Hespe Gallery : Byron Spicer - Stacked Paintings.

Comment by AB: Each of Byron Spicer's "paintings" is composed of anywhere from dozens to hundreds of individual paintings, usually nailed together in stacks, one painting on top of the other, the average stack ranging from three to five paintings, the stacks arranged in rows and columns, stack after stack after stack-- complex exercises in interrelatedness guaranteed to keep you busy. The paintings look fresh now, and unquestionably unusual, but my antiquarian muse, ever prognosticating decades beyond the debut, whispers that they're gonna be hard to dust. Hmmm. Perhaps plexiglas enclosures to keep those pesky ravages at bay.

...

John Pence Gallery : Zack Zdrale - Recent Oil Paintings and Drawings.?

Review by Libby Nicholaou: Zack Zdrale's paintings provide a fresh take on traditional figurative realism. ?The most captivating piece, "Searching," presents a mirror image of two males facing each other, each with hands over their eyes, thereby preventing them from seeing each other's reflections. Zdrale is the gallery's Introductions Artist 2008, which lends understanding to the youthful nature of thes subject matter.

...

Lincart Gallery : Eleanor Harwood and Penelope Krebs.

Review by Libby Nicholaou: Eleanor Harwood explains her artwork in relation to current life events, such as the war in Iraq. ?Her large scale collages require a closer look to see what elements are involved.?Penelope Krebs's bird paintings, which have a delicate and decorative?nature,?are about sold out by the time I leave. ?It's an interesting mix of fine detailed isolated subject matter and large abstract conceptualism.

Comment by AB: Penelope Krebs's precise watercolors of birds are "only" $2200 each, a Lincart principal tells me. I don't know about you, but to me $2200 isn't exactly chump change. For that kinda kale, I can buy three tanks of gas, a bunch of organic bananas, and a bleacher seat at a Giants game. But it's a non-issue-- all the birds are sold-- and deservedly so. Plus there's a heart-rending context to go with 'em. Just ask. And chew on this-- who would have thought vanguard San Francisco artsters would ever embrace wildlife art?

...

Gamma Black and White Photographic Lab : Pamela Gentile - Portraits from San Francisco International Film Festivals.

Comment by AB: Pamela Gentile tells me she's been a staff photographer for the SF International Film Festival for the past 22 years (not a bad gig), , and that the photos on display have been taken over the past five years or so. Her images appear everywhere from Stanford Magazine to Vanity Fair; you can enjoy and purchase 'em right here at Gamma Photographic Lab.

...

Creativity Explored : INsects INsectos.

Artists: Nubia Ortega, Abel Pineda, others.

Comment by AB: Artful insects for your shelves, walls, and to hang from your ceilings, crafted and painted by Creativity Explored artists. Hundreds of additional works of art are available for purchase in the rear of the building, the work area temporarily transformed into display space. If you like affordable art, this is the place to buy it.

...

Live Worms Gallery : A Striking Twelve.

Artists: Carrington, Jeffrey Thompson, Jerry Ferraz, Jurgen Trautwein, Kent Barichievich, Momo, Rebecca Peters, Roger Strobel, Ronald F. Sauer, Rosemary Manno, Tina Tarnoff, Tony Vaughan, Isabelle Piquet Brauchli, Michael Pedroni.

Review by Libby Nicholaou: A great gathering of seasoned bohemian artists including San Francisco's poet laureate, Jack Hirschman. ?The exhibit includes works that demand attention, not to themselves but to the world's situation as it is. Hung salon style and in sections by each artist, the curatorial process seems to be more about past and current events than complexity of the art itself. ?Which in turn raises the question of what is art... the art of doing or art of being?

...

Addendum:

...