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Art can make people care and act. Art can inspire new ways of thinking about the world we live in, can be instrumental in breaking down barriers, and can build community bonds. In 2022, the Foundation launched an art program at the CZI Community Space to create opportunities for San Mateo County artists of all ages and abilities to showcase their artwork.

Meet the Current Cohort of Artists

The Foundation is excited to be working with the current cohort of artists who are exhibiting their artwork at the CZI Community Space through March 2026.

The art exhibition in the CZI Community Space will be seen and enjoyed by persons who attend or participate in events hosted by nonprofits based in and serving San Mateo County, as well as Redwood City and San Mateo County government agencies who book the space. The public is invited to view the art on the following dates:

Friday, April 11, 5:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m.

Friday, July 11, 5:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m.

Friday, October 10, 5:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m.

To learn more about an artist, watch a video by clicking on their image.

Artist Susan Carkeek

Susan Carkeek has maintained a studio and made art for her whole life. She lives on the San Mateo coast where she owned and operated an art school for 30 years. After selling her art school, she is finally a full-time artist. As a practicing eco-gardener, her garden has presented the questions that led her to continued research. She is now fostering 50 redwood tree “babies” for a future reforesting project…and of course, painting baby pictures of these beautiful Sequoia sempervirens.

Artist Gloria Paidamoyo Chikaonda

Gloria Paidamoyo Chikanoda was born and raised in Harare, Zimbabwe. She is a self-taught artist who uses mixed methods including oil paint, collage, acrylic and pastels to explore the themes of political memory and gender in African politics. Her work uses portraiture and figure painting to push against Zimbabwe’s patriarchal and gender-exclusive social and political culture. Chikaonda is a lawyer, with formal legal training from South Africa, currently in the 5th year of her doctoral law studies (JSD) at Stanford Law School. Her research explores African identity and culture and how it impacts the development of African legislation for marriage and family.

Artist Kevin Daniels

Kevin Lance Daniels is a figurative oil painter. His paintings are inspired by his photography, documentary filmmaking, and world travel. Kevin's paintings often explore identity questions such as who others think we are, what culture tells us, what history tells us, and, most importantly, what we tell ourselves. He aims to explore cultural boundaries and barriers to explore the space between human separation and togetherness.

Most of Kevin’s paintings in the CZI exhibition were inspired by a discovered box of old family photos dating back over a century. Most of the identities and stories of those photographed were long lost. Kevin used a process of historical research, DNA testing, memories of family stories, and his imagination to create the paintings.

Artist Cory Calandra Devereaux

Cory Calandra Devereaux lives in San Bruno, California, and works from her Painters Pants art practice (Art Explosion Studios, San Francisco). Cory exhibits her mixed media artworks and monumental canvases throughout the Bay Area. Whether painted on exterior walls or as portable murals, Cory’s boldly colored designs also adorn schools, community spaces and businesses in Daly City, Redwood City, Menlo Park and San Francisco, California. Her community murals bring joy to participants, residents, visitors and passersby, and beautify neighborhoods. Cory believes that “Art has the power to spread happiness while encouraging social discourse.”

Artist Zara Sophie Dijcks

Zara Sophie Dijcks’s work in oil, charcoal, and oil pastel reflects a different perspective on common, daily life scenes. Through her work, she creates a feeling of coziness and joy as we see her scenes of friendship and intimacy allowing us to relive some of our own memories.

As a young artist, Zara Sophie is exploring various media, but loves oil on canvas because of the richness in color and ability to blend and sculpt the colors. Her passion for art has led her to take AP Studio Art at Carlmont High School. Her classes there are now pushing her to deepen her thinking about art and expand her skills into bigger and bolder pieces, with CZI as her first opportunity to exhibit.

Artist Andaya Mele

Anyada Mele is a high school senior with her sights set on studying studio art at a four-year
university. Passionate about creative expression, she works primarily in oil painting, ceramics,
sewing, and drawing. Her portrait paintings are often inspired by candid photos of her friends
and the art she’s seen in museums. With each piece, she blends technical skill with
storytelling, capturing emotion and movement in a way that feels both deliberate and dynamic.

Artist Gadget

Gadget is a Redwood City, California, based artist and creative problem solver who’s intricately detailed wall sculptures take audiences on engaging, sometimes twisted, journeys of thought. Through his layered wood artwork and cities made from reclaimed materials, Gadget continually pushes the boundaries of his mediums while asking us to reflect on who we are, the world around us, and where the two intersect. Gadget has cast metals, exhibited ceramics, concocted conceptual art puzzles, collaborated on interactive Burning Man art, and he thrives on sneaking creative surprises into every corner of life.

