Past Gallery Exhibitions

Specters On Glass

Specters on Glass: Studio Portraiture in Early 20th c. Placerville, Arts and Culture El Dorado’s latest exhibition at Switchboard Gallery, opened Thursday, August 22, and runs through Sunday, October 6. There was an Opening Reception in the Gallery, located at 525 Main Street, on Thursday, August 22 from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm. A collaboration…

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ForestSong: Creativity and Resilience in Forest Communities

ForestSong is an art project by Andie Thrams that centers on painting Forest Prayer Flags to deepen appreciation of and connection to forests, address environmental loss, and celebrate biophilia. The project also shares contemporary wildfire and forest ecology, and suggests actionable steps to foster environmental stewardship for individuals and communities.

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A Picture’s Worth: NEA Big Read at the Gallery

A Picture’s Worth: NEA Big Read at the Gallery. This exhibition of illustrator Gavin Sellers-Norman’s original work features illustrations inspired by community-sourced oral histories and original audio recordings by personal historian Mariah Padilla. Opened with a reception on May 23 at 6 pm and ran through June 30, 2024. Click Here To Access Stories and…

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Ars Vinifera: The Art of the Wine Label

Celebrating the symbiosis of art and agriculture, this exhibition showcases original artworks that grace the labels of El Dorado County’s world-class wineries.

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Youth Art Month: EDHS Student Takeover at Switchboard Gallery

In honor of National Youth Art Month, Arts and Culture El Doradois excited to launch our first annual Youth Arts Exhibition, showcasingartworks created by El Dorado County youth, grades 9-12. In Spring of 2024, El Dorado High School students took over Switchboard Gallery, curating a show of their own works. Successive years will feature artworks…

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SENDING IT: Climbing El Dorado

SENDING IT: Climbing El Dorado examines the unique and world-renowned climbing features perched along Hwy 50. The exhibition focuses on Lover’s Leap, Phantom Spires, and Sugarloaf – three large granite outcroppings that attract climbers from around the globe. Taking a grass-roots curatorial approach, the exhibition combines community sourced photographs with images from the personal archives…

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Sugar Skull Art Walk: Honoring Our Ancestors

The Sugar Skull Art Walk is a community project that engages local artist-designers in creating Day of the Dead “ofrendas” on Main Street. The goal of this project is to help unify communities through art, music, and the shared human experience of loss. The ofrendas are on view in Switchboard Gallery from October 15 to…

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Details + Materials: Works by Claudine Granthem

Details + Materials: Works by Claudine Granthem honored the work of long-time El Dorado County resident Claudine Granthem. With a strong oeuvre that consists of painting, wood and metal sculpture, and drawings, Granthem’s work is at once architectural and deeply human. Her use of materials is lavish in its embrace; she doesn’t attempt to transform or…

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Fire/Land: The Exhibition

FIRE/LAND: The Exhibition was an installation of Ameera Godwin’s digital prints and video, representing the artist’s creative journey into local forest lands in response to wildfire and climate grief, vulnerability, and responsibility.   Opening Reception: Thursday, June 8, 6 – 8 pmArtist Talk: Thursday, July 13, starting at 6 pmAuthor Talk: Wednesday, July 19, starting…

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Antepasados: Those Unseen

This exhibition, which was the first in Arts and Culture El Dorado’s new gallery space, featured the original prints of Sigrid Benson and sculptural works of Marisa Sayago. Antepasados: Those Unseen examined the complexity of human relationships, kinship, and the invisible presence of those who have come before us. Opening Reception: Friday, May 5, from…

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Dark Mountain, Deep Valley: New Works by Loren Christofferson 

Painter Loren Christofferson was the subject of this exhibition presented by Arts and Culture El Dorado at the Confidence Firehouse Gallery. Dark Mountain, Deep Valley, was a series of monochromatic paintings and works on paper that dive into the artist’s nebulous connection to Yosemite’s remarkable landscape. The exhibition, which evolved from a collaboration with the…

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Bad Apples – Skateboarding and the Misfit Culture of EDC

From fashion, to street art, to the Olympic Games – skateboarding is a fixture in pop culture worldwide. But at its core, it remains a fast-paced, gritty, DIY, risk-laden sport with its roots in rebellion. Arts and Culture El Dorado teamed up with Motherlode Board Supply Co. and artist Nate Reifke to create a visual…

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A Room of Their Own: Women Artists of the Sierra

Women artists took the lead in this exhibition at Confidence Firehouse Gallery. The exhibition featured artworks by over ten local artists working in a diverse array of mediums. Photographs, watercolor paintings, mixed media works, ceramics, block prints and plant-based sculpture were all counted among the works on display. . A Room of Their Own was…

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Marking Their Trail: Basque Arborglyphs in the Sierra Nevada

July 22, to September 19, 2021. In the early 20th century, Basque sheepherders carved distinctive figures into aspen trees. This exhibition featured a collection of rubbings taken from these arborglyphs.   Aspen groves make for the unlikeliest galleries. High in the remote meadows of the Sierra Nevada range there are works of art secreted away…

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Birds of a Feather: Native California Indian Art

Birds of a Feather featured the works of local Native California Indian artists Jeremy Peconom, Meyo Marrufo, Kai LaPena, and Jaime Lanouette. Brought to you in partnership with concept: art + movement, a project of Arts and Culture El Dorado’s Arts Incubator program, Birds of a Feather offered a glimpse into the practice of Traditional…

