In the Gallery

Traces in Time: Reflections on Memory and Identity features a selection of compelling ceramic sculptures by Pancho Jiménez.  Jiménez explores the elusiveness of dreams and memory, joining together molded forms in unlikely combinations.  Kitsch elements are transformed into mysterious and complex pieces with a rich and relevant focus.  The juxtaposition of shapes in his sculptures may at first seem haphazard, but is intentionally crafted to mimic the illusiveness of memory as it advances and recedes over time.

Pancho Jiménez (Santa Clara, CA) is a celebrated artist and arts educator.  Mr. Jiménez holds a M.F.A. in Sculptural Ceramics from San Francisco State University, and a B.A. in Studio Art & History from Santa Clara University.  He has exhibited professionally since 1996.  His work has been shown extensively in the San Francisco Bay Area, internationally and nationally at universities, private galleries and civic spaces.  His work is held in permanent collections including the Crocker Museum of Art in Sacramento, CA, the Autry Museum of the American West in Los Angeles, CA, the Triton Museum of Art in Santa Clara, CA, the University of San Francisco and Santa Clara University’s Jesuit Community.  Pancho has received several awards for his work. In 2018 he was selected Artist Laureate by Silicon Valley Creates.  He has been featured in Ceramics Monthly and numerous publications including, “The Ceramic Design Book”, “Extruded Ceramics” and “500 Ceramic Sculptures.”  He currently is a Senior Lecturer at Santa Clara University, where in addition to teaching, he serves as Gallery Director for the Art and Art History Department Gallery and as an Academic Advisor in the Drahmann Advising and Learning Resource Center.

“In my art I attempt to capture that mystery, that ‘eternal presence’ of ancient art forms, which elicit particular emotions in me that may be universal and timeless.  Utilizing contemporary imagery mined from commercial ceramic molds, used most commonly in the decorative arts, I recontextualize this imagery to suggest a vocabulary that is both familiar and mysterious.  Melding into one another, these images suggest a dreamlike state where in images, experiences and emotions come in and out of focus.”  – Pancho Jiménez

Part love note, part meditation on mortality and part unsolicited advice, the grateful chair is an artist’s response to his spouse’s terminal cancer diagnosis.  Between 2014 and 2017, Melinda Welsh was given a novel course of treatment (including the “Jimmy Carter drug”); in 2018, she was declared cancer-free.  Combining video, iPhone images, and objects, the narrative exhibit creates a space to consider love and loss across the different chairs we each occupy in life.

the grateful chair is sponsored by MetalPrints.com

Dave Webb (Davis, CA) is an interdisciplinary artist who began creating art on an iPhone in 2009.  He has been exhibiting professionally since 2013. His work has been featured in the Sacramento Bee, Sacramento News & Review, Davis Enterprise, KCRA, KXTV, KMAX, KXJZ, KFBK, Sactown, Style Magazine and the New York Times blog Lens.  Previously Dave was a working musician and currently performs with Bandella, a folk band of ex-astronauts featuring Chris Hadfield, Cady Coleman and Steve Robinson, with Micki Petit.  In addition, he has worked for over 27 years in marketing and presenting the performing arts, including the Mondavi Center at UC Davis and at the Harris Center at Folsom Lake College, with a three-year fellowship from the California Arts Council funded by the Wallace Foundation.  Mr. Webb’s current project, the grateful chair, will debut at the Grand in March and travel to the Muckenthaler Center for the Arts in Fullerton, CA in October, and then to the Pence Gallery in Davis, CA in 2024.

“I’ve been creating art on my iPhone since 2009. In 2014 my spouse, the editor Melinda Welsh, was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive cancer; after several novel treatments, she was declared cancer-free in 2018.  She has told her story through essays in the Los Angeles Times, a profile on the PBS NewsHour, a Folio award-winning cover story in Sactown magazine, and stories in the Sacramento News & Review, where she was founding editor. My response was to make art. Reflecting my years as a working musician, writer, and iPhone artist, the grateful chair fuses three disciplines into a single exhibit. Of all the different chairs we each occupy over the years, none will be as misunderstood as the grateful chair.”  – Dave Webb

Out of the Corner of My Eye features a group of genre paintings exploring the places and landscapes we often overlook.  David Casterson brings into focus our peripheral vision, peers into alleyways, acknowledges road debris, and honors dilapidated structures.  He creates intrigue from both daily life and the remnants of humanity’s imprints upon nature.  The paintings are beautiful, compelling and mysterious.

David Casterson (Fremont, CA) holds a B.F.A. in Painting and Drawing from San Jose State University.  He has been inspired by art history and landscape throughout his life.  Mr. Casterson has been exhibiting professionally across the region since 2007.  Out of the Corner of My Eye is his first solo exhibition.

