuses on the growing dysconnectivity in contemporary life. She describes it as follows: “The ceaseless barrage of stimuli and our struggle to process life lived between tangible and digital worlds is undermining our sense of self. The fragmented universe of figures and spaces featured in my paintings is a contemplation on this conundrum.”
Don Hughes’ work incorporates narratives about our dystopian world also being helplessly ironic and humorous. Our politics, climate, religion, morality and anything remotely sexual have been fertile ground for the social commentary, symbolism, and humor of his two- and three-dimensional artworks.
Chris Leib continues his “examination of our precarious evolving pathway, which started long ago, through an ever-growing cast of wise, tolerant Bonobos and rambunctious astronaut children.” While seemingly whimsical, his paintings are laden with hidden meaning and explore themes of heroism, Western folklore, and the schism of instinct and control.

Many Colored Silken Threads: Jeanne D’Orge and Friends
2024-07-12 - 2024-08-17 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
Many Colored Silken Threads, an exhibit exploring the artwork of Jeanne D’Orge with contemporary artists and photographers, opens Friday, July 12th, with an artists’ reception from 5 to 7 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.
The photographers and artists featured in this exhibition have created works that reinterpret and remix elements, themes and the palette of Jeanne D’Orge (Mrs, Carl Cherry), emphasizing the many ways art inspires across time. Their works speak to the expanding diversity of the stories we want to tell and illustrate how today’s artists continue to find inspiration in the methods and pictorial traditions from the Cherry Center’s rich history.
The exhibit will include photographs, paintings, drawings and sculpture by ten area artists displayed alongside select works by Jeanne D’Orge from the Cherry Center’s private collection. Participating artists include Robert Armstrong, Rob Barnard, Jennifer Brook-Kothlow, Tom Davies, Judith Foosaner, Ruth Mayerson Gilbert, William Giles, Richard Murai, Kenneth Parker and Robertson Parkman.
Many Colored Silken Threads can be seen Wednesday through Saturday, noon to 4 p.m. or by appointment through August 17th.
Pictured, left: “Buddha of Compassion,, Angkor Thom, Cambodia”- Richard Murai
Pictured, right: Untitled – Jeanne D’Orge

Reigning Cats and Dogs - Accepting Submissions Through July 15, 2024
2024-07-15 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
Reigning Cats and Dogs is a love-of-life, all medium juried exhibition of original and unique 2D and 3D artworks celebrating dogs and cats! Work must include either a dog or cat to be considered. Works can comprise other subject matters, but the principal theme should be dogs or cats — or both. All artwork styles and mediums are welcome. Photography will not be included in the exhibit.
The $40 entry fee covers up to three submissions. Artwork submitted does not guarantee inclusion in the exhibit. Reigning Cats and Dogs will be included in this year’s Arts Council for Monterey County’s Open Studios Art Tour on October 12 and 13.
Read full prospectus here.
For complete rules and to submit artwork, visit ShowSubmit.com.
Important Dates:
Call Dates: April 7 – July 15, 2024
Jury Period: July 16 – July 31, 2024
Notification by: August 7, 2024
Exhibition Dates: September 6 – October 13, 2024
Reception: September 6, 5 – 7 p.m.

Pictured: “Jungle Boogie” – Lesley Anne Spowart

Cherry Jam in the Garden
2024-07-21 15:00 - 18:00 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
Join us Sunday, July 21st, from 3-6pm as we honor neighbors Denny and Nance Hoeft, who have worked tirelessly to transform the Cherry grounds. The event will feature live music by Bob Phillips and Friends, wine poured by Scheid Vineyards, beer, light fare, and good friendship. Tickets are $50, available on Eventbrite.com or by calling (831) 624-7491. All proceeds will go toward the Cherry Center’s general fund.

