Aurelia & Jim Temenak Art Gallery
San Diego Oasis at Rancho Bernardo & La Mesa
Art has always been an integral part of the Oasis culture, and we are pleased to continue this tradition in both of our La Mesa and Rancho Bernardo locations. Oasis is deeply grateful to Aurelia & Jim Temenak, whose passion for art has shaped our permanent and rotating gallery in Rancho Bernardo. They expanded their support opening a beautiful new gallery at our La Mesa center in February 2026. We appreciate their investment of time, resources and joy in bringing art to our beautiful new space.
Vision Statement for the Oasis Art Gallery
To enhance the visual beauty of San Diego Oasis and to make the entire space cheerful and inspiring for all who visit and work at Oasis.
We currently have several artists featured in both locations, including Lisa Elley, Mike Lafata, Ingrid Hoffmeister-Hoy, Iris Scott, Rosemary KimBal, Eddie Omens, Cynthia Haney, Leonid Afremov, and more. All artwork in our rotating exhibits are for sale, with all or a portion of proceeds going to support the mission of San Diego Oasis. We accept all forms of payment (cash, check, Visa, and Mastercard). If you are interested in making a purchase, please visit the reception desk at either location and we'll be happy to work with you!
Interested in being a featured artist?
Contact Aurelia & Jim if you are interested in having your work displayed at one of our galleries. Email: Aurelia & Jim Temenak
Aurelia & Jim Temenak
Interested in pursuing or perfecting your own artistic endeavors?
We have a variety of art classes at both locations, including drawing basics, acrylics, watercolor, ceramic glazing, notecard making, paper quilling, photography, gel printing, and more! Options change each trimester, so browse our Arts Classes page to see what's coming up.
Rotating Art Exhibits at San Diego Oasis at La Mesa
We’re excited to announce the La Mesa Art Gallery is open!
Expanding upon our longstanding commitment to the arts, this new gallery showcases both our permanent collection and a vibrant rotation of local talent. Each exhibit will highlight the creativity and diversity of artists across San Diego.
Our featured artists include:
Scott Allen | Loretta Bonus | Janyce Erlich-Moss | Sarah Honaker | Carrie Markello | Michiyo Matsura | Lucas Smith | Melodie Tune
Scott Allen
Rotating Exhibit on Display at La Mesa Location
Scott Allen is a San Diego-based mixed-media abstract artist with over 40 years of experience in graphic design, advertising, and visual communication. His artwork blends layered textures, bold composition, and typography, often revealing quiet narratives beneath the surface.
Influenced by his design background, Scott’s paintings balance structure and color. He frequently incorporates letter forms and collage to explore visual rhythm and movement. For him, painting is a personal, liberating process that brings imagination into reality. His evolving body of work invites viewers to look closer and connect with the layered complexity that lies beneath the visible.
Scott holds a BA in Art with an emphasis in Graphic Communications from San Diego State University and is an instructor at Art on 30th. Scott is a frequent exhibitor at Ashton Gallery and other local art venues.
Loretta Bonus
Rotating Exhibit on Display at La Mesa Location
Loretta Bonus was born and raised in Colorado and moved to San Diego, California after university. Her art education began in high school, but was mostly experiential until after retirement when time was available for numerous classes at Art on 30th in San Diego, CA. Her art exhibitions began in 2022 and have continued since then at juried shows at Art on 30th, Costa Mesa, CA and Carlsbad, CA. She has also exhibited in numerous online juried digital shows at Teravarna Gallery, Light, Space and Time Gallery, and KBM Art Gallery. Most of her work has earned Honorable Mention Awards in the online art shows. Her work, Desert Hills, was juried into the book published in August 2025 by Arts to Hearts Project: 101 Artbook - Abstract Edition 2025 as a participating artist and as a featured artist.
Janyce Erlich-Moss
Rotating Exhibit on Display at La Mesa Location
Janyce Erlich-Moss is a mixed-media artist who explores innovative ways of seeing through painting and photography. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally, including at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, ibiCASA in Ibiza, and LA ArtCore, with recent solo exhibitions at First Independent Gallery in Santa Monica and the Kaaterskill Gallery. Her work is held in numerous public and corporate collections, and she holds a BA from California State University, Northridge, and an MFA in Photography from George Washington University.
Sarah Honaker
Rotating Exhibit on Display at La Mesa Location
Sarah Honaker is a contemporary coastal artist known for her vibrant, textured acrylic work that radiates joy, warmth, and fun. After years in a demanding corporate career, Sarah was inspired by her sons to follow her true passion: creating art that uplifts and gives back. Her art reflects both freedom and purpose - soft yet bold, playful yet meaningful. Sarah’s coastal-inspired pieces are infused with joyful colors and rich textures that invite viewers to pause, feel, and smile.
