Guadalupe River Art Walk
2020: Year Four
Guadalupe River Park Conservancy and POW! WOW! San Jose will collaborate to bring the “Guadalupe River Art Walk” for a series of Artist-in-Residencies to bring art that fosters community resiliency, attracts park users, and sparks inspiration and social healing.
Current discussions around ecological and public health, San Jose’s history and future, impacts of homelessness, and lack of civic pride often do not have a forum that can be discussed civically and compassionately. We see the joint benefits of public art and open space as that forum.
The long term goal is to create San Jose’s first longest public art corridor that will encourage long-term trail and park usage which will provide activities that promote health and wellness, both physically and mentally, are of increased need in urban areas, and especially in our current global situation.
The Guadalupe River Trail serves its purpose well as a commuter trail for cyclists, and lends itself to individuals seeking to run and walk its segments for exercise, but it can be enhanced by art installations that can draw in even the most casual of users to move a bit more.
For more info on GRPC, visit here.
Artist In Residency (AIR) #1 - Roan Victor
Through the Artist-in-Residency (AIR) Program, Artists will help enhance public space and advocate for the preservation of our natural habitats through visual public art installations. The project will bring art that fosters community resiliency, attracts park users, support environmental awareness and sparks inspiration and social healing.
In light of COVID-19, our project’s scope adapts to the current public health and social distancing concerns, and encourages park use and exploration over an extended amount of time as our AIR program will take place from Fall 2020 - Fall 2021.
Lush foliage, textiles, patterns and figures in passive poses are common subject matters in Roan Victor’s paintings. Her recent works, in gouache and watercolors exude calmness and contemplation as figures are enveloped in comforting settings. This also reflects in her murals, the same elements painted larger than life.
Roan Victor owns The Arsenal with her husband Sean Boyles, an art store and art studio located in Japantown San Jose. Having The Arsenal gives Roan and Sean a place to share their knowledge in art to both youth and adults and lets them provide the same opportunities to fellow artists in our community.
For more info about Roan, please visit her website here.
We teamed up with Jennifer Gonzalez Media and her team, to produce this short film which follows Roan Victor in creating a mural along the Guadalupe River Trail as POW! WOW! San Jose's first Artist In Residence."
Roan Victor is a local artist, business owner and educator. Her mural “The Flow of Life,” is 160’ feet long, another addition to thousands of square feet of wall painted since 2017, in San Jose’s urban landscape.
Calendar of Events through the month of October
Virtual Community Chat hosted by GRPC and Raul Peralez - August 27
Zoom Community Engagement hosted by the Children’s Discovery Museum - September 24 from 6-7pm
Native Plant Watercolor virtual drawing session with Roan Victor - October 21 from 5:30-6:15pm
Roan Victor painting site #1 - October 24 through October 31
