Mt. San Jacinto College Art Gallery is presenting "Your Face Here: The Modern Self-Portrait." This first-ofits- kind group show is being held to showcase local creative talent and expose residents of the Inland Empire to the active and varied presence of artists working in the region.

The exhibit is geared toward exploring the many ways that people can express themselves in a selfportrait. Traditional self-portraiture was initially recognized as an art form in the Renaissance and generally involved a painted image of the artist's face or body.

However, over the centuries as both art and self-portraiture have developed along with culture and technology, self-portraits began to take forms other than traditional oil painting. One of the important developments that has occurred during this evolution is that artists are no longer limited to creating images of their face or body; images that represent the spirit, personality, or some other aspect of themselves are now being accepted as self-portraits.

The aim of any self-portrait is to represent the artist and as modes of representation change, the range of works that are accepted as selfportraits will continue to expand as well.

The Inland Empire is considered to have a specific stylistic identity of its own. The artists who live and work in this area create that style, a facet of which will be on display in this show.

"Your Face Here" is interested in accomplishing two main goals. The exhibit seeks to provide a venue for the region's artists at a local venue to display their talents. It also aims to explore the many interpretations and viewpoints that artists hold in regards to what a self-portrait means. Because the idea of the self-portrait is so subjective and open to interpretation, a range of both representational and nonrepresentational images will be displayed to illustrate the options available to contemporary artists.

"Your Face Here" is being curated by the current MSJC Art Gallery Intern, Leslie Paprocki, a UCR senior studying Art History.

The exhibit will be on display from Jan. 28 through Feb. 16 The opening reception will be held Jan. 28 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Following the reception, the guest curator will give a presentation from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m.

The exhibit, reception, and curator talk are free and open to the public. For more information about this exhibit, please contact Brandelyn Dillaway at 487-3585 or bdillaway@ msjc.edu.