|
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sarah Pritchard, Director of Communications & Strategy
415-863-1414 x103, press@somarts.org
SOMArts Cultural Center Presents
¡Demasiado!:
An over-the-top benefit for SOMArts, community meal and immersive art party honoring the visionary artist and curator René Yañez.
Saturday, April 14, 2018
Community Meal & Program Honoring René Yañez: 7:00–9:00 pm
Dance Party & Performances: 9:00 pm–12:00 am
Too much art. Too much glamour. Too much hope for the future.
Tuesday, March 6, San Francisco, CA— Known to some as the "Padrino of the Mission," René Yañez has dedicated decades of his life to uplifting the voices of Chicano artists, preserving the cultural heritage of the Mission District while striving toward a more just, equitable and sustainable future for everyone in San Francisco.
Given René's commitment to nurturing the careers of community-based and socially conscious artists, it's no accident that he's been a vital part of the SOMArts family for over 20 years. René's influence at SOMArts can be felt from the moment visitors walk through the eclectic and welcoming art garden that René has lovingly designed and tended for the past 10 years. SOMArts' annual Día de los Muertos exhibition, curated by René alongside his son Rio Yañez, is a beloved San Francisco tradition that brings together over 60 artists every year to create altars and installations that illuminate connections between personal grief and loss and collective mourning and resistance.
In a political moment filled with so much despair and hopelessness, SOMArts dedicates this over-the-top event to publicly honor and celebrate René as an elder who continues to inspire the next generation of creative resistance.
For over 35 years, SOMArts has fostered access to the arts in the Bay Area, uplifting the voices of artists who are too often marginalized in the mainstream art world. Now more than ever, it is crucial that artists are given the resources and support they need to create socially-conscious work. Ticket sales from ¡Demasiado! will generate crucial income for SOMArts' creative programs. As Executive Director Maria Jenson asserts, "SOMArts is a vital engine in the solidarity economy fighting to keep artists living and working in the Bay Area. Individual contributions at events like ¡Demasiado! allow SOMArts to continue supporting artists with fees and commissions, professional development and mentorship to further their careers."
¡Demasiado! will showcase René's tremendous impact on the Bay Area arts ecosystem in an event conceived entirely by artists to benefit SOMArts' programs. Guests will enjoy an evening of experimental performance, artist-designed installations, and dancing to a lineup of the Bay Area's finest DJs.
The evening will begin with a community meal and program honoring René from 7:00–9:00 pm offering ticket holders the chance to meet the artists whose careers have been influenced by René's work, as well as leaders in the Bay Area contemporary art world. The dinner program will include remarks from Tom DeCaigny, Director of Cultural Affairs of the San Francisco Arts Commission, highlighting the vital role that the City's Cultural Centers play in incubating the Bay Area's leading-edge arts and culture. Dinner party attendees will also have the opportunity to bid on select works by René Yañez in a silent auction.
General admission for the dance party will begin at 9:00 pm, with performances by Jader, Psueda and Scam Likely (aka vainhein) — all of whom are deeply influenced by their work in the underground drag and performance culture of San Francisco that has been nurtured and influenced by SOMArts programs like The News queer performance series.
The dance party will be fueled by live DJ sets from the Bay Area's hottest DJs, including DJ Brown Amy and Grammy Award nominee DJ Wonway Posibul.
Dinner and dance party tickets are available for $110. General admission dance party tickets are available for $25 online or $30 at the door. For more information, and to purchase tickets, visit https://demasiado.eventbrite.com.
¡Demasiado! Performing Artists
Dinner Party Program:
Persia
Rashad Pridgen
Rupa & The April Fishes
Hosted by DJ Chelis Lopez of San Francisco's KPOO radio
Dance Party Program:
Jader
Pseuda
Scam Likely (aka vainhein)
DJs
DJ Brown Amy
DJ Wonway Posibul
CALENDAR LISTING
¡Demasiado! A benefit for SOMArts
Saturday, April 14, 2018
Community meal & Program honoring René Yañez: 7:00–9:00 pm
Dance Party & Performances: 9:00 pm–12:00 am
https://demasiado.eventbrite.com
###
ABOUT SOMARTS CULTURAL CENTER
SOMArts Cultural Center, founded in 1979, cultivates access to the arts within the Bay Area by collaborating with community-focused artists and organizations. Together, we engage the power of the arts to provoke just and fair inclusion, cultural respect and civic participation.
SOMArts plays a vital role in the arts ecosystem by helping activate the arts citywide. We do this by providing space and production support for non-profit events, as well as fairs and festivals throughout the Bay Area, and offering a robust program of art exhibitions, classes, events and performances that are affordable and accessible to all. SOMArts’ exhibition programs receive critical support from the San Francisco Arts Commission and The San Francisco Foundation, and are sponsored in part by a grant from Grants for the Arts.
SOMArts is located at 934 Brannan Street—between 8th and 9th—within 2 blocks of 101, I-80, Muni lines and bike paths.
For public information call 415-863-1414 or visit somarts.org. Stay connected by following us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
|
