Art and performances affirming positive social change and the activists who work for it will be presented Saturday at Studio One in Oakland in “Transformative Visions.”

The March 13 event is organized by OneLife Institute, which aims to support Oakland’s community workers and prevent burn out by combining spirituality and activism.

Scheduled to coincide with the annual observance of A Season for Nonviolence and the anniversary of the US invasion of Iraq, Transformative Visions has two goals. It is the artists’ response to the troubling issues of the day as well as a vision of the possibilities for positive change in the future.

Eighteen visual artists will display their works. (Their names appear below.)

Antoinette Bumekpor, Cat Brooks,  Jeannine Etter, Kamau Bakari, Paradise and Victor Harris will perform spoken word pieces throughout the afternoon.

The Richard Howell Quintet, featuring the “Harpist from the Hood” Destiny Muhammad, will round out the afternoon with a jazz concert. Listen to Richard Howell’s sounds here.

OneLife is open to all faiths and offers classes, retreats, publications and events designed to empower and support groups and individuals. Its philosophy is that people recharge in different ways; some respond to meditation and community, while others connect through the arts. Its mission is to integrate spirituality and social action by providing resources to allow people working for social change to renew themselves, with the goal of helping to sustain their work in activism.

“In this society it's a dualism. We’re told things of the spirit are inward and personal, and justice work or activism is outward,” said  OneLife Board Chair Liza Rankow. “Yet some of the people we admire most, like Dr. Martin Luther King and Gandhi, embodied both a deep spirituality and an active commitment to justice-making and peacemaking."

Additional participating artists include: George Hopkins, William Rhodes, Tomye Neal Madison, Maryam Roberts, Xiomara Castro, Shahara Godfrey, Pablo Soto Campoamor, April Watkins, Nancy Loquellano, and Noa Mohlabane.

The art exhibit will be on display through March.

Transformative Visions will be held at Studio One, 365 45th St., in Oakland from 2 to 5 p.m. Admission is free and donations are accepted.

To learn more about OneLife or Transformative Visions, e-mail visions@onelifeinstitute.org or call 510-595-5598.

ARTIST CREDITS for composite image above:

First row: Alonzo Young ("Awakening"), Salma Arastu ("Let Faith Rise");

Second row: Francesca Roccaforte ("Blue Door"), Malik Seneferu ("The Soul & Then the Flesh"), Lorraine Bonner ("Speak the Forbidden”), TaSin Sabir ("Baba Jahi”);

Third row: Eesuu Orundide ("Love Warrior"), Francesca Roccaforte ("Rust Door"), Mildred Thompson (Batiks). All images (c) to individual artists.