Dear Jules De Balincourt:

Could you please show your paintings in California.  I greatly enjoy them, and would like to see them in person.  

I thank you in advance. 

Best wishes,

T.A.F.

The Date Farmers @ Oakland Museum

(click the images to see 'em real big)

The Date Farmers, Armando Lerma and Carlos Ramirez, have been included in the current group show 'L.A. Paint' at the Oakland Museum of California.  'L.A. Paint' focuses on 10 painters from Los Angeles.  I went for The Date Farmers, but completely enjoyed all the art.  

The show is up until March 8, 2009, so you have time to get over there.  But really, just go now.  Stop whatever your doing, get out the door, get on BART, ride your bike, drive your car...or board a plane.  Art looks better in person.

The show has 9 other "L.A." artists, Brian Fahlstrom, Steve Galloway, Loren Holland, Hyesook Park, Steve Roden, Linda Stark, Don Suggs, Esther Pearl Watson (her paintings are rad), and the legendary Robert Williams. 

While you're there, find the painting that Leonardo DiCaprio usually has hanging above his bed.

Dear and Yonder art opportunities

Johanna St. Clair

Dear and Yonder is the title of a surf movie being made about girl surfers.  From what little I've seen, it looks like it's going to be beautiful.  I'm looking forward to seeing it. 

Recently they held a benefit art sale in Los Angeles.  After the show date they posted the works online, and  have extended the chance for all of us that were not able to attend the show to be able to purchase works that are still available.   It's great to be able to see the works.  I find it very interesting to see what has sold, and what is still available.  There are some great works ready to find new homes.  

Here's the long list of artists involved:  

Thomas Campbell, Alex Kopps, Serena Mitnik-Miller, Kyle Field, Jay Nelson, Derek Snodgrass, Lori D., Rich Jacobs, Jo Jackson, Chris Johanson, Evan Hecox, Geoff McFetridge, Andy Davis, Nikki McClure, Kassia Meador, Chris Duncan, Amy Jo, Johanna St. Clair, Barry Mcgee, Claire Rojas, Nat Russell, Dave Muller, Alberto Cuadros, John McCambridge, Jeff Canham, Mason St. Peter, Lana Porcello, Spencer Tunik, Ray Potes, Liz Peppin, Nikki Brooks, Laura Flippen, Josh Lazcano, Erin Kunkle, Tobin Yelland, Stefan Simikich, Deanna Templeton, John Smart, Chris Gentile, and David Kimball Anderson.

And here is the link, Dear and Yonder art benefit

Please enjoy.

Paul Wackers, Sean Mcfarland, Johanna St.Clair in 'The Secret Life of Plants'

'The Secret Life of Plants' 

a group show at the Eleanor Harwood Gallery.

Once again I find myself praising Paul Wackers.   He continues to impress.  This time he's in a group show with Sean Mcfarland, and Johanna St. Clair.  The show is amazing.  I knew that I would love Paul's paintings, but really, all the work in the show is of such a high level that I find myself unable to pick a favorite. 

 

Sean Mcfarland's dark photos are a departure from the polaroid series that he's been showing recently.  He has presented six photos here.  They have a magnetic mystery that even while standing in front of them I kept wanting to get closer and closer to them.  I've been finding myself drawn to dark images lately.  Images that dramatically change based on the light. Sean's photos go from complete black to a glowing resonance of muted color.  I don't know how Sean does it, but I like the results.

Johanna St. Clair has painted three oil on panel works that focus on the chaos that nature can be.  I've seen Johanna paint natural scenes before, but not with this intensity.  The leaves in the painting titled 'Abutilon' (shown above) have a great play between dabs of paint, and fine detail.  I find her work to be so refreshingly different.  Set apart from the trends that often plague young painters.  She's not afraid to fill up the space with detail edge to edge.  The  results are beautiful.  I'll be looking forward to seeing her future works.  

Paul Wackers was recently awarded the '08-'09 Tournesol Award at the Headlands Center for the Arts.  This is his first showing since receiving the award.  In this group show he has presented three works.  Two works on panel, and a big beautiful diptych on paper.  The diptych, titled 'Hallucinatorium' (shown above) is Paul's first work on paper to be shown.  Beautifully framed, and a good hefty size, I was a bit surprised to see it not sold.  I imagine this has more to do with our nation's failing economy than the price being too high.  Paul has continued to impress me with his paintings of settings as still lifes.  There's always something unsettlingly beautiful about his works.  He's able to set the scene for something that is either going to happen, or has happened, but what it is, or was, is often unclear.  That kind of mystery will continue to keep me at attention.  

'The Secret Life of Plants' has brought together three artists with undeniable talent.  Each creating works that kept my eye from wandering, and kept my feet from walking past them.  

