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SAN FRANCISCO ART GALLERIES OPENINGS

FIRST THURSDAY - 07.01.10 Part I

(with assistance from RWM)

Comment by AB: Yes my darling artsters, in the spirit of Independence Day, San Francisco's citadels of haut gout let loose with an impressive 20+ barrage of art show openings-- not too shabby for a holiday weekend when we're all supposed to be gorging on wieners and blowing our appendages off with M-80s. The good news? A commendable percentage of this exciting episode's unmitigated avalanche of opuses is actually... er... uh... commendable. Yep, that's right! Wanna see what I'm talkin' about? I know you do.

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John Berggruen Gallery: Alexander Gorlizki - Pre-existing Conditions; They Knew What They Wanted. Curated by Robert Bechtle.

Artists from They Knew What They Wanted: Robert Adams, Miriam Böhm, Gregory Crewdson, Shannon Ebner, Lee Friedlander, Isca Greenfield-Sanders, Matt Keegan, Tom McKinley, Richard McLean, Richard Misrach, Mitzi Pederson, Trevor Paglen, Gail Pine & Jackie Woods, Garth Weiser, Paul Wonner.

Review by RWM: A host of styles, symbols and images by London artist Alexander Gorlitzki on display here. His work speaks to the unexpected in life. One tries to hold on here, but the experience is jarring. The diverse and sometimes discordant elements of his compositions collude and collide. Odd juxtapositions are presented in excessively impressive detail. Emotional baggage is possibly also the order of the day, but stylishly so and with history.

Comment by AB: Upstairs, Alexander Gorlitzki demonstrates a fascinating mastery of classical Indian miniature painting, but with conspicuously contemporary updates. Most priced $4000-$6000. Pick of First Thursday.

Downstairs, in a unique four-gallery hug-and-share, the collective inventories all four galleries (John Berggruen, Ratio 3, Fraenkel and Altman Siegel) are combined, sifted, regrouped, and reordered under the auspices of one artist per gallery curating a show at their respective gallery. Get it? Here at John Berggruen, Robert Bechtle renders his unique sensibility and perspective on select accessions from the agglomerate.

Miniature art by Alexander Gorlizki.

Miniature art by Alexander Gorlizki in above image closer.

Pinkie cam detail of miniature art by Alexander Gorlizki in above image.

Alexander Gorlizki and his art.

Alexander Gorlizki art.

Pinkie cam detail of art by Alexander Gorlizki in above image.

Installation of studies and related works by Alexander Gorlizki.

Art from They Knew What They Wanted, curated by Robert Bechtle.

They Knew What They Wanted, curated by Robert Bechtle.

They Knew What They Wanted, Robert Bechtle, curator.

Art from They Knew What They Wanted, curated by Robert Bechtle.

They Knew What They Wanted, curated by Robert Bechtle.

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Dolby Chadwick Gallery: Gary Edward Blum - The Long Year, New Paintings; Bill Armstrong - Renaissance.

Review by RWM: Wonderful distillations of the essence of the figure. Bill Armstrong seems to capture their spirits in muted form. You can almost sense their emotions through color and expression. The vague varied shapes displayed are beautifully presented against vivid backgrounds. They dance in the ether of existence, or perhaps they've transitioned from existence and now inhabit other realms.

Comment by AB: In the front gallery, enjoy crisp linear abstractions with tasty trompe l'oeil tidbits by Gary Edward Blum. In the side gallery, Bill Armstrong photographically morphs figures excised from Renaissance drawings into enigmatic amorphous apparitions. Good shows-- both of 'em.

Art by Gary Edward Blum.

Pinkie cam detail of center rectangle in painting on left in above image
by Gary Edward Blum (yep-- it's all paint-- and nicely done).

Gary Edward Blum art.

Art by Gary Edward Blum.

Pinkie cam detail of painting on left in above image by Gary Edward Blum.

Photographs by Bill Armstrong (pure 100% photography-- no digital trickery.

Bill Armstrong and his photography.

Photographs by Bill Armstrong.

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George Krevsky Gallery: Summer Reading.

