About Mercury 20
Founded in 2006, Mercury 20 is a contemporary art gallery established, supported and operated by East Bay artists.
Mercury 20 maintains a venue for artists to exhibit, develop, and advance their work and is committed to exhibiting art of diverse media and content. Exhibitions rotate monthly and the gallery presents a well-attended opening event every first Friday in conjunction with the Oakland Art Murmur.
Dave Meeker: LUCKY
Exhibition runs February 28 – April 6, 2013
SPECIAL EVENTS:
* Opening Reception: Thursday February 28, 6-8pm
* Oakland Art Murmur First Friday: March 1st, 6-9pm
* Artists’ Talk: Saturday, March 16th, 4pm
* 25th Street Winter Thursdays: Thursday March 28, 6-8pm
* Oakland Art Murmur First Friday: April 5th, 6-9pm
image right: Dave Meeker “Winner Takes All, Left and Right” (20132), cast metal, 24 karat gold, Swarovski crystals, 7″w x 13″h x 2″d. Photo by the artist
New sculptures by Dave Meeker conceptualize the luck that surrounds us. The artist imagines this intangible with an inviting sense of humor. Luck is aligned with chaos and chance. It comes in many shades of good or bad, big or small, and may have very little to do with our own desires, wills, or intentions. These works are lyrical, associative, and built on the premise that every day we are presented with lucky moments of one kind or another, and that we may choose how to interpret, accept or reject them. www.davemeekerart.com
Dave Meeker is a sculptor who lives in Oakland California. He graduated with a BA in fine arts from San Francisco State in 1984.
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PET PEEVES: Julie Alvarado and Charlie Milgrim
Exhibition runs February 28 – April 6, 2013
SPECIAL EVENTS:
* Opening Reception: Thursday February 28, 6-8pm
* Oakland Art Murmur First Friday: March 1st, 6-9pm
* Artists’ Talk: Saturday, March 16th, 4pm
* 25th Street Winter Thursdays: Thursday March 28, 6-8pm
* Oakland Art Murmur First Friday: April 5th, 6-9pm
In this show of paintings and installations, two very different artists partake of the theme “Pet Peeves.” Both artists relish in the comedic bait as well as the bitter bite.
Images from left: July Alvarado “DogFro” (2013) acrylic on panel, 10″x10″; Charlie Milgrim “Pet Peas” (2013) chartreuse bowling balls and other media, 14″x24″x10″. Photos, from left: Kate Cameron; Charlie Milgrim (studio shot).
Vibrant paintings by Julie Alvarado lend a wry comical look at some of the less-than-joyous aspects of canine pet ownership. Pet peeves are explored from the point of view of both the owner and the dog. www.juliealvarado.com
Julie Alvarado is an artist who comes from the Los Angeles area and relocated to the Bay area in 1993. Julie has been making art since 1980 and received her M.F.A from C.C.A. in 1995. She has exhibited work in northern and southern California and works as a painting instructor at Creative Growth Art Center in Oakland, CA.
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Charlie Milgrim says her peeves aren’t so much “pet” as “ferocious predators,”so for this show’s theme, she hopped over the light-spirited “peeve” and plunged herself into complete creative inanity. Not insanity-inanity. With her tradmark bowling balls she creates installations that toy with a pun: pet peas! For a serious artist, any path can lead to great art, even one that begins with a pet pun. www.charliemilgrim.com
Charlie Milgrim was born in New York City. She received a BFA from California College of the Arts and an MFA from UC Berkeley. She has exhibited her work at the Oakland Museum, the Haines Gallery and Gallery 16 in San Francisco, OK Harris in New York City and has work in many private collections including the Di Rosa Collection in Napa, CA.