David Tomb
Borderland Birds / Aves Fronterizas
April 16 — May 29, 2010
Electric Works is pleased to present a solo show featuring new work by David Tomb.
 Electric Works presents Borderland Birds / Aves Fronterizas, works on paper by David Tomb, featuring work inspired by Tomb’s birding trips to the borderlands of the United States and Mexico.For this exhibition, Tomb, a celebrated painter of portraits of people, brings his rigorous attention to birds. Secondary to dealing with the subject matter of birds, Borderland Birds / Aves Fronterizas also highlights the impact of the US-Mexico border fence; a project environmentalists say spells disaster for the sensitive ecology of the region. Beyond simple cataloging and rendering of the splendid birds of the borderland region, Tomb's work calls to mind the plight of people who have to cross this border on a daily basis, a feat fraught with problems migrating birds do with relative ease. Part drawing show, part installation, in the gallery Tomb recreates the sights and sounds of the borderland region by use of native vegetation and ambient sound recordings. Viewers will be transported to two fragile and unique areas: the beautiful Sky Islands of Mexico/Southern Arizona and the Lower Rio Grande Valley that borders Mexico and Texas. While much of this habitat has been converted to corporate agriculture some remote hidden mountain canyons still harbor a rich trove of beautiful and rare creatures. Tomb’s exhibition will focus on the following species: Montezuma Quail, Aztec Thrush, Aplomado Falcon, and Coati. Tomb combines experience in the field with research of bird specimens at the California Academy of Sciences and the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology at UC Berkeley. His final masterful renderings of the birds are life size and depict the birds in their natural habitat. As an avid birder, Tomb has been lucky enough to have his nerves rattled by the freaky chorus of Chachalacas in the thorny scrub and to have glimpsed the jewel-like Elegant Trogon during July monsoons. Tomb received his BFA from California State University Long Beach and has shown nationally and internationally. Plants for the installation generously provided by The Dry Garden, Oakland. | |
| In the Project Room William T. Wiley A Seek Wince of Evince April 16 — May 29 | |
 Electric Works presents A Seek Wince of Evince, a collection of sculptures and prints by William T. Wiley coinciding with his retrospective What’s It All Mean at the Berkeley Art Museum. The sculptures are made from found objects and are the works of Wiley’s that most directly comment on the machinations of the world of art making, collecting and exhibiting. His sculptural figures offer direct conversation to his paintings and drawings and serve as a "Greek chorus" to his impressive body of work. A selection of Wiley’s long history of printmaking will showcase his mastery of relief printing. All the recurring symbols and characters in his work are in evidence in this exhibition: "Buster Time," "The Ampersand," "Punch," and "Billy the Kid." His light touch makes commentary on the weighty issues of our lives: Life & Death, War & Peace, political foolishness, and the nature of Art itself. What's It All Mean recently traveled from the Smithsonian Museum of American Art and prominently features a pinball machine produced in collaboration with Electric Works. Wiley's work is in the collections of numerous public institutions including the Museum of Modern Art (New York), Museum of Modern Art (San Francisco), the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Fine Arts Museums (San Francisco) and the San Jose Museum of Art and the Di Rosa Preserve. He is the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award in Printmaking from the Southern Graphics Art Council. | |
Opening in June! | |
 Photo:
"Kegel Kater and Nancy French in The Thrillpeddlers revival production
of the Cockettes' - Pearls Over Shanghai, December 4, 2009," by Daniel
Nicoletta More Glitter — Less Bitter Photographs by Daniel Nicoletta, 1975–Present June 4 — July 10, 2010 Opening Reception: Friday, June 4, 6–8 PM Electric Works is pleased to present More Glitter—Less Bitter, a poignant romp through Dan Nicoletta’s vigilant documentation of San Francisco’s gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender communities. In 1975 Dan Nicoletta was hired by Harvey Milk to work in Milk’s Castro Street camera store and there at age 19, Dan’s life path as a documentarian for that emerging scene began. Milk was one of the first openly gay elected officials in the world and he became a symbol of hope to the LGBT civil rights movement after he was assassinated in 1978. The photographs in the exhibit will highlight significant moments along the way including still photos taken by Nicoletta on the set of Gus Van Sant’s Academy Award winning film MILK in which actor Lucas Grabeel portrayed Nicoletta. Through the last 38 years Nicoletta has remained a key point person for LGBT Community related research. The title of this exhibit More Glitter—Less Bitter, takes its cue from Nicoletta’s penchant for the ebullient and theatrical in life. In his article about Nicoletta’s 1996 retrospective in San Francisco, art critic David Bonetti wrote: “…it has been Nicoletta's conscious choice to photograph the more, shall we say, theatrical members of a community that has been famous for putting the pizzazz in theater since the first fabulous costume was worn on that stage just East of Eden. (Who, after all, invented sequins?) … if you love flamboyance, drag queens, discos, alternative theater, pretty boys, powerful women and the in-your-face politics of Queer Nation, you'll probably find Nicoletta's photographs just your cup of tea… San Francisco is lucky that Nicoletta has been there with his camera recording it through all of its changes.” | |
