LAFI News - Nicolas Shi Exhibition

(Mount Rainier, Maryland) – The Latin American Folk Institute will open its new GALERIA with Neo-pop impressionism by Washington-based, Chinese-Salvadorian artist, Nicolas F. Shi. The one-man show, "Multiple Dimensions," opens on January 17th and will run through March 1st, 2003.

An engineer by trade, Nicolas Shi uses his extensive training as an architectural engineer to search the depth of each of his subjects, discovering in the process a world of new colors, shapes and shadows that reflect each object’s truth and meaning. His style combines the boldness of contemporary American art with the harmony and simplicity of traditional Chinese paintings and the bright colors of Central America in an exploration of color and lines.

A native of El Salvador, Nicolas is proud of his Chinese heritage and his Salvadorian upbringing. Educated in the United States, Shi has forged his artistic vision as a combination of three dimensions, three cultures and societies.

Nicolas Shi left his war-torn country in 1980 to pursue a degree in Architectural Engineering at Oklahoma State University. He has been widely recognized for his work and was awarded the 2000 Salvadorian Medal of Honor in Fine Arts, presented to him by the Ambassador of El Salvador to the United States. The Salvadorian Postal Service issued an airmail stamp bearing one of his award winning paintings, "Con la Esperanza en mi canasto"(with hope in my basket), dedicated in December 2000. Shi was an artist participant in the Washington, DC Party Animals project sponsored by the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, for which he completed "Pierre L'fant's Capital Party."

The exhibition is organized by the Latin American Folk Institute (LAFI) (www.lafi.org), a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting and studying the art, music and folklore of Latin America and the Caribbean. Using the arts as a vehicle to inspire cross-cultural understanding, LAFI makes the rich cultural heritage of the Americas accessible to everyone via educational and cultural programs. The Latin American Folk Institute’s GALERIA offers a space where local and international Latino artists can showcase their talents and new visions. The GALERIA will present four exhibitions a year and is complemented by a series of artist workshops, gallery talks and guest lectures.