Good Vibrations Valencia Street Store: Jeremy Fish - Vibrator Launch Party for the "Barry the Beaver."

Comment by AB: I've seen plenty in my umpteen-esque years-- let me assure you-- but this, dear artsters, is my first ever vibrator signing. It's entirely possible that Jeremy Fish hopes against hope that he'll slip beneath the rader on this one, but that simply ain't gonna happen. If it's art, I'm there. And you can quote me on that. And that includes functional sculpture. So basically, the deal with "Barry the Beaver" is you switch it on by flipping the tail, and it's off to the races. Plus there's beer and sushi and no dearth of buyers.

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Meridian Gallery : Kevan Jenson - Paintings, Drawings, and Photograms; Bruce Hasson - Sculpture and Works on Paper. Both shows curated by Peter Selz.

Comment by AB: Los Angeles artist Kevan Jenson shows "smoke and synthetic oil on canvas" paintings, and also photograms and works on paper either incorporating or depicting the after effects of smoke. In normal life you might call this "smoke damage," but here it's more like controlled smoke manipulation. And it's interesting at that. Upstairs, Bruce Hasson shows two types of sculptures-- abstracted figures and suspended bells-- both excellent. There's also a selection of what he describes as "pigment ink with pastel" works on paper, but actually they're hand-highlighted digital prints, he tells me. C'mon Bruce-- can the obfuscation and let's call 'em what they are. Hasson's main event is the debut of an imposing bell sculpture forged of bronze and steel gun barrels ($85K). Worth a visit.

Curious tidbit-- Meridian Gallery now refers to itself as (MERIDIAN GALLERY) Society for Art Publications of the Americas. Don't have time to get the lowdown now... but soon.

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