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Ventura County Art Gallery Owner Curates Global Art Exhibition Focused On Art In The Time Of A Pandemic

(Photo by Edgar Takoyaki)

Some works to get first public viewing this week in Ventura

The pandemic impacted all of our lives, sometimes in little, in sometimes in huge ways. For artists and art galleries, it was tough because galleries were closed.

Yessica Torres owns Ventura’s “H Gallery,” as well as downtown LA, and a Mexico City gallery. She wrote an essay about the importance of art in a difficult time. It led to a big response from artists. She decided to create “Art In The Time Of Corona” Volume One as an online exhibition.

Torres says the project took off, with more than 1300 submissions by around a thousand artists. More than 450 were selected for the online exhibition. There was so much interest it's led to a hard cover catalog, and a documentary is in the works.

This weekend, people will be able to see some of the works in person for the first time in Ventura. The H Street Gallery in Downtown Ventura will have a public reception.

One of the featured artists is Ventura photographer Edgar Takoyaki. He says when the pandemic first started, it was hard to get motivated.

But, Takoyki says the pandemic forced him to be creative. Because he couldn’t travel to Japan, where he does much of his work, he focused on studio projects. He created a retro looking photo featured at the Ventura gallery, featuring a mid-century television in a spacelike setting.

Torres says once she realized the pandemic was going to be prolonged, it led to “Art In the Time Of Corona” being Called Volume One. There is a second show featuring workers from 2021 in development.

She says the art is reflective of the artists view of what has been happening in the world around us. Torres believes that modern art gives us a honest look at events, something many people feel we don’t get from the media.

Takoyki says he’s thrilled that this weekend, for the first time in more than a year and a half people will be able to come to a Ventura gallery and see his work in person.

The “H Gallery” exhibition is free, and open to the public beginning at six Saturday night. Link to gallery: https://www.dabart.me/ventura-2

You can find the “Art In The Time Of Coronavirus-Volume One” online exhibition at: https://www.dabart.me/art-in-the-time-of-corona

Lance Orozco has been News Director of KCLU since 2001, providing award-winning coverage of some of the biggest news events in the region, including the Thomas and Woolsey brush fires, the deadly Montecito debris flow, the Borderline Bar and Grill attack, and Ronald Reagan's funeral.