Reigning Cats and Dogs Juried Exhibit
2024-09-06 - 2024-10-13 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
Reigning Cats and Dogs is a love-of-life, all medium juried exhibition of 50 original and unique 2D and 3D artworks celebrating dogs and cats. Congratulations to the following award winners:
First Place: “Aria’s Gaze” – Chiachen Wang (pictured above)
Second Place:”Basking” – Roberto Zavala
Third Place: “Olive Side Eye”- Anna Chambers
Honorable Mention: “Come On…Throw the Ball!” – Erlinda Montano-Hiscock|
Honorable Mention: “The Ratter” – Stephanie Langley
Honorable Mention: “Hare of the dog with a dane chaser…” – Will Bullas
Honorable Mention: “A Dog for All Seasons” – Kenneth W. Newman
Honorable Mention: “Modern Bastet with Ancient Cell Phone Necklace and Earbuds” – Polly Osborne

VIEW ONLINE EXHIBIT

Learn the Healing Art of Japanese Reiki
2024-09-25 - 2024-10-16 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
In this course, you will learn and be attuned to level one of Usui Shiki Ryôhô which focuses on self care as well as healing for friends and family. You will leave the course having a concrete understanding of the application of the Reiki healing system to begin your practice. This course is over four Wednesday evenings.Benefits of reiki practice include: Relief from anxiety and stress, enhanced sleep facilitated healing of physical and emotional issues heightened awareness and presence, increased focus and clarity, grounding and expanded creativity.
LEARN THE HEALING ART OF JAPANESE REIKI
SHODEN LEVEL ONE | $425
WEDNESDAYS | 6–9 PM
OCTOBER 2 | OCTOBER 9 | OCTOBER 16 | OCTOBER 23
Reserve your spot visit emptyspacereiki.com or
email info@emptyspacereiki.com

2024 Open Studios Art Tour
2024-10-12 - 2024-10-20 | Carl Cherry Center for the Arts
The Carl Cherry Center for the Arts will again participate in the Open Studios Art Tour. The Arts Council for Monterey County (Arts4MC) will be taking over the tour previously run by Arts Habitat. For more information about the event, please follow this LINK.
Week One: October 12th & 13th – “Reigning Cats and Dogs” exhibit featuring 50 works from across the nation. Artwork available for purchase. Hours: Saturday 11am-5pm, Sunday 12pm-5pm
Week Two: October 19th & 20th – Open house featuring works by Ruth Carroll, Linda Elling, Suzanne Elliot, Guna Hebbar, Katie Mackin, and Willamina Strupat. All artwork available for purchase. Hours: Saturday 11am-5pm, Sunday 12pm-5pm.

Salon Jane Celebrates Ten Years: Photography Reimagined
2024-11-01 - 2024-11-30 | Carl Cherry Center for the Arts
Salon Jane is honored to present its ten-year celebration exhibit at the Carl Cherry Center for the Arts, an important part of Carmel’s artistic history and culture, set in a vital region of photography. The exhibit opens Friday, November 1st, with a reception from 5-7pm. In addition, a walk through with the artists will be offered from 2-3pm on Saturday, November 9th.
The exhibit and events are free and open to the public.
Salon Jane is a six-member artist collective formed in Monterey, California, in 2014. The photographer members are Martha Casanave, Susan Hyde Greene, Jane Olin, Anna Rheim, Robin V. Robinson, and Robin Ward.
Over the past 10 years, the members of Salon Jane have created an intimate bond, facilitating a safe and inspiring environment for their artistic risk-taking and creative evolution. At their regular meetings, they share feedback about their work through hours of in-depth discussion and hold space for art-related life challenges.
The Monterey Peninsula has a long tradition of straight photography set forth by Edward Weston, Ansel Adams and others. However, the artists of Salon Jane inhabit an island of innovation that pushes against these strict boundaries. Each member artist nods to photography but expands on it in diverse and unexpected ways.
From aerial to underwater, abstract to representational, digital to darkroom, wall art to books, the work produced by these artists is wide ranging. In content and process, each artist’s work transcends the ordinary and taps into mystery. While they have evolved beyond formal straight photography, the members are equally concerned with artistic and photographic excellence and are grounded in historical processes. salonjane.com
VISIT ONLINE EXHIBIT
Pictured: Salon Jane by Martha Casanave

