ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: DECEMBER 2022

 The holiday season in Downtown Riverside brings in the holiday spirit  along with more arts and culture during one of Riverside’s most well  attended events of the year, the Festival of Lights.  The artisans and performers of the festival are not the only way to  enjoy the arts during the holidays. Many of our downtown galleries and  museums hold holiday themed exhibitions and offer patrons the  opportunity to purchase original artwork for their loved ones. Riverside Community Arts Association (RCAA) celebrates the winter with their RCAA Members Winter Exhibit,  running through mid-December in addition to their Holiday Ornaments  Fundraiser. Raymond Fernandez, this month’s artist spotlight, is an RCAA  member and for this exhibition he is currently displaying some of his  non-representational artworks.

Raymond Fernandez is a painter who  was born and raised in Santa Monica, California and moved to Riverside  in 2008. Raymond has worn many hats in the arts and entertainment  industry working in Hollywood as an actor, and even a brief stint of set  designing in Denver, Colorado for a local theater. He is a musician who  plays many instruments but specializes in percussion and has freelanced  as a jazz drummer. Raymond is inspired by the human condition when  creating his artwork, and it imbues his work with a sense of  spirituality and esotericism, which is why he enjoys the abstract and  surreal. He digs deep within himself, pushing his ego aside and  gathering the unlanguageable intelligence that lives somewhere in his  imagination or the group consciousness, sometimes in both, allowing it  to come into his awareness and onto the canvas. For Raymond, this  meditation has become a calling.

Raymond is looking forward to  playing a role in our local arts scene. “Riverside has great potential  that has just begun to be tapped into. Creating opportunities for  artists to live and create here in our city can only beautify and uplift  the soul of this city for all of us. I am excited to be part of an  expanding art community here in Riverside. The Cheech has created a great opportunity to put Riverside on the map for art  tourism. Let’s keep it up!” said Raymond. Raymond has been painting,  exhibiting, and freelancing as a graphic designer for over 20 years.  Since moving to Riverside, he has found a home in the art scene with RAM  52 project, RCAA Gallery, and the Artswalk. Riverside has allowed him  to grow as an artist with a welcoming community of artists and  galleries. The 52 Project at RAM initiated his entrance into the  Riverside art community where he and his husband have begun coordinating  art events of their own. Raymond and his husband have been hosting “Art  After Dark” at Salon 3778 which is an annual art show and fundraiser that showcases local artists  with a portion of proceeds going to RCAA. They also started a paint n’  sip company called Paint Party Professionals that takes place at Back to the Grind on the first Saturday of every month. Raymond hopes to continue to  paint and expand his presence in the local and international art world.

For more information, visit Raymond on Instagram @raymondfern and RCAA Gallery @rcaa.gallery.