Each painting is designed not just to decorate a space, but to bring a sense of happiness and light to those who experience it. Driven by a deep desire to make a difference, Sarah is committed to using her art as a platform for good. She proudly supports causes close to her heart, including the Coronado Schools Foundation, an organization that resonates deeply with her, as her two sons are part of the Coronado school system. For Sarah, art is not only an expression - it’s a way to connect, to give back, and to spark joy in the world around her.
Carrie Markello
Rotating Exhibit on Display at La Mesa Location
Originally from Buffalo, New York, Carrie Markello is a mixed-media artist whose work has been featured in regional, national, and international exhibitions for decades. Her career includes solo and group exhibitions at venues such as Lawndale Art Center in Houston, University of Massachusetts, Houston Community College, and Art on 30th, as well as selection by noted curators and critics for national exhibitions. After retiring from a long career teaching art and museum education at the University of Houston, she relocated to San Diego in 2024, where her award-winning work continues to be exhibited throughout the region.
Michiyo Matsura
Rotating Exhibit on Display at La Mesa Location
Michiyo Matuura is a San Diego–based mixed-media artist originally from Japan who studied art and graphic design at Tama Art University in Kanagawa. Inspired by the natural beauty of her childhood near Mt. Fuji, her work blends Japanese artistic traditions with experimentation across materials and a deep connection to nature. She completed the Art on 30th Artist Mentorship in 2024 and has received awards from Art on 30th and the San Diego Watercolor Society.
Lucas Smith
Rotating Exhibit on Display at La Mesa Location
Lucas Smith is an award-winning contemporary abstract artist working in acrylic and mixed media, known for dynamic, layered compositions that explore the balance between imagination and technique. His work is held in private collections across nine U.S. states, Norway, and Australia, and has earned more than fifteen awards, including the Innovative Use of Technique award at the San Diego Watercolor Society’s 2025 45th International Exhibition. Based in San Diego, Lucas is the resident artist at Studio 2 at Art on 30th and an active leader in the regional and global arts community.
Melodie Tune
Rotating Exhibit on Display at La Mesa Location
Melodie Tune holds an MFA in Printmaking and spent her career as a graphic designer and illustrator for organizations including the National Park Service, NOAA, the University of Washington, and San Diego State University before pivoting to painting. Now based at Art on 30th in San Diego, she explores abstract concepts through painting, mixed media, and collage, with work exhibited nationally and locally at institutions such as the Joslyn Art Museum, Watercolor USA, the San Diego Watercolor Society, and Woodward Contemporary.
David Burakoff
Rotating Exhibit on Display at La Mesa Location
David Burakoff is a contemporary abstract painter and Mexico City native whose work is shaped by his rich cultural upbringing and early exposure to art, music, and literature. After earning a BA in Industrial Design and an MBA, and building a successful home décor business, he fully embraced his passion for painting. Working primarily in acrylics and mixed media, Burakoff creates layered, expressive pieces inspired by nature and rugged landscapes, defined by rich texture, bold color, and flowing organic forms. You can visit his website at www.artbydavidb.com.
Rotating Art Exhibits at San Diego Oasis at Rancho Bernardo
In addition to our permanent collection, we regularly feature local artists in our rotating art exhibits. Our newest installation features the beautiful artwork of up-and-coming artists local to San Diego. Our current featured artists are:
Maureen Kerr | Diane DiSalvo Doonan
Come browse their artwork and take your favorite piece home! Proceeds support the mission of San Diego Oasis.
Maureen Kerr
Rotating Exhibit on Display at Rancho Bernardo Location
Maureen Kerr is an award-winning contemporary artist based in San Diego, California. Born in Switzerland, she traveled extensively across Europe and Asia before settling in San Diego. After a career in human resources, Kerr found her passion in acrylic and mixed media, creating bold, vibrant works that blend representational abstraction with intuitive creativity.
Inspired by her adventures, from hiking in Sedona to gondola rides in Venice, Maureen’s art invites viewers to explore the world through her unique perspective.
She teaches at Art on 30th and exhibits regularly at Ashton Gallery and other San Diego venues.
Diane DiSalvo Doonan
Rotating Exhibit on Display at Rancho Bernardo Location
Diane DiSalvo Doonan studied under Salvatore Pecoraro at De Anza College in Cupertino, California, and earned her Bachelor’s degree from San Jose State University in 1973. After a long and successful career as a medical office administrator and billing manager spanning more than thirty years, she returned to her artistic practice in retirement after raising two children with her husband, John.
