Saturday, October 23, 12-1:30 PM PST on Zoom
Artists, join in this free info session to:
Read the registration guidelines and come prepared with your questions!
Click the button to RSVP!
Día de la familia de otoño 2021
Sábado 23 de octubre, de 12:00 a 15:00 horas | GRATIS
Richmond Art Center (patio), 2540 Barrett Avenue, Richmond
Página web del evento: richmondartcenter.org/familyday2021
Richmond, CA: El Día de la Familia regresa al Centro de Arte de Richmond con una celebración especial del Día de los Muertos el sábado 23 de octubre, de 12 pm a 3 pm. Los niños de todas las edades y sus adultos están invitados a unirse a nosotros en el patio del RAC para hacer arte, bailar, escuchar música y más.
Este evento familiar gratuito contará con un taller de Alebrije, actuaciones del conjunto de bomba juvenil puertorriqueño Quenepas y la narradora Olga Loya. Los artistas residentes de RAC Liberación Gráfica también imprimirán bolsas de tela y la Gran Conspiración de la Tortilla también imprimirá un poco de arte de tortillas.
Programa de actividades:
Papel de seda La fabricación de flores de papel mexicano, la búsqueda del tesoro, el grabado, el altar comunitario y la música de DJ Dion Decibels se llevarán a cabo de 12 pm a 3 pm.
Richmond Art Center está ubicado en 2540 Barrett Avenue en Richmond.
Prevención de Covid-19: El uso de máscara y la firma de una Exención de Visitante es una condición para ingresar al evento. Realizaremos un seguimiento del número de asistentes en el patio y las galerías para garantizar que los espacios no se llenen demasiado. Consulte el sitio web de RAC para obtener más información sobre lo que estamos haciendo para prevenir la propagación de Covid-19: richmondartcenter.org/about/covid
Para obtener más información, comuníquese con: Sarah Guerra sarah@richmondartcenter.org
—
Sobre el programa y los participantes:
Taller de alebrijes con Rachel-Anne Palacios: Los alebrijes son esculturas de arte popular mexicano de colores brillantes de criaturas fantásticas. En honor al Mes de la Herencia Latina / Día de los Muertos, la artista Rachel-Anne Palacios nos guiará en una breve presentación sobre los alebrijes y cómo crear los suyos propios con arcilla seca al aire. Sigue a Rachel-Anne en Instagram @devikaspalacio
Bomba de Quenepas: La música y la danza bomba se originaron hace más de 400 años en las plantaciones de caña de azúcar de Puerto Rico, donde los africanos esclavizados tocaban, cantaban y bailaban para sobrevivir y resistir la opresión colonial. Quenepas es un vibrante conjunto juvenil de danza y música bomba puertorriqueña que tuvo su inicio en 2008 en el Centro Cultural La Peña en Berkeley. Los jóvenes de Quenepas han estado estudiando y actuando bajo la dirección de Héctor Lugo y Shefali Shah por más de 15 años y muchos de los jóvenes han estado involucrados en la práctica de Bomba a través de la observación y participación en improvisaciones comunitarias y presentaciones con sus familias. Contacto: bombaaguacero@gmail.com, 510-681-1036
Narración de cuentos de Olga Loya: Olga Loya también es autora, artista de performance, oradora principal y maestra, que ha realizado y enseñado talleres en todo Estados Unidos y México. Loya presenta un gran repertorio de historias familiares y personales con el objetivo de explorar las luchas y la complejidad de ser bicultural, mexicano-estadounidense, en los Estados Unidos. Loya también cuenta folclore latinoamericano bilingüe e historias coloridas y a veces mágicas de África, India, Asia, las Antillas y Europa. Loya usa las historias como una forma de examinar temas como la curación, el racismo y el multiculturalismo. Incorpora una variedad de estilos de actuación, que incluyen improvisación, movimiento y danza, canciones e instrumentos. Más información: www.olgaloya.com
Liberación Gráfica: Liberación Gráfica es un colectivo de jóvenes grabadores de Richmond cuyos miembros crean trabajos para elevar la justicia social, la comunidad de Richmond y las voces jóvenes. Como educadores, el colectivo ha desarrollado un plan de estudios que ayuda a los jóvenes a participar en el grabado mediante la exploración de carteles políticos históricos y la creación de sus propios carteles sobre temas con los que se sienten conectados. El colectivo ha realizado varios talleres de serigrafía en vivo en toda la comunidad en eventos, escuelas secundarias y organizaciones locales como RYSE, Urban Tilth, APEN y Richmond Art Center.
