Riverside Art Museum & The Cheech

Cyanotype Photography Workshop with Artist Keliy Anderson-Staley
2024-10-06 13:00 - 17:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Riverside Art Museum, 3425 Mission Inn Avenue, Riverside, CA, 92501, United States
Artist Keliy Anderson-Staley will lead this photography workshop. Participants will learn about 19th-century photographic techniques and create their own cyanotypes. Participants should bring objects or documents of personal or familial importance that they can use to make cyanotypes. No experience is necessary, but photographers who already know the process can also bring digital negatives on clear plastic or thin paper for contact printing.

This event is part of First Sundays, where Riverside Art Museum and The Cheech are free and open to the public from 12 to 5 p.m.

Keliy Anderson-Staley, Ghost Archive, 2024. Mixed media installation: cyanotype, pencil, pen and ink on found paper, acetate, vellum, carbon paper, mat board, lithographs and prints by my father, chair made by my father.

Call for Artists!
2024-10-09 08:00 - 2024-12-01 17:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | California
Are you an artist that wants to engage, inspire and help grow creativity?

We are looking for artists to do live demonstrations, performances or art activities with our visitors on our First Sundays and/or Artswalk. These are free admission days and a great opportunity for meeting and interacting with the community and inspiring others in your passions. The activities will be free to visitors to either participate in or observe. There will be a stipend of $150-$300 depending on what supplies you will be providing. This will be a collaboration between you (the artist) and RAM.

Examples on what we are looking for includes: plein air painters, face painters, balloons artists, comic book artists that can teach a short activity, ceramics wheel throwing demonstration, jewelry making demo, marionette performance, Dj’s, improv, saxophone performance etc.

We are currently looking for artists for the following events:

January 2025-May 2025 at The Riverside Art Museum Stay tuned for later opportunities at The Cheech!

For more information please visit: https://riversideartmuseum.org/arts-education/community-engagement/artist-submissions/

Off the Wall Last Call - 2024
2024-10-11 18:00 - 21:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | California
Off the Wall: Last Call

Mark your calendar for October 11-13 to celebrate the 10th anniversary and finale of our bi-annual Off the Wall art show and sale. This is a unique opportunity to start or add to your collection with the purchase of original art for as little as $100. Off the Wall: Last Call, hosted by The Art Alliance of the Riverside Art Museum, kicks off on Friday night with a gala opening fundraiser. Wander the gallery while enjoying your mocktail, wine or hors d’oeuvres as you shop for your favorite pieces before the show opens to the public. Hundreds of works will be available, with an anticipated 100 artists submitting up to four pieces each. All art priced between $100 and $500.

Where: Art Alliance Gallery, Riverside Art Museum, 3425 Mission Inn Ave., Riverside, CA 92501

Gala: Friday, October 11, 6pm – 9pmTickets: $65

Show and Sale: October 12-13 / Free with membership or admission to the Riverside Art Museum during business hours (Saturday 10am – 5pm and Sunday 12pm – 5pm)

Purchase Tickets

Become a Sponsor!

Sponsorships include tiered early entry into the gallery to choose your must-buy pieces ahead of the crowd! Other sponsorship benefits include listing of your name and/or logo on our event webpage, and mention in marketing materials and social media.

Sponsor Information

Call for Artists!

After over two decades, OTW is presenting its last show and sale at the Riverside Art Museum. We hope that you will again participate. We look forward to providing you with a great opportunity to exhibit and sell your work, as well as support the museum. Click the link below for more information.

Artist Submission Form

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS

Oil on Canvas Presenting Sponsor

Sam and Alfreda Maloof Foundation for Arts & Crafts

WATERCOLOR SPONSORMark and Pam BalysKathleen and David Bocian

PASTEL SPONSOR

Myra AppelKathy and Gary ChristmasSuzy and Gary ClemDayton and Cheryl GillelandIn Memory of Sue SimoninEric and Francie Johnson and Murray RanchPamela KaptainGary RainsbargerSandra Webb

