Almost 60 years ago a small group of people led by Eleanor Roosevelt gave voice to a collective yearning for justice, equality, and freedom called the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Charlie Clements will preach about its impact and its relationship to the programs of the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee. Clements was appointed CEO and president of the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee over a year ago. He is a well known public health physician and human rights activist. His book Witness to War was the basis for an Academy Award-winning documentary of the same title.

Bring the vibrant world of nature indoors this February when landscape artist Justin Tzorfas joins the UU Santa Monica Art Wall. We look forward to seeing you at the Opening Reception on Sunday, February 5 from 12:00 noon – 1:30pm. The exhibit will run through the end of the month.

Justin Tzorfas is a young artist creating dazzling landscape paintings inspired by his love of nature. This twenty year old college student has already created a vibrant collection of works early in his career as an artist. Inspired by the local landscapes of Southern California, Justin’s works portray a variety of natural settings: from oceans, to meadows to tropical motifs.

Justin explains that his love of art and nature started early and was inspired by childhood moments with his mom, “I grew up gardening with my mom…She taught me how to grow organic fruits and vegetables as well as flowers in our backyard. We would also go to pet stores to see all the exotic animals. My love for nature came from doing things with my mom. It has inspired me to paint landscapes…”

Justin’s persistence in his passion has led to a recent feature in issue 27 of Artists Portfolio Magazine, Annual Portraits Issue. His explains, “Art is what I feel and how I feel. Art is my infinite outcome of feelings…I put my visions and memories of nature on canvas.” We are very proud to welcome this young, emerging artist to the Santa Monica Art Wall. Come down and take a look at the variety of landscapes that our region inspires!

Contact our Art Director, Beverly Alison,for further info about this show or about exhibiting on our Art Wall.

 — Jackie Schwab

Join us in welcoming the accomplished artist, Katya Kompanesyets, our first featured Artist of 2016. The Opening Reception for “Paintings by Katya,” will be held on Sunday, January 3, from 12 noon to 1:30 pm, in Forbes Hall. The show is free and will run through Sunday, January 31. It is open to the public on Sundays from 9 am to 1 pm and on weekdays by appointment. All works are for sale.

We are pleased to welcome Kompaneyets, whose deep artistic roots reach back to the 1960s in Moscow, where she graduated from the Moscow Fine Arts School in 1964 and from the Moscow Textile University in 1969 with a Masters Degree in Design and Decorative Arts. Before she left Russia for Southern California over 30 years ago, some of her costume designs were banned in Russia. Her active career in California includes: designing and painting large murals in homes throughout southern California, teaching art in her studio and at many various venues, helping people expand their art collections, designing and creating sets and costumes for schools, consulting for USC concerning period costumes from Tolstoy’s time, publishing articles about art, creating book covers, painting, and showing her work in galleries.

Her paintings have focused on still life scenes, portraiture, nudes, and landscapes. Her paintings are in many private collections in Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, Carmel, San Francisco, New York, and Boston. Her work includes commissioned painting as well as helping clients to build art collections, with an emphasis on collecting works of historical and contemporary California artists.

Contact Beverly Alison for further information about Katya Kompaneyets or about exhibiting on the Art Wall at UU Santa Monica.

— Jackie Schwab