'Houghton Hall; Portrait of an English Country House' at the Legion of Honor

Have you ever dreamed of living in a sumptuous English country estate, being served tea by a liveried footman, going to grand balls and sleeping in 4-poster beds, covered with rare Chinese silk? The current exhibit at the Legion of Honor, "Houghton Hall; Portrait of an English Country House" should satisfy even the most avid lover of Downtown Abbey and of a particular kind of very upper class, very elite English life style.

Houghton Hall brings to San Francisco a wonderful array of objects from one of Britain’s great country houses, and reflects the history of this magnificent estate across nearly 300 years, from the 18th century to the present day. The show features more than 100 pieces from the estate, including old-master paintings from their once-lost collection, Sèvres porcelain, and pieces from the eighteenth-century interiors and furniture designed by William Kent.

More at: http://www.examiner.com/article/houghton-hall-portrait-of-an-english-country-house-opens-at-the-legion

Día de los Muertos and more events for October 10 - 12

October at the Oakland Museum of California: A new exhibition opened at OMCA this Wednesday, October 8, honoring the Mesoamerican and Californian traditions of Días de los Muertos.

"Songs and Sorrows." Días de los Muertos 20th Anniversary marks two decades of OMCA exhibitions devoted to the evolution of this tradition. Spanning three galleries and including immersive new installations, "Songs and Sorrows" offers many ways to revel in the history of this celebration.

The 20th anniversary of the exhibition at OMCA will explore the tradition from its pre-Hispanic origins to its present expressions in California. Pre-Hispanic funerary artifacts, Mexican folk art, contemporary art, and installations will convey the iconic imagery and the aesthetic and spiritual qualities of this festival.
Friday, October 1, 7 - 8 p.m. Opening Artist Ritual for "Días de los Muertos"

For more information: http://museumca.org/   

SOMArts' 15th annual Día de los Muertos exhibition, "Visions at Twilight." Each year, more than 80 Bay Area artists from diverse cultural backgrounds acknowledge the cycles of life and death in the Day of the Dead exhibition at SOMArts. Through their installations and altars, they look at local and global issues, ranging from the deeply personal to the political and emphasize viewer interaction.

This year the exhibition pays special attention to cycles of change and the loss of people and culture being felt in the Bay Area now.

More information about the exhibition & accompanying events: http://www.somarts.org/visionsattwilight
Tickets are $15 each. Opening this Friday, October 10, 6–9 p.m.

Yerba Buena Night. This free outdoor arts festival includes more than 40 performances on five stages throughout Jessie Square, Yerba Buena Lane, the Yerba Buena Center of the Arts and Annie Street Plaza. The event kicks off with the Yerba Buena Alliance Art Walk at 4 p.m., during which galleries and institutions will be free; area restaurants and bars will offer discounts. 4-10 p.m. Saturday. Check website for schedule and locations. http://ybnight.org.

Litquake. The biggest literary festival in San Francisco celebrates its 15th anniversary with a quinceanera at 7 p.m. Friday at Z Space, 450 Florida St. (tickets: $15). Then, the nine-day affair kicks into high gear, with some 30 events around the area on Saturday alone. Through Oct. 18; check website for schedule. www.litquake.org.

Flourish Oakland. Oakland Art Murmur’s annual fundraising party-auction presents works by emerging and mid-career artists as well, chosen from member galleries and donated by the artists themselves. There will also be live music from the Oakland Manouche Project and cameos by Oakland Ballet dancers. 6-10 p.m. $75. Saturday. Classic Cars West, 411 26th St., Oakland. http://bit.ly/1rG9vV4.

Ai Weiwei at Alcatraz and 'Songs of Freedom'

Ai Weiwei, @Large: Ai Weiwei on Alcatraz explores human rights and freedom of expression in the context of this iconic historic site. Installed across four locations on Alcatraz and on view from September 27, 2014, through April 26, 2015.

