WORKS San José
Cultural center in San Jose, California
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
WORKS/San José is a nonprofit, member-run community art space, located in the Downtown Historic District of San Jose, California. It was founded in 1977 by community members.[1]
| Formation | 1977 |
|---|---|
| Type | nonprofit art center |
| Location | 38 S Second St, San Jose, California, 95113 |
| Website | workssanjose |
History
WORKS/San José began in October 1977, by a group of artists and San Jose State University faculty and students in downtown San Jose.[2] Early members of WORKS/San José include: Tony May, Erin Goodwin Guerrero, Ruth Tunstall Grant, Jan Rindfleisch, George Rivera, Rebecca Schapp, Anna Koster, Fred Shepard, Albert Dixon.[2]
WORKS/San José was originally an offshoot of the short lived MERZ gallery and Wordworks, started by Jessica Jacobs, the then San Jose State University gallery director.[2] Jacobs was instrumental in the establishment of the nonprofit status and acquisition of the initial space.[2] When Jacobs left WORKS/San José, the organization structure changed towards a more democratic approach.[2] Gallery operations are run by member volunteers.[3] San Jose State University art professor Tony May became the first president of the board of directors.[4]
WORKS has occupied many locations in downtown San Jose including at Vine and Auzerais Streets (from 1977 to 1985);[2][3] the Leticia Building at 66 South First Street (from 1985 to 1990); a warehouse space at 260 Jackson Street in Japantown (from 1990 to 1996); the Sperry Flour Building at 30 North Third Street (from 1997 to 2007);[1] 451 South First Street (from 2007 to 2011); 365 South Market Street (from 2011 to 2022).[4] The gallery was moved to the historic 38 South Second Street location in 2022.[5]
Exhibitions and work
Notable artists showing at WORKS/San José, many early in their career, include Laurie Anderson,[2] Binh Danh,[6] Jim Campbell, Annie Sprinkle,[1] Alan Rath ,[7] Lynn Hershman Leeson,[7] Holly Lane,[7] Mark Pauline of Survival Research Laboratories,[7] Malaquis Montoya,[7] Ed Osborn,[7] Yolanda Lopez,[7] and Linda Montano.[4]
Throughout its history, WORKS/San José has presented performance art, music, film, theater, spoken word, visual and conceptual art, workshops, panels, and lectures.[8] Most exhibitions are produced by guest curators from the community.[7][1][4]