Julio Del Rio

A handful of dogs (some brown, some yellow) and what appear to be a few cats poke their heads in sideways and here and there into a garden scene of red and pink flowers with twining stems and bright green leaves on a light green background. Only the heads and necks of the dogs (and cats, perhaps) are visible.

NIAD Windows Exhibition // “Menagerie on 23rd Street” selected by Prajakti Jayavant

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About the exhibition The exhibition windows of NIAD on 23rd street are wildly overstuffed this holiday season. Amongst a backdrop of drawings that are doodled and dotted emerge a collection of creatures that are striped and spotted. This menagerie includes an assortment of tickles and roars from the furriest felines to amphibians galore. At daybreak, dapper penguins appear as mischievous musketeers, parading their way through showers of shapes. Marsupials, with pocketfuls of petunias, patiently postpone their leaping while snails slowly scribe a chalk hopscotch design. By midday, squirrels engage in patterns of play by using their tails as paintbrushes to carry Read More …

an inky blue wash dilutes to a pale blue, shrouding a brilliantly red figure that gazes intensely at the viewer. The face of the figure is the same red as the body, which has no visible characteristics. Two blue eyes, a blue nose, an open red oval for a mouth. A bluish-green half-circle shape crowned with red dots is attached to the figure's cheek.

Online Exhibition: I See What You’re Feeling, organized by Daniel Krakauer

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About the exhibition   Have you ever met somebody whose emotions are so big they seem to fill up a room? These wonderful drawings remind me of those passionate people. Each subject fills their piece of paper with their emotions. Whether joyful, calm or anxious, their feelings permeate their faces, their bodies and even the spaces around them. Even when the backgrounds are empty, they are empty in ways that amplify the subjects’ inner states.  I don’t know these artists, so I can’t ask what they meant to say. But it’s art, so we each get to make up whatever 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

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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 …

Special Exhibition: SFMOMA x NIAD MiNi Mural Gallery

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About the gallery The NIAD MiNi Gallery is a collection of work that showcases the diversity of NIAD’s studio artists in material and form, featuring the artists who contributed to the SFMOMA MiNi Mural Project. About the event From the SFMOMA website: In 1940, more than sixty-five artists made their creative processes public when they participated in Art in Action, an exhibition of live art making conceived by architect Timothy L. Pfleuger as part of the Golden Gate International Exposition on Treasure Island. Among these artists was Diego Rivera, who during this time painted the mural Pan American Unity, which Read More …

Untitled (D0897) by Julie MacDonald graphite on woven paper 13 x 19” unique 2019. Row after row of small squares, each divided into four bright triangles, stacked up across the picture plane to form an optical dance (perhaps more of a march?) of color.

Online Exhibition: Holding the Line, organized by jill moniz

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About the exhibition The works in this exhibition use the line to suggest form and meaning. Whether as a solid object or a mere suggestion, the line elicits connections beyond formalism, and resonates with transformative power. The synchronicity between what is made and what is felt enriches the experience with the visual languages offered here. Together, these works tell a story with line, color and form about the pleasure, diversity and complexity born from simple materials that should be required reading. About the organizer  jill moniz is an independent curator of visual narratives. She shares her vision of empowering visual Read More …

Untitled (D0653) mixed media on paper by NIAD studio artist Erica Martinez. image description: a bright magenta feather shape with black ink details on a light yellow background.

