Art of the African Diaspora
Selected works by Tiffany Conway-Cornelius, Hilda Robinson, Kelvin Curry & Irene Bee Kain
January 16 – March 18, 2023
We are honored to be part of the 2023 Art of the African Diaspora exhibit. In partnership with the Richmond Art Center, the long-running Bay Area program supports artists of African descent through representation, professional development, and the building of a creative community. Since the inaugural exhibition in 1996, the Art of the African Diaspora has presented the work of emerging and established African American artists and, in the process, built a creative community of artists and art lovers.
For this satellite show, we welcome four talented local artists working in a variety of styles, mediums, and themes. Hilda Robinson’s work embraces community and captures the everyday moments of African Americans at play and leisure, at home, at school, and at church. Kelvin Curry employs bold gestural lines, bringing together physical, spiritual, and emotional energies to create a sense of rhythm and grace in abstract forms. Irene Bee Kain paints abstract forms that feel warm and familiar, bringing the Bay Area to life in her exciting work. Tiffany Conway-Cornelius paints the beauty of others, and what lies behind that initial layer are parts of her personal story of evolution as an artist.
Join us in welcoming these talented artists to our office gallery at 1820 Solano Avenue in Berkeley. We are open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. to gallery visitors. Please call 510.528.5820 to reserve a time to stop by and enjoy their work.
Opening Reception
Thursday, February 9, 2023
5:30 – 8 p.m.
1820 Solano Avenue
Join us to celebrate the work of Tiffany Conway-Cornelius, Hilda Robinson, Kelvin Curry, and Irene Bee Kain with wine, food, good conversations, and a brief talk with the artists.
Bring friends. Share the word.
Many thanks to our event partners at Solano Cellars and Ann’s Catering.
Exhibit Gallery
Fairly Yerba
Irene Bee Kain
16″ x 20″ | Acrylic on Canvas
$300
United at Peace
Irene Bee Kain
40” X 30” | Acrylic on Canvas
$1,000
Peace & Hope 4 The Other Side
Irene Bee Kain
24″ x 36″ | Acrylic on Canvas
$650
Cozy
Tiffany Conway-Cornelius
30″ x 24″ | Oil on Canvas
$2,500
Vermilion
Tiffany Conway-Cornelius
40” X 30” | Oil on Canvas
$4,600
Sow Series 4
Tiffany Conway-Cornelius
24″ x 24″ | Oil on Canvas
$2,000
Axion
Kelvin Curry
27″ x 31″ | Mixed Media
$875
Accidental Meeting
Kelvin Curry
30” X 43” | Soft pastel and charcoal on paper
$1,500
Untitled 8
Kelvin Curry
27″ x 31″ | Mixed Media
$875
The Stoop
Hilda Robinson
26″ x 32″ | oil pastel on paper
$1,900
Single Parent
Hilda Robinson
26” X 32” | oil pastel on paper
$1,900
Double Dutch
Hilda Robinson
26″ x 32″ | oil pastel on paper
$1,900
Hilda Robinson
Her artistic talents were first nurtured at the young age of three when her father presented Hilda with her first box of paints. As a young adult, she studied painting at the Tyler School of Fine Arts at Temple University and completed her BA and MA studies in art at UC Berkeley.
Robinson has received the prestigious Jan Hart-Schuyers Merit Award through the “Art of Living Black” exhibitions at Richmond Art Center, as well as the Atlanta Life Insurance Purchase Award. Her work has been purchased by the Alameda Art Commission, the Contra Costa Art Commission, and the Oakland
East Bay Foundation.
More Information at Hilda’s Website
For purchasing, please email umoga@aol.com
Kelvin Curry
Born in Oakland, California, Kelvin’s creative journey was clear early in life because his Grandmother and Mother believed that all children are born with a unique gift. He was blessed to unwrap his gift at 6 1/2 years old. Initially utilizing graphite pencil, pen and ink, printmaking, and soft pastel, later his work evolved into mixed media to bring about multi-dimension; as well as a sense of rhythm and grace in abstract forms.
To view Kelvin’s work is to experience the association between beauty and love. To bring three energies together in the moment – physical, spiritual and emotional – is fundamental to his artistic expression.
Kelvin Curry has exhibited in hundreds of juried festivals, exhibits, and galleries throughout the country. Visitors from countries such as South Africa, Japan, Australia, France, the United Kingdom, and China have chosen his work to adorn their homes in their native lands.
For more information, visit kcstudios.online
For purchasing, please email kelvin.curry63@gmail.com
Instagram: @kelvincurry63
Tiffany Conway-Cornelius
Tiffany’s visual paintings are a colorful unearthing of life’s most delicate truths and the door to beautiful beginnings. Raised in the Bay Area, California, by her father and stepmother, Tiffany grew her creativity from the contemplation of life experiences.
Her college career studying at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco and the Peralta Colleges of Alameda County came to a halt due to life happenings outside of her control. A setback birthed a purpose that changed the trajectory of Tiffany’s life for the better. Seeing the beauty of the human experience was the driving force behind a new declaration, she was determined to transmute some of life’s unfavorable lessons into art.
Using her life’s adversity as a creative mechanism, Tiffany cultivated Project Get Free the Coloring Book for Navigating the Diaspora in 2016. This coloring book was a response to song lyrics transformed into a “visual journal.” This was the beginning of a journey of restoration, finding her voice and purpose. These visual “conversations with self” birthed a motivation to showcase her art in several exhibitions, including her solo shows, “Ethereal Hue” at Shoh Gallery in Berkeley, 2021, and “Black Love in Daylight” at Joyce Gordon Gallery in Oakland, 2022.
While using color as her primary vehicle in terms of language, her work displays the beauty of others, but what lies behind that initial layer are parts of her personal story of evolution. Her mission is to heal women through her paintings by displaying them as seen, soft, and resilient.
More Information at projectgetfree.com
For purchasing, please email tiffany@projectgetfree.com
Instagram: @projectgetfree
Irene Bee Kain
Growing up in San Franciso, Irene Bee Kain felt fortunate to have worked with several artists in different fields, including dance, creative arts, and fashion. As the years passed, she found that she not only loved being around artists but also really enjoyed creating art. She began creating jewelry, painting, photography clothes, and furniture. In her spare time as she raised a family, anything she could see a vision for become something new. Throughout her busy schedule, she never stopped painting and creating.
Irene’s craft has evolved and she finds herself hiding encouraging words under paint, using credit cards & paper instead of paintbrushes, and still having fun bringing the beautiful Bay Area to life.
For more information, visit irenebeekain.com
For purchasing, please email irenebeekain@gmail.com
Instagram: @daisseebee