“I wanted to see…a lot of my painting deal with the ocean, the sky, the horizon, and environmental policy, and why not take that into the physical realm and address the subjects literally through staring at the horizon, exposing works to the saltwater and rain, feeling the motion of a ship, dealing with sea sickness. I’m curious if they remain calm or perhaps, they turn a different direction and get a little more chaotic themselves, searching for what feels more like home.”
Cole Sternberg
the nature of breathing in salt
A predictable Pacific chill has descended upon the Santa Maria Valley this blustery June evening as I make my way inside a large Brutalist-like concrete bunker just off East Clark Avenue, not far from California highway 101. A once-abandoned underground barrel room, this imposing structure is the new home of Presqu’ile x LAND, a visionary, sweeping artistic collaboration between the Murphy family of Santa Maria Valley and the Los Angeles Nomadic Division. The fresh partnership signals a deepening of wine culture, not only for this sub-appellation, but for all of Santa Barbara County.
The culture of a winegrowing region isn’t just about the wines born and raised there, or the wineries and vineyards that populate its landscape, for that matter, or even the often-big personalities who lead the charge in building its reputation.
Wine culture, that ineffable quality that gives a region its very meaning and texture, is a result of communion. The word communion (from the Latin communionem) means “fellowship, mutual participation, a sharing.” A region’s culture emerges over time, comprised by the community (a word that also shares its origins with communion) that comes to support it. The story of a place isn’t written by marketing companies but, rather, by those who pass through there; those born there, those who take up residence there, and those who visit there. There’s a richness that emerges when people are brought together through the prism of sharing something specific to a time and place. It’s the kind of richness that is at the very formulation of a living history.
The Murphy family, who established Presqu’ile (press-keel), their family-owned estate winery in Santa Maria Valley, in 2007, are pretty darn good at fostering communion and community. Long-time supporters of the arts, they relocated to California from the Gulf Coast, bringing with them a strong dose of Southern hospitality while positioning their winery as a gathering place for the community. Aside from pursuing wines of place and balance, the Murphy family launched an amphitheater, with its attendant concert series, and a robust culinary program, the first winery in the sub-appellation to do so. And now, with Presqu’ile x LAND, the promise of inclusive communion through a shared appreciation of art comes to Santa Barbara wine country.
The Murphy Family
The last remaining strands of sunlight drift through crevices in the concrete gallery, casting shafts of light against the grey concrete walls. Throughout the immense space, small alcoves and a series of arch ways convey a sense of containment; of gallery rooms within a larger contiguous space. Artist Cole Sternberg’s works hang throughout, enkindling the room with color, a contrast of textures, shadow and light.
I run into Madison Murphy, the patriarch and visionary behind Presqu’ile estate winery, just next door to Presqu’ile x LAND. He smiles and throws his arms open, looking at the vast space. “We didn’t know what we were going to with this thing!” He and his family had discussed a few possibilities for the large bunker that had been left behind by a previous owner – a winery project that was abandoned before completion – when the Murphys plucked up the plot of land upon which it sits. The family discussed turning it into a large storage facility. Or maybe a suite of offices. Ultimately, he tells me, it was his daughters-in-law, Cat and Lindsay who, after dinner late one night, kicked around the idea that the space might be ideal for a gallery. “The collaboration between LAND and Presqu’ile has the potential to provide a venue to bring artists, cultures, and communities together in ways that hopefully affords a common appreciation and understanding,” he tells me. “We look forward to what is possible as we all embark on this journey.”
The family and a small group of friends have gathered in anticipation of the installation’s formal opening the next day. Madison’s wife Suzanne soon joins him, as do their kids, Anna, who is the enologist at Presqu’ile, and Matt and Jonathan, who also work at Presqu’ile. Their spouses are there, too, as is artist Cole Sternberg and his wife Kelly Lee Offield.
At dinner, Sternberg proves to be delightfully confounding. A walking dichotomy, he is impish and flighty one minute, and then deeply thoughtful and ruminative the next. Looking like a young Kevin Kline, Sternberg’s got a short mop of black curls atop his head, an easy, charming smile, and bright eyes that flash with a glint of humor. Occasionally, though, throughout the evening, a wave of preoccupation will seemingly pass over him and he’ll suddenly seem faraway…deeply pensive. His wife, Kelly Lee, has a sardonic, droll way about her. While addressing the dinner guests briefly before dinner, Sternberg gets a little nervous, but when Kelly Lee leans over and says something to him under her breath, he giggles a bit and appears suddenly relieved. Sternberg’s works are held by major collections throughout the world, including the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), and his works have appeared everywhere from the New York Times to Architectural Digest, but he seems somewhat surprised by his success. This down-to-earth energy, not only from Sternberg, but also from the Murphys, lends the coming weekend a surprising kind of wholesomeness and charm.
