art

Art listings are compiled by Sarah Han. Because of space limitations, new art shows are listed the week they open (thereafter, shows are listed on a rotating basis), and we cannot list café exhibits. For information on how to submit listings to this section, see 8 Days a Week. Reviews are by Lindsey Westbrook.

museums

Cartoon Art Museum 655 Mission; CAR-TOON. Tues-Sun, 11am-5pm. $2-5. "Web-Slinging and Wall-Crawling: The Art of Spider-Man." Original artwork from the Spider-Man comic book series. Through July 21.

Magnes Museum 121 Steuart; 543-8800. Sun-Thurs, noon-5pm. $4, $3 seniors and students, free for 12 and under and members. "Ben Katchor: Picture-Stories." Illustrations, graphic novels, set designs, and drawings by cartoon artist Ben Katchor. Through June 30.

San Francisco Museum of Modern Art 151 Third St; 357-4000. Fri-Tues, 10am-6pm; Thurs, 10am-9pm. $10, $7 seniors, $6 students, free for 12 and under and members (free first Tues; half-price Thurs, 6-9pm). "Points of Departure II: Connecting with Contemporary Art." Exhibition explores art within six thematic contexts. Through Sun/9. "Edward Weston: The Last Years in Carmel." Landscapes, still-lifes, and portraits by the photographer. Through July 9. "Sampling/Christian Marclay." Video installation and film works by Christian Marclay. Through July 28.

Yerba Buena Center for the Arts 701 Mission; 978-ARTS. Tues-Sun, 11am-6pm (first Thurs, 11am-8pm). $6, $3 seniors, students, and youths; free for members (free first Tues). "The Film Art of Isaac Julien." Video and film projects by the British filmmaker. "The Cockettes." An exhibition devoted to the drag theater troupe from the early '70s. "Straight to Hell: 10 Years of Dyke Action Machine!" An exhibition of posters, books, video, and more. "2000 Dragons." A 500-foot-long work by San Francisco painter and tattoo artist Don Ed Hardy. Through July 14.

Bay Area

Lindsay Wildlife Museum 1931 First Ave, Walnut Creek; (925) 935-1978. Tues-Fri, noon to 5pm; Sat-Sun, 10am-5pm. $6, $5 for seniors, $4 children 3-17, free for 2 and under. "Native." Metal sculpture by Ken Kalman. June 1-Aug 4. See Critic's Choice.

UC Berkeley Art Museum 2625 Durant, Berk; (510) 642-0808. Wed-Sun, 11am-7pm. $6, $4 seniors and youths, free for 12 and under, members, and UC Berkeley students and faculty. "Psychic Windows." New sculptures by Sanford Biggers. Through Sun/2. "XXL." Large-scale paintings and sculpture. Through July 14. "Komar and Melamid's Asian Elephant Art and Conservation Project." Paintings by elephants under the instruction of artists Vitaly Komar and Alex Melamid. Through July 14.

galleries

Opening

Aquarius Records 1055 Valencia; 647-2272. Mon-Wed, 10am-9pm; Thurs-Sun, 10am-10pm. "A Short History of Decay," work by Jim Haynes (reception Thurs/30, 7-9pm). May 30-July 21. See 8 Days a Week, page 52.

Braunstein/Quay 430 Clementina; 278-9850. Tues-Sat, 11am-5:30pm. Work by Grace Munakata. Through Sat/1. New ceramic sculpture by Richard Shaw (reception Sat/8, 3:30-5:30pm). June 4-29.

Build 483 Guerrero; 863-3041. By appt only. "Yet Points Energy," work by Oliver Rosenberg and Clint Taniguchi. Fri/31, 6-10pm.

Caldwell Snyder Gallery 341 Sutter; 392-2299. Mon-Wed, 10am-6pm; Thurs-Sat, 10am-8pm; Sun, 11am-5pm. "Provence and Andalusia," new painting by Thomas Pradzynski (reception Thurs/6. 5-7:30pm). June 1-30.