Make Merry at The Cherry Holiday Open House
2024-12-13 16:00 - 18:30 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
The Carl Cherry Center for the Arts invites you to our annual art fundraiser and holiday celebration, Make Merry at the Cherry, on Friday, December 13th, from 4:00-6:30pm. Catch the holiday spirit as you mix and mingle with friends old and new. The event will feature reasonably-priced art by noted local artists, raffle prizes that include a large collection of fine wines, gift certificates to local restaurants, and other seasonal goodies.
Artists participating in this year’s fundraiser include Pam Carroll, Carol Chapman, Jim Dultz, Mary Liz Houseman, Barbara Johnson, Andrea Johnson, Ken Parker, Kris Swanson, Jan Wagstaff, Robin Winfield, Rodney Winfield, and many more. Following the open house, art will be for sale through Saturday, December 21st, during gallery hours: Wednesday through Saturday from noon until 4:00pm or by appointment.
Proceeds will support The Cherry’s ongoing contribution to the arts community of Monterey County. The event is free and open to the public. Wine donated by Scheid Vineyards. For more information, please call (831) 624-7491.
Pictured: “Bowl of Persimmons and Squash” – Pam Carroll

The Cherry Trio Plus One
2025-01-01 15:00 - 16:30 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
Join The Cherry Trio — Elizabeth Gaver (baroque violin), Penny Hanna (viola da gamba), Michael Peterson (harpsichord) and guest David Wilson (baroque violin) — to ring in the New Year with music from seventeenth century France, Germany and England. The performance will be held Wednesday, January 1st, at 3:00pm. Tickets are $35, available on eventbrite.com.
The ensemble will perform “D’Apotheose de Lully,” by François Couperin – a suite of short pieces with French texts depicting Lully’s meeting with Apollo and ascension to Parnassus where he meets Corelli. Two musicians play the same melody accompanied by the other in turn – Lully in the French style, Corelli in the Italian. In the spirit of reconciliation, Apollo convinces them that the joining of both styles represents perfection in music, and they close with a trio sonata “The Peace of Parnassus.” The concert will also include a trio sonata by Purcell, pieces by Abel for solo viol, and preludes by Couperin for harpsichord.
David Wilson – Baroque Violin
Please join us after the concert for a reception.

Brush and Chisel
2025-01-10 - 2025-02-15 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
Brush and Chisel, an exhibition of painting and sculpture by Robin and Chris Sawyer, opens Friday, January 10th, with a reception from 5 to 7 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.
The exhibit pairs artworks from the Sawyers in unexpected ways, sometimes crossing boundaries and exploring the two mediums through the investigations of color, surface, and optical perception. Robin Sawyer’s paintings, conversely, engage with her husband’s sculptural concerns by taking up ideas long associated with three-dimensional art, such as balance, composition and context. By combining elements of painting and sculpture, these works exist beyond well-known restrictions of what art can do and upset the balance of previous ideas of what art can be.
Brush and Chisel can be seen through February 15th during gallery hours: Wednesday through Saturday from noon to 4pm or by appointment.
About the Artists:
Robin Sawyer’s abstracted figures and landscapes seem to present themselves with an inherent mystery that begs the viewer to look further. In all her work, she is primarily interested in gestural expressiveness and dynamic color juxtapositions. Robin’s paintings have been widely exhibited in California, and both nationally and internationally collected. Her paintings are in the permanent collections of the Monterey Museum of Art, the Triton Museum of Art, various corporate collections, and the Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula. Robin was juried into the Carmel Art Association in 2021.
Artist Chris Sawyer enjoyed two successful careers in functional three-dimensional works of art—furniture design and fine home building—before devoting himself full time to sculpture as fine art. Chris began working with clay as a young boy. His high school education provided excellent background in the mechanical and industrial arts. He later took studio courses in sculpture at the Academy of Art in San Francisco. In his retirement he is now free to explore stone cutting, woodcarving, fabricated steel and cast bronze full time. He derives his abstract imagery from animals, the human figure, and geometric forms. He was juried into the Carmel Art Association in 2013.

