If you missed the opening reception for my current solo exhibition at Heron Arts, mark your calendars for the closing reception!
“Mountains and Molehills” Closing Reception
Zai Divecha Solo Exhibition
Thursday, August 12th, 5-8pm
Heron Arts: 7 Heron St, San Francisco, CA
Preview the collection and see pricing here. If you can’t make it to the closing but want to swing by another time, you can book an appointment to see the exhibition.
You’re invited to San Francisco Art Fair (formerly Art Market), April 25-28, 2024 at Fort Mason Center. This is my favorite art fair in SF, and I’m excited to be showing six new works at the Heron Arts booth. There will be 85 galleries exhibiting this year.
The fair is open to the public at the following times ($35 for a single-day ticket):
Friday, April 26, 2024: 11am—7pm
Saturday, April 27, 2024: 11am—7pm
Sunday, April 28, 2024: 11am—6pm
The Opening Evening is Thursday, April 25, 6-9pm. If you’d like to attend that event (i.e., for first dibs!), you’ll need to purchase a fair pass ($65), which gets you into the opening, plus all three days. I’ll be at the opening on Thursday.
Location: Fort Mason Festival Pavilion, 2 Marina Boulevard, SF. Tickets can be purchased online, or at the door.
If you’d like to see the advance preview of my work ahead of time, email Tova Lobatz, Heron Arts director and curator.
I recently kicked off a new project in which I make and share a different paper sculpture every day for the month of October. Each one features a pile, mound, or heap of some sort. Here’s a brief video describing the backstory.
The last time I did a project like this was 2019, for the “36 Days of Type” global design challenge, in which I made a different letter of the alphabet (and then the digits zero through nine) every day for 36 days. You can see my alphabet here. That experience was both exhilarating and stressful, and I grew so much from it.
This time, it’s a challenge of my own making. It feels more personal, as I’m putting more of my own feelings and story into it. It’s a bit nerve-wracking committing to such a fast-paced schedule, but I think the structure and public accountability will be good for me.
You can follow along on my Instagram!
I recently moved into a new studio space at Pier 70 in Dogpatch (sneak peek here!), along with my studiomate and beloved friend Emi Grannis, who makes gorgeous fine jewelry.
We’d like to invite you over for a studio-warming and sale! Come see what’s on our desks these days, maybe take home a small framed paper sculpture, and shop Emi’s stunning jewelry collection. Excited to have you over!
Emi Grannis and Zai Divecha
Studio Warming + Sale
11am - 4pm, Sunday, Oct 15
Pier 70, Building 12, 999 Michigan St, SF
Mark your calendars: Studio sale on Wednesday, May 17th!
I’m gearing up to move studios soon, so in preparation, I’ll be hosting a little studio sale at Yonder in the Inner Richmond. I’ll have a few new editions of smaller framed pieces available for sale, as well as some other odds and ends I’ve either made or collected over the years. There will also be a table of free craft supplies and packaging materials that I’m hoping to offload before I move.
My studiomates on the ceramics side of the building will be hosting a studio members show that night — come delight in their curious and gorgeous ceramics sculptures, and stay for a drink and a bite. Everything in Yonder Shop will be on sale, too! It should be a festive evening hosted by the whole Yonder fam!
BIG STORIES, SMALL WORLDS
Studio Members Show + Sale
5-8pm on Wed, May 17
701 11th Ave, SF
Colossal recently did a gorgeous feature on my paper sculptures and corresponding stop-motion animation films! This article also serves as a sneak peek at some of the new works that will be shown in my upcoming solo exhibition at Heron Arts, which opens February 25th.
You’re invited to the opening for my upcoming solo exhibition! It’s 6-9pm on Saturday, February 25th, at Heron Arts in San Francisco (map). This body of work explores incremental change over time, and includes both physical paper sculptures and corresponding stop-motion films. Read more about this exhibition on Heron Arts’ website. If you’re a collector, email tova@heronarts.com to be added to the preview list.
Colossal recently did a gorgeous feature on this body of work — check out the article here!
In January, I spent two weeks in the Blue Ridge Mountains in North Carolina at Penland School of Craft, as a part of their Winter Residency program. I received their Distinguished Fellowship, which they award to a handful of artist residents.
Penland is over 90 years old, and has over a dozen gorgeous studios, including Books, Letterpress & Printing, Photography, Ceramics, Iron, Metals, Wood, Textiles, Drawing & Painting, and more. I used this time to make new work for my upcoming solo exhibition at Heron Arts. I explored stop-motion further, and experimented with new techniques such as embroidery and metal leafing.
