Photo courtesy of Nicole D'Amore

Kristy Holley Vantrease, with her paintings in her Ojai home, helped form The Ojai Group of women painters.

When Kristy Holley Vantrease returned to Ojai after living all over the United States, the only thing she found lacking was a group of artists to paint with. She solved that problem when she met Patty Van Dyke and, together with Diane Hanley and Mary-Gail King, they formed The Ojai Group.

The four artists are currently exhibiting their work in a two-month show at Herzog Wine Cellars in Oxnard.

Vantrease works in oil, watercolor, acrylic and ink resist. Landscapes are her focus, with subjects ranging from the Connecticut shoreline and the Brooklyn Bridge to familiar local landmarks.

Born in Ojai, Vantrease moved often with her husband, Cameron, during his career as a Naval submarine officer. They came back to Ojai 10 years ago.

"I learned a lot about regional art, but there is no place like California," she said. "We are here now and we are not leaving. It's such a nice feeling."

She met her husband when she was a fine-arts major at the University of Maryland and he was at the Naval Academy. They have been married 39 years and raised three daughters. Among the places they lived were Maryland, Connecticut, Maine, North Carolina, Illinois and Idaho.

She loved every place she lived and found that the art, as well as the people, was different from place to place, she said.

"In the South even the style of composition is different, a lot of lace and florals," she said. "In New England, there were a lot of marine themes."

Vantrease painted with a group of artists while living in High Point, N.C., the furniture capital of the world.

"The Furniture Mart came to us for paintings for showrooms," she said. "It's a great source for artists."

Because they moved so often, it was hard to establish a reputation as an artist, she said.

"But from a learning aspect, I took classes from some phenomenal people with a lot of different styles," she said. She took numerous workshops with famed watercolorist Zoltan Szabo, and with James Menzel-Joseph, Barbara Greene, Kathy Quiel and Norman Kirk.

Returning to California, she's noticed changes in the landscape.

Her grandfather's orchards were not far from where her subdivision is today, she said.

"You used to come down and see nothing but fields — those fields are all gone now," she said.

She wants to preserve the remaining natural landscape for her children and grandchildren, and since moving to Ojai, she has taken up plein-air painting.

"A lot of times I just painted on my own," she said. "The Ojai Group was my idea. I was in a group in Connecticut and every time I met an artist here, I asked if there was a group of people who painted together."

But she ran into a dead end until she met fellow Ojai artist Van Dyke, who thought it was a good idea. Both members of the California Gold Coast Watercolor Society, they found that two other members of that organization, Hanley and King, were also interested in painting together.

Since starting the group about four years ago, the artists get together to paint weekly. Although they work in different styles, they support each other, Vantrease said.

"It's nice to have that bonding to critique and help each other," she said. "We all go through difficult periods." They organized an open studio, in which other artists are invited to participate, and present the Ojai Alternative Studio Tour each fall. This year's event will be Oct. 11 and 12. They sponsor workshops and classes, including the currently ongoing Ojai Summer Evening Plein Air sessions.

"We have gotten a tremendous turnout from that," Vantrease said. "There are more shadows, it's a beautiful time to paint." The sessions meet every two weeks, and they are considering continuing it beyond summer, she said.

The Ojai Group hopes to spend a month painting in Italy and France in the next couple of years.

"We are at different places so we have to find time when all four of us can go," she said. "But we are going — there is no doubt."

Vantrease and Hanley are co-presidents of the Gold Coast Watercolor Society. Vantrease is also a member of the National Watercolor Society and the Santa Barbara and Los Padres art associations.

She tries to paint every day.

"If I've painted, it's a good day," she said. "If I haven't, I miss it."

She has also created a series of colorful children's paintings that have been popular, she said. Started as gifts for her own grandchildren, her daughters asked for them for baby shower gifts, and then other people wanted them.

"It's all been word of mouth," she said.

The reception for The Ojai Group show begins at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Herzog Wine Cellars, 3201 Camino Del Sol, Oxnard.

For more information about the group, visit the Web site: http://www.theojaigroup.com.

Ventura County Star, 8 August, 2008

GALLERY SHOWING- Artist Mary-Gail King, a Camarillo resident, recently displays original watercolor paintings during an artist reception at the Hot Summer Art 2008 art show at the Hillcrest Center for the Arts in Thousand Oaks. The show, sponsored by the Arts Council of the Conejo Valley, continues through Sept. 21. JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers