Oakland and It's Art Soup

I’ve been witness to the Oakland Art Murmur scene since 2007. The growth in galleries since way back when has been astonishing! When I first visited the Art Murmur “happening” (as I knew it then) only a handful of galleries made up the whole scene and the Rock, Paper, Scissors collective served as the main attractant. Art Murmur these days consists of 45+ art-centric establishments with the densest concentration uptown. I think it’s safe to say Oakland is ruling the art scene in the Bay Area.

The last time I visited Oakland’s Art Murmur / First Friday two three years ago it was suffocatingly crowded, the vibe was tense, and a tragic and murderous shooting occurred. Needless to say, that sort of put me off the Oakland scene for a good long while.

However, given the curiously minded ARTy gal that I am I decided to return to Oakland’s Art Murmur to check out the scene again. It was waaaay more manageable and safer feeling this time and happily I discovered a few new galleries.

The gallery featured in this post is Oakopolis which proudly offers a curatorial concept called “Art Soup”; a delightful pottage of art that is a mix of styles from a private collection along with the worlds of guest artists. At the moment they are showing the works Richard Stangl and Jan Camp. The gallery is small and uniquely configured. The caddie-corners of the gallery led to two teeny-tiny, totally adorable, show spaces. The entry hallway featured Richard Stangl's photographs. Centered in the gallery was a living-room-like setting with a coffee table displaying several handmade artist books for the touching (ooooo! I love it when you can touch the art!!). There was something oasis like about this little gallery. Here’s a sampling of the art you will find at Oakopolis in April and May.

Art Beats Da Feat.

Art Beats 

San Francisco

Pier 70

Low Art. Low Fi. Low Budget. Low Down & Dirty Art Show.

There were jewelers, builders, painters, crafters, printers, weavers, photographers, musicians, sculptors and chefs at the event. The lighting was sub-awesome, dim industrial, it made it hard to see some of the vendors work. It was totally cool for a dance party. I went there Friday (opening) night and it was sparsely populated. People were still setting up, a la Burning Man style; making it happen, putting it together, some were more prepared than others. 

The most attractive feature of the evening was a huge glassy puddle of water or…? It was behind the gallery stands, unlit, except for the light that came in through nearby windows. Many people gathered around it, gazed, and tried to photograph it. It appeared to be a natural wonder. The massive glossy puddle flawlessly mirrored the whearhouse ceiling and created an abysmal illusion, one of falling deep into a dark cold linear hole. It was awsome! and difficult to photograph with my iPhone. 

Below are the sampling of photos I came away with. 

Here's an article in Hi Fructose about the show: Art Beats Brings Affordable Art Fair to San Francisco

If you are an artist I show here please contact me, I want to add your name. 

Names, eeek! not my forte. 

The mirror-like puddle.

The dried Sea Urchin necklace brought to mind Charlie Callahan's work.

Vegan Taxidermy (Love It!) 

This piece was so slick. 

Beautiful, tight, airbrushing and design work with a thick glossy finish.

A painting 

The Farm Stand Rock' n' Roll Potluck Art Show Party

I attended the Farm Stand Rock n' Roll potluck party. I brought the obligatory chips and salsa to the potluck as did many other attendees. My date and I discovered the best seeded dried fruit cookies we've ever eaten, and, I scarfed down A LOT of the skinny white and purple french fries that were being served up by the owners of the Gospel Flat Farm.

The two acts, The Domestics and a Jeff Manson outfit, were excellent. The Domestics were a tight, driving, pop/rock duo with wry lyrics about relationships gone awry. Jeff and his group were loose, free, thoughtful, clever and fun. I was digging the guitar playing, the free spirited dancers, the mellow crowd, and the sun-kissed vibe of the entire scene.

There was also an impressive large scale photo portrait show on display at the gallery that coexists with the 24 hour roadside farm stand. It wasn’t an easy show to look at, yet it fit into the gallery and its surroundings beautifully. It was a strong and daring contrast to Bolinas’s bucolic country side. Ethan Rafal was the photographer/artist and what he created was TOTALLY ART.