Selected works from the collections of Idie Adams & Alan Carrier, Ron & Sally Ginochio, Nathan Heyman, Lois Perkins and Marilyn & Earl Souza.
Ellen Akimoto
Natasha Bittencourt-Silva
Jose Bodas
Sal Casa
Chunhong Chang
Jessica Eastburn
Wyatt Hersey
K@ng
Portia Lyde
Dave Lane
Richard Lea
Lauri Luck
Jeff Nebeker
Mariam Pakbaz
Ann Pierce
Steve Reoutt
Stan Sours
Richard Whitehead
For questions or to participate as a performer, please contact Reed Rickmers at (530) 804-3044
Exhibition: January 24 - March 1, 2026
Reception: Friday, February 6, 5-7pm
Chico Art Center invites members to exhibit one artwork to kick off the new year!
This exhibition is generously sponsored by Cris Guenter.
CALL FOR ART
ENTRY FEE: Membership: $20 Student / $40 Individual / $65 Family
DROP OFF: Saturday - Sunday, January 17 & 18, 10am - 4pm
For questions contact Cameron Kelly, gallery director at gallerydirectorcac@gmail.com or text 4158234415
TERMS
Exhibition: December 9, 2025 - January 16, 2026
Tour the Exhibit with the artist's wife, Marion Hunziker-Larsen:
Sunday, December 14, 2025 at 2:00pm
Reception:
Friday, January 9, 5:00 - 7:00pm
Presentation of Nicolai’s Mural and Commercial Work:
In Person- Saturday, January 10, 2026 at 2:00pm
Zoom Presentation- Sunday, January 11 at 2:00pm
Nicolai Larsen was known for his inventive, visionary painted imagery, fine art canvases, award-winning large-scale mural art, and architectural painted environments. Nicolai studied art at the San Francisco Art Institute and the Academy of Art College. He was selected to work in the CETA Art in Public Places Project in San Mateo County, CA. Later, he became a set designer at Marine World/Africa USA. Nicolai has been internationally commissioned to create works for public, corporate, and private clients.
Starting in 1982, Nicolai operated his own visual arts company specializing in fine arts, murals, trompe l’oeil, and design. He has exhibited his work in many venues, including the Peninsula Museum of Art, Diablo Valley Planetarium, Stanford University, UC Berkeley, NASA Ames Research Center, and the Vorpal Gallery in San Francisco.
Nicolai moved to Chico from the Bay Area in 2013 with his wife, son, and dog. He came to appreciate the North Valley for its wide open space and relaxed pace of life. The valley and its surroundings provided a wealth of imagery for an artist to respond to, and a quieter, more contemplative place to develop new work. The Chico art community also offered him a chance to engage with art organizations. Shortly after relocating to Chico, Nicolai joined the Chico Art Center and became involved in shepherding innovative exhibition concepts and organizing fun fundraisers while serving on the board of the Chico Art Center.
Presentation of Nicolai’s Mural and Commercial Work:
In Person- Saturday, January 10, 2026 at 2:00pm
Zoom Presentation- Sunday, January 11 at 2:00pm
The presentation of Nicolai Larsen's mural and commercial work is now available to watch online. Click button below to visit the exhibition page.
Drop Off: October 25-26 during gallery hours, 10am - 4pm
November 1 - 28, 2025
Reception: Friday, November 7, 5-7PM
This annual community exhibit of 12x12 inch artworks is a celebration of tiny experiments in color, shape and materials by artists of all ages. Collage, assemblage, textile, wire sculpture, paper clay, origami, found objects, you name it! Let your imagination run wild! Use it as a platform for a sculpture, hang it from the ceiling, make it a box, use the reverse side, stretch your favorite fabric over it, weave it, upholster it, knit over it, felt it, use encaustic wax, feather it, flock it, fleece it or frottage it!
Entry Fee: $20 ($10 for Students). Complimentary 12x12" canvas included but not required. You're welcome to use your own as long as it is 12x12".
Pick Up: November 29-30 during gallery hours, 10am - 4pm
Install: October 28-31, during gallery hours 11:30am- 4:00pm
November 1 - 28, 2025
Reception: Friday, November 7, 5-7PM in conjunction with the Small Works Exhibit
In the spirit of El Dia de los Muertos ofrendas, artists and community members create altars that remember those that have passed. You are invited to create an altar with a community minded theme. For example, if you want to remember a loved one, your altar could be dedicated to families. Your loved one's picture can be displayed on a shelf with ofrendas or offerings of things that they loved, like foods, drinks, flowers, incense, stones, etc. On the wall label, a local or national social services organization that relates to your loved ones interests can be dedicated in their honor.