Eleonore Austerer 540 Sutter; 986-2244. Mon-Sat, 10am-6pm. "Color and Light," sculpture, painting, lithographs, and linocuts by Roberto Lauro. Through Wed/5. Lithographic works on paper by Fernand Léger. June 1-30.

Galería de la Raza 2857 24th St; 826-8009. Tues-Sat, noon-6pm. "Paper Tigers," posters and prints on the topic of Chicano/Latino life and politics. June 1-29.

HANG at the Canvas 1200 Ninth Ave; 504-0070. Mon-Wed, 11am-7pm; Thurs-Fri, 11am-9pm; Sat-Sun, 10am-9pm. "Get Caught Up: A May Medley of New Work," various works (reception Thurs/30, 7-9pm). May 30-June 18.

Hosfelt Gallery 430 Clementina; 495-5454. Tues-Sat, 11am-5:30pm. New work by Anthony Discenza (reception Sat/1, 3-5pm). June 1-29.

Jenkins Johnson Gallery 464 Sutter; 677-0770. Tues-Sat, 10am-6pm; Sun, 11am-5pm. "The Fruitful Menagerie," still-life painting by Michael Zigmond. Through Wed/29. "Fourth Annual Realism Invitational," work by various artists (reception Sat/1, 6-8pm). June 1-July 10.

John Pence 750 Post; 441-1138. Mon-Fri, 10am-6pm; Sat, 10am-5pm. Recent oil paintings by Jacob A. Pfeiffer (reception Fri/31, 6-8:30pm). May 31-July 6.

Jon Sims Center for the Arts 1519 Mission; 554-0402. Call for hours. "Catching up with the Cockettes," works and photographs by Robert Altman, Dan Nicoletta, Tommy Kohl, Chet Helms, and Fayette Hauser (reception Fri/31, 6pm). May 31-July 31.

The Lab 2948 16th St; 864-8855. Wed-Sat, 1-6pm, and by appt. "Sauna02," outdoor and indoor installations by Sponge (reception Fri/31, 7-9pm). May 31-June 29.

Mission Cultural Center 2868 Mission; 821-1155. Mon-Sat, 10am-5pm. "12th Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Latina/o Art Exhibit," a group exhibit curated by Flavia Alejandra Maucci (reception Sat/1, 6-8pm). June 1-30.

Pond 214 Valencia; 437-9151. Thurs-Sun, 3-8pm, and by appt. "Gastral Projections," video and sculpture installation by Eva Strohmeier (reception Fri/31, 6:30-9:30pm). May 31-July 7.

R8 Gallery 8 Avery; 364-1806. Call for hours. "Under the Surface," a group exhibition (reception Sat/1, 9pm-midnight). June 1-30.

San Francisco Arts Commission Gallery 401 Van Ness; 554-6080. Tues-Sat, 11am-5pm. "Film Show," a traveling show featuring work by eight artists (reception Fri/31, 5:30-8pm). May 29-July 13.

Skylight Gallery San Francisco Public Library, Main Branch, 100 Larkin, Sixth fl; 557-4277. Sun, noon-5pm; Mon and Sat, 10am-6pm; Tues-Thurs, 9am-8pm; Fri, noon-6pm. "Under the Big Top." Every April Fools' Day, the San Francisco Public Library's Book Arts and Special Collections Center opens a themed exhibition of books from the Nat Schmulowitz Collection of Wit and Humor. This year it's all about the circus, with a special emphasis on San Francisco circus history. Schmulowitz's collection now includes more than 20,000 volumes – the largest of its kind in the United States. The books in the show are under glass, but they're positioned so you can still get the most from their incredible full-color covers and illustrations. Some are as new as Jeffrey T. Brouws's Inside the Live Reptile Tent (2001). Others are as old as Lothar Meggendorfer's movable (pop-up) books from the 1880s, notable for their beautiful colors and craftsmanship. Each Thursday in May the library will present a free showing of a different circus-themed movie at noon in the Koret Auditorium (for a schedule go to www.sfpl.org). Through Fri/31. (Westbrook) "Borges: The Time Machine/La Máquina del Tiempo," letters, manuscripts, photographs, and more documenting the life of Jorge Luis Borges. June 15-Sept 1.