Working primarily in acrylic painting, Doonan’s work ranges widely in style, from realism to highly textured abstraction. An airbrush piece by the artist is included in the permanent collection of the Euphrates Gallery at De Anza College. Her artwork is also featured in the Armida Winery tasting room in Capitola, California.
Continuing education at Art on 30th has been a major source of inspiration, with her work frequently appearing in exhibitions where it has received honorable mentions and sales recognition. Doonan has exhibited at Woodward Contemporary Gallery, the San Diego Watercolor Society, the North Coastal Art Gallery in Carlsbad, and Art Scene West in Seaport Village, San Diego. The artist maintains a substantial and diverse body of work reflecting ongoing exploration across multiple visual styles and approaches.
Featured Artists in Our Permanent Collection
Discover the local artists whose work lives on our walls year-round, adding color, creativity, and inspiration to our San Diego Oasis centers.
Leonid Afremov
Works on Display at La Mesa Location
Leonid Afremov (1955–2019) was a modern impressionist renowned for his vibrant, emotional cityscapes and landscapes created exclusively with a palette knife and oil paints. His signature style features bold, textured strokes, vivid colors, and romantic scenes of rainy streets or city lights. Afremov pioneered online art sales, selling directly to collectors worldwide.
He was born in Belarus. Between 1990 and 2002 he lived in Israel, and from 2002 to 2010 in Boca Raton, Florida. In 2010 Leonid moved to Playa Del Carmen in Mexico as a place for retirement and teaching inspiring young artists.
Cynthia Haney
Works on Display at La Mesa Location
Cynthia was a native Californian, a graduate of Scripps College, and a San Diegan since 1969.
For many years, Cynthia was a collage artist actively involved in the international mail art movement, as well as a studio painter with a keen interest in geometrical abstract & perceptual phenomena. Cyntha was represented by Knowles Gallery in La Jolla; her artwork hangs in private and corporate collections, including General Atomics.
A chance invitation by a friend to attend an exercise class at Oasis, designed for seniors, led Cynthia to become a certified instructor. Cynthia began teaching a comprehensive strength, balance and flexibility program at Oasis which flourished for years.
“For these wonderful years of teaching and for the array of classes that I continue to attend, I am grateful for Oasis and feel privileged to include a gift for Oasis in my estate plan.” — Cynthia Haney
Janet Sanchez
Works on Display at La Mesa Location
Mike Lafata
Permanent Display at Rancho Bernardo Location
As an abstract painter based in the beautiful city of San Diego, Mike's artistic philosophy revolves around exploring the interplay of color and form. His paintings are rich in texture and dimensionality; drawing inspiration from the world around him. His approach to painting is rooted in minimalism, where he uses a delicate balance of translucent and opaque textures to create one-of-a-kind works of art. Each piece is carefully crafted to evoke a sense of depth and intrigue, inviting viewers to embark on their own interpretation based on their personal experiences. Abstract art is a fascinating genre that holds the power to transcend language and cultural barriers, enabling us to communicate on a deeper emotional level. As an artist, he takes pride in the ability to connect with his audience and inspire them to see the world through a new lens.
Learn More | Mike Lafata
Iris Scott
Permanent Display at Rancho Bernardo Location
Iris Scott (b.1984) grew up in Maple Valley, Washington on what she describes as a “one-family hippie commune”. She and her sister spent evenings listening to their mother, a writer, tell epic tales about the anthropomorphized lives of the family’s pet parrots, lizards, cats, goats, and rabbits—with wild coyotes appearing in the stories as special guest stars. Iris’ father, a custom cabinet maker, worked in a shop attached to the house, and Iris absorbed how a woodworker manifests their ideas with their hands. Iris continues the family’s storytelling tradition of magical realism, like her mother, and emulates her father by building the worlds she imagines with her hands. Scott’s college years were spent in Florence, in the same centuries-old halls where Raphael, Michelangelo, and Da Vinci worked. In her mid twenties, Iris moved to a tiny apartment overlooking a rainforest outside of Kaohsiung, Taiwan. During this time, she stumbled upon finger painting when a serendipitous lack of clean brushes prompted her to finish a painting with her fingertips. In that moment she recognized how fingers could scoop oil paint better than brushes, and overnight she committed to leaving her brushes behind. Scott worked exclusively as an oil finger painter from 2010 to 2020. Her journey as a painter took her to New York, where she lived and worked in a Brooklyn loft space for six years.
Learn More | Iris Scott