2025 Thinking Out Loud Regional Art Competition
2025-03-01 - 2025-03-22 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
The Carl Cherry Center for the Arts is proud to announce Thinking Out Loud 2025, a regional art competition that challenges high school students to create works inspired by their lives. Each year, students from across Monterey County are invited to display their artwork across a wide range of media for exhibition in our gallery.
Thinking Out Loud will open with a reception for the student artists on Saturday, March 1st, from 2-4pm. The event is free and open to the public. Gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday from noon to 4 pm or by appointment. The exhibit will close Saturday, March 22nd.

Established in 1948, the mission of the Carl Cherry Center for the Arts is to enhance the quality and diversity of artistic, educational and cultural programs in Monterey County by encouraging public programs and interactions between artists and the community.
Thinking Out Loud is made possible, in part, through a grant from the Arts Council for Monterey County, Monterey County Board of Supervisors, and funds from:
Carmel Woman’s Club
Carmel-by-the-Sea Rotary
Community Foundation for Monterey County
Dion and Judith Dow
Gibson Family Foundation
Mitchell Family Charitable Fund
Pebble Beach Company Foundation
Yellow Brick Road Benefit Store

Pictured: “Cereal” – 3D artwork by Sawyer Vogel, Santa Catalina School
First Place, 2024 Thinking Out Loud Art Competition

Witness: The Expanding Worlds of Manuello Paganelli
2025-04-04 - 2025-04-26 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
Witness: The Expanding Worlds of Manuello Paganelli, opens Friday, April 4th, at the Carl Cherry Center for the Arts with a reception from 5-7 pm. A photographer’s walkthrough will be held Saturday, April 12th, from 2-3pm. Both events are free and open to the public.
This dynamic installation provides new perspectives into Mr. Paganelli’s expansive body of work by exploring six distinct geographic regions, bringing together narratives of influence, innovation and humanity from 40 years of his work.
VISIT ONLINE EXHIBIT
Manuello Paganelli grew up in Santo Domingo, Italy and Puerto Rico. After a mentorship with Ansel Adams, he worked as a photojournalist at the Chattanooga Times. In 1989, he began to explore Cuba, its land, its people, and its complex relationship with the United States. In 1995, he had the first solo photo show of his work on Cuba, and that same year earned him a fellowship grant.
The Washington Post wrote, “Manuello Paganelli’s Cuban photographs are a brilliant window on a land and people too long hidden from North American eyes. Working in the tradition of Cartier-Bresson and Robert Frank, Paganelli brings an artist’s eyes and a native son’s sensibility to his superb photographs.” In the early 1990s, Paganelli started work on his Black Cowboys series with a selection being featured at the Annenberg Space for Photography. In the summer of 2012, this same series was selected for the Photo Vernissage at the Manage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Paganelli’s award-winning work has graced the covers and pages of many well-known magazines including Bloomberg Business Week, Forbes, LIFE, Newsweek, Men’s Journal, People, Time, Reader’s Digest, ESPN, Sports Illustrated and many more. He was Ansel Adams last student before death in 1984.
Paganelli’s fine arts work is represented by the iconic Weston Gallery in Carmel-by-the-Sea and Obscura Gallery in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He lives in Carmel and in Los Angeles.
Pictured: “Hands of Freedom #3” – Manuello Paganelli

