place
The sun shines on palm fronds, their leaves gently swaying in Isla Vista’s afternoon breeze. Techno emanates from an apartment complex, doors opening to views of the Pacific Ocean as people stumble in and out, their days depicted through haze. The occasional runner passes by, the scent of sunscreen momentarily filling the air as they grow fainter upon a street lined with cups from the previous night's ventures.
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It’s another Saturday for the residents of Isla Vista, a land often described as the “never-land” of college towns.
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Composed of over 23,000 residents, Isla Vista serves as a space uncanny to others as youth encounters adulthood and the harsh yet blissful realities that accompany the transitory phase we call “growing up” prevail. Existing just 6 miles north of Santa Barbara, Isla Vista situates itself alongside the cliffs of California’s central coast, serving as a haven to predominantly students from various local campuses, including the University of California, Santa Barbara.
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Due to the high influx of young adults passing through its vicinity, many associate Isla Vista with party culture, blurry nights where the stresses of academia are forgotten amongst alcohol and drug consumption.
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However, through the focus of party culture as the prominent viewpoint of the residents of Isla Vista, the various other aspects that shape the reality of the space are lost. In particular, a sense of diversity that is evoked through the activities and creativity that is produced from Isla Vista’s residents is left forgotten.
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This story seeks to explore the ways in which Isla Vistans utilize their Saturdays to exercise creativity that is often not discussed within a space characterized by party culture.
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We aspire to uncover the multifaceted lives of students and their ability to express creative freedom as not only a form of expression but also a way to gain economic gains throughout the community.
people
community
The beauty that resides on the surface of Isla Vista is unlike that of anywhere else in the world: little beachside homes packed closely together overlooking the blue waves of the Pacific Ocean along the shore... students in wetsuits biking—surfboard under left arm and right hand steering the handlebars—to catch some quick waves before Bio class... stunning sunsets that glow over balconies wrapped in twinkly-lights.
After the sunset fades and the breeziness of the day sinks beyond the horizon, a wild party culture comes out at night. Isla Vistans dance for hours in the light of flashing strobes, to the vibratious beat of electronic music. Alcohol flows freely, mixed smoke substances disperse in the ocean breeze, and some who need an extra bosot can be found sneaking off to the party bathrooms, rolled dollar bills and white powder in hand.
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Beyond the lax, sunny days and the pumping, raging nights, many Isla Vistans can be found devoting their Saturdays to their creative passions outside of the stereotypical norm. In fact, these individuals thrive in this environment because Isla Vista enables these passions.
A communal sense of support radiates from Isla Vistan to Isla Vistan. The tight proximity enables the persistence of such passions. Without a community desire to wear locally made attire, the printmaker’s creations might not spread. Without an appreciation for furniture with a local flavor, the beer-die table painter’s talent might not find a home.
Every individual living in Isla Vista brings something unique to the community. Some bring the surfboard wax, and some bring the six-packs. Others bring their needle, ink, and a passion for creating body art that will last a lifetime. Isla Vista would not be complete without all of them.
"Isla Vista is like a small pocket where everyone knows each other. It’s like once you paint one person’s table, the word just spreads really quickly.”
“I think being the small community that we are, starting something so unique and different like Goat Yoga, helped in the fact that everyone started talking about it.”
"Living in IV really helps with selling my work in terms of knowing people and having a huge body of people who are interested in art and active engaged in, you know, that young art culture."
“Living in IV has really helped just given the sheer proximity of everyone around me. I’ve given a few tattoos to the guys literally just across the street and one below me too.”
“I tend to sell my clothing here in IV, in either open markets or public markets that folks put together here in the community.”