Main Gallery: Solo exhibition by Yanina Angelini Arismendi

Originally from Montevideo, Uruguay, Yanina also known as Nina (pronouns They/Them) has lived in FXBG for almost 20 years. In that time, Yanina has been an activist and advocate in the Fredericksburg community. Yanina is a top Intersectional Feminist/ Race writer on Medium, an educator on race relations and a self-taught multi-disciplinary artist.

After approximately four years of outspoken activism against gentrification, cultural appropriation, racism and inequality in FXBG (byway of using Art Mart as a platform and later, transforming AM's vision to include it as a Safe Space for the LBGTQA2S and People of Color when the need became evident) both Yanina and their business still today faces backlash for standing against the deeply held white supremacist views Fredericksburg's community holds onto and (historically) romanticizes.

They have endured harassment from community members, business owners as well as the police and have been blacklisted with constant bans from establishments in Downtown Fredericksburg willing to harbor racists instead of opening up to dialogue from the community and education from experts.

This July Yanina tells her painful story through mixed media works:

"In this new body of works [I] continue to explore personal themes of grief and depression stemming from the immigrant's struggle for belonging in this land and pushing the boundaries between fine arts, street arts, visionary arts and online meme culture a little closer together. "

Join us for a #FirstFriday opening reception expanding continents as this reception will be filmed and broadcasted over Facebook live. Light summer refreshments will be served, music provided by Pedal String Quartet of Fredericksburg and a special Spoken word performance by Poet Ghadir Said.

Free to the public.

July 7th, 6 to 9pm
810 Caroline Street
Fourth Floor
Fredericksburg, VA 22401

For more information on the artist: www.yaninaangelini.com

For more on the gallery: www.artmartfxbg.com

Flyer by Justin Young
Photo by Sage Evans