RIVERSIDE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--One of the nation’s first permanent spaces dedicated to showcasing Chicano art and culture is celebrating the first year of operation. The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture of the Riverside Art Museum in downtown Riverside has surpassed its attendance goals and helped redefine the role that a regional museum can have on an art form, a city, and a community.
Developed as a public-private partnership between the City of Riverside, Riverside Art Museum, and collector/entertainer Cheech Marin, The Cheech became home to Marin’s gift of more than 500 notable Chicano artworks. Since its grand opening on June 18, 2022, The Cheech surpassed its projected annual goal of 100,000 visitors by nearly 30% and has welcomed guests from around the world.
“The overwhelmingly positive response has exceeded our expectations,” said Drew Oberjuerge, Executive Director, RAM. “It is inspiring how transformation can occur when a group of people come together with the goal to uplift and celebrate the human experience through art.”
Among recent accolades, the Institute of Museum and Library Services announced the Riverside Art Museum as one of eight recipients of the 2023 National Medal for Museum and Library Service, the nation’s highest honor given to museums and libraries that make significant and exceptional contributions to their communities. Congressman Mark Takano, Representative for California’s 39th Congressional District, nominated RAM to receive this award, which is a testament to the groundbreaking work by RAM and the City of Riverside in establishing The Cheech and showcasing Chicano art and culture to bridge gaps in representation and foster inclusivity within the community.
“Riverside Art Museum’s work in the community, its educational mission, and its broad support of Chicano art is why I decided to gift my collection and work with them to create a national center,” shared Marin. “Everywhere I go, everyone tells me how the museum is impacting them — they’re taking their mother, their grandmother, their entire family — and how they want to come back two or three more times.”
The anniversary is an opportunity for The Cheech, RAM, and the City of Riverside to not only celebrate the milestone but demonstrate how it will be continuing its mission to “bridge the gap for exhibitions and education around Chicanx art,” said María Esther Fernández, Artistic Director of The Cheech.
Fernández noted that for many visitors, seeing The Cheech has been an emotional experience. “I’ve seen people moved to tears,” she said. “Some have shared comments with me that they never expected to walk into a museum and see their culture or the contributions of their community represented so vividly.”
The latest iteration of the “Cheech Collects” exhibition reveals a phenomenon that Marin refers to as “news from the front.” It features bold and vibrant works, reflecting a wide range of Chicana/o/x experiences depicting physical neighborhoods, social gatherings, and critical events.
While the City of Riverside is in the process of preparing an economic impact study to show how The Cheech has positively affected the entire city, Fernández and Oberjuerge anecdotally point out that The Cheech has been a huge boon not just economically, but it has enriched the lives of people from all walks of life and ages.
With the opening of The Cheech, RAM has expanded its education efforts and has doubled the number of weeklong courses available through its youth summer programs and nearly tripled the number of guided tours for school and community groups.
“Riversiders and visitors with a long love for RAM have enthusiastically embraced The Cheech as the next great evolution in our cultural fabric,” stated Riverside Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson. “The success of this past year is a proud moment for everyone in our city and reinforces the power of art in bringing together people from near and far with diverse backgrounds to celebrate a unique, cultural experience.”
EXHIBITIONS & EVENTS CELEBRATING THE ANNIVERSARY
Xican-a.o.x. Body explores how Chicanx artists have placed the brown body at the center of its work — not only as a symbol of resistance, but also as a way of asserting presence. Organized by The American Federation of Arts, more than 125 artworks by almost 70 artists and collectives will be shown at The Cheech. Weaving a rich tapestry of diverse media from the late 1960s to present – film painting, photography, pottery, sculpture and lowriders – the exhibition is on view upstairs at The Cheech through January 7, 2024.
Cheech Collects features nearly 90 works by about 40 Chicana/o/x artists – curated by María Esther Fernández and almost all collected by Cheech. This anniversary edition of this continuing exhibition features pioneers and trailblazers like Carlos Almaraz, Margaret García, Yolanda González, Wayne Alaniz Healy, Frank Romero, and Patssi Valdez and adds new works by Sonia Romero, Marta Sánchez, Shizu Saldamando, Francisco Palomares, and Paul Valadez. The exhibition is on view downstairs at The Cheech through May 12, 2024.
Origenes/Origins features the work of Chicana/o and Mexican American artists who leverage their personal histories as inspiration in their artistic creation. Their work reflects the culture and memory that has endured and shaped this complex region. Curated by Cosmé Cordova, artists are Man One, Andrew J. Castillo, Carlos Beltran Arechiga, Richie Velazquez, Martin Sanchez, Denise Silva, and Jacqueline Valenzuela. The exhibition is on view at The Cheech in the Altura Credit Union Community Gallery through October 1, 2023.
ABOUT THE CHEECH & RIVERSIDE ART MUSEUM (RAM): RAM is one museum with two locations in Riverside, California proclaimed as the “City of Arts & Innovation.” Since 1967, the Riverside Art Museum (3425 Mission Inn Avenue) has been housed in a 1929 building designed by Hearst Castle and AIA Gold Medal-winning architect Julia Morgan, registered on the National Register of Historic Places ,and designated a Historic Landmark by the City of Riverside. Open since June 18, 2022, The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture aka “The Cheech” (3581 Mission Inn Avenue) resides in a renovated mid-century building that originally opened as the City of Riverside, California’s public library in 1964. At both, RAM integrates art into the lives of people in a way that engages, inspires, and builds community by providing high-quality exhibits and art education programs that instill a lifelong love of the arts. Details at www.riversideartmuseum.org. Follow RAM on Facebook and Instagram (@RiversideArtMuseum) plus Twitter (@RAMriverside). Follow The Cheech on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter (@TheCheechCenter).