PHOTOGRAPHY SPONSOR

Lucile ArntzenMichael BatesSandi and John FayPatti and David FunderMarilyn Grell-Brisk and Philip BriskAdam GuzkowskiHUB International Insurance Services, Inc.Barbara MooreBetty ParksRaymond and Tamera PhippsEmmanuelle and Morey ReynoldsPat ReynoldsRiverside East Rotary ClubRobyn Rogers in Honor of Ronald McCaskillKathy Wright and Dwight Tate

LITHOGRAPHY SPONSOR

Nick Lopez

Chelsea and Andrew Woodard

Keith Alex and Janet Honn-AlexLorraine and Richard AndersonLinda and Ted BoeckerPhilip and Selina BremenstuhlTeresa Chamiec and Robert GianniniJoseph and Anne DeemKen and Mary GutierrezDebra JohnsonMaureen KaneGeorgia and Chris KutchPeggy LittleworthTami and Steve MaioMichelle OuelletteRuth Ann Ryan and Stephen ParkerMarianne RonayBarbara ShackeltonCookie Smith

Additional donations received fromStephen Hatch · Sari and Owen Kustner · Louise Moore ·Christy Rousey

Plática and tour with Rio Yañez and Angelica Rodriguez
2024-10-19 14:00 - 15:30 (America/Los_Angeles) | Cheech Marin Center, 3581 Mission Inn Ave, Riverside, California, 92507, United States
Join us for a tour and plática with Rio Yañez and Angelica Rodriguez co-curators of Yolanda M. Lopez: Women’s Work is Never Done as they discuss the intimate process of caretaking Yolanda Lopez’s archive and preserving her stories for future generations.

They will also share new perspectives that the archive brings to her lifetime of work.

Free with Admission

RSVP

RAC Workshop at The Cheech: "Artist Logo/ Branding"
2024-10-23 18:00 - 20:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Cheech Marin Center, 3581 Mission Inn Ave, Riverside, California, 92507, United States
Join RAC for another Professional Development Workshop for Artists! Each workshop, led by a professional in the field, will teach valuable skills to enhance your career as a working artist.

Looking to refine your brand and logo? Join RAC for a FREE artist development workshop on October 23rd from 6-8PM at The Cheech led by Richie Velazquez (Instagram). Learn how to create a standout visual identity for your art.

Kids Draw Architecture
2024-11-03 12:00 - 15:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Riverside Art Museum, 3425 Mission Inn Avenue, Riverside, CA, 92501, United States

Free Admission - First Sunday of every month
2024-11-03 12:00 - 17:00, 2024-12-01 12:00 - 17:00, 2025-01-05 12:00 - 17:00, 2025-02-02 12:00 - 17:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Riverside Art Museum + The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture, 3425 Mission Inn Avenue, Riverside, California
First Sundays is a community day in the arts & culture district of downtown Riverside.

Featuring activities for all-ages, the event takes place every first Sunday of the month from 1 to 4 p.m.

As part of First Sundays, Riverside Art Museum (Julia Morgan Building) and The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture are both free and open to the public from 12 to 5 p.m.

No tickets are necessary.

Dia de los Muertos at The Cheech
2024-11-03 13:00 - 16:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | California
Join us in celebrating Dia de los Muertos at The Cheech!

LIVE ART- In collaboration with Barrio Fuerza (@barriofuerza), artists Alma Rosa Azul @almarosaazul and Richwestkoast @richwestkoastl will create Dia de los Muertos tapetes de arena (“rugs of sand”)

BECOME THE ARTIST- Paint your own sugar skull, led by one of our very own Art-to-Go Instructors, Ariel.

Art activity with UCR GLUCK Fellows, Alba Rodriguez and Jovana Iseski @gluckucr

Pictured: Tapete from 2023

Empty Bowls Fundraiser at RAM
2024-11-03 13:00 - 16:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Riverside Art Museum, 3425 Mission Inn Avenue, Riverside, CA, 92501, United States
Help fight hunger by joining us in Riverside’s Empty Bowls fundraising event. Empty Bowls is a nationally-recognized event put on by food banks across the country. Donors, agricultural partners, local corporations, and community members gather together to help end hunger. Each attendee who donates $15 will enjoy a hot meal and walk away with a hand-crafted ceramic bowl by a local artist to remember those who do not have enough to eat in our community. Proceeds will benefit the Feeding America Food bank of Riverside and San Bernardino counties.

