Reception
saturday, July, 2018
6-9 pm
claremont forum & prison library project
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a portion of all sales will be used to suport art programs & restorative justice work in California's state prisons, and to promote healing & care for crime victims.
featured Artists & artwork
Rain Dickey-o'brien
"The Structure of a Stillborn Love" by Rain Dickey-O'Brien
Artist Statement:
My piece is called The Structure of a Stillborn Love. It represents a love that could have been, but only in an alternate reality where it was not neglected. It is a truncated hexadecahedron (the geometric structure of an egg) with one piece removed, making it flawed and unviable.
Love is like an egg, requiring certain conditions to hatch, and is fragile. But this piece is not an egg, merely the skeleton or hollow remains of one. Just like in love, where there may be so many pieces that fit, yet the relationship is doomed because of that one missing piece.
I am serving a life sentence for murdering an innocent man. The concept for my piece came to me when I began to think about “Making Amends” and what it means to be the victim of a murder, including friends and family. My victim lost the chance to love so many people, and so those births of new love were stillborn. My piece symbolizes one of those many losses.
My piece is called The Structure of a Stillborn Love. It represents a love that could have been, but only in an alternate reality where it was not neglected. It is a truncated hexadecahedron (the geometric structure of an egg) with one piece removed, making it flawed and unviable.
Love is like an egg, requiring certain conditions to hatch, and is fragile. But this piece is not an egg, merely the skeleton or hollow remains of one. Just like in love, where there may be so many pieces that fit, yet the relationship is doomed because of that one missing piece.
I am serving a life sentence for murdering an innocent man. The concept for my piece came to me when I began to think about “Making Amends” and what it means to be the victim of a murder, including friends and family. My victim lost the chance to love so many people, and so those births of new love were stillborn. My piece symbolizes one of those many losses.
victor flores
"Home" by Victor Flores
Artist Statement:
I have been practicing art for the last two years on a part-time basis. I am currently expanding my learning to include graphite and colored pencil art, but my focus has been painting with acrylic and oil on canvas. My style, I have been told, falls into the minimalist art genre. Two of my pieces in this show, Home and Alone, fall into that category.
I enjoy painting flowers and nature scenes such as Flower, my third piece in this show,because of the warm colors and the feeling of beauty and tranquility that they portray.
The main reason that I am learning art is so that I may be able to share something with family and friends, andpresently to be able to give back to the community by donating pieces of art that I have completed.
I have been practicing art for the last two years on a part-time basis. I am currently expanding my learning to include graphite and colored pencil art, but my focus has been painting with acrylic and oil on canvas. My style, I have been told, falls into the minimalist art genre. Two of my pieces in this show, Home and Alone, fall into that category.
I enjoy painting flowers and nature scenes such as Flower, my third piece in this show,because of the warm colors and the feeling of beauty and tranquility that they portray.
The main reason that I am learning art is so that I may be able to share something with family and friends, andpresently to be able to give back to the community by donating pieces of art that I have completed.
ezequiel gonzalez
"Speeding By" by Ezequiel Gonzalez
Artist Statement:
I’ve been practicing art for the past six years. I’m a diverse artist who enjoys expression through modern art. I use acrylic and oil on canvas to express myself.
Speeding By represents the speed of time in prison through productive endeavors, hence the blue/light colors.
You, The River, and I #2 is a companion piece to one I painted last year. Both pieces express how I feel about a vibrant woman – the circumstance that separates us: prison.
The River of Feelings is a further expression of how I feel about this vibrant woman when I think of her. The yellow-orange colors are a representation of my past. The rich colors of the river of feelings, however, represent who I truly am and how I feel, which was described as fantasy.
When I paint, I feel free. When I look at my work, I feel a sense of accomplishment and I know my work is done when I feel my feelings by looking at it.
I’ve been practicing art for the past six years. I’m a diverse artist who enjoys expression through modern art. I use acrylic and oil on canvas to express myself.
Speeding By represents the speed of time in prison through productive endeavors, hence the blue/light colors.
You, The River, and I #2 is a companion piece to one I painted last year. Both pieces express how I feel about a vibrant woman – the circumstance that separates us: prison.
The River of Feelings is a further expression of how I feel about this vibrant woman when I think of her. The yellow-orange colors are a representation of my past. The rich colors of the river of feelings, however, represent who I truly am and how I feel, which was described as fantasy.
