Lisa Benshea

WORK HISTORY

EDUCATION

ABOUT LISA BENSHEA

Lisa Benshea is the Travel and Special Programs Manager at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, where she has worked since 2007. Each year, the department puts on 16-18 international and domestic tours per year, 8 classical music concerts, and a handful of “armchair travel” lectures. Lisa was born and raised in Honolulu, where she worked as a T.A. at the art school of the Honolulu Art Museum and would volunteer at events put on by the museum, where her mom and grandmother had both worked. She attended Punahou School for 13 years and went abroad twice on school trips. She came to California to attend Occidental College, where she earned her B.A. in Art History and was given the opportunity to study in Italy for six months. During and after college, she worked at museums and as an event planner for an autism organization, before taking time off to volunteer in India. When she moved to Santa Barbara in 2007, she found her perfect job, which combines her love for people, travel, events, and art. SBMA’s Travel Program was started by Shelly Ruston and the Museum’s first tour was in 1972. Since then, SBMA has put on more than 600 tours and brought thousands of Members in search of art and inspiration around the world.