SAN FRANCISCO ART GALLERIES OPENINGS FIRST THURSDAY; 03.05.09 (with assistance from Jennifer Jeffrey, Jessica Rosen)

General comment by AB: You know... sometimes I get a little torqued. Like for example, a week or so ago this artist emails me that she wants to use images of her art off of artbusiness.com for residency and funding proposals and applications she's submitting. Except the online images aren't that large, she says, so she asks if I have larger ones, to which I answer yes. She asks if she can use them and I say yes-- in exchange for a donation to the website in the amount of her choosing. That's my standard policy for allowing reproduction rights on artbusiness.com images (plus all donors also get free links to their websites on the Donors Page). But she doesn't want to do that; she wants the images free. It's not enough that I take the time to shoot them, photoshop them, write about her show, and put everything online for thousands of people to see. She wants me to go into my files of several hundred thousand full-sized images, sift through them to identify the ones she wants, and then email them to her. Sorry, but no. It's not all about you.

First of all, I'm amazed at how many artists make requests like this with no intention of ever offering anything in return. But I'm even more astounded by the artists who simply go ahead and appropriate artbusiness.com images for their websites (or for marketing, promotional, or other purposes) without even asking permission. I find this phenomenon remarkable considering the fact that artists go completely apoplectic if anyone dares take images of their art off of their websites without asking permission.

My darling artsters-- I've covered nearly six years of San Francisco art openings entirely at my own expense (and countless thousands of hours of my time) as a service to the local art community because I love art, I think we should all get to know each other a little better, I believe that San Francisco artists and galleries deserve more exposure than they get, and several other reasons as well. But for some of you to think that on top of all that, I'm a free service for providing images of your art to showcase on your websites for the benefit of you and you alone-- without asking permission, requesting reproduction rights, or giving anything in return-- maybe take a moment to reflect on that. And in case you're wondering, plenty of artists do follow proper procedure for reproducing artbusiness.com images-- and to those of you, I am forever grateful.

OK. Enough rant. Wanna see some art? I thought you might...

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Caldwell Snyder Gallery: Jane Maxwell.

Comment by AB: Jane Maxwell editorializes on how women are summarily classified and categorized, particularly in terms of fashion and appearance, by painting and collaging female silhouettes out of vintage fruit crate labels.

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John Berggruen Gallery: Squeak Carnwath - Was Am.

Comment by AB: Show of major paintings by Squeak Carnwath in conjunction with her forthcoming retrospective at the Oakland Museum of California. Her sumptuously involved classic abstractions are accentuated with snippets of text and occasional representational flourishes. I hesitate to call it mature work 'cuz that sometimes gets taken the wrong way, but it's about as clear, confident, polished, focused, and determined as intention ever gets. Like 'em; worth a visit.

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Dolby Chadwick Gallery: Joshua Meyer - Scattered Syllables.

Comment by AB: Joshua Meyer extrapolates impressionism to the edge of abstraction. For those of you who think people have stopped buying art, the show only opened night and it's already two-thirds sold out.

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Gallery Paule Anglim: David Ireland; Tony Oursler.

Comment by AB: Current and early works by David Ireland, a major figure in West Coast conceptual art. The best part? Even those not up to snuff on the cavalcade of conceptuality (no-- I'm not naming names) can appreciate the refined compositional and relational sensibilities of Ireland's work. In the parlour are several superior video works by Tony Oursler, the most engaging of which shows a group of vertically positioned cigarettes in the process of being smoked, several projected onto thin cylinders, creating the illusion of dimensionality. All good; go see.

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Haines Gallery: LandMark.

Artists: Tseng Kwong Chi, Linda Connor, Binh Danh, Kota Ezawa, Andy Goldsworthy, Shi Guorui, Clare Langan, David Maisel, Chris McCaw, Shao Yinong & Mu Chen, Dennis Oppenheim, Lisa Robinson, Tokihiro Sato, Joel Sternfeld, Zhan Wang.

