April 15, 2025
NEWS RELEASE - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact:
Charmaine Nelson (626) 344-4325
MEET CONCEPTUAL ARTIST JIA (SAM) SHANGUO COMMISSIONED BY PASADENA SENIOR CENTER FOR PSC’S 65TH ANNIVERSARY
Internationally-renowned conceptual artist Jia (Sam) Shanguo will share his artistic process and the concept behind his new original work ‘Diversity and Symbiosis,’ a collection of 30 original abstract pieces commissioned by the Pasadena Senior Center, in a special event with the artist on Tuesday, April 29 at 10:30 a.m.
The event is free for Pasadena Senior Center members and non-members, and reservations are suggested. To register or for more information, visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org and click on Lectures & Classes, then Informational Lectures, or call 626-795-4331.
This year-long project is part of the Pasadena Senior Center’s celebration of 65 years of service to older adults in the San Gabriel Valley. PSC members interviewed for this fine art project hail from various countries, including India, Ecuador, China, England, Austria, Canada and the Philippines. The exhibition of the work will open at the Center in Fall, 2025.
Shanguo, an immigrant to the United States from Shandong province in China, was inspired by PSC members’ immigration stories to explore how journeys of leaving one country behind impact rebuilding lives in America. For the work, he interviewed many in the PSC community, and asked each interviewee to write down one sentence that “influences them the most in their lives” in their immigrant story. Using typography as the basis for each piece, Shanguo will “print the sentence, letter by letter, and engrave those into the oil painting,” and subsequently will layer multiple colors over the canvases to represent “the lives of the people that are also built layer by layer.”
Shanguo, an MFA graduate from the China Central Academy of Fine Arts, conceptualized this original idea upon arriving in California in 2022, a journey he embarked on to foster a better career path and grow his reputation on the international art state.
For 65 years, Pasadena Senior Center’s mission has been to improve the lives of older adults through caring service with opportunities for social interaction, fitness programs, basic support and needs services, education, volunteerism and community activism. With 10,000 Americans per day becoming older adults, the center is a leader in addressing issues of aging and provides innovative, cutting-edge, nationally recognized programs for this population group.
As a donor-supported nonprofit, the center operates without any local, state or federal funding and provides more services to older adults than any other organization in the San Gabriel Valley. Hours of operation are Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Saturday from 8 a.m. to noon. To learn more visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org or call 626-794-4331.