Vientos

The journey to bring the Performing Arts Program to Santa Rosa Island began last summer when dance faculty Lynn Schwaebe and Heather Castillo took a day trip to explore possibilities for dance.

Both of them agreed that the Island moved them, their souls, minds, and bodies. The difficult part was narrowing down the field of artistic inspiration. The dance ensemble began creating movement phrases and improvisation based on the elements of sand, water, and the gravitational pulls of the moon. After taking a weekend trip with 9 dancers to the island, wind became the prominent element that seems to dominate the island. Sand and water are moved, formed, pushed, combined, and molded by the strong gusts that greet you upon arriving on the island. At times the wind whispers, hides in a canyon, or roars along the beach and hilltops, but the wind is always there filling your ears and assaulting your senses, even indoors the wind’s presence is inescapable.

Everyone in the dance group who visited the island was impressed and in awe of its raw magnificent power.  The island also has a sense of humor. When you visit, don’t be distracted by her beauty, you might miss your trail! Which the ensemble did, and in backtracking hiked a strenuous 15 miles from 10 am to 6 pm. The unpredictability and malleability experienced by the dancers is precisely what makes it the perfect metaphor for dance performance and a wonderful source of dynamic inspiration.

It is with great reverence for the island’s history, power, beauty, and grace that we bring you Vientos.

Santa Rosa Island CSU Channel Islands Research Station information and press

• Recipient of the 2016 OBFS Human Diversity Award – OBFS (Organization of Biological Field Stations)
  • http://www.obfs.org/human-diversity-committee for a more complete explanation.  
• The USGS-NPS Collaborative ‘Cloud Forest Restoration Project’ of which the SRIRS and CSUCI are huge contributors to, by providing not only a learning opportunity for students K-12 and undergraduate, as well as community members, but also by providing hundreds of volunteer hours.
  • See the link for a story on it the VC Star did last Summer: http://www.vcstar.com/news/special/outdoors/scientist-works-to-harvest-fog-restore-island-off-ventura-county-35301236-d545-1a0c-e053-0100007f1ef–384776831.html . I have also included the annual report for this project.
• “West of the West” Channel Islands Documentary film – we have a copy on island. Here is a link that tells a little more about it: https://backpackers.com/must-see-west-of-the-west-a-tale-of-the-channel-islands-in-california/ . It brings me to tears just about every time I start watching snippets of it. Very impactful!
• Mammoth remains on Santa Rosa Island.
  • 1994 discovery: https://www.nps.gov/chis/learn/historyculture/pygmymammoth.htm
  • Giant & Pygmy Mammoths on SRI: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S104061821100190X
  • 2016 discovery: http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-mammoth-fossil-channel-islands-20160915-snap-story.html
• Oldest human remains in North America found on Santa Rosa Island.
  • Arlington Man: https://www.nps.gov/chis/learn/historyculture/arlington.htm
  • Arlington Springs Woman: http://articles.latimes.com/1999/apr/11/news/mn-26401