SFArtsED is thrilled to welcome artist and arts educator Erik Parra as Artist-in-Residence in the gallery, from October 5th through November 16, 2024. For this hybrid residence, Parra will be using the gallery as a studio as well as an exhibition space, simultaneously painting and exhibiting works for the public to view. In his painting practice, Parra oscillates between exterior and interior architectural and domestic spaces, often returning for inspiration to the mid-century modern aesthetic that informed his upbringing and continues to inspire his visual practice today. As artist-in-residence with SFArtsED, Parra turns a private studio practice public, welcoming visitors to stop by and spend time in the space, as he embarks on new paintings, continues unfinished inquiries, and displays existing works.

October 5 – November 16, 2024
Welcome reception: October 5, 4–7 PM

Collage workshop: Saturday, October 12th, 2–4PM
Cloud Painting workshop: October 26, 2–4PM
Open Studio with Erik Parra: November 2nd, 4–7PM
Closing Reception with Erik Parra: November 9th, 4–7PM

gallery hours:
Wednesday – Saturday, 11–4 PM
& by appointment

Artist Statement

Architecture is supposed to keep us safe. Yet achieving this directive requires navigating a complex system that has profound effects on both our personal and cultural psyches. Our shared experiences of the built environment are colored by personal, political and practical realities that can often feel simultaneously antagonistic and comforting. I make paintings and drawings that engage the visual tropes of contemporary spaces to reveal and revise the stories embedded in the environments we build.

To do this, I draw upon my personal memories of growing up in a “mid-century” modernist house and conflate those with more recent direct memories of interiors and design objects to construct engaging hypothetical interiors. Rather than working from direct source material, I construct my images through a process of remembering, drawing, cutting and improvising forms. I consider these elements at every stage, from ideation to execution of the final work. I use both darkness and lightness for dramatic effect as my invented interiors host a range of potential, related conversations. I also channel, through visual interpretation, narrative tensions informed by symbolism mined from the history of painting, existential philosophy, film, horror fiction, extreme music and politics.

I am particularly invested in post war narratives that shape contemporary life. The history of white flight and its effect on contemporary urban real estate practices directly impacts my work. The implications of these stories do not simply affect my ability to maintain a studio but they literally pervade just about every other aspect of life. Thus, when I render a mid-century modern chair from memory, I allude to a range of narratives related to economic success and privilege.

About Erik Parra:

Erik Richard Parra was born and raised along the vibrant border metroplex of El Paso, Texas/ Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. He was raised by a father who was a painter and a mother who was a school teacher in a “Midcentury Modern” house full of books, country music, sports, film, jazz, painting, and cartoons. He began drawing as soon as he could hold a pencil but started studying painting, seriously at the University of Texas at Austin where he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts. After graduation Erik moved to San Francisco, where he taught at the San Francisco Children’s Art Center. One year later he went on to study and ultimately receive his Master of Fine Arts degree in the 2-d area at the University of Wisconsin—Madison, on fellowship.

Upon completion of his MFA he moved to Brooklyn, NY where he maintained a studio, taught art and exhibited his artwork. After three years he accepted a temporary adjunct position teaching color theory at his alma mater, UW Madison. After this appointment Erik moved his studio back to San Francisco in order to collaborate on Fivepoints Arthouse, a dynamic artist run alternative exhibition space based on the traditional “art house” model. He worked as head curator for three years and developed the visual art programme for this project that hosted film screenings, live music and literary events in addition to curated art exhibitions for five years.

Currently he maintains a studio based in the Bay View section of San Francisco, California. Erik has exhibited internationally in alternative spaces, commercial galleries and museums. He has had solo exhibitions in San Francisco, Portland and Reno and group exhibitions in Berlin, Brazil, Los Angeles, London and New York. In the Bay Area Erik’s work has been exhibited at Blankspace Gallery, Johansson Projects, The Headlands Center for the Arts, Root Division, Southern Exposure, Kala Art Institute, the Berkeley Art Center and most recently at Eleanor Harwood Gallery. His work is widely held in private and corporate collections in the US and abroad. Erik’s work has been included in publications including New American Paintings, the SF Bay Guardian and the LA Times.

Erik has taught art to students of all ages in a variety of media including painting, drawing, serigraphy and ceramics. He has taught at many different types of spaces & programs including Southern Exposure and the San Francisco Arts Education Project. Currently he teaches at City College of San Francisco and at the California College of the Arts. Additionally, he works on commissions, lectures at universities, and garners residencies. Most recently he was awarded an inaugural Liquitex Research Residency.