May 2024: La Cañada Flintridge Mayoral Visit and Part Two of the Artist-in-Residence Program
Tamar Tujian, Co-President, shares an update about the group’s trip to Spain.
What a wonderful opportunity to visit our Sister City in Spain this past spring as part of our Artist-in-Residence Program. The Artist-in-Residence program began in 2022 in La Cañada Flintridge. One of the many highlights was the Miradas art show and sale at the Boddy House in Descanso Gardens where the art of renowned Spanish artist and resident of our sister city, Villanueva de la Cañada, Spain, Javier Montesol, was showcased.
As part of our cultural exchange in May 2024, community artists from La Cañada Flintridge were invited to display their art at the Saint Isidro community celebration days in Villanueva de la Cañada, Spain. The celebration is a multi-day event where the entire community participates in activities which include an outdoor mass, a small parade, as well as lots of merriment in the park. The festive opening of the art show featured our La Cañada Flintridge community artists.
Our Honorable Mayor, Michael Davitt, and his wife, Alison, headed our delegation to Villanueva de la Cañada, Spain. Three of the artists who displayed their art work and were part of our delegation: David Dedlow and his wife Edwina, Anjum Khan and her husband Naghib, and Esther Vavoulis, her husband Ted, and family. The artists unable to attend were Chris Buck, David Morton, Ooty Moorehead, Mary Tracy and Lois Zanteson.
Mayor Partida, his entire staff, and our friends in Villanueva de La Cañada welcomed us warmly. We were treated to interesting tours of the city, a lovely cocktail reception following the opening of the art exhibit, and a Mayoral exchange with all their City Council members present in the city hall chambers. On Saint Isidro Day, many residents of the city were eager to meet us as we sampled paella and all sorts of local delicacies and drinks while circulating from tent to tent in the park.
We look forward to continuing the Artist-in-Residence program in La Cañada Flintridge by inviting another Spain artist to visit us in 2025. If you would like to get involved in our activities and our cultural events, please reach out to us. It is truly an enlightening way to learn about other cultures and cultivate lasting friendships with the citizens of our sister city.