Featured gallery artist Naomi Lemus arrived early to the March 2nd reception; as she made her rounds through the show floor she was open and talkative, answering questions regarding both her own and others works.

For instance, as groups made their way through the showroom, Piece 14 (Untitled by Gladys Cendejas) proved to be an attention grabber – Naomi was quick to step in and inform everyone that Cafe du Monde is, in fact, Gladys’s favorite coffee.

Warmth (Piece 3) and 432Hz (Piece 4) by Monica Chhay

At one point she even found herself clarifying that no, she was not the model for Warmth by Monica Chhay.

Monica’s section of the gallery seemed a crowd favorite, particularly 432Hz. Naomi’s section was no slouch itself, as folks making their second and third rounds through seemed quite captured by her piece A Spoon Full of O’s.

Stephanie Leigh’s series of untitled works appeared to take time to process, and visitors regularly were seen snapping pictures with their phones for future admiration. One such visitor made his first trip through without the gallery handbill; upon learning the names of each piece during his second trip, he remarked that while knowing the titles of Monica Chhay’s pieces increased his appreciation of the art, Stephanie Leigh’s works stood strongly on their own merit.

While the vast majority of the gallery is made up of paintings, Viridiana Navarro stood out as the sole defier. Although her section did not receive particularly heavy visitation during the reception, as the only change of pace in the gallery it is sure to do well during it’s presentation.

Complete with free music (which served as little more than a low background rumble for the most part) and food, the reception was a social success. Running from 6pm to 8pm, there was a large turnout peaking between 6:30 and 7:00, with large crowds forming both in and out of the showroom. Most visitors made several rounds, and the conversation was constant.

While the reception winded down around 7:45, the Color, Movement, Place and Pattern gallery itself with be on display until March 30th at the San Jacinto College North Gallery.