34th Annual University Student Exhibition

^{Image Credit: Sebastian Ore Blas, Noura, 2022, Oil on Canvas, 18 x 24 Inches}

“I had the absolute pleasure to serve as a Mentoring Artist during Residency #185 last May, where I was tasked with selecting artists whose work I greatly appreciated. I was able to work with these five talented individuals in the studio and provided guidance on execution, presentation, working with galleries and edits, and offer feedback on their articulation of their work. My approach to selecting artists for ACA’s University Exhibition aligned with my residency’s straightforward selection process. I want to be moved by the artwork. That happens in a few ways for me. I pay close attention to the content, the materials, the approach to the work and what the artist is adding to the conversation through their artwork. All of the artists’ work possesses a unique blend of vitality, intellect, and intuition, which enables them to create artwork that evokes complex and intertwined emotions. I enjoy the artists’ imagination, playfulness, and response to their living environment. Their art serves as a byproduct of this creative process, resulting in amazing pieces with great potential. While all student submissions were greatly appreciated, these five individuals stood out for their exceptional talent and dedication to their craft. It is an honor to have participated in the selection process, and I extend my congratulations to Sebastian Ore Blas, Seana Leah Heiman, Haley Blair, Raven Niekerk, and Juno Fae Sorell for their inclusion in the prestigious 34th Annual University Student Exhibition.” – Juror & Former Mentoring Artist Patrick Martinez

Featured Artists: Sebastian Ore Blas, Seana Leah Heiman, Haley Blair, Raven Niekerk, Juno Fae Sorell 

Patrick Martinez (b. 1980 Pasadena, CA) earned his BFA with honors from Art Center College of Design in 2005. His work has been exhibited domestically and internationally in Los Angeles, Mexico City, San Francisco, Minneapolis, Miami, New York, Seoul, and the Netherlands, at venues including the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Museum of Contemporary Art Los Angeles (MOCA), the Studio Museum in Harlem, the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, the Smithsonian NMAAHC, the Tucson Museum of Art, the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, the Columbus Museum of Art, the Vincent Price Art Museum, the Museum of Latin American Art, the Crocker Art Museum, the Rollins Art Museum, the California African American Museum, the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, and El Museo del Barrio, among others. 

Patrick’s work resides in the permanent collections the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Museum of Contemporary Art Los Angeles (MOCA), the Rubell Museum, the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, the California African American Museum, the Autry Museum of the American West, the Benton Museum of Art at Pomona College, the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), the Tucson Museum of Art, the Pizzuti Collection of the Columbus Museum of Art, the University of North Dakota Permanent Collection, the JPMorgan Chase Art Collection, the Crocker Art Museum, the Escalette Permanent Collection of Art at Chapman University, the Manetti-Shrem Museum of Art at UC Davis, the Rollins Museum of Art, and the Museum of Latin American Art, among others. 

Patrick was awarded a 2020 Rauschenberg Residency on Captiva Island, FL. In the fall of 2021 Patrick was the subject of a solo museum exhibition at the Tucson Museum of Art titled Look What You Created. In 2022 Patrick was awarded a residency at the Atlantic Center for the Arts. Patrick recently exhibited in We The People: The Radical Notion of Democracy at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art thru January 2023. In the spring of 2023 Patrick will have a solo exhibition at the Institute of Contemporary Art San Francisco. Patrick lives and works in Los Angeles, CA and is represented by Charlie James Gallery, Los Angeles.