The Great Tortilla Conspiracy: The Great Tortilla Conspiracy es un colectivo basado en obras de arte comestibles. Después de mucha experimentación y desarrollos tecnológicos, los Conspiradores desarrollaron una receta secreta que muchos acólitos de quesadillas han calificado de deliciosa. La obra de arte comestible producida por la Conspiración es serigrafiada en tortillas y cocinada en una plancha para que la imagen se adhiera al sustrato. Simultáneamente, el queso se derrite en el reverso. La salsa es opcional. El consumidor de arte puede tanto comer como disfrutar de la sensación estética que es la Gran Conspiración de la Tortilla.
Acerca de Richmond Art Center: Richmond Art Center ha estado compartiendo arte y creando con la comunidad desde 1936. Nuestros programas abarcan clases, exposiciones y eventos en nuestras instalaciones en el centro de Richmond, así como actividades fuera del sitio que brindan arte gratuito y de alta calidad. creando experiencias para las escuelas y los socios comunitarios de WCCUSD. richmondartcenter.org
# # #
Fall Family Day 2021
Saturday, October 23, 12pm-3pm | FREE
Richmond Art Center (courtyard), 2540 Barrett Avenue, Richmond
Event webpage: richmondartcenter.org/familyday2021
Richmond, CA: Family Day is coming back to Richmond Art Center with a special celebration of Día de los Muertos on Saturday, October 23, 12pm-3pm. Kids of all ages and their grown-ups are invited to join us in RAC’s courtyard for art-making, dancing, music and more.
This free family event will feature an Alebrije workshop, performances by Puerto Rican youth Bomba ensemble Quenepas, and storyteller Olga Loya. RAC artists-in-residence Liberación Gráfica will be there screen printing tote bags and the Great Tortilla Conspiracy will also be printing up some tortilla art!
Schedule of Activities:
Tissue paper Mexican paper flower making, scavenger hunt, printmaking, community altar, and music by DJ Dion Decibels will run 12pm-3pm.
Richmond Art Center is located at 2540 Barrett Avenue in Richmond.
Covid-19 Prevention: Mask wearing and signing a Visitor Waiver is a condition of entry to the event. We will track attendee numbers in the courtyard and galleries to ensure spaces do not get too crowded. See RAC’s website for more information about what we are doing to prevent the spread of Covid-19: richmondartcenter.org/about/covid
For more information contact: Sarah Guerra sarah@richmondartcenter.org
—
About the Program and Participants:
Alebrijes workshop with Rachel-Anne Palacios: Alebrijes are brightly colored Mexican folk art sculptures of fantastical creatures. In honor of Latino Heritage Month/Día de los Muertos, artist Rachel-Anne Palacios will guide us on a short presentation about alebrijes and how to create your own with air dry clay. Follow Rachel-Anne on Instagram @devikaspalacio
Bomba by Quenepas: Bomba music and dance originated over 400 years ago in the sugar cane plantations of Puerto Rico where enslaved Africans played, sang, and danced to survive and to resist colonial oppression. Quenepas is a vibrant Puerto Rican Bomba music and dance youth ensemble that had its inception in 2008 at La Peña Cultural Center in Berkeley. Quenepas youth have been studying and performing under the direction of Hector Lugo and Shefali Shah for over 15 years and many of the youth have been involved in the practice of Bomba through observing and participating in community jams and performances with their families. Contact: bombaaguacero@gmail.com, 510-681-1036
Storytelling by Olga Loya: Olga Loya is also an author, performance artist, keynote speaker, and teacher, who has performed and taught workshops throughout the United States and Mexico. Loya performs a large repertoire of family and personal stories with the goal of exploring the struggles and complexity of being bicultural – Mexican-American – in the United States. Loya also tells bilingual Latin-American folklore and colorful and sometimes magical stories from Africa, India, Asia, the Antilles, and Europe. Loya uses stories as a way of examining themes like healing, racism, and multiculturalism. She incorporates a variety of performance styles, including improvisation, movement and dance, song, and instruments. More info: www.olgaloya.com
Liberación Gráfica: Liberación Gráfica is a collective of young printmakers from Richmond whose members create work to uplift social justice, the Richmond community, and young voices. As educators the collective has developed a curriculum that helps young people engage in printmaking through exploring historical political posters and creating their own posters on topics they feel connected to. The collective has held multiple live screen printing workshops around the community at events, high schools, and local organizations like RYSE, Urban Tilth, APEN and Richmond Art Center.
