"Layers" artist talk/reception pictures

Here are pictures from Mel Vera Cruz's artist talk at the Alameda Free Library.

“Parochial Beacon” by Izuuk Rigor

Izuuk Rigor is a collaborative outfit and is the product of the institutionalized art system; the Manchurian Candidate of art school; the Frankenstein of the commercial art world. In “Parochial Beacon”, Izuuk Rigor will be exhibiting in the periphery neighborhood of the Bayview District in San Francisco. Location is context as it is ironic. It is a statement (fashionable, of course) to simultaneously be an insider and outsider, avant-garde in its deadliest cliche. For its first exhibition, Izuuk Rigor will create a location-specific monotype and sculptural installation using the beacon as a metaphor of the cultural deadening in the San Francisco Bay Area.

art SHOW:  AUGUST 4 – SEPTEMBER 1

artists’ RECEPTION:   AUGUST 9 (Saturday), 6 – 9pm

location:

Paolo Mejia Art Gallery and Design Studio
4343  3rd Street, Suite B
(crossroad – Kirkwood)
San Francisco, Ca 94124

“When I See You...” by Monica Valdez

The Paolo Mejia Art Gallery and Design Studio invites everyone to see and attend Monica Valdez‘s art show entitled “When I See You” that will be exhibited at our annex facility in uptown San Francisco this August. She will be showing her current colorful illustration prints. Come pass by and see her show.

art SHOW:  JULY 28 – SEPTEMBER 1

location:

Caffe Union
1830 Union Street
San Francisco, Ca 94123

www.paolomejia.com

“Layers” by Mel Vera Cruz

 

The Paolo Mejia Art Gallery and Design Studio cordially invites everyone to attend Mel Vera Cruz's art show curated by Paolo Mejia at Alameda Free Library this August.

The paintings shown in this exhibit are manifestations of different layers of Mel Vera Cruz‘s experiences. Some of these paintings were painted 12 years ago and left lying in his studio, while over time is superimposed, overlayed and painted on two or more times. Each of these tiers or layers represent his growth and evolution – the ‘layers’ of his past and present.

Mel Vera Cruz immigrated from the Philippines when he was 31, where he left his profession for 9 years in an advertising agency as an illustrator and as an art director. His experiences from childhood to adulthood and from Philippines to the United States were filled with a lot of challenges, which fueled his need to look for that refuge. Art and art making became Mel’s refuge.The materials Mel utilizes reflect his independence. They are mostly bought from hardware stores as a form of protest and to challenge the pejorative. Mel uses card-boards, empty containers, found objects and whatever is available. He believes in self-sufficiency in experimenting and discovering avenues, and does not depend on ‘institutions’ to validate his art making. His independence is what makes his work brilliant.

Mel Vera Cruz currently lives in the East Bay and work as a professional digital printer and tattoo artist. He has been showing his artwork in Manila, Philippines and around California.

art SHOW:  JULY 28 – AUGUST 30

artist RECEPTION:  JULY 30 (Wednesday), 6:30 – 9pm

location:

Alameda Free Library
1550 Oak Street (across from the Alameda police station)
Alameda, Ca 94501

www.paolomejia.com