#WeCreate408: Tap into your creativity by transforming your name into a whimsical piece of art! Begin by using lively and imaginative writing to spell out your name. Then, take each letter and invent a character that starts with that letter, bringing a unique story to life with every character you create.
For those who love a good challenge, extend this creative journey by spelling out the names of your family members in inventive and artistic ways. This activity not only celebrates the individuality of each name but also connects you to the people closest to you through the power of creativity and storytelling. Share your creations and enjoy seeing how names can turn into a gallery of imaginative characters.
#ACCM2024 @caforthearts
"Might I, as a trans person, be seen for who I am yet still with the right and power of obscurity."—@cthompto
Sunday, March 31 will be #TransgenderDayofVisibility. Chelsea Thompto is an artist and educator working in the intersection of visual art, trans studies, and technology. In her digital project for SJMA "The Fog," the artist was inspired by the Bay Area’s iconic fog cover and features an interactive narrative exploring our relationships to fog. Thompto draws on the writings of the influential trans scholar and activist #SusanStryker, who embraced monstrosity to imagine other possibilities of being.
You can interact with Thompto's digital project on SJMA's website at sjmusart.org/thefog
🏳️⚧️ #TransAwarenessWeek: Working at the intersections of #visualart, #technology, and #transstudies, @cthompto’s multimedia practice critically engages historic and emerging systems of codification and control, from cartography to facial recognition. For "The Fog," a digital project commissioned by SJMA, Thompto draws on the writings of the influential trans scholar and activist #SusanStryker, who embraced monstrosity to imagine other possibilities of being.
🌫️ Visitors can explore "The Fog" on SJMA's website at sjmusart.org/digital-projects/the-fog/ (link available in bio).
🌫 "Why has fog been figured as a menace in the popular imagination? Can fog be an aspirational figure for trans embodiment and resistance? What would embodiment styled after fog feel and look like?"— @cthompto
Going live Friday, November 3 on SJMA's website: "Chelsea Thompto: The Fog," a digital project commissioned by SJMA, explores the logistical, literary, and liberatory dimensions of fog as it relates to military projects, horror narratives, and trans embodiment. Thompto’s interactive web experience explores how fog can transform our understanding of seeing, knowing, and being.
"Chelsea Thompto: The Fog" is hosted on the SJMA website and is accessible by desktop, laptop, and mobile devices. This artwork is the next iteration of the Museum’s ongoing Digital Projects series, a commissioning program that supports artistic experimentation with digital tools, protocols, and spaces.
"Chelsea Thompto: The Fog" is made possible by the SJMA Exhibitions Fund, with lead support from the Knight Foundation (@knightfdn).
"Chelsea Thompto: The Fog" is organized by Juan Omar Rodriguez, assistant curator.
"Inside, similarly decorated family photos (of meals, weddings, cars, houses) occupy a wall, as does a montage of video clips titled Almond Street. They show kids and adults dining and dancing to a drum solo reminiscent of the one Max Roach made to accompany Martin Luther King’s I Have a Dream speech, one of the most potent acts of artistic resistance ever created. Connect all these metaphorical dots, and you get a composite picture of what such a dream might look like."—David M. Roth, @Squarecylinder.com
Only a few more weeks to see "Sadie Barnette: Family Business" at SJMA! On view through Sunday, October 15, 2023.
Mardonia speaks about her childhood dreams with Yosimar Reyes
LIsten to San José writer Yosimar Reyes speak with his grandmother about her childhood dreams. Full video releases this Thursday, October 20.
3 to 1 is a video series that presents three unique perspectives on one artwork from the SJMA’s permanent collection. Watch as artists, curators, educators, designers, scientists, engineers, and more provide their take on the creative moment. In this video, singer San Cha, poet Yosimar Reyes and his grandmother Mardonia Galeana, and SJMA registrar Anamarie Alongi offer insight into rafa esparza’s artistic practice, his work with adobe, and being a Brown queer artist living in the United States.
