ON Culture | Best Books of the Year, ¡Viva el Arte! & the Infiltration of AI

This edition of ON Culture was originally emailed to subscribers on January 5, 2024. To receive Leslie Dinaberg’s arts newsletter in your inbox on Fridays, sign up at independent.com/newsletters.

ON the Page

I’m an avid consumer of all of the year-end best books lists and love that we were able to pull together a new feature in the annual “Year in Photos” issue: the “Year in Words” list of Indy staffers’ favorite books they read. Not only did I get some good recommendations, but I also gained a little more insight into my co-workers, which is always fun. Read the “Year in Words” here. The team at California Review of Books, which generously supplies our weekly book reviews at Independent.com, also has a great list here.

I haven’t done much blogging lately, but I did make the time to do my annual book list for 2023, which you can read here if you’re so inclined. Among my favorites this year were: Tom Lake by Ann Patchett (a beautiful story about a mother telling her daughters the story of a long-ago summer romance); Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro (a futuristic novel that brings in elements of AI and its possible role in our futures); Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano (a moving story about the bonds of family); Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt (a book club pick about a widow and an octopus that I was sure I’d hate, but ended up loving); Foreverland: On the Divine Tedium of Marriage by Heather Havilresky (the only nonfiction pick on my list of favorites, this is a series of essays about, you guessed it, marriage); Yellowface by RF Kuang (a really compelling novel about the world of literature and who gets to tell what stories in the age of cultural appropriation); The Golden Couple by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen (a page-turner ’til the bitter end); Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson (a very original story full of weirdly compelling characters, including a pair of twins who light on fire when they get angry); and This Is How It Always Is by Laurie Frankel (a really well-done and eye-opening story about a family with a transgender child).

ON the Web

I took my entire extended family to Miriam Dance’s Gospel Brunch at SOhO after reading Rebecca Horrigan’s story last month. Boy, can she sing! We had a great time, and Joe Woodard wrote about the show here. Meanwhile, I knew nothing about the talented singer’s background, other than that she teaches with Rebecca at Rivera Ridge School. Then this incredible story of her successful battle with cancer showed up in my inbox via the Ridley-Tree Cancer Center. Click here to read all about it. Another online story that caught my eye was the announcement that the New York Times hired its first editorial director of artificial intelligence initiatives, Quartz co-founder Zach Seward. You can read more about it here.

ON the Walls

Voice Gallery in La Cumbre Plaza is hosting a retrospective show on the work of oil painter and artist Dorothy Churchill-Johnson (1942–2023), who passed away last year, leaving a long legacy of stunning work. Curated by Lynn M. Holley, the exhibit — on view through January 28 — includes a selection of neo-pop, abstracts, surreal landscapes, floral, succulents, and still-life paintings, as well as some pen and ink drawings. Well known as a fine artist working only in oil in Santa Barbara, Churchill-Johnson’s work is widely known across the country in museums from LACMA to the Butler Institute/Museum of American painting, as well as having been on exhibition in Russia and Belgium. Click here for more information.

ON the Stage

The free community performances by ¡Viva el Arte de Santa Bárbara! are one of the coolest things going on in town. They are returning this month with a free community performance by America’s first all-female mariachi group, Mariachi Reyna de Los Ángeles. A collaboration between UCSB Arts & Lectures, the Marjorie Luke Theatre, the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center, and the Isla Vista School Parent Teacher Association, this program is dedicated to bringing the rich cultural heritage of Latin America to Santa Barbara County community members and students.

Here’s the scoop on their three free public performances:

Friday, January 19 | 7 PM | Isla Vista Elementary School, 6875 El Colegio Rd., Goleta

Saturday, January 20 | 7 PM | Guadalupe City Hall, 918 Obispo St., Guadalupe

Sunday, January 21 | 6 PM | The Marjorie Luke Theatre, 721 E. Cota St., Santa Barbara

ON the Air

Lisa Angle’s Literary Gumbo 2.0 series just finished up its first season with an interesting interview with writing guru Shelly Lowenkopf, a longtime Santa Barbara resident. The 10-episode series also has segments on using AI in writing, working with Kickstarter, audiobooks, and much more. Click here to check out the whole season and learn more about the show.

ON the Calendar

How much do you know about Pearl Chase, the foresightful, forceful, well-connected woman who lived in Santa Barbara for 80 years and shaped the city we live in today? On Wednesday, January 10, at 5:30 p.m. at WorkZones, writer and civic activist Cheri Rae will talk about her new intimate biography of a woman ahead of her time, A String of Pearls, which she researched through personal letters, professional correspondence, private diaries, and interviews. She’ll share previously untold stories about Chase’s friendships with presidents, politicians, conservationists, activists, and other influential women; Chase’s lesser-known causes; and a star-crossed romance set against the backdrop of World War I. For more details and to RSVP for this event, presented by AWC Santa Barbara, click here. 

For more details about Cheri and the book, read my interview here. For a complete calendar of events this week and beyond, visit independent.com/events/.