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.
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.
Kathy Peltier (right) stands in front of Rigo 23’s statue of her father, Native American activist Leonard Peltier. (Courtesy of Rigo 23)
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.
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!
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.
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
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.
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
*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
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.
This exhibit centers on “Leonard Peltier – Waiting,” a mixed media 12 X 6 X 9 foot statue that is based on a painted self-portrait that Peltier painted from prison. The statue has been exhibited in four other venues, in Washington, DC; Los Angeles and San Francisco, according to Rigo 23.
From September 9 – November 18, 2021, the Richmond Art Center is presenting Time and Again, an art exhibition centered on Rigo 23’s monumental sculptural tribute to Native American activist Leonard Peltier.
The 12-foot tall sculpture sits at the center of the exhibition, anchoring a narrative of Leonard Peltier’s 45-year long incarceration. For the first time, the sculpture is being presented alongside photographs, letters, artwork, posters and ephemera from Rigo’s archive.
According to Rigo 23, who grew up in Portugal before coming to the United Staes, the exhibition “aims to communicate, to share, to create a unique experience for the viewer, as any art exhibit does.”
“But personally, this exhibition is a special marker: 25 years ago I had my first solo exhibition at the Richmond Art Center, and that exhibit centered on the plight of Black Panther leader Geronimo ji Jaga, who was then imprisoned at Mule Creek State Prison. Geronimo would be released the following year, 1997, and awarded a settlement for wrongful imprisonment,” said Rigo 23. “Both the FBI and the LAPD compensated him for plotting against his freedom.”
“The current exhibition, Time and Again, focuses on the plight of American Indian leader Leonard Peltier, whom many institutions, individuals and governments around the World also believe to have been wrongfully convicted. Most notably, the lead prosecutor on the case has called for his release since 2017. The purpose of this exhibition clearly includes calling attention to Leonard Peltier’s continued imprisonment,” he stated.
This exhibit centers on “Leonard Peltier – Waiting”, a mixed media 12 X 6 X 9 foot statue that is based on a painted self-portrait that Peltier painted from prison. The statue has been exhibited in four other venues, in Washington, DC; Los Angeles and San Francisco, according to Rigo 23.
“But I’ve mounted several other exhibitions which centered on Peltier’s art and plight, the first of which was at the De Young Museum in San Francisco, in 1999. That exhibit was titled “Tate Wikikuwa Museum” and it travelled the world, including London, UK; Santiago, Chile; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Lisbon, Portugal; Syracuse, and Niagara Falls in New York,” he stated.
On October 10 at 6 p.m. there will a gathering for Indigenous People’s Day held at the Richmond Art Center.
Rigo 23 explained how growing up in Portugal at the time of the Portuguese Revolution in 1974 had a big influence on the the current path he has taken.
“In my youth Portugal went through a profound transition, from a colonial quasi fascist regime, to a progressive one focused on International Solidarity with Movements for Self- Determination,” he stated. “It was in that light that I first became aware of the brutality of the Reservations System in the United States and the relationship between America’s Manifest Destiny and the Nazi regime’s expansionist ethos in Europe. Leonard Peltier, unwittingly, became a symbol of systemic and collective oppression, much in the same vein as Nelson Mandela became a symbol for European Colonialism and institutionalized racism in Africa.”
To create the huge sculpture of Peltier, he had to learn how to do it as he went along creating it.
“That was on the job training,” he said. “I mean, I had some experience gained with ‘Victory Stand,’ the sculptural tribute to Tommie Smith and John Carlos at San José State University, which I completed in 2005. But still this project was much more DYI. Entirely funded by myself and friends and supporters, it was built over a two year period as I was able to gather the necessary materials and secure a place to built it in. I started by carving the statue’s feet out of two redwood logs, and built it up from there.”
In Time and Again, there is a series of historical photographs by the late Michele Vignes documenting seminal events in the history of the American Indian Movement; original oil paintings by Peltier himself; photographs by Marc Hors, Rio Yañez, Ashley Forbes, Marc Chiat, Francisco Dominguez, Frank Jackson, David Petrelli; silkscreens by Juan Fuentes; Calixto Robles; Liberación Gráfica; Gonzalo Hidalgo; a giant banner by Eric Norberg and many more.
The current exhibition also includes materials such as original sketches for the banner “It’s 1999, Why is Leonard Peltier Still in Prison?” mounted outside the Berkeley Art Museum; photographs from the Tate Wikikuwa Museum installed at the deYoung Museum that same year; brochure and zine from theTate Wikikuwa Museum at the Warehouse Gallery in Syracuse University where the Leonard Peltier sculpture premiered, in 2011.
On September 12, a special dedication for the exhibit was held that coincided with Leonard Peltier’s 77th Birthday.
“It was a very moving gathering that brought together relatives of Peltier, including his daughter Kathy, with supporters, some of whom have been advocating for his behalf for as long as he has been imprisoned – 45 years,” he stated. “A remarkable moment was when a few sundancers wove a sage crown which they placed on the Statue’s head. The sage had come from Crow Dog’s Paradise Sundance grounds in Rosebud, South Dakota, and Crow Dog Jr was in attendance.”