Create your own Character! - UCR Gluck Fellows
2024-11-03 13:00 - 16:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | California
In this workshop, participants will be invited to create their own character masks. We will make a post on @Rio.junto of the photographs with the masked people of those who take on the spooky challenge!

Free Admission – First Thursday of every month during Riverside ArtsWalk
2024-11-07 18:00 - 21:00, 2024-12-05 18:00 - 21:00 (America/Denver) | Riverside Art Museum, 3425 Mission Inn Avenue, Riverside, CA, 92501, United States
Join us on the first Thursday of every month from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. for the Riverside ArtsWalk, a vibrant community event that celebrates the diversity of arts and culture in Riverside and the Inland Empire.
We offer free admission at both Riverside Art Museum (Julia Morgan Building) and The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture as part of the ArtsWalk, which includes many downtown arts destinations.

Riverside Artswalk is hosted by the Riverside Arts Council and sponsored by the City of Riverside and Riverside Downtown Partnership. More information and Artswalk map available here.

Riverside ArtsWalk is supported in part by:

Photo credit: Puma Photography

ArtsWalk at The Cheech
2024-11-07 18:00 - 21:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | California
Join Jean Decay @jeandecay in making stars, planets, rockets, and other fun space objects for our Community Constellation– a tangible way to remember we all shine brighter together! Write down a positive message in the stars and meet us in our Education Classroom on the 2nd Floor.

Jean Decay – Artist Bio

Jean Decay is a Southern California based drag queen going on almost ten years of drag. She is a live performer, preserver of drag history, and writer. Currently she focuses more of her time on her own writing projects and doing drag history presentations in SoCal to educate people on lesser known events that shaped the art form.

Artswalk at RAM
2024-11-07 18:00 - 21:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Riverside Art Museum, 3425 Mission Inn Avenue, Riverside, CA, 92501, United States
Visitors will participate in an art project based on the newest RAM exhibition (In)visible Threads from Artist Kandy G Lopez. Using wood letters, participants will wrap yarn around their choice of letters, taking inspiration from the entry show title in the gallery.

Platica (Artist Talk and Q&A) with Yreina D. Cervántez
2024-11-16 13:00 - 14:30 (America/Los_Angeles) | Cheech Marin Center, 3581 Mission Inn Ave, Riverside, California, 92507, United States
Join us for our next plática with artist Yreina D. Cervántez as she discusses over 50 years of her cultural and artistic production. This is presented in connection with the latest edition of Shifting Perspectives: Cheech Collects, an exhibition featuring new acquisitions to The Cheech Center Collection including Cervántez’s Camino Largo.

About the Pláticas series

Pláticas at The Cheech engage dialogue as a creative practice. They are a space for conversations across communities and generations where we explore the complexities and nuances of Chicanx art & culture. Join the conversation.

Pláticas take place in the Cheech auditorium or the Sala José Jaime Medina. Usually scheduled during the museum’s open hours, they are free for members and free with admission for non-members.

Festival of Lights lighting ceremony
2024-11-23 17:00 - 19:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture Podium (Outside front doors), 3581 Mission Inn Ave, Riverside, California, 92501
Join us in celebrating the 2024 Mission Inn Hotel & Spa Festival of Lights Switch-on Ceremony.

We will have all-ages arts activities including crown decorating, coloring sheets and postcard writing.

Everyone is invited to interact with our interpretation of Eloy Torrez’s, It’s a Brown World After All from Cheech’s permanent collection. Taking photos is recommended!

The Festival of Lights Switch-on Ceremony begins promptly at 5:00 pm at Orange St. and Mission Inn Ave. with the fireworks show to follow.

Winter Decoration Making - UCR GLUCK Fellows
2024-12-01 01:00 - 16:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Cheech Marin Center, 3581 Mission Inn Ave, Riverside, California, 92507, United States
Join our UCR Gluck Fellows, Jovana Isevski and Alba Rodriguez, in creating wonderful winter decorations.