Online Exhibition: 20 Continuous Lines, selected by Veronica DeJesus

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About the exhibition 20 continuous linesCommunicationConnectionsRelationshipsModel MakingCirclesFriendsFamilyGrounding StonesVacationsFinding BalanceSeeing things throughColors open up our perspectivesFinding peace and harmonyEVEN through hard shiftsBREATHE WORKPRAYER WORKPERSPECTIVE WORKlaying in a fieldFeeling connected to your purposeHaving your inner light turned on from within About the selector Veronica DeJesus is a visual artist currently living and working in Los Angeles. She was raised in Miami, LA, Oakland and on the open road along Highway 10. Veronica has had numerous solo shows at galleries in New York, Atlanta, and San Francisco, including her remarkable exhibition of Memorial drawings at The Berkeley Art Museum. Her work has been featured Read More …

NIAD artists in our courtyard working on sketches for SFMOMA's Mini Mural Festival. Top row: Luis Estrada, Esmeralda Silva, Miguel Chacon. Circle: Jonathan Valdivias. Bottom row: Julio Del Rio, Deatra Colbert, Christian Vassell's sketches.

Online Event: SFMOMA Mini Mural Festival Kickoff – June 24

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NIAD is one of three organizations commissioned by SFMOMA to contribute murals to its Mini Mural Festival this summer. During this special online kickoff event, Acción Latina, NIAD, and SOMA Pilipinas will discuss our organizations’ work and missions. Then, the artists will reveal their mural designs for the first time. Don’t miss this special preview! SFMOMA Mini Mural Festival Kickoff (online)Thursday, June 24th, 5:30 PM PTRSVP today! Image: NIAD artists in our courtyard working on sketches for SFMOMA’s Mini Mural Festival. Top row: Luis Estrada, Esmeralda Silva, Miguel Chacon. Circle: Jonathan Valdivias. Bottom row: Julio Del Rio, Deatra Colbert, Christian Vassell’s sketches.

Untitled (S0912) Samantha Kershnar

NIAD Windows Exhibition: Adornment, selected by Max Kauffman

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About the exhibition These ten artists imbue spirit into everyday objects. Facets of daily life become abstract through their methods; quilts, photographs, clay and paper become magical things through the power of repetition. The rituals of home and comfort are elevated through spiritual fulfillment. The love bestowed upon these items reveals itself. Not merely beauty, these things serve a purpose. They emanate joy, a sense of peace, and a hope of understanding one another. About the selector Max Kauffman   Meet the selector (virtually) at Thirsty Thursday, June 10, 6-7pm PT. View the exhibition.View Untitled (S0912), Samantha Kershnar.

Untitled (D0443) Yuka Kobayashi

Online exhibition: Warming, selected by Good Buy Supply

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About the exhibition Warming A selection of works that embrace imperfect elements and subtle beauty found in nature. We can envision the artists admiring the natural world and what they love about it. Each work is met with a delicate thoughtful touch that can transcend beyond the page. The same mindset can be found in making sustainable choices that better people and the planet.  About the selector Good Buy Supply is Philadelphia’s first retail store dedicated to plastic-free alternatives for everyday life. Located in the grand, independent business community of East Passyunk Avenue, Good Buy Supply boasts a large selection Read More …

Untitled (F0407) Susan Wise

Online Exhibition: Other Side Of The Rainbow, selected by Stephanie Hanor

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About the exhibition After a year of shared, global trauma, in the multiple forms of a pandemic, systemic racism, economic and environmental disaster, and political turmoil, there is a small light at the end of the tunnel. While the future remains precarious and unknown, the works in this exhibition embrace the colors of the rainbow, conveying a sense of hope and optimism. Bright and expressive, these pieces are an antidote to the losses we have endured both individually and together. Their sunniness and cheerfulness raise one’s spirits and anticipates the promise of a better tomorrow. About the selector Stephanie Hanor is Read More …

Online Exhibition: Hands Up, Don’t Shoot! (The Fed Up/ Can’t Take It Anymore Remix), Selected By Jennifer McCoy//

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Six years ago, yes, six years ago. That is how long ago we posted this online show organized by St Louis resident Jennifer McCoy. It was in response to events that happened in her city and were happening across the nation: the killing of unarmed Black men. More than a half-decade later, nothing has changed and more lives have been lost under the boots of and at the hands of brutal police officers. A number of works have sold since then and she’s updated the show with a few new pieces that are relevant to this moment. A portion of Read More …