Institute of Contemporary Art San Jose

11/23/2022

CULT Aimee Friberg and the
ICA San José are delighted to announce their co-presentation of Adrian L. Burrell's new film 'The Saints Step in Kongo Time' as a Special Proiect at Untitled Art Miami Beach, on viewfrom November 28-December 3.

Through a combination of film, photography,
sculpture and installation, Adrian L. Burrell's work closes the gap between oral history, written text and moving image while creating a space for collective memory. As a masterful
storyteller, Burrell foregrounds the importance of place in our practices of memory and ritual.

"The Saints Step in Kongo Time' is a visual meditation on Burrell' family's untold history, using film, oral histories, primary sources, and
photography. With a running time of eighteen minutes, this poetic short film spans several generations from Burrell's roots in Louisiana to
his family's relocation to California. The film weaves through time and place, from Burrell visiting the land stolen from his ancestors to
the family's archival footage from West Oakland in the 1990s to the present day, showcasing their resilience and fortitude.

Burrell writes, "For Black America, family
histories did not enter the annals due to a lack of legal personhood and equal recognition by the State." In advance of this film Burrell worked with an investigative genealogist,
connecting with relatives currently living in New Iberia, Louisiana. Burrell adds,
"After investigating my family history through film, photography, and archival research, I discovered that my ancestors were forced to
serve the confederacy as slaves during the Civil War." Burrell explores the traumas and joys in our familial histories and gives witness to
contemporarv Black life in the United States.”
Through The Saints Step in Kongo Time he aims to reinterpret and archive the oral and written history of his own family and to serve as
a model for other Black Americans from similar backgrounds.
"The Saints Step in Kongo Time' was
commissioned by the ICA San José with generous lead sponsorship from Michelle Branch and Dale Cook, with additional support provided by Diane Jonte-Pace.

11/22/2022

11/20/2022

We’re seeing…NEON! We had a great time at the Masako Miki Facade Opening Party. Have you tried the AR yet? Come on down and scan the QR code so you can take the Night Parade everywhere you go!

11/17/2022

Thank you for the beautiful article on ! Opening night is upon us and we are excited. Tomorrow 5-8 pm there will be an opening party with an exclusive artist talk.
This facade project had us excited for months, and can’t wait to share the terror! “The Night Parade of One Hundred Demons” to be exact 🧟‍♂️

Photo Credits: “Hyakki Yagyo, Night Parade of One Hundred Demons- Beginning of another life with Emerald Green Fox Deity” by

11/15/2022

We se thrilled to report the auction was a success. It was wonderful to meet the brilliant minds who produced the work on the walls. We encourage you to come out next year and experience the auction. Thank you to our partners, members, artists, and staff. It was truly a night to post about!
Photo credits:

11/03/2022

ICA San Jose is so appreciative to have Ray Beldner’s work in the 2022 auction. He has kindly donated two of his pieces to the benefit. “Slave to the Dollar (after Shepard Fairey’s “Obey”) (201) is one of these amazing pieces. The medium is sewn currency in 42x32” framed dims. (Pictured first) The second piece,” Saints and Satyrs” is a 40x38” collage on ¾ laser cut plywood. This piece is coated with matte UV varnish. Thank you, Ray!

In his own words: “My recent work is made by appropriating images of iconic artworks from different historic periods that I mine from books, auction catalogs, and magazines. I select specific parts that draw me to their shapes, colors, and textures. I cut, arrange and rearrange, playing with their complimentary and contrasting attributes and creating surprising, lyrical, and visually confounding new compositions. My process is intuitive and I tend to focus on the visual tension between negative/positive space, figuration/abstraction, and how 2D forms can occupy, define and create space.

Over time these pieces have developed from simple layered fragments of paper to large-scale assemblages and free-standing sculptures. The rocky forms and bright landscapes of the Sierra Foothills, where I recently moved, are reflected in the organic shapes and textures in the work.”

11/03/2022

The Institute of Contemporary Art San Jose greatly appreciates the extra hands that helped bring the 2022 auction to fruition. The weekend of festivities is upon us. We are starting the auction weekend off with “Java with James”, a special sneak peek of the auction items by the amazing director, James Leventhal. The coffee and treats are being provided by Nirvana Soul. The current ICA building will not be open, but the festivities are being held at our 451 location. Signs will be left on our current building if you need the location. Our November 5th benefit auction is finally here! Tickets are still available for purchase. You will get the chance to mingle and bid on the amazing artists we’ve been showcasing this past month. Drinks, food, and a photo booth will be at the location. We can’t wait to see you there. Again, a special thank you to our sponsor and partners.
the couldn’t have done it with out you!

10/30/2022

We are so thankful to have an original piece on the auction list. “Absolution” by Lionel Smit (2022) Oil on Linen, 23.6x23.6" is available for bidding. Tickets for the auction event are still available for purchase!

