As CCA says goodbye to its historic campus in Oakland and prepares to unify its community in San Francisco, the Oakland Campus Legacy Committee, along with partners across the college, are planning a program of events and exhibitions to commemorate CCA’s one hundred year history on the Oakland campus, to honor our legacy, and to carry our traditions forward.

OCLC is planning a Closing Ceremony for the Oakland campus and will have details to share as CCA's unification timeline is finalized. In the meantime, please join us in these opportunities to gather, remember, and celebrate.

Rooted: A Ceremony Honoring The Oakland Campus
Sat, Sep 24 2022, 4PM - 7PM
Oakland Campus

Please join the Oakland Campus Legacy Committee for a ceremony honoring CCA’s Oakland campus. We come together to show gratitude to the beloved garden campus we have called home for one hundred years and celebrate the roots we carry forward for centuries to come. 

4:00 pm — Ceremony on Macky Lawn
5:00 pm — Reception in the Oliver Art Center

Please RSVP for this free event on Eventbrite.

The Last Wednesday Night
Wed April 27, 2022, 5:30-7:30 PM
Oakland Campus

Let’s come together for one final Wednesday night in Oakland to celebrate our community and our legacy. Join us for opening receptions for these exhibitions and projects:

Dennis Leon and the Art of Instruction

featuring the work of Dennis Leon and selected students

A Garden Campus: Part II
featuring the Legacy Print Project's 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s decade prints

Student Legacy Work Exhibition
featuring student legacy work

Rephotographic Survey Project
featuring photographs by Christopher Johnson

Ceramic Sculpture Garden Celebration

Zarouhie Abdalian's (MFA Fine Arts 2010) Chanson du ricochet in Resonance of Place
by Curatorial Practice Class of 2022

Dennis Leon and The Art Of Instruction
Wed, Apr 20 - Sun, May 15
Oliver Art Center

Dennis Leon and the Art of Instruction looks at Leon both as a gifted artist and an extraordinary teacher. It shows his more recent work and that of a selection of the artists whom he taught during his 16 years as a faculty member and Chair of the Sculpture Department at CCA. Featuring Susan Abbott Martin, Gale Antokal, Squeak Carnwath, Frank Cole, Robin Dintiman, Taraneh Hemami, Jennifer Kaufman, Naomie Kremer, Yoshitomo Saito, Mary White, and Anne Wolf.

Student Legacy Work Exhibition
Wed, Apr 27, 5:30PM - 7:30PM
Oakland campus

Professors across the college have assigned projects focusing on research related to the histories of the Oakland campus—its architecture, flora, and artistic legacies. Students located on both the Oakland and San Francisco campuses have responded with enthusiasm and have produced stellar work in the Animation, Architecture, Ceramics, Graphic Design, Interaction Design, Jewelry Metal Arts, Printmedia, Textiles, and UDIST Programs. Curated by OCLC co-chair Deborah Valoma, the exhibition of student work will be sprinkled throughout the Oakland Campus.

A Garden Campus Part II: Oakland Campus Legacy Print Project
Wed, Apr 27 - Sun, May 15
Macky Hall

To honor the historic Oakland campus as California College of the Arts moves toward unification in San Francisco, the Oakland Campus Legacy Committee (OCLC) is collaborating with alum and faculty emeritus Thomas Wojak to produce an edition of ten prints, each one representing a decade of CCA on the Oakland campus. Part II features decade prints designed by Victoria Wagner (First Year Program)—1950s, Irene Cheng & Janette Kim (Architecture)—1960s, and Eduardo Pineda (Critical Ethnic Studies)—1970s, alongside ephemera from the CCA/C Archives that informed each design.

To the Oakland Campus with Love

Friday, May 6

3:00 pm–5:30 pm

To commemorate the last day of classes taking place on the historic Oakland campus, the Oakland Campus Legacy Committee (OCLC) is planning a special event in collaboration with the Alumni Association and Fine Arts Programs. 

All students, faculty, staff, and alumni are invited to join the gathering on Macky Lawn at 3:00 pm, where we will be writing “love letters” to the Oakland campus. At approximately 4:00 pm, receptions with light refreshments will be held in the studios located on campus so that participants can visit the program facilities one last time.

A Garden Campus: Oakland Campus Legacy Print Project
Ongoing
Digital Exhibition

As CCA moves toward unification in San Francisco, the Oakland Campus Legacy Committee is working with alum and faculty emeritus Thomas Wojak to produce an edition of ten prints, each one representing a decade on the Oakland campus. The Treadwell Estate was purchased by the college in 1922 and next year, 2022, marks exactly one hundred years on the site.

The series, entitled A Garden Campus, features prints that focus on notable aspects of the college’s history with throughlines that highlight the garden nature of the grounds, the significance of craft practices, and the enduring values of the college’s motto “Theory and Practice.” This exhibition, curated by Annemarie Haar highlights some of the original source material that inspired the designers.