Artists: Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Helen Berggruen, Barry Gifford, Ken Kalman, Clifford Odets, Raymond Pettibon, Man Ray, Raymond Saunders, Ben Shahn, more.

Comment by AB: Group show themed on the proverbial written word.

George Krevsky wheels & deals in the office.

Lawrence Ferlinghetti catches up on his reading in the office.

Art.

Vintage weathered Lawrence Ferlinghetti typewriter + signed manuscript poem.

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Robert Koch Gallery: Miroslav Tichý; Foto Ada.

Comment by AB: Veiled fetish-esque images of women surreptitiously shot circa the 1960s to 1980s by Czech photographer Miroslav Tichý are complemented by polished modernist photo montages dating from circa the 1930s by Hungarian photographer Foto Ata (aka Ada Ackermann; married name- Elemérné Marsovsky).

Photo montage by Foto Ada.

Photo montage in above image by Foto Ada closer.

Photo montage by Foto Ada closer.

Photographs by Miroslav Tichý.

Photography by Miroslav Tichý.

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Brian Gross Fine Art: Gesture.

Artists: Donald Feasél, Robin McDonnell, Ed Moses, Robert Sagerman, Nellie King Solomon, Amy Trachtenberg.

Comment by AB: Group show considers the diversity of gesture in abstract painting.

Art by Ed Moses.

Art.

Art.

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Fraenkel Gallery: They Knew What They Wanted. Curated by Katy Grannan.

Among the artists participating: Lutz Bacher, Bernd and Hilla Becher, Alighiero e Boetti, Miriam Bohm, Vija Celmins, Gregory Crewdson, Maureen Gallace, Charlie Harper, Matt Keegan, Los Carpinteros, Henry Wessel, Barry McGee, Tom McKinley, Richard McLean, Manuel Neri, Trevor Plagen, Mitzi Pederson, Robert Rauschenberg, Will Rogan, Ed Ruscha, Iran Do Espirito Santo, Sara VanDerBeek, Garth Weiser, Rachel Whiteread, Steve Wolfe, many more.

Comment by AB: Another intrepid installment of the four gallery artfest combining artworks from Ratio 3, John Berggruen, Fraenkel Gallery, and Altman Siegel. This particular perspective is curated by Katy Grannan.

Rapt in installation by Barry McGee - this is what it's all about.

Found photographs.

Found photographs closer.

Sculpture by Manuel Neri.

Photography.

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Altman Siegel Gallery: They Knew What They Wanted. Curated by Shannon Ebner.

Among the artists participating: Lutz Bacher, Bernd and Hilla Becher, Alighiero e Boetti, Miriam Bohm, Vija Celmins, Gregory Crewdson, Maureen Gallace, Charlie Harper, Matt Keegan, Tom Otterness, Los Carpinteros, Henry Wessel, Barry McGee, Tom McKinley, Richard McLean, Manuel Neri, Trevor Plagen, Mitzi Pederson, Robert Rauschenberg, Will Rogan, Ed Ruscha, Iran Do Espirito Santo, Sara VanDerBeek, Garth Weiser, Rachel Whiteread, Steve Wolfe, many more.

Comment by AB: Yet another point of view courtesy of the four gallery art-a-thon combining art from the inventories of Ratio 3, John Berggruen, Fraenkel Gallery, and Altman Siegel. Shannon Ebner curates here.

Cup o' lucite art by Iran Do Espirito Santo.

Bronze Humpty Dumpty hits the dirt art by Tom Otterness.

Immediately before dude gets nailed for messing with incubator art by Lutz Bacher.

Miscellaneous literature art.

Art by Fletcher Benton (left) - Bernd and Hilla Becher (right).

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Addendum:

Gallery selections at Adler & Co Gallery.

San Francisco by Peter Onstad at a440 Gallery.

Peter Onstad in front of his art at a440 Gallery.

One more of art by Peter Onstad at a440 Gallery.

Summer selections at Scott Nichols Gallery.

One more from summer group show at Scott Nichols Gallery.

Last one from summer selections at Scott Nichols Gallery.

Multitudinous oodles of art at Art Exchange Gallery.

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A little of this might be worth considering.

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First Thursday - June 3, 2010

First Thursday - May 6, 2010

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