Arts & Life, Fine & Performing Arts

12th annual GLAMFA expedition is underway at CSULB.

The ever-evolving world of art is captured in the 12th annual Greater Los Angeles Master Of Fine Arts expedition, held at the Cal State Long Beach art galleries.

This year, the event kicked off the start of the semester by showcasing 28 local artists, all of whom are graduate students from universities in Southern California.

The exhibit includes seven galleries with pieces ranging from traditional canvas work to visual installations and everything in between. Together, the galleries create a sanctuary for people to come and experience the collision between art and emotion.

“I think in Southern California we always attribute the premier art scene to Los Angeles,” Angella D’Avignon, a 2nd year art history student said. “Now we’re getting the full range between Santa Barbara and San Diego.”

Students who have had little exposure get to benefit from having their work shown.

“These events are good because it gives people who wouldn’t go straight to gallery or representation, a space to show what’s happening in the art world, and what they’re thinking,” D’Avignon said.

GLAMFA is helping to provide a platform for new, emerging artists to launch their careers. Among them is Angie Jennings, an CSULB art student who showcased her piece titled, “Black Deaths from Hollywood Cinema and Shamu,” in the Werby Gallery.

The two-channel video installation was set up to play a loop of Hollywood movie clips that show black actors in multiple scenes of violence and death. On the neighboring screen, the viewer is able to simultaneously watch a clip of Shamu, the famous orca from Sea World, swimming around his enclosure.

“I’m calling her piece the best in show,” D’Avignon said. “When we’re seeing depictions of black individuals on television, it’s usually a spectacle. I think she’s interested in subverting that and making it more of an identity and representation issue, by exploring the uncomfortable aspects of those conversations.”

D’Avignon described the overwhelming sadness she felt while watching the clips, and how powerful art can be in conveying a message.

“You have to think yes, this is something we should be aware of but also why is it still a spectacle?” she said. “What’s wrong with our society and why is this is still happening?”

The ability for people to experience different forms of art is what GLAMFA is all about. President Shannon Leith of the event urges people to come down and experience it for themselves while there’s still time. Galleries will be open today noon to 8 p.m., and Thursday from noon to 5 p.m.

Her hope is that people will walk away from it with a different outlook then they came in with.

“Art, for me, has been a way of experiencing and enjoying the world more deeply,” Leith said. “It’s a way to explore and dig into the different tiny facets of life, something I don’t think I’d do if it wasn’t for art.”

With over 20 undergrad volunteers helping out, the event has gone above and beyond for people’s expectations already, bringing in people from all over the surrounding area.

“I would hope everyone on this campus knows they’re always welcome to come experience the art we have available in the galleries,” Leith said. “Even if it’s only for a break in their day.”

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