“After those gathered sang Happy Birthday to Leonard, a group of singers – men and women – gathered and sang the AIM song acapella in his honor. That was the highlight of the day,” he concluded.
Francisco Dominguez, a Chicano/Tarahumara photo journalist and artist, whose photo of John Trudell at Mission High School in 1997 is displayed at the exhibition, said the exhibition is significant “because of how long Peltier has been unjustly imprisoned and how the powers that be have made an example of him as an activist and somebody who is standing up for the people. I encourage all people who care about human rights and civil rights to attend, as we live in a time where the county is turning towards the right.”
Chicano Artist Juan R. Fuentes also has two works that are displayed in the exhibit.
“First, in 1992, I produced the print 500 years of Native Resistance to commemorate the landing of Columbus and I included a large face of Leonard Peltier and the wording, Freedom for Leonard Peltier. Second, in 1990 I created the poster, International Day to Resist the Imprisonment of Leonard Peltier, June 26, 1990,” he explained.
“It has been some time that has elapsed since we have had an exhibition that focuses on Leonard Peltier in the Bay Area. The fact that Rigo has been able to assemble so many levels of interaction with support for Leonard over the years is significant and a testament to the ongoing struggle for liberation for Leonard and his people,” said Fuentes.
In the late 80s, Fuentes was a member of the Native American Defense Committee, anchored by then warrior Sydney Welsh. As an artist, he supported the struggle and his biggest contribution was through his prints and posters.
“My role as a Chicano artist has always been connected to our peoples struggles and I feel that anything that my work lends to the advancement of our struggle is my responsibility as an artist of color,” said Fuentes “What I noticed at the exhibition were the young and old were there to support Leonard Peltier.”
“it is very encouraging to see the next generation of activists gives us all a great sense that the struggle will continue. Leonard’s imprisonment has been so long that people tend to forget and this exhibition will ensure that Leonard’s needs are still addressed and he will be exposed to a new wave of supporters. It was an honor to be in this exhibit and to have the chance to meet Leonard’s family,” Fuentes stated.
Calixto Robles, a printmaker/painter and Zapotec Indian from Oaxaca, Mexico whose art is also on display at the show, said the current show is a must-see because it’s about a man who has been in jail for more than 40 years.
“He is accused of a crime he didn’t commit — just for defending his land and his people. This show is to call the attention of the whole world to demand his freedom,” Robles noted.
He emphasized that art is “an important tool to denounce injustice and to inform people of what is happening in the struggle of the 99% population of this world. I think when people get united for a right cause, it’s impossible to stop it.”
Exhibition: September 9 – November 18, 2021 Main Gallery Richmond Art Center 2540 Barrett Avenue, Richmond, CA 94804 Gallery Hours: Thurs 10am-2pm, Sat 10am-2pm, or by appt 510-620-6772
Background:
The sculpture (California redwood, foam, plywood, and metal) is based on a small hand-painted self portrait Leonard Peltier created in prison. The statue’s 9 x 6 foot base replicates the dimensions of a traditional prison cell. Each time the work is shown, the exhibition incorporates selections from the growing collection of photographs of supporters standing in solidarity on the statue’s feet.
Completed in 2016 and first shown at the Katzen Art Center at the American University, Washington D.C., the artwork was almost immediately censored, removed from display, and subsequently withheld from the artist for one year.
The removal of the statue was in response to a bomb threat and to the University’s president receiving complaints from the FBI Agents Association – events which happened on the same day. Since its return to the artist, it has been exhibited at the Main Museum in Los Angeles (2018), SOMArts (2019) and most recently atop the roof of the San Francisco Institute of Art overlooking Alcatraz Island (2020).
The statue’s feet, which are detachable, have taken their own journey, traveling to significant sites of Native Resistance across the U.S. including Standing Rock, Alcatraz Island, Wounded Knee, Crow Dog’s Paradise, and the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. Supporters have been invited to stand on the feet as an expression of solidarity – and be photographed. In summer 2021, Richmond Art Center also welcomed members of the community to do so.
About the Artist: 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. His 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 #freeleonardpeltier
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
Leonard Peltier’s Birthday Party was celebrated at the Richmond Art Center on September 12. Photo by Maureen Moore.
The Free Leonard Peltier was displayed outside in the courtyard. Photo by Dan Bacher.
This banner commemorates the Longest Walk by the American Indian Movement across the country. Photo by Dan Bacher.
Francisco Dominguez, Chicano/Tarahumara photo journalist/artist, took the photo of John Trudell to his left that is now being displayed at the Richmond Art Center. Photo by Dan Bacher.
This Leonard Peltier poster is now on display at the Richmond Art Museum. Photo by Dan Bacher.
Art remembering three more years – 2018, 2019 and 2020 – that Peltier has spent unjustly in prison. Photo by Dan Bacher.
Three artists displaying their works at the show include (center) Francisco Dominguez and (right) Emory Douglas.