The Great Tortilla Conspiracy: The Great Tortilla Conspiracy is a collective based on edible artwork. After much experimentation and technological developments the Conspirators developed a secret recipe that has been called delicious by many a quesadilla acolyte. The edible artwork produced by the Conspiracy is screen printed on tortillas and cooked on a griddle so that the image is affixed to the substrate. Simultaneously cheese is melted on the reverse side. Salsa is optional. The art consumer can both eat and enjoy the aesthetic sensation that is the Great Tortilla Conspiracy.
About Richmond Art Center: Richmond Art Center has been sharing art and creating with the community since 1936. Our programs encompass classes, exhibitions and events at our facility in downtown Richmond, as well as off-site activities that bring free, high-quality art making experiences to WCCUSD schools and community partners. richmondartcenter.org
# # #
Fall Family Day 2021
Saturday, October 23, 12pm-3pm | FREE
Richmond Art Center (courtyard), 2540 Barrett Avenue, Richmond
Join us for art-making, dancing and more! This fun day for the family is not to be missed!
Family Day is coming back to Richmond Art Center with a special celebration of Día de los Muertos on Saturday, October 23, 12pm-3pm. Kids of all ages and their grown-ups are invited to join us in RAC’s courtyard for art-making, dancing, music and more.
This free family event will feature an Alebrije workshop, performances by Puerto Rican youth Bomba ensemble Quenepas, and storyteller Olga Loya. RAC artists-in-residence Liberación Gráfica will be there screen printing tote bags and the Great Tortilla Conspiracy will also be printing up some tortilla art!
Schedule of Activities:
Tissue paper Mexican paper flower making, scavenger hunt, printmaking, community altar, and music by DJ Dion Decibels will run 12pm-3pm.
Covid-19 Prevention protocols: Mask wearing and signing a Visitor Waiver will be a condition of entry. We will track attendee numbers in the courtyard and galleries to ensure spaces do not get too crowded.
Día de la familia de otoño 2021
Sábado 23 de octubre, de 12:00 a 15:00 horas | GRATIS
Richmond Art Center (patio), 2540 Barrett Avenue, Richmond
¡Únase a nosotros para hacer arte, bailar y más! ¡Este divertido día para la familia no se lo debe perder!
El Día de la Familia regresa al Centro de Arte de Richmond con una celebración especial del Día de los Muertos el sábado 23 de octubre, de 12 pm a 3 pm. Los niños de todas las edades y sus adultos están invitados a unirse a nosotros en el patio del RAC para hacer arte, bailar, escuchar música y más.
Este evento familiar gratuito contará con un taller de Alebrije, actuaciones del conjunto de bomba juvenil puertorriqueño Quenepas y la narradora Olga Loya. Los artistas residentes de RAC Liberación Gráfica también imprimirán bolsas de tela y la Gran Conspiración de la Tortilla también imprimirá un poco de arte de tortillas.
Programa de actividades:
Papel de seda La fabricación de flores de papel mexicano, la búsqueda del tesoro, el grabado, el altar comunitario y la música de DJ Dion Decibels se llevarán a cabo de 12 pm a 3 pm.
