Library Exhibit Archive
2026
Points of Reference: Three Perspectives on Lafayette's Past
Summer 2026 | Homework Center, Community Hall and Display Case
Presented by the Lafayette Public Art Committee and the Lafayette Historical Society as part of Lafayette's observance of America's 250th anniversary, three exhibitions offer different perspectives on the history of this place and the people connected to it, inviting visitors to explore the many layers of our community's past.
In the Don Tatzin Community Hall Gallery, a series of watercolors commemorates the legacy of General Lafayette. Created by John Finger, the works reflect on the life and influence of the French military officer and statesman whose support of the American Revolution inspired the naming of the community. They also acknowledge Lafayette's enduring commitment to public service and civic engagement—values that continue to shape democratic life today.
The Homework Center Gallery features a collection of aerial photographs of Lafayette taken in the 1950s. Each image includes a red dot identifying a familiar landmark—such as the Town Hall Theatre or Lafayette Elementary School—offering a point of reference as visitors discover how dramatically Lafayette's landscape has changed over time.
In the Library Lobby Display Case, artifacts from the Saklan people, upon whose ancestral lands Lafayette was later developed, remind us that the history of this place extends far beyond the nation's founding. Arrowheads and tools speak to the ingenuity and skill of the region's earliest inhabitants and acknowledge their enduring connection to this landscape.
Mary Stets Chabolla: Surface
February 26 – May 31, 2026 | Homework Center & Community Hall
A series of abstract paintings in oil and cold wax exploring layering, texture, and the balance between control and spontaneity. Built through repeated processes of addition and removal, the works reveal shifting forms that suggest fragments of place, memory, and movement without resolving into fixed imagery. Together, the paintings emphasize surface as an evolving record of accumulation, erasure, and intuition.
For inquiries: instagram.com/oak_knoll_studio/
Acalanes Student Art Exhibition: Celebrating Creativity & Expression
February 5, 2025 – February 26, 2026 | Homework Center & Community Hall
A juried student exhibition organized by Lafayette Partners in Education (LPIE) in coordination with Acalanes High School art teacher Robert Porter, featuring the work of 30 students in grades 9–12. The show highlights a range of media including painting, drawing, photography, digital media, and mixed media, reflecting both classroom-based assignments and independent studio explorations. Together, the works showcase developing technical skills, experimentation, and individual artistic voice within a supportive educational environment.
2025
Lois Reynolds Mead: On the Table
December 2, 2025 – February 1, 2026 | Homework Center
A mixed-media collage series centered on the family table as a site of memory, gathering, and absence. The works layer domestic imagery and found materials to reflect on connection, loss, and the evolving meaning of shared space during and after periods of separation.
For inquiries: www.loisreynoldsmead.com
Stephen Elbert: Lines. Planes. Volumes. Shapes.
December 2, 2025 – February 1, 2026 | Community Hall Gallery
A photographic series exploring geometric structure within urban and industrial environments. The works emphasize pattern, shadow, and spatial composition, revealing abstract visual systems formed through architecture, repetition, and constructed space.
For inquiries: Email se@stephenelbert.com
Laura Heinrich: Building Portraits
September 22 – November 30, 2025 | Homework Center
A series of paintings exploring industrial and natural landscapes through fragments of architecture and place. Inspired by the Alameda Naval Station, the works reflect on abandoned structures alongside sites of renewal, considering how decay and revitalization coexist within evolving environments.
For inquiries: heinrichartworks.com
Jenna Hobbs: Hidden Gems: Revealing Geometry in the Landscape
September 12 – November 30, 2025 | Community Hall Gallery
A series of paintings exploring the hidden geometry found within natural and built environments. The works blend observational landscape painting with geometric abstraction, revealing underlying structures and “plumb lines” that emerge through both intuitive and intentional composition.
For inquiries: jennahobbs.com
Aaron Argandona: Echoes of Innovation: Past Creations Rediscovered
May 5 – August 24, 2025 | Homework Center
A series of illustrated works revisiting key historical inventions through a travel-poster-inspired style. The works highlight early communication technologies such as radio and television, encouraging reflection on how these innovations shaped modern life and everyday experience.