When I paint, I feel free. When I look at my work, I feel a sense of accomplishment and I know my work is done when I feel my feelings by looking at it.
michael a. hamilton
"My Escape" by Michael A. Hamilton
Artist Statement:
I have been doing artwork since about mid-1983 as something to do with my time. I presently do paintings with acrylics, and I prefer to do landscapes and florals.
I had been watching the “How to Paint” programs on PBS television stations. All that was available to me were acrylic paints and watercolors, so I chose acrylic and adapted it to the style on PBS shows. That’s how I started.
I chose the title, My Escape, for this painting because I love the outdoors, mountains, lakes, rivers, and forests, and I have lived in or near many in my life. I have many others that I someday hope I get to visit.
My artwork is very calming to me and gives me a sense of pride and accomplishment when done.
I have been doing artwork since about mid-1983 as something to do with my time. I presently do paintings with acrylics, and I prefer to do landscapes and florals.
I had been watching the “How to Paint” programs on PBS television stations. All that was available to me were acrylic paints and watercolors, so I chose acrylic and adapted it to the style on PBS shows. That’s how I started.
I chose the title, My Escape, for this painting because I love the outdoors, mountains, lakes, rivers, and forests, and I have lived in or near many in my life. I have many others that I someday hope I get to visit.
My artwork is very calming to me and gives me a sense of pride and accomplishment when done.
jorge luna
"Simple Beauty" by Jorge Luna
Artist Statement:
I’ve been doing art for about 11 years now, using different mediums. I chose pastels and charcoal this time because they allowed me to express myself without worry or constant desire for perfection.
Simple Beauty’s two lotus flowers are named that because I feel I’ve always strived to be the best in the wrong ways, addicted to lifestyles that weren’t healthy. Also because people put a lot of pressure on themselves to be the best or look their best, when in reality everyone is beautiful, simply put. The Bridge Between Us gave me peace that my day could be the darkest, but with one look at the cross it reminds me what life really is about. Only then am I able to see those beautiful colors life has to give through God.
When I’m creating art I feel free, my imagination flows. I feel like that child I never was, but with art I’m getting my life back. My message is always going to be the same -- love one another, peace, compassion, God, joy, and all those people I harmed. If I can honor them, it’s complete.
I’ve been doing art for about 11 years now, using different mediums. I chose pastels and charcoal this time because they allowed me to express myself without worry or constant desire for perfection.
Simple Beauty’s two lotus flowers are named that because I feel I’ve always strived to be the best in the wrong ways, addicted to lifestyles that weren’t healthy. Also because people put a lot of pressure on themselves to be the best or look their best, when in reality everyone is beautiful, simply put. The Bridge Between Us gave me peace that my day could be the darkest, but with one look at the cross it reminds me what life really is about. Only then am I able to see those beautiful colors life has to give through God.
When I’m creating art I feel free, my imagination flows. I feel like that child I never was, but with art I’m getting my life back. My message is always going to be the same -- love one another, peace, compassion, God, joy, and all those people I harmed. If I can honor them, it’s complete.
armando martinez
"My Gardin" by Armando Martinez
Artist Statement:
I have been doing art for about 18 months. I have done a vase of flowers, portraits, and garden flowers. My style is new to me, I haven’t practiced this kind of art before. It is good experience.
My Gardin represents a good moment in my life. I also painted Vase of Flowers for this show. Recently I also did a portrait of my niece that I gave her for her birthday.
I feel I am making progress in my art skills, and people say that my art is interesting. I know when each piece is complete because it all fits together fully in my mind.
I have been doing art for about 18 months. I have done a vase of flowers, portraits, and garden flowers. My style is new to me, I haven’t practiced this kind of art before. It is good experience.
My Gardin represents a good moment in my life. I also painted Vase of Flowers for this show. Recently I also did a portrait of my niece that I gave her for her birthday.
I feel I am making progress in my art skills, and people say that my art is interesting. I know when each piece is complete because it all fits together fully in my mind.
Michele Molina
"The Child Within" by Michele Molina
Artist Statement:
Michele Molinaknew at a young age she wanted to be an artist. She tookher first art classes before the age of 10. In a few decades of practice, she refined her skills and became an accomplished mural and portrait artist in her later years. With a genuineness and depth of character she creates each piece of art, while using her life experiences to inspire her work and guide her spirit.