#RafaEsparza #YosimarReyes #SanCha #Adobe #SanJose #EastSideSanJose #SanJoseWriter #SanJosePoet
Singer San Cha on poet Yosimar Reyes in rafa esparza's "Yosi con Abuela"
3 to 1 is a video series that presents three unique perspectives on one artwork from the SJMA’s permanent collection. Watch as artists, curators, educators, designers, scientists, engineers, and more provide their take on the creative moment. In this video, singer San Cha, poet Yosimar Reyes and his grandmother Mardonia Galeana, and SJMA registrar Anamarie Alongi offer insight into rafa esparza’s artistic practice, his work with adobe, and being a Brown queer artist living in the United States.
#rafaesparza #YosimarReyes #SanCha #adobe #SanJosé #SanJosePoet
@elrafaesparza @yosirey @__san_cha__ @commonwealthandcouncil
#WeCreate408 | Starts Oct 1, 2022
Be bold. Inspire and celebrate San José. Join the 31-day online creativity challenge. Coming this October!
Atrévete, inspirate y celebra a San José. Únete al desafío de creatividad en línea. ¡Comenzando en octubre!
Hãy dũng cảm. Truyền cảm hứng và tôn vinh San José. Tham gia thử thách sáng tạo trực tuyến kéo dài 31 ngày. Ra mắt tháng Mười này!
#ICYMI: Brett Weston is now open at SJMA!
The exhibition comprises of images of landscapes and seascapes near Big Sur and Carmel, California, where the Weston family has lived since 1929; the Oregon Coast; White Sands, New Mexico; and aquatic plants photographed on the shores of Baja California.
Art 101: Re-Percussion with Eric Hayslett
Eric Hayslett leads an all-inclusive workshop series to inspire creative ways of recycling by making musical percussion instruments.
Eric Hayslett is part of the City of San José Office of Cultural Affairs 2022 Creative Ambassador Program to present “Re-Percussions” – When Art Meets Recycling. As a Creative Ambassador, Eric envisions engaging the community to repurpose, re-engineer, recycle random reusable containers by transforming them into percussion instruments.
For Aislinn Thomas, her experimental approaches are artworks themselves. 🔈
As part of the exhibition 𝘖𝘶𝘳 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘦, 𝘶𝘯𝘳𝘶𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴, Thomas was invited to create 𝘈𝘴 𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘴 𝘐 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦, a sound work of experimental, visual descriptions for artworks on view. She collaborated with twenty contributors from @teatro_vision, a Latinx theater company, and asked each participant to assume a first-person voice and imagine the subject of each artwork as a living entity with its one thoughts and experiences—offering possibilities for creative approaches to access.
#AislinnThomas #Ourwholeunrulyselves #AsIAmAndAsIBecome
Aislinn Thomas is an interdisciplinary artist who works alongside and in the legacy of so many who treat access as a space for creative acts. She is a white, disabled and chronically ill, cis-gender settler of Ashkenazic and British descent. She is grateful to live and work in Unama’ki (Cape Breton, Canada), part of Mi’kma’ki, the ancestral and unceded territory of the Mi’kmaq under the Peace and Friendship treaties.
𝘈𝘴 𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘴 𝘐 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 is created in collaboration with Teatro Visión, San José. Project contributors include Ugho Badú, América Barcenas, María Teresa Barcenas, Matt Casey, Alexia Díaz, Veronica Eldredge, Ronald Feichtmeir, José Chuy Hernández, Natalie Herrera, Isabel Hertel, Samanta Hertel, Brissa Ibarra, Rojana Ibarra, Nicole Machuca, Citlali X. Oritz, Carolina Pérez, Yasmin Rivero, Marissa Torres, María Vargas, and Vitalina Wainzinger.
In August of 2021, artist Rina Banerjee took SJMA to the historic J&S Imports store in Union Square, NYC. She spoke about being an immigrant and how art is inherited from other generations.
Rina Banerjee's 𝘙𝘪𝘯𝘢 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘫𝘦𝘦: 𝘔𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘔𝘦 𝘢 𝘚𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘞𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 (May 16–October 6, 2019) was the first mid-career retrospective of the artist’s work. Co-organized by the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, and San José Museum of Art, the exhibition presented almost 20 years of Banerjee’s large-scale installations, sculptures, and paintings. Learn more about Rina Banerjee at sjmusart.org/banerjee.
Shopping with Rina Banerjee
In August of 2021, artist Rina Banerjee took SJMA to the historic J&S Imports store in Union Square, NYC. She spoke about being an immigrant and how art is inherited from other generations.
