Art Exhibit 'Flowers & Fields' To Premiere In San Diego

SAN DIEGO, CA — Spring is over, but flowers still bloom at public relations firm J. Walcher Communications, which is hosting a florally inspired art exhibition from Southern California artist Andrew Alcasid this month.

The San Diego firm’s office space hosts Alcasid’s exhibition, “Flowers & Fields,” from Saturday through July 25.

Much of the show features Alcasid’s watercolor paintings of flowers and fields of color, but the exhibition will also include art in a variety of media, including monotype prints and a series of coil pots that Alcasid created to hold plants and flowers.

“There’s no better subject matter, I think,” Alcasid said. “Like, humans are fun to draw, but flowers are something special. My partner and I are always trying to define, like, why flowers? Why do people give flowers when they’re sick or when they want to offer appreciation or congratulations? It’s always flowers.”

Alcasid's partner is a floral decorator and brings him flowers every day. They try to keep flowers in the house at all times, he added. He grew up raising orchids with his mother, a hobby he continues to this day, which means he’s well supplied with subjects to paint on a daily basis.

“It’s a really fun way to almost, like, keep a diary of my daily paintings. I always have something to paint,” Alcasid said. “And I love referencing art history. I love the idea of being connected to the masters like Picasso and Van Gogh, how they used to paint flowers. I love thinking that I’m carrying on that tradition.”

The exhibition space and J. Walcher Communications’ office are in an 1896 Queen Anne Victorian house, making it a special venue for Alcasid’s art. He’s been figuring out how his art should work with the office’s environment.

“I like the idea of having very specific parameters for my work and the space, trying to find the middle ground for the two so that it seems like a seamless installation,” Alcasid said. “I want viewers to recognize that it’s a very intentional display.”

Some of the work is intervention art, meaning Alcasid’s work purposefully interacts with the existing fixtures and space in the office. Even the shadows and light are intentional, he said.

“I’d like to spark inspiration in people to draw more and, again, spark some love for plants. And possibly when they see my intervention work … try to open their eyes to more situational things like shadows and light play and just their posture in the world,” Alcasid said. “If and when they see the intervention works, I hope they reach some type of 'aha' moment and start to see things differently that way.”

Antoinette Genevieve Williams of Apotheosis Art and Kamaal Martin of Art, Power, Equity are curating Flowers & Fields. Williams and Alcasid have discussed the exhibition for about a year — it was put on hold because of the pandemic — and Williams has helped with decisions about how to present Alcasid’s art in the house-turned-office-turned art gallery.

“I think his work is nuanced but also very powerful,” Williams said. “Especially when you see him working on something, you get a better understanding of the meticulous side of him. He really does hone in on an idea and then reworks it in the process.”

Alcasid’s work is intentional but there’s also a simplicity that comes with the subject. The flowers and colors Alcasid shows are open to interpretation — and simple appreciation.

“I want them to come in and see it with fresh eyes,” he said. “Walk in without any baggage or preconceptions of what’s happening with the show … just looking for things that are interesting and things that spark joy and recognizing things that they think are beautiful.”

J. Walcher Communications is at 1940 Market St. in San Diego.

Alcasid will give an artist’s talk from 3:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, followed by a public opening from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. The exhibition’s final day on July 25 will be marked by a closing event from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.