For inquiries: Email aaron.argandona@gmail.com
Marianne McCraney: This Side Up: Watercolors About the Pandemic
May 5 – August 24, 2025 | Community Hall Gallery
A series of watercolor paintings reflecting on domestic life during the early pandemic period. Focusing on packages, the works transform familiar still-life subjects into studies of isolation, adaptation, and shifting routines. Through careful observation and quiet composition, the exhibition considers how ordinary domestic spaces became sites of reflection, disruption, and change.
For inquiries: mariannemccraney.com
Acalanes Student Art Exhibition: Celebrating Creativity & Expression
February 26, 2025 – May 5, 2025 | Homework Center, Community Hall & Display Case
A juried student exhibition organized by Lafayette Partners in Education (LPIE) in coordination with Acalanes High School art teacher Robert Porter, featuring the work of 30 students in grades 9–12. The show highlights a range of media including painting, drawing, photography, digital media, and mixed media, reflecting both classroom-based assignments and independent studio explorations. Together, the works showcase developing technical skills, experimentation, and individual artistic voice within a supportive educational environment.
2024
Viviana Leija-Sysak: The Moon Dream
December 23, 2024 – February 23, 2025 | Community Hall Gallery
A series of works in watercolor, ink, and graphite exploring the moon as a recurring symbol of cycles, emotion, and introspection. The exhibition connects lunar phases to human experience, using shifting light, atmosphere, and dreamlike imagery to reflect on inner states and personal transformation. Through layered mark-making and subtle tonal variation, the works evoke a sense of continuity between natural rhythms and emotional life.
For inquiries: themoondream.com
Brian Lopez: Shape of Light
December 17, 2024 – February 25, 2025 | Homework Center
A photographic series exploring how light shapes perception and atmosphere in everyday environments. The works capture quiet, observational moments where illumination transforms ordinary spaces into studies of form, contrast, and subtle narrative.
For inquiries: bmlphoto.com
Arlynn Bloom: Observations
October 16 – December 23, 2024 | Community Hall Gallery
A series of paintings and mixed media works exploring human connection through everyday moments and shared experience. The works draw from observations of daily life, focusing on gesture, interaction, and the emotional narratives found within ordinary encounters.
For inquiries: arlynnbloom.net
Frank Soenke Haseloff: Secondhand Stories
October 16 – December 17, 2024 | Homework Center
A series of photorealistic paintings of everyday objects, exploring memory, use, and personal history embedded in material things. The works emphasize surface detail, light, and texture, inviting reflection on the stories held within familiar, often overlooked objects.
For inquiries: soenkefineart.com
Ellen Reintjes: Let’s Paint Music
May 20 – September 30, 2024 | Homework Center
A series of paintings translating musical ideas into visual form through rhythm, color, and composition. The works interpret familiar tunes and musical references as playful visual structures, exploring the connection between sound, language, and image.
Michael Robinson: The Spirits of Babylon
March 19 – May 19, 2024 | Homework Center
A series of paintings exploring human connection, communication, and emotional distance during the pandemic period. The works use surreal and symbolic imagery to reflect on isolation, miscommunication, and the search for meaning in disrupted social conditions.
For inquiries: michaelrobinsonart.com
2023
The Morning Bell Project
August 15, 2023 – August 15, 2024 | Community Hall Gallery
A community-based project presenting quilts and drawings addressing school safety and gun violence awareness. The installation brings together contributions from students and community members, using quilting as a symbol of unity, protection, and collective voice.
For more information: https://givequiltlove.com/our-story/
Jeff Heyman: Every Day is Memorial Day
May 4 – May 9, 2023 | Community Hall Gallery
A series of black-and-white photographs inspired by the Lafayette Hillside Memorial. The works reflect on the human cost of war and remembrance, using atmospheric imagery to honor both military service members and civilians affected by conflict.