The seven installations commissioned by the FOR-SITE Foundation for @Large include:

• With Wind, New Industries Building: This large-scale installation, located in the building once used for prison labor, features a contemporary version of the traditional Chinese “dragon kite,” a large kite handmade by Chinese artisans in collaboration with Ai’s studio. Scattered around the room are other kites decorated with stylized birds and flowers, which speak to the natural environs of Alcatraz Island—an important bird habitat—and reference 30 nations with serious records of restricting their citizens’ human rights and civil liberties. The position of the kites—trapped inside a building, unable to fly—suggests the powerful contradiction of freedom and restriction.

 Do Thi Minh Hanh, a young Vietnamese labor activist, was released from prison on June 27 after serving four years of a seven-year sentence for leafleting in support of footwear workers striking for better working conditions and higher wages. During her imprisonment, she suffered repeated beatings at the hands of prison guards and other inmates.

 Fariba Kamalabadi, who was jailed in Iran, for being a leader of the Baha'i faith

• Trace, New Industries Building: 175 portraits, constructed from LEGO® bricks,  are laid out on the floor. Each portrait represents an individual who has been imprisoned or exiled because of his or her beliefs, actions, or affiliations.

 • Refraction, New Industries Building: Using the imagery of flight to evoke the tension between freedom and confinement, this monumental installation—weighing more than five tons—is modeled after a bird’s wing. The artwork is composed of reflective panels originally used on Tibetan solar cookers.

• Stay Tuned, A Block: Stay Tuned invites visitors into 12 individual cells in A Block, where they can sit and listen to spoken words, poetry, and music by people who have been imprisoned for the creative expression of their beliefs—as well as works created under conditions of incarceration. Each cell features a different recording, such as works by the Russian punk band Pussy Riot and the South African anti-apartheid activists Robben Island Singers.

• Illumination, Hospital (Psychiatric Observation Cells): The psychiatric observation cells, used for the isolation and observation of mentally ill inmates, resonate with chanting recorded at a Buddhist monastery and a traditional song of the Hopi tribe. In the 19th century, the Hopi, along with other American Indian Tribes, were subjected to a program of forced 'Americanization." In 1895, 19 of them were imprisoned here for a year.

The installation of chants raises an analogy between subjugated peoples and those who have been classified as mentally ill—both often dismissed, deprived of rights, confined, and observed. Illumination speaks to the profound role of chanting as a source of comfort, strength, and identity under severe circumstances.

 • Blossom, Hospital: With intricately detailed encrustations of ceramic flowers, Ai transforms the utilitarian fixtures (sinks, toilets, and tubs) in several hospital ward cells and medical offices into porcelain bouquets. The flowers, rendered in a cool and brittle material could be understood as an ironic reference to China’s famous Hundred Flowers Campaign of 1956, a brief period of government tolerance of free expression, immediately followed by a severe crackdown against dissent.

• Yours Truly, Dining Hall: In this interactive work, visitors are encouraged to write postcards addressed to some of the prisoners represented in Trace. The cards are adorned with images of birds and plants representing the nations where the prisoners are held. Ai has spoken of the deep feeling of isolation that afflicts incarcerated people and the fear that their causes have been forgotten.

Ai Weiwei at Alcatraz is organized like your high school English papers - find out what the teacher wants, tell the teacher what you are going to say, say it and tell them again. The installation is huge, overwhelming, chaotic, and lacks nuance and in some cases, historical accuracy. Of course, it's this season's must see show.

I realized that Ai's images didn't make any sense without extensive text. But I have a real problem with that - if the visual doesn't convey the message, is it really art - or, in this case propaganda that could have just as easily been written in a book. Now I agree with many of Ai's ideas about political prisioners, the lack of democracy around the world and the totalitarian state as well as the injustices of the past. 

BUT to link that with the criminals who were held on Alcatraz and make no distinction between them, the actions taken during Alcatraz's over 100 year history and now is sloppy history, If not sloppy art making.

For more about some issues with the exhibit: http://www.examiner.com/article/ai-weiwei-s-songs-of-freedom-on-alcatraz

SJMA, Dickerman Prints, Robert Koch Gallery and more..

