PBS SoCal Hosts Screening Premiere of ARTBOUND: 'The Cheech' Highlighting the Importance of Chicano Art
highlighted in the film as well as several elected officials and their representatives.
PRESS CONTACT
Allison Gray
agray@pbssocal.org
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On Sun., Sept. 29, PBS SoCal premiered its fifteenth season of original Emmy® award-winning arts and culture series ARTBOUND. The new season of the one-hour documentary series kicked off with a look at the creation of a world-class art museum and education center dedicated to Mexican-American artists – The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture of the Riverside Art Museum (aka “The Cheech”) featuring interviews with actor and art collector Cheech Marin. The event took place at The Cheech and The Box Riverside theater where close to 200 guests previewed an advance screening of the PBS SoCal program paired with a panel discussion, brunch and private tour of the museum. Attendees included iconic actor and art collector Cheech Marin (“Up In Smoke,” “Nash Bridges”), elected officials/representatives from across the region and artists from across Southern California as well as the filmmakers and onscreen talent from the upcoming season, which premieres on Fri., Oct. 4 at 8 p.m. PT on PBS SoCal, with streaming on PBS.org and the PBS App.
A private brunch hosted by Arterial preceded the screening where about 70 guests celebrated the documentary while drinking mimosas and receiving private tours of The Cheech. Attendees heard from the Cheech’s Executive Director Drew Oberjuerge and Artistic Director Maria Esther Fernandez before hearing a few words from Cheech Marin who proceeded to take individual photos with the guests. The brunch closed with attendees receiving a limited-edition ARTBOUND tote bag created for the event, which featured art from each of the new films in the series.
Guests then walked a block to the City of Riverside’s The Box theater for a screening of “ARTBOUND: The Cheech” with remarks from PBS SoCal President/Chief Executive Officer Andrew Russell and PBS SoCal Chief Content Officer Tamara Gould who introduced guests to ARTBOUND after a welcome from Riverside’s Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson. The almost at-capacity theater also got a a sneak peek of all five episodes coming up in Season 15 of ARTBOUND prior to the world premiere screening of the film ARTBOUND: “The Cheech.” A panel discussion followed that included Cheech Marin, the film’s writer and director Varda Bar-Kar of GroundStorm Media and Chicano artist Cici Segura Gonzalez moderated by LACMA CEO and Wallis Annenberg Director Michael Govan. Guests were invited to enjoy entry to The Cheech for FREE between 2-5 p.m. following the screening.
In addition to Mayor Lock Dawson, several elected officials and/or their reps attended the event including City Councilman Sean Mill, Dr. Resma Bryne (Superintendent of Alvord Unified School District), Renee Hill (Superintendent of Riverside Unified School District) and reps for Congressman Adam Schiff, Supervisor Hilda Solis, US Representative Mark Takano. Additional attendees included comedian Jesus Trejo, artist Mark Steven Greenfield, author and sociologist Nancy Wang Yuen, art influencer Charlie James, award-winning local journalist Val Zavala and Chicano artists featured in the film which included Margaret Garcia, Manuel Lopez, Ever Velasquez, Michael Alvarez, Jaime Munoz, Alfonso Gonzalez, Jr and many more.
ARTBOUND: “The Cheech” follows iconic actor and art collector Cheech Marin on his mission to bring Chicano art to the mainstream art world. After amassing over 700 pieces since the mid-1980s, his efforts have led to the creation of The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture of the Riverside Art Museum, a regionally-based, nationally-focused art institution dedicated to Mexican-American artists. Told through perspectives of established artists and those who know him best, the film tells his journey from comedy icon to Chicano art advocate.