Comment by Amy Cancelmo: "LandMark," is a well curated group exhibition exploring the various meanings, notions and implications of the word "landmark."

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Elins Eagles-Smith Gallery: Susan Grossman - New Works in Pastel.

Comment by AB: Susan Grossman's medium and large format charcoal and pastel views of San Francisco and environs are so vital, atmospheric and convincing, I feel like I can walk right into 'em... or maybe I'm already there. To be able to pull this off in a work on paper, in this medium, and primarily in black and white occasionally seasoned with color, verges on miraculous. Don't believe me? Check 'em out. Pick of First Thursday.

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Brian Gross Fine Art: Sono Osato - Babylon, The Buried Language Series; Hadi Tabatabai - The Space of a line.

Comment by AB: In the main gallery, Sono Osato displays a series of oil and encaustic paintings on panel which incorporate bones, small mechanical parts, and other found objects. They're impressive, especially the large one, but my antiquarian muse starts buggin' me about how these atypically amalgamated works will stand the test of time-- with all those teeny pieces and edges, and all that detail, could be potentially challenging to clean and maintain. Over in the anteroom, Hadi Tabatabai's precision hygienic mixed-media grid works are technically commendable as well as aesthetically gratifying, especially in terms of symmetry.

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Fraenkel Gallery: Edward Hopper & Company.

Artists/photographers: Edward Hopper, Robert Adams, Diane Arbus, Harry Callahan, Lee Friedlander, Robert Frank, Walker Evans, William Eggleston, Stephen Shore.

Review by Jennifer Jeffrey: Frankel Gallery is the place to be tonight-- seems that half of San Francisco is here, crowded around paintings by Edward Hopper and inspecting photographs that echo Hopper's themes. The show feels more like a museum exhibit, and I wish I could stay longer-- it's truly extraordinary. Ten rare Hopper pieces are flanked by photographs taken by Diane Arbus, Lee Friedlander, Walker Evans and others, and it's a treat to see so much excellent work in such an intimate space. I particularly love Hopper's "Intermission," and the surrounding photographs of scenes conveying that same sense of exquisite loneliness.

Comment by AB: That Hopper was an influential dude, as this exhibition proves, with some pretty handsome examples on display here-- and kudos to Fraenkel Gallery for procuring 'em. Ever inquisitive, I ask whether any are for sale. The skinny? No on the paintings and watercolors, but several drawings are available. Excellent show; go see.

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Toomey Tourell Gallery: Ursula O'Farrell - New Paintings.

Comment by AB: Veiled indeterminate figural works appear to blend principles of classic Abstract Expressionism with vintage Bay Area Figurative painting.

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Stephen Wirtz Gallery : Melanie Pullen - Violent Times.

Comment by AB: Oversized photos and "lightbox" photographs by Melanie Pullen exemplify perceptions of war, and run the gamut from reality to fantasy and perhaps even to delusion.

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Mark Wolfe Contemporary Art: Wang Tiande, Hong Lei, Gao Yuan.

Comment by AB: Three contemporary Chinese artists employ photography and digitial media to reinterpret and update traditional methods and compositional aspects of classic Chinese painting.

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Micaela Gallery: Fortuitous Moments - Gary Clemenceau, Scott Kiernan, Tobias Tovera.

Review by Jennifer Jeffrey: Micaëla Gallery is showing three artists tonight, each of whom creates vastly different work. Tobias Tovera's enormous paintings feature layer upon layer of tonal color in ruffled, overlapping waves. There is something feminine about them, a faint echo of Georgia O'Keefe. In another corner of the gallery, Scott Kiernan photographs himself in urban settings, holding a mirror in front of his face that obscures his features. They're oddly compelling, seeming to make a statement about the anonymity of the urban experience. Gary Clemenceau rounds out the trio, with bright, shimmering pieces he creates by wiring together metal-oxide-semiconductors and charged-coupled devices from old digital cameras, and then running them through powerful magnetic fields.

