At the onset of the night, people gathered in the gallery space and waited in anticipation for the artists responsible for the diverse compositions lined on the walls to enter. The first artist to speak, Rachelle Diaz, discussed her background in art (including graduating from St. Edward’s in 2002 and being a freelance graphic designer) and her collaboration with the two other contributing artists. Together, the three artists, including Aldo Ramos and Gerardo Arellano, spoke about the significance of the theme of spirituality to the development of their artwork.

It was quite interesting to see the different ways each artist incorporated religious symbols and icons into their pieces. Diaz explained that each of the digital rooms she composed got their names from phrases she had found in the Book of the Ecclesiastes. Each of these rooms included references to religious icons such as gold crucifixes and baptismal fonts. Diaz hinted at the idea that the significance of religious icons is mostly dependent upon the context in which they are placed in.

In explaining the meaning behind his pieces, Ramos included that he just went with the flow and did not really plan out any of his creations. His work varied from chalk-like drawings of creatures and symbols to mix-and-match collages of fabric and paper. Indeed unique from Diaz and Arellano’s pieces, Ramos’ compositions alluded to the mysterious nature of spirituality that has perplexed the human spirit since the dawn of time.

Finally, Arellano’s mixture of mural-like paintings and installations juxtaposed next to home-made crafts (such as the yarn on wax manifestation of the beginning of time) hinted to the idea that spirituality does not have to do just with religion. He explained that the time he spent living among Native Americans and in exploring his own beliefs drew him to compose psychedelic-like works and compositions that refer to the notion that religion is not the only medium through which spirituality can be developed.

Overall, the gallery opening proved to be a profound speculation at the many ways in which spirituality can emerge. I look forward to seeing what artwork the upcoming gallery exhibitions bring.