I made friends across all of the other studios, and we’d take breaks from our work to go on walks, have campfire singalongs, and the occasional dance party. I didn’t go to art school, so for me, it was a revelation to be surrounded by so many wildly creative people at once.
I left feeling both rested and energized, with nine new pieces for the show, and a whole bunch of new friends. I really see why people do artist residencies! It simultaneously felt like a vacation, and also the most productive two weeks of my life.
Watch the two videos below to get a little taste for my time at Penland!
Been busy in the studio lately! I’m gearing up to release a bunch of artwork. Here are two ways to purchase in the next few months.
If you’re in the market for a smaller piece (10x10”), I’ll have a few options for the holidays: Three different designs; each one an edition of 10. They’ll be available here on my website at 10am PST on Wednesday, Nov 30. They’ll ship Dec 12.
If you’re looking for something big and unique, stay tuned for my solo show at Heron Arts in late February. I’m making a whole bunch of new works for it. The opening is Sat, Feb 25, but if you’re interested in purchasing, you’ll want to get on the gallery’s preview list ahead of time. Email Heron Arts if interested.
The return of the Chai Cart! This was my eighth Burning Man, and our fourth year serving hot masala chai on the playa. It brought me so much joy as always! Photos below, and then some reflections.
There is nothing better than creating ~ playa magic ~ for strangers who least expect it. We’d take the cart out to our favorite art installations out in quiet, remote parts of the playa, and serve anyone who happened to wander nearby. The surprise and delight on people’s faces — I live for it! I especially love serving other South Asians — without fail, their response is, “oh wow, this is REAL chai!” (Shoutout to Jaipur Avenue, the only chai mix I’ve found that tastes like my family’s recipe!)
Some other highlights:
Seeing live music! I saw live orchestras on four separate occasions. I also saw a brass band, and a solo violinist. These are just regular folks who brought their instruments to the desert to play for free. It was really incredible. I skipped almost all the electronic music this year!
Quality time with my loved ones. Getting to spend long stretches of time with some of my closest friends was such a gift. Phil and I worked really well as a team on chai cart operations, and had lots of sweet silly moments together.
One of my favorite things about Burning Man is that every art installation, workshop, bit, concert, or food offering you encounter — no matter how tiny or how organized — was brought out to the playa by regular people who just wanted to create a certain kind of experience for others. All labors of love, like our little chai cart. It’s really astounding to see so many passion projects gathered in one place. This year, I felt especially grateful for the folks who are out there, behind the scenes, creating magic for others.
Photo credits: Kayley Hake, Michael Kebbekus, Nicole Sweeney, Phil Reyneri, Jasmin Pamukcu.
Upcoming artist talk! If you missed the opening at Heron Arts, this will be a fun opportunity to come by the gallery and hear from a few of the artists, including Tiffanie Turner, Reina Takahashi, and myself. This panel discussion will be hosted by Grace Ebert, managing editor at Colossal.
Paper Show: Artist Talk
Tues, August 2, 5:30-7pm
Heron Arts: 7 Heron St, SF
I had a wonderful time at the opening reception for “Paper Show” at Heron Arts on Saturday! It was so joyful seeing my extended community and getting to know the other artists in the show. The exhibition is up until August 7, and is open by appointment. Two of my pieces have sold already; one is still available! See exhibition info for pricing and to make an appointment.
Come by Heron Arts in San Francisco on Saturday, July 9, 4-7pm! I’m part of a group show with a handful of incredible paper artists from all over the world. It’s a diverse group of folks, and the artwork I’ve seen looks amazing — Colossal recently published a little preview, if you’re curious to see. I’ll have three small paper sculptures, and some stop-motion videos. Event details here! Hope to see you there!
I just wrapped up my eighth AIDS/LifeCycle, an annual 545-mile bike ride from SF to LA over seven days. It’s a fundraiser for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the Los Angeles LGBT Center. I personally raised over $8,200 for the cause, and as a community, we raised over $17 million, a record-breaking amount in AIDS/LifeCycle history. My friend Freddy and I co-captained a sweet little team of 12 people called Morning Buns. See below for my daily dispatches from each day on the ride! More videos can be found on my personal Instagram, @zai.ilsa.
