We’re thrilled to see the results of our collaborative project with SaveArtSpace. SaveArtSpace is a non profit organization that works to transform ad spaces into public art. For this project SaveArtSpace worked with curators from NIAD Art Center, Creative Growth, and Creativity Explored to select work made by local artists to display in public spaces. NIAD studio artist Dorrie Reid selected the works which are now on display in these two Richmond bus shelter. The first is a detailed mixed media piece by Julio Del Rio located at San Pablo and Garvin Avenue in Richmond. The second bus shelter holds Read More …

You probably know about Jeremy’s amazing sculptures created from tightly rolling paper into tube forms that bent and twisted into shapes that often resemble the body of a lamp. But, Jeremy is also prolific drawer. Mainly working in India ink on mid-sized sheets of white paper, Burleson explores and notes creatures and flowers of all shapes and forms. The works, frequently drawn quickly and with no preliminary sketches, are deftly stark studies of Jeremy’s interests and obsessions. Have a look.

As you know, it is a crazy time. A rather unbelievable time. But, it can also be a time of hope. Julie Mallis has selected a group show full of vibrancy and ebullience, with almost all works including a touch of yellow, a color known for happiness and evoking joy. Enjoy.

As NIAD contemplates keeping our community safe and connected during a longer-than-expected Shelter in Place, we are thrilled to be offering a reinvented Exhibitions program in our 23rd Street windows in Richmond. Exhibitions are how our artists’ work finds its audience – when artists sell work, their careers as artists are confirmed, and as in most art galleries, we split all art sales 50/50 with artists.  When you purchase art, online or in person, you directly support our artists and everything we do at NIAD.  Our online exhibitions will continue every week. We are grateful for the support of audiences Read More …

Remember going places on a date… like to the movies? And then, maybe, grabbing a slice of pie for dessert? Boy, those were the days. And Katie Kimmel’s show helps bring those days back (digitally, at least). Enjoy!

I often say that NIAD is the artists’ spaceship… as staff, we just get on and get off. It is true that the artists, often with the long-term support of involved and engaged family members, are our permanent stakeholders. Many studio artists practice at NIAD for decades, outlasting some of our most dedicated staff.  However, NIAD’s ship wouldn’t fly without the culture our staff upholds.  This week, NIAD will say goodbye to one of our beloved and influential staff members, Lukaza Branfman-Verissimo, who will begin at VCU’s MFA program in the Fall.  In addition to facilitating the groundbreaking weekly Bingo games Read More …

“While we currently aren’t able to physically travel very far during this time of Sheltering In Place due to COVID-19, I wanted to select works that to me suggest a different form of travel, one that occurs inward,” explains curator Lena Gustafson. It’s perfect idea. Enjoy!

From the New York Times: “…Taken one by one, Billy White’s paintings at Shrine (through Aug. 2) are less of a digital challenge. Mr. White, a self-taught African-American artist working out of the National Institute of Art and Disabilities in Richmond, Calif., takes as his subjects an eclectic pantheon of personal heroes, from Vincent van Gogh to hip-hop stars. The pictures are solid and bright; but it’s when they’re seen together, interacting as if at some post-pandemic blowout that they really jump to life, an effect nicely captured in a YouTube video by the veteran art reporter James Kalm…” Read Read More …

From Hyperallergic: “…Similarly to campaigns against Warren Kanders and the Sackler family, the letter calls for the removal of trustees whose business interests and political donations undermine the museum’s community-oriented work. In their place the letter demands ordinary museumgoers — in numbers commensurate with museum revenue from membership and tickets. (Membership and admissions accounted for a combined 28% of SFMOMA’s revenue in the 2018 fiscal year, according to its most recent biennial report.) The letter singles out former board chairman Charles Schwab, the billionaire financier and prolific Donald Trump donor, calling for his and his wife Helen Schwab’s names to Read More …

From The East Bay Times: “Bisa French, who has overseen the Richmond Police Department on an interim basis since September of last year, has been named the city’s new full-time police chief. French becomes the first Black woman to lead the department, an honor that comes seven years after she became its first Black woman captain. The interim tag officially will be removed from French’s title on Aug. 1. She was given the reins in September, after city leaders removed former Police Chief Allwyn Brown following a vote of no confidence from the city’s police union… Read the rest of Read More …

We all have friends, right? And it’s especially great to have friends at a time like this. Well, for this week’s show, NIAD’s Professional Practice Group has selected highlights of their own work as well as pieces from their friends. Enjoy.

For many people, July 13-17 might not be a standout week, but for NIAD it’s been momentous.  This week, following the orders of our health officers, we moved back our target date for reopening from August to September – but maybe longer, depending on health and safety.  And so, this week marks another new chapter in the new world of uncertainty we’re navigating.  Giving up even a hazy vision of reopening requires a lot of coming to terms with how much we can’t control. There’s a lot of learning on the horizon, the kind that comes with confronting new challenges, even Read More …

“…White has a deep affinity to Van Gogh, feeling that they both overcame adversity; in his childhood, White suffered a traumatic brain injury which led to limited mobility. Commenting on the tradition of posthumous legacies, White observes that recognition in the art world is often reserved for dead artists—Van Gogh sold only one painting during his lifetime…” Read the entire piece.

Your support is artist voice.  From major gifts to meaningful in-kind donations, your support has defined resilience by prioritizing the voices of NIAD’s studio artists. This is how we arrived at a Virtual Studio shaped by artists’ ideas for what an online community could be – interdisciplinary, accessible, inclusive of wellness and self-care modalities, purposeful, and above all, creative.  Now we need your help to bridge the gap to resuming onsite services. When you give to NIAD’s Mobile Art Fund in the month of July, you fund masks, gloves, and PPE for artists and staff, and individual artist supply kits to make Read More …

For our current online show, NIAD artist Kiesha White proffers a lyrical exhibition of images related to her poetry. As she writes, “I keep a word, and I feel relaxed and listen to the ocean and breathe, be present.If I feel it: music.” Enjoy.

This is very exciting news. Details.

Jean explains, “The idea for this post came from wanting funny entertainment anyone would want to imagine on stage, in TV sets, or even in films or on other devices. Enjoy.” Here’s your Top 20!

Like curator/ publisher Kate Mothes, many of us have been spending a great deal of time indoors. And this has led to our re-evaluating and sometimes re-inventing our ideas about home and ourselves. In our current online show, Kate selects work that bring “joy and brightness in daily life.” View the exhibition here.

Dear NIAD Community,  Congratulations. Together, we did it.  This week, Governor Gavin Newsom signed a budget avoiding most major cuts to Developmental Services, Education, and a host of human services that keep our families and communities thriving. While no budget is perfect in a period of intersecting crises, this budget demonstrates hard work and communication between stakeholders, legislators, and government. It will provide best outcomes for our disability system in a moment when we are working harder than ever to reach NIAD artists with exceptional career and creative supports.  If you are a family member or a community member who voiced your Read More …