Best Arts & Culture
Best Artist/Photographer
JOHN F. HUNTER
1. John F. Hunter was the first photographer to capture the 2013 arrival of humpback whales.
2. Born in Iowa, he took a job in Colorado maintaining ski slopes with a snow cat when he was 19. He took up photography after moving to Santa Cruz in 1988.
3. He’s proud of his mural of a collage of five ocean shots, now installed in a suite at 49ers Levi’s Stadium (pictured).
4. He has a 2015 photo calendar out that features the natural beauty of Santa Cruz County, available on johnfhunterphotography.com or at Mr. Toots, Whaler’s and Cruz Car Wash.
5. He posts a new photo on Facebook every day. | JUNE SMITH
Best Local Poet
ELLEN BASS
1. Ellen Bass has had her poetry featured in The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine, The Atlantic, The American Poetry Review, The New Republic and many more.
2. Books featuring her poetry include Like a Beggar, The Human Line, and No More Masks! An Anthology of Poems by Women.
3. She has also written non-fiction,co-authoring Free Your Mind: The Book For Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Youth and The Courage to Heal: A Guide for Women Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse, and co-editing I Never Told Anyone: Writings by Women Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse.
4. Bass worked on her most recent poetry collection, Like a Beggar, for seven years.
5. She currently is teaching in the MFA program at Pacific University. | AMANDA EDWARDS
Best Festival
GREEK FESTIVAL
1. This fall will be the Greek Festival’s 34th annual soiree (Sept. 11-13).
2. From a small celebration in the Prophet Elias Greek Orthodox Church courtyard in 1981, the festival has expanded to a block party on Church Street.
3. Who doesn’t love the sound of live bouzouki music? Part of the festival’s fun is authentic Greek music and songs by a live band, with a group performance of Greek traditional dancing. And then the public is invited to join in and show off their terpsichorean skills.
4. If something looks delicious at the Greek Festival, and you don’t know how to pronounce it, all you have to do is point.
5. Greek coffee is delicious, but don’t drink the powdery dregs at the bottom of the cup. | JOSIE COWDEN
Art Event
FIRST FRIDAY
firstfridaysantacruz.com
RUNNERS-UP Open Studios Art Tour, Capitola Art & Wine Festival
Art Gallery
MUSEUM OF ART & HISTORY
705 Front St., Santa Cruz, 429-1964, santacruzmah.org
RUNNERS-UP Felix Kulpa, R. Blitzer
Artist/Photographer
JOHN HUNTER
johnfhunterphotography.com
RUNNERS-UP Devi Pride Photography, Shmuel Thaler
Author (local)
LAURIE KING
RUNNERS-UP Geoffrey Dunn, Karen Joy Fowler
Dance Studio
MOTION PACIFIC
131 Front St., Santa Cruz, 457-1616, motionpacific.com
RUNNERS-UP Pacific Arts Complex, Tannery World Dance
Festival (film/art/music)
BLUES FESTIVAL
santacruzamericanmusicfestival.com
RUNNERS-UP Cabrillo Music Festival, Redwood Mountain Faire
Festival (street)
GREEK FESTIVAL
facebook.com/santacruzgreekfestival
RUNNERS-UP Capitola Art & Wine Festival, Begonia Festival
Kids’ Art Program
SEVEN DIRECTIONS
303 Potrero St., #7a, Santa Cruz, 345-9893, sevendirections.org
RUNNERS-UP Studio Sprout, Drawn 2 Art
Movie Theater
NICKELODEON
210 Lincoln St., Santa Cruz, 426-7500, thenick.com
RUNNERS-UP Del Mar, Cinelux Scotts Valley
Mural/Public Art
LIVE OAK STORIES
1916 Capitola Road, Santa Cruz
RUNNERS-UP Capitola Village, Bill’s Wheels
Museum
MUSEUM OF ART & HISTORY
705 Front St., Santa Cruz, 429-1964, santacruzmah.org
RUNNERS-UP Natural History Museum, Children’s Museum of Discovery
Poet (local)
ELLEN BASS
RUNNERS-UP Gary Young, Kevin Devaney
Radio Personality (local)
SLEEPY JOHN SANDIDGE
KPIG-FM, 107.5 and KZSC-FM, 88.1
RUNNERS-UP Rosemary Chalmers, Ethan Bearman
Radio Station
KPIG-FM
107.5
RUNNERS-UP 88.1 KZSC, 88.9 KUSP
Television Personality (local)
DAN GREEN
KSBW
RUNNERS-UP Dale Julien, Jim Vanderzwaan
Television Newscast (Local)
KSBW
RUNNER-UP KION
Theater Company
SANTA CRUZ SHAKESPEARE
santacruzshakespeare.org
RUNNERS-UP Cabrillo Stage, Jewel Theater