For inquiries: heyman.foto@gmail.com
Michiko Sakai: Michiko's World
January 18 – May 4, 2023 | Community Hall Gallery
A series of oil paintings exploring emotion, memory, and personal expression through color. The works embrace painting as a visual language, using layered hues and abstracted forms to communicate experiences and feelings that extend beyond words.
For inquiries: michikosakai.com
2022
Yana Verba: Ukrainian Song
September 14, 2022 – January 18, 2023 | Community Hall Gallery
A series of abstract paintings inspired by Ukrainian monumental art and mosaic traditions. Created in response to the war in Ukraine, the works celebrate Ukrainian culture and resilience while drawing attention to the destruction of cultural heritage and the enduring strength of the Ukrainian people.
For inquiries: yanaverba.com
David Lew: Freedom of Abstraction
April 13 – September 14, 2022 | Community Hall Gallery
A series of abstract paintings exploring color, movement, and the expressive possibilities of the painting process. Through flowing pigments, layered textures, and spontaneous compositions, the works invite viewers to engage with abstraction as an experience of freedom and discovery.
2021
Pamela Fletcher: New Expressions
October 2021 – April 13, 2022 | Community Hall Gallery
A series of paintings and mixed-media works exploring the relationship between narrative and abstraction. Through the use of color, line, and layered imagery, the exhibition embraces experimentation, ambiguity, and visual storytelling, reflecting the artist’s transition from the structured world of law to the expressive language of art.
For inquiries: pamelafletcher.com
2020
Jared Young Chong: Cultural Explorations – Modern Works by Hawaiian Artist
December 2, 2019 – March 2, 2020 | Community Hall Gallery
A posthumous exhibition of collage and oil paintings spanning the artist’s lifetime practice. The works reflect Jared Young Chong’s experience as a second-generation Chinese American raised in Hawaii, and his later studies in fine art in California, resulting in a distinctive visual language shaped by a multicultural background and personal exploration. Curated by his son, Gordon Chong, the exhibition highlights a body of work that blends abstraction, landscape, and cultural memory into a cohesive artistic vision.
For inquiries: jaredyoungchong.wixsite.com/portfolio
2019
Ellen Reintjes: All-Stars: Fans, Fams, and Friends
September – December 2019 | Community Hall Gallery
A series of paintings exploring relationships between people, places, and personal connections, including themes of community, family, and companionship. The works reflect the artist’s broad practice spanning animals, landscapes, music, and human interest subjects.
Sharon Tama: Critters
September – November 2019 | Homework Center
A series of paintings exploring animals, nature, and everyday moments with a focus on personality, emotion, and observation. The works range from realistic depictions to imaginative interpretations, capturing both lived experience and whimsical narrative.
LPIE in the Sky: Spotlight on LPIE Artists
August – September 2019 | Community Hall Gallery
A group exhibition featuring the work of LPIE art instructors Susan Fuller, Valyrie Gillum, Tim Hancock, Kristen Jensen-Horne, and Lisa Larsen. The exhibition highlights their roles as both artists and educators, recognizing their contributions to arts education and the cultural life of the Lafayette community.
Camera Cabal
June 3 – August 12, 2019 | Community Hall Gallery & Homework Center
A group exhibition of Bay Area photographers presenting a range of subjects including landscapes, street photography, abstractions, and portraiture. The works highlight diverse approaches to fine art photography and visual storytelling.
Joel Tesch: Celestials and Icons / Pop Art Portraits
February 24 – May 9, 2019 |Community Hall Gallery
A series of vibrant pop-inspired portraits depicting musicians, actors, and cultural icons. The works combine bold color and graphic composition to create energetic interpretations of contemporary and historical figures.
2018
Helen Ann Licht: Travels in Color
October 1, 2018 – February 24, 2019 | Community Hall Gallery
A series of acrylic paintings inspired by the artist’s travels, featuring scenes and people from India and Burma. The works reflect a vibrant observational approach to color and place drawn from international travel experiences.