“I like to think that I paint the daily world I live in, and I get just as excited by the disposition of tools and empty coffee cans on a garage shelf in the evening light as I would by a majestic mountain.  My mantra has always been, ‘If beauty is anywhere then it’s everywhere.’  As a kid, I wanted to be an archeologist – still do, really – and dig up artifacts that would only invite speculation as to their context and uses while somehow connecting us to other times and a remote, though shared, human experience.  I feel like the objects and scenes I’m drawn to are like artifacts, sometimes newly-minted, yet dislodged from their conventional stations… no longer performing their intended functions.”  – David Casterson

An invitational exhibition of works by celebrated, local-area artists featured in Art Co-Opted – a curated cooperative in the South Gallery – is presented.  Dozens of artists and makers offer a diverse selection of hundreds of functional, decorative and fine quality works at very reasonable prices.  Many of these handmade, one-of-kind items are only available for a limited time during this show.  Consider unique gifts for your friends and family, or build your own collection this holiday season!

The Holiday Open House is a family-friendly, special event featuring holiday-themed activities and attractions.  This year includes photo opportunities, hands-on crafts, art sale, live music and refreshments.  The Tracy Community Band will perform at 4:00 p.m. in the ETK Theatre.

This event is part of the annual Holiday Open House at the Grand, held in conjunction with Tracy City Center Association’s Downtown Tracy Holiday Ornament Stroll.  The exhibition, Opening Reception and Open House are free and open to the public.  The Ornament Stroll is a ticketed event.

What I Want to Say contains over thirty photographic images of visual artists and their studios by Tiffanie Heben.  This ambitious time-based project offers an intimate exploration of the artistic life and a celebration of those representing our local creative community.  The exhibition honors the work and dedication of visual artists, and the beauty they bring into our collective lives.  Spanning seven years, the images of creatives, their materials, and their workspaces were made possible by the collaborative relationships formed between the photographer Tiffanie Heben and her fellow artists.  What I Want to Say is supported by a grant from the City of Tracy/Tracy Arts Commission – 2022 Granting Program.

Tiffanie Heben (Tracy, CA) is a photographer and imagemaker.  Ms. Heben holds a B.A. in Sociology and a Women’s Studies Certificate from Northwestern University, and J.D and M.P.A. from the University of Southern California Gould School of Law.  She began her photography and design education in 2011 and has been exhibiting professionally across the region since 2015.  What I Want to Say is her first solo exhibition.

“While the idea of building community has always been important to me, its relevance has grown as I have witnessed the political and social divisions made evident in recent years.  When I have struggled to find hope for our collective future, the relationships that I have built with local artists have given me strength.  This exhibition, photographs of artists and their studios, is an exploration of the artistic life and a celebration of the people who represent our local creative community.  I hope the public will join me in honoring the work and dedication of area visual artists and the way in which their art helps bring us together.”  – Tiffanie Heben

My Creative Journey is a survey of 95-year-old Michael Rizza’s prolific work in sculpture, which began 62 years ago.  Inspired by nature, architecture, and humanity, his contemporary forms range from organic and geometric, to figurative and abstract.  The exhibition features dozens of beautiful and intriguing works from across his life.  With over ten different stones, bronze, aluminum, plaster and composites from all over the world chosen for their characteristics – color, density, composition, size, weight – and with the ability to transform into the artist’s vision.  My Creative Journey is curated by Lisa Gallo, who began an apprenticeship with Mr. Rizza in 2011.

Michael Rizza (Walnut Creek, CA) is an artist who has worked in architecture and fine art in bronze, stone, and a variety of other materials including concrete, wood, ceramic and aluminum.  In addition, he is an educator and mentor to several studio artists from the region.  Mr. Rizza’s early education in New York City included the notable Leonardo da Vinci Art School and the prestigious High School of Music and Art.  Michael’s early career as a draftsman led to contributing to several well-known architectural projects including the Seagram Building and Lever House.  In 1957 he joined Isamu Noguchi’s team working on the ceiling and waterfall for the lobby of the 666 Fifth Avenue Building.  His sculpting career began in 1961. In 1975 he founded the Michael Rizza Company specializing in seismic seals for architectural projects.  Across the past six decades Michael transformed into a celebrated artist exhibiting across the west and sharing his inspiration and knowledge with others.

“Art has no boundaries, and is a journey with a satisfying ending. I do not design my sculptures to deliver a specific message. Instead, each piece will have its own message as the view perceives it.  As I get older, I feel an urgency as never before to finish my hundreds of ideas and to share my techniques and lessons.”  – Michael Rizza

“This broad showing of sculpture is purposefully combined with examples of Michael’s creative process.  Rarely shared in this way, additional smaller works known as maquettes are used to replicate, scale and cast.  They inform the viewer and create curiosity about the phases and process from beginning to end.”  – Lisa Gallo, Curator