The Whole 9 Gallery has established itself as a leading cultural center in Culver City. An art gallery and non profit, they not only help emerging artists but aslo support Peace Project initiatives.

On any given day, 25% of anything purchased at The Whole 9 Gallery, goes to The Peace Project and 100% from Peace Project merchandise will go directly towards Peace Project initiatives.

On July 14th, The Whole 9 Gallery hosted a benefit, The Taste of Culver City, an eclectic mix of art music delicious food and wonderful socializing.

A lovely crowd of interesting people greeted me as I walked through the door. A welcoming selection of art beckoned to me as appetizers and dirnks were offered. This special event was a benefit and well worth the admission price to be part of this fantastic art party.

Several Culver City Restaurants contributed to the night. Samplings from the Culver Hotel, Grand Casino, Kay & Dave’s, Kebab Bistro, K-Zo, La Rocca’s and more. I enjoyed a glass of champagne while socializing and nibbling on savory appetizers.

Live music was supplied by Rosendo, The Jane Doe’s and Grace Gravity.

The exhibition, ZERO HOUR featured artists: Fred Feldmesser, Graham Goddard, Joan Scheibel and Ashleigh Sumner.

I was speciifically drawn to one artist’s work. LA Local, Joan Scheibel who was showing her work for the first time at the Whole 9 Gallery for this special fundraiser.

Scheibel has been actively exhibiting her art for the past 2 years at venues such as The Center For The Arts, Eagle Rock, Advocate/Gonchis Gallery in Hollywood, Venice Art Crawl and City Sip.

She shared her process with me, “I try to paint everyday…it is the best meditation I can do!” She continued, “I think I started painting the minute I began walking. Ever since I can remember starting with crayons.”

I had the chance to talk to event coordinator and curator for the Whole 9 Gallery, Heidi Huber as well.

“The event went great! The food was excellent, as was the music, and the company!” she exclaimed.

When asked how often the Whole 9 Gallery holds benefits, she replied, “Since we are a relatively young non-profit, I don’t think we’re ever out of fundraising mode. Typically, we’ll host three fundraisers a year but always have Peace Project merchandise available for purchase at The Whole 9 Gallery in downtown Culver City.”

Finally, I asked about the new space…and how it has affected the gallery. Huber says “We moved here last October, just before we premiered the 2nd Peace Project exhibit. We are loving this location — the foot traffic is so much better and our neighbors are unreal. Well, you saw how supportive they are — all of the food last Saturday was donated.

The most wonderful part of this fun night, was all the proceeds from the event help to transform lives by creating jobs for people in Sierra Leone, Africa, through The Peace Project initiatives.

Special thanks to photographer Nick Applebee.