Freedom to Love, bronze sculpture by Cassandra
Social, Personal Themes in SOULJA Exhibit Mark Buffalo Debut for NYC Artist Cassandra
New York City artist Cassandra opened her first Buffalo, NY exhibit, SOULJA, at the ¡Buen Vivir! Gallery for Contemporary Art, 148 Elmwood Avenue in Allentown on June 3 from 6-9 p.m. A second special reception took place at the gallery during the Pride Parade on Sunday, June 5. The exhibit runs through July 29th.
Regular gallery hours: Tuesday-Friday 1 to 4 p.m.; Friday evening 6-8 p.m.; Sat 1-3 p.m.
SOULJA features large prints, bronze sculptures and murals with themes exploring feminism, homosexuality, Latin culture and more.
“With SOULJA, I hope to show Buffalo all the love in my heart and contribute to joy, the secret of resistance,” said Cassandra. She refers to the work in this show as “a tribute to sisterhood as well as an erotic, magical Sapphic dream of flight and liberation for the freedom to love.”
“We’re very excited about bringing Cassandra’s work to Buffalo,” remarked ¡Buen Vivir! Gallery Director, Orin Langelle. He continued, “Cassandra’s multidimensional work emerges as empowering metaphors – striking bronze and plaster sculptures, as well as large painted ‘floating murals’ that explore the full gamut of liberation and invite the beholder to see, feel and act.”
From an artistic perspective, Cassandra considers herself “Made in Mexico.” She studied at the National School of Painting, Sculpture and Printmaking in Mexico City and painted with the Mexican muralism workshop Ojos de Lucha.
Cassandra has work in the permanent collection of the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art in New York City. The Leslie-Lohman Museum is the world’s first dedicated LGBTQ art museum. She also has exhibited at the East/West Gallery in London, and the Chopo Museum in Mexico City.
On June 3, the ¡Buen Vivir! Gallery for Contemporary Art will host an opening reception with the artist at the gallery, 148 Elmwood Avenue in Buffalo. The opening will include complimentary wine, hors d’oeuvres and music by Greg Amato. SOULJA will remain on display until July 29. There will also be special gallery hours during the Buffalo Pride Parade, beginning on Sunday June 5 at noon.
Regular Gallery Hours beginning June 4: Tuesday through Friday 1-4 p.m., Friday evening 6-8 p.m. and Saturday 1-3 p.m.
For more information and photos from the exhibit, visit the gallery’s temporary website at BuenVivirGallery.org. The improved website is scheduled for relaunch on June 1, also located at BuenVivirGallery.org,