Comment by AB: Check out Scott Kiernan's video in the anteroom-- more mirror work-- kind of like driving on the highway behind one of those tank trucks with a polished aluminum back that reflects the road just traveled.

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Togonon Gallery: Jessica Skloven - Chronicle of a Place Unknown; Fugitive Moments - Lucia Zegada.

Review by Jennifer Jeffrey: Photographer Lucia Zegada captures striking, gritty scenes from around the world, revealing people and situations that are decidedly outside the mainstream. Her photos have a cinematic quality, as if the characters are in a play; there's a flat, grainy quality about them also that puts me in mind of seventies-era snapshots. I like them. On the other side of the gallery, large-scale photographs by Jessica Skloven are glimmering and abstract, revealing a wild array of textures.

Review by R.W. Miller: For fans of Ray Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles or for those who like looking at pictures of Marscapes with their river valleys, Jessica Skloven's exhibit will entice you to explore (or at least watch others explore) our alien solar system. Her geological and oceanographic images remind that their are still wild places left on the planet. There is something about the emptiness she presents that is adventurous. Geological features always provide a fascinating tapestry for the observer and artist.

Review by Jessica Rosen: Togonon Gallery presents emerging Bay Area photographer Jessica Skloven in her first solo exhibition. The show features large scale photographs which showcase Skloven's investigations into the possibilities of abstraction in this medium. In her work, she uses the negative as a recording meduim, reality as the basis for her abstraction and an attitude of openness to chance. But those are the only specifics that Skloven reveals about her highly compelling aesthetics. That is because she places enormous importance on the viewer's participation in relation to her work. Skloven says, "I strongly believe that viewers should take pleasure in the work first. If i can get viewers to believe in the images in front of them, then other profound ideas will follow."

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Hangart Gallery: David Lippenberger - Ordered Distortion; Lucky Penny (at Hangart Annex).

Artists: Hugo Kobayashi, Gerald Gavzy, Mark Oberlin, Fain Hancock, Jessica Niello, Michael Shankman.

Review by R.W. Miller, Lippenberger images c/o Hangart: Is it nerdiness that is honored in this fascinating show? The portraits make you wonder whether one can win an award or fame for it. But this strange looking fellow in the paintings could also be an extraterrestrial, a genius and/or an artist. His giant and odd shaped head reminds that some do live in a world's of mathematics and intricacies. His thoughtful gaze is filled with curiousity. You may never look at your calculator the same way again.

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Four Barrel Roasters: John Trenholm Abrahams - Mountain of Nature.

Review and images by Amy Cancelmo: John Trenholm Abrahams presents his newest series of work exploring the juxtaposition of geology, specifically snow capped mountains of the Northwest, in combination with the geometry and vivid color of traditional textiles of the Southwest.

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Noma Gallery: Irena Kononova - Terra Illuminata.

Comment by AB: Eerily illuminated otherworldly landscapes by Irena Kononova perhaps allude to where we earthlings are headed if we don't clean up our act.

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Gallery 291: Les Trois Esprits - Elizabeth Opalenik, Denis Brihat, Jean Pierre Sudre.

Review by Jennifer Jeffrey: Gallery 291 is an inviting space that looks over Union Square, and tonight it feels like a warmly-lit salon decorated with fresh flowers. Works by the late Jean Pierre Sudre line one wall, elegant still life photographs that depict simple scenes-- cherries on a wooden table, a wire basket filled with eggs-- that inexplicably make me want to fly to France. I'm gratified to discover that Sudre made most of these in Provence. Across the room, photographs by Elizabeth Opalenik almost appear to spring forth from their frames. All three artists create textured, multi-dimensional images using a complex technique (called the Mordançage Process) in which chemical compounds and friction are applied to silver gelatin prints, causing the original images to transform into tissue-like pieces.

