A group of La Jolla artists that make up the oldest art association in San Diego is on the move again, due to rising costs of renting a gallery.
“We are determined to survive,” said Pierce Harrah, vice president of La Jolla Art Association, a membership group of local artists formed in 1918. “We’ve got extremely talented artists. We need La Jolla and La Jolla needs us.”
Ellen Browning Scripps gave the artists their first gallery location at the Athenaeum, Harrah said. She also allowed them into her home. But Scripps didn’t leave the artists in her will.
“In ’68 we had to move from there because they had to expand the library … Then in 2005, we had to move again because they had to expand,” he said.
“Now we’re in the commercial market,” Harrah said.
The La Jolla Art Association moved from the Village Gallery on Ivanhoe Street to a quieter gallery at 7734 Herschel Ave., next to the La Jolla Town Council. But the 65 to 70 members are the best artists in the La Jolla area, Harrah said.
“We’re more than an art gallery, we’re an association. Our artists must be juried in,” he said. “There’s a lot of art talent in the area, and we take the best of the most talented.”
The association usually rotates pieces from members, showcasing the different artists’ work every two weeks, Harrah said.
One of the most recent showcases of members’ work was a show called “Visual Poetry,” said John Valois, membership director.
Valois said his photographs were on display, with some digital art, along with artists and members Dana Levine, Peggy Palm, Rodger Heglar and others.
The nonprofit group, which is celebrating its 90th year, is staffed and run by its membership.
The artists are not opposed to giving lessons, either.
For more information, go to www.lajollaart.org. The association gallery is open Tuesdays through Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., at 7734 Herschel Ave.