Women’s Conference Scheduled Saturday

Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and more than 600 other women are expected to gather for the fifth annual Ventura County Regional Conference for Women on Saturday at the Doubletree Hotel in Ventura.

The conference, with a theme of “Art and Womanhood,” will honor 103-year-old artist and author Beatrice Wood and feature a photo retrospective of her life and work. The work of other women artists from Ventura County will also be on display.

“I think Wood is perhaps the most significant woman living in Ventura County,” said Marylin Woods, vice president and general manager of KBBY-FM (95.1) radio, who is helping to organize the conference. “She has been here 50 years. She is an international treasure. We decided to honor her, and the theme of ‘Art and Womanhood’ developed from there.”

Wood will not attend the conference, but two of her drawings--”Untitled,” which shows two women on a bench, and “Battered Wife,” showing a man and woman’s face in turmoil--will be auctioned. Proceeds from the silent auction, as well as sales of other artists’ works, will be donated to Interface, which operates domestic violence programs in the county.

The all-day conference will have 25 seminars on topics ranging from finance to career and lifestyle issues. Admission cost of $59 includes a continental breakfast.

Several well-known women will speak, including Boxer and Kelly Lange, an anchorwoman on KNBC-TV Channel 4 in Los Angeles.