di Rosa Center for Contemporary Art maintains a permanent collection of works by Northern California artists that was originally collected by Rene di Rosa (1919-2010) and Veronica di Rosa  (1934–1991). The collection contains notable works by artists living or working in the San Francisco Bay Area from mid-twentieth century to the early twenty-first century, highlighting a story of experimentation of the artists of the region. It is displayed in part, on a rotating basis, in the galleries at di Rosa.

This page represents a just a portion of di Rosa’s rich permanent collection. Stay tuned as we continue to populate this page with artworks from our collection.

di Rosa strives to be a resource for educators, students and lifelong learners. For research inquiries, please contact curatorial@dirosaart.org.

 

Dream

Work on Paper

Border patrol text in upper left with black and white boxes beneath, plane in middle with pilot figure in upper right, Mary and child figure in middle

2048

Acrylic and water based oil on ink jet on amate paper, mounted on linen

Work on Paper

AR2048

Anglim/Trimble

Purchase

Enrique Chagoya

2002

Object

48 in

48 in

1-1/2 in

The Incorrect Museum - Ongoing

May 3, 2025 - December 9, 2025, di Rosa Center for Contemporary Art, Napa

The Incorrect Museum: Vignettes from the di Rosa Collection

April 17, 2021- April 17, 2022, di Rosa Center for Contemporary Art, Napa

Be Not Still: Living in Uncertain Times (Part 1)

January 23 - May 27, 2018, di Rosa Center for Contemporary Art, Napa

In his works on canvas and amate (a bark paper indigenous to Mexico), Enrique Chagoya (b. 1953) layers imagery from art history, mass media, and his Mexican Heritage to comment on the politics of representation within art and culture. Both of these works address issues of cultural identity and how identity is established: What is a real American? Who is a real Mexican? Calling on a mixture of political and religious references, symbolic characters carry out scenes related to citizenship, immigration, and xenophobia, creating a direct connection to Ala Ebtekar’s nearby installation. Chagoya’s charged tableaus present multiple angle through which to consider how a body politic is created, defined, and communicated.