Press

TV and Me

Gallery Exhibition/Event

Artists with Developmental Disabilities at Creativity Explored Tune in to Their Favorite TV Shows Past and Present in a New Group Exhibition of Original Artworks

March 12 through April 22, 2009
Opening Reception: Thursday, March 12, 2009, 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm

SAN FRANCISCO… Don’t touch that dial! Coming up next at San Francisco’s Creativity Explored is a new group exhibition of original artworks all about the joy of TV. In “TV and Me”, studio artists pay homage to their favorites shows from “Mister Ed” to “McHale’s Navy” and the memories they evoke. The exhibition opens with a reception featuring live music on Thursday, March 12 from 7:00 to 9:00 pm and continues through April 22. All artwork may be purchased at the Creativity Explored Gallery, open Monday through Friday, 10:00 am to 3:00 pm, Thursday until 7:00 pm, and Saturday from 1:00 pm to 6:00 pm.

Curator and Creativity Explored Artist Instructor Larry Morace was struck by the intensity of TV fandom amongst the artists at the studio when he first began working there. “Everyone here has a real TV awareness,” he says. “Some artists live and breathe certain shows. We had one artist here who was really immersed in the life of Captain Kirk. All of his art was about reinterpreting this Star Trek character.”

For Tonya Lewis it’s all about “ER.” Her portrait of the main actors focuses exclusively on the male hunks in the show. But for older artist Betty Benard, her fondest memories involve “The Andy Griffith Show” and Don Knotts in particular. Benard contributes a portrait of Knotts, reimagined as an African American man, framed by a wood cut out she made of an antique TV set. Michael Bernard Loggins, Creativity Explored’s well-known author of “Fear of Your Life” and “Imaginationally”, riffs in a text based piece about his favorite show, “Three’s Company” calling it “my perfection kind of show.”

Amani Swalim, like many of the artists at Creativity Explored, has roots in another culture and brings her dual Arab/American identity to the exhibition with several pieces about the cast of the popular Turkish soap opera “Noor” alongside an eight-panel work on the Simpsons.

For Peter Cordova, the show presented an opportunity to remember some of the good times he had in front of the tube with his father and mother. In one intricate piece, Cordova creates several panels that depict his father’s love of watching political newsmakers like Ronald Reagan. Another piece recalls the laughs that he and his mother shared over an episode of “I Love Lucy.” James Miles similarly contributes a piece called “On Monday at 5:30 Kiya sat next to me while we chatted and watched Brady Bunch on TV.”

South African artist Albert Meyer dispenses with the actual shows and zeroes in on the remote control. Five colorful abstract works explore the beauty of push button pleasure.

Calendar Listing

TV and Me

GROUP EXHIBITION AND OPENING: Artists with Developmental Disabilities at Creativity Explored Tune in to Their Favorite TV Shows Past and Present in a New Group Exhibition of Original Artworks

What

Don’t touch that dial! Coming up next at San Francisco’s Creativity Explored is a new group exhibition of original artworks all about the joy of TV. In “TV and Me”, studio artists pay homage to their favorites shows from “Mister Ed” to “Hannah Montana” and the memories they evoke. For Tonya Lewis it’s all about “ER.” Her portrait of the main actors focuses exclusively on the male hunks in the show. But for older artist Betty Benard, her fondest memories involve “The Andy Griffith Show” and Don Knotts in particular. Benard contributes a portrait of Knotts, reimagined as an African American man, framed by a wood cut out she made of an antique TV set. Michael Bernard Loggins, Creativity Explored’s well-known author of “Fear of Your Life” and “Imaginationally”, riffs in a text based piece about his favorite show, “Three’s Company” calling it “my perfection kind of show.”

When

• Opening Reception: Thursday, March 12, 2009, 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm
• Exhibition Dates and Times: March 12 through JApril 22, 2009;
  Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm, Thursday from 10:00 am to 7:00 pm, and Saturday from 1:00 pm to 6:00 pm

Where

Creativity Explored Gallery, 3245 16th Street at Guerrero Street, San Francisco CA 94103 (Map)

Information

• (415) 863-2108
• www.creativityexplored.org

Cost

FREE

Creativity Explored is a nonprofit visual arts center where artists with developmental disabilities create, exhibit, and sell art.

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Press Contacts

Barbara Traisman: publicity@creativityexplored.org
Amy Auerbach: (415) 863-2108 · gallery@creativityexplored.org
Amy Taub: (415) 863-2108 · director@creativityexplored.org

# Posted on January 24, 2009