> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # On the wild side Art Walk to benefit Venice Family Clinic GOT NEWS? - URL: https://www.smdp.com/on-the-wild-side-art-walk-to-benefit-venice-family-clinic-got-news/ - Published: 2007-05-19T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-24T00:47:31.000Z - Author: Melody Hanatani - Tags: Health, Venice, #archive-import VENICE A lifelong pursuit for art has taken painter Kenny Harris around the world, studying and paying his dues in New York City, Colorado Springs and Florence, Italy. It wasn’t until 2002 in a community fundraising event called the Venice Art Walk that Harris’ career really took off. The Palo Alto native came to Venice in 2001, taking up residency in a large complex of artist studios on the corner of Fourth Street and Vernon Avenue. The complex was a popular stop on the annual Venice Art Walk, a walking tour held each spring to highlight the plethora of artist studios in the funky West LA neighborhood. Along with the regular art studios in the tour, the Venice Art Walk was also giving up-and-coming artists the chance to participate through the guest artist program. Harris, a figurative painter, signed on, figuring the artist complex would be filled with tourists from the Venice Art Walk anyway. “It ended up being a really great experience,” Harris said. “I sold a lot of paintings.” Today, Harris’ work is regularly featured in three galleries — the George Billis Gallery in New York City, Gallery C in Hermosa Beach and Terrence Rogers Fine Art in Santa Monica. “It gave me exposure in LA, initially for sure,” Harris said. “Two thousand people came through the studio on that Sunday and that kind of exposure was great.” An annual fundraiser for the Venice Family Clinic, the Venice Art Walk honors the beachside community’s rich history of up-and-coming artists, many of whom were attracted to the scenic, inspirational area when rent was still affordable. The 28th Annual Venice Art Walk kicks off today with two tours — first, highlighting the collection of “green” homes in Santa Monica and Venice, and then, homes in the Marina Peninsula with interesting art collections. The festivities follow on Sunday with the actual “art walk,” where more than 60 studios will open their doors. The main concentration of artist studios are located around the Venice Boulevard and Abbot Kinney Boulevard area. For the first time this year, the art walk extends further south to add nine additional studios. The Venice Art Walk was founded in 1979 by the late Irma Colen and a group of clinic supporters who wanted to start a formal fundraising program for the Venice Family Clinic. The event has slowly grown over the years from a handful of participating studios to more than 60 today. More than 4,000 people are expected over the weekend. “It was a novel idea to see if people could go around and look in studios,” said Alison Dockray, the associate development director of the Venice Family Clinic. Many of the original artists who participated have moved on — out of Venice, establishing successful careers, partly in thanks to the Venice Art Walk. New faces are seen on the tours every year to the delight of Venice Art Walk regulars who might get tired of seeing the same works year after year. With about half a million dollars raised through the event, the Venice Art Walk is the second largest fundraiser for the Venice Family Clinic, the first being an annual Silver Circle Dinner in February. But with about nine months of planning behind it, the Venice Art Walk is by far the clinic’s largest fundraising event operationally. The majority of the revenue comes from ticket sales and proceeds from the silent auction, which will be held on Sunday. All pieces in the auction are donated by the artists. Founded in 1970, the Venice Family Clinic serves about 22,000 low income and uninsured children and adults in seven satellite locations in Culver City, Mar Vista, Santa Monica and Venice. About 2,400 volunteers and 500 physicians keep the clinic operating. “The clinic helps many people, a lot of artists too who can’t afford health care,” said Leslie Adler, the Venice Art Walk committee co-chair. “They come back when they get known and thanks us because we helped them along the way.” ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/051907-09_01.jpg) SHINING EXAMPLE: “Transition 4 (afternoon)” from the “Transitional Light at Terrence Rogers” series of works. (Photo: Photo courtesy) *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on May 19, 2007.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/051907.pdf?ref=smdp.com)