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December 2016 Newsletter

Several years ago, my sister and her partner, both avid art collectors, introduced me to what's often referred to as 'outsider art,' created by artists living with mental, developmental, or physical disabilities. Here in Oakland, Creative Growth Art Center is an incubator of sorts for such artists. The Center, the people who run it and especially the artists are truly inspirational. As we take a moment at year's end to express our thanks to our clients and associates, we wish to share this inspiration with you.

May we all enter the new year with the same sense of whimsy, rigor and awe that we see in Ed Walter's piece below.

Gratefully,
Stephen

This image of an untitled piece by Ed Walters is generously provided by Creative Growth Art Center in Oakland. It serves artists with developmental, mental and physical disabilities, providing a professional studio environment for artistic development, gallery exhibition and representation and a social atmosphere among peers.

EDWARD WALTERS
BORN: 1958
EDUCATION: Creative Growth Art Center, 2000-present; Berkeley High, Martin Luther King Junior High School

Edward is an architect of space in his art. Modular and geometric forms reminiscent of skyscrapers present like a Bauhaus metropolis, handily realized through Edward’s affinity for rulers and stencils. His latest work incorporates letter templates, using the stencil to piece together original maxims like, “Say In Your Office” or “Creative Need To Leave Me Alone”. What began as colorful typographic drawings have since expanded into three-dimensional wooden signs that appear perfunctory and instructional; however, upon closer examination they too read like a mismatched phrase with a wry sense of humor.

SELECTED EXHIBITIONS: 2015 Outsider Art Fair, New York Art Fair Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan Extra Celestial, Crosstown Arts, Memphis
portfolio: http://creativegrowth.org/artists/edward-walters/

Ed was selected for this year's first print edition collaboration with SF's Park Life, which can be purchased at the Creative Growth Art Center shop or online.

More original pieces of Ed's will be on view at the next iteration of the series of shows produced by Creative Growth at 836m gallery in SF. All shows are open to the public and Ed's works are available for sale starting Dec. 19.

If you like to make a donation to support this amazing organization, you can mail a check to

Catherine Nguyen
Gallery Manager
Creative Growth Art Center
355 - 24th Street Oakland, CA 94612
or you can donate online