Wallspace art gallery, located at 7701 Santa Monica Boulevard, presents ‘FREE TO BE E(WE)!”, a solo and immersive installation by Ricky Sencion aka “Little Ricky.” There will be an opening reception from 7 p.m. – 9 p.m. on Thursday June 2, 2022. The exhibit will be on view through July 31, 2022. Entry is free.
Wallspace invites you to step into Little Ricky’s world, full of color and interaction with the sheep characters known as the “Moonsters”. Join the celebration of life and memories of who e(we) are and who Little Ricky is. Little Ricky, now comfortably inhabiting his own space, lets his characters revel in the joyfulness that comes only from being free.
“The idea for the show “FREE TO BE E(WE)!” started with my 3-year-old birthday photo, said Ricky Sencion. “When I imagine myself as my best self, it’s this little boy who looks gay as fuck. There’s always been something about this photo that triggers a smile. This show is not only about going back to this happy place for myself, but about expressing and sharing real joy. To trigger a feeling of joy is what I hope to inspire.”
As a native Angeleno, gay man and Latinx queer street artist who started his career in 1988 with an uncommon discipline and work ethos in his practice, Ricky Sencion has been studying, developing, archiving, and formulating his campaigns on the street and in galleries for over 3 decades. The pink sheep are a part of the LGBTQ+ queer community and also the street art world, inspired immensely by the biography of famous clothing designer, Alexander McQueen who referred to himself not as the black sheep but as a “pink sheep.”
Thus began the turn to “pink sheep” and his many characters known as “Moonsters.” They first appeared as stickers on the streets and are now complex canvases shown at galleries. Ricky’s art is about color – rainbow colors that reflect who e(we) are as a community. At the heart and soul of the series is the idea that e(we) are all different. E(we) are all queer. E(we) are all crazy beautiful.
This show “FREE TO BE E(WE)!” is a continued expansion of his career now creating a three-dimensional experience where your sense of curiosity and playfulness will be encouraged. The show opens on the eve of WeHo Pride in West Hollywood and will run through the summer until July 31st 2022.
E(we) is pronounced (yoo wē ). It’s Little Ricky’s way of saying US.
Wallspace is a dynamic art gallery now based in West Hollywood, California exhibiting LA based abstract, contemporary, & street artists. “We are very excited about finding new visions and contributing to the launch of careers whilst also representing more established artists,” says Owner Valda Lake shares. “We regularly presents programming centered around women creators, gay, queer , BIPOC and emerging talent within art shows, art fairs and public art projects”. WALLSPACE roster is comprised of 50% women artists and 50% gay, queer artists.”
Most notably, WALLSPACE Public Art works includes installations for The City of West Hollywood on Route 66 with neon artworks by artist Scott Froschauer.