From "Night and the City," 2011

Pin-Up Show at Dickerman Prints: For one night only, Dickerman Prints hosts an audience participatory photo show.  Those who attend are encouraged to bring their favorite prints and pin them the wall. 50% of sales will benefit the SF non-profit "Sixth Street Photography Workshop" which brings photography to the residents of SF's hotels and shelters on the Sixth Street corridor. The other 50% of sales will go to the photographer.

How it works: Bring a favorite print (or prints under 16"x20"), and Dickerman will provide the magnetic pins for you to hang them with. Price your photo(s) accordingly. Browse others' works on display while enjoying a complimentary glass of wine or a cold beer and mingle with local photographers. Buy a print from another photographer, if you wish. Your money will help to support "6th St Photography Workshop" which brings the art of photography to the homeless and transient residents living in the 6th St corridor.

Have a great evening socializing with other Bay Area photographers and helping to support a wonderful local organization! Plus, maybe you'll sell a print or two!

There is no cost to participate, and all are welcome.

Viewers will also choose a photo to win a "Viewer's Choice" printing package prize worth $200 redeemable at Dickerman Prints. RSVP at Facebook. One night only Friday, Sept 26th (6 - 9 p.m.) 1141 Howard St.

More weekend picks at: http://www.examiner.com/article/san-jose-museum-of-art-dickerman-prints-koch-gallery-treasure-island-lecture

'David Park, Richard Diebenkorn, Nathan Oliveira, Manuel Neri' at John Berggruen

Last week, I went to as many galleries as I could and I haven't begun to sort things out yet.  But for me, the standout gallery show was the exhibit of iconic Bay Area figurative painters at the John Berggruen Gallery.

More at: http://www.examiner.com/article/david-park-richard-diebenkorn-nathan-oliveira-manuel-neri-at-john-berggruen

The Poetry of Parmigianino's 'Schiava Turca' at the Legion

"Schiava Turca” (“Turkish Slave”) arrived at the Legion of Honor, cloaked in mystery. A small painting, set within an elaborate gold frame, the lady is winsome and coy, from her stripped turban, heavily rouged cheeks and delicately arched eyebrows to the tips of her graceful fingertips. On loan from the Galleria Nazionale di Parma, it was painted between 1531 and 1534 in Parma.

More at: http://www.examiner.com/article/the-poetry-of-parmigianino-s-schiava-turca-at-the-legion

ARC, Sandra Lee, Fouladi Projects and kid friendly at the de Young

Art Works – Buy Art, Do Good: Enjoy local art, complimentary food, wine and silent auction.

An auction benefitting SFGoodwill @ ARC Gallery

Can’t resist local art finds with a unique sensibility? You won’t want to miss this special benefit evening of “FourSquared,” a collection curated for art enthusiasts with a strong abiding interest in local, affordable art. Created by some of the most talented Bay Area artists, these sixteen small works, presented in clusters, give the experience of sixteen micro solo exhibitions.
Admission is free and all works are priced under $500. Best of all, your purchase of artwork supports Goodwill’s job training and placement mission, giving local people in need a second chance through the power of work. Thursday, September 11th - 6 -9 p.m.

More at: http://www.examiner.com/article/arc-sandra-lee-fouladi-projects-and-kid-friendly-at-the-de-young

The Anderson Collection at Stanford opens to the public

Jim Dine (U.S.A., b. 1935), Blue Clamp, 1981

Roy Lichtenstein (U.S.A., 1923–1997), Mirror 1, 1977. Paint on bronze

For the past 50 years, Bay Area art collectors Harry and Mary Margaret Anderson have passionately assembled one of the most outstanding private collections of 20th-century post-war American art in the world. On September 21, more than 100 extraordinary works from their collection will be on view in a new museum adjacent to the Cantor Arts Center: the Anderson Collection at Stanford University.