Day 1: San Francisco to Santa Cruz, 81 miles (Strava)
It poured for the first five hours, which was truly miserable. I actually *tried* to tap out at the first rest stop, but when I found out I’d have to wait two hours to get a ride, I decided biking while freezing and drenched to my core was 10% less miserable than sitting still while freezing and drenched to my core, so I ended up doing all 82 miles.
Highlights: Seeing our two roadie teammates in action!! My godmother Elnora is on the lunch team, serving food and racking bikes all day, and my dear friend Charlie is on the Rest Stop 4 team, which is the most intense morale boost rest stop ever. I’m talking elaborate costumes, characters, and literal DANCE CHOREOGRAPHY. And she’s working 6am till 9pm every day, so she has a longer and more intense workload than the cyclists, I think.
Other highlights: The giddiness of Opening Ceremonies with Nicole; another AIDS/LifeCycle in which I end up in an emergency Mylar blanket (two, actually); water sloshing around in the completely waterlogged two pairs of socks I wore; Freddy biking with me allllll day and keeping sane; strangers taking pity on my shivering, chattering ass and warming me up penguin-huddle-style; the warm breakfast burrito a volunteer handed me in my most miserable moments; Dalton cleaning and lubing my chain for me because I was too dead from the ride to do it myself.
I love Team Morning Buns and I’m so happy to be back on AIDS/LifeCycle!
Day 2: Santa Cruz to King City, 106 miles (Strava)
Oh my goodness, soooo much better than Day 1! It was over 100 miles, but everyone’s spirits were HIGH! We had speedy tailwinds, delicious artichokes, and LOTS of Morning Buns bonding time, with each other, and with new friends we met on the road! Really filled my heart.
Day 3: King City to Paso Robles, 65 miles (Strava)
Okay today was hot, like 98 degrees hot, BUT it was so fun from start to finish! Mostly because Nicole rode every last mile with me (even though she could have been waaaaay ahead if she’d wanted to). We laughed, we cried, we wore pool floaties, we learned how to change tubeless flats, we sweated, we rested, and we ended the day with over an HOUR of glorious unstructured team hangout time. I had brought most of these people into AIDS/LifeCycle (and onto Team Morning Buns), and seeing them all become friends with *each other* made me soooo happy!
Last note about today — I’m normally a delicate wilting flower in extreme heat, but I managed my body surprisingly well today, and I’m really proud of that! Stayed on top of sunscreen, food, energy, rest, electrolytes, water, and morale. The only bummer is that my knee doesn’t feel amazing, but it also hasn’t gotten worse.
Day 4, Paso Robles to Santa Maria, 88 miles (Strava)
Halfway to LA! I had some very sweet moments with friends in rest stops (as evidenced by these photos!), but I actually rode alone almost the whole day (88+ miles). I was totally content with it until hour 9, at which point, I was overheating and had a little loneliness + heat meltdown. Freddy miraculously appeared out of nowhere (I hadn’t seen him in at least four hours!), scooped me up, and we did the last eight miles together. Seeing Charlie perform as the Queen of Hearts while eating sno cones with Freddy lifted my spirits real fast!! I got showered in love and hugs and laughs from my team when I got into camp, so I’m going to bed with my heart totally full!
Day 5: Santa Maria to Lompoc, 41 miles (Strava)
Red Dress Day was an absolute riot, mostly due to the fact that I made my entire team dress as strawberries for the entire ride today. We laughed sooooo much today!! The morale was HIGH today!! The tradition is that everyone bikes in red for HIV/AIDS awareness — we form a giant AIDS ribbon as we wind our way down the state.
Day 6, Lompoc to Ventura, 88 miles (Strava)
Had an absolutely wonderful day with my team! By day 6, I had gotten a little stronger and faster, and the hammerfest sprinters in the group decided to take it a little easier (…or were forced to by their injuries). This meant that our paces were much more aligned than usual, and we got to spend more time together in rest stops! Sooooo fun getting more of the crew together throughout the day!
We had a joyful rager of a dance party by the side of Highway 1 at mile 82 (out of 90), which was EXACTLY what my soul needed after six grueling days with no music, and we ended the day with a silent candlelight vigil on the beach to honor those who we’ve lost to HIV and AIDS. It feels important to bear witness to the grief of this community, and to help carry the torch so future generations know their stories.
Day 7, Ventura to Los Angeles, 69 miles (Strava)
Crossed the finish line in LA for the eighth time! Another 545 miles in the books! I’m pretty proud of having stewarded this sweet little team along with my co-captain Freddy, and so grateful for the way these 12 amazing humans took care of one another over the last week.
