Surreal escapes in Pittsburg

0 Comments | Oakland Tribune, Jun 3, 2009 | by Laura Casey

ARTIST RON NORMAN scored when he found a kinship with fellow artist Jason Griego, a sculptor whose dark and surreal human forms are made of composite resin and bone.

Norman, an unabashed child of the '60s who quotes author and LSD counterculture icon Ken Kesey, loves to talk about and display surrealistic art. He is part of a recently formed society of surrealist artists named "Glue Factory" which boasts the likes of Brentwood artist Bill Weber and Stanley "Mouse" Miller, co-creator of many of the old-school Grateful Dead posters.

Norman has been a landscape artist for 30 years and recently got into surrealism. Talk with him, and you quickly get the sense that he has a bone to pick with traditional venues that display paintings. Galleries take too much of a cut of the sale of a piece, he says, and artists rarely get to meet their patrons. That is something he wants to change.

So he and his buddies created "Glue Factory" artist collective, a group that will host Bay Area shows that are both gallery-like displays and celebratory events.

The first of these shows are at Griego's place. Griego owns a massive 20,000-square-foot building in downtown Pittsburg. His 4,000- square-foot studio will be transformed into an open-studio gallery this weekend for "Glue Factory" artists to meet with art lovers and perhaps sell a work or two.

There are plans for Griego's space to become a hub of artistic activity in the East Bay, a place where art lovers can connect with one another. Norman hints of a secret society of sorts, one that will allow "those in the know" access to new experiences.

"Some shows we're going to host here are going to be so off the charts they're going to be by invitation only," Norman says excitedly.

He also talks about trading art for services instead of selling it and using the Internet to connect with art lovers, something that he has been reluctant to do in the past. And when the Pittsburg show closes, "Glue Factory" artists will show their work in other non- gallery spaces on the artists' own terms.

"We're hoping to make these places so nice that we can get (Swiss surrealist H.R.) Giger to show here," Weber says.

Many of the "Glue Factory" displayed artists worked at a surrealist show at the now-closed Acanthus gallery in Walnut Creek. The Pittsburg show, which features dozens of works, is also notable for its collection of Bill Sala's work. Sala is a Bay Area construction worker who has been painting since 1952, and whose works are crisp, precise and Dali-esque in presentation. He likes featuring skeletons, clowns and World War I generals on stark desert landscapes. Bruno Aguirre, Doug Desmond, Peggy MacGovern and Barbara Stanton are also part of the "Glue Factory."

"It's art that's totally unique," Norman says. "It's imaginative and at its peak of excellence."

Oakland's First Fridays Art Murmur Highlights

-- Mercury 20 Gallery presents work by Aaron Geman, artist and engineer, and David Seiler from 6 to 9 tonight with a "Meet the Artists" afternoon tea from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday. Free. 25 Grand Ave., Oakland. 510-701-4620, www.mercury twenty.com.

-- Creative Growth, the world's oldest and largest art studio for adults with disabilities, celebrates the first anniversary in its newly renovated home and presents its anticipated annual "Home" show, which celebrates the art of the humble abode from 6 to 9 tonight. Free. 355 24th St., Oakland. 510-836-2340 ext. 15, www.creativegrowth.org.

-- View the work of 17 diverse, multicultural and multiethnic East Bay artists presenting a wide range of art -- oils, acrylics, mixed media, drawings, sculpture, watercolor, jewelry and weaving-- from 6 to 9 tonight at UPTOWN Body and Fender. Free. 401 26th St., Oakland.

-- Oakland Museum of California hosts belly dancing classes and tours of its exhibits, including the Squeak Carnwath show, during their First Fridays After Five event from 5 to 9 tonight. $5-$8. 1000 Oak St., Oakland. 510-238-2200, www.museumca.org.

Reach Laura Casey at lcasey@bayareanewsgroup.com or 925-952- 2697.Open Studio-- What: "Glue Factory" Artist Collective Open Studio.-- Where: 446 Railroad Ave., Pittsburg-- Dates & Hours: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.-- Cost: Free-- More Information: 925-674-1261