Four new exhibits celebrating the female creative voice will open at Arte Américas on Wednesday, March 5. The exhibition coincides with International Women’s Day and National Women’s History Month, and runs through Mother’s Day.
The group show will feature women artists exclusively, all coming from Fresno and surrounding towns. “Arte Américas, as an organization, is known as a venue that supports the Valley’s thriving art community,” said Curator Tony Carranza. “I think that anyone who visits between now and Mother’s Day will agree that this is a very strong show.”
The Ruiz Gallery will showcase a multimedia group show: ¡VIVA LA MUXER! The exhibition includes works by fourteen veteran and emerging Central artists in a variety of media: photography, paintings on canvas, prints, and experiential installation environments.
The Fresno cultural center’s mission is to “create a flourishing place for Latino art,” but notably, not all of the participating artists in ¡VIVA LA MUXER! are, in fact, Latina. Nanete Maki-Dearson’s was already a fan of Arte Américas, and was excited about her invitation to show her artwork in the gallery-space. “Encouraging visual arts, dance, music, authors…they’re a thriving, energized, highly generous community of support,” she said.
Las Gallerías de la Comunidad – or Community Galleries – will feature two photographers. Rosa Elena Alvarez’s series of black and white staged images explore intimately personal themes. Raw, honest, thought provoking, and beautifully noir – the artfully captured works by the Fresno State graduate have made her a rising local talent. Alvarez enjoys the “magical nature of the darkroom,” and developed each of the prints to be shown in the collection.
Oaxacan photographer Itandehui F. Ortiz’s photographs take the viewer on a tour behind the scenes of the current native peoples’ urban arts movement in Mexico. Her series features women muralists in the region who create positive change in their communities.
Inside The Fresno Art Museum Partnership Gallery, a stunning collection of contemporary sculptures by Bay Area artist Viviana Paredes combine glass, bronze, wood and organic materials. Paredes is Artist-In-Residence at the de Young Museum of San Francisco, and her work has been included in many group exhibitions from the U.S. to Mexico.
“We have a lot of great things planned…from workshops to collaborative events and presentations,” said Executive Director Frank Delgado. “The Fresno County Library and the Fresno State Women’s Studies Program are each presenting programs, Tai Chi, sugar s classes lined up” The exhibitions, and the spirit that inspired it, transcend the gallery walls,” he added.
ARTE AMÉRICAS CELEBRATES THE FEMALE CREATIVE
MARCH 5, 2014 – MAY 11, 2014
AT ARTE AMÉRICAS
1630 VAN NESS, FRESNO, CA 93712
Gallery Hours:
- Wed-Sat 11am-5pm
- Sunday 1pm-5pm
- Closed Monday/Tuesday
Important March dates:
- March 6 – Art Hop
- March 8 – International Women’s Day at Fresno City College (tabling)
- March 15 – Viva La Muxer artist’s reception
- March 22 – Sugar Skull workshop in the Plaza
- March 23 – Zelda Fitzgerald – Story of an Artist : An educational presentation by Fresno County Public LibraryAdult Programming Librarian Linda Aragon in connection with “The Big Read” of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby.
- March 29 – “Panza Power! A Student Performance of The Panza Monologues and Panel Discussion by Fresno State Women’s Studies Program Graduates.
- March 30 – Artist reception for photographer Rosa Elena Alvarez 2p-4p