“The mission of the Gluck Fellows Program of the Arts at the University of California, Riverside is to create the opportunity for the broader community to benefit from the creative, performative, and expository talents of the graduate and undergraduate students of the Departments of Art, Creative Writing for the Performing Arts, Dance, History of Art, Music, Theatre, Film and Digital Production, and UCR Arts”

About First Sundays

In collaboration with the Riverside Arts Council, First Sundays is a series of free programs at various downtown Riverside locations. Featuring activities for all-ages, the event takes place every first Sunday of the month from 1 to 4 p.m.

As part of Free Sundays, Riverside Art Museum (Julia Morgan Building) and The Cheech are free and open to the public from 12 to 5 p.m. No tickets are necessary.

Las Posadas
2024-12-01 12:00 - 17:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Riverside Art Museum, 3425 Mission Inn Avenue, Riverside, CA, 92501, United States
Join us for Las Posadas at the Riverside Art Museum. Las Posadas (Spanish for inn or lodging), is a festival celebrated in Mexico and parts of the United States that commemorates the journey Joseph and Mary made from Nazareth to Bethlehem. Bring your family and loved ones to enjoy tamales, pan dulce, and chocolate Mexicano as we celebrate our version of the traditional festival. Enjoy music and entertainment, discover more about Las Posadas, and find a place at the table to make your own star piñata.

12:15 – 12:30: Procession participants are invited to gather with Musica Axolotl in front of the lenticular at The Cheech.

12:45: Procession will begin from The Cheech down Mission Avenue to Riverside Art Museum (Julia Morgan Building) to continue the celebration.

Presented in partnership with Cultura Con Llantas. We’ll see you there!

Giving Tuesday - Donate today!
2024-12-03 08:00 - 23:30 (America/Los_Angeles) | Riverside Art Museum + The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture, 3425 Mission Inn Avenue, Riverside, California
Give today! Donate to the Riverside Art Museum and The Cheech to uplift diverse artistic and cultural voices!

Donations will be matched up to $5,000 through 11:59pm December 3rd – Giving Tuesday! Your support today will make possible exhibitions, programs, and events for all ages that uphold artistic expression and increase empathy and understanding.

This past year so far, we have welcomed 92,300 people from across the region, state and nation, to The Cheech and the Riverside Art Museum at the historic Julia Morgan building (we are on track to reach 100,000 by year’s end!). These participants viewed exhibitions, took guided tours, learned through art classes, or participated in one of our free Arts Walk or Summer Sundays events. In addition, our arts education team brought our Art-to-Go program to 30,000 K-8 students throughout the Inland Empire.

And the Art Alliance’s Riverside Art Market welcomed 3,000 visitors and 100 artisan vendors. Between both sites, twenty-one exhibitions have featured 871 objects by 232 artists with the goal of amplifying local, Chicana/o/x, and marginalized voices and upholding artistic expression that increases empathy and understanding.

The first $5,000 in donations received now through December 3rd will be matched dollar for dollar by a donation from Deena Imamura and Adam Guzkowski, RAM Trustee, essentially doubling your impact!

From our Executive Director, Drew Oberjuerge

In 2024, RAM worked to fulfill our mission to “uplift diverse artistic and cultural voices, cultivate inclusive exhibitions, collections, and educational programming, engage in transformative conversations, and foster strong community connections.” So far in 2024 we have welcomed 92,300 people from across the region, state and nation to The Cheech and the Riverside Art Museum at the historic Julia Morgan building—putting us on track to reach 100,000 by year’s end. These participants viewed exhibitions, took guided tours, learned through art classes, or participated in one of our free Artswalk or Summer Sundays events. In addition, our arts education team brought our Art-to-Go program to 30,000 K-8 students throughout the Inland Empire, and the Art Alliance’s Riverside Art Market welcomed 3,000 visitors and 100 artisan vendors.

Between both sites, twenty-one exhibitions have featured 871 objects by 232 artists. With these exhibitions our goal is to amplify local, Chicana/o/x, and marginalized voices and uphold artistic expression that increases empathy and understanding. The critically-acclaimed exhibition Judithe Hernandez: Beyond Myself, Somewhere, I wait for My Arrival, curated by The Cheech Artistic Director Maria Esther Fernandez, features an accompanying catalogue which—we are excited to announce—will be in La Tiendita in early December. (Pre-orders are available). Publishing these exhibition catalogues including Collidoscope: de la Torre Brothers RetroPerspective is key to continuing to establish Chicano Art in the American Art canon, ensuring that scholars and students across the nation have access to scholarly articles that uplift the contributions of these artists.