For inquiries: helenannlicht.com
Day in the Life: Community Photo Contest
July 29, 2018 | Homework Center
A community photography exhibition celebrating Lafayette’s 50th anniversary of incorporation. The show features selected works from residents of all ages documenting life in Lafayette on July 29, 2018, including the winning photograph by Chuck DeLeuw, Thanks for Stopping in Lafayette.
Dana Beebe & Maria Santo Stefano: Plein Air Landscapes
June 5 – October 1, 2018 | Community Hall Gallery
A joint exhibition of plein air landscape paintings by East Bay artists Dana Beebe and Maria Santo Stefano. The works reflect observational landscape painting traditions and mentorship within the Bay Area plein air community.
Ann Loar: Quilts
July 2018 | Homework Center
A series of handmade quilts exploring color, pattern, and textile design. The works highlight traditional quilting techniques and personal expression through fabric and form.
Dan Klapprott: Pit-Fired Ceramics
2018 | Community Hall Gallery
A series of ceramic works created using pit-firing techniques. The works emphasize texture, surface variation, and experimental firing processes that produce organic and unpredictable results.
2017
Joseph Loria & Brian Shea: Closing Summer / Works in Wood
September 11 – December 2017 | Community Hall Gallery
A joint exhibition featuring large-scale oil paintings by Joseph Loria alongside sculptural wood works by Brian Shea. The show brings together painting and three-dimensional form, highlighting contrasting approaches to landscape, material, and craft.
Bay Area Studio Artists (BASA): Build-Your-Brain
Summer 2017 |Homework Center
A group exhibition by Bay Area Studio Artists presented in conjunction with the library’s summer reading program. The works explore imaginative interpretations of learning, creativity, and the idea of building knowledge through visual art.
Nancy Rubin: Mighty Dads
2017 | Homework Center
A photographic series featuring portraits of fathers from across the Bay Area. The works highlight everyday moments of family life and relationships through documentary-style photography.
Day in the Life: Community Photo Exhibit
Summer 2017 | Community Hall Gallery
A community photography exhibition featuring images captured by Lafayette residents on the Spring Equinox. The show documents everyday life in the city, including the first-place winning photograph “Boots on the Square” by Stu Selland.
LPIE Student Photography Exhibition
May – June 2017 | Community Hall Gallery
A student photography exhibition featuring work by Acalanes Union High School students. The works highlight developing artistic vision through observational and experimental photography.
Dorie Smith: Spring Flowers in Watercolor
March 20 – May 8, 2017 | Community Hall Gallery
A series of watercolor paintings depicting floral subjects in bold compositions and vibrant color. The works reflect a contemporary realist approach developed through decades of painting practice and exhibition.
Melissa Mohle: Use Less or Useless
2017 | Community Hall Gallery
A photographic series combining altered landscape imagery with consumer goods. The works examine the environmental impact of consumption and encourage reflection on sustainability and material culture.
2016
Bay Area Studio Artists: BASA Celebrates National Parks Centennial
November 2016 – February 13, 2017 | Community Hall Gallery
A group exhibition by Bay Area Studio Artists celebrating the National Park Service Centennial. The works feature interpretations of national parks and recreation areas, including a collaborative painting inspired by Yosemite and John Muir.
David Lew: Artwork
2016 | Homework Center
A series of paintings exploring layered abstraction, process, and material experimentation. The works emphasize surface, pigment, and the relationship between construction and deconstruction in painting.
Lundy Siegriest: Plein Air Landscapes
September 12 – November 20, 2016 | Community Hall Gallery
A series of plein air oil paintings depicting pastoral and landscape scenes from Northern California. The exhibition highlights the artist’s connection to California Impressionism through color, light, and direct observation of the landscape.
Three Artists from the Lafayette Gallery
June 13 – September 12, 2016 | Community Hall Gallery
A group exhibition featuring oil paintings by Geoff Meredith, pastels and watercolors by Dalia Alekna, and ceramics by Olga Jusidman. The works span multiple media and reflect diverse approaches to landscape, abstraction, and functional craft.