Ofrendas are altars that leave offerings to entice the spirits back for a visit from the spirit world. The elements of the ofrenda stem from the idea of celebration of death in life. Each element and level have significance that you can read about here.
To reserve a 10 ft. tall x 4 ft. wide wall space, please email gallerydirectorcac@gmail.com, subject: Reserve an Altar Space
Take Down Altars: Saturday - Sunday, November 29-30, from Noon-4:00pm
Reception: Friday, September 5, 5:00-7:00pm
Chico Art Center is honored to announce a transformative legacy gift: The Jodaitis-Walker Creative Works Center and the Peter Jodaitis Studio. This generous bequest includes the couple’s home, Peter Jodaitis’ studio, a significant body of his artwork, and funding dedicated to preserving, studying, and promoting his artwork.
To commemorate this extraordinary gift, we present an exhibition offering an intimate glimpse into Peter Jodaitis’ studio practice. Featured are a selection of works on paper, sketchbooks, sculptures and a rich archive of correspondence, spanning his prolific career from 2001 to 2016.
Peter Jodaitis (1936-2017) was a self-taught painter and sculptor whose work spans 50 years. His education at Bates College and the University of Connecticut was in economics, but his real passion was always art. After a stint in business he devoted himself full time to art, teaching himself by doing, observing and trading modeling in drawing classes for the right to sit in on them and draw from the model. He showed work on the East Coast where he was born and lived with his wife and two children, and then moved to California where he continued to draw, paint and sculpt, showing work at The Humanities Gallery at Chico State, 1078 Gallery, the studios and galleries of Daniel Donnely, and James Snidle among other venues.
Time spent in Mexico, Morocco, and France produced landscapes and related imagery, and reading produced illustrations for two novels, but his first love was the human form, itself, for him, a landscape. “The human form reflects all facets of nature; it is where we all live.” A passionate, even obsessive artist, he produced a monumental body of work, and recorded his thoughts about art, quotations from his eclectic reading, appropriated images, and his own brief sketches in hundreds of artist’s notebooks/sketchbooks. His meditations on the connections between looking and making are expressed in words, images, and above all, in the gestures of the artist.
“I only know that I need to be in my studio every day. If I weren’t able to work, I’d become a lost soul.”
A Landmark Bequest
Chico, CA – August, 2025 – The Chico Art Center is proud to present a memorial exhibition showcasing selections from Peter Jodaitis’ works. His passing on January 5, 2017, is still keenly missed in the local arts community. Titled The hand that spoke, this exhibition offers a glimpse into Peter’s studio practice, featuring a selection of works on paper, sketchbooks, sculpture and archive of his correspondence with a French friend, Sophie Fourré, that spans his prolific career from 2001 to 2016.
The exhibition includes selections, primarily from his bicycle series and nudes, demonstrating his vibrant color sensibility and command of watercolor, gouache and ink media. His hand is celebrated for his fluid, gestural compositions. Jodaitis was known for his distinctive approach to color, texture, and form, often working in series.
This special exhibition is made possible through a generous bequest from Peter’s wife, Ellen Walker, who, upon her passing, will leave the entirety of Peter’s artistic legacy – including his artwork, studio, and house to the Chico Art Center. The scope of Peter's collection is truly remarkable: Over 4,000 completed works, along with an extensive archive of sketchbooks, studies, and personal artifacts that span five decades of his creative life.
In honor of this extraordinary gift, the Chico Art Center has committed to promoting and exhibiting Peter Jodaitis’ work for generations to come. The artwork will be carefully managed, ensuring that future generations can enjoy his art.
As part of the bequest, Peter’s house and studio will also be donated intact to the Art Center. The Chico Art Center envisions transforming the property into a hub for community engagement, including guided public tours, special receptions, and the establishment of a visiting artist program. This exciting new initiative will allow visitors to experience the space where Peter lived and created, fostering an immersive connection to his life and work.
“We are deeply honored to be entrusted with Peter’s legacy,” said Cameron Kelly, Gallery Director of the Chico Art Center. “Through this bequest, we are ensuring that his artistic spirit will continue to inspire and enrich the lives of others for years to come.”
The Peter Jodaitis: The hand that spoke exhibition will be open to the public from August 16 to September 19, with an opening reception on Friday, September 5, 5-7pm. The Art Center invites all members of the community to come and celebrate the work of one of Chico’s artistic icons.
Peter’s studio will be participating in this year's Open Studios Art Tour on the weekends of October 11-12 and 18-19. You may preview the list of participating artists online at chicoosat.com, view one artwork by each artist in the gallery exhibition at Chico Art Center opening October 3rd (free admission), then purchase a guidebook for studio locations.
For more information about the exhibition or to learn more about the bequest, please contact the Chico Art Center at gallerydirectorcac@gmail.com.
