| Sanchez Art Center is looking ahead to the most wonderful time of year… the Annual 50|50 Show, Sept 9–Oct 9. Participating California artists create 50 small artworks within a time span of 50 days, an artistic journey requiring daring, creativity, and perseverance to undertake. The result of the 50+ artists accomplishment is a dazzling array of original art, that along with the affordability of the small (6" x 6") artworks, makes the 50|50 Show, now in its 14th year, the most highly anticipated exhibition at Sanchez Art Center that has grown in acclaim throughout the greater San Francisco Bay Area and beyond.
Julie McCray, SHOH Gallery, Berkeley, took on the stimulating challenge of selecting just over 50 artists from the pool of 160 entrants, after reviewing each artist's submitted images of past works along with their medium and proposed theme. The resulting show contains over 2,700 original artworks—paintings in oil, watercolor and acrylic; mixed media pieces; clay; glass; photographs; cyanotypes; and more.
For the artists, part of the challenge is developing their overall theme, and succinctly describing it in ten words or less. Story-telling, the natural habitat, and re-grounding and connecting in these times are themes that weave their way through the show. Sanchez Studio Artist Susan Friedman, working in mixed media, has developed her artworks with the idea of "artistic inspiration from my childhood impressions of birds". Beth Fein, Berkeley, found motivation in a quote by artist Georgia O'Keefe, "I found I could say things with color and shapes that I had no words for". Based in San Francisco, Bruce Hallman, created gypsum castings and developed "19th Century Tingit Totemic Face Paint Crest Designs, a study". A color story in acrylic, "Fifty Not So Gold Goldfish" has been playfully produced by Ryan Martin, Richmond. Archival pigment prints on vellum, backed with 24k gold leaf, by Anne LeMay Burke, San Jose, are "Unearthing the Deep Divide Along the San Andreas Fault". Incorporating the local environment, Oscar Lopez, Pacifica, worked in oil to create "Paintings of Pacifica Landscape Encapsulating Memories of Time".
Sanchez Art Center will hold a two-day Opening Fundraiser on Friday, Sept 9 and Saturday, Sept 10. Ticketed and timed entries will allow supporters to safely and comfortably see the show in its entirety and make purchases. There will also be the opportunity to talk with the many 50|50 artists who will be in attendance, and to enjoy the live music and a beverage (for donation). Tickets are limited, so secure yours early at Eventbrite.com.
After the opening fundraiser, Sanchez Art Center will welcome visitors at no cost for extended public hours on Sunday Sept 11, Noon–6 pm, and thereafter galleries are open Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, 1–5 pm, through Oct 9.
Beginning Sunday, Sept 11, art buyers get to immediately take purchases home with them. Art enthusiasts often visit multiple times to take it all in, and we welcome you to return again and again.
Proceeds from the 50|50 Show support Sanchez Art Center's programs that, for 25 years, have created community through art. Special thanks to exhibition sponsors: Art Guild of Pacifica, Bleyle Elevator, and Shelldance Orchid Garden. Don't miss this inspiring celebration of art and artists!
Facemasks will be required indoors, and we ask visitors to remain mindful as to personal space. Sanchez Art Center is located at 1220 Linda Mar Blvd in Pacifica, about a mile east of Highway 1. For more information: info@SanchezArtCenter.org, SanchezArtCenter.org. |
