About The exhibit

Presented by Ruth’s Table in partnership with Art With Elders, Boldly Ourselves celebrates the vital role that identity, self-expression, and belonging play in creating thriving communities. This year’s exhibition honors the understanding that our communities are strengthened when people are empowered to live openly, creatively and authentically.

The exhibition features artwork by LGBTQ+ communities and allies from across the Bay Area created by Art With Elders artists, as well as works by participants from the Pieces of Us workshop series held at Ruth’s Table. Through mixed media, layering, symbolism, color and texture, the artists explore the many pieces that shape identity: memory, resilience, joy, struggle, transformation and connection. Each work reflects a deeply personal story while also speaking to the collective power of visibility and community.

Also featured are dynamic collages by artist LA Campos de la Garza and archival photographs by Elgee documenting Pride activism, community organizing and LGBTQ+ life in 1970s Washington, DC and New York. Together, these works trace connections across generations and highlight the collective care, resistance and creativity that continue to sustain LGBTQ+ communities over time.

In a time when many continue to face exclusion and erasure, Boldly Ourselves offers a reminder that thriving communities are built not through sameness, but through the presence of many voices, experiences and ways of being. Together, these works celebrate authenticity as both a personal act and a shared commitment to caring for one another.