“I stepped through an ordinary gate off one of the charming streets of Todos Santos and found myself transported to another place and time. Each home, each building I walked into, I experienced the rich history of Todos Santos.” Kim Dee of Los Alamitos, California, a participant of the Todos Santos’ Historic Home Tour adds, “I happened to be in town and took the tour. So many exquisite homes and buildings were open to patrons of the Tour. This is a great way to learn about the town’s past while seeing inside all the beautiful homes. I plan to coordinate this year’s trip to be in Todos Santos again in March.”

This year’s Todos Santos’ Historic Home Tour is Sunday, March 4, 2018 from 10:00 – 3:00. This one-day event benefits the educational programs of The Palapa Society of Todos Santos, A.C. Tickets may be purchased on the day of the event at the Cultural Center located on Calle Benito Juarez. Admission is $300 pesos or $20 USD. Docents are on hand at each site to offer more information.

This year’s coordinator, Paul Bumann says, “We have over 25 historic sites including private homes, hotels/inns, municipal buildings, mission church, and sugar cane processor. Experience sites thoughtfully restored to reflect the uniqueness of the days before electricity and telephone. Open just once a year to the public, these magnificent homes and buildings allow you to soak in and imagine the tranquil elegance of Todos Santos over a century ago. Be sure to bring your family, friends, neighbors and architects.”

New this year is an optional “Find the Saint Challenge.” Todos Santos (translated All Saints) has several statues of saints around town cleverly perched in niches on the exterior of buildings. Find and mark all of them on a map and you will be entered into a drawing for a commemorative painting by renowned artist, Erick Ochoa. It’s a fun way to look up and notice all these little treasures around town. Also new this year, several restaurants will offer discounts on breakfast and lunch to wristband holders while you are in town for the day.

In the words of historic homeowners, Lisa Welsch and husband, Doug Colton, “We are delighted to open our historic outdoor theater home Casa Cine Viejo for the Palapa Society Fundraiser. I cannot think of any better non-profit that benefits a wide range of folks from Todos Santos. The history and culture of this town are amazing, and our home – although updated – still has the historic woven guest casitas and theater wall in place. Some architectural features remain which will give all visitors a sense of how it was back in 1935.”

President of The Palapa Society, Erick Ochoa, sums up, “We love working with all the homeowners and businesses to give visitors and residents an exciting experience to see the history of Todos Santos while benefiting the Palapa Society’s students.”
Bumann adds, “The program booklet has been translated into Spanish so be sure to spread the word to all your Spanish-speaking family members, friends and neighbors!”

The Palapa Society, a Mexican and U.S. non-profit, that offers:

Scholarships to over 90 middle/high school and university students annually.
The newly opened Palapa School providing a high quality, SEP-certified education to prepare middle school (and soon high school) students for university and a lifetime of opportunities.
After-school English classes serving over 170 students and 90 adults
A bilingual adult library with over 9,00 books and DVDs
A bilingual children’s library
Art, ecology, swimming, and water safety classes

The 9th Annual Todos Santos Open Studio will be held the weekend of Feb 10 & 11, from 10 am to 4 pm. All proceeds benefit the children’s art programs at the Palapa Society of Todos Santos, A.C. Advance ticket sales begin Jan 28th at $10 USD ($200 pesos) and can be purchased in town at the Tecolote Book Store located on Calle Juarez, or ordered online by email or purchased at Brown Paper Tickets. Tickets can also be purchased on event days from 9 – 3 at Cleo’s in Las Tunas and The Palapa Learning Center (PLC) on del Huerto in town.

This two-day event draws hundreds of people curious to see working art studios, meet the artists, and perhaps purchase their art. Approximately 40 participating artists include painters, sculptors, photographers, muralists, plein air painters, encaustic artists, jewelers, print-makers, collage artists, potters, and wood turners. New this year, the Palapa Learning Center will be a special stop on the tour featuring a sampling of 20 selected tour artists’ work for sale. Additionally, the Palapa Society’s children artists will be working in their “studio” with work on display.