Rina Banerjee's "Rina Banerjee: Make Me a Summary of the World" (May 16–October 6, 2019) was the first mid-career retrospective of the artist’s work. Co-organized by the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, and San José Museum of Art, the exhibition presented almost 20 years of Banerjee’s large-scale installations, sculptures, and paintings. Learn more about Rina Banerjee at sjmusart.org/banerjee.
“Tackle 2022 with the strong ferociousness and adorableness of the tiger.” 🐯
Teacher Roan shows you how you can make your very own #OrigamiTiger portrait. Originally broadcasted at SJMA’s Community Day: Lunar New Year!
This art activity is brought to you by #SJMAEducation.
#SanJoseMuseumofArt #MuseumfromHome #408Creates
Trevor Paglen on "There Will Come Soft Rains" (2021)
As 2021 draws near, SJMA looks back to Trevor Paglen's thoughts about his sound piece "There Will Come Soft Rains" (2021), and his rumination on the triangulation of time, sound, and truth.
Audio: Trevor Paglen. Artists in Conversation: Hito Steyerl and Trevor Paglen. San José Museum of Art. October 12, 2021.
Art 101: Booze + Brushes
Booze + Brushes is back at SJMA (online)! Enjoy an inspiring evening of painting based on works in the post-painterly exhibition Break + Bleed. Make your drink, let loose, and dabble away. No skills are required. Artist and instructor Shannon Straub guides creativity and introduces simple painting techniques.
Join the class on Zoom, Friday, December 10, 6–7pm PST. Program fee is $15 ($10 for SJMA members). Additional materials list will be sent to all registrants prior to event start. Advance registration is recommended. For adults age 21 and up. Register for the program at sjmusart.org/Art101.
Rina Banerjee in Her Studio
Rina Banerjee opened her home studio just for you! Listen to her speak about what art means to her, as an immigrant and a woman. She also speaks as to how and why we connect through art and what museums can provide to the community.
Banerjee’s monumental mid-career retrospective, co-organized with Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, "Make Me a Summary of the World" was on view at SJMA May 16–October 6, 2019. Known for her large-scale works of art made from materials that she has sourced throughout the world, this major exhibition focused on four interdependent themes in Banerjee's work: identity, globalization, feminism, and climate change. Read more about the exhibition at sjmusart.org/banerjee.
Don't miss SJMA's 2021 Gala + Auction tonight at 6pm PDT!
Join SJMA in celebrating art and philanthropy at tonight's 2021 Gala + Auction, honoring patrons Mary Mocas + Marv Tseu, and artist Rina Banerjee, and in memory of Hung Liu. Sign up to watch the online broadcast in support of SJMA at sjmusart.org/2021gala.
Highlights of the evening include an auction of 24 works by major artists, and the world premiere of "Build or Destroy," an original video and NFT by artist Rashaad Newsome.
About Hung Liu's Work
SJMA's looks back to 2018 when Hung Liu was the inaugural artist honoree for the Wonder Ball 2018. Hear from Hung Liu and artist Lava Thomas and watch the full video at youtu.be/UX7acF8lxm4.
San José Museum of Art's 2021 Gala + Auction
Preview the artworks for SJMA's Auction at sjmusart.org/2021gala/auction-preview.
Register for the auction at sjmusart.org/2021gala.
Auction lots are open for bidding Thursday, September 16, 9am PDT.
Live auction includes works by Rina Banerjee, Rosana Castrillo Díaz, Petra Cortright, Nicole Phungrasamee Fein, Jane B. Grimm, Jenifer Kent, Hung Liu, Mary Mocas, Ranu Mukherjee, Louise Nevelson, Trevor Paglen, Rose B. Simpson, and Leo Valledor. Live auction artworks close Saturday, September 18, during broadcast.
Silent auction includes works by Michel Delacroix, Nina Katachadourian, Kara Maria, Robert Minervini, Joni Mitchell, Toshiaki Noda, Woody de Othello, Maia Cruz Palileo, Robb Putnam, Swoon, and Jerome Witkin. Silent auction lots close Sunday, September 19, at 5pm PDT.
#LiveAuction #SilentAuction