Exhibitions originating at The Cheech continue to tour nation-wide. Collidoscope in partnership with the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Latino closes at the Corning Museum of Glass this early January and will open at the Crocker Art Museum this February, then at the Mint Museum in June. Stay tuned for the announcement of two more venues. Additionally, Judithe Hernandez: Beyond Myself, Somewhere, I wait for My Arrival will open at the El Paso Museum of Art this winter.

Earlier in the year we were proud to exhibit the work of Riverside-raised, New York-based Rico Gatson curated by Lisa Henry. Another exhibition, Sacred Spaces: The Work and Collection of Charles Bibbs, presented the work of prolific Riverside-based artist Charles Bibbs, whose work is collected across the nation. We are proud to be part of LACMA’s Art Bridges program, debuting their Before You Now exhibition in April. And this year we focused on our historic Julia Morgan building with an exhibition about the history of the building—which featured newly commissioned photography by Sofia Valiente as well as preservation plans.

Accessibility to our sites is critically important to us, and we are grateful to the Art Bridges Foundation for being a part of their Access for All initiatives. This allowed us to provide free

access to visitors on Sundays from June 2, 2024 to September 1, 2024. Almost 10,000 people participated in this free admission program! We are fortunate to be part of this program for two more years, so stay tuned for more info.

A new sculpture, Meet Me at The Cheech by artist Ignacio Gomez, ensures Cheech Marin will meet the public at The Cheech for years to come. With open arms, the sculpture of Cheech warmly welcomes visitors to see Chicano art, Cheech having championed its inclusion in museums for decades. Cheech says, “This statue is not just a reflection of my work, but of the incredible power of Chicano art to tell stories, challenge narratives, and bring us together.”

We continue to receive media attention with nearly 200 media stories. Notably, PBS Artbound’s documentary The Cheech gives insight into Cheech’s journey to “bring Chicano art to the mainstream art world.” A forthcoming Craft in America documentary on collectors, again through PBS, screens this December. Catch a preview here!

Your support will help make possible the following exhibitions plus many more:

· Joel Sternfeld: On This Site at Riverside Art Museum, January 25, 2025–July 6, 2025.On This Site presents a timely and critical examination of landscape photography as a medium for exploring complex societal issues moving beyond aesthetic representation to engage with place as repositories of memory, sites of traumatic history, and witnesses to American violence. The exhibition is curated by Lisa Henry.

· Amalia Mesa-Bains: Archaeology of Memory at The Cheech, March 1, 2025–August 3, 2025. This exhibition is the first major retrospective to explore the historically significant work and career of Amalia Mesa-Bains, a pioneering Chicana artist, curator, and theorist. The exhibition is co-curated by María Esther Fernández, Artistic Director, The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture of the Riverside Art Museum, and Laura E. Pérez, PhD, Professor of Chicanx, Latinx and Ethnic Studies and Chair of the Latinx Research Center, UC Berkeley.

· 2025 Members Show at the Riverside Art Museum, April 12, 2025–October 5, 2025. The exhibition will showcase outstanding examples of contemporary drawing, printmaking, collage and 2D works on paper created between 2020 and 2024. We are particularly interested in artworks that explore themes, imagery or perspectives connected to the Inland Empire—its cities, landscapes, communities and, if applicable, the experiences of those living and working here. The exhibition is co-curated by Lisa Henry and Denise Kraemer.

Thank you for supporting us in our journey. Individual giving remains the critical backbone of philanthropy. By choosing us, you choose a world where free expression is valued, and artists critically engage in pressing issues impacting us.

Donate Now

End of the year giving - Donate today!
2024-12-03 08:00 - 2024-12-31 23:45 (America/Los_Angeles) | Riverside Art Museum + The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture, 3425 Mission Inn Avenue, Riverside, California
Give today! Donate to the Riverside Art Museum and The Cheech to uplift diverse artistic and cultural voices!