Ruth Stanton: Portraits and Family Scenes
June 20 – September 12, 2016 | Homework Center
A series of paintings depicting family members, pets, and personal moments from everyday life. The works are characterized by bold color, expressive composition, and narrative scenes drawn from lived experience.
LPIE Art Exhibition
May 9 – June 12, 2016 | Community Hall Gallery
A student photography exhibition featuring work by Acalanes High School students through Lafayette Partners in Education (LPIE). The works highlight developing visual storytelling skills through observational photography.
Speaking Through Art: A Special Perspective
March 14 – May 1, 2016 | Community Hall Gallery
A group exhibition featuring artists from Las Trampas, presenting works created by individuals with developmental disabilities. The exhibition emphasizes art as a form of communication, expression, and shared language.
Joanne Taeuffer: Oscar and Everyday Life
March 17 – June 17, 2016 | Homework Center
A series of paintings focusing on the artist’s cat Oscar and scenes from daily life. The works explore personal narrative through expressive acrylic painting and recurring domestic subjects.
For inquiries: joannetaeuffer.com
Nagui Achamalla: Art of Nagui
January 11 – March 14, 2016 |Community Hall Gallery
A series of oil paintings influenced by Egyptian and Mediterranean themes, often featuring human figures in contemplative or symbolic settings. The works explore identity, time, and existential reflection through figurative imagery.
For inquiries: nagui.com
2015
The Outsiders, Townfolk and Pear Series
September 11 – November 30, 2015 | Community Hall Gallery
A group exhibition featuring plein air paintings by Randall Sexton, Jerrold Turner, and Nikki Basch-Davis alongside ceramic works by Judy Miller. The show brings together landscape painting and sculptural ceramics, highlighting varied approaches to place, form, and narrative expression.
Ellen Reintjes: Dogs
August 7 – December 31, 2015 | Homework Center
A series of paintings and drawings exploring the personalities and relationships of dogs. The works reflect the artist’s long-term connection to her subjects, combining observational painting with playful, narrative interpretations.
LPIE Student Art Exhibition Project
May – August 2015 | Community Hall Gallery
A student photography exhibition featuring digital works by Acalanes High School students through Lafayette Partners in Education (LPIE). The works highlight creative exploration and developing technical skills in contemporary photography.
Day in the Life: Winter Solstice 2014
January 26 – April 13, 2015 | Community Hall Gallery
A community photography exhibition featuring images taken in Lafayette on the Winter Solstice. The show presents selected works from local residents, including juried award-winning photographs documenting a single day in the city.
2014
Dave Dondero: California Oaks Series
October 14, 2014 – January 25, 2015 | Community Hall Gallery
A photographic series exploring California’s native oak trees as defining elements of the landscape. The works capture the scale, character, and light of oak-dominated environments through detailed and atmospheric imagery.
Dwight Yassany & Janice Peacock: Adventures in Wildlife and Glass
June 9 – October 13, 2014 | Community Hall Gallery
A joint exhibition featuring detailed pen-and-ink wildlife drawings by Dwight Yassany and sculptural glass works by Janice Peacock. The show combines two distinct mediums to explore nature through both illustrative and sculptural forms.
Outstanding High School Artists
March 24 – June 9, 2014 | Community Hall Gallery
A group exhibition featuring student work from Acalanes, Campolindo, and Miramonte High Schools. The show highlights emerging artistic voices across photography and visual media from the Lamorinda region.
Binh Danh: The Crosses – A Protest Against Forgetting
January 13 – March 24, 2014 | Community Hall Gallery
A series of digital prints based on Daguerreotype images documenting the Lafayette memorial known as The Crosses. The works reflect on memory, history, and public commemoration through photographic preservation.
2013
Student Art from Afghanistan
November 12, 2013 – January 13, 2014 | Community Hall Gallery
A student art exhibition featuring drawings created by Afghan children participating in Trust in Education (TIE) programs. The works reflect themes of creativity, resilience, and hope, highlighting the role of art education in supporting young artists in regions affected by conflict.