Lionel Smit is best known for his contemporary portraiture executed through monumental canvases and sculptures. Perhaps more than anything else, Smit’s work is defined by a profound and ongoing dialogue between sculpture and painting.

A multidisciplinary artist, each of Smit’s works offer us an entry point into the variety and richness that lies beneath every face we encounter in life, whether applied in bronze or in paint. While retaining their austerity and meditative aesthetic, Smit's figures remain highly charged with the emotive and gestural energy of his creative process.

10/28/2022

We are honored to display @1.living Adrian Burrell’s “Sugarcane and Lighting Pt. 3” at the . Please make time to see @1.living ‘s powerful film. We challenge you to find the phrases from the pictures at the museum. We’ll see you Thursday- Sunday 12-5 p.m.

Burrell creates a visual meditation on his family’s untold history, employing their experience to understand Black resistance in America, using film, oral histories, primary sources, and photography. The exhibition explores Burrell’s work with an investigative genealogist and connecting with relatives currently living in New Iberia, Louisiana. The goal for Burrell is to decode a fragmented history, co-creating photo-based works that illuminate his ancestors’ resistance during the Civil War.

10/28/2022

We are proud to announce we’ve been selected as one of the 10 recipients of this year’s Arts Commissions in Media Arts. These projects are centered around the use of emerging media arts technologies and challenge the bounds of performance.

The Institute of Contemporary Art San José is thrilled to be commissioning transmedia artist Stephanie Dinkins Stephanie Dinkins] to create “Data Trust Forest,” an installation that deploys cutting-edge and ancient technologies in the preservation of deep-seated community knowledge. Combining storytelling traditions with emergent DNA technologies, the artist will honor and care for often overlooked histories by archiving them within living trees for future extraction and sharing. Dinkins believes our stories, histories, and the myths we weave through family lore, movies, and even advertising construct us. Working with stories shared by South Bay residents, Dinkins will transmute conversations into a multimedia experience available both in the galleries and online.

Stephanie Dinkins] combines storytelling traditions and emergent DNA technology. The project will take the histories and stories of South Bay residents and archive them within living trees for future extraction and sharing.

10/27/2022

Join us in celebrating the opening of our third Facade Project at the ICA – Masako Miki: The Night Parade opening Friday, November 18th from 6-8 pm.

Get a glimpse of Masako’s bold and animated Facade Project based on the artist’s ancestral traditions of Shinto animism, utilizing yōkai (shapeshifters) characters from Japanese mythologies. Visitors will be able to use augmented reality (AR) to make the characters come to life.

At 7 pm, we will begin a short artist talk with and , Associate Curator at the ICA to delve into Miki’s influences for the project and the role of mythology in storytelling today.

Masako Miki: The Night Parade is generously supported by Tad Freese and Brook Hartzell. Programs and exhibitions at the are made possible thanks to generous support from the City of San José’s Office of Cultural Affairs; along with significant support from Applied Materials, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts; along with additional support from SVCreates.

Photo Credits: “Hyakki Yagyo, Night Parade of One Hundred Demons- Beginning of another life with Emerald Green Fox Deity” by

10/26/2022

Special thank you to for the review on ‘s exhibit. Please click the link in our bio to read more!

The Time and Space Of Now will be at until February 23, 2023!

10/26/2022

Special thank you to for the review on ‘s exhibit. Please click the link in our bio to read more!

The Time and Space Of Now will be at until February 23, 2023!

10/25/2022

See ‘s beautiful mind on display 12-5 p.m. Thursday-Sunday!
The Time and Space Of Now is on display at the until February 23, 2023

Centered around the first-ever Bay Area presentation of Mildred Howard’s film “The Time and Space of Now” (2021) in the ICA’s Cardinale Project Room, the solo exhibition features three multi-media installation pieces exploring the triangulation between time, space, and the migration and movement of people. In addition, the ICA is pleased to present thirty works on paper being loaned generously by the Jordan Schnitzer Family Foundation, expanding on the multi-media work featured in the exhibition.

10/23/2022

“GLORIOUS MAGNOLIA” by Caroline Sterling (2018) Oil on canvas, framed 24 x 18 in. One of the amazing pieces featured in the . Please click out bio or follow this link to see more ( https://cbo.io/i/1359790)

: “I agree with Henry Ward Beecher’s comment, “Flowers are the sweetest thing that God ever made and forgot to put a soul into”, and if I can capture just a tiny essence of their beauty on canvas for others to enjoy, I feel fulfilled as an artist. I like to paint flowers that are only with us a few months a year so they can be enjoyed throughout the entire year. I believe that the Renaissance style of painting enables me to bring the glow and translucency of flowers to life.”

