A showcase of local artists will debut at the Wrightwood Spring Open House on Saturday, May 4
Wrightwood Arts Center is hosting its annual Spring Open House on Saturday, May 4.
Included in the free art social is a showcasing of four regional artists in the community gallery, local art vendors, face painting, and more. The family event is hosted in partnership with the DrawTogether nonprofit, an art initiative that Jamie Crooke Powell brought to Wrightwood to promote the union of art in the mountain community.
Wrightwood's new and improved art center opened last October and is dedicated to becoming "a gathering place for dynamic engagement with the Arts in the Tri-Community, High Desert and beyond," according to a written statement.
Showcasing local artists
Powell helped revamp the Wrightwood art scene by giving local artists a space to share their craft and the opportunity to make money.
The art center also offers both adult and children's art classes, encouraging the mountain community to tap into their wild artistic side.
A rotating local artist is showcased each month, either from the immediate community or the surrounding areas, including the High Desert and Los Angeles. This month's featured artist is Paul Samenfeld, a Wrightwood artist who uses mostly recycled materials as his medium to create mountain masterpieces.
There's no age limit for the artist of the month and everything on display is for sale.
The Spring Open House event is an opportunity for High Desert artists to get to know surrounding art communities. Art Scribbles Collective in Apple Valley teaches art classes at the Wrightwood Arts Center, linking the High Desert with the Wrightwood art initiative and inviting the potential for desert resident collaborations at future events.
The art center will have a group show toward the end of the year and another larger event next spring. They've hosted a majority of local artists in their short time in operation, but are always interested in meeting new artists, according to Powell.
Also happening on Saturday, May 4 in Wrightwood is the Spring Fling event, the second annual off-road festival with live music hosted by Wrightwood Brewing Co. and the Wrightwood Chamber of Commerce. Stop by for a chance to win the cornhole tournament cash prize.
Wrightwood is scribbling up more exciting opportunities for the creative consciousness of the area as well. Leandra Moreno-Prince, writer and creator of the Meet the Artist column in the local paper Tri-Community News Plus, is in the beginning stages of kickstarting a community writing association.
According to Moreno-Prince, the 4,700-inhabitant town houses quite the collection of independent writers. Her novel effort aims to bind the local writing community by connecting like-minded Wrightwood wordsmiths.
Both Powell and Moreno-Prince can be reached via email at jcrookepowell@wrightwoodarts.com and leandra@4newsplus.com with any art- or writing-related questions.
McKenna Mobley is a Daily Press reporter and can be reached at mmobley@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Wrightwood's annual art event is happening the first weekend in May