Southern Exposure 401 Alabama; 863-2141. Tues-Sat, 11am-5pm. "Icons of Action: The Global Youth/Post Youth Underground," work by Amaze, Bratmobile, Sergio Brown, Demo, Shepard Fairey, Fawn Gehweiler, Barry McGee, and Volume One. Through Thurs/30. "PSA Mix/Hidden Noise," experimental audio installation in the gallery's OVERLOOK Project Space. Through June 15. "In Our Own Vision," photography by students of the McClymonds High School photography program (reception Wed/5, 3-5pm). June 3-Aug 5.

Terrainarts 163 Jessie; 896-0249. Wed-Sat, noon-5pm. "Work," new painting by Julie Hodge. Through Sat/1. "Trio," new work by Fumiko Amano, Alice Finney, and Audric Edmund Goo (reception Tues/4, 5:30-8pm). June 4-30.

Weinstein 383 Geary; 362-8151. Mon-Tues, 10am-7pm; Wed-Sun, 9:30am-10pm. Prints, sculptures, and paintings by Joan Miró. May 29-July 14.

Bay Area

Albany Arts 1251 Solano, Albany; (510) 526-9558. Tues-Sat, 11am-6pm; Sun, noon-5pm. "Recent Color Photographs by Gordan H. Nagai, Kimberly Martinez, and Kristy Hardy (reception Fri/31, call for hours). May 31-June 30.

Richmond Art Center 2540 Barrett, Richmond; (510) 620-6772, www.therichmondartcenter.org. Tues-Fri, 10am-4:30pm; Sat, noon-4:30pm. "Top of the Map," work by 33 West Contra Costa County artists. Through July 5. "trans/lucent," work by Leah Korican; "Bay Area Selections – Ceramics: Fourth Annual Ernie Kim Award," work by Michelle P. Kern, Kim Tucker, Shalene Valenzuela, and Monica Van den Dool; recent work by Gertrud Parker; "Power of Voice," artwork by members of Asian Community Mental Health Services' Oakland Art Center (reception Sat/8, 4-7pm). June 1-Aug 15.

Ongoing

Big Pagoda Company 1903 Fillmore; 563-8727. Tues-Sat, 11am-7pm; Sun, noon-6pm. "Visions of Utopia," propaganda posters depicting the Chinese Cultural Revolution, 1966-76. Through Fri/31.

Brian Gross Fine Art 49 Geary; 788-1050. Tues-Fri, 10:30am-5:30pm; Sat, 11am-5pm. "Dark City," recent paintings by Patrick Wilson. Through Sat/1.

Canessa 708 Montgomery; 296-9029. Mon-Fri, 11am-5pm. "New Landscape Works," work by Grant Johnson. Through Fri/31.

Catharine Clark 49 Geary; 399-1439. Tues-Fri, 10:30am-5:30pm; Sat, 11am-5:30pm. "Counterfeit," new work by Ray Beldner and works on paper published by Trillium Press. Through Sat/1.

City Art 828 Valencia; 970-9900. Wed-Sun, noon-9pm. Work by various artists. Through Fri/31.

Crown Point Press 20 Hawthorne; 974-6273. Tues-Sat, 10am-6pm. "Invention/Tradition," group show featuring artists who blend traditional techniques with a contemporary focus. Through Sat/1.

Culture Cache 1800 Bryant, Ste 104; 626-7776. Wed-Sun, 2-6pm, and by appt. "Mission Detritus." Diverse and energetic, with deep roots in graffiti and other "street" art forms, the pieces you'll find in this show might be just as likely to appear overnight on the side of a 16th Street building as in a commercial gallery. Painter Andrew Schoultz contributes almost 40 canvases to the exhibit. His images are cartoonish and Dr. Seuss-like, featuring a friendly-looking but profoundly strange cast of characters: Escher-like buildings that hover in the blue sky and bug-eyed flying birds that carry their houses with them like lunch boxes. James Kirkpatrick shares Schoultz's knack for creating figures that are both cute and unsettling, but he uses a more raw painterly style. Of all the featured artists, Alena Rudolph makes the most literal translation of her urban surroundings into art. The images in this exhibit show her stepping back to take in a sweeping, wide-angle view that reduces the cityscape to simple, repetitive geometric forms silhouetted in flat black paint against a pastel-colored sky. Through Fri/31. (Westbrook)

Dolby Chadwick 266 Sutter, Fourth fl; 956-3560. Tues-Sat, 10am-6pm. New paintings Marshall Crossman. Through Sat/1.

