THE YEAR OF MARS: An Artistic Showcase

Chidinma ‘Mars’ Azinge is a surrealist Nigerian-American artist, teacher, and Sociology B.A. graduate based in California, notably featured in Compton Museum’s “Sacred and Seen: Queer Lives at the Intersection” and their debut Los Angeles solo show, “Fruits of my Labor”.

For our next solo show in the Garden Room, we present THE YEAR OF MARS - An Artistic Showcase.

The Year of Mars, a trip through space and time, an exploration of how movement, location, and sound, can make for an otherworldly experience. A culmination of the naturally occurring and the supernatural, "The Year of Mars" showcases perspectives from beyond what meets the eye, featuring original work from Chi (Mars) Azinge:

"As I continue through the storybook gameplay that is my life, I encounter a bifurcated path. Tendrils and tall weeds adorn the entrances of both, hiding what will be uncovered unless I step in fully. I have a few tools with me: a magnifying glass, a dirty paintbrush, and a tri-stone amethyst ring with the name “Mars” engraved into it. 

The magnifying glass is a tool for my free-form ethnographic research. It’s been a few years since I completed my last mission, obtaining my undergraduate degree in Sociology. A research methodology course I took in my final year proposed the phrase “the burning question,” and with this, I carried on trying to merge a multitude of thoughts into a singular burning question. Within a variety of lived experiences, I looked for answers, while leaving room for wonder.

At the end of the path, I am met with a cliff, and new terrain off in the distance. Instinctually, I locate my old, dirty paintbrush and paint myself a bridge. My long-standing art practice turns over a new leaf. My burning questions morph as my scenery changes: “What truly connects me to the lands I inhabit? How can I bridge the gap between my lived experiences and my ancestral history?” I planned my first solo art show, “Fruits of my Labor” which dissected my life in relation to fruit. In true ethnographic fashion, the fruit posed the question. The ripeness factor of a fruit shows us what to do next: eat it, or let it rot and become fertilizer.

Join us for our gallery reception at 4pm and enjoy our show alongside complementary beverages and DJ performance.

PAINTING TECHNIQUES WORKSHOP

This workshop is focused on building a mind-body connection through personalized creative practices and techniques - focusing on attentiveness, cognition, and translation of abstract concepts to concrete images.

“Drawing has long been recognised as a powerful tool for enhancing memory retention, owing to its unique engagement of multiple cognitive processes. When an individual draws, they are required to translate abstract concepts into concrete images, actively organising information and embedding it deeply into their memory. This active involvement contrasts starkly with more passive methods such as reading or listening, creating stronger and more resilient memory traces. Through drawing, individuals utilise visual learning pathways, integrate semantic understanding, and invoke motor coordination, all of which contribute to a more comprehensive encoding of information in the brain.”

Think about something that you need many of in order to compose a bigger thing:
Just like how leaves and branches make up a tree,
Or atoms and neurons make up you and me,
We are all about these basic units, as they are integral to creation!

We will also discuss the therapeutic element behind drawing, and the motor-brain functions involved:

Visual processing: Your brain interprets shapes, shadows, proportions, and negative space.
Fine motor control: Every pencil movement sharpens hand-eye coordination and precision.
Working memory: You hold visual elements in mind while constructing them on paper.
Attention regulation: Drawing often induces a state of flow, quieting external distractions.
Problem solving: Deciding how to represent three-dimensional space in two dimensions challenges abstract thinking.

Choose between two workshop times - we are offering 11pm and 1pm sessions. All materials will be provided - take home your own creation and hang it up on your walls forever!