2025 Elliot Ruchowitz-Roberts Monterey County High School Poetry Awards
2025-05-03 14:00 - 16:00 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
The Elliot Ruchowitz-Roberts Monterey County High School Poetry Awards program was designed to recognize and promote excellence in high school poets and develop an interest in creative expression through the written word.
A reading and ceremony honoring this year’s award-winning student poets will be held 2:00pm on Saturday, May 3rd, at the Carl Cherry Center for the Arts, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel.
The program (formerly the Robert Campbell Monterey County High School Poetry Awards) was renamed last year to honor Elliot Ruchowitz-Roberts, who provided inspiration and writing instruction to thousands of area high school students.
Cherry Center Poet-in-Schools:
Patrice Vecchione
Our Poet-in-Schools, Patrice Vecchione, is the author of two collections of poetry and three nonfiction books, most recently My Shouting, Shattered, Whispering Voice: A Guide to Writing Poetry & Speaking Your Truth. Patrice has taught poetry in local schools and elsewhere for many years. patricevecchione.com.
Sponsors:
The Elliot Ruchowitz-Roberts Monterey County High School Poetry Awards are held each year in conjunction with Thinking Out Loud, the Cherry Center’s annual high school art exhibition. Both programs are made possible through funding from:
Arts Council for Monterey County
Carmel Woman’s Club
Carmel-by-the-Sea Rotary
Community Foundation for Monterey County
Friends of Patrice Vecchione
Gibson Family Foundation
Hazen Family Foundation
Monterey County Board of Supervisors
Monterey Public Library Foundation
Pebble Beach Company Foundation
Yellow Brick Road Benefit Store

Through Forests of Every Color
2025-05-09 - 2025-05-31 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
“Through Forests of Every Color,” an exhibit celebrating the life of trees and western landscape in painting and photography, opens Friday, May 9th, with an artists’ reception from 5 to 7 pm. An artists’ walkthrough will be held Saturday, May 17th, at 2 p.m. Both events are free and open to the public.
The exhibition will include recent paintings by Paul Roehl, Tom Nakashima, Elizabeth Murray, Patrick Ahern, Deanna Forbes, Pat Mahoney, Thomas Paquette, Jeffrey Becom and John Figura; sculpture by Polly Osborne and photography by Kenneth Parker.
Organized to explore various styles and themes in landscape painting and photography, “Through Forests for Every Color” investigates the relationship between abstraction and landscape painting, the effects of photography on landscapes, and the consideration of the materiality in both mediums. The exhibit reflects the complex and ambiguous relationship between humans, trees and the environment—a relationship of particular importance here in the West.
The exhibit can be seen Wednesday through Saturday, noon to 4 pm or by appointment through May 31st.
Pictured: “Dancing Madrones” – Elizabeth Murray

Juxtapose
2025-06-20 - 2025-07-26 | CA
A Delicious Concoction of the Sublime and Absurd.
“Juxtapose,” is an inventive, immersive, two-person exhibition featuring paintings, mixed media and assemblage art by Stephanie Langley and Robert Armstrong. The exhibit opens Friday, June 20th, with an artist’s reception from 4:30 – 6:30pm. An artist’s walkthrough with Robert and Stephanie will be held Saturday, June 28th, from 3:00-4:00pm. Both events are free and open to the public.
From the guest curator:
Meeting Stephanie Langley for the first time and walking into her studio was an experience of pure joy! It was as if I had entered into a subliminal realm where images, patterns and painting styles from different eras and disciplines played happily with and off each other. Her work is delicate, surprising, balanced and exciting. In short, her work is remarkable.
When my friend, Robert Armstrong, invited me over to his house and had me open a small green vintage suitcase from the 1950’s filled with 100+ works of what he explained were influenced by “semiotics” (signs and meaning) that he had made in the mid 1970’s- 80’s, I was astounded! I truly had never seen anything quite like it. The work was very funny, very odd, and extremely clever. There was more to it than you could get your head around at first glance. After a while, most pieces evoked laughter, followed by revelatory, “Ah ha!”
This, then, is a very unique, one-of-a-kind, two-person exhibition, with close to 100 works of art, in a small gem of a gallery surrounded by a serene Zen sculpture garden. A juxtaposition all on its own.
I am very excited to have been asked to curate this show, and be able to bring these artists to you.
Jim Dultz

Cherry Jam in the Garden
2025-07-26 15:00 - 18:00 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
Get ready to Jam! A special event benefitting the Carl Cherry Center for the Arts.
This extraordinary afternoon will feature live music by the incomparable Rick Forschino and Friends, delicious wine from Scheid Vineyards, and light fare.
BUY JAM TICKETS ONLINE
Auction and Chance Drawing
Don’t miss your chance to win unique items and experiences in our silent auction and chance drawings! Here’s a glimpse of some of the fantastic prizes:

