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Goleta recently named a bluff in honor of the celebrated landscape artist Chris Potter.
Whether standing in front of his easel outside of the county courthouse, painting an urban scene on the corner of State Street, or portraying the coast in all its glory while perched above Butterfly Beach, Chris Potter was the most recognizable artist of his generation in Santa Barbara.
When he died suddenly at just 49 years old on Feb. 3, 2024 — after having beat back a ravaging cancer just a year earlier — Potter, as he was known to friends and fans, left a legacy of vividly colored, lovingly rendered landscapes.
He brought his palette all around the globe and deep into the backcountry, but his works are dominated by scenes from the Ellwood Bluffs, the open space on the western end of Goleta where he spent much of his youth. And there was one prominent overlook where you could find Chris most often, sheltered from the breeze by eucalyptus trees and staring right down the coast toward the shifting sands of Coal Oil Point.
That’s why, on May 7, 2024, the Goleta City Council decreed that this spot shall forever be known as Potter’s Point. Spearheaded by the office of County Supervisor Laura Capps, the vast public support for the idea, which tallied nearly 2,000 signatures, led to a unanimous vote on the matter. It was only the third time that the 20-year-old City of Goleta named something after a person.
“You don’t get a whole lot more local to Ellwood than Chris Potter,” explained his lifelong friend Chris Jones during an earlier hearing on the matter. “He is one of the more iconic people to come through our area, and he gave back to the community every chance he had.”
City council members agreed, including James Kyriaco, who said from the dais, “This is a fitting way to honor a Goleta legend and someone who just helped us appreciate this wonderful place a little bit more.”
At the final hearing, a family friend read one of the social media posts that Potter posted during his fight with cancer a couple of years ago.
“I’d close my eyes on the radiation table and attempt to let joy in,” Potter wrote. “It came in the form of me standing and painting on the bluffs at Ellwood at ‘my spot.’ Then I was a redtail hawk taking off from that spot and gliding along the cliffs. Then flying out over the ocean in a big loop, drifting up to hover, and then looking down at myself painting. Joy came to me, and I accepted that no matter what happens, I was here and I made my mark.”
Potter’s Point is at Ellwood Mesa Open Space with parking at 7729 Hollister Ave., Goleta.
