Esmeralda Silva

a painting of a van driving along a curved freeway against a background of blue sky and clouds and giant flames. the words "objects in mirror are closer than they appear" and "july 13-september 29,2023" in white sans serif font.

Esmeralda Silva in “Objects in Mirror are Closer than they Appear” // Arts of Life

Arts of Life and Circle Contemporary are excited to announce Objects in Mirror are Closer than they Appear.  An exhibition that features representations of automobiles and car culture as symbols of freedom, self-expression, safety, and individuality; while simultaneously demarcating these phenomena as functions of time and desire that epitomize the economic, cultural, and social conditions from which they appear.   Read More …

an assortment of fruit - grapes, bananas, cherries, limes - drawn with thick black outlines.

NIAD Main Gallery Exhibition // “What’s Cookin?!”

In the exhibition What’s Cookin?!, you will see food, art and creativity from various NIAD artists. So feel free to pull up a chair in your mind, take a seat at our dinner table, and see what’s cookin’! Cooking Corner is a place where artists can share artwork, make art, share food ideas and recipes, and interests they have in cooking, and also cook along with me from the comfort and safety of their own homes. Since we have returned to being on site, Cooking Corner has made its way back to the 23rd Street NIAD studio, where myself and a group of artists meet weekly, and come up with recipes to prepare, prep, cook and serve to the NIAD community. Read More …

A Year Through the Windows // NIAD’s 2021 Windows Exhibitions (online exhibition)

Posted onAuthorNIAD Art Center

About the collection NIAD’s Windows Exhibitions are a pandemic-era innovation, born out of the necessity to see art, and for art to be seen, that continued unabated during lockdown. Way back in July 2020 Amanda announced in The Latest, “Starting now, each month we will add new exhibitions to NIAD’s street-side windows, selected by local artists, curators and NIAD community members… Interested audiences can now drive by, take a stroll past our windows, or get in touch with us directly to arrange for sales or more information on art and artists.” Many thanks to NIAD Gallery Director Julio Rodriguez, the deft facilitator Read More …

A graphic of a collection of artworks included in the holiday gift guide. arranged in a grid.

NIAD Holiday Gift Guide #4: “SISTER SISTER” collected by Amanda and Sarah Eicher

Posted onAuthorNIAD Art Center

About “SISTER SISTER” Some people think we look alike; others think our voices sound the same, and still others mistake us for each other – but do we have the same taste?  We definitely swapped clothes, jewelry, sneakers, and a few items we argued over as tiny pups in the world.In this selection, I tried to choose for my sister a few of the things I think she might have borrowed from my childhood bedroom – or that I’d want to borrow from hers. (Unsurprisingly, we chose a few of the same items the first time around!) As the younger sibling, I Read More …

Online Exhibition: “Memory” organized by Ling Shang

Posted onAuthorNIAD Art Center

About the Exhibition Memory can be buried deep in our mind. It emerges at a quiet moment, when looking through a window on a peaceful afternoon, or while mixing in a noisy crowd. Memory can come in colors, in detail, or totally abstract. Powerful, but impossible to describe in words.The selected works can be any part in our memories: those sweet, lonely, joyful, silly, bitter, innocent, or nonsensical moments. About the Organizer Born in Beijing, my understanding and sense on art come from the rich memories of the seemingly long past and my present life in lively everyday reality. My Read More …

NIAD artists in our courtyard working on sketches for SFMOMA's Mini Mural Festival. Top row: Luis Estrada, Esmeralda Silva, Miguel Chacon. Circle: Jonathan Valdivias. Bottom row: Julio Del Rio, Deatra Colbert, Christian Vassell's sketches.

Online Event: SFMOMA Mini Mural Festival Kickoff – June 24

Posted onAuthorNIAD Art Center

NIAD is one of three organizations commissioned by SFMOMA to contribute murals to its Mini Mural Festival this summer. During this special online kickoff event, Acción Latina, NIAD, and SOMA Pilipinas will discuss our organizations’ work and missions. Then, the artists will reveal their mural designs for the first time. Don’t miss this special preview! SFMOMA Mini Mural Festival Kickoff (online)Thursday, June 24th, 5:30 PM PTRSVP today! Image: NIAD artists in our courtyard working on sketches for SFMOMA’s Mini Mural Festival. Top row: Luis Estrada, Esmeralda Silva, Miguel Chacon. Circle: Jonathan Valdivias. Bottom row: Julio Del Rio, Deatra Colbert, Christian Vassell’s sketches.

New Windows Exhibition: Art In Windows, organized by NIAD + Richmond Main Street Initiative

Posted onAuthorNIAD Art Center

About the exhibition Art In Windows, the annual storefront exhibitions program pioneered by Richmond Main Street Initiative, returns this year through a pilot collaboration with NIAD Art Center. Funded by the Richmond Arts and Culture Commission’s Neighborhood Public Arts Mini-Grant, the collaboration includes two exhibitions in Downtown Richmond windows, a free online opening reception (featuring participating artists and family-friendly workshop kits to accompany the exhibition), and a small business development workshop in June for up to 25 artists. In March, the Art in Windows call for artists resulted in 34 submissions from 26 artists. Running from May 1–22, 2021, Art In Read More …

Sara Malpass Untitled (D0696)

Online Exhibition: Words And Feeling, selected by Nicole Shaffer

Posted onAuthorNIAD Art Center

About the exhibition When going through the NIAD archives, I was struck by a number of works that pair text with image in ways that shift language and illustration from a familiar, functional use to something more expansive. I access a similar experience of forming unexpected and generative correlations when I observe my sensations through movement. For this online series, I selected works that opened up my thinking about language and sensory experience. About the selector Nicole is a current MFA candidate at San Francisco State University and has exhibited in Bay Area spaces such as Southern Exposure, Wolfman Books, Read More …