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Capital City Arts Initiative’s exhibition presents 'Two Views' by Robert Ibarra and Cesar Piedra
The Capital City Arts Initiative’s exhibition, "Two Views" presents different approaches to individual expression through drawings by Robert Ibarra and ceramics by Cesar Piedra.
The exhibition runs at the Courthouse Gallery from Feb. 18 to May 25, 2022. CCAI will host a reception for the artists on Friday, February 25, 5:00 - 6:30pm, artists’ introduction at 5:30pm. The Courthouse is located at 885 E Musser Street, Carson City; the gallery is open Monday – Friday, 8:00am – 5:00pm.
Cesar Piedra is a child of Mexican immigrants. This status as a first-generation individual can be filled with political, cultural, and historic conflict that often manifests itself as an identity crisis. This internal clash informs how he communicates through his art practice, and helps elicit a conversation about the existence of those caught in the in-between.
Through his art, he seeks a visual language that connects both his Mexican and American heritages. These two identities often combine to create a third, that is not solely one or the other, rather an amalgamation of the two. Piedra said, “My mashup of aesthetics, culture, and history allows me to explore my identity through visual language, granting myself and my viewer an opportunity to critique how we are swayed by external sources to define and establish identity, for ourselves and others.”
Piedra is an interdisciplinary artist, born in southern California and raised in Northern Nevada. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts with an emphasis in ceramics and a minor in art history at the University of Nevada Reno in 2021.
Robert Ibarra's work involves self-portraiture where he investigates emotions tied to his personal experiences. He said, “My drawings involve the human figure and attempts to find a balance between realism and abstraction to convey emotion that is tied to personal experiences. My work serves as a way to relate to and evoke genuine reactions and feelings from the viewer. I want to provide viewers with an opening for dialogue about their own personal struggles.
“All my life I have struggled with personal battles such as Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), physical health issues, shyness, sensitivity, and anxiety. I had also found it extremely difficult to process and express these feelings, especially at a young age, being unable to understand what these struggles were and I’m still having these same difficulties now in adulthood. I allow myself to be vulnerable and begin to develop the confidence to display and talk about my flaws. My hope is that viewers can find it in themselves to release what has been building up inside them for so long — that they may be free from their internal conflicts.” Ibarra received a BFA from the University of Nevada, Reno in 2021.
Vivian Zavataro wrote the essay, "Divergent Vocabularies" for the "Two Views" exhibition. Zavataro is the Director and Chief Curator of The Lilley Museum of Art, at the University of Nevada, Reno. She is a museologist who specializes in contemporary art, history, and art mediation. She has traveled-widely working for museums, galleries, and contemporary art institutions in order to broaden her knowledge and experience of the art world. Her goal is to facilitate interaction between art and the public. Diversity, inclusion, and creativity are essential aspects of her practice.
Carlos Ramirez, a Western Nevada College Latino Leadership Academy student, provided a Spanish language translation of the show’s wall text.
CCAI is an artist-centered not-for-profit organization committed to community engagement in contemporary visual arts through exhibitions, illustrated talks, arts education programs, artist residencies, and online activities.
The Initiative is funded by the Nevada Humanities and the National Endowment for the Humanities, Nevada Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts, John and Grace Nauman Foundation, Carson City Cultural Commission, Kaplan Family Charitable Fund, U.S. Bank Foundation, Southwest Gas Corporation Foundation, Steele & Associates LLC, and CCAI sponsors and members.
For additional information, please visit CCAI’s website at www.ccainv.org.