Exhibits
Styrofoam Memories
Styrofoam Memories
Chris Rabb
Living Room (6th Floor South)
About the Exhibit
What if the disposable images of yesterday turn out to be our most enduring monuments? This exhibition features a thoughtfully chosen collection of works that examine the dynamic interplay between Pop Art, Abstraction, and storytelling. Pop Art’s use of popular imagery is woven together with the expressive forms of Abstraction and narrative elements, creating a multilayered approach. Imagine the glint of neon on a Pac-Man screen, or the sugary scent of cereal dust rising from a morning bowl—these works bring such sensations to life. By integrating recognizable imagery with abstract composition and narrative cues, the pieces transform familiar visuals into rich stories, combining fantasy and memory within colorful assemblages, cultural symbols, and expressive designs.
Inspired by retro media, consumer products, ads, and cartoons, the series turns mass culture’s language into lively, abstract patterns. Whether it's the bright colors of a 1980s arcade game, the smiling face of Tony the Tiger from vintage cereal ads, or the bold lines of Saturday morning cartoons, these references become touchstones in the playful mix. This encourages viewers to engage with the art through humor, curiosity, and personal interpretation. The result is a visual playground that shares stories and moments without spelling them out, inviting a conversation between the viewer and the artwork, grounded in shared culture and personal memories.
About the Artist
My work focuses on play, experimentation, and storytelling through Pop Art Abstraction. At its heart, I ask how the symbols and language of mass culture shape our shared memories and personal identities. I’m drawn to the contrast between bright, lively surfaces and deeper meanings, as well as how nostalgia and irony affect how we see everyday images. I welcome surprise and spontaneity in every layer, which is packed with pop culture references and icons. Bold, eye-catching text runs across my pieces like ads, inviting viewers to look closer. By abstracting familiar objects and images, I create a playful conversation where nostalgia, irony, and curiosity come together.
Painting allows me to test new processes, such as layering acrylic paints and experimenting with mixed media, including collage and spray paint, while deepening my affinity with the emotional and cultural depth in daily life. By incorporating a variety of materials and application techniques, such as stenciling, texturing, and the use of bold, graphic brushwork, I engage with the unpredictable vocabulary of color, form, and visual storytelling. The influence of artists like Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat, particularly their collaborative works, is evident in my use of bold color, the layering of pop culture imagery, and a sense of energetic composition. Similarly, the playful and socially aware practices of John Rosenquist, Banksy, and Keith Haring inform my approach to using recognizable icons and text to provoke both joy and reflection. While I draw from these influences, I strive to move beyond replication by incorporating personal memories, contemporary references, and an emphasis on the emotional nuances behind familiar images. My work builds on their legacy through a more intuitive process, where spontaneity and improvisation guide the narrative, allowing my own perspective to come forward. Through this approach, I aim to create artwork that instills joy, inspires reflection, and evokes a renewed sense of awe in the viewer.
Image credit
Where Memory Becomes Land
Where Memory Becomes Land
Alejandra Almuelle, Lys Santamaria, Sandra Fernandez, Rewon Shimray, Rakhee Jain Desai, Raul Rodriguez, Liza Zaldivar Salazar, Jo Kim, Nashelle Williams
Gallery (2nd Floor Southwest)
About the Exhibit
This exhibition is the final project created by local, emerging curators who have participated in the inaugural Curation Fellowship Program, in partnership with local non-profit arts organization _OFCOLOR and Austin Public Library.
The _OFCOLOR x Austin Public Library Curation Fellowship is a seven-month program designed to support emerging and community-based curators interested in developing exhibitions, public programs, and creative projects that connect art and audiences in meaningful ways.
About the exhibit:
Curator led art tour: Sunday, August 16, 2026, 2pm-4pm
Public reception for the exhibition: Sunday, July 26, 2026, 1pm-4pm
This exhibition brings together artists who engage with lived experience, (im)migration, and cultural inheritance through material and process. Using fiber, clay, textiles, photography, and layered forms, the works trace how stories move across borders and take shape in new environments. These pieces hold traces of personal and collective histories, grounding memory in physical form.
Shaped by a collaborative curatorial approach informed by multiple lived perspectives, the exhibition is grounded in care, openness, and critical inquiry. It treats the library as a shared public space for rest, encounter, and exchange.
These featured artists, from historically minoritized backgrounds, consider how boundaries are formed and maintained while asking who is seen, who is heard, and who has access. Together, they invite viewers to engage evolving understandings of identity, place, and connection.