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Our current exhibition is centered around the theme of CREATION. We're excited to showcase the amazing works of 6 local artists who have taken inspiration from the act of creation itself - from the natural world to the inner workings of the human mind.
Featuring
Justin DeGraide
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Justin DeGraide is a Film Photographer based in Providence, Rhode Island.
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Throughout the last few years, his passion for film photography has grown naturally. Through practice, patience, and understanding, Degraide has come to a point where he truly knows what this form of art is to himself. Film has a certain magic, a sense of atmosphere, depth, texture, and realness that can't be emulated with digital. The imperfections, the snapshots of real life, the way one must slow down to properly capture the shot are just some of the things he considers while taking every shot.
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Art is not something that just happens by accident. It takes a lot of skill, passion, and imagination to create something that expresses your vision and emotions. Art is a way of transforming your inner world into an outer form that others can see and appreciate. Art is a creation because it gives life to your ideas and feelings, making them tangible and visible. Art is a creation because it is a unique expression of yourself, and no one else can create exactly what you create.
Jessica Turcios
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I like to think of my artwork as an endless poem to life by connecting nature and object to spirit and being. My name is Jessica Turcios, I’m a visual artist with a degree and focus in painting. Studied at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Born and raised in Rhode Island.
From painting, my art has expanded into multiple mediums. Each medium has served as a tool to express an underlying truth I seek to convey; I want to find our connection consciously and subconsciously to Mother Earth. Using natural elements (examples: crystal, dried leaves, shells, bones, and herbs), I consider my paintings to be Abstract Portraits of Nature as it is the most powerful creator. Through natural entities, we find meaning and creation.
Souvy
Souvy is an abstract expressionist and digital printmaker currently working out of her home studio in New England. She is a first and a half generation Lao-American, originating from a family of refugees of the Vietnam war. Her work consists of bold strokes and textures that are woven with emotion. Souvy’s mission is to unravel and express the suppressed trauma of her people through her work.
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Souvy views the time of creation as a ceremony between her, herself and spirit. During this ceremony she offers her mind, body, and soul to be completely fluid. This creates a space where all versions of herself coexist simultaneously in harmony. A space for her to connect and honor herself and her ancestors.
Sydney B. Darrow
Sydney B. Darrow (born 1998) is a contemporary artist currently based in Providence, RI. A native Rhode Islander, she grew up on Aquidneck Island where she developed an interest in the visual arts at a young age - and with supportive parents - that interest rapidly grew into a passion. Sydney spent her early years doing life drawings of customers at her father’s barber shop. After winning multiple Golden Key awards for her art throughout middle and highschool she went to Main College of Art for a short period of time (3 months) before deciding it was best to leave and pursue art via an alternative path. Since that point Sydney has participated in multiple juried gallery shows/fine art festivals, won awards for various paintings and drawings, and her work has been the subject of multiple publications. Currently a WaterFire Accelerate cohort member, Sydney continues to carve out her place in the RI art scene.
When Darrow thinks about creation the first thing she envisions are strings, she thinks about the billions, trillions of different strings pushing, pulling, and weaving together to create the intricate fabrics that make up our reality. She thinks of us all having our own set of strings that catch on other people, creating ties, and knots that are often difficult to break. She thinks of pulling thoughts from her head and sewing them together with other people’s to create new and powerful ideas. These four works depict that world.
Eldridge François
Eldridge François, is a 22 year old artist born and raised in Providence. He spent a good portion of his life taking buses from spot to spot with his mom, so this city has always been a big piece of his story. François has been drawing his entire life, but recently developed his style through inspiration and dedication. He hopes everyone viewing his work enjoys it as much as he loves creating each piece.
This collection of art is titled “The Points of Life” because of the use of stippling and he drew that connect directly to our lives. Just like every point he placed onto the canvas, our lives are full of points. It’s easy to cling onto one point in our lives, especially our more challenging moments, but we need to appreciate the entire canvas of our lives. The beauty of Creation is all the intricacies that come together to make you who you are. When you view these images, remember you are more than any one moment or one thing. You are a beautiful collection of little pieces of our canvas called life.
Thomas Terceira
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Thomas Terceira is a craftsman and designer. He earned a BS in Crafts Design from FSU and a certificate in print design from RISD. He works in collage, jewelry, and other media. His designs have appeared in Rattle, Glassworks, and other literary Journals. His art has been exhibited locally, nationally, and internationally.