New art exhibit celebrating global diversity opens in Aurora
A new exhibition designed to celebrate world diversity has opened its doors in downtown Aurora.
“Kinora: A Cultural Heritage Group Show” presents a work of a variety of contemporary artists alongside various ethnographic artefacts and art from all over the world, according to a press release from the city of Aurora. The new art exhibition is the third division of Aurora public art in 2025.
The exhibition and related events are at Aurora Public Art at David L. Pierce Art and History Center, 20 E. Downer place in downtown Aurora. The art gallery is open from noon to 4 p.m. Wednesday to Friday and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.
“The inclusion of ethnographic art will provide a fascinating contrast and will complete contemporary works, offering a more in -depth understanding of human creativity through various cultures and periods of time,” said conservative Sangeeta Pandea in the city’s press release on the new exhibition. “It also highlights the personal connections and the passions of individuals within the Aurora community.”
Contemporary artists presented in the exhibition include Aurora 10th Ward Ald. Shweta Baid, Abdoulaye Conde, Martha Ponzio, Marita Valdizan, Karla Wong, Varun Vasireddy and Breyona Smith as well as Georgene Schramer, who is the former mayor of Aurora Tom Weisner, the city press release, said the press release.
The exhibition also hosts important ethnographic artefacts from the Salomon Islands, supplied by the family collection of Tom and Marilyn Weisner, as well as the art of Papua New Guinea from the family collections of Milton and Cecil Johnson and Marcus and Christine Felde, plus a utilitarian play from Africa brought by Adam Brummel, according to the press release.
A variety of related events will take place in the coming months as part of the exhibition, all of which will be held at Aurora Public Art at 20 E. Downer Place.
Friday, August 22, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., Marilyn Weisner will share her experiences from the Salomon Islands, followed by a conference by Aurora’s deputy poet, Quentin Johnson and the director of innovation and strategy of Aurora, Martha Paschke, in Papua in Papua.
The following week, Friday August 29 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., a free watercolor workshop will be led by Martha Ponzio, an art therapist of the Art Institute in Chicago.
Friday, September 5, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., the exhibition will honor the Hispanic heritage month by organizing a celebration in collaboration with Jose Torres and the model agency SS, with a musical performance by Juan Diego Rojas.
On Saturday September 13, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., there will be a free workshop on stitchs for 16 years and over led by Peruvian artist Marita Valdizan.
Then, on Friday, September 19, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., Quentin Johnson will run a poetry workshop inspired by the exhibition.
The exhibition will end on Saturday September 20, with a fashion show from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. which will be directed by the award -winning fashion designer Breyona Smith, a graduate of West Aurora High School and Columbia College Chicago.