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Convoy 1919: Centennial of the 1919 Transcontinental Motor Convoy

On July 7, 1919, a transcontinental motor convoy organized by the U.S. Army departed Washington, D.C. for San Francisco, California to demonstrate the motorized capability of the armed forces in the shadow of World War I. The convoy – consisting of 81 vehicles, including 31 heavy cargo trucks, 4 kitchen trailers, a wrecker, 4 motorcycles…

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Connected: Contemporary Works by Native American and Indigenous Artists

This exhibition is produced in partnership with concept: art + movement and the Exhibits and Collections Department of the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians, and brings together recent works of Native American and Indigenous artists from throughout the Sacramento region. While examining the ways in which the artists are connected – to the environment…

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Wildcraft: Handmade Works by El Dorado Artisans

Arts and Culture El Dorado (formerly El Dorado Arts Council) has announced the opening of its newest exhibition at Confidence Gallery. Wildcraft will celebrate the artisans of El Dorado County with a display of handmade works in a variety of mediums-ceramic, wood, metal, glass, fiber, pigments-that showcases unusual techniques and approaches to form. As part…

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Resilience: A Living Room

Friday, Nov. 16, 2018 – Thursday, Jan. 10,  2019 Gallery Open: Thursday-Sunday  11 am – 4 pm Public Event, Artist Talk with Kim Abeles,   Thursday, January 10, 2019, from 6- 8 pm Kim Abeles will talk about her experiences as an artist in residence at the Institute of Forest Genetics (IFG) and ideas gained exploring…

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Out There: Images of Sky, Space, and Planets

May 25 –  August 12, 2018 Public Event: Thursday, July 12th from 6:00 to 8:00 pm, Teri Smoot, photographer, aerospace engineer and amateur astronomer, will be giving a talk on her process for capturing the night sky. Smoot will explain how her images on display were generated and the physical significance of the objects themselves. Attendance…

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Native Roots: Botanical Artworks Plants Native to the Area

Native Roots wesbite banner

Friday, March 16 – Sunday, May 20, 2018 Within the borders of El Dorado County there exists a vast array of biodiversity; from tiny flowers to tall pines, the abundant variety of plant life within the county’s 1,786 square miles is astounding. Partnering with the El Dorado Chapter of the California Native Plant Society, the…

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The Games of Winter: Art and Ephemera From the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley

January 12 – March 9, 2018 Public Event: Thursday, February 22, 2018 David Antonucci, author of Snowball’s Chance: The Story of the 1960 Olympic Winter Games Squaw Valley & Lake Tahoe, will discuss the 1960 Winter Olympics, with a special focus on the games that took place in El Dorado County. The event will be held at…

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Small Wonders: Original Artwork From Members of the Sierra Pastel Society

December 6, 2017 – January 7, 2018 Sierra Pastel Society returns to the Fausel Gallery with their exhibition entitled Small Wonders, featuring small pastel artworks. Small Wonders is an opportunity to give the gift of art and shop local this holiday season. The exhibition offers original and affordable creations by members of the Sierra Pastel…

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take me to the apple breeder: Artwork By Jessica Rath

Jessica Rath. Kazakhstan Elite. 3.5″ x 2.5″ x 3″ (each), high-fire glazed porcelain September 1 – November 26, 2017   Artwork by Jessica Rath. porcelain sculptures based on the living collection of apples at Cornell University’s Plant Genetics Resource Unit large-scale photographs of the diverse tree architecture from the tandem experimental agriculture station El Dorado…

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Deep Blue Lead: An Ancient River Channel Through El Dorado County

June 9 – August 26, 2017 Free Events Open to the Public Gallery Reception: Thursday, June 15, 6:00 – 8:00 pm Featuring Hors d-oeuvres from Smith Flat House and Wine from Lava Cap Winery Geology talk by George Wheeldon P.G., Emeritus Professor of Geology: Thursday, July 13 at 6:30 pm Local photographer Caitlin Thompson will…

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Tea/Silk/Gold: The Enduring Legend of America’s First Japanese Colony

March 10 – May 29, 2017   Wakamatsu Farm 1869 – 1871 and Japanese Woodblock Prints 1931 – 1957 An exhibition of Japanese arts and culture that celebrates Wakamatsu Tea and Silk Colony Farm, the first Japanese settlement in North America as colonists fled shogun-era violence in mid-19th century Japan. Includes a special collection of…

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Art From the Horizon: El Dorado County Student Exhibition

January 14 -February 27, 2017 El Dorado Arts Council hosts an El Dorado County Student Exhibition entitled Art From the Horizon, showcasing artwork from local high school students.  

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Small Wonders: Holiday Art Exhibition Presented by the Sierra Pastel Society

December 2, 2016 through January 11, 2017 Member Miniature Art Exhibition featuring small pastel paintings.

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Back to the Future: Fifty Years of Amazing Automotive Concept Art

September 30 through November 27, 2016 Vintage automotive design art from the 1930’s through the 1970’s from the private collection of Patrick Kelley, never before seen by the public.

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Patchwork Sierra: Quilts of El Dorado County

Quilts crafted by hand to commemorate the beauty and history of El Dorado County. Brought to you by the Gold Bug Quilters. Patchwork Sierra exhibition were part of the Gold Week activities celebrating the World Gold Panning Championship 2016 that was held September 11 through September 18.

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