Exhibition Dates: May 18 - August 10, 2024

Deve Amare David is an open call exhibition featuring 18 local artists from the Greater Houston area. Inspired by the themes and innovations of the Renaissance, this show brings together a variety of contemporary works across multiple mediums.

Juror Matt Adams, carefully selected each piece to showcase the breadth of creativity in the community. Artists were encouraged to submit works that reflect renaissance timeless themes through their own contemporary lens.

Juror Statement

Thank you so very much to Gabriella Monterroso for inviting me to collaborate onthis project. As both an artist and gallery owner, she has the foresight to highly regard artists as she grows her business; this is why I am happy to support her efforts. A particularly enjoyable surprise was the opportunity to select the theme for the call for entries. I have been a student of Renaissance history for many years now and think everyone can benefit from the development of culture, politics, religion, and art of that time.

In reviewing the 118 works, there is an overall sense of high artistic level The selection process began by considering the artistic skills and narrative content of each work. This is where my personal prejudices came into play; these include compositional skill, use of color/s, balance of direct and implied narrative and compliance with the theme. After several passes with this mindset, I read the artist statements. In this process some works were advanced in rank while others were diminished.

Although space restraints limit my ability to write about each selected piece, please be assured that each was selected for specific albeit personal reasons.

Thank you to all the artists for submitting and keep making art for all of us to enjoy!

Matt Adams