Influenced by the presence of his grandfather, a curandero, or healer, Hector Dionicio Mendoza has made healing, repair and community central themes of his art. The Michoacan-born, Monterey-based artist’s newest piece Creando Espacio (“Creating Space”) reimagines his grandfather’s spiritual dwelling place as inhabitable art. Opening this Wednesday at Montalvo Arts Center, the public is invited to participate in periodic acts of ritual and rite at the piece, starting with its opening ceremony this Wednesday. Inspired by the healing of individuals, the piece aims for the healing of a community. Bay Area artists Amalia Mesa-Baines and Viviana Paredes also contribute.

‘Creando Espacio’ Opening
Wed, 6pm, Free
Montalvo Arts Center, Saratoga

What do you think of when you hear the word ‘portrait?’ Someone’s face? A head-and-shoulders shot, like the Mona Lisa? Or is it something more personal: a depiction of someone’s skin and body? LA-based artist Amir H. Fallah thinks it is exactly none of these things. In his portraits, Fallah depicts obscured bodies of hooded faces, defined by their environments rather than their skin tone or facial features. In a free online event hosted by the Institute of Contemporary Art, Fallah discusses his work in the context of personal experience, veganism, allegory, film, and hip hop.

Amir H. Fallah
Wed, 6pm, Free (registration required)

If you hear a collective sigh of relief at noon, that’s just the world tuning into San Jose Art Museum’s free “Art Fix Wednesday.” Weekly throughout the pandemic, SJMA docents have taken to the internet to discuss the museum’s many stunning works, like Palestinian artist Mona Hatoum’s broken-glass installation Drowning Sorrows, and Imin Yeh’s tiny film collage work “300 non-instagrams,” which emerged out of a residency with Recology. Lasting half an hour, and discussing two pieces at a time, Art Fix Wednesday will set your head right before you get back to the grind.

Art Fix Wednesday
Wed, 12pm, Free

The Los Altos Art & Wine Festival is back for its 39th year, bringing handcrafted jewelry, sculpture, paintings, live music, food—and, of course, vino—to downtown Los Altos. At the event, 290 artists and artisans from all over the country will take over Main and State streets while locals sip, stroll and enjoy tunes courtesy of Doobie Brothers tribute band Long Train Runnin’. It’s a family-friendly event, and youngsters are invited to partake in a variety of activities, including rides and arts and crafts in the Kidzone. Parking is free and cyclists can take advantage of the bike valet. The event runs through Sunday.

Los Altos Art & Wine
Sat, 10am, Free
Downtown Los Altos

In decades past, five big arts groups dominated the Silicon Valley culture scene, slurping up the majority of public support and private donations, while dozens of much smaller organizations fought over the table scraps. With annual budgets that in better times passed the $5 million mark, Ballet San Jose, San Jose Rep, San Jose Museum of Art, Opera San Jose and the Symphony were big companies that were dominated for years on end by big artistic forces—Dennis Nahat, Timothy Near, Jim Reber, Leonid Grin or the late Irene Dalis and George Cleve.

The local arts scene looks quite different these days. San Jose Symphony declared bankruptcy after its 2001 shutdown, ending a 64-year run. Silicon Valley Ballet called it quits earlier this year, while the Rep gave its final curtain call in 2014.

The 13-year-old Symphony Silicon Valley, a nimble successor to the original company, recently took a hit when Target ended its sponsorship of the annual Summer Pops series, and Opera San Jose dipped into its cash reserves from 2009 until this past season, when the organization’s new director put together a program that actually put the opera—barely—back into the black.

Still, even as these major groups have struggled, the performing and visual arts have proved resilient. The companies are younger and more diverse, both artistically and in terms of their leadership, virtualizing their operations and striving to do more with less. They are breaking out of the rigid confines of European tradition.

“There are a lot of things that aren’t right with the arts,” says Andrew Bales, executive director of Symphony Silicon Valley. But, he continues, that doesn’t mean the South Bay has given up on culture. In fact, according to Bales, “There really has been quite a resurgence of young folks in the arts—and it’s not even that they’re so young—it’s just a new generation of people.”

While there are fewer concentrations of power in Silicon Valley’s art scene today, there are many more important players—all of them working hard to bring relevant music, art and stage productions to the Bay Area’s most populous metropolis. Read about these new arts and culture leaders here and plan your fall calendar by checking out our Fall Arts 2016 listings.

The Canvas a a bi-weekly open mike that happens at the Sunnyvale Art Gallery every first and third Thursday evening celebrated its two-year anniversary last week with a party featuring poets, comics, bands, solo musicians and dancers. Our photographer Jessica Shirley-Donnelly was there to capture the action.

Richard Tran, a member of Above As One, shows of his wild style.

Miguel Luna (left) pictured with Kirin Ginn (right). Miguel performed as part of Above As One.

It's a family affair.

Brandon Samoranos, rapping in the group SBGK.

Mike Shirley-Donnelly performing in his band Curious Quail.

See the full gallery.