From our Executive Director, Drew Oberjuerge

In 2024, RAM worked to fulfill our mission to “uplift diverse artistic and cultural voices, cultivate inclusive exhibitions, collections, and educational programming, engage in transformative conversations, and foster strong community connections.” So far in 2024 we have welcomed 92,300 people from across the region, state and nation to The Cheech and the Riverside Art Museum at the historic Julia Morgan building—putting us on track to reach 100,000 by year’s end. These participants viewed exhibitions, took guided tours, learned through art classes, or participated in one of our free Artswalk or Summer Sundays events. In addition, our arts education team brought our Art-to-Go program to 30,000 K-8 students throughout the Inland Empire, and the Art Alliance’s Riverside Art Market welcomed 3,000 visitors and 100 artisan vendors.

Between both sites, twenty-one exhibitions have featured 871 objects by 232 artists. With these exhibitions our goal is to amplify local, Chicana/o/x, and marginalized voices and uphold artistic expression that increases empathy and understanding. The critically-acclaimed exhibition Judithe Hernandez: Beyond Myself, Somewhere, I wait for My Arrival, curated by The Cheech Artistic Director Maria Esther Fernandez, features an accompanying catalogue which—we are excited to announce—is available for purchase in La Tiendita. (On-line orders with shipping are available). Publishing these exhibition catalogues including Collidoscope: de la Torre Brothers RetroPerspective is key to continuing to establish Chicano Art in the American Art canon, ensuring that scholars and students across the nation have access to scholarly articles that uplift the contributions of these artists.

Exhibitions originating at The Cheech continue to tour nation-wide. Collidoscope in partnership with the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Latino closes at the Corning Museum of Glass this early January and will open at the Crocker Art Museum this February, then at the Mint Museum in June. Stay tuned for the announcement of two more venues.

Additionally, Judithe Hernandez: Beyond Myself, Somewhere, I wait for My Arrival will open at the El Paso Museum of Art this winter.

Earlier in the year we were proud to exhibit the work of Riverside-raised, New York-based Rico Gatson curated by Lisa Henry. Another exhibition, Sacred Spaces: The Work and Collection of Charles Bibbs, presented the work of prolific Riverside-based artist Charles Bibbs, whose work is collected across the nation. We are proud to be part of LACMA’s Art Bridges program, debuting their Before You Now exhibition in April. And this year we focused on our historic Julia Morgan building with an exhibition about the history of the building—which featured newly commissioned photography by Sofia Valiente as well as preservation plans.

Accessibility to our sites is critically important to us, and we are grateful to the Art Bridges Foundation for being a part of their Access for All initiatives. This allowed us to provide free access to visitors on Sundays from June 2, 2024 to September 1, 2024. Almost 10,000 people participated in this free admission program! We are fortunate to be part of this program for two more years, so stay tuned for more info.

A new sculpture, Meet Me at The Cheech by artist Ignacio Gomez, ensures Cheech Marin will meet the public at The Cheech for years to come. With open arms, the sculpture of Cheech warmly welcomes visitors to see Chicano art, Cheech having championed its inclusion in museums for decades. Cheech says, “This statue is not just a reflection of my work, but of the incredible power of Chicano art to tell stories, challenge narratives, and bring us together.”

We continue to receive media attention with nearly 200 media stories. Notably, PBS Artbound’s documentary The Cheech gives insight into Cheech’s journey to “bring Chicano art to the mainstream art world.” A forthcoming Craft in America documentary on collectors, again through PBS, premieres December 27th. Catch a preview here!

Your support will help make possible the following exhibitions plus many more:

· Joel Sternfeld: On This Site at Riverside Art Museum, January 25, 2025–July 6, 2025.On This Site presents a timely and critical examination of landscape photography as a medium for exploring complex societal issues moving beyond aesthetic representation to engage with place as repositories of memory, sites of traumatic history, and witnesses to American violence. The exhibition is curated by Lisa Henry.

· Amalia Mesa-Bains: Archaeology of Memory at The Cheech, March 1, 2025–August 3, 2025. This exhibition is the first major retrospective to explore the historically significant work and career of Amalia Mesa-Bains, a pioneering Chicana artist, curator, and theorist. The exhibition is co-curated by María Esther Fernández, Artistic Director, The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture of the Riverside Art Museum, and Laura E. Pérez, PhD, Professor of Chicanx, Latinx and Ethnic Studies and Chair of the Latinx Research Center, UC Berkeley.

