Metamorphosis, New Works by Abba Yahudah November 20, 2009

Reception & artist's talk, Fri, Nov 20, 7-9pm; exhibit runs November 6-December 18

CIIS prioritizes art as a crucial element in an integrative education through a formal exhibition program, Spirit in the Arts, which celebrates creativity and affirms the power of art as an agent of change.

The exhibition will run from November 6-December 18, 2009.

Reception and artist's talk will take place Friday, November 20, 2009.

Born in St. Catherine, Jamaica to a family of artists and builders, Abba Yahudah vowed early in life to devote himself to art. By age ten, he had developed remarkable skill for drawing. He soon explored many creative outlets, including pottery, carving, and writing. A serious commitment to painting--some watercolor, but mostly oils--followed at age thirteen. In 1981, at age fifteen, Abba Yahudah migrated to the United States. Here he took up sign painting and won first place in several poster contests. While living in New York in 1985, he attended Parson's School of Visual Arts, majoring in design and illustration. He went on to work as an art director/graphic designer for one of the larger New York design firms. IN 1996, he opened the first Rastafarian gallery in Park Slope, Brooklyn, named Lalibela, after the monolithic churches of Ethiopia's New Jerusalem. His art has traveled internationally to Ethiopia, exhibiting at the Habesha and Lela Art Galleries; to the University of the West Indies in Jamaica; to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History in Washington DC as well as to many galleries in the San Francisco Bay Area.

He says, "I know the impact that color can have on the human psyche. Therefore, I use them in such a way that each piece becomes color therapy."

Official Website: http://www.ciis.edu