Wolfgang Gallery Fall Exhibits (wednesdays)

From the venue:

José Ibarra Rizo, Cultivate

Opening reception: September 6, 2024 6-9 PM

The exhibition continues through October 26, 2024

Wolfgang Gallery is pleased to announce, Cultivate, a solo exhibition by José Ibarra Rizo. Ibarra Rizo (b. 1992) is a Mexican-American multi-disciplinary artist living and working in Atlanta, GA. His work primarily focuses on identity and is currently exploring the migrant experience in the American South.

José is the recipient of the inaugural MINT + ACP Emerging Artist Fellowship, one of three awardees for the 2022 Atlanta Artadia Awards, and one of three winners of the 2023-2024 Working Artist Project for MOCA GA.

His work lives in the permanent collection of the High Museum of Art, and the Virginia Museum of Fine Art, and his clients include Rolling Stone, TIME Magazine, and The New York Times.

Cultivate continues Ibarra Rizo’s exploration of the migrant experience in the South by documenting intimate moments of leisure, play, and the ways his community uses and occupies space and land. Through images of makeshift gardens and intimate portraits, this body of work captures the community’s efforts to put down roots and create a sense of belonging. These photographs showcase the creativity and ingenuity people use to transform their environments, reflecting their rich cultural heritage and resilience. By focusing on these candid moments, Cultivate provides an authentic and nuanced portrait of the migrant experience, offering a deeper understanding of these communities and their significance within the American South.

Exhibit Page

Saj Issa, Poppy Paintings

Wolfgang Gallery is also pleased to announce that we will be featuring works by Saj Issa in our front gallery during the duration of Cultivate. SAJ ISSA is a Palestinian American artist born in Saint Louis and raised between the Midwest and West Bank, Palestine. She received her BFA from Webster University and her MFA from the University of California, Los Angeles. Issa was one of three artists selected for the 2024 Great Rivers Biennial, which will open at the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis in September and will include the artist’s “Poppy Paintings” which has been presented in Artforum along with a portfolio of her practice. She has held residencies at the Belger Crane Yard Studios in Kansas City, MO, and Craft Alliance in Saint Louis. Issa was a recipient of the 2022 NCECA Graduate Student Fellowship. She has been featured in interviews with Hyperallergic, Juxtapoz, Khama, New American Paintings, the New Yorker, and Office Magazine.

Saj Issa began creating poppy paintings in her Saint Louis studio as quick warm-ups last October, using a recipe of cadmium-yellow, cadmium red, crimson red, and olive green. Inspired by Sister Corita’s activism, Issa brought one of her paintings to an anti-war demonstration over the Israel war on Palestine, seeking to create new symbols in an era overwhelmed by polarizing slogans.

Exhibit Page