The show was curated by Dan Carlson.  This is Dan's first curatorial project.  In addition to curating the show, Dan has installed a garden in front of the gallery.  Two massive planter boxes that are planted with an interesting pallet of plants, that the local bees and butterflies were enjoying while I was there.  In addition to being an upstart curator, Dan Carlson is a garden designer.  His company, Wigglestem Gardens, has designed plantings for The San Francisco Botanical Garden, as well as the Conservatory of Flowers.  

The show ends on October 31, so if you haven't seen it in person, I strongly recommend going.  This is one of my favorite gallery shows of the year.  Well done.

Barry McGee as "Lydia Fong" at Ratio 3

This latest persona adopted by Barry McGee brings us one of his best shows to date.  I missed the opening, as did many others, due to the hush-hush nature of who "Lydia" actually was.  Gold star to Ratio 3 for keeping it quiet.  

The show ends October 18th, 2008. 

Here's a video  of Barry talking about the show.

Ratio 3  is located on a tiny alley just off of 14th and Valencia.  

1447 Stevenson st.  sf, ca

I've been out there

The veiw from my blog.

I've taken a bit of a break from blogging about art, in order to actually view some art, and to take the time to think about art.  Blogging is lonesome.  But then again, so is viewing art, well....for me it is, or can be.  Stepping into a gallery to see the art on the wall has more impact on me.  Much more than just surfing the world wide web.  Finding jpegs of art is nice, and learning about new artists, new works, new shows is great on the web, but really, get out and go see the art in person.

October in San Francisco has a lot to offer those willing to leave the digital realm.  To be honest, I'm guilty of staying in my safety zone (home) and viewing art shows on the web, ones that are less than a few miles away.  I'm sure everyone does that.  But I'm trying to do less of it.

I'll post some photos, and say a little something about some of the shows that really caught me. If you have a thought, or you think I should see something, feel free to comment.  I'm a person, not just a blog.

Matthew Palladino

"Hey, have you ever heard of Matthew Palladino?"   

I've been hearing that a lot lately. 

And I think we're going to be hearing it a lot more.   At just 22 years old, Matthew is setting himself on an artistic path that's going to be pretty exciting to watch.  His current solo show at Park Life here in San Francisco is only his second solo appearance in a gallery.   The paintings are strong, and have an interesting narrative.  Tiger suits, girls on the internet, same sex gang members in love, and one of the most interesting self portraits I've ever seen.  I've watched his art evolve over the years and I'm always impressed with what I see. 

His show at Park Life  is on view until July 13th.

Go check it out.  

Here's more of Matthew Palladino's art for you to enjoy.

collage is...

COLLAGE is the new rainbow.

COLLAGE is the new wallpaper.

COLLAGE is the new antlers.

COLLAGE is the new birds.

COLLAGE is the new grouped art on found material.

COLLAGE is the new black.

Glue stick + magazine + scissors + large piece of white paper = art?  

I have mixed feelings on this one.

Apocabliss at the Alice Gallery

installation piece by Maya Hayuk and Chris Duncan

painting by Paul Wackers

drawing by Kyle Ranson

There's a group show curated by Maya Hayuk happening at the Alice Gallery right now that's knocking my socks off. I knew the show was going to happen because some of my favorite artists are involved in the show. After seeing the website, I'm really impressed with the entire show! The installation work is really good. Maya Hayuk's black light mural is crazy. Chris Duncan creates beautiful works of art. Kyle Ranson shows some new drawings that I just can't get enough of. And Paul Wackers has become my favorite new painter with the works he's been showing this year, just so beautiful.

painting by Chris Duncan

12 American artists in Brussels:

Andrew Jeffrey Wright - Chris Duncan - Christine Shields - Cody Hudson - Heidi and Erika Lynn Anderson - Jovi Schnell - Kayrock and Wolfy - Kyle Ranson - Maya Hayuk - Paul Wackers - Thaddeus Kellstadt

...exhibition dates.... March 20 thru April 26, 2008

Two Words People: Kyle Ranson

Kyle Ranson's art is moving, emotional, and honest. All things great art ought to be.
From what I read, Kyle's going to be having a great year. He's booked art shows all over the world. And is showing with some other amazing artists. After years of producing art, it looks like Kyle's really starting to take off. Keep an eye on him. And if you happen to buy art, nows the time.

Check this out too

Roger Brown

I've been looking at some of the artist to come out of the Chicago art scene in the late 60's and 70's. I'll share some of the ones that i've really been into recently.

The first one I'll showcase is Roger Brown (1941-1997)

Roger Brown created work from the early 60's all the way through to the end of his life in the late 90's. I've been really into his works painted in the 80's and 90's. Here's just a few of them.





Here's an online resource for Roger Brown. Once you've made the jump, follow the links on the left for more images of his work.

Sean McFarland, photographer.