Artist Agnes Qiu

Agnes Qiu is a Chinese-American artist born in South San Francisco, California, growing up in a Montessori environment. She is a high school senior at Pacific Rim International middle/high school. Agnes is often inspired by her surroundings and the continuous change of world events that affect her life and paint from them. Through Agnes’s work, she likes to convey a world that is deliberate and open to interpretation. She tends to favor bold and vibrant colors to communicate more subtle nuances of the piece. One of her favorite mediums for this is oil painting, especially on a large canvas, where she can unfurl my uninhibited vision. Agnes believes that art can communicate across the aisle and to people around the world in a way that no other form of communication can, which motivates her as a creator and activist. Through art, she hopes that she could lend a voice to issues she cares about and express her own feelings within her artwork.

Artist Libby Raab

Libby Raab is an architect and paper weaver based in the San Francisco Bay Area. She works with photo and paper weaving as an exploration of colors, textures, and pattern. Libby believes that like architecture, weaving is a form of spatial expression and material experimentation. Her work explores the intersection of geometry, digital technology, and nature. By hand weaving original photos that have been digitally altered, Libby aims to create a dialogue between tradition and innovation, organic and synthetic textures, reality, and illusion.

Artist Ella Skinner

Ella Skinner is a junior attending Menlo School, and a mixed media illustrator who has always had a love for all forms of visual art. Growing up in Menlo Park, California, she spends her free time drawing—finding inspiration in other artists, her favorite films and shows, and the nature and architecture around her. Over the years, Ella has experimented with a variety of different mediums, but focuses on using digital illustration or traditional materials like pastels, charcoal, or acrylic paint. In each of her pieces, Ella strives to portray a strong narrative through light, color, and form, and aims to convey the movement and emotion in each of the moments that she creates. Ella wishes to use her passion for art in college and to eventually find a creative career where she can continue to tell her stories.

Artist Ginger Slonaker

Ginger Slonaker was born in Micronesia, grew up outside Washington, DC, and after spending some years in the Netherlands, has been living and creating art in the Bay Area for over 27 years. Slonaker holds a BFA and MFA from the University of Arizona and has exhibited her work throughout the United States and Europe. Recognized for her whimsical yet twisted illustrative paintings, she is passionately committed to arts education and has spent the last 30 years teaching art to imaginative troublemakers of all ages, from preschool through college.

Art Advisory Work Group Members

The Foundation created an Arts Programming Plan for the CZI Community Space and established a thoughtful process to help set a vision for ongoing creative community engagement. The Foundation works with an Art Advisory Work Group, composed of San Mateo County residents from different backgrounds who serve a one-year term, to implement the Arts Programming Plan which includes selecting the exhibition theme, choosing the artists who will participate in the exhibition, serving as liaisons with the artists, conducting community outreach and hosting an annual art exhibitions.

The main purpose of the art exhibitions is 1) to promote San Mateo County artists by exhibiting their artwork at the CZI Community Space and 2) to provide an opportunity to bring the community together to promote education, awareness, and understanding.

The 2024-2025 Art Advisory Work Group members are:

Artist Rebecca Archer

Rebecca is the bi-racial black/Jewish daughter of American diplomats, and grew up moving all around the world. In her art she strives to connect to her upbringing, cultural experiences and identity in a way that is authentic and honors all parts of her. She is drawn to faces of women of color that hold untold stories and are cloaked in color and festivity. She seeks to show the beauty and variety of melanated skin and depict women of color in their strength, beauty and mystery. An attorney by trade she has an analytical mind and collaging combines that analytical side with her love of color and faces.
@art_attorney, ArtAttorney7@gmail.com

Artist John Romano

John is a digital artist living and working in Menlo Park. His multidisciplinary approach to art is reflected in his diverse portfolio, encompassing painting, photography, collage, film, and sound. John’s work explores the interaction between different forms of visual and auditory expression, and creates porous boundaries between traditional and contemporary imagery and techniques. He likes to work intuitively and experimentally, and his botanical pieces represent an interconnection of nature, technology, and human perception.
JohnRomanoFineArt@yahoo.com

Artist Audrey Lam

Audrey is a high school student. She was born in San Francisco and spent much of her early life drawing and painting with her mother. Her artwork depicts her life experiences growing up in a Chinese-American household and her path to discovering her culture. Audrey expresses her struggle to find a sense of belonging to either culture as well as various traditions and expressions of affection through the use of symbolism and uses each work to tell a story. Her mediums of choice are Acrylic paint and graphite, and she enjoys harnessing small details to draw attention to important aspects of her pieces. She hopes her artwork can reach a community of other Asian Americans and build connections with others with similar memories and stories. Audrey hopes to continue making artwork in the future and discover who she is as an artist.
audreylam717@gmail.com

Common Questions & Answers

Check out our previous exhibitions:

April 2022

October 2022

Meet the Current Cohort of Artists

Art Advisory Work Group Members

Common Questions & Answers

Check out our previous exhibitions:

Hear first and stay up-to-date on the latest events, and volunteer opportunities

Contact Us!

info@rwcpaf.org

650-241-8337

Redwood City Parks and Arts Foundation