By Michael J. ARVIZU

St. George’s Episcopal Church in La Cañada will host a fine arts show from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sept. 21 and 22 in the church hall. The show will present the fine arts, ceramics and photography work of local artists.

Featured artists include Mims Ellis, Robin Cohen, Babs Fine, Kathryn Hansen, Christine Sargent, Katie Terry and Mark Kennedy. Bill Wawrychuk, one of the event organizers, will display part of his collection of bonsai.

The church will also feature a symposium at 6 p.m. on the first day of the show. Cal State Fullerton professor of art history Dr. Joanna Roche and St. George’s Church deacon Anthony Keller are the curators of the symposium.

Titled “The Artist/The Word: An Exploration of the Creative Spirit,” the symposium will exhibit works of art from the Renaissance period to 2006. Each work of art will be paired with a line from scripture. It is hoped, Keller said, that people will be able to make a connection with the works of art and faith.

“Then we try to discern what the artist is saying,” Keller said. “The artists have their own take on it. It’s a big discussion. It’s not so much us lecturing; it’s everybody [offering their own interpretation]. We just form a discussion based on those images.”

The symposium is an in-house event similar to the museum tours the church has taken to galleries across Southern California, including the Getty in Los Angeles, Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Instead of the church going to the museums, Keller said, the church will bring the museum to the church.

“We’ve done art tours where we’ve had over 40 people that have attended,” Keller said.

However, touring the museums, Keller said, had it limitations. The group was limited to the artwork that was currently being exhibited. With an in-house tour, Keller said, he has more flexibility on the type of artwork he is able to feature.

“We can really grab from all periods,” Keller said. “It’s many different artists and many styles.”

The goal of the art show, Keller said, is to open up St. George’s to the community and position it in the minds of community members that it is not only a place of worship but a “a place of life,” Keller said. “Art is a great way to just bring people together and celebrate people’s creativity.”

The art show is free and open to the public. For more information, call the church at (818) 790-3323.

“God created, and it was good,” Keller said. “We’re part of creation, even when we create things. So it’s really a celebration of our given gift of creation.”

  Michael J ARVIZU