To celebrate its new neighbor, the Cantor presents an exhibition of spectacular Pop Art works. The show, "Pop Art from the Anderson Collection at SFMOMA,"  runs August 13, 2014 through October 26, 2015.

http://www.examiner.com/article/the-anderson-collection-at-stanford-opens-to-the-public

'From Two Arises Three," Korea Day and more at the Asian Art Museum

 The Tao gives birth to one
one gives birth to two
two gives birth to three
three gives birth to ten thousand things
—Laozi, Daode jing

 Sunday is KoreaDay at the Asian Art Museum and it's F R E E. Daylong extravaganza for all ages.

The 2nd floor galleries have two exhibits worth going out of the way to see. "From Two Arises Three" focuses on the work of two American contemporary artists working in uniquely Chinese styles: painter Arnold Chang and photographer Michael Cherney.

http://www.examiner.com/article/from-two-arises-three-korea-day-and-more-at-the-asian-art-museum

Oakland Museum

BARTed to Oakland for dinner on a recent Thursday, and decided to go early and tie in a stop at the 12^th St BART Station, to see the Oakland Museum and the June Steingart Gallery at Laney College.      
        
After hearing so much about Oakland revival, I was surprised to find not much going on in the whole neighborhood except a sidewalk garage sale with many unique items.    Few people were in the Oakland museum.

Sculptors and stained glass artists speak highly of the Laney art program.   I was disappointed to find the open til 5PM Steingart Gallery at Laney was already closed at 3PM.  The Laney web site does say hours are subject to change.   After making a call to the number listed on the gallery page of the web site, I was informed that is not the number to call nor is the correct one available.   My thoughts drifted to all the welcoming Academy of Art galleries in SF, their MFA shows, etc.    

Future art trips to Oakland:  First Friday Art Walk of Oakland Art Murmur.  

Looking at map of Oakland Art Murmur made my head hurt, and also begged the question, is it called Art Mumu in Honolulu? 

From the murmurmap, it looks like the art movement is moving away from Oakland museum and nearby Laney College.  

I had not been to the Oakland Museum in a long time.  It is much larger than I remembered, with extensive grounds.   As the Museum’s primary focus is education and California history, I sped through those sections, having temporarily reached my limit recently through books, documentaries and other sources.      I stopped at one room with kids flopped on beanbags on the floor. They seemed to be enjoying a full wall video of what it is like to see the ocean from a slowly rocking boat, known in the interactive education arena as a seasick-o-tron.   Woozy from standing on the deck of the boat, I staggered from the room, holding the wall along the way to the coastal tide pool and beach found plastics collection, before heading to my favorite exhibits at the museum:

• Paintings by David Park and others with similar style 

• Inspiration Points: Masterpieces of California Landscape   now through Sunday, January 4, 2015

 

• The Smallest of Worlds    through August 31, 2014   dioramas from the collection of San Francisco artist Rex May, with figures created by the Aguilar family, artisans from Oaxaca, Mexico 

2013 SF Gate article about Rex May collection at SF Mexican Museum  

The upcoming SFMOMA collaborative Fertile Ground: Art and Community in California  opens September 20, 2014, runs through April 12, 2015 at Oakland Museum, 1000 Oak Street, Oakland, CA 94607

Posted by Phil Gravitt

The Mexican Museum announces a partnership with the University of Mexico

Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Mexico (National Autonomous University of Mexico) (UNAM)

The Mexican Museum keeps on working to upgrade its status and visibility - last week's Family Day was a big success and now, the possibility of visiting artists from Mexico? Viva Mexico! Viva Arte!

http://www.examiner.com/article/the-mexican-museum-announces-a-partnership-with-the-university-of-mexico

'Project Mah Jongg' at the Contemporary Jewish Museum

Leisure-class ladies playing a floating game of mah jongg, 1924. Courtesy of Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. Project Mah Jongg. The On view July 13–October 28, 2014. Contemporary Jewish Museum, San Francisco.

Dorothy S. Meyerson teaching mah jongg on television, 1951. Courtesy Marjorie Meyerson Troum. Project Mah Jongg. On view July 13–October 28, 2014. The Contemporary Jewish Museum, San Francisco. 