Protocolos de prevención de Covid-19: El uso de mascarillas y su firma aceptando nuestras reglas como visitante será una condición para la entrada. Realizaremos un seguimiento del número de asistentes en el patio y las galerías para garantizar que los espacios no se llenen demasiado.
Posted Oct 11, 2021 at 16:13h in Arts and Culture, Criminal Justice by Danielle Parenteau-Decker
Top image: Native American activist Anne Begay at the Richmond Art Center event “Gathering in the Spirit of Gwarth-ee-las,” held Oct. 8 in honor of imprisoned activist Leonard Peltier.
Story and photos by Denis Perez-Bravo
Through word and art, the call to free activist Leonard Peltier, a member of the American Indian Movement, from his 45-year imprisonment was amplified Sunday in the Richmond Art Center courtyard.
The center hosted the event “Gathering in the Spirit of Gwarth-ee-lass” to honor Peltier, his family and their sacrifices while giving free access to artist Rigo 23’s exhibit “Time and Again.”
In 1977, Peltier was convicted of the murders of two FBI agents. The agents were killed in 1975 at the Pine Ridge reservation in South Dakota. The trial was marred by many procedural issues, casting doubt on its outcome. For example, one alleged eyewitness to the shooting recanted her testimony and said the FBI threatened her. And a Freedom of Information Act ruling in 1980 revealed that evidence that might have helped Peltier was hidden by the prosecutors.
“He is in jail for a federal offense that is nothing but lies,” said activist Anne Begay at the event Sunday.
Begay is the mother of Peltier’s daughter, Kathy Begay. Both were present at the event.
Anne Begay and Rigo 23 led a discussion about her life and her memories of Peltier.
“Leonard is a father. He is a grandfather. He is a great grandfather. And he has never held his grandchildren,” Anne Begay said.
She also asked the crowd “to be more aware” and to raise awareness of one of the latest actions to free Peltier.
Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, the chair of the Natural Resources Committee, and 10 other members of Congress sent a letter Oct. 8 formally requesting clemency for Peltier. The letter was addressed to President Biden; Attorney General Merrick Garland; Michael Carvajal, the director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons; and J.A. Keller, the bureau’s southeast regional director. (Peltier is imprisoned at the Coleman Federal Correctional Complex in Florida.)
“Mr. Peltier has yet to receive a fair trial that is free from constitutional violations. Mr. Peltier is 77 years old and suffers from severe health conditions, including diabetes and an abdominal aortic aneurysm that can be lethal if ruptured. He has served more than 43 years in the federal prison system, some of which have been in solitary confinement,” the letter read, in part.
After the discussion between Rigo and Begay, a lineup of poets came to the stage to perform.
One of them was Kathy Begay, who is in her 40s. She read a poem about waiting for her father to come home that she wrote when she was 16.
“He sits behind walls, waiting to see my family,” she read to the crowd.
Apart from hearing the speakers, attendees also got to see Rigo 23’s sculpture of Peltier.Artist Rigo 23’s exhibit “Time and Again” features a 12-foot-tall sculpture of activist Leonard Peltier on a 6-foot-by-9-foot base — the size of a prison cell like the one Peltier has spent most of his life in.
The 12-foot-tall work depicts Peltier sitting on a base 9 feet by 6 feet, the size of a traditional jail cell like the one where he has spent most of his life, Rigo 23 said.
The sculpture is crowned with sage brought back from a Sun Dance ceremony and behind the Peltier figure hangs a traditional quilt from the Pine Ridge reservation. In between the giant feet of the sculpture, an altar sits. The sculpture is surrounded by photographs and artwork that have been arranged in a timeline from 1977 to 2021.
The various artworks were contributed by people from all over the country.
A line runs from Rigo 23’s first solo exhbit at the Richmond Art Center to this one. Twenty-five years ago, he did an exhibit dedicated to the Black Panther Geronimo Ji Jaga and his political imprisonment. After his release, Rigo met Ji Jaga. Rigo said Ji Jaga told him to continue fighting for political prisoners, and that led him to Peltier’s cause.
Rigo said he sees an extreme culture of violence against Black and Native American lives alike in the U.S. And he hopes to continue raising awareness of these issues, and especially of Peltier’s case until he is released.
