Tierra Del Sol presents The Rainbow Girls, the first solo exhibition by Marlena Arthur. The 27 year old artist who came to Tierra’s art studio program in 2016 is focused on sharing her vision of a community of powerful female characters who join together to save the world.
Arthur has been making art since she was in middle school when she started watching the animated television series My Little Pony and Equestrian Girls. She began by learning to draw the characters, then as her skills and imagination grew, she created her own stories that include character color wheel charts, storyboard-like imagery, and ceramics that expand the narrative into three dimensions.
Choosing seven color tones that Arthur considers beautiful, she combines colored pencils, markers, and acrylic paint to create a world where the magic happens when her seven characters and the dog Mikey work together for the greater good. Each Rainbow Girl has a narrative arc that continues to evolve as Marlena herself becomes a powerful Black woman artist.
Reminiscent of the female-centered paintings of Varnette Honeywood, Arthur’s Rainbow Girls are an inspiring collection of stories and images from an emerging contemporary artist who has an active relationship with the public sphere and social media. And yet, her creative impulse – particularly her color wheel kaleidoscopes of eyes, shoes and cutie marks – has the mystic resonance of early Betye Saar leather paintings.
For Marlena Arthur, making artwork makes her feel both proud and happy. Tierra Del Sol shares these joyful ideas with our community at a time when we could use unity and some magic to save the world. The Rainbow Girls will be on view from September 11 through October 30, 2021.
Tierra Del Sol Gallery
945 Chung King Road, Los Angeles, Ca 90012
www.tierradelsol.org – 213-625-0935
Wednesday – Saturday 12 – 6pm and by appointment
For further inquiries contact: Paige Wery – pwery@tierradelsol.org – cell: 323-243-0658
Tierra del Sol Gallery presents our first ever zine show, Zines del Sol. Join us for the collaborative exhibition and festivities celebrating word and image by artists working with the Studios of Tierra del Sol, which is a not-for-profit founded in 1971. We champion inclusion and value for all individuals with disabilities through creative pathways to employment, education, and the arts.
Open from November 6th to December 23rd, 2021, this is the perfect destination for uniquely crafted holiday gifts. This includes the debut of our exciting new Tierra del Sol book publication of collaborative poetry featuring original poems and artwork dreamed into reality from Tierra’s online poetry workshops over the past year. Also, Wendy Yao, owner of Ooga Booga in Los Angeles, is juror of our t-shirt and tote bag contest so you can leave the gallery wearing one of the award-winning designs created by Tierra artists.
We invite you to join us both virtually and in-person as we festively re-emerge and reconnect:
Nov 6, 6-9pm, Opening Celebration with book signings, live portraits and DJs
Dec 4, 2-4pm Live & Streaming Poetry Reading
Dec 11, 11-4pm Holiday Bazaar & Zine Making Workshop
After over a year of creating from home studios and working in new online communities, Tierra artists have come forth with an explosion of passion and an invigorated zest for making art. By delving deeper into their own interior landscapes, original writings and words are woven into poetry, characters stitched into dolls, images conjured for divination, and intergalactic friendships forged. Whether on paper, thread, paint, or clay, these artists have accessed new dimensions of their creative practices and brought imaginative ideas into fruition.
Details coming soon!
Tierra artists will be exhibited at this year’s Outsider Art Fair (OAF) in New York!
Featuring over sixty exhibitors and four curated spaces, the 30th anniversary of OAF New York will now take place March 3-6.
Street Views of Los Angeles opens March 19 and runs through May 7, 2022. Join us for an in-person celebration of Joe and his work on Saturday, March 19, 6-9 pm at our Chinatown gallery location.
EVERYONE’S INVITED!!!!
Joe Zaldivar is having a solo show
at the Tierra del Sol Gallery in Chinatown!
“Street Views of Los Angeles”
Opening reception Saturday, March 19, 6 – 9 PM
Exhibition March 19 – May 7, 2022
Tierra del Sol Gallery presents Hollywood, Camera, Action!, the first Studio Artist
curated exhibition at the Chinatown location. Artist Evan Hynes, selected works
from six Studio Artists: Catherine Benita, Justin Braden, Jose Hernandez, Daniel
Padilla, Jeffrey Rinsky and Zack Stewart to be in dialog with his own imagery that
centers on Hollywood, movies, and the characters that inspire him.
Reception at Tierra del Sol Gallery May 21, 6 – 9pm
Show runs from May 21 – July 9
