Rolando Chang Barrero The Box Gallery
811 Belvedere Road
West Palm Beach, Florida 33404
"I have an insatiable desire to leave a legacy defined by what can be done—what is possible in the arts. I’m committed to the advancement of the arts in all areas. I want to enroll people in a vision full of possibilities.”
To call Rolando Chang Barrero just “an artist” is an understatement. He is an outspoken activist for the South Florida arts scene, especially in Palm Beach County, where he has resided for the past several years.
“It’s pretty safe to say that millions of people have enjoyed the rich art and cultural diversity of South Florida. Guests and tourists have flocked to South Florida way before the grand opening of Art Basel in 2002 and even prior to the South Florida Art Center on Lincoln Road in 1984,” said the former Miami Beach resident. “In Palm Beach specifically, within the last six years we have witnessed an incredible maturity in both the public and private sectors of the art scene. From the city of Delray Beach to the city West Palm Beach it is more than apparent that the public art administrators and the area’s artists are working together to create many of our nation’s most syncretic art and cultural initiatives.”
“I believe that artists make a living proportionally to their drive, circumstances, and vision. Like doctors, lawyers, and other professionals…some artists navigate life better than others,” he explained.
President Donald Trump has put forth his proposed budget, which calls for the elimination of funding for the National Endowment of the Arts and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
Other cuts include the departments of Education and Agriculture andEnvironmental Protection Agencyprograms, among many others.
Artist Rolando Chang Barrero, who runs the ActivistArtistA Gallery in Boynton Beach and the Box Gallery in West Palm Beach, and his fellow artists are reacting to proposed budget cuts to the National Endowment for the Arts.
For his upcoming KeroWACKED Show at the Boynton Beach Arts District, Barrero said he is organizing "Sound Out Loud," a 10-hour open-mic event for people to express their First Amendment rights "as if they might not have this opportunity again."
Forty people will get their turn at the microphone for 15 minutes each from noon to 10 p.m. April 16 at ActivistArtistA, 422 W. Industrial Ave. Email BoyntonBeachArtDistrict@gmail.com to reserve a spot.
A companion exhibit, "Lest We Forget," remembers the Holocaust and the results of what happens when government separates people by religion and/or nationality, Barrero said.
"The ideas for these shows came about as a direct result of the current political climate and Trump's policies," he said. Continue to full story.
Gliding into its second year, Art Boca Raton has found a groove, mixing the high-end blue chip art of Picasso and Chagall with the best of the regional art and artists like Cheryl Maeder and Rolando Chang Barrero. Continue Reading....
Rolando Chang Barrero Artist #LestWeForgetProject came about as a direct result of the current #political climate in the United States and President Donald J. Trump #Policies.
The #LestWeForgetProject is a series of images of people concerned that similarities between the current political climete and those of the past. If you would like to participate contact ActivistArtistA@gmail.com
All participant we invited to choose one or more colored triangles that they felt represented themselves or, a class of people that they were concerned about.
"I am Jewish so I chose the yellow triangle, seeing more and more antisemitism across Europe and even the United States is disheartening, and I think things like this project will shine a light not only on the holocaust, but also help people remember what happened and could definitely happen again. I absolutely love the work you are doing, and that's why I participated!"
Thank you Guy Icangelo for participating in #LestWeForgetProject
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I participated in this project because bullies, racists, xenophobes, and haters of every category believe we in opposition will not fight back. As usual, they are wrong. I chose to wear the red triangle which political prisoners were forced to wear in the Nazi concentration camps. I am in awe of the people who were marked this way. Against all odds, they fearlessly opposed government implemented policies that demonized and denigrated human beings, a government that promoted aggressive nationalism over international cooperation, and, a government that dreamt of world domination through force. Sound familiar? Oppose. Resist. No pasaran. - Guy IcangeloI
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Artist Rolando Chang Barrero Responds With Warning: "Lest We Forget" activistartista.blogspot.com/2017/03/artist-rolando-chang-barrero-responds.html
Rolando Chang Barrero Artist #LestWeForgetProject came about as a direct result of the current #political climate in the United States and President Donald J. Trump #Policies.
The #LestWeForgetProject is a series of images of people concerned that similarities between the current political climete and those of the past. If you would like to participate contact ActivistArtistA@gmail.com
All participant we invited to choose one or more colored triangles that they felt represented themselves or, a class of people that they were concerned about.
US HEROES were painted as a response to the ignorance and insensitivity of the liberal left in The United States of America towards the Cuban population that arrived seeking asylum from the of the most notorious murderers in Cuba.
