As the year draws to a close, we pause to take a look back at the artistic and cultural events that graced Monterey County’s galleries, stages, museums and concert halls in 2023. Below is a selection of the most interesting events, according to the Weekly. Looking back, it’s impressive how much art, music and literature Monterey County produces for its residents to enjoy – from an exhibit of work by the Tibetan artist Tsherin Sherpa, through books by Pulitzer Prize-winner Jane Smiley to a concert with Grammy-winner Macy Gray. It was a solid year for culture.
FEBRUARY
A long-time Hartnell ceramics teacher Pam Murakami showed off the treasures she’s been making for two decades. The exhibit, Memories, Spirits and Heroes, was on display at Hartnell College Gallery in Salinas.
MARCH
The third volume of Alka Joshi’s Jaipur trilogy, The Perfumist of Paris, was published. This bestselling writer was also a guest at Mic’d Up at The Press Club in October, the Weekly’s monthly live Q&A sessions, which launched in 2023.
A Carmel Valley producer went to the Oscars with his nominated short film about how understanding can overcome hate. Conall Jones produced Stranger at the Gate, a riveting movie that did not win, but is available to view for free online.
APRIL
Monterey County celebrated its artistic heritage with the first Jo Mora Day. Uruguay-born Jo Mora made the county his home; the vast and diverse amount of sculptures, paintings, drawings and book illustrations he produced is nothing short of amazing.
MAY
The annual California Roots Music & Art Festival brings a lot to Monterey County – including Wu-Tang Clan. The 2023 event at Monterey County Fair & Event Center was bigger than ever – four days and some 12,000 fans each day.
JUNE
Jane Smiley published another book, just a few months after her novel, A Dangerous Business, which is set in Monterey. The Questions That Matter Most: Reading, Writing, and the Exercise of Freedom is a collection of essays by this prolific Pulitzer Prize winner, who is based in Carmel Valley.
Balancing Act was the title of Sally Russell’s exhibit in the Marjorie Evans Gallery at Sunset Center. Russell’s paper and canvas surfaces, ceramic totem towers and dotted ceramic vessels go beyond an everyday art experience.
The Emerging Composers Intensive continued to be a springboard to the world of professional composing. This half festival/half workshop, which started in 2022, took place in the refuge of Hidden Valley Music Seminars in Carmel Valley.
JULY
Hanif Panni is a gift to Monterey County, integrating past and present, art and music – and excelling at both. His solo exhibit WONDIR was on display at Monterey History and Art at Stanton Center in Monterey.
AUGUST
Pacific Repertory Theatre brought the Addams Family to the Outdoor Forest Theater in Carmel. The musical is based on the musical comedy by Andrew Lippa, with a book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice, that opened on Broadway in 2010.
Monterey Museum of Art and government agencies decided to partner in a vision to expand an art footprint downtown. MMA chose to stay headquartered in downtown Monterey (as opposed to at the museum’s La Mirada location) and purchased the Miller Adobe for administrative purposes. Meanwhile, California State Parks purchased Casa Gutierrez, right next to the Miller Adobe.
The former Gallery Amsterdam and Frame Shop reopened as Nematic and Daisy Rose Galleries, the first-ever NFT gallery in Carmel, where digital money and crypto art converged.
SEPTEMBER
The exhibit Tsherin Sherpa: Different Worlds was on display at the Monterey Museum of Art. It was Tsherin Sherpa’s first solo exhibit in California. Sherpa’s father started training him in deity paintings. He rebelled against this sacred tradition, repurposing its imagery and methodology for the sake of his own acutely contemporary art.
The 66th Monterey Jazz Festival opened, with the theme of the past transitioning into the future. It was a sweet goodbye to Artistic Director Tim Jackson after 33 amazing years. Among other treats, audiences in the arena got to see the master of jazz song, Dianne Reeves, perform multiple times.
The 2023 Artists Studio Tour featured 60 possible art-filled stops over two weekends. For the 31st time, Arts Habitat connected local artists to their community by opening artists’ studios – often in their homes – to anybody who wishes to experience local art.
OCTOBER
Rebels & Renegades brought a diverse range of artists to town over three festival days. When the festival debuted in 2022 at the Monterey County Fair & Event Center, it was described as a time and a place for the cowboys and the hippies to come together.
After a thorough restoration, the Western Flyer officially set sail for Monterey – arriving in early November. The legendary boat that took John Steinbeck and Ed Ricketts to the Gulf of California was restored by the Western Flyer Foundation.
NOVEMBER
How many times do you get to see works from the local college’s jewelry and metal arts department? The Formed & Fabricated group exhibit took place at Monterey Peninsula College Art Gallery. On display was jewelry as well as small sculptures of metal – both rugged and industrial or delicate and intricate.
DECEMBER
Grammy-winner and R&B star Macy Gray came to the Golden State Theatre in Monterey with old favorites and new works.
La Posada Magica returned to Salinas. The play narrates the story of Gracie, who is grieving the loss of her younger brother, and the posaderos, or pilgrims, who are celebrating a posada on Christmas Eve with music, candles and chocolate. Artists Ink partnered with Alisal High School’s drama department to make it happen.