Textie Textie at Hatch Gallery

This month, Oakland finds itself at a cultural crossroads with our City Council considering a 50 percent cut in arts funding which could drastically affect such venerable arts organizations such as ProArts and The Crucible. Such groups are indispensable because they provide opportunities for emerging artists to gain credibility and acclaim as well as a civic service in terms of arts education. I recently had the honor of getting my first ever critical essay published in a catalogue produced by ProArts. Where would budding critics and artists be without such institutions? I urge you to make your voice known this Thursday at a City Council meeting when this issue will be brought up. Last year, funding was restored and I was there to cover it. I hope this year, we can again succeed in preserving some of that funding. With that said, here are my picks for The Month Ahead In Oakland Art. 

TEXTIE TEXTIE: a show of recent paintings by Gaby Wolodarski
Hatch Gallery, 492 23rd Street
hatchgallery.org/
Artists Reception: Thursday, April 1, 6 p.m. – 9 p.m.

Hatch Gallery has had so far an almost utterly impeccable run of shows, some interactive and many playful. The biggest surprise, for me, was the mixed media collaborative works that sprung from the pairing of James Kirkpatrick and Derek Weisberg. For Weisberg, they were among the most wit-filled works he has ever had a hand in. This month, Adam Hatch's space showcases the work of Gaby Wolodarski, whose recent art aims to make sense of the (at-times) maddeningly overly saturated world of information within and about us -- on our iphones, twitter feeds and friends networks, real or imagined. In the artist's own words: I'm interested in paint's ability to arrest space-time. My aim is to crystallize its implacable forward motion, to distill its formation within human consciousness. My process is not experimental -- experiment is methodical. My procedure is intuitive above all. My inspiration comes from daydreams and night-dreams. I do not intend to be discursive, or even clear, though I find myself using semantic promise and moments of visual clarity to murky ends.

OAKLAND SCHOOL FOR THE ARTS SPRING EXHIBITION 2010
Marion E. Greene Black Box Theatre, 531 19th Street
Artists Reception: Friday, April 2, 6 p.m.- 8 p.m.
oakarts.org 

Once, former Oaklander and current emerging art star Josh Keyes taught art here to many deserving students. Now you can lend your support by checking out and possibly buying the work of the current slate of student artists at the Oakland School for the Arts’ annual spring exhibition. This is a time when funding sources for schools like this 8-year-old charter high school are at risk and your support is key. There will be hundreds of student-generated prints, paintings, drawings, digital artworks, sculptures, jewelry pieces, and more for sale, with prices starting at a very kind ten dollars. I wonder if someone will find the next Josh Keyes here?

SPRING OPEN HOUSE AT THE HEADLANDS CENTER FOR THE ARTS

This ain't in Oakland, and it might be a mild trek for some of you out there, but it sure will be worth it. Longtime Oakland artist and curator John Casey is among the artists who have a studio there; Artists like Desiree Holman and Casey Jex Smith, who were once Oakland-based, are alums. Past studio artists like Barry McGee have gone on to wider success after their time here, which explains why collectors, dealers and art aficionados alike have long made this a must-stop and I think you all should, too. Even country-rock singers like the critically acclaimed Will Oldham have had residencies here. It should prove to be an eye opening glimpse into the art-making process and/or just plain fun. Either way, it is well worth the trip. I recently had the opportunity to talk with Headlands Center for the Arts' past program director (2007-08) Anuradha Vikram about its place in the local art firmament and what artists she is looking forward to seeing this time out. 

  Theo Konrad Auer: What is the place/importance of the Headlands/their open house in the local art community? 

  Anuradha Vikram: Headlands' open house provides local artists an opportunity to see what their peers are working on while meeting and engaging with artists from a variety of different communities, art world centers as well as other regional scenes. The dialogue that the open house creates around artists' working practices is essential for developing and growing the arts community of the Bay Area.

  TKA: What has your experience working at the Headlands been like?

  AV: Headlands Center for the Arts is an extraordinarily valuable place that is woefully underappreciated by the Bay Area community. Because the programming is predominantly artists' residencies and not exhibitions, and because the park location means it's less accessible than a downtown institution, Headlands suffers from its program being unquantifiable by simplistic metrics such as tickets sold or numbers attended. However, the artist-in-residence program is of great value because Headlands supports the creative process on a very deep level. The discursive nature of Headlands' programs invites non-artists to talk with and understand artists, the ways they work and why they do what they do. I feel very fortunate to have been part of it.

  TKA: What artists are you looking to checking out there this time out?

  AV: Tucker Nichols, Qian Li, Kalup Linzy, Luke Fischbeck, and catching up with the affiliate and MFA fellowship artists.

Save the date: Anuradha Vikram, Lawrence Rinder, the director of the Berkeley Art Museum and the Pacific Film Archives and former Curator of Contemporary Art at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York, and Oakland artist Steven Barich will be discussing the future of local art at OakBook's gallery in Jack London Square on Thursday, April 22. Watch this space for more details.

Art@the OakBook, 423 Water Street, Oakland, CA 94607