“My most memorable portraits have been where there were just a few lasting old pictures of a dear departed family member, and they were able to be included in a portrait with the rest of the family. An original portrait—a lasting legacy passed down from one generation to the next, which blesses me and in turn blesses so many others.”
Michele is participating in the InsideOut Art Shows as an outside artist – formerly incarcerated for 25½ years.
Michele Molinaknew at a young age she wanted to be an artist. She tookher first art classes before the age of 10. In a few decades of practice, she refined her skills and became an accomplished mural and portrait artist in her later years. With a genuineness and depth of character she creates each piece of art, while using her life experiences to inspire her work and guide her spirit.
“My most memorable portraits have been where there were just a few lasting old pictures of a dear departed family member, and they were able to be included in a portrait with the rest of the family. An original portrait—a lasting legacy passed down from one generation to the next, which blesses me and in turn blesses so many others.”
Michele is participating in the InsideOut Art Shows as an outside artist – formerly incarcerated for 25½ years.
Jorge H. Gonzalez
"Caught Up" by Jorge H. Gonzalez
Artist Statement:
I have been doing art on and off for 10 years. I started off doing graffiti, bombing my city to relieve stress. Then people started to notice and began asking for pieces. I started doing “characters” and got turned on to abstract art and found out I could support myself by selling my work.
I tried oils, but I’m impatient and I kept ruining my clothes on wet canvas. I use acrylic, spray paint, and inks on the street ‘cause I like to work fast and wild in many layers.
I call my painting Caught Up because, yes, I’m here busted, caught up. But to escape I get “caught up” in my daydreams and can take myself somewhere else. Creating art makes me feel like nothing else matters. I know when I’m done with a painting when I can hang it up, look at it over and over again for about a week, and not want to mess with it any more.
I have been doing art on and off for 10 years. I started off doing graffiti, bombing my city to relieve stress. Then people started to notice and began asking for pieces. I started doing “characters” and got turned on to abstract art and found out I could support myself by selling my work.
I tried oils, but I’m impatient and I kept ruining my clothes on wet canvas. I use acrylic, spray paint, and inks on the street ‘cause I like to work fast and wild in many layers.
I call my painting Caught Up because, yes, I’m here busted, caught up. But to escape I get “caught up” in my daydreams and can take myself somewhere else. Creating art makes me feel like nothing else matters. I know when I’m done with a painting when I can hang it up, look at it over and over again for about a week, and not want to mess with it any more.
Francisco Padilla
"El Arbol de la Noche" by Francisco Padilla
Artist Statement:
I have been doing art for about 18 months. I have painted bears, and trees, and portraits. My style? It’s new to me because before, I was not used to doing any art.
The two paintings I have donated are El Arbol de la Noche (The Tree of Night) and Panda Bears. These make me feel good, and other people tell me that my art is interesting. I feel like I’m progressing as an artist.
I have been doing art for about 18 months. I have painted bears, and trees, and portraits. My style? It’s new to me because before, I was not used to doing any art.
The two paintings I have donated are El Arbol de la Noche (The Tree of Night) and Panda Bears. These make me feel good, and other people tell me that my art is interesting. I feel like I’m progressing as an artist.
Charlie R.
"Je Ne Se Pais" by Charlie R.
Artist Statement:
I started making art approximately two years ago. I visited a gym while a mural was being painted, and I became interested.
I paint with acrylic on canvas; my style is abstract expressionism or surrealism. I have always enjoyed these styles of art.
I don’t always have a name for my work, sometimes I get outside help for collaborative input. The three works I submitted for this show are Je Ne Se Pais, Yo No Se, and IDK. My work does not start out with a meaning, but I find it enjoyable. I also want the viewer to enjoy my art and find their own meaning.
I find it very relaxing to paint. I am able to drift away from the environment I am in. I am very thoughtful when I view my art. I sometimes feelthat my art is never quite done. I often think I could have done better or different, and that has become part of my learning experience.
I started making art approximately two years ago. I visited a gym while a mural was being painted, and I became interested.
I paint with acrylic on canvas; my style is abstract expressionism or surrealism. I have always enjoyed these styles of art.
