Recent shows

Saw some shows recently that are worth noting:

Really nice figure work by Ursula O’Farrell at the b. sakata garo located on 20th st. between I & J streets. Her deconstructed-figure paintings are vibrant and bold applied with a generous amount of oil. Certainly worth checking out and I think the space is well suited for the work too.

Gallery site: www.bsakatagaro.com
Painters site: www.ursulafineart.com

Fairly cerebral work by Steven Kaltenbach at the Verge. While I am not a fan of some of the stuff such as the time capsules, I can easily say that his work is top notch for conceptual tastes. I did however absolutely love the black circle piece which thoroughly surprised me once I figured it out.

Gallery site: http://www.vergegallery.com/
Artists site: http://www.stephenkaltenbach.com/

A must see for abstract landscape, work by Tom leaver at JayJay. The work is created by hand and diluted paint that pulls off the surface. Ambient and introspective with a gift for the direct he has a truly fascinating method and solid work that displays great essence without evidence of overworked application.

Gallery site: www.jayjayart.com

Buddhist sculpture and paintings at the Crocker. Great history and an excellent example of many varied forms of Buddhist artwork. There was a large crowd when I went preventing me from reading all the literature but I think the work speak volumes on their own. However, I couldn’t help wanting to clean off the old sculptures and if they were not surrounded by glass I just might dust one off with some canned air. Of course it would probably cause the stone Buddha to fall to pieces and the museum just couldn’t ever allow that. I think that was Buddha’s point though. Either way, it’s free on Sundays and has a family friendly setting.

Museum site: http://www.crockerartmuseum.org/