Don Soker Contemporary Art 49 Geary; 291-0966. Tues-Fri, 10:30am-5:30pm; Sat, 11am-5pm. Recent works by Peter Boyer. Through Sat/1.

Ebert Gallery 49 Geary, Fourth fl; 296-8405. Tues-Sat, 11am-5pm. Works by Lawrence F. Abrahamsen. Through Fri/31.

871 Fine Arts 49 Geary; 543-5155. Tues-Sat, 10:30am-5:30pm. "Moving On: Part I," conceptual works by Jo Babcock, Nayland Blake, Terry Fox, and Tony Oursler. Through Fri/31.

Focus Gallery 2423 Polk; 567-9067. Tues and Thurs, noon-9pm; Wed, Fri-Sun, noon-6pm. "Women Nude," photographs by Sandra Merritt. Through Fri/31.

The Front Office 425 Bush, Ste 400; 788-0445. Call for appt. "Tough Guys," work by Tara Daly, Christian Maychack, and John C. Rogers. Through Sat/1.

Gallery 16 1616 16th St; 626-7495. Mon-Fri, 9am-5pm. "Supermarket." Rudy VanderLans has been photographing California's landscapes ever since he moved to the Bay Area from his native Netherlands in 1981. In his 24 images of the Mojave Desert, VandeLans presents the Mojave as something uniquely American – a vast expanse of untamed Western terrain stretching out for miles and miles, welcoming those who are tough and resourceful enough to scrape out a habitable niche. It's difficult to figure out VanderLans's politics from looking at the pictures in this show. He's clearly poking fun at the encroaching suburbanites and their meticulously manicured green lawns, but he seems to be objecting mostly to their tacky aesthetics, rather than the ecological disruption they cause. Ultimately, VanderLans's photography casts him as a man on the periphery – someone with an insider's knowledge of the Mojave's strange and beautiful landscapes but who sees it through the fresh and unjaded eyes of a first-time visitor. Through Fri/31. (Westbrook)

Hackett-Freedman 250 Sutter, Fourth fl; 362-7152. Tues-Fri, 10:30am-5:30pm; Sat, 11am-5pm. "The Sculptor's Notebook," work by Tor Archer; recent paintings by Jim McVicker. Through Sat/1.

Heather Marx Gallery 77 Geary, Second flr; 627-9111. Tues-Fri, 10:30am-5:30pm; Sat, 11am-5pm. New work by Philip Krohn. Through Sat/1.

Istituto Italiano di Cultura 425 Washington; 788-7142. Mon-Fri, 9am-5pm. "Manfredi Nicoletti: Architecture as a Metaphor of Nature," drawings, renderings, sketches, and models by Nicoletti. Through Fri/31.

Jack Hanley Gallery 395 Valencia; 522-1623. Tues-Sat, 11am-6pm. New paintings by Scott Hewicker. Through Sat/8.

Kings Gallery 1187 Franklin; 776-4580. Mon-Fri, 9am-4pm; Sun, noon-2pm. "Retrospective," oil paintings by Lorant Chovan. Through Mon/10.

Mark I. Chester Studio 1229 Folsom; 621-6294. By appt. "Michael Rosen: 25 Years of Sexual Art," photography by Michael Rosen. Through Sun/2.

Max Furniture 1633 Fillmore; 440-9002. Tues-Sat, 11am-7pm; Sun, noon-5. Recent works by Joe Cariati. Through Fri/31.

