A painter, sculptor, ceramicist and jeweler will explore the nuances behind the word “boundary” in an upcoming art exhibition in Downtown Long Beach, set to open Saturday.
Stories of Boundaries, the culminating exhibition for the Arts Council for Long Beach’s 2017-2018 Professional Artist Fellows, an award given annually to exemplary local artists, will showcase the works of the four awardees: Kristin Beeler, Jose Loza, Brittany Mojo and Gerardo Monterrubio.
The exhibition will encourage viewers to “engage with their inner dialogue” and contemplate how they communicate boundaries within different communities, stated Arts Council Executive Director Griselda Suarez.
“A ‘boundary’ is a real or imagined line that marks an edge or limit,” the announcement explained. “Boundaries separate spaces, objects, and ideas; they mark the end of one thing and the beginning of another. The fellows use their work to tell narratives about boundaries—be they points in time or marking human experience.”
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Described as an entry point to migration narratives, Loza’s paintings and murals approach stories of family through both separation and reunion, exploring the boundaries between languages, cultures, generations and borders. Loza has painted murals all over town for projects including the Creative Corridor Challenge.
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Mojo manipulates material into objects resembling chairs, lamps, tools and more, as an investigation of gendered work and confronts the hierarchies between sculpture and craft, fine art and design. Mojo’s work for the exhibition questions the role of the gallery as related to the studio, the artist and the viewer. Mojo is a founding member of an all-female contemporary art collective, Grab Bag Studio and currently teaches ceramics and sculpture at Orange Coast College and LaSierra University.
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Monterrubio’s ceramic works are an anthropological investigation, according to the arts council. His “contemporary artifacts” are an interpretation of cultural paradigms, socio-political practices, mythologies and the human experience. Monterrubio, who recently curated Praxis at LBMAx , teaches ceramics at Long Beach City College and has work in the permanent collection of LACMA.
Beeler, who makes contemporary jewelry, objects and images, explores the marks left behind by memory. Her work in Stories of Boundaries is a grouping of objects and images that touch upon the body’s psychological boundaries, according to the announcement. Beeler is head of Jewelry and Metalwork at Long Beach City College.
“The Professional Artist Fellow grant program helps highlight and applaud the work of our local creatives that have chosen this expressive path,” Arts Council President Tasha Hunter said in a statement. “I always look forward to this time of year because it brings forth welcomed excitement and anticipation for what’s to come.”
The opening reception for Stories of Boundaries will take place on Saturday from 6 to 9 p.m. It will be on view through Sept. 28. Regular gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday 12:30 to 5 p.m. To RSVP, click here.
The Collaborative Gallery is located at 421 W. Broadway.