Season Finale of Art Under the Umbrellas Slated Saturday, March 21st 

By Kathleen Hughes

HEADS UP, ART UNDER THE UMBRELLAS FANS!  Spring has most definitely sprung and La Quinta Arts Foundation will wrap up its successful 33rd season with the eighth installment of Art Under the Umbrellas on Saturday, March 21, 2015 from 10 am to 4 pm at Old Town La Quinta. Admission and parking is always free.

Almost half of the 80 exhibitors scheduled to participate will be direct from La Quinta Arts Festival which concluded earlier this month giving Coachella Valley art lovers one last opportunity to view and purchase artwork from these highly respected artists who earned a coveted spot in the #1 Fine Art Festival in the Nation before they hit the road for the summer art festival circuit. Two extraordinary Festival exhibitors are being spotlighted for the March 21st Art Under the Umbrellas event:

ALI GOLKAR – Golkar’s work has been enthusiastically received in Europe, Asia, and the United States for several decades. Born in Iran, Ali and his wife moved to the U.S. in the 1970s after winning numerous painting awards at the national level.  While pursuing a formal education at the Southern California Institute of Architecture in Los Angeles, Golkar continued to indulge in his love for painting and exhibited his work throughout California.  His career in painting proved so fruitful from the start that he decided to work full-time as an artist.

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Steeped in the cultures of Europe and the Orient, Ali Golkar’s work explores love, beauty, music, and poetry portrayed with both grace and joy of life seldom encountered in contemporary art.  Greek and Renaissance mythology are fused with the expressionism of 20th century French humanistic paintings. In recent years, his work has evolved to encompass multiple media such as etchings (handmade prints), watercolor, gouache, pen and ink, and acrylic painting.

MARK DOOLITTLE – This master wood artist is based in Joshua Tree, CA.  His path to that profession was originally diverted by his love of science.  In the 1970s and 80s, Mark gained a doctoral degree in the fields of cell and molecular biology from UCLA.  There Dr. Doolittle pursued a career in biomedical research, culminating in the discovery of a novel gene contributing to triglyceride levels in the blood.  Along the way, Mark developed his keen interest in the art of woodworking and he began to seriously produce wood artwork in 2002.

Doolittle’s organic style reflects his unique and distinctive vision of nature, with no piece ever duplicated. Although Mark is a wood artist, he enjoys creating around natural objects such as fossils or minerals that then become integrated into the overall piece. Each piece is conceived and executed by the artist alone, using exotic hardwoods and burls from around the world.

THERE WILL BE DANCING IN THE STREETS!  Back from their recent engagement at La Quinta Arts Festival will be the incomparable Horace Miller and his beautiful counterpart Brigitte Valdez performing with the high energy Steve Madaio Band.   This group is a wildly popular component of Art Under the Umbrellas providing its patrons lively entertainment as they browse the artist booths and visit Old Town La Quinta’s many boutique stores and popular restaurants including Stuft Pizza Bar & Grill, La Rue Wine Bar, and The Wine Bar Bistro located just across the street.

SO … MEET UP WITH OLD FRIENDS … AND DO NOT MISS this last chance to spend a cultural and super fun Saturday under the clear blue skies of Art Under the Umbrellas.  It won’t return until late October to kick-off another memorable LQAF season.  Old Town La Quinta is located in the Village of La Quinta. Take Washington Street south, go west on Calle Tampico two blocks; Old Town La Quinta will be on the left. For more information visit LQAF.com or call 760-564-1244.

  • Artist Leslee Adams

  • Deborah Haffele Painting

  • Ali Golkar - Modernism painting

  • Wood - Mark Doolittle