RICHMOND, Calif. — The Richmond Art Center in Richmond, Calif. is hosting Time and Again, an exhibition centered on artist Rigo 23’s monumental sculptural tribute to imprisoned Leonard Peltier (Turtle Mountain Ojibwe).
Peltier has been incarcerated for the past 45 years for the murder of two FBI agents, who were shot and killed at Oglala on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in 1975. To many American Indians and others, Peltier, who turned 77-years-old on Sept. 12, is a symbol of an oppressive federal system that confines Native people to a dismal place in American society.
Rigo 23 is a well-known artist in the San Francisco Bay Area. He has exhibited his work internationally for over three decades, often placing murals, paintings, sculptures, and tile work in public venues.
The Time and Again exhibition’s main feature is a sculpture made from California redwood, foam, plywood, and metal that is based on a small hand-painted self-portrait Leonard Peltier created in prison. The statue’s 9’x6’ base replicates the dimensions of a traditional prison cell. Each time the work is shown, the exhibition incorporates selections from the growing collection of photographs of supporters standing in solidarity on the statue’s feet.
Community celebrates Leonard Peltier’s 77th birthday on Sunday, Sept. 12 at Richmond Art Center. (Photo/Facebook)
The sculpture became controversial when it was completed in 2016 and first shown at the Katzen Art Center at the American University, Washington D.C. Facing pressure from the FBI Agents Association and a bomb threat made to the university on the same day, the artwork was abruptly removed from display. It took one year to return the sculpture back to Rigo 23.
Since its return to the artist, it has been exhibited at the Main Museum in Los Angeles (2018), SOMArts (2019) and most recently atop the roof of the San Francisco Institute of Art overlooking Alcatraz Island (2020).
The statue’s feet, which are detachable, have taken their own journey, traveling to significant sites of Native Resistance across the U.S. including Standing Rock, Alcatraz Island, Wounded Knee, Crow Dog’s Paradise, and the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. Supporters have been invited to stand on the feet as an expression of solidarity – and be photographed. In summer 2021, Richmond Art Center also welcomed members of the community to do so.
The current exhibition includes materials such as original sketches for the banner “It’s 1999, Why is Leonard Peltier Still in Prison?” mounted outside the Berkeley Art Museum; photographs from the Tate Wikikuwa Museum installed at the deYoung Museum that same year; brochure and zine from theTate Wikikuwa Museum at the Warehouse Gallery in Syracuse University where the Leonard Peltier sculpture premiered, in 2011; and historical photographs by the late Michelle Vignes documenting seminal events in the history of the American Indian Movement.
Arthur Jacobs contributed to this article from Emeryville, Calif.
Happy Hispanic Heritage Month! After being closed for over a year and a half due to the Covid-19 pandemic, I’m happy it is during Hispanic Heritage Month that Richmond Art Center has finally reopened to the public. Explore our Fall Program 2021 Catalog to see what exhibitions we have on view (pages 6-7) and listings for upcoming in-person and online classes (pages 8-20). As always, we continue to offer classes taught in Spanish, bilingual classes, and intergenerational classes.
National Hispanic Heritage Month runs September 15 through October 15 and is an important opportunity to honor and celebrate Hispanic/Latino/Latinx people living in the U.S.. It is also a time to learn about the stories of oppression, prejudice and injustice that often go overlooked. The Bay Area, and Richmond especially, has a culturally diverse Latino community, and I encourage you to find your own way to celebrate and explore Hispanic Heritage Month.
I’m excited to announce that on Saturday, October 23, 12-3pm we are celebrating Día de los Muertos at RAC. We’ll have alebrije-making, bomba dancing, and more. This free family event is not to be missed!
Hope to see you at RAC soon. Hasta pronto!
José Rivera
Executive Director
¡Saludos Amigos del RAC!
¡Feliz Mes Nacional de la Herencia Hispana! Después de estar cerrado durante más de un año y medio debido a la pandemia del Covid-19, estoy muy feliz de haber podido reabrir al público durante este mes. Explora nuestro catálogo de otoño 2021 para ver qué exposiciones ofrecemos (páginas 6 y 7) y para ver los listados de las próximas clases presenciales y en línea (páginas 8 a la 20). Como siempre, continuamos ofreciendo clases en español, clases bilingües y clases intergeneracionales.
El Mes Nacional de la Herencia Hispana se lleva a cabo del 15 de septiembre al 15 de octubre y es una oportunidad importante para honrar y celebrar a las personas hispanas / latinas / latinx que viven en los EE. UU. También es un momento para aprender sobre las historias de opresión, prejuicio e injusticia que a menudo se pasan por alto . El Área de la Bahía, y Richmond especialmente, tienen una comunidad latina culturalmente diversa, y los animo a encontrar su propia manera de celebrar y explorar el Mes de la Herencia Hispana.
Me complace anunciar que el sábado 23 de octubre, de 12 a 3 pm, celebraremos el Día de los Muertos en el RAC. Tendremos elaboración de alebrije, baile de bomba y más. ¡Este evento familiar gratuito no se lo deben perder!
