By Kathy Chouteau
The Richmond Art Center (RAC) has announced its Winter Exhibitions will encompass the 25th Anniversary of Art of the African Diaspora, the ceramic creations of Lauren Ari and Julio del Rio and works by Rebeca García-González Jan. 20 through March 22, 2022.
The exhibition will showcase the work of more than 100 artists of African descent in the RAC’s Main and West Galleries Jan. 20 to March 22. Tiffany Conway, Val Kai and Fan Lee Warren are among the exhibition’s featured artists this year and special receptions and speaker events will be coming to the center in February and March, COVID-19 permitting, per the RAC.
Linking up with the RAC’s Art of the African Diaspora exhibition will be open studios by artists, satellite exhibitions and special events now through March. Pick up an Art of the African Diaspora catalogue at the center to get the scoop on these artist-curated happenings.
Art of the African Diaspora satellite exhibition partners this year include CoBiz and Bridge Art Space in Richmond, the San Pablo Community Center in San Pablo, Slate Gallery and Warehouse 416 in Oakland, the Arts & Culture Commission of Contra Costa County in Martinez and Macy’s Union Square in San Francisco. The opening reception is TBA; learn more about Art of the African Diaspora exhibition here.
In the South Gallery during the aforementioned timeframe, the Dreamforms exhibition will “look into the whimsical imaginations of two Richmond-based ceramicists, Lauren Ari and Julio del Rio,” said the RAC. The exhibition will include colorful ceramic figures and works on paper and will explore “the intrinsic relationship between the imagined form and the material form.”
Dreamforms is a look into the whimsical imaginations of two Richmond-based ceramicists, Lauren Ari and Julio del Rio. Through a selection of works that include vibrant ceramic figures and works on paper, this exhibition explores the intrinsic relationship between the imagined and material forms.
The RAC said that Ari and del Rio approach ceramics in a similar vein: as a medium that offers a magical ability to materialize dreams and imaginations into physical realities. With Dreamforms, the artists’ dance between the ethereal and the corporeal comes alive via paper and ceramic forms.
A reception will be held Sat., March 5, from noon to 2 p.m. at the RAC. Learn more about Dreamforms here.
The exhibition of Richmond community-centric paintings and drawings by Rebeca García-González will hit the RAC’s South Gallery Jan. 20 through March 19.
The exhibit will be accompanied by a “new site-specific mural” by the artist entitled We Found Joy In Art-Making/Encontramos La Felicidad Haciendo Arte (2022). Youth assistants Leslie Poblano and Denise Campos helped García-González create the mural, which was made possible through support from Blue Shield California.
An opening reception will be held Sat., March 5, from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. Learn more about the mural and exhibition here.
The RAC is located at 2540 Barrett Ave. in Richmond. Gallery hours are Thursday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Learn more about the RAC here.