The 3 paintings of t-shirts are always exhibited upside down and all remarks and chants associated with them are turned into interrogative sentences questioning their value and purpose in a dictatorial regime.
US HEROES Serie Part 1: Che Guevara
"10”
A Group Exhibition
Art Gallery at Eissey Campus
Palm Beach State College-BB building
3160 PGA Boulevard
Palm Beach Gardens, Florida 33410
Opening Reception:
Tuesday, February 14th, 2017 | 5:30-8:00 PM
Exhibition Dates:
February 10-March 17, 2017
An Exhibition Organized By Karla Walter and Jacques de Beaufort
present works representing a variety of media, methods, and visual approaches.
All artists are presently working and contributing to the vital and diverse
South Florida art scene.
Palm Beach Gardens—Rolando Chang Barrero will be exhibiting the first installment of US Heroes: Fidel Castro, Che Guevara, Raul Castro a series of paintings which concentrates on the three mass murderers of the Cuban revolution. The challenges and questions the slogans that are used to support their assent to hero status in the United States. This series explores the phenomena of idolatry and “hero creation” in the United States by the media and American t-shirt industry. This industry creates human billboards which inadvertently rationalizes human suffering (e.g. the mass murders and executions by Fidel Castro, Che Guevara, and Raul Castro).
"I refer to all of my individual works as “pages from the journal of my life,” a vast documentary of experiences, thoughts, commentaries, and such. Thus, as pages of any personal journal-- some entries are unfinished drafts for a larger essay, some are very personal notes, and others are reactions to events and situations. When a secret is shared, it ceases to be a secret A thought written will at some point be a thought read. I paint for those that prefer to read painting, I make film for those that prefer to read film, I take photographs for those that prefer to read an image [be it black and white, or color].
My current journal entries are a series of interrogatives presented in three levels.
Level one, questions the political slogans associated with the subject simply by changing the exclamation point to a question mark.
Level two, the title of the series “ U.S. Heroes” purposely challenges the viewer into a conversation about his or her interpretation of patriotism and heroism.
Level three, allows the viewer to embrace or deflect the importance and impact of how we consume and later share our beliefs , credos, stances, and/or lifestyles via tee shirts, bumper stickers, and more recent within 144 allowable characters on twitter.”
-Rolando Chang Barrero
"Patria o Muerte?” [motherland or death?] 40” x 60” (courtesy of Rolando Chang Barrero)
“Uno Dos Tres! Seremos como El Che?” [1,2, 3 we're going to be like Che?] 40” x 60” (courtesy of Rolando Chang Barrero)
Featuring artworks byRolando Chang Barrero, Robert Longo, Nicole Eisenman, Mark Bradford, Kiki Smith, Polly Apfelbaum, William Wegman, John Baldessari, Kay Rosen, Isaac Julien, Lawrence Weiner, Paulina Olowska, David Maljkovic, Mary Heilmann, Lorraine O'Grady, Ida Applebroog, Julie Mehretu, Louise Fishman, Jane Hammond, Kerry James Marshall, LJ Roberts, Kalup Linzy, Nayland Blake, Barry McGee, Marilyn Minter, Ross Bleckner, Paul Pfeiffer, Donald Baechler, Marlene McCarty and 1400 others!!!*
Postcards From the Edge offers a rare opportunity to acquire original, postcard-sized artwork from internationally renowned and emerging artists for only $85 each. Offered on a first-come, first-served basis, over 1500 works are exhibited anonymously, and the identity of the artist is revealed only after the work is purchased. With the playing field leveled, all participants can take home a piece by a famous artist, or one who's just making their debut in the art world. Nonetheless, collectors walk away with something beautiful, a piece of art they love!
DAY TWO:
SUNDAY, JANUARY 15 FROM 12-4PM
$85.00 each. DAY TWO SPECIAL: Buy 2, get 1 FREE
FINAL DAY of Postcards from the Edge. If you prefer to look at artwork without crowds or are always looking for a deal, this is the day for you. With over 1500 artworks, there are plenty of wonderful works and happy surprises still available on Sunday. On SUNDAY ONLY - buy 2 and get 1 FREE as our "Thank You!"
SILENT AUCTION
SILENT AUCTION continues through Sunday, January 15, 4pm. Artwork byWill Barnet, Sherry Camhy, Guerrila Girls, Harmony Hammond, Jacob Hashimoto, Geoffrey Hendricks, Scott Hunt, Jayson Keeling, Cary Leibowitz, Glenn Ligon, Lucas Michael, Amy Routman, Mark Saltz, Michael St. John, Christopher Tanner, Steed Taylor, Julie Tolentino, Anthony Viti, and Chuck Webster. Bid online at Paddle8.
