District Fine Arts What Comes Next John Trevino September 6 - November 8 A new series of photographs by artist John Trevino. In his work, Trevino examines dreams and memory created as the residual of human interaction. These images build on that theme by documenting his friends, colleagues, and acquaintances wearing water polo caps customized by the artist.
Worn on players' heads during water polo matches, caps take the place of jerseys in other team sports. As a form, they represent striking juxtapositions in design, part helmet, part Little Red Robin Hood. This "tough sensitivity" also characterizes much of the sport itself which itself can be quite brutal yet at times exhibits the gracefulness of a ballet. Taken out of this context, Trevino transforms the caps and the wearers into a strange and mysterious collective force or team on the verge of some kind of unknown action. Captured against environments Trevino frequents around Washington, D.C. as part of his routine, the work becomes a meditation on those locations and the people in his life.
John Trevino was born in 1972 and raised in Long Beach, CA. He received his MFA in painting from Howard University in 2000. In addition to studio work, he has painted murals in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., as well as exhibited work in both cities. In 2004 his work was selected as part of the Metropolitan Transit Authority's Neighborhood Poster Competition and displayed throughout the Los Angeles Metro system. Most recently his work was featured in the exhibition, New Images of Identity at the Pasadena Armory Center for the Arts in Pasadena, CA. John currently lives in Hyattsville, MD and teaches painting and drawing at Howard University.
Bill, John Trevino
District Fine Arts Hit Me With Music Leon Armour Jr. Chester Simpson Leah Tinari September 5 - September 14 A DFA Special Event At Bloomingdale's, 5300 Western Avenue, Chevy Chase Md
Leon Armour Jr. - photographer. Music has always been a special part of my life, from my earliest childhood memories, to the current soundtrack to my life. Photographing live entertainment has been another way for me to share those memories and to try to convey the emotional intensity of that performance in a single image. Even if you were not there, I want you to be able to hear the music through my images.
Chester Simpson - photographer. In the mid 1970's, while studying at the San Francisco Art Institute for his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Photography, Simpson met two of the major influences on his life, legendary master photographer, Ansel Adams, founder of the Institute's photography department, and Jim Marshall, the famous Rock-n-Roll photographer. He soon indulged himself in the evolving punk rock scene. This led to the start of his professional career as a rock-n-roll photographer when Rolling Stone Magazine published his first picture while he was still in school. Ten years later, Simpson found himself in Washington, DC working as Director of Photography for the Pentagon's Newspaper. This in turn led to an ongoing contract as a lead tour photographer for the USO. In this capacity, Simpson has enjoyed documenting over 35 USO Tours with many noted celebrities and entertainers. His work has been in most major publications around the world including New Musical Express, Melody Maker, People, Newsweek and he has exhibited worldwide.
Leah Tinari - painter. Leah, who lives and works in New York City graduated from R.I.S.D. in 1998 and has been showing in New York City and beyond ever since. She has been featured in publications such as; NY Arts, The New Yorker, New York Times Magazine, Spin, Lucky, and Elle. The imagery in her paintings is based on photographs that she takes of friends and family. Although the work is a documentation of her personal experiences, she hopes that the images will evoke familiar feelings or create a sense of voyeurism. Her work often examines seemingly mundane situations and environments, in order to portray the complexities inherent in the unpolished human existence. Leah's art ultimately provokes questions and discussions about family, relationships, class, gender, personal collection and one's surroundings.
