Review: Collecting Dreams on the ART-about-TOWN Tour by Jennifer Jeffrey

Have a moment (or five)? I’d love to whisk you away on a mini version of the tour I took over the weekend.

It was called ART-about-TOWN, and was led by Sharon Reaves, owner of the Reaves Gallery in Hayes Valley. The morning began with a champagne brunch in her gallery at 235 Gough Street, where she showcases talented local artists like Blair Bradshaw and Michael Frederick.

I didn’t get a close-up picture of Sharon (that's her above, on the right, ever-so-small), but I sure wish I had, because I’d love to share her with you. She’s beautiful + gracious + knowledgeable about art, never condescending or aloof. We were a cozy group of 9 people, and she began by talking to us about what to keep in mind when collecting art, such as how to know whether a price is fair, and how to judge which piece might be a good investment.

Next she introduced us to David Imlay, one of the artists she represents. David paints from photographs that he has taken, many of them scenes around the city. He uses moody, smoky colors that evoke a wistful sense of nostalgia. I especially love the way he captures the “bokeh” effect in his paintings, creating shimmery, broken light that seems to hover above the canvas.

We reluctantly pulled ourselves away and hopped into a limousine to be ferried to a warm, light-filled room inside 49 Geary: Warnock Fine Arts and Robert Tat Gallery.

If you haven’t been to 49 Geary before, save that address to your iPhone, baby. It’s a veritable beehive of galleries, and a swank place to be on First Thursday. In just one stop, you can feast your eyes on all sorts of fabulous art, and never once have to hail a (nonexistent) cab or risk running down the heels of your shiny new shoes on our lumpy San Francisco sidewalks.

It’s the little things that count, yes?

But back to the tour. The Warnock and Tat Galleries are a wonderful way to get lost for an hour or four. Robert Tat carries prints from master photographers – think rich, breathtaking images from Imogen Cunningham + Edward Weston + Sebastio Salgado – while Larry Warnock carries an impressive collection of fine art prints from master printmakers.

I could have spent an entire afternoon there, but we were soon tucked back inside the limo, speeding off to SomArts near 9th & Brannan, where we met two phenomenal artists: Carlos Loarca and Betsie Miller-Kusz. Carlos is an artist philosopher; he spoke eloquently about exploring his Guatemalan soul in the vivid pieces that he creates. Betsie shared her experience in overcoming her fear of water, and how water spirits began to emerge in her work soon afterwards.

I don’t have enough space here to show you their work, so I’m going to have to create a Flickr set. Soon.

Hey, don’t go anywhere! We’re not through!

Have you ever had a little fantasy tucked away in your mind, and randomly, one day, walk into the exact scene you've envisioned? That's how I felt when we stepped through the doors of Lost Art Salon.

Founded by Gaétan Caron and Rob Demeter, the salon was originally located in the men's homes - they lived side-by-side and showed art in their respective living rooms - and they translated that same cozy feel into their gallery space.

Housed in an unassuming building on a gritty stretch of South Van Ness, the space feels like a Parisian atelier, complete with silk curtains and overlapping rugs scattered about the floor. The art is a mix of modernist, vintage and antique pieces, the kind of moody scenes that I could imagine waking up to every day. I can't wait to go back.

Our last stop was Boucheon Gallery next door to Citizen Cake. They’re currently showing two artists: Mars1 and David Choong Lee. In place of canvas, David used wooden cigar boxes and wine crates, and painted vivid scenes onto each one, then placed them in a 3-dimensional arrangement – one on the wall, and one in the middle of the room – that is nothing short of spectacular.

Check out Alan Bamberger's photos of Boucheon - he photographed the floating "sculpture" created of boxes in the center of the room, and he also took great shots of Mars1's work, which has become far more sophisticated than when I saw one of his first shows, back in 2000. If you get a chance to stop by: do.

Wasn't that fun?

I sure thought so. And thus ends this whirlwind mini-tour of some of the collectible art in this very fine city of ours. We’re tremendously lucky that we have so many incredible artists showing their work around (almost) every corner.

I don’t know about you, but I'm already itching for another go.

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