Now at the CAW
Hannah Croshaw & Meiya Sidney Present:
soft armor / cradled earth
A Duo Art Exhibition
October 28th - November 14th, 2026
Reception: Friday October 30th 5-8pm
Gallery Hours: Fridays 10am-5pm & by appointment
From the organizer:
soft armor / cradled earth by Hannah Croshaw and Meiya Sidney considers temporal patterns within wisteria seed pods, paper and stones. They explore the smallness / immensity of these natural materials on our spectacular planet through writing, weaving, and sculpture.
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Croshaw’s work in soft armor / cradled earth responds to her observations and interactions with wisteria pods since winter of 2025, when she first heard wisteria pods splitting. How do the pods build tension and break / What is the significance of a whole pod versus the sum of its parts / How can the splitting of pods be captured? are some of the primary questions Croshaw asks while exploring their physical and spiritual significance. She invites viewers to consider wisteria pods through twisted clay, inscribed text, collected pods, and written reflections.
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Sidney's sculptural work emerges from time spent caring for material -- layered processes of twisting, weaving, forming, burnishing and waiting. In her installation, infinity in my palm tactility and surface is central, as the stones are formed within and scaled to her hand. Making recycled weft from 日曆紙 Taiwanese daily calendars, she creates a visual abstraction of time through the foundational structure of a simple weave. By working with iron rich clays and semi-translucent papers, she draws on each material's unique lifespan and memory, playing a paradox between fragility and permanence.
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hannahcroshaw.com / meiyart.com
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"soft armor / cradled earth" is a participant in the Arts Collaborative's Opening Doors program, an initiative that provides assistance to emerging artists, arts organizers, and ideas. Thanks to a generous donation from the John C. Mithun Foundation, the CAW is able to offer discounted use fees and additional resources for artists to realize their projects. If you have questions about Opening Doors, please e-mail caldwell@sbcaw.org.
Mindgarden and Mary Tattoo Present:
Made In Paradise
A showcase of brands and makers from Santa Barbara
Saturday Nov. 7th 3-8pm
From the organizer:
Mary Tattoo and Mindgarden present a showcase pop-up experience with some of Santa Barbara’s most active Brands and Makers who are contributing to the creative culture in our city.
BRANDS will have new merch, limited edition items and experiential activations. MAKERS will be actively producing and documenting one-of-kind pieces with printing, chain stitching, patchwork, stamps, custom jewelry glamour shots and more.
Plus food by Gill & Groove, coffee by Cafe Ortega, and DJ Bennet spinning live.
This is a special one. Don’t miss it 🫡
Thank you to The Starfish Connection for helping make this experience possible.
BRANDS
@coldcallbrand
@canto.vision
@lovebugca
@desmadrexmundial
@sorrow.print.co
@cortex.gallery
@inheaven.forever
@generalprecisionsystems
MAKERS
@m.i.n.d.g.a.r.d.e.n
@squeakschainstitch
@cherthismoment
@ahappymush
@sweetandsourstamps
@redemptionthread
The Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative Presents:
Area Meeting
A Place for Creative Exchange
Tuesday Nov. 10th, 6-8pm
$12
Real-Time Feedback and Dialogue
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Our November keynote speakers will be Hannah Croshaw and Meiya Sidney, discussing their current exhibition soft armor/cradled earth on display in the Olson Gallery at the Community Arts Workshop.
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soft armor / cradled earth considers temporal patterns within wisteria seed pods, paper and stones. They explore the smallness / immensity of these natural materials on our spectacular planet through writing, weaving, and sculpture.
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The second half of Area Meeting is an open discussion with selected artists presenting physical work—unfinished pieces, experimental projects, or newly completed works—inviting direct input from attendees. Led by facilitator Patrick Melroy, these candid, respectful critiques grant audiences a unique window into an artist’s thought process before the work has been sealed with a final opinion. It’s a rare opportunity for both artists and viewers to engage in meaningful, two-way dialogue not typically available in traditional gallery or museum settings.
Santa Barbara Printmakers Present:
Pop-Up Print Sale
Original Art by Local Artists
Reception: Friday, Nov 13, 4-6 pm
& Saturday, Nov. 14, 10 am to 4 pm
From the organizer:
A limited group of Santa Barbara Printmakers will exhibit and sell their one-of-a-kind hand pulled original prints.
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Perfect timing for Holiday shopping!
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Santa Barbara Printmakers is a group of artists dedicated to creating and presenting prints made using hand and press printing techniques: etching, dry point, monotype, monoprint, woodblock, collagraph, linocut, clay, lithography, stencil, serigraphy, transfer, pochoir and digital programming. sbprintmakers.com
The Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative Presents:
Ready to Hang
Our Region's Largest Display of Local Art — 350 Pieces by Local Artists
Saturday November 21, 2026, 4 - 9pm
New This Year: Sneak Peak, Friday Nov 20, Noon to 2pm
Ready to Hang is a community-wide art show that brings together artists of all stripes for an art sale and party, building our creative community.
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​We hope you will join us for this pop up show of 350 individual artworks open to artists from Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties. These creations are all 12 inches by 12 inches in size creating a monumental exhibition. Ready to Hang presents a unique opportunity to see new works by our entire community of artists in one show.
Over the years the show has exhibited hundreds of local artists and visited by thousands people, and the numbers continue to grow!
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This free pop-up event takes place on Saturday, November 21st from 4 - 9pm. All artwork is for sale and all proceeds go to support the individual artists and the Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative.
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This year for the first time we are offering a Sneak Peek the day before the show, Friday Nov 20, Noon to 2pm! It is an opportunity to beat the crowds and get in early before the red dots proliferate. Tickets are $15, and will go to support the SBAC. Tickets for the Sneak Peak are available here and at the door. (Please note, tickets are not necessary on Saturday.)
The Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative Presents:
Artist Studio Survey
Tell us about your art and the space you need to create it.
The Arts Collaborative is venturing beyond the walls of the Community Arts Workshop to study the possibility of affordable artist studios in Santa Barbara.
With the rise in costs for both housing and commercial space, artists are being priced out of historic areas like the Funk Zone and struggling to find replacements.
The SBAC has rallied a small group of community leaders to study the need, the possibilities, and the methods for facilitating more affordable studio space for artists. Our group wants to hear from artists themselves to understand the realistic needs of our artistic community for creative work space.
Participating in this survey directly supports our ability to make this effort a reality.
We so appreciate your time.
Use the CAW
The CAW collaborates to empower and provide affordable space for art projects of all kinds. Have an idea? Use the CAW.
The Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative works to maintain the CAW as a "blank canvas" for as wide a diversity of arts uses and users as possible, providing space and collaborating with project initiators to make their ideas a success for the benefit of the broader community, and supporting and cultivating collaborations between artists and arts organizations, community groups, the business community, non-profit organizations and the entire community.
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Find out more about how you can use the CAW here:
The SBAC facilitates the use of the CAW by artists, nonprofits, and community groups of all types; fostering exploration, conversation, collaboration, and connection to further its mission to sustain and grow all forms of the arts in Santa Barbara. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed are the users’ own, and do not necessarily represent those of the Santa Barbara Arts Collaborative. The SBAC welcomes all in the work to sustain and grow the unique cultural ecology of our community.