Opening Reception: Saturday, May 4, 2024 | 1:00-3:00PM
Exhibit Dates: May 4 through May 25, 2024
Gallery Hours: 5/4, 5/18, 5/25 from 1:00 – 3:00pm, or by appointment
This is My Alameda Story
Alameda Education Foundation returns to the K Gallery to exhibit student visual art and student poetry based on the work of two Bay Area painters as well as the writing of a Bay Area poet. Alex D. da Silva’s Abstract painting Warriors examines Alameda’s history. Bill Jeng’s Lion Dance paintings gave him strength during the Covid lockdown. Shanti Lair-Croom celebrates her heritage in her poem Living Poetically. The inward reflection displayed in the artists’ work inspired the theme of this year’s exhibit: This is My Alameda Story.
With support from the Alameda Education Foundation, students from all 9 AUSD elementary schools created art in their classrooms based on the work of the three Art Changes artists. Students combined realism and abstraction in saltwater watercolors. These dream-like paintings offer clues to what is important to each individual student. Students constructed carnival masks that were poignant, vivid and fierce. And students wrote about themselves and the objects, animals and people in their lives.
Art Changes student artwork is created and contributed by students at Bay Farm, Earhart, Edison, Franklin, Love, Maya Lin, Otis, Paden and Ruby Bridges Elementary.
About Art Changes
AEF’s Art Changes program offers video demonstrations by visual artists accompanied by a hands-on student project. The artist videos weave stories of inspiration and perspective that reflect the rich diversity of the Bay Area with a focus on artists of color. The program is designed to help teachers provide visual art instruction and art appreciation in their classrooms. This year, the program added literature into the mix.
Art Changes began in 2020 as a partnership with Rhythmix’s Performance, Art and Learning (PAL) program when both nonprofits provided high quality, online distance learning opportunities for all Alameda County students.
About Alameda Education Foundation
Alameda Education Foundation is a critical bridge toward equitable and inclusive educational outcomes for Alameda TK-12 public school students. Their work focuses in three main areas:
- Art, enrichment, and sports programming that engages students and augments the educational experience
- Social-emotional supports for AUSD students and staff
- Equity-centered support of educational programs and student needs
Art Changes Featured Artists
“I remember accompanying my father – the artist Quirino da Silva – on outings to the coast and the outskirts of São Paulo to paint. We visited his friends, their studios loaded with things a child shouldn’t touch, strong smells of oil and turpentine, all those colors, shapes, and mystery. It filled my imagination, that’s what I wanted to do.
“I’m moved by the landscapes of my childhood and the natural tones of my father’s works, they clash and agree with the visual experimentations of the 20th Century American Art. I try to capture an emotional moment, layering the narratives on top of each other. The results rarely resemble my initial vision, and everyone can experience their own version of it.”
“As an artist practicing in the field of engineering, I see beauty in the man-made environment and try to show this in my artwork and projects. In recent works I have created art that incorporates recycled material. I’ve done this to reduce my personal impact on the environment. I am a self-taught artist and have exhibited in local businesses and galleries.
“I work with acrylics on canvas and with watercolors, color pencils, wood and other construction material. I am also a lion a dancer.”
Alameda Unified School District (AUSD) Educational Equity Coordinator and Advisor, Shanti Lair-Croom, is also a poet. Her poems are known for being inspirational, authentic, and thought provoking. For the Art Changes Program, Shanti shares a video and poem called “Living Poetically” that describes her outlook on life and encourages students to follow their hopes and dreams. Shanti believes that everyone has a purpose in life, and she wants people of all ages, especially youth, to realize and remember that.
Banner image: Lion Dance Inspired Masks by Earhart 5th Graders.