Sean McFarland has many cameras, and has created some amazing bodies of work over the last few years. With the recent news of Polaroid no longer making it's instant film, I've been looking at Sean's Polaroid photos as something just a bit more special. Sean Mcfarland has used Polaroids to capture nature. And he's done it with a soul not commonly seen in Polaroid images.

check this out while you're thinking about Polaroid photos.

Peter Doig is a painter

click on the images to see them larger

i've been thinking about drawing vs. painting.
when is a painting a painting?
when is a painting more of a drawing?

Paul Wackers

I went back to the Eleanor Harwood Gallery to view the Paul Wackers show again. It often takes a few visits for me to fully grasp an artists work. I've found that returning to see the work in person at least a second time allows me to truly see the work, to form a more honest opinion.

With this showing of Paul Wackers current paintings it took that second visit. On the first visit I was too busy digesting the change in content that he's made since his last solo show at the Eleanor Harwood Gallery. He's brought color into his work. He's moved away from the comfort of architecture and land views, and is now working somewhere between abstraction and fictional worlds. I looked at each painting, each detail, and found myself diving further into the works of Paul Wackers. I was pleased to see the works are selling. And with talking to Eleanor Harwood, it seems there's quite a buzz about Paul.

I'll be keeping an eye on him, and can't wait to see more works.

The gallery has posted images of Paul's paintings on the website.

Stand Still Like the Hummingbird

You oughta know about Michelle Blade

I've seen Michelle Blade's work in several different places over the last year, and each time i see it, i like it more and more. i love her use of color, and how she creates the most beautiful light. even her darker pieces have a wonderful glow to them. truly amazing.

Michelle Blade

The Date Farmers want you to vote!

The Date Farmers, Carlos Ramirez and Armando Lerma, are incredibly talented artists. This Obama poster blows away Shepard Fairey's recent poster creation. I'm not usually one to buy prints, but i'm going to buy one of these. They will be sold on the Upper Playground website for $200, with all proceeds going to creating more campaign posters and stickers by other artists in support of Obama.

Upper Playground

"On March 4th, 2008, Barack Obama has the chance to secure the Democratic Party nomination for President by winning the delegates in both Texas and Ohio. We at Upper Playground are pleased to announce our support of Barack Obama in 2008. For too long we have been plagued by mediocrity and incompetence at the Executive level. As an international company, we feel that it is time to support a candidate that truly embodies the American spirit in both his campaign and his ideologies. We believe that Barack Obama is that candidate.

To help secure Obama's bid, Upper Playground has asked the Date Farmers to create a campaign poster to be mass-distributed on offset posters throughout Texas prior to the primary in that state. Upper Playground is offering the same image as a limited-edition screen print of the Date Farmers' Obama 2008 campaign poster through www.upperplayground.com. There will only be 300 limited-edition copies of the poster signed and numbered by the artists available (price is $200 each). All proceeds from the sales of the Date Farmers’ Obama 2008 screen print will go directly to creating more campaign posters and stickers by other artists in support of Obama's bid for President. The limited-edition screen prints are a pre-sale item, and will not be shipped until March 7th, 2008."

Be sure to vote, every chance you get.

Paul Wackers @ Eleanor Harwood Gallery

I've been waiting for this show. This will be Paul Wackers second solo show with Eleanor Harwood. This show titled, "Stand Still Like the Hummingbird" will present his most recent paintings. Paul Wackers seems to be just getting into his stride. He's been at it for several years now, and has received praise for his past work. But I think he's on a strong tregectory that will bring him into the eyes of the global art world. Be sure to see this show, as he's not one to present work to the public too often. But when he does, it's a true pleasure to see.

-Paul Wackers, "Stand Still Like the Hummingbird."
-Opening reception Saturday, February 16th from 7 - 10pm.
-Show runs from February 16th to March 22.

Eleanor Harwood Gallery
1295 Alabama St. @ 25th St. San Francisco.
(415) 867-7770

getting in line

as more and more people create blogger blogs, i find myself wanting to comment on a few of them.  little notes here and there.  add to a discussion.  put my 2 cents in.  or give a note of praise.  however, on some blogger blogs this is not an option, unless i have my very own blogger blog.  well here i am.  i've gotten in line with the masses.  one more online profile for the interweb surfer to get caught in.  before long i imagine i'll be frustrated into getting a personally dreaded "myspace" page.  yesterday i wanted to view a "facebook" posting that had something to do with a word i googled.....i was denied because i don't have a "facebook" page.  from fotolog, to friendster, to flickr, and now to blogger.  at least i'm out of the "f" blogs, but still well within the "effing" blog scene.  as you may have figured out, i'm not one to hop on the band wagon.  but i do see the value in self publishing, self expression, and enjoy the hard work that others put into their online voices.  i use the interweb on a daily basis.  i go a little crazy if i don't have access to it.  and now, i'm one blog closer to being fully assimilated.  

welcome to the farm.  enjoy the fertilizer.