| Special Gallery Event Even More Glitter A Gallery Talk at San Francisco’s Electric Works by Photographer Daniel Nicoletta to Benefit the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Historical Society June 5, 2010 6:00 PM–9:00 PM | |
 Photo: "Dan Nicoletta at Castro Camera," by Denton Smith, Fall 1976 San Francisco—Electric Works and Hosts: Tim Campbell & Steven Machado and Rich Nichols & Don Pierson are pleased to present “Even More Glitter,” a gallery talk by noted San Francisco photographer Daniel Nicoletta to benefit the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Historical Society. The talk is taking place in conjunction with More Glitter—Less Bitter, an exhibition of Nicoletta’s work which runs June 4 through July 10, 2010. The talk is set for Saturday, June 5, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., at Electric Works, 130 8th St., San Francisco. Tickets are $100.00 each and only available through the GLBT Historical Society website or at the gallery on the evening of the talk. Seating is very limited; advance reservations are highly encouraged. All proceeds from the evening will be donated to the GLBT Historical Society; the full ticket cost is tax deductible. A poignant romp through Nicoletta’s vigilant documentation of San Francisco’s gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender communities, the More Glitter—Less Bitter show is the photographer’s first in San Francisco since his acclaimed 1996 retrospective at Levi Strauss headquarters. In 1975 Daniel Nicoletta was hired by Harvey Milk to work in Milk’s Castro Street camera store. There, at age 19, Nicoletta’s life path as a documentarian for that emerging scene began. Milk was one of the first openly gay elected officials in the world and he became a symbol of courage for the LGBT civil rights movement after he was assassinated in 1978. The images in More Glitter—Less Bitter will highlight significant moments from the past 35 years of Nicoletta’s work, including still photos taken on the set of Gus Van Sant’s Academy Award winning film MILK, in which actor Lucas Grabeel portrayed Nicoletta. The GLBT Historical Society collects, preserves, and interprets the history of GLBT people and the communities that support them. Celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, the institution sponsors exhibits and programs on an ongoing basis and is set to open an expanded museum space in the Castro District in summer 2010. To purchase tickets, visit www.evenmoreglitter.kintera.org/2010. For more information about the GLBT Historical Society, visit www.glbthistory.org. | |
In the Project Room Daniel Peddle Backstage June 4-July 10 Artist Reception: Saturday, June 4, 6–8 PM | |
 Electric Works welcomes Daniel Peddle into the Project Room, presenting Backstage, his latest series of watercolors that explore the ever-evolving concepts of beauty as they surface in preparation for the global fashion runway. As the founder of Daniel Peddle Casting, a company that specializes in casting models for fashion with an international clientele, Peddle has earned an insider’s perspective into the creative center of the fashion world. Peddle uses the tricky medium of watercolor to express the fluid environment behind-the-scenes of the back stage and the runway. The viewer is thrust into a mercurial world where figures intersect awkwardly to form genderless chimeras. Peddle began his fascination with art as document by painting and photographing the dying farm culture of his rural home in North Carolina. He graduated with honors in Anthropology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and attended graduate film school at New York University. He has lived in New York City since 1992. Doubleday published his wordless book, Snowday, in 2000 to rave reviews from Publisher’s Weekly, The Library Journal, Booklist, and Vogue. Peddle’s debut feature documentary film, The Aggressives, is considered a seminal work on gender identity in the modern world. It was awarded the Kinsey Honor from the Kinsey Institute in 2006 and has won "Best of" awards at documentary film festivals worldwide. Powerhouse Books published Peddle’s written exposé on the Aggressives subculture in the book Transculturalism. Seventh Art Releasing will release his second feature film,Trail Angels, Spring, 2010. |
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