Walking on Sunshine
Our Inaugural Fashion Show
September 13 – November 1, 2025
Tierra del Sol is thrilled to present Walking on Sunshine, an exhibition of fashion-influenced, fashion-related, and fashion-adjacent artworks, alongside brand-new collections designed by eight of our studio artists, opening on Saturday, September 13th, 2025.
Walking on Sunshine features dozens of works in a range of media by a variety of artists. Among that which is featured includes handcrafted dolls by Angelica Grande; promotional studies of shoes, as well as ceramic replicas of footwear by Herb Herod; wonky advertisements for luxury goods by Daniel Anten; appropriated Vogue magazine covers illustrated by Joe Zaldivar; framed pattern collages by John Lund; and a full wall devoted to our studios’ original fashion maven, Helen Rae. Over time, we at Tierra have come to understand how self-expression through personal style is equally important to some of our artists as it is to communicate their ideas, thoughts, opinions, and feelings through painting, drawing, ceramics, etc., thus it became clear that a fashion show (in two forms) was a necessary undertaking.
This exhibition was inspired in part by our inaugural fashion show that will be taking place across the street from the gallery in Fiesta Hall at Plummer Park in West Hollywood from 2 to 4 pm on Saturday, September 27th, 2025. For this event, we will be showcasing the aforementioned eight collections in a runway show for a live audience, in which Tierra del Sol associates will also be modeling. Through the combination of materials, patterns, alterations, and additions, these artists have found myriad ways to tell stories that can bend and drape and flow and hang.
The eight artists featured in the event include: Tony Barnes, Aracely Ellis, Austin Gackstetter, Angelica Grande, Ashley Higgins, Marissa Holmberg, Thomas Lamb, and Alondra Lozano. Barnes is the longest-running member of the program, having been a Tierra del Sol artist since 1990. Ellis is the most recent addition to the program, having joined in 2020. The aesthetics and concepts of these artists range from the semi-steampunk vibes of Gackstetter’s garbs to the red-carpet-influenced looks designed by Higgins to the whimsical horror-inspired pieces constructed by Holmberg and the nature-referenced woven wears assembled by Lozano. Both Grande and Lamb have long been invested in fiber and textile works and continue to expand on the foundations they’ve laid with these materials.
Walking on Sunshine opens on September 13th and will be on view through November 1st, 2025.
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As part of the larger Tierra del Sol Foundation, Tierra del Sol Gallery exhibits work created in our unique and innovative art studios. In 2019, a space dedicated to the artists of Tierra del Sol was opened in Los Angeles with a focus on expanding the gallery’s programming and connecting the foundation’s artists with a global audience. Tierra del Sol Gallery organizes year-round exhibitions and events within the creative community of West Hollywood. We invite guest curators to work with our artists annually; recent collaborators include Alison Saar, Darren Romanelli, and jill moniz. We have debuted artists at the Felix Art Fair, Frieze, NADA Miami, and the Armory Show, as well as partnered with a dynamic range of organizations, including Undefeated, Amazon, Netflix, and Transformative Arts. Our artists’ works have been acquired by MoMA, the American Folk Art Museum, and El Museo del Barrio in New York, New York. All sales go directly to supporting the artists and the foundation, which provides studio space, career support, and materials for artists to craft their work.
Tierra del Sol Foundation is a not-for-profit founded in 1971. We champion inclusion and value for all individuals with disabilities through creative pathways to employment, education, and the arts. A strong and vibrant community is one in which all of its members contribute to the strengths and assets for the common good. Tierra’s vision is that all people live productive and personally meaningful lives, regardless of the notion of disability, as neighbors, co-workers, and contributors to the economic, civic, and cultural vitality of the community.
*** Levi’s® has generously provided raw denim and assembled garments for artists to deconstruct and embellish.
This project is supported, in part, by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Department of Arts and Culture and the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA).
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