I’m also pretty proud of my body! I prioritized work and team logistics over my own personal training this season, so I went into the ride a bit undertrained. Despite that, I ended the week with zero visits to medical, zero visits to chiro, and zero visits to bike tech. It was pretty cool to be reminded that my body is more resilient than I give it credit for! I think by this point, my body just knows how slowly I need to pace myself in order for the week to feel sustainable and joyful.
My studio is having a group show on Friday, May 27th — come by Yonder Shop to see work from my talented ceramics studiomates, plus a paper sculpture piece and stop-motion video from me!
Yonder Shop Presents: Garden Variety
Friday, May 27th, 6pm
Yonder Shop: 701 11th Ave, SF
Masks required
I’m raising money for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the Los Angeles LGBT Center again, and I’m giving away artwork to donors! This piece, titled Palm Moiré, features nested paper sculptures with delicate palm leaf cutouts. This work is an edition of five, and I’ll be giving away all five copies to people who make donations in the next two weeks. 100% of the money raised will go to these two organizations, both of which do critical work to support people living with HIV and AIDS in California.
There are two ways to participate:
Raffle: Two of the five framed paper sculptures will be raffled off. Every $20 that you donate toward my fundraiser by Thursday, May 19, 2022 counts as one ticket. On May 20, I’ll randomly select two winners to receive artworks. To enter, make a donation with a credit card on my fundraising page. Consider donating in multiples of $20. For example, $40 = 2 tickets, $200 = 10 tickets, etc. The raffle will not be capped, so your odds of winning depend on how much money is donated by May 19.
Buy It Now: Three of the five framed paper sculptures will be “sold” for $700 each. If you have a large budget and want a guaranteed purchase, this option is for you! First come, first served. To enter, email me at zai@zaidivecha.com before you make your donation to ensure that this option is still available. Once approved, you can donate $700 with a credit card on my fundraising page. (Note: Buy It Now donations will not be entered in the raffle.) UPDATE: All three Buy It Now pieces have been claimed! That was fast! Please enter the raffle instead!
All artworks will be shipped the first week of June, 2022. All donations are tax-deductible.
Title: Palm Moiré
Edition size: 5
Materials: Paper
Dimensions: 9.75”h x 9.75”w x 1.5”d unframed; 10.75”h x 10.75”w x 2”d framed
Date: 2022
I’ll be speaking at Letterform Archive’s Salon Series next month about my alphabet installation, and you’re invited to tune in!
I’ll be discussing how I went about making each sculpture, the relationships between letterforms and sculptural elements, and how this project informed my subsequent work. I’ll share some behind-the-scenes photos, and do a paper folding demo.
This event will be open to the public and streamed online. Tickets are sliding scale $5-$20; no one turned away for lack of funds.
Salon Series 32: 36 Days of Type, Paper Sculpture Edition with Zai Divecha
Letterform Archive (Online Event)
Thu, May 26, 2022
12:00pm–1:30pm PT
Register here!
In 2019, I did a giant, three-panel sculptural installation at Twitter headquarters in San Francisco. It features dynamic, pulsing patterns of light that overlay the handcrafted paper structures — a nod to the relationship between our physical world and the digital conversations that illuminate it.
Special thanks to ABG Art Group, Phil Reyneri, Etsuki Creative, and Rapt Studio for support with this project. Photos by Cesar Rubio.
In Design Milk’s Friday Five column last week, I got to gush about five things I’m obsessed with. My kind of interview — love getting people excited about the things that I love! Tap the link above for a little peek into some of the things that give me the most joy in life, and my reflections about them. You can probably make some guesses based on these photos, but you’ll have to read the article for the backstories!
I’m excited to share with you a new project of mine that has a lot of personal significance to me. In this paper sculpture diptych, I explore my mixed-race heritage by examining ancestral hometowns on both sides of my family: the Northern Minnesotan town of Two Harbors on the left, and the Gujarati fishing town of Diu on the right.
This work illustrates a number of dichotomies that shaped my experience of being mixed: the nuclear family versus large, interconnected communities, individualism versus collectivism, and isolation versus enmeshment.
Here are satellite images of Two Harbors, MN (left) and Diu, Gujarat (right) for reference:
And here’s a fun little process video showing the hundreds of tiny paper boxes before they got glued down:
