FEATURED NEWS & EVENTS
Creative Growth Appoints Sunny A. Smith as Executive Director
The Board of Directors of Creative Growth Art Center is proud to announce the appointment of Sunny A. Smith, Executive Director and CEO. They begin the role on August 18, 2025. A nationally recognized artist, educator, and cultural leader, who believes in art as a force for change, connection, and creative agency in the 21st century, Smith most recently served as Dean of Fine Arts at California College of the Arts (CCA), where they have shaped progressive arts pedagogy, stewarded major institutional gifts, and championed equity and access to the arts for all people.
On view at cg: FIRED UP
ON VIEW FROM july 25, 2025 - august 30, 2025
Fired Up showcases ceramic works—both recent and historic—by artists from Creative Growth’s vibrant studio program. From bold forms to unexpected textures, the exhibition celebrates the playful, expressive, and endlessly experimental nature of clay. Ceramics has long been a cornerstone at Creative Growth, and Fired Up highlights the energy and imagination that continue to shape this dynamic practice.
TACTILE AND DESCRIPTIVE TOUR: Saturday, August 9th, 2-3 PM
📍 Location: Creative Growth Art Center, 355 24th Street, Oakland, CA, 94612
Creative growth artists featured in historic Los Angeles Public Library Exhibition
ON VIEW THROUGH DECEMBER 7TH, 2025
Creative Growth is proud to be a participating studio in Looks Like Home to Me: Inside the Progressive Studios, a new exhibition on view at the Los Angeles Public Library’s Getty Gallery from June 21 to December 7, 2025.
Presented by the Los Angeles Public Library, this expansive group exhibition features work by more than 100 artists from across California, all of whom create in progressive art studios—spaces that support artists with intellectual and developmental disabilities in building professional practices. Creative Growth, a longtime leader in this movement, is honored to showcase the talents of our artists alongside peers from studios across the state.
From ceramics and paintings to textiles, zines, and video work, the exhibition celebrates the diverse creative output nurtured within these inclusive environments. These works tell personal, powerful stories and reinforce the vital role of progressive art studios in contemporary art.
“Looks Like Home to Me” is a milestone moment for awareness and inclusion, and we’re thrilled to see our artists represented in this important public setting.
📍 Location: Getty Gallery, Los Angeles Central Library
630 W. Fifth St., Los Angeles, CA 90071
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