Meyerovich 251 Post, Fourth fl; 421-7171. Mon-Fri, 9:30am-6pm; Sat, 10:30am-5:30pm. "Masters on Paper," works by Picasso, Miró, Lichtenstein, Hockney, Stella, Dine, and Motherwell. Through Sat/8.

111 Minna Gallery 111 Minna; 974-1719. Tues-Fri, 1-7 pm; Sat, 4-7pm. "Lost and Found," recent work by Ezra Li Eismont and Christopher A. Ruess. Through June 15. See Critic's Choice.

Place Pigalle 520 Hayes; 552-2671. Sun-Wed, 4pm-midnight; Thurs-Sat, 4pm-2am. "ONEMANSHOW," 10 paired sculptures and installations by JONANDTHOMAS. Through Thurs/6.

Rena Bransten Gallery 77 Geary; 982-3292. Tues-Thurs, 10:30am-5:30pm; Sat, 11am-5pm. New work by Vik Muniz; new cutout drawings by Irene Pijoan. Through Sat/8.

San Francisco Center for the Book 300 De Haro; 565-0545. Mon-Fri, noon-5pm. "Celebrating Artists as Teachers," new works by 28 book artists. Through Fri/31.

Shapiro 760 Market, Ste 248; 398-6655. Tues-Fri, 10:30am-5:30pm; Sat, 10:30am-5pm. "California in Transition," photographs by Horace Bristol. Through Sat/1.

Sheila Woodworth 1 Rincon Center, 101 Spear, A2; 546-0290. Mon-Sat, 10am-5pm. Recent work by Ray Thornton. Through Fri/31.

Soularch Gallery 4033A Judah; 759-4100. Thurs-Sat, noon-5pm, or by appt. "A Beautiful Mind," paintings by Tim Yankosky. Through Fri/31.

Studio Nine Three Nine 939 Pacific; 391-9583. Sat-Sun, noon-5pm; Tues and Thurs, 7pm-10pm; and by appt. New paintings by Jack Hirschman and Agnetta Falk. Through Fri/31.

Studio Z 314 11th St; 221-7100. Mon-Thurs, noon-7pm. "Register This," work by 10 artists in various media (reception Thurs/30, 6-8pm). Through Thurs/30.

Tercera Gallery 550 Sutter; 773-0303. Tues-Sat, 10am-6pm; Sun, noon-5pm. "For the Love of Dogs," work by 24 artists focused on canines. Through Fri/31.

Triangle Gallery 47 Kearny, Fifth floor; 392-1686. Tues-Sat, 11am-5pm. "Celestial Musings," works by Roger Berry, Robert Hartman, Carleen Keating, Elaine Myers, Stephanie Peek, Louis Siegriest, and Lynn Sondag. Through Sat/8.

Velvet da Vinci 508 Hayes; 626-7478. Tues-Sat, noon-6pm; Sun, noon-4pm. "Arctic 5," contemporary metalsmithing from northern Norway. Through Sun/9.

View 155 155 Grove; 554-6080. 24 hours. "2:12," video installation by 12 artists (reception Fri/31, 7-9pm). Through July 7.

Walter and McBean Galleries San Francisco Art Institute, 800 Chestnut; 749-4564. Mon-Sat, 11am-6pm. "BFA Spring Show," work by students from the Art Institute's bachelor of fine arts and postbaccalaureate programs. Through Sun/2.

Bay Area

Flora Lamson Hewlett Library Graduate Theological Union, 2400 Ridge, Berk; (510) 649-2541. Call for hours. "The Image of Evil in Art," images of the devil in works from various times and cultures. Through Fri/31. "Figuras Fantásticas! The Pottery of Ocumicho," Mexican pottery made in the village of Ocumicho, Michoacán. Through Fri/31.

John F. Kennedy University Arts and Consciousness Gallery Berkeley Business Center, 2956 San Pablo, Berk; (510) 649-0499. Mon-Fri, 11am-5pm. "2002 Faculty Exhibition," a group show featuring work by 19 artists. Through Sun/2.

Linda Penzur 71 Redhill, San Anselmo; 457-4079. Tues-Sat, noon-5pm. "Equus," work by Carol Gahagan. Through Fri/31.