“Things change, but they stay the same,” Rigo said.
Read article online here: https://richmondconfidential.org/2021/10/07/richmond-art-center-opens-doors-to-free-event-for-indigenous-peoples-day/
PDF of article is here: https://richmondartcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Richmond-Confidential_-RAC-Indigenous-Peoples-Day.pdf
Elgin Nelson on October 7, 2021
In honor of Indigenous People’s Day, the Richmond Art Center will host “Gathering in the Spirit of Gwarth-ee-lass,” a free event on Sunday featuring spoken word, candid conversations and live music, all in the backdrop of artist Rigo 23’s newest exhibit “Time and Again.”
The exhibit’s centerpiece is a 12-foot sculpture created from a self-portrait of Native American political activist Leonard Peltier.
Peltier has been in prison for about 45 years, serving two life sentences after his controversial conviction in the murders of two FBI agents during a shootout at Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota in 1975.
At his trial in North Dakota, Peltier acknowledged being involved in the confrontation along with other members of the American Indian Movement, one of whom was killed. But he maintained he did not kill the agents. Two others charged in the murders were tried in Iowa, where a jury found that they acted in self-defense.
The firefight occurred at the site of the famous 1890 massacre at Wounded Knee, where U.S. soldiers killed about 300 Lakota people, most of them women and children.
Peltier has been incarcerated since 1977. The sculpture of him is about as high and as wide as a standard prison cell, said Roberto Martinez, a curator at the Richmond Art Center.
“I wanted the visitor to feel enclosed and uncomfortable, similar to a prison cell,” Martinez said.
Peltier’s daughter Kathy and her mother, Anne Begay, as well as Rigo 23 will attend the event. There will be a recitation of “He Sits Behind Prison Walls,” a poem Kathy Peltier crafted as a tribute to her father.
“I wrote this poem about my father when I was 16, thinking of the day when he’ll be free or just breathe fresh air,” she said.
Kathy Peltier was a child when her father was tried for the murders and sent away.
“My dad has been in prison all my life,” she said. “I try to not feel sorry for myself but understand why he is in this position, ”
Leonard Peltier is a member of the Anishinabe, Dakota, and Lakota nations. He was an activist even before joining the American Indian Movement, which fought for fair treatment of Native Americans and came to prominence in the 1970s.
In “Time and Again,” Rigo 23 pays tribute to that activism. Originally from Portugal, Rigo 23 has spent much of his life in the Bay Area, where he was inspired by what he saw on the streets and on the walls.
“I came to the Bay Area and I encountered murals of the Chicano Movement. I saw the urban graffiti which was all about style and calligraphy, and it just blew my mind,” he said.
Much of his work has been influenced by activism, especially the protests and civil unrest of the 1960s. In “Time and Again,” Rigo 23 pays tribute to Peltier and recognizes the 25th anniversary of his own first exhibition, which was curated by the Richmond Art Center.
“As the title suggests, it refers to a process of something that keeps on happening, and the focus is centered on Leonard Peltier’s plight,” the artist said.
The exhibit opened on Sept. 9 and will run through Nov. 19. It includes three stories that provide insight into Peltier’s life and the impact he continues to have on society.
Martinez spoke of the power of art, saying it should be approached with respect and dignity.
“Art is so dangerous that it makes the powers that be tremble,” he said.
From 2 to 6 p.m. on Sunday, visitors at the center will receive a tour, hear a conversation with Rigo 23, and enjoy poetry and spoken word featuring Tongo Eisen-Martin, San Francisco poet laureate, and music by DJ Petrelli.
Guests must RSVP, wear masks and sign waivers to enter the center.
ISSUE 28
The Latest Edition | Indigenous Peoples’ Day | Exhibitions Reception | Fall Family Day: Día de los Muertos
Free Class for Aspiring Artists | Call for Artists of the African Diaspora | Upcoming Classes
In Memoriam: John Rampley
The Latest Edition
Fall 2021 Class Catalog
Our Fall Program Catalog is here. Register today for in-person* and online classes starting weekly October through November. And read about the exciting exhibitions and events happening at Richmond Art Center this fall.