My knowledge of the Jews in China came through the novels of Pearl Buck, particularly through her novel, "Peony." "Peony" is set in the 1850s in the city of K'aifeng, in the province of Hunan, which was historically a center for Chinese Jews. The novel follows Peony, a Chinese bondmaid of the prominent Jewish family of Ezra ben Israel, and shows through her eyes how the Jewish community was regarded in K'aifeng at a time when Jews had started to become assimilated into the Chinese community. The story shows the mutual tolerance between Jews and Chinese, an interracial love story and yes - lots of upper class Chinese women playing Mah Jongg.

It had many of the elements present in the current exhibit at the Contemporary Jewish Museum, "Project Mah Jongg," ...

http://www.examiner.com/article/project-mah-jongg-at-the-contemporary-jewish-museum

Bay Area art events for the week of July 7th

In July, while the rest of the country is enduring three-digit temperatures, San Franciscans are reaching for their sweaters. The fog, affectionately known on Twitter by his handle @KarltheFog, is hanging around the Golden Gate Bridge and keeping the city cool. But there are plenty of art happenings to heat things up.

http://www.examiner.com/article/bay-area-art-events-for-the-week-of-july-7th

'Gorgeous' at the Asian Art Museum

 Summer gatherings in mountain villas, 1738, by Hua Yan (Chinese, 1682–1756). Set of twelve hanging scrolls; ink on gold-surfaced paper. 

 

SFMOMA is closed for renovation but continues to be present in the Bay Area's art world. Last week, they, in collaboration with the Asian Art Museum opened "Gorgeous," the museum equivalent of a summer movie. "Gorgeous" works like an arranged marriage, which is to say, sort of, kind of and not at all. More at:

http://www.examiner.com/article/gorgeous-at-the-asian-art-museum

Redefining the Multiple, Works on Paper, Gary Francis Fine Art Gallery, Alameda,July 10 to August 3, 2014

The upcoming Redefining the Multiple show, July 10 to August 3, 2014 at Gary Francis Fine Art Gallery in Alameda, features 2-D and 3-D works on paper, including  printmaking, woodcuts, stone lithographs, etchings, screen prints, book art and letterpress, by 32 Bay Area artists.  Opening Night Reception: 6-9pm, Friday, July 11 .
The 32 Bay Area artists included are:   Peter Baczek, Andrew Carney, Macy Chadwick, James Claussen, Gary Comoglio, Holly Downing, Jessica Dunne, Barry Ebner, Barbara Foster, John Gruenwald, Debra Jewell, Mike Kimball, Luz Marina Ruiz, HJ Mooij, Gustavo Mora Perez, Diego Marcial Rios, Michelle Murillo, Sarah Newton, Lian Ng, Rajit Phiosuwan, AV Pike, Carrie Ann Plank, Mandie Rider, Robyn Smith, Sylvia Solochek Walters, Herlinde Spahr, Jack Stone, Toru Sugita,  Sandy Walker, Shane Weare, Mark Welschmeyer, Linda Yoshizawa. 

Gary Francis Fine Art Gallery
1419 Park Street, Ste E
Alameda, CA 94501

http://www.garyfrancisfineart.com/  



Posted by Phil Gravitt










   

Chicago has scooped the George Lucas Museum

Sorry San Francisco. The force is not with you this time. 

http://www.examiner.com/article/chicago-has-scored-the-george-lucas-museum

http://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/jun/24/star-wars-creator-george-lucas-museum-chicago

ArtZone 461 closes this weekend

Another gallery closes - the last one of the once vibrant and lively Valencia St. art scene:

http://www.examiner.com/article/artzone-461-closes-this-weekend

'Forrest Bess: Seeing Things Invisible' opens at the Berkeley Art Museum

The University of California, Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAM/PFA) presents "Forrest Bess: Seeing Things Invisible," the first museum retrospective of the eccentric outsider painter in more than twenty years. Organized by the Menil Collection in Houston, the Berkeley presentation features approximately forty of Bess’s works, dating from 1946 to 1970 with an installation of archival materials curated by American artist Robert Gober.
 More at:  http://www.examiner.com/article/forrest-bess-seeing-things-invisible