Preview and Save the Date for “Women of the New Contemporary” in Riverside: Sunday 2/28

Posted by

IMG_5229

Artist’s Republic Gallery, is curating a special exhibition for La Sierra University in Riverside. The exhibition titled Women of the New Contemporary, is opening on Sunday February 28th, with a reception from 5-8pm. The exhibition, will showcase the work of 30 female artists, and include special installations by Martha Rich and Deanna Templeton, along with presenting five outdoor murals.

Cartwheel Art Tours, in partnership with Obscura Society of Los Angeles, is offering a February 28th, Road Trip Tour, on a bus, that will bring guests to and from LA/Riverside for the opening reception, viewing of murals, and the panel discussion. The tour will also provide a full day of art and architecture exploration and discovery, with a private 1.5 hour docent tour of the Mission Inn and time at Tios Tacos.  The tour itinerary has been custom designed, and will be led by Cartwheel Art founder Cindy Schwarzstein. For more tour details and to purchase tickets, see the link here.  Use the code ExploreRiverside to receive $10.00 discount off the ticket price.

The exhibition at La Sierra University, will serve as one of the largest shows to date for the 32-year-old Brandstater Gallery. Curated by Artists Republic owner Torrey Cook, the show will include another first for the school – 5 site specific murals around the University’s Visual Arts Complex.

Most of the gallery exhibit will consist of paintings along with a few prints, photographic works and sculpture, that include the installations from artist Martha Rich and photographer Deanna Templeton.

Martha Rich will showcase a selection of her “speech bubbles” – large text bubbles that were cut from wood and painted with brilliant text. The bubbles capture for eternity bits and pieces of colorful conversations that one might accidentally overhear while going about the day. Martha has said that this fun and approachable style was a reaction to the harsh and serious attitudes she encountered while working towards her MFA.

Deanna Templeton will unveil selection of photographs from a long-term project she has been working on making portraits of girls that she visually feels a connection with… who somehow reminded her of her own experiences growing up. Deanna pairs the images with excerpts from her journals from when she was a teenage girl. The work, titled “What She Said,” are portraits that look at modern day youth culture and are also a look back to her own teenage years.

The remainder of the artists are contributing work that has been poignant to them at some time in their careers.

Most of the work will be available for purchase by the public.

The broad display will feature the works of artists from around the United States, as well as England and the Netherlands. Approximately half of the artists are from Southern California, and eight artists will arrive in the coming weeks before the opening to paint the murals.

Murals will be completed by Martha Rich, Casey O’Connell, Velia de Iuliis and Zio Ziegler. There will also be a collaborative mural painted by local Southern California artists Jennie Cotterill, Yevgeniya Mikhailik, Nancy Chiu and Suzanne Walsh.

“I’m really excited, I wonder what the energy will be like, the dynamics of all of us working separately yet coming together as one group.”

said San Diego County-based artist Casey O’Connell who will paint a mural on the north side of the exterior wall of the gallery as well as exhibit a piece inside the gallery.

The muralists will stay on campus while creating their wall paintings, allowing for interaction with university students.

“There is a buzz among the students who are excited to meet the artists,”

said Brandstater Gallery director and assistant art professor Tim Musso.

“It is important for students to see working artists who have had success in their careers through hard work, focus and commitment.”

“Women of the New Contemporary” is the latest of roughly 200 exhibits the Brandstater Gallery has hosted since its opening in 1984. The gallery was established with a legacy donation from the children of Roy and Frances Brandstater and has featured such prominent artists as Sam Francis, graphic designer Stefan Bucher, painter Josh Hagler, photographer Todd Baxter, and most recently, noted woodcut and print artist Roxanne Sexauer.

“My goal as gallery director is to put on a variety of exhibitions in terms of both media and accessibility,”

said Musso.

“It is important for me to select artists who are able to talk about their work in way that gallery visitors from all backgrounds can understand.”

Admission to “Women of the New Contemporary” is free. Brandstater Gallery is open Mon. – Thurs., 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. and is available by appointment by contacting Tim Musso at tmusso@lasierra.edu. Further information is available at 951-785-2170. La Sierra University is located at 4500 Riverwalk Parkway, Riverside. A campus map to reach Brandstater Gallery is available at https://lasierra.edu/fileadmin/documents/art/brandstater-campu-map.pdf.