Cover image: Kate Godfrey’s Night Passage (2021) is in the RAC student exhibition Works From Home.
Indigenous Peoples’ Day
Gathering in the Spirit of Gwarth-ee-lass
Sunday, October 10, 2pm-6pm* at Richmond Art Center
FREE | RSVP Required
We gather around Leonard Peltier’s statue and legacy to celebrate the word – bearer of memory and dream. Join us for a guided tour of the exhibition Time and Again, conversation between Anne Begay and Rigo 23, and poetry / spoken word by Tongo Eisen-Martin, Brian Tripp, Meres-Sia Gabriel, Kathy Peltier, and Arnoldo García. More poets to be announced soon!
Recent press coverage of Time and Again: Native News, KPFA, Daily Kos
Image: Rigo 23’s statue of Leonard Peltier currently on view at Richmond Art Center
Exhibitions Reception
Courtyard Mingle!
Saturday, October 16, 12pm-2pm* at Richmond Art Center
FREE
Fall exhibitions run September 9 through November 19, 2021. Join us on Saturday, October 16, 12pm-2pm for a courtyard reception for three great exhibitions: Works from Home: Richmond Art Center Student Showcase, Opossum Magic, and Summer Rites.
Top image: Gail Rubin, Tribute to Natalia Arbelaez, 2021. Created in “Handbuilding: Women in Contemporary Ceramics” with Colleen Garland and featured in Works From Home.
Fall Family Day
Día de los Muertos
Saturday, October 23, 12pm-3pm* at Richmond Art Center
FREE
Join us for art-making, dancing and more! This fun day for the family is not to be missed!
Free Class for Aspiring Artists
Portfolio Development for Young Artists
Online Class Starts October 12
FREE
This class is designed for young artists (ages 16-24) who are interested in pursuing a career in the arts. Students will develop foundation year college course-level skills while creating a professional portfolio or body of work. Teaching Artist: Dawline-Jane Oni-Eseleh
Call for Artists
Art of the African Diaspora 2022
Deadline to Register: Sunday, October, 31, 2021, 11:59pm
Artists, be part of the 25th Anniversary of the Bay Area Black Artists’ exhibition at Richmond Art Center! Art Of The African Diaspora is a non-juried group exhibition featuring work by artists of African descent. The showcase exhibition is held at Richmond Art Center and is accompanied by self-guided open studio tours and satellite exhibitions throughout the Bay Area.
Learn more about participating in AOTAD at the online Artist Info Session on Saturday, October 23, 12pm-1:30pm. CLICK HERE to register.
In Memoriam
❤️ John Rampley
Remembering John Rampley; a fiercely dedicated painter.
Images: (top) Positively 4th Street mural (detail) (1976) by John Rampley and John Wehrle; (above left) John Rampley’s Not Easy Being Green (1994) shown at Richmond Art Center in 2014; (above right) John Rampley at Richmond Art Center in 2014.
*In-person activity dates are subject to change as we see further developments in the Covid-19 pandemic. Mask wearing and signing a Visitor Waiver is a condition of entry to RAC events. We track attendee numbers in the courtyard and galleries to ensure spaces do not get too crowded. Read more about Richmond Art Center’s Covid-19 safety measures HERE.
Top and Bottom banners feature Laura Kamian McDermott’s Jagged Skyline of Car Keys, Sand (2021). See Laura’s work in the Opossum Magic exhibition currently on view at RAC.
Have something to share? Please email us at admin@richmondartcenter.org
Courtyard Mingle!
Saturday, October 16, 12pm-2pm* at Richmond Art Center
FREE
Fall exhibitions run September 9 through November 19, 2021. Join us on Saturday, October 16, 12pm-2pm for a courtyard reception for three great exhibitions: Works from Home: Richmond Art Center Student Showcase, Opossum Magic, and Summer Rites.
