August 2024 Exhibits
On the 4th Friday in August, as a precursor to Richmond’s Pridefest the exhibits at Art Works open with a special performance of talented artists celebrating the diversity of the LGBTQ+ community.
It’s a beautiful, dreamy, mysterious, humorous, and a very pridefully queer sort of place this 4th Friday at Art Works. The four solo shows and the queer show, Color Theory opening this month offer all these elements.
The event is free and open to the public. Enjoy these exhibits through September.
Color Theory: The Richmond Queer Art Experience curated by Chris Schoen
In this exhibit Chris Schoen brings together local artists to share an experience in the world of the queer.
Envision a world where lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer (LGBTQ+) people, with intersecting identities, thrive. This exhibit is an expression of a diverse group of artists sharing and expressing a vision of this world.
A Place Where Dreams Come True by Olga Rokhmanyuk
Olga Rokhmanyuk, a successful interior designer, window dresser, and advertising professional from Ukraine, faced a challenging situation when she arrived in America and didn’t know the language. Overwhelmed and silenced, Olga set out to discover a new life and found solace in nature. It was here that she picked up her paintbrushes and started capturing the beauty of all she saw—from the sea to flowers, landscapes, and all parts of nature where there are no language barriers, only the language of great love to humans.
We are pleased to announce Olga’s upcoming exhibit, which is a testament to her artistic skills, full of color, imagination, and a reflection of her journey from silence to the vibrant world of art.
Corpus Ephemera: Paintings by Sherrie Miller
Sherrie Miller’s exhibit, Corpus Ephemera, showcases a collection of paintings that transport viewers to a magical, dreamlike world where animals take center stage, and the human presence is subdued. Through her art, Miller delves into the complex themes of mortality and our smallness in the universe, challenging us to confront the ideas that we often avoid or fear.
Drawing inspiration from old-world fairy-tale elements and magical realism, Miller creates a unique inner world inhabited by animals and artifacts of the human presence, where all things manifest together within a dreamlike environment. This exhibition is a must-see for anyone interested in exploring the darker, more hidden aspects of being human within the space of our limited existence.
Piecing It Together: Mosaics by Nancy Kline and Jody Rathgeb
This exhibits features the works of two talented mosaic artists, Nancy Kline and Jody Rathgeb.
In their separate studios at Art Works, Nancy and Jody create mosaic pieces ranging from intricate jewelry to large wall hangings. For this exhibit they collaborate to showcase the unique style and techniques of both artists, including decorative art and statements in mosaic. In addition, an educational piece will be included, providing insight into the materials used in mosaic and the process of creating these intricate works of art. Experience the beauty and creativity of modern mosaics
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DeConstrucThings by N Blake Seals
N. Blake Seals is a graduate of the School of Visual Arts in NYC, where he studied illustration and fine arts. He has a keen interest in exploring the relationship between seemingly disparate disciplines, such as comic book illustration and abstract mark-making. Seals draws inspiration from city landmarks, pop culture, and non-representational art, and seeks to examine the intersection of the so-called high and low arts markets as a means of artistic expression.
Seals’ mixed media digital paintings are a combination of impressionistic drawings, hand-drawn abstract doodles, and painted color fields on paper. These elements are then transformed and manipulated on the computer, before being output onto various substrates. Through his art, Seals invites us to question the traditional boundaries between different art forms, and to consider the possibilities that arise when they intersect.
When not making art, over the years, Blake has served in the US Navy Reserve and volunteered as a firefighter/paramedic. He has also owned and managed recording facilities, worked on Marvel and Archie comics, and traveled the world as a black belt in Matsubayashi-Ryu Karate-Do. Currently, he works as an organ transplant coordinator. His artwork has been shown in New York City. Blake is a family man, with a wife, two sons, three daughters, a granddaughter, a cat, two snakes, and a leopard gecko.
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