alice sampson

a flyer for a panel discussion - a black and white image of an industrial street scene. All text is info included in the event listing.

FOG Fair Panel Discussion with Amanda Eicher

The Bay Area has historically led conversations around neurodiverse artists. Three Bay Area progressive independent art centers – Creativity Explored, Creative Growth, and Nurturing Independence Through Artistic Development (NIAD) –  have expanded representation for developmentally disabled artists. This conversation will convene contemporary artists and curators who work with and for these three organizations to celebrate the power of art to change lives. Read More …

1. Pictured from above, Fort Mason's three pier buildings with the hills of Marin and the Golden Gate Bridge visible in the background. A large awning with the word FOG in large orange letters emblazoned on the front and sides. The same image, with a strong purple and red filter, and text superimposed on top. Text reads "FOG DESIGN + ART. January 18-21, 2024. Fort Mason Center. Preview Gala January 17, 2024. Celebrating 10 years. fogfair.com." A large outline of a 10 covers the upper left corner of the image.

NIAD at FOG Design+Art Fair

For the very first time, NIAD will join Creativity Explored and Creative Growth as exhibitors at the upcoming FOG Design+Art Fair, January 18th to 21st at Fort Mason! Read More …

a white embroidered tshirt

NIAD Annex Exhibition // “Crossover”

Crossover is an apt title for this show, which will showcase the vibrant and newly-connected fiber art scenes of NIAD and Cedars. Crossover is a companion to the textile-centered exhibition Follow the String, on view at Marin MOCA. In preparation for this show, artists from both programs visited each other’s studios, and participated in a tee-shirt and doll making workshop at Marin MOCA. T-shirts and dolls from this workshop will be on view in NIAD and Marin MOCA. Read More …

A person holds a small green fish-shaped ceramic sculpture.

NIAD Annex Exhibition // “Whales and Pencil Holders”

When Peter Harris is asked which of his ceramic pieces is his favorite, he says with conviction, “I love all of them.” This show is a celebration of “all of them.” The title is drawn from Michael Starofsky’s beautiful series of whale sculptures and pencil holders. Several of these artists are new to working in ceramics, and they are already establishing new forms and vibrant styles. Meanwhile, experienced NIAD ceramicists showcase their newest sculptures and functional ware. Whales and Pencil Holders presents this broad spectrum of subjects and inspiration—enjoy them all. Read More …

NIAD Online Exhibition // “Day or Night it looks like Night” organized by Liliana Herrera

Posted onAuthorNIAD Art Center

About the exhibition The pieces in this exhibition were selected in a moment of uncertainty. The pandemic has affected each of us differently, but what can perhaps be agreed upon is that its longevity has worn on our collective morale. This was certainly the undercurrent of this grouping.  Dorian Reid’s Day or Night it Looks Like Night, is a depiction of September 9, 2020, a day that those of us in the Bay Area remember all too well: the day we awoke to smoky red skies caused by surrounding wildfires. The ominous tones on the canvas continue to be relevant today.  Read More …

A painting on white paper in four colors - yellow, red, indigo and grey. Yellow and red form thick half arches on the left side of the paper. Indigo forms a cloud in the middle and top right corner. Grey is a mass in the mid to lower right. Brushstrokes visible in all the forms.

NIAD Online Exhibition // “Murmuration” selected by Alisa Golden

Posted onAuthorNIAD Art Center

About the exhibition A murmuration is a flock of thousands moving together, a pattern through the sky, each bird attuned to its nearest neighbors. Made up of individual parts, the whole becomes greater and more powerful than when it stands alone. In the works presented here, individual parts are visible: pieced, gridded, grouped, and arranged with lines, letters, and fields of color. And from the thousands of works that fly together at NIAD, here is only a sample of pieces that somehow talk and listen to their nearest neighbors. A murmuration of applause to all. About the selector Alisa Golden writes, Read More …

A print of a person wearing a helmet an an armband that reads "police" about to bring their foot down on the face of a person lying on the sidewalk. A protest sign that reads "POLICE BRUTALITY" lies nearby, next to a vivid red brick wall.

Online Exhibition: “Edges of Attention” organized by Canela Art Gallery

Posted onAuthorNIAD Art Center

About the exhibition   We selected our favorite evocative works and put them into a virtual gallery.     There was so much amazing work to choose from, but we believe that these works in particular speak for themselves. Lastly, we also think these works exhibited together speak to this moment in America and how art represents what we give our attention to. * Seleccionamos nuestras obras evocadoras favoritas y las pusimos en una galería virtual. Había tantas obras para elegir, pero creemos que estas obras en particular hablan por sí mismas. Por último, también creemos que estas obras expuestas Read More …

A linocut print with a slightly rough right edge. the ink is fire-engine red with very lightly speckled patches of white paper showing through here and there. in the upper center of the page, the word YIELD in handdrawn letters is tightly enclosed by an upside-down triangle, with is in turn enclosed by another upside down triangle, with a third triangle tight around the second. The borders of the two outer triangles blend together here and there.

Online Exhibition: Yielding, organized by Ann Marguerite Tartsinis

Posted onAuthorNIAD Art Center

About the exhibition   To yield is to submit to pressure, to give way to an external force. It is also to produce or create something, the yield, from one’s own labor. The artworks brought together in this exhibition reflect the multiple ways matter can yield: Clay is molded and punctured by the sharp tip of the stylus, fabric gathers at the pull of the embroidery thread, and brushstrokes accumulate to reveal an overflowing mass of delineated forms on the page. While some of the artworks here physically represent how yielding is embedded in the very processes of their making, others Read More …