Come down to the village “” on Thursday, Sept. 27, the galleries in La Jolla have teamed with wineries and top restaurants for an annual open house block party like only businesses in La Jolla can, showcasing special artists while serving food and drinks.
The fourth annual La Jolla Gallery and Wine Walk is upon the city. The walk allows its guests to peruse 25 open galleries throughout the evening, sample food from 12 of the area’s top restaurants and taste wines from 40 various vintners.
The walk takes place in the village of La Jolla beginning at 5 p.m. and ends around 9 p.m. People can start their trek, get their IDs checked and grab a map next to the La Jolla Visitors Center, 7966 Herschel Ave., where a will-call booth will be set up. Maps of the walk also will be on hand at each participating gallery.
There are some new additions to the walk this year. The Madison Gallery will open its doors and Cody’s Restaurant will also have a chef on hand, said Ciara Gelhaus of event promoter McFarlane Promotions.
The art displayed will please a variety of tastes, according to Gelhaus.
“The Fingerhut Gallery will be displaying artwork by Dr. Seuss,” she said.
While some visitors search their childhood memories at the Fingerhut Gallery, others can get a bit more extreme “” a visit to the outback, maybe “” at the Molloy Gallery, which features artwork from the aborigines of Australia.
The Molloy Gallery sells museum-like aboriginal mythological paintings. Thought to be a mystical people, until 30 years ago this art was seen only in caves or in photographs of skin or sand that had aboriginal artwork “” a medium too fleeting and temporary for anything but a camera to catch.
For classic art connoisseurs, the Simic New Renaissance Galleries on Prospect Street is a place to browse with its fine art, mostly oil on canvas. But, for a more eclectic gallery, Galeria JAN is where one can find myriad different art, from the most interesting yet tormented artist Toulouse-Lautrec to an artist named Jan Beran, a Sarajevo-born journalist whose art is also featured.
The remaining galleries are sure not to disappoint. Many have modern-day artists who will be featured for the event. The Bertram Gallery will be highlighting in-demand photographer David Fokos.
Fokos, who specializes in black-and-white photography, will be showcasing his ethereal work at the Bertram Gallery. People can view his work, along with the gallery’s usual collection of eight artists, during the walk.
“David Fokos is one of the most sought-after black-and-white photographers today,” said Scott Reither, an artist also featured at the Bertram Gallery.
Fokos exposes his compositions anywhere from .20 seconds to an hour onto his film to get the “essence of a scene,” Reither said. “It records our emotional state.”
Fokos is able to capture images others can’t in an instant, because it isn’t the same “as when film captures something, say, over a period of time,” Reither said.
The Bertram Gallery will continue to display the work of its usual artists, which include Reither. He captures local color landscapes on film, using subjects such as The Children’s Pool in La Jolla and Scripps Pier.
“I shoot panoramic photos ” it’s closer to the human eye,” Reither said.
Jesse Bertram Donovan, owner of the Bertram Gallery, will display his photography that night as well.
“Jesse’s work is more abstract ” almost painterly,” Reither said.
Wine will be served at each gallery from 40 different wineries, and some galleries will feature cuisine from the 12 participating restaurants.
“We will only be selling about 1,000 tickets this year,” Gelhaus said. “We do want people to see the art and we don’t want to overwhelm the galleries.”
Tickets are available online or at select businesses at a cost of $30. Proceeds go to Promote La Jolla, the non-profit organization that has sponsored the walk every year and represents businesses in the area, said Heather Pollock of Promote La Jolla.
Restaurants selling tickets to the walk include:
“¢ Café Lavande
“¢ La Jolla Brew House
“¢ Molloy Gallery “” Australian aboriginal art
“¢ Contemporary Fine Arts Gallery
“¢ Galeria JAN
“¢ Cosmopolitan Fine Arts
“¢ Village Gallery
“¢ Simic New Renaissance Galleries
“¢ Prospect Place Fine Art
“¢ La Jolla FiberArts
Tickets may also be purchased online at http://www.lajollabythesea.com/gallery/ or by visiting http://www.macfarlanepromotions.com.