SoLA Sightings
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RSVP to Black Joy, Healing From the Inside Out
Artist talk moderated by Anefertiti Bowman, Executive Director, SoLA Contemporary
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Art For The Climb Presents
Visit three Los Angeles local artists exhibiting original works at Hilltop Coffee + Kitchen this spring as part of #ArtfortheClimb powered by SoLA Contemporary. The current exhibition, At the Intersection will be on view through January 5, 2023.
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Past Exhibiton
Kintsugi: Healing Through Our Broken Pieces
LOS ANGELES, CA (March 6, 2023) – SoLA Contemporary is pleased to announce the first exhibition of our 2023 season, Kintsugi: Healing Through Our Broken Pieces, the debut solo of California painter, Christen Austin. Kintsugi presents thirteen new paintings. Exploring the other side of trauma and tragedy, Austin’s vivid figurative paintings encourage the healing of wounds and the mending of broken pieces in a symbolic, yet strikingly visual way. Austin’s depictions of self-care, mutuality, spirituality, intimacy, and connection to art and nature reveal healing to be more than a simple or contained act. Rather, the healing journey is depicted as a capacious and ongoing process – a way of being in everyday life and in relation to others.
Through a hybrid model, SEED participants will attend monthly in person workshops, additional online meetings and optional field trips. Studio visits and guest lectures are central to this model and by end of year will result in mentor relationships and a new arts network. During the 9 months, participants will create new work and end the program with a self-directed group exhibition, catalog, and event. Applications will be reviewed by a jury of SoLA staff and industry experts.
Statement by Executive Director,
Anefertiti Bowman
2022 has flown by, marking it a transformative and transitional time for SoLA Contemporary. Just over a year ago, March of 2021, I was asked to take on my current role as SoLA Contemporary’s Executive Director. Given the uncertainty of the world and the evolving state of our organization, I saw this as an opportunity to reimagine SoLA and strengthen our relationship to our community. Our Board members, the SoLA team, community members, and artists entrusted me with this monumental task. The weight of the responsibility was not lost on me. I took it on with gratitude and in humble service.
This period of transition has pushed us to explore outside of our comfort zones. It has been a personal exercise of faith, as well as working together to overcome obstacles and achieve goals. The first quarter of this year has taught me important personal and professional lessons about how to build not only a commercial art space, but a communal site for safety, discovery, and healing. I believe that our collective vision for SoLA’s future can and will be realized. I am confident that I am walking in my purpose by doing this work.
Studio Visit w/ THEZONKYGIRL
ART ON SLAUSON
THEZONKYGIRL, formally known as Carmel Katumba, is a Congolese, Long Beach-based painter, visual designer, and DJ whose mission statement is to encourage her community and society to embrace their individuality and what makes them different. She has been painting for six years, and in the last year, she has begun to digitally share her creations with the world. The fine artist draws inspiration from her unique cultural upbringing, which has allowed her to create original and distinctive art.@findyourhilltop and see THEZONKYGIRL's paintings up close at the Hilltop Coffee + Kitchen Slauson location.
Artwork “Madonna Combine,” by MamDotta
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“As curators, we seek to affirm the connection between the lives of migrant women today and the migration story of the Madonna, and reveal the varied ways artists appropriate her image to comment on their own era, history, and experience."
- Joyce Dallal and Naima White of MamaDotta
ICEF X SOLA CONTEMPORARY
ICEF X SOLA CONTEMPORARY
SoLA Contemporary is thrilled to announce our ongoing partnership with Inner City Education Foundation (ICEF) Schools. Earlier this year, @icefschools honored SoLA Contemporary with the ICEF Impact Award in recognition of providing high-quality learning experiences and authentic opportunities for artistic expression to ICEF teachers and students! In February, ICEP View Park Preparatory High School Senior, Stephen Goff, sat down with SoLA’s Executive Director, Anefertiti Bowman, for “I Love My Blackness And Yours: A Celebration of Black Excellence.” You can watch this interview on the ICEF YouTube channel.
These printable activity sheets were created for the 10th annual ICEF Arts Showcase, hosted every spring in South LA. This event includes an art exhibit, performances, and art activity booths highlighting the student’s talent and creativity. Inspired by Migrant Madonna, SoLA is happy to release two printable art activities for students (of all ages) to create artwork inspired by the Madonna Icon.
On BLACK Artist Talk
Tara King moderates a conversation between "On BLACK" artists Lauren Levi, Shawanna N. Davis, and Joseph Brandon with Curator Anefertiti Bowman. The group exhibition "On BLACK" muses off Zora Neal Hurston's quote, "I feel most colored when I am thrown against a sharp white background," and disrupts the traditional gallery space by painting SoLA's walls black. The exhibition featured artists Chantel Walkes and Showzart, who weren't present for the Closing Reception. Keep in touch with us for more information, @solacontemporary
Can’t Make it
It’s OK! Check out exhibition Migrant Madonna Catalog below!
WE ARE:
EXPLORE.
A safe and supportive space to dive into the world of contemporary art, culture, society, politics
SPEAK.
Art tells a story, and we want to hear yours. Participate in Open Mic nights, listen in on our artist talks. Vocalize and mobilize!
A multifunctional and culturally responsive, artist-run art gallery for artists and communities to explore, develop, speak, and exhibit.
DEVELOP.
Our programs are designed to guide and support artists. We teach skills and ways of thinking about art, careers in the arts, and the creative process.
EXHIBIT.
You deserve a spot on the proverbial “white wall.” We work collaboratively with our artists and curators, transforming your visions into reality.
Martin Etem
Khari Turner
Kwame Gomez
Alexandria Couch
Lanise Howard
Current Exhibition: FRESH 2021
FRESH 2021 ARTIST: ASTRID FRANCIS
FRESH 2021 ARTIST: BETH LEVY
FRESH 2021 ARTIST: CARMEL KATUMBA
FRESH 2021 ARTIST: CHRISTEN AUSTIN
Artist Talks
Hear your favorite creatives speak on their creative processes.
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Funds are directed to maintaining gallery staff, artists, and programs.
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SoLA Contemporary is supported, in part, by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Department of Arts and Culture.
SoLA Contemporary was featured as part of a larger announcement from the California Arts Council, with grant awards for its Cycle A programming totaling more than $31 million across more than 1,100 grants supporting nonprofit organizations and units of government throughout the state.
CONTACT:
info@solacontemporary.org
(323) 903-5737
ADDRESS:
5211 W Adams Blvd,
Los Angeles, CA
90016
HOURS: