Exhibit on Black Music
February thru March 2010RECEPTION: THURSDAY, February 18TH, 6PM
ASIAN RESOURCE GALLERY
310 Eighth Street/ Harrison
Oakland Chinatown
OPEN M – F, 9AM – 6PM
The Asian Resource Gallery presents the mixed media works of JAMES GAYLES, a popular Bay Area portrait artist who captures the soul of America’s classical music thru the faces of African American jazz and blues masters. Dynamic watercolors, acrylics and drawings of familiar giants such as John Coltrane, Thelonious Monk and Pharoah Sanders hang shoulder to shoulder with the lesser known but equally important Bob Geddins, “The Godfather of Oakland Blues”, and Sid LaProtti & The Not So Famous Jazz Band. Long forgotten (but not that long ago), jazz greats such as Louis Armstrong, Count Basie and Billie Holiday trekked down to the 7th Street strip in West Oakland that once was the hub of West Coast hip. Without evidence of live recordings, those unreplicated moments of genius are solely grooved into the memories of West Oakland’s remaining Black residents, many who brought the Louisiana and Texas blues to the Bay. Gayles’ portraits will not let us easily forget. His work will be shown from February thru March 2010 with live music at a free reception on Thursday, February 18th, 6 PM. The Asian Resource Gallery is located at 310 Eighth Street/ Harrison in Oakland Chinatown, and can be entered from the 9th Street side as well.
The Asian Resource Gallery, open Monday thru Friday from 9AM to 6PM, is owned and operated by East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation. EBALDC proudly sponsors this exhibit in the spirit of preserving Oakland’s diverse communities’ collective memory and rich cultural traditions. For more information, phone 510/ 287-5353 or Greg at 510/ 532-9692.