“Following a self-guided tour, visitors can catch a glimpse of the creative and artistic energy of the Todos Santos’ artists. It is an amazing experience to drive down a dusty road and gain entry to a magical place that is only open to the public once a year! No matter what your taste, you will leave inspired by the art and conversation with the artist!” Anne Hebebrand

For more information please visit our Facebook Page.

We are excited to announce The Palapa Society is the beneficiary of the silent auction and raffle held during this year’s GastroVino Food and Wine Festival held Sunday, May 7th in the Town Plaza from 2 – 6 p.m.

Features include:

• Nearly 100 auction items available for onsite bidding and immediate sale
• One exclusive piece of art by Ezra Katz available only through online bidding.
• Two exciting adventures available for an onsite Raffles
• A Buy It Now feature for all onsite Silent Auction items

Exclusive Online Auction
Painting by Ezra Katz

Ezra Katz, noted Todos Santos artist recently donated an original painting to benefit The Palapa Society. This piece will be auctioned online only from Tuesday, April 25 with bids closing Tuesday, May 9, 2017.

The 108 X 108 cm (42 X 42 inch) painting, “Storm Watchers,” is a signed oil painting on canvas by renowned artist, Ezra Katz as part of the GastroVino weekend and will be featured in the auction tent for viewing May 7 during the Town Plaza event, and online for bidding.
Click here to view and BID NOW.

The auction will start on April 25 and ends on May 9, 2017.

More about Ezra Katz: click to learn more about Ezra Katz. http://ezrakatz.com/

Onsite Raffles

Todos Santos Eco Adventures
WIN a Magdalena Bay Whale Watching
Trip for 2
Value: $1,270 USD
2 days includes transportation, meals, one night hotel, and 2 three-hour whale watching sessions with bilingual naturalist. Click here to view their website.

Black Sheep Motorsports 
Value: $8,000 MXP
WIN a Adventure Trip for 2. Take a ride in one of Black Sheep Motorsports side-by-side Can Am Commander. Choose from a variety of self-guided GPS tours up to $8,000 MXP. This is an excellent way to day-trip and explore. Click here to view their website.

SILENT AUCTION

An amazing collection of nearly 100 items for the Silent Auction are available for bid or a “Buy It Now” price (a new feature) for high quality art, jewelry, lodging, restaurant, services, and retail shop items. A popular feature of GastroVino, look for the big tent and enjoy a shopping bonanza.

Here is a sampling of items for bid.

Scroll through the below businesses for a complete list of all items up for auction. Set your sights on what you want to bid on.

Live Art Auction
Come out and see the artists at work! 

Carlos César Diaz Castro, from La Paz, Mexico, is a photographer, graphic designer, painter, communicator, and teacher whose pictorial work presents honest images of a generous environment of forms and details linked to his admiration for the land. Without idealizing the iconography of the everyday, he takes his notes directly from the nature of the moment and then executes his definitive works in the studio. His work can be found at Centro de Artes Populares in La Paz, BCS, Mexico.

Brian Guffey is a self-taught artist with images from his life experiences and childhood loosely represented in his paintings. Storytelling, children’s books, and his grandmother are all inspirations for conceptualizing imagery and themes. His work can be seen as either light-hearted, thought-provoking, or both simultaneously.

Tori Sepulveda is a graduate of UC Santa Barbara where she majored in fine art, then taught high school advanced placement art for 37 years. She is please to continue teaching and painting here in Todos Santos where she can use her experience to inspire others and support the community. Her art can be seen at Mangos Gallery as well as her own studio.

Robert E. Wood is a Canadian artist adept at portraying a wide variety of subject matter including landscape, seascape, still life, street scenes, and more. He has been a frequent visitor to Todos Santos since 2007, and this is his 4th time painting on location at GastroVino to benefit local causes. Robert has been honored to have won first place in the only art competition he ever entered: Arabella art magazine’s 2014 “Great Canadian Landscape Painting Competition.” His paintings hang in private and corporate collections around the world, and his work is represented by the Diaz Castro Galleria in La Paz.