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Frey Norris Gallery: Mudassar Manzoor and Attiya Shaukat - Contemporary Miniature Paintings.

Comment by AB: Finely detailed and executed artworks on both counts with Mudassar Manzoor trending softly abstract, while Attiya Shaukat's sensitive heartfelt paintings arise from the aftermath of a fall from a ladder which left her paralyzed. It's almost like she's in the process of putting her spirit and psyche back together again-- by actually suturing certain works-- the ultimate outcome not in doubt. Good show; go see.

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San Francisco Museum of Craft and Folk Art: Inside/Outside - Artist Environments.

Artists: Mike Shine, Edgar Arceneaux, Jacob Sockness, Merritt Wallace, Megan Wilson.

Review by Sandra Silvoy: Mike Shine's Art Shack is a completely coherent amalgamation of slightly disturbing driftwood art and retro tendencies, complete with references to Scandinavian mythology, aka vikings and valkyries... oh my! Upon entry, one hears Queen's Greatest Hits. Shine extracts the spirit of the 1960's and 70's as exhibited by his funky orange bubble of an 8-track player, and wood paneling. Amusing narratives (possibly journal entries?) are scrawled on the outside wall. Within the shack, a different kind of narrative takes on a wallpaperesque quality and is reminiscent of the ebbing waves of his true beach-life environment.

Visitor engagement is encouraged since being nosy comes as default to most-- what?!-- we just want to get to know each other better! Flip through Mike's records or spin his Lazy Susan of an 8-track shelf adorned with Cream, The Doors, Eagles, The Partridge Family, and more. Take a seat at the table. Keep the werewolf company whilst doodling with the provided pens and paper.

Mike talks to us through the TV and describes notions of his creative operations. This is an who artist dislikes the idea of canvas and who scours Bolinas for driftwood to paint on. He is enticed by old school clowns of the Russian circus, the devil and all he has to offer, legends, and psychology.

The gallery walls surrounding Mike's Art Shack sport photographic examples of similarly unique environments constructed by other artists in other eras, their spaces also doubling as works of art.

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111 Minna Gallery: Neither Up Nor Down.

Artists: Jason Jagel, Zachary Rossman, Cody Cochrane, Matthew Palladino, Aiyana Udesen, James Blagden, Maxwell Loren Holyoke-Hirsch. Curated by Gabe Scott and Jay Howell.

Comment by AB: Select works by some of our more promising Bay Area up-and-comers plus Cody Cochrane from Toronto, Ontario, Canada and James Blagden from Brooklyn, New York, USA.

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Fifty24SF Gallery: Mixed Messages.

Artists: John Casey, Jin Chon, Empte Eyes, Chris Jehly, Mitsy Avila Ovalles, Jessica Trippe.

Comment by AB: Aesthetic extravaganza offers ample options for today's urban art aficionados.

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Silverman Gallery: twice upon a time.

Artists: Carla Åhlander, Kaucyila Brooke, Tammy Rae Carland, Carola Dertnig, Desiree Holman, Judith Hopf, Christina McPhee, Susanne Winterling, Ginger Wolfe-Suarez.

Comment and images by Jessica Rosen: Group exhibition organized by Galerie Andreas Huber, Vienna and Silverman Gallery, San Francisco.

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Frankee Uno: Hilary Williams - A City With Colored Dreams.

Review by R.W. Miller: Down home images of San Francisco delight and sober the viewer in this exhibit about our city by the estuary. Abstract renderings mix with images of the city neighborhoods. One can see the city with new eyes, exploring the past and the present. The works are scenic and naturalistic. There are urban landscapes and back streets, but also famous tourist spots. The City is depicted in somber colors and sometimes with abstract elements, but there is also joy and belonging.

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Addendum:

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Have you thought about doing a little of this lately?

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First Thursday - February 5, 2009

First Thursday - January 8, 2009

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