Art Center opens annual exhibition

The Huntington Beach Art Center on Friday will open its 14th annual “Centered on the Center” exhibition.

As many as 190 artists from Orange County and other parts of Southern California, who represent an array of genres and artistic levels, will be exhibiting 329 works in the non-juried show, scheduled to run at the city of Huntington Beach-run Art Center from Jan. 20 through Feb. 18.

The genres on display range from oil paintings to sculptures, mixed media art pieces, art installations, prints, ceramics and photography, said HBAC Curator Darlene DeAngelo.

The annual “Centered on the Center” show is meant to be a non-invitational, non-juried and non-curated one. The idea is to encourage artists, ranging from hobbyists to students and professionals, to have their work shown and possibly sold, as well as allow the members of the community to judge the merits of their work, HBAC officials said.

The exhibit is free and open to the public.

“The public gets to judge whether they like it or not,” DeAngelo said. “It’s fun because it’s unfiltered.”

Each of the 190 artists has already entered a maximum of two pieces for the show and has received a stack of post card invitations to send out to friends and relatives for the opening night reception, from 6 to 9 p.m. on Friday at HBAC. A $25-entry fee guarantees that both pieces will be shown in the exhibit, DeAngelo said.

In other news, from 6 to 10 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 28, the Huntington Beach Art Center Foundation, which supports the nonprofit center, will host one of its main fundraisers of the year, its “Mardi Gras Night in Monte Carlo” bash, sponsored by the Huntington Beach Auto Dealers Assn.

General admission tickets cost $50, and cover $35 in gaming chips and free appetizers, while VIP tickets cost $75. They come with $50 in chips, valet parking, a souvenir glass, a free drink ticket and appetizers.

To buy tickets, call (714) 536-5258, or go to https://www.HuntingtonBeachArtCenter.orghttps://www.HuntingtonBeachArtCenter.org.

And, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 21, the center will have a Mardi Gras mask making workshop for people who want to craft their own masks for the Jan. 28 bash. It costs $20 per person to sign up for the workshop.

Call (714) 374-1650 to register. The Huntington Beach Art Center is at 538 Main St.

imran.vittachi@latimes.com

Twitter: @ImranVittachi