Tag Archives: matt reynoso

Compound Studios & Gallery

So our next stop on our Art Murmur crawl was just next door to blankspace, at the Compound Gallery & Studios. A much larger space, Compound is home not only to multiple gallery spaces, but 10 artist studios as well, all fully booked. The space was opened by a husband and wife artists Matt and Lena Reynoso in 2008.  You may remember Matt’s name from my very first post… the Suits & Soldiers mural on the Emeryville border.  I’m hoping to have an Artist Interview with him soon. Also his wife Lena has a fantastic website called Curator of Oddities, and she really does have an odd, but fantastic, collection of work… everything from presidential paintings, to gorgeous graphic silk-screened posters, to random expositions on American folklore.  Very cool.

Compound Studios & Gallery

The primary installation in their main gallery is an interesting 3 dimensional landscape of sculptural pieces entitled 3AM: Under the Full Moon, by Christopher Romer. Unfortunately I don’t have any pictures of this exhibit as it was quite crowded when we arrived, but you can see a slew of pictures on Compound’s home page.  You’ll also find a wonderful write-up of the show there, which is more than you’ll get here, as I am, for all intents and purposes, sculpturally illiterate.

I felt a bit more at home in the adjacent gallery space, the Swee(t)Art Drawing Gallery, also part of Compound. The exhibit there was mostly two-dimensional (more my comfort zone), entitled “The Worship of Water,” curated by Obi Kaufmann and featuring works by several artists.  Here are two pieces by Savanna Snow…

The Worship of Water

And below are works of Shannon Ingraham (I think)… forgive me, but this was a quick tour as I was late to meet friends in the city for Devo. Yes, that’s right, Devo. They rocked.

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One of the cool things about visiting this gallery is that many of the artists’ studios are open to the public as well. We were able to walk through many of the spaces and view creative works in progress…

Another thing this studio/gallery/artist crew does is a really cool subscription service called Art in a Box. For a very reasonable monthly fee ($30 – $50), you receive one new work of fine art each month, in a box. You can specify preferred medium if you like, or just keep it a surprise.  Either way, you’ll be enriching your personal fine art collection, while supporting local artists… over 20 currently participating.  And this service has been so successful in fact, the Compound is seeking out new artists to participate.  You can see their Call to Artists on their Facebook page. Check it out!

Metalmania in E-ville…

The incredibly ornate and decorative metalwork on this building has mystified me for years.  I now know that the man responsible is Daryl Rush.  He is a builder/contractor/magician with metal.

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What I love about his style is how organic it is… check out the copper “vines” on these windows… Are these not the coolest security bars you’ve ever seen?!?

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And he works with a wide variety of metals, unlike the pieces we saw earlier in the week that were mostly made out of steel and hence, have rusted uniformly. Daryl mixes copper, bronze, steel, and stainless, and plays with texture, grinding and polishing some areas smooth and shiny, while hammering patterns reminiscent of carved wood or chipped stone into others.

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So as you may have noticed from the title of this post, this workshop is actually in Emeryville, but just a stone’s throw from the Oakland border, literally (I’ve got a good arm). Note the soldier on the corner of the building in this shot… recognize it? This is the Suits & Soldiers mural from my first post, and I’ve since connected with the artist and will be posting my first artist interview in the next week or two. Please check back!

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This last one is the back door to his workshop, a truly incredible piece of sculptural art. It’s hand-formed out of three kinds of metal with slumped glass incorporated (the green areas). See more detailed photos here. All I can say is, “WOW!”

Welcome to my first post… WOO HOO!

My goal is to highlight all of the amazing public art that exists in the incredible city of Oakland, California (aka ‘Oaktown’ – my hometown).  One piece of art per day.  Every day.  If possible.

Here’s my first… Suits & Soldiers

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oaktownart_20090901_dtlOk… so technically, this mural exists in Emeryville (corner of Adeline & San Pablo) which I’m sure seems a strange choice for my first post about Oakland art.  But I choose this piece as my starting point for three reasons:

  1. It is literally a stone’s throw from the Oakland border. Close enough in my book…
  2. It’s simply awesome.  I love it!  Reminiscent of the work of the unbelievably talented Bansky.
  3. You won’t be able to see it much longer.  The adjacent lot is currently under construction (note bulldozer) and will soon be filled by a new Lanesplitter’s Pizza, which I guess won’t be a horrible addition to the neighborhood, but I will miss this mural.  Go see it now while you have the chance!

The artist is Matt Reynoso… 1/2 of the talented artistic duo behind the Compound Studios & Gallery, a studio and gallery space for over 20 working artists in Oakland.  They’re doing neat stuff.  Check ’em out.

Oakland is COOL.