I don’t always have a name for my work, sometimes I get outside help for collaborative input. The three works I submitted for this show are Je Ne Se Pais, Yo No Se, and IDK. My work does not start out with a meaning, but I find it enjoyable. I also want the viewer to enjoy my art and find their own meaning.
I find it very relaxing to paint. I am able to drift away from the environment I am in. I am very thoughtful when I view my art. I sometimes feelthat my art is never quite done. I often think I could have done better or different, and that has become part of my learning experience.
Angel Romero
"Caught Up" by Jorge H. Gonzalez
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Artist Statement:
As an artist for 32 years, I have mainly done work in pencil, charcoal, colored pencil, and pens. Just in the past decade I have really started using mixed media. I have done still-life portraits, animation, graffiti art, etc. In 2017, I started to learn how to paint. Painting is not only fun but also very therapeutic and relaxing. It is taking good times, bad times, your fears, your hopes, and expressing them on canvas. The painting City of Lights is for the City of Los Angeles and the many memories it has brought me. In Beyond the Bay, it’s the life that I’ve heard about but never been beyond the Bay Bridge to experience. Illumination says there is hope in the midst of our darkest times. Life can be restored, and can flourish, with the right amounts of love and nourishing. |
Phillip Angel Senteno
"Thoughts of Freedom" by Phillip Angel Senteno
Artist Statement:
Phillip Angel Senteno served 40-plus years in prison. As an artist, he recognized that art allows for non-verbal communication, a necessary diversion in prison. In a man-made society of barbed wire, gun towers, and steel bars, the reality of freedom lost is ever present. Through his art, Phillip was able to maintain a semblance of human dignity and creative alternatives in daily survival.
Phillip continues to express himself through his art. In addition, after years of reflecting on the negative impact that crime and violence have had on family and community, he made a commitment to be an advocate of change.
Today he is the Founder and Executive Director of Forward Progress, Inc., a nonprofit providing reentry services for those recently released from prison. Phillip continues to coordinate and form strategic alliances with a multitude of organizations to strengthen our humanitarian and community efforts – rebuilding the broken bonds between the formerly incarcerated with family and community.
Phillip Angel Senteno served 40-plus years in prison. As an artist, he recognized that art allows for non-verbal communication, a necessary diversion in prison. In a man-made society of barbed wire, gun towers, and steel bars, the reality of freedom lost is ever present. Through his art, Phillip was able to maintain a semblance of human dignity and creative alternatives in daily survival.
Phillip continues to express himself through his art. In addition, after years of reflecting on the negative impact that crime and violence have had on family and community, he made a commitment to be an advocate of change.
Today he is the Founder and Executive Director of Forward Progress, Inc., a nonprofit providing reentry services for those recently released from prison. Phillip continues to coordinate and form strategic alliances with a multitude of organizations to strengthen our humanitarian and community efforts – rebuilding the broken bonds between the formerly incarcerated with family and community.
Arnulfo Vargas
"Spartan/Marine" by Arnulfo Vargas
Artist Statement:
Painting takes me out of this world. I work in various styles and settings - mixed media, photorealism, abstract, impressionism, animation, large-scale murals. You may see echoes of all this in my painting Spartan/Marine.
My first experience with art started with graffiti art when I was 13. I did my first mural in the back of my dad’s restaurant and continued to experiment, leaving no urban or suburban building untouched. Then my talent lay dormant until I was 35, when I returned to pursue my art without limitations.
I like taking other people’s art and rearranging the painting with my ideas and adding my own twist. I started painting with a wet-on-wet technique for the background of Spartan/Marine, continued with acrylic, and finished with oil to bring it to life, using photocopies and transfer paper to get it exact.
I am today an advocate for art, involved in a curriculum-based platform that teaches people to become artists and artists to become mentors. I’m a success story, transforming “tragedy to triumph,” conquering adversity. One of the greatest fulfilling rewards for me, through art, is improving familyties. Since love has flourished once again, I regain the luster that had previously perished with my daughter and my sister. Together we are healing through my expression in art. I’m thankful for this.
Painting takes me out of this world. I work in various styles and settings - mixed media, photorealism, abstract, impressionism, animation, large-scale murals. You may see echoes of all this in my painting Spartan/Marine.