Full-Day Use of the Carl Cherry Theater, Gallery, and Gardens ($1200 value): Imagine hosting your next event in this beautiful space! With its Santa Maria stone fireplace and redwood beams, the gallery offers the serenity and timelessness of old Carmel. The Cherry Center is complemented by a 50-seat theater and a sculpture garden in a setting of Monterey Peninsula native plants and coastal live oaks. A venue perfect for staging a performance, film or literary event!

Three-Day Private Residential Artist’s Retreat in Cachagua ($1250 value): Escape to a 54-acre wooded property for a three-day, private artist’s retreat. Perfect for artist, writer, or anyone seeking a personal retreat, this residency offers the time, space, and quiet needed to create. You’ll stay in a snug cabin with expansive views of the Los Padres National Forest, adjacent to hiking trails and world-famous vineyards. The retreat includes support from artist Kris Swanson, who will be available to guide and assist your art project as requested. The property also features an outdoor stage for performance art and a mountain yoga platform for meditation, yoga, or writing. Enjoy late afternoon drinks and hors d’oeuvres with your hosts and fellow artists on the deck.

Custom Portrait Sitting with Kim Weston ($2500 value): Private Portrait Session with Master Photographer Kim Weston. This is a truly exceptional offering – Kim Weston, renowned master of traditional black and white photography, is donating something he rarely offers: a private portrait session in his Carmel gallery followed by his personal darkroom work to create a museum-quality 8×10 silver gelatin print.
Portrait by Mary Liz Houseman ($1000 value): Portrait by acclaimed local artist Mary Liz Houseman. The portrait can be done in pastel or acrylic from a sitting or photograph.
Season Passes to Jazz at the Cherry ($540 value): Two season passes to 2026 Jazz at The Cherry performances. Enjoy reserved tickets to six concerts held in our intimate Cherry Hall venue.
One Pass to the Carmel Jewish Film Festival ($220 value): This package includes one pass to six films, two VIP receptions, and panel discussions with community leaders. This year’s theme is, “Celebrating Culture, Social Action & Diversity in Contemporary Judaism.” November 2: Opening Celebration at the Golden Bough Playhouse, Carmel.
Festival Dates, November: 6th, 8th, 9th;13th, 15th, 16th.

Take home a piece of singular, expansive, and evocative contemporary art. The artw0rk was donated by the artists from the Cherry Center’s current exhibit, Juxtapose, which combines text, graphics, humor, and verve.

Artwork by Stephanie Langley – Select a work of your choice (up to $500) from the current exhibition.

Artwork by Robert Armstrong – Choose a unique piece (up to $500) from the gallery showing.

Tickets are $60, and can be purchased online at Eventbrite.com, at the door or by calling (831) 624-7491. All proceeds will go to the Cherry Center’s general fund.

"Only to Look: Under the Lens" - Postponed
2025-08-16 16:00 - 17:30 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
This event is postponed due to illness. Please check back for new date and time.
“Only to Look: Under the Lens,” a Poetry Reading with Rachelle Escamilla, George Lober and Elliot Ruchowitz-Roberts will be held at the Carl Cherry Center for the Arts on Saturday, August 16th, at 4 p.m. Tickets are $15, available on eventbrite.com or by calling (831) 624-7491.
Each summer, the Carl Cherry Center for the Arts illuminates the connection between the artwork and poetry of Jeanne D’Orge (Mrs. Carl Cherry) and contemporary local artists and poets in celebration of the center’s seventy-seventh year.