· 2025 Members Show at the Riverside Art Museum, April 12, 2025–October 5, 2025. The exhibition will showcase outstanding examples of contemporary drawing, printmaking, collage and 2D works on paper created between 2020 and 2024. We are particularly interested in artworks that explore themes, imagery or perspectives connected to the Inland Empire—its cities, landscapes, communities and, if applicable, the experiences of those living and working here. The exhibition is co-curated by Lisa Henry and Denise Kraemer.

Thank you for supporting us in our journey. Individual giving remains the critical backbone of philanthropy. By choosing us, you choose a world where free expression is valued, and artists critically engage in pressing issues impacting us.

Donate Now

Palabra @ The Cheech
2024-12-05 18:00 - 20:30 (America/Los_Angeles) | Cheech Marin Center, 3581 Mission Inn Ave, Riverside, California, 92507, United States
Palabra @ The Cheech is a series that celebrates the wonderful tradition of floricanto, poesía, and the spoken word. Join us for this new open mic poetry series co-hosted by Donato Martinez, featuring poets Meliza Bañales, Carlos Ornales, and Antoine Victorin. Doors open at 6pm.

Schedule of Events6PM: Sign-Ups begin7PM: Featured Poets8PM: Open Mic

Hosted By

Donato Martinez was born in in small pueblo, Garcia de la Cadena, Zacatecas, Mexico and immigrated into USA at six years old. He teaches English composition, Literature, and Creative Writing at Santa Ana College. He has also taught classes in Chicano Studies. He has also been a co-coordinator of the Puente Program for 25 years and has presented workshop sessions at both the regional and state level. He has also spoken at many motivational and educational conferences. He hosts and curates many artistic events that feature poetry and music at his campus or in the community. He is also a poet and writes about his barrio upbringing, his community, his culture, and his Chicano identity. He has a self-published collection with three other Inland Empire poets, Tacos de Lengua. His full length collection of poetry, Touch the Sky, was published in 2023 by El Martillo Press. He loves the outdoors and is inspired by music and books and other artistic expressions, and his children, Gabriel and Abigail. He was recently recognized as the Distinguished Faculty of the Year at Santa Ana College in 2024. Instagram @donatomartinez1

Featured Poets

Meliza Bañales aka Missy Fuego is the author of six books, a Lambda Literary Finalist, and a Slam Champion. She has written for the Washington Square Review, On Our Backs Magazine, Razorcake, Ladybox, and Encyclopedia Brittanica. Along with being the 2024 Los Angeles Erotica Slam Champion, they are also on the West Hollywood Slam Team who are the Chill List Slam Team Champions. They are a 2024 Tin House Fellow in Young Adult Fiction and a 2024 Los Angeles LGBTQIA Center Summer Resident. They live, write, and cause radical trouble in their hometown of Los Angeles. Instgram- @missyfuego

Antoine Victorin is a son, uncle, brother, veteran, and free soul on a journey within. Coming from humble beginnings, Victorin recognizes the struggles we all face and wants to cultivate a community of love, kindness and compassion. Instagram- @antoinevee

Carlos Ornelas is a Mexican American Poet and the author of 2 poetry collections. He has been published in The San Diego Poetry Annual, Voices of Compton, the Myriad, and several anthologies and has been instrumental in the development of the CLI school of poetry. He has been recognised by the Los Angeles Library Commission as “one of the top rhythmic poets in L.A.” and he is dedicated to the advancement of the written arts and continues his work helping writers and poets find their poetic voice and becoming published authors. He recently published Villian’s Vernacular, a collection of poetry, with Riots of Roses Publishing. Instagram– @carlosornelaspoetry

ArtsWalk at RAM
2024-12-05 18:00 - 21:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Riverside Art Museum, 3425 Mission Inn Avenue, Riverside, CA, 92501, United States
Holiday Ornament Making with Bethany – RAM Stebler Studio

Get crafty and make fun holiday ornaments with us!

Live Music – RAM Lobby

Great live music provided by students from the Ramona High School Band.

Metrolink - Holiday Express Train Event
2024-12-07 09:00 - 14:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | California
RAM and The Cheech will join Metrolink at the Riverside – Downtown train station on December 7th from 9AM to 2PM. Stop by our table for a crown decorating art activity and a photo opportunity with Eloy Torrez’ It’s a Brown World!

