Geneva Center for the Arts Opens the Inaugural Exhibition, CARE, Featuring Three Chicagoland Artists at 321 Stevens Street, Suite Q, Geneva, IL. Guest curator, Joanne Aono, conceptualizes the necessity for connections and conversation in addressing issues of the present and moving forward into the future.
GENEVA, IL OCTOBER 6, 2021 ... Geneva Center for the Arts opens its doors for the first art exhibition in its new location. CARE, a show curated by local artist Joanne Aono, focuses on creating conversation around important issues impacting today’s world. Featuring the work of Karen Azarnia, Brenda Barnum, and Cydney Lewis, this exhibition will run from October 15th through November 19th. The opening event will be on October 15th from 6pm-8pm.
Karen Azarnia’s oil paintings have a quiet quality and capture specific moments in time. These moments make powerful statements on societal issues and confront the viewer with thought provoking and conversation starting topics. Also working with oil painting, Brenda Barnum hovers between menacing abstractions, animated flowers, and quirky humans. Barnum’s confident brushwork and color palette create beautifully inspired characters. Cydney Lewis’ brings awareness to environmental issues in this age of consumerism through plant-like constructions that give life to repurposed plastic shopping bags otherwise headed to the landfill. Her contemplative multi-media paintings combine sewing, painting, and collage of various materials including hair, fabric, and beads.
Executive Director, Taylor Egan says, “We feel so fortunate to have these talented artists in our gallery as our organization welcomes the public in for the first time. At its core, this center is about encouraging and creating community conversation through art. This exhibition is not only visually stunning, but will encourage patrons to question, contemplate and engage. This is the perfect inaugural show for our town and space.”
Geneva Center for the Arts has also paired with Stockholm’s Restaurant & Brewery for the opening evening. Stockholm’s will donate 10% of the money made from those dining after their visit to “Care” back to GCA.
Geneva Center for the Arts is a 501c3 located at 321 Stevens St, Suite Q in Geneva, Illinois. This center is focused on providing thoughtfully curated programming to the residents and visitors of the Geneva community. GCA will feature year-round exhibitions, events and education opportunities that will compliment and expand the robust art scene in Chicago's western suburbs.