Following is a list of participating artists:
Amanda Marie (Denver, Co), Alea Nicole Hurst (McDonough, Ga.) Camilla Taylor (Los Angeles, Calif.) Casey O’Connell (San Diego, Calif.), Dee Dee Cheriel (Los Angeles, Calif.) Handiedan (Amsterdam, Netherlands) Hilary White (Florida), Jovi Schnell (Berkeley, Calif.), Kati Williams (Richmond, Va.), Kelly Tunstall (San Francisco, Calif.) Laura Berger (Chicago, Ill.), Laurie Hassold (Costa Mesa, CA), Lisa Congdon (Portland, Ore.), Liz Brizzi (Los Angeles, Calif.) Magdalena Wosinska (Los Angeles, Calif.) Mel Kadel (Los Angeles, Calif.), Paige Smith (Los Angeles, Calif.), Super Future Kid (London, England), Velia de Iuliis (San Francisco, Calif.).

Special installations:
Martha Rich (Philadelphia, Pa.) and Deanna Templeton (Huntington Beach, Calif.)

12’x12” works from Southern California artists: Jennie Cotterill (Huntington Beach, CA) Chantal de Felice (San Clemente, CA) Yevgeniya Mikhailik (Irvine, CA) Camilla Taylor (Los Angeles, CA) Suzanne Walsh (Santa Ana, CA) Sara Walsh (Los Angeles, CA) Jessie Keylon (San Diego, CA) Lauren Over (Los Angeles, CA) Nancy Chiu (Irvine, CA) Erynn Richardson (Riverside, CA),

Exterior Murals:
Casey O’Connell (Encinitas, Calif.), Velia de Iuliis (San Francisco, Calif.), Martha Rich (Philadelphia, Pa.), Jennie Cotterill (Huntington Beach, CA) / Yevgeniya Mikhailik (Irvine, CA) / Nancy Chiu (Irvine, CA) / Suzanne Walsh, (Santa Ana, Calif.), Zio Ziegler (Mill Valley, CA)

About The New Contemporary Movement:
The New Contemporary movement, widely acknowledged to have begun in the early 90’s on the West Coast, evolved in reaction to a conceptual turn in fine art. Founded in part on a rejection of the arbitrary division of visual culture that tends to elevate “high art” above the social and popular realms, the movement invoked the countercultural and drew content from an immersion in social experience. The standard of excessive academicism and abstraction, against which it grew, was commonly held in higher regard than more figurative, graphic or representational forms of art. This marginalization inspired the New Contemporary movement to set its own terms and create its own context for the reception of its work. With a renewed emphasis on technical skill, narrative and representation, it has encouraged a social return in art. Moving away from the standard art education model that demands graduate school, an excess of critical rhetoric and an art world careerism, these artists, many of whom are self-taught, have sought their own inspiration and voice instead, drawing on everything from popular culture and social media platforms, to street art, murals and graffiti. By creating a distinct community in support of the diversity of its visions and styles, the movement has mortared and upheld its own invisible school.

About Artists Republic Gallery:
Since opening its doors in 2010, Artists Republic has been one of Orange County’s premier venues for New Contemporary art. Located in Laguna Beach, CA, the gallery is dedicated to the support of emerging and mid-career artists whose work has impacted and influenced lives through youth culture. Artists Republic is located at 1175 S. Coast Hwy in Laguna Beach and specializes in original works, prints, books and more.

IMG_5230

Mural by Velia de Iuliis

12734092_10209001798021002_2938491936004929406_n

Mural by Casey O’Connell

12745579_1112318455468632_5217890755360989791_n

Suzanne Walsh

 

12742727_1112849028748908_6308563507515991887_n

Lisa Congdon

12006524_1113659522001192_3704682463473169343_o

Camilla Taylor

12744010_1112848058749005_8879428859608282444_n

Laura Berger

AscendedMasterCloseup

Lauren Over

 

943951_10209006458057500_5802650390739037523_n

Casey O’Connell

 

12745406_1111016242265520_2206928878403715435_n

Leave a Reply