CENTRAL COAST — Four regional arts councils are collaborating on a four-county exhibition that will bring together artists from Monterey, Santa Cruz, San Benito and Santa Clara counties to explore the connections between land, culture, history and community.
Titled “The Ground Beneath Us / La Tierra Bajo Nosotros,” the exhibition is a joint project of the Arts Council for Monterey County, Arts Council Santa Cruz County, San Benito County Arts Council and SVCREATES, which serves Santa Clara County.
Although the organizations have worked together as regional partners for years, the exhibition marks an effort to create a shared platform for artists across county lines, with a particular focus on creative communities in and around Salinas, Watsonville, Hollister and Gilroy.
“When we all work together, we can reach beyond geographic boundaries to ensure that the arts are accessible to everyone,” said Jacquie Atchison, executive director of the Arts Council for Monterey County. “By combining our resources, relationships and creative voices, we can bring greater opportunities to historically under-resourced communities like Salinas, Watsonville, Hollister and Gilroy — strengthening not only the arts, but the connections and vitality of our entire region.”
The exhibition invites artists to consider land not only as physical geography, but also as a place of memory, labor, migration, ecology, culture and home. Potential themes include agriculture and farm work, water and drought, climate, migration and borders, Indigenous sovereignty, neighborhoods and the meaning of home.
“There is so much art, culture and creativity in these communities,” said Jim Brown, executive director of Arts Council Santa Cruz County. “Working together on this exhibition gives us the opportunity to showcase and connect artists and expose them to a regional audience.”
Artists from Monterey, Santa Cruz, San Benito and Santa Clara counties are invited to submit work responding to the exhibition theme. The deadline to apply is Nov. 10.
The exhibition will run Jan. 22 through March 1, 2027, at four gallery locations:
- Art Depot, 35 Fifth St., Suite D, Hollister, with a reception Jan. 23.
- Watsonville Center for the Arts, 375 Main St., Watsonville, with a reception Jan. 30.
- ArtWorks @Salinas Studios & Gallery, 262 Main St., Salinas, with a reception Feb. 5.
- 1202 Contemporary, 7445 Monterey Road, Gilroy, with a reception Feb. 12.
Each reception will be hosted by the arts council serving that community.
The collaboration aims to support regional artists, strengthen connections among creative communities and expand opportunities for residents to experience the arts.