*In-person activity dates are subject to change as we see further developments in the Covid-19 pandemic. Mask wearing and signing a Visitor Waiver is a condition of entry to RAC events. We track attendee numbers in the courtyard and galleries to ensure spaces do not get too crowded. Read more about Richmond Art Center’s Covid-19 safety measures HERE.
Top image: Gail Rubin, Tribute to Natalia Arbelaez, 2021. Created in “Handbuilding: Women in Contemporary Ceramics” with Colleen Garland and featured in Works From Home
Sunday, October 10, 2pm-6pm
FREE | RSVP REQUIRED
Richmond Art Center (courtyard)
2540 Barrett Avenue, Richmond
We gather around Leonard Peltier’s statue and legacy to celebrate the word – bearer of memory and dream.
PROGRAM*
Folks are invited to come for all or part of the program. Please note, space on the exhibition tour is limited.
SPECIAL GUESTS
Anne Begay, Diné, Co-founder of AIM-Denver Chapter in 1970; Rigo 23, Artist
POETRY / SPOKEN WORD
Tongo Eisen-Martin, San Francisco Poet Laureate; Doggtown Dro, Rapper, poet and artist; Meres-sia Gabriel, Richmond based writer, Panther Cub; Arnoldo García, Chiapas Support Committee; CieraJevae, Richmond Poet Laureate; Sheila McKinney, Richmond Youth Poet Laureate; Flavia Elisa Mora, Poet and Migrant Artivist; Kathy Peltier, Leonard Peltier’s daughter; Brian Tripp, Karuk, visionary artist, poet and esteemed elder
Please RSVP HERE if you would like to attend Gathering in the Spirit of Gwarth-ee-lass.
Like most Indian people, I have several names. In Indian Way, names come to you in the course of your life, not just when you’re born. Some come during childhood ceremonies; others are given on special occasions throughout your life. Each name gives you a new sense of yourself and your own possibilities. And each name gives you something to live up to. It points out the direction you’re supposed to take in this life. One of my names is Tate Wikuwa, which means “Wind Chases the Sun in the Dakota language. That name was my great-grandfather’s. Another name, bestowed on me by my Native Canadian brethren, is Gwarth-ee-lass, meaning “He Leads the People.”
Leonard Peltier, Prison Writings: My Life Is My Sun Dance, 1999
BIOS
Anne Begay, Diné
Born in New México and raised traditionally by her grandparents, Anne was sent to boarding schools in Oklahoma and New México. She survived that experience and later attended Haskell Indian Nations University and the University of Nebraska where she joined the Student Senate and majored in History. While there she also studied English and stage acting.
She enlisted in the US Army and joined AIM – American Indian Movement – co-founding the Denver Chapter in 1970. She worked at the Denver AIM office while still in the Army.At the time of her discharge, Wounded Knee Occupation, 1973, was taking place, Anne helped with that effort. She gave birth to her single daughter, Kathy Peltier 1975. She and her daughter Kathy, joined the Longest Walk in 1978. Anne raised Kathy on her own, remaining close to her and the Movement to this day – mainly as a “keyboard warrior.”
Together with Kathy she makes regalia and traditional beaded jewelry that they bring to rallies, speaking events, dances and pow-wows. This supplements Kathy’s travel expenses to see her father who is presently at Coleman Prison in Florida. They have been collaborating with Rigo in the Leonard Peltier Statue Project since 2018.
Doggtown Dro
Rapper, poet, artist. Pan African, Abolitionist and Revolutionary.
Tongo Eisen-Martin
Tongo Eisen-Martin is the current poet laureate of San Francisco. He is the author of Heaven Is All Goodbyes, published as part of City Lights’ Pocket Poet series, and someone’s dead already. Heaven Is All Goodbyes was shortlisted for the Griffin International Poetry Prize, received the California Book Award for Poetry, an American Book Award, and a PEN Oakland Book Award. Eisen-Martin is also an educator and organizer whose work centers on issues of mass incarceration, extrajudicial killings of Black people, and human rights. He has taught at detention centers around the country and at the Institute for Research in African-American Studies at Columbia University, and is the founder of Black Freighter Press. His second book in the City Lights Pocket Poet series, Blood on the Fog, will be released in the fall of 2021.