10/21/2022

ICA thanks Bryan Ryono for submitting “Thinkering” (2022) to the “In Their Own Words” . This stunning steel and granite piece is 5x5”. It is already available for bidding through the link provided! We are honored to have this piece in the auction lineup!

“In His Own Words”: I make sculptures. The process and results make me happy. I keep things simple. I’m focused on the making, the success, the failure, and the opportunity to share the result of my explorations.

I pursue two approaches to my work.
-First is the form, seemingly simple but upon close examination, nuanced and perhaps a surprise therein. I explore shape, surface texture, positive/negative space, and color in 360 degrees. With these forms, in whatever way possible, my intuition and the material and/or objects dictate the making process.
-Second is a comment. Sometimes I feel an urge to convey a message, usually confronting social, environmental, and political issues. Usually in these cases, whimsy and/or irony is an essential component.

10/20/2022

ICA would love to thank Karen Haas for the beautiful “Portuguese Festival: Princesses” (2021). This watercolor piece is 14x 22”. The Clickbid link works and you are able to start bidding on “Portuguese Festival: Princesses” now. https://cbo.io/i/1333110 Thank you for your support!

“In her own words”: “For the 2022 ICA San Jose Auction I am presenting examples from a series about a Portugal festival at Five Wounds Church in my neighborhood. At this festival, community groups gathered from around the Bay Area to parade with costumes and perform rites that seemed mysterious to an outsider.
This series is from a body of work in watercolor I have been creating over the past ten years. In these works, I show people doing things that tell a story or catch a moment. The theme has been the people of San Jose as they represent themselves in public spaces.

In choosing what to paint, I work from my numerous photos. I pour over these photos to find the one that particularly distills an experience. I think my work relates to the art of Amy Sutter in its medium and style and fantasy subject matter. It relates to Japanese art in its use of space.
In another body of work, using acrylics, I depict some front yards in my neighborhood which are interesting because of their spontaneity and quirkiness.
Overall, my aim is to show the variety and energy of our urban lives. I would like to reach a large audience beyond art enthusiasts.”

10/16/2022

In Her Own Words: ”My work is nature themed with an emphasis on biodiversity, the perils of our current ecology and the delicate balance between diverse ecosystems.”

“Green Leaf Mantis” will be available on November 5th. This beautiful piece is 37x 28” and comes framed. The Institute Of Contemporary Arts is grateful to Katherine for the beautiful contribution!

10/15/2022

The Institute of Contemporary Arts thanks Chris Dorosz ( )and Scott Richards Gallery ( ) for contributing to the 2022 Benefit Auction. “Naomi Osaka eliminated during Olympics, Tokyo 2020” will be up for grabs on November 5th. The 36.5 x 24.5” print comes framed.

“In His Own Words”:
“My practice cultivates photographic-painting-sculpture hybrids through which I explore human physicality. The work presented here stems from figure-models or maquettes I carve from Foamcore for an ongoing series of sculptural paintings titled Stasis. By breathing another life into them as printed images, this process is not unlike the constant recycling of news-streams from which they are drawn.
As figure-objects they become iconical in their ability to symbolize ideas larger than the individuals represented. These days we may think of an icon in relation to technology and all that implies in terms of speed and simplified emotional reference, but as a symbol of spiritual transcendence an icon has the power to stop us with its incredible stillness. It becomes a doorway onto larger ideas through the individuals represented.
A figure could be a politician, a celebrity, a criminal, or an otherwise anonymous individual whose image now resides in the vast internet archive. A figure could also represent wider concepts – personal or political conflict, economic or social station, gender, or sexual identity. Identity specificity falls away, replaced by a burgeoning anonymous figural taxonomy.”

Please check the comments for his Bio.

10/14/2022

The Institute of Contemporary Arts thanks Lisa Rock for her contribution to the 2022 Benefit Auction. Lisa Rock] has donated a “Tulips” (2022). This stunning 12x10” piece will be available, along with other gorgeous pieces on November 5, 2022.

Bio: Lisa Rock (b. 1985 in Marlborough, Massachusetts) is a painter living in Oakland. She received her MFA in Studio Art from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and her BFA in Painting from the Rhode Island School of Design. Recent solo exhibitions include Merge Visible at NIAD Art Center in Richmond, CA and a solo exhibition at the Monterey Museum of Art’s Currents Gallery. Rock was an artist in residence at the Vermont Studio Center and the Black Rock Desert NCA. She paints out of her studio in Alameda, Ca.

“In Their Own Words.”:
“I am drawn to the relationship between natural and manmade forms. Snapshots of my everyday surroundings become source material for my work. Although I often work from photographs, my work doesn’t aim to be photorealistic. I work in a reductive manner that has a tendency to flatten space, merging the many layers of an image into a single plane. The images become studies of formal issues such as color, pattern, and composition.”

Thanks again Lisa Rock] for supporting ICA in our vision to enrich San Jose with art!