My first experience with art started with graffiti art when I was 13. I did my first mural in the back of my dad’s restaurant and continued to experiment, leaving no urban or suburban building untouched. Then my talent lay dormant until I was 35, when I returned to pursue my art without limitations.
I like taking other people’s art and rearranging the painting with my ideas and adding my own twist. I started painting with a wet-on-wet technique for the background of Spartan/Marine, continued with acrylic, and finished with oil to bring it to life, using photocopies and transfer paper to get it exact.
I am today an advocate for art, involved in a curriculum-based platform that teaches people to become artists and artists to become mentors. I’m a success story, transforming “tragedy to triumph,” conquering adversity. One of the greatest fulfilling rewards for me, through art, is improving familyties. Since love has flourished once again, I regain the luster that had previously perished with my daughter and my sister. Together we are healing through my expression in art. I’m thankful for this.
Bryan Vulgamore
"Untitled 1" by Bryan Vulgamore
Artist Statement:
I’ve been doing art for about one and a half years. I like to use acrylic on canvas, I like how you can bring paintings to life using acrylics.
Most of my paintings do have a meaning or statement behind them that I like to leave up to interpretation by the viewer. I’ve chosen not to give this piece a title, because I’ve done it on a larger scale and my viewers gave me two interpretations of it: Some stated that it reminded them of fall, but the more common interpretation is fire. So, it is Untitled.
My other painting in this show is also Untitled. Once in a while, I like to do a painting that has no set of ideas. These types of paintings can be very therapeutic and relaxing.
Personally, as an artist, I don’t think any of my paintings are ever complete, there is always more that can be done. As a human being, one thing painting has taught me is to just let go.
I’ve been doing art for about one and a half years. I like to use acrylic on canvas, I like how you can bring paintings to life using acrylics.
Most of my paintings do have a meaning or statement behind them that I like to leave up to interpretation by the viewer. I’ve chosen not to give this piece a title, because I’ve done it on a larger scale and my viewers gave me two interpretations of it: Some stated that it reminded them of fall, but the more common interpretation is fire. So, it is Untitled.
My other painting in this show is also Untitled. Once in a while, I like to do a painting that has no set of ideas. These types of paintings can be very therapeutic and relaxing.
Personally, as an artist, I don’t think any of my paintings are ever complete, there is always more that can be done. As a human being, one thing painting has taught me is to just let go.
Project give away
Artist Statement:
Project Give Away (PGA) is a group of currently incarcerated artists at Chuckawalla Valley State Prison in Blythe who have donated a wide variety of beaded jewelry and other beadwork and art pieces. Those whose work is represented here today are:
Jesse Rodriguez,PGA Founder and President
Bernardo Velasquez,PGA Vice President
Jeremiah Helms,PGA Secretary
Pablo Aviso
Eddie Ellis
Timothy Gordon
Margarito Perez
These artists created these beautiful pieces of beadwork “to bring awareness that we are not just a CDCR #, but that we are human beings who made some bad choices,” Mr. Rodriguez writes.
PGA began in 2016 “…exclusively for Natives in the spiritual circle … but participation is now open to any individual who is interested in making amends through PGA regardless of nationality, ethnicity, or religious denomination.”
They are beading to make amends, to find inner peace, to raise awareness of the power of healing through beadwork, and to help raise funds for UMCP’s restorative justice work. We thank them!
Project Give Away (PGA) is a group of currently incarcerated artists at Chuckawalla Valley State Prison in Blythe who have donated a wide variety of beaded jewelry and other beadwork and art pieces. Those whose work is represented here today are:
Jesse Rodriguez,PGA Founder and President
Bernardo Velasquez,PGA Vice President
Jeremiah Helms,PGA Secretary
Pablo Aviso
Eddie Ellis
Timothy Gordon
Margarito Perez
These artists created these beautiful pieces of beadwork “to bring awareness that we are not just a CDCR #, but that we are human beings who made some bad choices,” Mr. Rodriguez writes.
PGA began in 2016 “…exclusively for Natives in the spiritual circle … but participation is now open to any individual who is interested in making amends through PGA regardless of nationality, ethnicity, or religious denomination.”
They are beading to make amends, to find inner peace, to raise awareness of the power of healing through beadwork, and to help raise funds for UMCP’s restorative justice work. We thank them!
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