We are in what could be the most unusual art gallery you’ll find anywhere. We’re in an oil field in West Ventura. You can hear the rumble of a pump jack in action.
Next to the well are some huge painted panels. They are beautiful mural-like paintings which reflect the county’s landscape. The works were created by some young budding artists, in a program which targets at-risk kids.
"It's art. It's something to do," said Juan Hernandez, who's one of the kids in the program. "It's something to get me off the streets."
California Resources Corporation, which is the new parent of Aera Energy, teamed up with some non-profit groups in West Ventura.
The idea is to create an artistic opportunity for kids, as well as beautifying the oil and gas facilities.
"We've been looking for ways we can engage with the community, and also help to beautify our location, realizing its publicly viewable," said Erin Larner, who is Ventura Operations Manager for California Resources Corporation.
"We have all these pieces of equipment and fencing along the way, and we thought this might be a great way for kids to display their artwork, and for us to take the opportunity to beautify our equipment."
The area is visible to people traveling between Ventura and Ojai on Highway 33, people using the Ventura River Bike Path, and on Ventura Boulevard in West Ventura.
"Everybody's really excited about having something pretty to look at," said Larner.
The Westside Community Development Corporation runs the program, which targets seven to 15-year-olds.
"We're a local non-profit based on the Westside. One of our programs is called Avenue Aerosol Art. It's an eight to 12 week cohort of art classes which teaches disenfranchised kids here on the Westside to create murals, to create community pride," said Kendra Gonzales, who is the non-profit’s Executive Director.
"We're lucky to have this partnership (with California Resources) where they donated supplies to create this beautification project," said Gonzales. "These kids created 10 panels. They're so proud to see their designs up and displayed, where they can show their parents, and friends."
They teamed up with two artists who run the Avenue Aerosol Art Program, Josh Burns, who owns Rekoil Signs, and Kyle Navarro.
As young men, the two artists used spray paint as their brushes, sometimes getting into trouble. Now, they are showing the kids how to use the cans in a creative and legal way.
"We're trying to give them something to do after school, and there's a few we've been able to really reach, who might turn it into a career someday," said Burns.
"The spray can...we love it so much. It's nice to be able to pass something on to the kids and show them what you can do with it outside of crime," said Navarro.
There’s also a church supporting the program.
"It's not actually very difficult to turn these guys into artists," said Jackie Pearce, with Two Trees Church. "You just have to initiate a little spark."
The kids say the program has pushed them to try new things. "It's like art. We spray paint, and do painting. I think it's pretty cool," said Ulisis Abra, who is one of the student artists. "I think it' cool to walk around the Avenue, the neighborhood."
"It was hard, kind of when I started, but I got used to it. I thought I wasn't good at it, but I was," said fellow artist Juan Hernandez.
The works are now visible to people traveling along Highway 33, between Ventura and Ojai, and people driving through West Ventura on Ventura Avenue.
The California Resources Corporation team which works at the site is hoping that over time, this program will add even more artwork to this very unusual outdoor art exhibition.