Arnoldo García
Known as a colibrí, Arnoldo García is a community-based poet, musician and organizer. He is the co-author of XicKorea: poems, words, rants together with Beth Ching and Miriam Ching Louie and editor of Poets against War & Racism | Poetas contra la guerra y el racismo, a chapbook anthology of multinational and multiracial poets. Arnoldo is a member of the Chiapas Support Committee, which supports the Zapatistas and Indigenous land justice movements. Arnoldo is a restorative justice practitioner training youth, adults and new and experienced community activists and organizers to create deliberate relationships across communities rooted in self-determination and deep justice. You can read his work at artofthecommune.wordpress.com.
CieraJevae
CieraJevae is a Richmond Native serving her community as an artist educator, a healer, Poet Laureate, writer, activist, and scholar. She reps her ancestors, & shines light on the lived experiences of the divinity in Black women & girls through poetry and performance. She is the published author of her new collection of poems, Unto Ivy’s Rib, as well as the author of two chapbooks, Testimonies of Richmond, and Incarcerated Words. She obtained her B.A in Sociology, and her MFA in Writing. She currently serves as the Media, Arts, and Culture Manager at the RYSE Center.com For more, go to her website at cierajevae.com.
Sheila McKinney
Sheila McKinney (she/her) is a 16 year old poet attending Pinole Valley High School. She serves on the Debate team, the African American Student Union, as well as WISE (Women in STEM Education). She is the first Youth Poet Laureate of Richmond, CA. She started writing and performing in 2020-2021, and already has co-facilitated a series of poetry workshops locally and nationally. Sheila uses poetry as a form of activism and as a tool for moving the world into a more just and loving place. Working with youth and learning from her peers has been one of the highlights of her experience as Richmond’s Youth Poet Laureate and a RYSE member.
Flavia Elisa Mora
Flavia Elisa Mora is a queer, Mexican migrant artivist, raised in La Mission, San Francisco. Amongst her interdisciplinary art practice, her main two focuses are muralismo and poesía.
Flavia is a published writer, she has performed poetry throughout the Bay Area, and is one of the lead artists for the mural, “Alto al Fuego en la Misión” located on 24th and Capp. Her passions for both muralismo and spoken word poetry collide through her understanding that both forms are vessels for preserving history, intergenerational healing tools, and expressions of the soul.
Flavia’s prioritization of her own healing ties with her belief that revolution starts from the heart. She hopes that through her art, she can help create space for inspiration and positive change in her community.
Kathy Peltier, Dine’h/Navajo
Ya’ at’e’e’h, hello my name is Kathy Peltier. My parents are Anne Begay and Leonard Peltier. I’m an enrolled member of the Dine’h/Navajo Nation. I’m also Lakota and Turtle Mountain Ojibwe. I currently reside in Southern California.
Kathy Peltier is a dancer, beadwork artist and world traveler. She started dancing when she was two years old, and has attended powwows all over the US as a traditional dancer. Kathy’s travels also include touring with Red Sun Rising to Australia as part of a dance troupe. To book Kathy for travel you can contact her via her Facebook page at www.facebook.com/kathy.peltier.12 or on Instagram @wazi_kat.
DJ Petrelli
DJ Petrelli is a revolutionary artist living in San Francisco.
Rigo 23
Rigo 23 has exhibited his work internationally for over 30 years placing murals, paintings, sculptures, and tile work in public situations where viewers are encouraged to examine their relationship to their community, their role as unwitting advocates of public policy, and their place on a planet occupied by many other living things.
Rigo’s projects have included inter-communal collaborations with Native Tribes in North and South America; long-term partnerships with political prisoners; and alliances with underrepresented and disenfranchised individuals and communities. @rigo23studio @peltierstatue
In-person classes are back! Online classes continue!
Our Fall Program Catalog is here. Register today for in-person and online classes starting weekly October through November. And read about the exciting exhibitions and events happening at Richmond Art Center this fall.
Fall 2021 Catalog Flip Book (view as an interactive, online publication)
Fall 2021 Class Catalog PDF (download to print or share with your friends!)