About the Poets:
Rachelle Escamilla is a Chicana poet from the Central Coast of California. She is the author of three books of poetry: Imaginary Animal (Willow Books, 2015 & 2021), Me Drawing a Picture of Me[n] (Willow Books, 2019) and Space Junk from the Heavenly Palace (Nomadic Press/Black Lawrence Press 2023). Rachelle is the founder of a number of organizations and literary programs; was the producer and host of the longest running poetry radio show in the US; was a visiting scholar at the Library of Congress, Hispanic Division where she conducted research around her grandfather’s 1969 testimony for the fair treatment of migrant laborers in California. Rachelle is a Jeffers Fellow and the 2024/25 Poet Laureate of Monterey County.
George Lober teaches English at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California. He received his Bachelor of Arts in English from San Jose State and his master of Arts in English from Fresno State. He is a recipient of the nationally awarded Ruth Cable Memorial Prize for Poetry. His poetry has appeared in numerous magazines and journals. George is the author of three books of poetry, including the recently released, Rainbow Eucalyptus. He lives in Carmel, California.
Elliot Ruchowitz-Roberts is Professor Emeritus at Monterey Peninsula College where he taught composition, literature, public speaking and humanities for 32 years. He serves as President of the Robinson Jeffers Tor House Foundation in Carmel, California. Ruchowitz-Roberts coordinates the Foundation’s annual Prize for Poetry, annual reading series, and serves as a tour docent. He coordinated the National Endowment for the Arts, “The Big Read: The Poetry of Robinson Jeffers,” during which he read and performed Jeffers’s poetry at venues throughout Monterey County, including local libraries, high schools and colleges. The Carl Cherry Center’s high school poetry contest is named in his honor.

Monterey Jazz - A Visual Legacy
2025-09-05 - 2025-10-04 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
The Carl Cherry Center for the Arts is proud to announce “Jazz at the Cherry Presents: Monterey Jazz – A Visual Legacy,” a vibrant photographic exhibition honoring the rich and enduring heritage of jazz in the Monterey Bay Area.
On view from September 5 through October 4, 2025, the exhibition features a curated collection of iconic and rarely seen images by Monterey Jazz Festival photographers Craig Lovell, Patrick Tregenza and others. Also showcased are works by Ron Jones, longtime official photographer for the Kuumbwa Jazz Center in Santa Cruz. Together, these artists capture the intimacy, energy and artistry of some of the world’s most legendary jazz performers – as well as the unmistakable spirit of Monterey’s storied jazz scene.
An artists reception will be held in the Carl Cherry Center’s garden on Sunday, September 21 from 2:00 – 4:00 p.m. featuring live jazz, refreshments, and artist talks – a chance to meet the photographers and hear the stories behind the images.
Special guest Tim Jackson, recently retired Monterey Jazz Festival Artistic Director and Kuumbwa Jazz Founder, will also be on hand sharing his perspective on the world of Monterey Bay jazz.
The Cherry Center is proud to host this exhibition as part of its ongoing Jazz at the Cherry initiative – a celebration of jazz through visual and performing arts in Monterey County.
Pictured: Dizzy Gillespie by Craig Lovell

Paper Works
2025-10-10 - 2025-11-22 | The Carl Cherry Center, Fourth and Guadalupe, Carmel, CA, 93921, United States
Paper Works is a compelling group exhibition that brings together a diverse group of local and national artists to explore the versatility and intimacy of paper as a primary medium. The exhibit opens Friday, October 10th, with a reception rom 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.
The exhibit beyond the perception of paper as a mere surface for preliminary sketches, positioning it as a dynamic and central element of artistic creation. The exhibition features over 30 works, including intricate graphite drawings, charcoal compositions, vibrant watercolors, collages and prints. The collection highlights the unique relationship each artist has with their chosen material, showcasing a range of styles from delicate realism to expressive abstraction and free-hand drawings.
Artists include Tracey Adams, Andrea Borsuk, Lisa Esherick, Ken Hale, Lisa Hochstein, Don Hughes, Kirstine Reiner Hansen, Jennifer Brook-Kothlow, Chris Leib, Rick Soto, The Temple Sisters, and Jan Wurm.
Paper Works can be seen through November 22nd, 2025. Gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday from noon until 4pm or by appointment.
Pictured: “Valor” by Don Hughes
