ARTS WEEK CELEBRATES LOCAL TALENT FESTIVAL EXHIBITS ABOUND.

Byline: ERIC LEACH Staff Writer

SIMI VALLEY -- Like other members of his family, Robert ``Bert'' Strathearn was a rancher who ran cattle in Ventura County and the Owens Valley. But he also attended art school and worked as a cartoonist for newspapers in Los Angeles and San Francisco.

When he retired, he devoted more time to oil painting and used his knowledge of ranching to create scenes that help viewers today understand what life was like when their own backyard was the Wild West.

Those paintings will be on display at the Strathearn Historical Park and Museum as part of the Arts Week 2006 celebration this week sponsored by the Ventura County Arts Council.

The special events began Friday on the sixth annual California Arts Day, which like Arts Week is designed to encourage people to enjoy the talent around them.

``Many people don't realize the plethora of art available locally within our own county,'' said Monica Nolan, president of the Arts Council. ``Arts Week allows us to pull together and celebrate all the opportunities that are available.''

Organizers urged people to celebrate Arts Week through Oct.15 by taking their friends and family members to the museums, shows and exhibits.

Offerings include a performance of ``Barnum'' at the High Street Arts Center in Moorpark through Oct.29, and ``Fiddler on the Roof'' through Oct.15 in celebration of the Simi Valley Cultural Arts Center's 10th anniversary.

A dramatic program about local history called ``An Evening on the Conejo'' is being held at the Stagecoach Inn Museum in Newbury Park, and an exhibit titled ``Saddle Up: Vaqueros, Cowboys and Charros'' is at the Ventura County Museum of History and Art.

The Strathearn museum is offering an exhibit of its namesake's paintings. Born in 1881, he was the oldest son of Robert P. and Mary Strathearn, who bought a 15,000-acre cattle ranch at the western end of Simi Valley in 1889.

Simi Valley historian Pat Havens said some of his paintings are usually on exhibit at the Strathearn Historical Park where he grew up. But the current exhibit for Arts Week includes examples of his work never seen by the general public.

``They are very good Western scenes,'' Havens said.

Also on display at the museum are Simi Valley paintings in a more primitive style by Gerald Haigh, the son of another pioneering Simi Valley rancher.

In Thousand Oaks, the Arts Council of the Conejo Valley is sponsoring exhibits of six photographers at the Hillcrest Center for the Arts, and exhibits of paintings are being offered in nearly every Ventura County community.

Paintings by children will be on display in the center court of the Pacific View Mall in Ventura through Oct.14.

The work of local artists will be displayed at the Old Town Restaurant and Bakery in Moorpark in an ongoing exhibit sponsored by the city of Moorpark, and an Ojai Studio Artists Tour will be held today at the Ojai Arts Center and individual artist studios.

Although it is not listed among the official Arts Week activities, members of the Simi Valley Art Association will exhibit their work from 1to5p.m. today in the Simi Valley Library, 2969 Tapo Canyon Road.

eric.leach(at)dailynews.com

[phone]

IF YOU GO

A list of Ventura County Arts Week activities with addresses, admission fees and phone numbers, is available at www.venturacountyarts.net, or by calling the Ventura County Arts Council at [phone]. In the Simi Valley, ``Fiddler on the Roof'' will be featured at the Simi Valley Cultural Arts Center, 3050 Los Angeles Ave., through Oct. 15. More information on the dates and times of that performance is available at [phone] or at www.simi-arts.org. The exhibit of Bert Strathearn Oil Paintings is at the Strathearn Historical Park and Museum, 137 Strathearn Place. For information on museum hours and other details, call [phone] or go to www.simihistory.com.

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(1) Lynn Sacks of the Strathearn Historical Museum gazes at the Bert Strathearn art at the museum as part of Arts Week. Festival offerings include a performance of ``Fiddler on the Roof'' in celebration of the Simi Valley Cultural Arts Center's 10th anniversary.

(2) Oil paintings as well as pencil drawings of Bert Strathearn can be seen at the Strathearn Historical Museum. Organizers urged people to celebrate Arts Week through Oct.15 by taking their friends and family members to the museums, shows and exhibits.

(3 -- 4) Bert Strathearn's signature can be seen on his political cartoon, right, which is on display at the Strathearn Historical Museum, 137 Strathearn Place, as part of Arts Week celebrations. The museum will be showcasing his artwork, below, including images of early Simi Valley days as well as his political cartoons. For information on museum hours and other details, call [phone] or visit www.simihistory.com on the Web.

Joe Binoya/Special to the Daily News

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IF YOU GO (see text)