Robin Leach coined the catchphrase that toasted viewers to “Champagne Wishes and Caviar Dreams” at the conclusion of each episode of “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous,” a syndicated T.V. program that chronicled the opulence and glory of celebrities. Painter Sean Cheetham borrows the tagline for his current solo exhibition with a series of portrait [...]

Self-taught American photographer Seth Taras carefully describes his pictures as falling more into “strains” than a “series,” thus the distinction reflects a familiar arterial line of inspiration which flows through works taken across many years and around the globe.  Whether the subjects are opulent interiors, studies of found objects on the street, or candid and [...]

A single 8 1/2 by 11 inch page in the Conturbatio series from Richard Kraft’s solo show “Something with Birds In It” presents an intricate collage of disjointed text with an illustration of a black and white nude figure in the foreground. His right arm extends outward, pointing a gun at the viewer. The gesture [...]

“Sean Duffy’s Garage Sale” proves that the objects and collections that an artist holds on to over the course of several decades have as much influence (if not more) on their work than art pieces created in the studio and displayed in galleries. The “stuff” that we hold onto reveals an undeniable truth about who [...]

Beneath the ferocity of Hans Burkhardt’s exacting brushwork and application of oil paint there is an undeniable remnant of hope that appears consistently throughout the works in “Within and Beyond the Mainstream.” Burkhardt’s bold moves on the canvas are akin to the call of the Sirens, luring the viewer into the field of vision so [...]

In Chris Barnard’s Crowd Pleaser, New Mexico, a splintering shard of remaining daylight eclipses an empty box of metal bleachers facing a desolate desert landscape. Darkened clouds are set to converge, promising imminent darkness and threatening rain, but the spectacle has already taken place and the crowd has dispersed. The ambiguous New Mexican environ depicted [...]

California Assemblage artist George Herms has been spinning remnants of the quotidian into a narrative characterized by gesture, rhythm, and chance since the late 1950s. “Xenophilia (Love of the Unknown)” features intricate collages and sculptures pieced together from found materials, while exhibiting alongside a younger generation of artists from Los Angeles and New York, who [...]

The photographic practices of Mark Laita and Rodney Smith demonstrate an acute attention to form, composition, and revel in the act of looking. Whether it’s marveling at the juxtaposition of geometric contortions and scale patterns of exotic serpents or capturing an alluring woman who never acknowledges the camera, the photographs uncover animal and human subjects [...]

“You cannot help but learn more as you take the world into your hands. Take it up reverently, for it is an old piece of clay, with millions of thumbprints on it.” — John Updike At the West Coast Mud Slingers exhibition at the Brand Library Art Galleries, a selection of California-based artists with varied [...]