Come aboard an immersive winter wonderland complete with visits from Santa Claus, his friends and beloved characters from animated classics.

Tickets for the @Metrolink #HolidayExpressTrain are available by presale only. Make a reservation today.

AM Train

PM Train

Catalogue Signing - Judithe Hernández: Beyond Myself, Somewhere, I Wait for My Arrival
2024-12-15 12:30 - 14:30 (America/Los_Angeles) | Cheech Marin Center, 3581 Mission Inn Ave, Riverside, California, 92507, United States
Please join us for a special catalogue signing with artist, Judithe Hernández on December 15th at 12:30PM for the opportunity to have your copy of Judithe Hernández: Beyond Myself, Somewhere, I Wait for My Arrival signed.

This event is free with admission. Catalogues are available for purchase in-store at La Tiendita.

Judithe Hernández: Beyond Myself, Somewhere, I Wait for My Arrival* is a much overdue opportunity to immerse ourselves in the world and art of Judithe Hernández. The catalogue accompanies the first major retrospective and comprehensive evaluation of her fifty-year career

Shipping Available

The Cheech is excited to announce that Judithe Hernández: Beyond Myself, Somewhere, I Wait for My Arrival is now available for domestic shipping (excl. AK and HI) for a fee of $10.00. Judithe Hernández: Beyond Myself, Somewhere, I Wait for My Arrival is expected to arrive at The Cheech in the coming days, just in time for the holidays

Free Admission – First Thursday of every month during Riverside ArtsWalk
2025-01-02 18:00 - 21:00 (America/Denver) | Riverside Art Museum + The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture, 3425 Mission Inn Avenue, Riverside, California

Dia de Los Reyes Magos
2025-01-05 13:00 - 17:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | California
Riverside Art Museum (Atrium & Lobby)

Join us as we celebrate Dia de Los Reyes Magos at Riverside Art Museum. Mr. Blue and Cultura con Llantas are back, bringing the tamales, pan dulce, chocolate Mexicano, Rosca de Reyes, and entertainment! This event is absolutely FREE. Invite your loved ones and friends!

Schedule of Events

1:00 PM: Program begins

1:15 PM – 1:45 PM: David Bosquez

2:00 PM – 2:15 PM: Rubidoux High School Ballet Folklórico

2:30 PM – 3:00 PM: Grupo Axolotl

3:15 PM – 3:30 PM: Perris Community Ballet Folklórico

3:45 PM – 4:15 PM: David Bosquez

Thank you sponsors: Patricia Reynolds with Los Cinco attorneys Luis Aguilar, Richard Carnero, Jorge C. Hernández, Russell Jauregui, and Luis Lopez.

Gluck Fellows Art Project & Digital Exhibition (Stebler Studio)

Each participant will receive a small canvas to draw their rendition of a museum artwork or create a completely original piece. Paint and markers will be provided. Attendees can opt to have their artwork photographed for inclusion in a digital collage exhibit, which will be shared across the social networks of the Rio Junto art collective, the UCR Gluck Fellows Program of the Arts, and the Riverside Art Museum.

As part of Free Sundays, Riverside Art Museum (Julia Morgan Building) and The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture are both free and open to the public from 12 to 5 p.m. No tickets are necessary.

I Love Lupe - Screening
2025-01-26 13:00 - 17:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Cheech Marin Center, 3581 Mission Inn Ave, Riverside, California, 92507, United States
I Love Lupe documents the first and only roundtable discussion between Chicanx artists Ester Hernandez, Yolanda Lopez and Alma Lopez. Artists present and discuss their feminists revisionists version of the cultural icon, the Virgin of Guadalupe and the controversies encountered.

I Love Lupe is a 46 minute video first published as a visual chapter in the book titled Our Lady of Controversy: Alma Lopez’s “Irreverent” Apparition edited by Alicia Gaspar de Alba and Alma Lopez.Texas: University of Texas Press, 2011. ISBN-13 : 978-0292719927. More information at almalopez.com.

Credits: Alma Lopez copyright 2011

Images featured are from I Love Lupe.
