Several Los Altos residents are involved with this year’s Portola Valley Arts Fest, scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 13.
The Arts Fest showcases a diverse range of art forms, including an authors’ panel, live music, a theater performance, an artists’ market, an artist workshop and an exhibition.
Patrice Gelband serves as the festival’s exhibitions coordinator, while fellow Los Altos residents Ellen Barker and Jan Davis are among the artists. Barker, a literary fiction author, will be part of the authors’ panel that she also coordinated. Davis will showcase her mixed media art at the event.
Initially, Gelband showed her artwork at the festival but transitioned to a coordinator role in 2023.
“For me, (it’s also) an opportunity to interact meaningfully with the participating artists and get to know them to help create that sense of community and a place where people find creative inspiration and get excited about the arts,” Gelband said.
Gelband added that she released an online form for artists to apply to be part of the art exhibition, which will feature approximately 20 artists this year. While the art mediums vary every year, the exhibition has a variety of both 2D and 3D pieces. In the past, it displayed paintings, photography, ceramics, glassworks, textiles and succulent arrangements.
Additionally, the festival features a market to purchase art – separate from the exhibition. Patrons can also purchase art at the exhibition, but they must wait till the end of the event to pick up the art piece.
According to Gelband, the range of artists showcasing their work is diverse, ranging from new artists in the community to world-class artists.
Davis might be considered one of the new artists, as this marks her second year participating. Davis said she appreciates the small, close-knit community that Arts Fest offers.
Through Arts Fest, Davis said she gets the opportunity to expand her creative network of artists and talk to people about her art. She noted that her mixed media pieces are often nature-inspired and bridge together abstraction with representation. She often begins with a printmaking base such as a collagraph plate. From there, she builds layers onto her work in many ways, such as painting, stitching and adding leaves or textiles, resulting in complex pieces.
“I’d say that my work has a certain complexity about it that draws you in to look at more detail,” Davis said. “Hopefully they’ll say, ‘Gosh, how’d they do that,’ or hopefully my art will just relate to them in some way – whatever experience they have with nature.”
As for Barker, she will be among three Bay Area authors in the panel, during which they share their journeys as writers. Barker has been featured in two anthologies and published three books, with a fourth one on the way. Her upcoming novel “Nothing North of Delmar” – set to publish in April 2026 – is the start of a new series.
Barker’s first three novels were part of “The East of Troost” series, which explores themes of social and racial divisions.
Unlike last year’s panel, which featured five unrelated authors taking turns talking, Barker said this year’s format is more focused on each author’s upbringing instead of self-promoting their books. Each author will have 10 minutes to speak about their work, their careers and what inspires them. After that, the audience can participate.
“When I’m doing author events, I like when people ask questions and get involved,” Barker said. “They either ask questions about how I wrote the book or what it’s like to publish the book. I also love it when something we say triggers a connection in their own experience.”
The Portola Valley Arts Fest runs 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday under the redwoods at Ladera Community Church, 3300 Alpine Road, Portola Valley. Admission is free. There will be food and local wine for sale.
For more information, visit tinyurl.com/PortolaArts.