I’m seated next to Sternberg at a long table positioned down the middle of one of the interior galleries. We take turns holding large, heavy serving bowls of food for each other. I serve myself. He serves himself. Wines are poured; voices rise. I ask Sternberg what it’s like, seeing his work hanging in this unexpected space, out in the middle of wine country. “Presenting this body of work with Los Angeles Nomadic Division, an institution deeply invested in the dialogue between art, site, and public experience, and at Presqu’ile, a landscape that embodies the complexity and grandeur of California is more than ideal, it is a dream,” he tells me. “The work carries the memory and patterns of the land and wind of this place and the water which frames its horizon. Installed within this monumental bunker, they feel as though they have come home. The structure becomes equal parts shelter, chapel, and amplifier, allowing the landscape, architecture, and work to speak in the same voice.”
Sternberg was the first artist-in-residence at Presqu’ile x LAND, and it was while in residence that he created the works comprising Along the High Embankments. An artist whose work is intimately informed by the environment, Sternberg dragged his canvases up the embankments that gave this installation its name. He dragged them through the vineyards of Presqu’ile, flew them from a flagpole atop the highest peak at the estate, then attached them to the back of a ship, dragging them through the Pacific for a few miles. The results are breathtaking, nearly otherworldly: these works suggest movement, shadow, depth. Some of his canvases still have dirt and grass clinging to them. Three that hang from the tall ceiling catch the sun as its setting and appear nearly lit from the inside, like tapestries inside a cathedral.
The next day, Presqu’ile x LAND opens in earnest, and it’s life-affirming to see so many people walk through the various galleries inside the bunker, their faces turned to the artwork, and to each other. The room is alive and buzzing with excitement and energy. Jonathan Murphy, thin and boyish, with closely shorn hair and a polite demeanor, is smiling broadly as he greets visitors to the show. “Our partnership with LAND brings something to the Santa Maria Valley that I haven’t ever experienced here,” he tells me, beaming. “It’s exciting to be able to enjoy world class art on the central coast and also give the local community access to things they might not get a chance to see without traveling to a major museum or gallery.”
Chumash Tribe Members Dance
Many who attend are visiting from Los Angeles. I meet folks who have driven up from Santa Monica and DTLA, from Malibu and Topanga Canyon, just for the show. The crowd is diverse, dynamic, and colorful. I recognize a few locals, including Richard and Thekla Sanford, who founded Sanford Winery before going on to establish Alma Rosa Winery, there with their daughter, the artist Blakeney Sanford. Winemaker Bob Lindquist, who founded Qupe Winery before establishing Lindquist Family wines, attends wearing his signature Dodger swag. Puck Erickson, long-time friend of the Murphy family and an esteemed landscape architect, arrives with her son, the musician Bear Erickson. At one point in the evening, Puck and I walk through the gallery together, enjoying the hundreds of candles lighting the space as the sky darkens. Puck tells me, “When I first walked this space, there was an owl living here. And other birds. And there were things crawling around. And, I just thought, ‘Art needs to be here.’ And now look at it!”
The Los Angeles Nomadic Division (LAND) is a crucial partner to the Murphys, and LAND Director Laura Hyatt is on hand the entire weekend, meeting with guests, encouraging Sternberg, and even taking a few artists around to see the installation, as some of them may be future artists-in-residency at Presqu’ile x LAND. When I finally claim a spot on a bench near the installation’s entrance, Hyatt comes and sits beside me, taking a bit of a breather away from the crowds. She grew up on the Central Coast, and her family has been in the area for five generations. “I’m incredibly grateful for the invitation to work alongside Presqu’ile, bridging LAND’s vision between Southern California and the Central Coast,” she tells me. “LAND’s collaboration with Presqu’ile is a natural extension of our core mission, which celebrates the timeless exchange between art, place, and people.” LAND, she explains, works with artists “whose expanded practice is shaped by site, environment, and lived experience rather than traditional gallery or museum contexts.” Presqu’ile x LAND has partnered with local Santa Maria Valley-based non-profit Corazon del Pueblo in launching this collaboration, and they will remain involved to support all future programming. I meet with Corazon del Pueblo’s Director, Esmeralda Garcia, who tells me that as an Indigenous migrant woman who has lived in this Chumash territory for the past 15 years, she feels “both honored and privileged to collaborate with Laura, LAND, and the Murphy family on this incredible project. We look forward to fostering positive and healthy relationships among humanity, the land, and art. I am eager to continue working in this space through our local art and culture organization, Corazon del Pueblo, to ensure it is accessible and inclusive, allowing all families to experience positive energy and a sense of unity.”
Along the High Embankments will run through September 20. Presqu’ile x LAND is opened Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 5:00 PM. Admission is free to all.