Visiting Artist Series
The Rivers School Visiting Artist Program offers professional visual artists the opportunity to exhibit artwork on campus. Artists are selected based on the ability of their work to speak to a variety of topics and subjects relevant to the Rivers community. The visiting artist engages with students and community members in various ways, including giving public talks, hosting evening events, critiquing student artwork, leading class discussions, and teaching workshops. The Rivers School recognizes and respects the diversity of our students and community, and we welcome all artists regardless of race, ethnicity, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexuality, socio-economic class, age, religion, or disability.
2024 - 2025 Exhibits
2024: Whitney Robbins "Brown Series"
Whitney Robbins is a cross-trainer in all they pursue. As artist, athlete, teacher, student, naturalist, and non-profit leader, they chase ideas and advocate passionately for social justice in their community. Whitney loves making art in the studio, volunteering at the Stone Soup Café in Greenfield, MA, and teaching folks about the power of art to transform our world into a place where we all belong and can co-create our future.
Their latest exhibit, “Brown Series” explores all the beautiful places this color can take you. You will encounter paintings, mixed media assemblages, found objects, and strangely familiar collages in a variety of sizes. In the words of the artist, “Warmth. A sense of place. Mysterious cracks. Histories (real and imagined) and time travel. These are some of the sensations that presented themselves to me when I made the simple shift of altering my palette to work primarily with the color brown.”
Whitney Robbins is a cross-trainer in all they pursue. As artist, athlete, teacher, student, naturalist, and non-profit leader, they chase ideas and advocate passionately for social justice in their community. Whitney loves making art in the studio, volunteering at the Stone Soup Café in Greenfield, MA, and teaching folks about the power of art to transform our world into a place where we all belong and can co-create our future.
Their latest exhibit, “Brown Series” explores all the beautiful places this color can take you. You will encounter paintings, mixed media assemblages, found objects, and strangely familiar collages in a variety of sizes. In the words of the artist, “Warmth. A sense of place. Mysterious cracks. Histories (real and imagined) and time travel. These are some of the sensations that presented themselves to me when I made the simple shift of altering my palette to work primarily with the color brown.”
Past Exhibits
2024: Joan Hall "Take Another Road to a Better Place"
Joan Hall’s expansive mixed media sculptures reflect her deep connection to and concern for the Earth’s oceans. A lifelong sailor, Hall uses her art to address climate change and the human impact on marine environments. From her home and studio in Jamestown, Rhode Island, Hall sees the effects of climate change firsthand – the increasing plastic pollution infesting waterways, the appearance of invasive algae, and the subsequent loss of native aquatic species, all of which disrupt delicate and vital ecosystems.
Joan Hall’s expansive mixed media sculptures reflect her deep connection to and concern for the Earth’s oceans. A lifelong sailor, Hall uses her art to address climate change and the human impact on marine environments. From her home and studio in Jamestown, Rhode Island, Hall sees the effects of climate change firsthand – the increasing plastic pollution infesting waterways, the appearance of invasive algae, and the subsequent loss of native aquatic species, all of which disrupt delicate and vital ecosystems.
Hall focuses on the use of handmade paper to shape the undulating wave-like forms of her sculptural pieces. Vibrant pigments, often in the form of pulp, color her pieces in hues that mimic destructive algae. Hall’s work also incorporates various printmaking techniques, using plastics and assorted trash found on local beaches to create collagraphic printing plates. The resultant prints are a beautiful but brutal reminder of humankind's role in widespread oceanic pollution. Hall’s goal is to initiate a conversation about the deterioration of our greatest resource – water, in the hope that her message yields positive change.
Read a recap of the event here.
Read a recap of the event here.
2023: Opal Ecker DeRuvo "Touch and Recognition"
"Touch and Recognition" features a decade of prints and photos by transfeminine artist Opal Ecker DeRuvo. From traditional printmaking to experimental photo processes, the exhibition captures their exploration of personal scenes, self-portraiture, and intimate moments with loved ones. DeRuvo, initiated into printmaking at 14, earned a BFA from the Massachusetts College of Art and Design, followed by six years as a collaborative printmaker in Norwalk, CT. Their MFA from Yale delved into the intersection of photography and printmaking history. DeRuvo's work has graced venues like the International Print Center of New York and the Westmoreland Museum of Art. With a book published in Germany and public art commissions in New Haven and Massachusetts, DeRuvo now resides in Brooklyn, New York.
"Touch and Recognition" features a decade of prints and photos by transfeminine artist Opal Ecker DeRuvo. From traditional printmaking to experimental photo processes, the exhibition captures their exploration of personal scenes, self-portraiture, and intimate moments with loved ones. DeRuvo, initiated into printmaking at 14, earned a BFA from the Massachusetts College of Art and Design, followed by six years as a collaborative printmaker in Norwalk, CT. Their MFA from Yale delved into the intersection of photography and printmaking history. DeRuvo's work has graced venues like the International Print Center of New York and the Westmoreland Museum of Art. With a book published in Germany and public art commissions in New Haven and Massachusetts, DeRuvo now resides in Brooklyn, New York.
2022: Cedric Douglas "Street Memorials Project"
Cedric “Vise1” Douglas is an Artist, Designer, and Social Interventionist. He has created artwork around Boston for more than two decades. Much of his work aims to engage the audience in meaningful conversations and document powerful moments in history. His recent project, “The Street Memorial Project,” is a collection of work exploring police brutality and racial injustice. His other projects include “The People’s Memorial Project,” a pop-up public video projection installation addressing controversial public monuments, and the “Tools of Protest” project, where printed rolls of caution tape reading “I can’t breathe” and “Don’t shoot” are passed out to protesters. His work has been exhibited across the United States and in Colombia. He is the Creative Director of The Up Truck, a mobile arts lab created to engage and connect with underserved communities in Boston through art and creativity. Douglas has been an artist-in-residence at Northeastern University and was Emerson College’s first public artist-in-residence. He grew up in Grove Hall and then Quincy with his three siblings.
Read a recap of the event here.
Read a recap of the event here.
2020: Naoe Suzuki "Mapping"
In this exhibition, which occupied both the Bell Gallery and the Revers Center, Suzuki presented several bodies of work related to mapping and maps. Her exhibition showed how collecting and organizing layers of information in science, and weaving of histories can be interpreted as an attempt to understand the unknown. The drawings based on historical maps were presented with selected information visible within the cartographic system.
Read a recap of the event here.
In this exhibition, which occupied both the Bell Gallery and the Revers Center, Suzuki presented several bodies of work related to mapping and maps. Her exhibition showed how collecting and organizing layers of information in science, and weaving of histories can be interpreted as an attempt to understand the unknown. The drawings based on historical maps were presented with selected information visible within the cartographic system.
Read a recap of the event here.
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