About CMATO
CMATO is a cultural institution that engages, educates and enriches our visitors and our community through the visual arts.
Mission
- Introducing and showcasing unique and influential art
- Providing participatory experiences and education for diverse audiences
- Serving as a place where ideas are shared and people connect.
Vision
About Us
When you support CMATO by becoming a member, volunteering or through a charitable donation, you help us enrich our community through versatile art exhibitions, innovative and multi-faceted programs and free admission for all. Your commitment ensures the Museum remains a vital force in our community, dedicated to education and inspiration through the visual arts.
“What is the value of art? Not its price tag but its honest-to-goodness true value? CMATO is making a very strong case that art is priceless…priceless in the sense that the value of what art brings us, and what it brings out in us, is beyond measure.”
Our Story
CMATO was established in 2008, the direct outgrowth of the Conejo/Las Virgenes Future Foundation (CLVFF), a nonprofit organization dedicated to developing community-minded programs and projects for residents throughout Agoura Hills, Calabasas, Hidden Hills, Thousand Oaks and Westlake Village. Originally named the Regional Art Museum, CMATO established a Board of Directors in 2008 and received its 501 (c) (3) nonprofit status the same year. CMATO officially adopted its name in 2010 and held its first public art exhibition in September of 2015 – ART OF GEOMETRY: Sculptures by Betty Gold.
In 2018, CMATO relocated from its original site (adjacent to the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza) to a 5,500-square foot facility at The Oaks, significantly expanding its exhibition space, educational programs and community events.
Leadership
Roya Alt, Executive Director
Lynn Farrand, Senior Curator
“The focus of my art has always been to represent the human condition. I search for forms which are powerful in their simplicity and embrace an abstract style. My artforms focus on the universal human experience in order to transcend the differences between us.”
Lynn Farrand is a sculptor and visual artist working in bronze and uncommon materials. She has exhibited domestically and internationally in Asia and Europe and her work is owned by collectors locally and abroad. She earned her M.A. in Humanities from California State University, Dominguez Hills, and her undergraduate degree from the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada.
Board of Directors
- Nancy Chappell, Chair
- Len Linton, Treasurer
- Susan Kelly, Secretary
- Gerhard Apfelthaler, Ph.D.
- Larry Janss
- Richard Reitzell
- Joseph Bagliere
- Ken Tang