April 28, 2023

Que Pasa? Pizzichillo-Gordon Glass Studio: glass bolo tie

 ~      
photo by Styrous®
 
 
Since 1980 Bruce Pizzichillo and Dari Gordon have been redefining the look of contemporary blown glass. Inspired by nature, they use rich, romantic colors in both opaque and transparent glass. Their innovative designs, patterns and shapes create a complementary whole, a powerful artistic statement which has been featured in numerous publications. Their ongoing stylistic evolution are sought after by collectors and galleries throughout the United States, Europe and Asia.       

Originally from Red Bank, New Jersey, Pizzichillo earned his B.F.A. at the California College of Arts and Craftsd Crafts. Gordon, of Boston, received her B.F.A. at the Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia.  Their studio is located in Oakland, California.        

As a team they developed new glass-blowing techniques by combining traditional Venetian glass with modern methods.  Each piece is a signed original. To own a Pizzichillo-Gordon vase, bowl or sculpture is to have a masterfully executed, authentic work of art that will find its place among your most treasured possessions.           
           

 
 
 photo by Styrous®
 


 
I feel fortunate to have acquired this beautiful sample of their artistic endeavors when Tom White & Bruce were showing in the same exhibition, Magnificent (link below), at the Gray Loft Gallery in 2018.         

Bruce talks about his work, Wind Whisper, in a video on YouTube (link below) and his wife, Dari Gordon, appears in it as well.            
 
     
     
     
     
Viewfinder links:         
     
Magnificent    
Tom White    
     
Net links:    
     
Tom White    
     
YouTube link:    
    
Bruce Pizzichillo ~ Wind Whisper
Bruce Pizzichillo Speaks               
     
     
    
     
     
    
     
     
    
     
Styrous® ~ Sunday, February 27, 2023     
     
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Bolo ties

    ~       
Que Pasa? ~ glass bolo tie

        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
         
     
     
     
    
     
     
    
     
     
    
    
     
     
   
     
     
    
     
     
    
    
     
     
   
     
     
     
     
    
    
     
     
    
     
     
    
    
    
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

April 27, 2023

Van Halen guitar sells for $4,000,000

 ~         
A week ago, the Sotheby's action gallery headlined their Rock & Roll auction on April 18 with a striped Kramer guitar once owned by Eddie Van Halen. It had a starting price of $1,800,000; the final bid ended at $3,932,000, which makes it the fourth most expensive guitar ever sold.       
 
Van Halen began playing with Kramer guitars during the early 1980s and was constantly associated with the brand as it became his trademark. The guitar in question was made by guitar maker Paul Unkert, and it was the first ever rear-loaded striped Kramer guitar that Eddie Van Halen owned. It was delivered to Eddie at the beginning of 1983 and was his main guitar during 1983 and 1984 – the golden years of his career.   
 
Officially named the Kramer CO176, the guitar was built by Paul Unkert, The guitar is most famous for being played in the 1984 Hot For Teacher music video (link below).     
     
Specs for the guitar include a 22-fret, bolt-on maple neck, a sole Seymour Duncan humbucker and, unsurprisingly, a lone volume knob and Floyd Rose bridge.    
 
How it came to auction, Sotheby's reported that Van Halen gifted the guitar to Gregg Emerson – the band’s retiring drum tech – around 1990, who then passed it on to his nephew. The Kramer was subsequently sold to Neal's Music in Huntington Beach, in Southern California, who then sold it to its pre-auction owner.  The guitar has shipped to its new owner along with a letter of provenance from Paul Unkert, a signed photo from Van Halen, its original case, and the straight jacket and white gloves worn by Van Halen in the music video in which it starred.     
     
     
Viewfinder links:       
        
Eddie Van Halen        
     
Net links:       
         
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
     
YouTube links:       
        
Hot For Teacher        
        
        
        
        
        
 w/ Kramer guitar 
date & photographer unknown

        
        
        
        
Styrous® ~ Thursday, April 27, 2023        
        















April 13, 2023

K Gallery ~ Art Of The African Diaspora Satellite closing

 ~         
Afro Occupy by Valerie Brown-Troutt
 
 
If you missed the Richmond Art Center, Art Of The African Diaspora Satellite Exhibition at the Gray Loft Gallery in Oakland, which closed last month, you still have a chance to see some of the fine work in exhibtion at the K Gallery at the Rhythmix Cultural Works in Alameda.        

This Saturday, April 22nd, from 1-3pm, there will be a closing reception for the show at the K Gallery and you will be able to meet artists and see their work.  

Art Of The African Diaspora highlights the rich cultural heritage of six Bay Area artists, showcasing a diverse collection of painting, photography, mixed media, and collage.   
 
 
K Gallery 
2513 Blanding Street
Alameda, CA 94501 

Saturday, April 22nd, from 1:00 - 3:00pm | FREE
     
      
Viewfinder links:       
         
Art of the African Diaspora         
Gray Loft Gallery        
K Gallery                 
Rhythmix Cultural Works                          
     
Net links:       
        
        
Anna Edwards        
Gray Loft Gallery          
K Gallery         
Rhythmix Cultural Works        
Richmond Art Center        
Xan Blood Walker        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
Styrous® ~ Thursday, April 13, 2023        
        















 
 
 
 
 
 


April 10, 2023

Easter Sunday 2023

 ~        
Easter table
photo by Styrous®
 
 
Easter is a Christian festival and cultural holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, described in the New Testament as having occurred on the third day of his burial following his crucifixion by the Romans at Calvary c. 30 AD. It is the culmination of the Passion of Jesus Christ, preceded by Lent (or Great Lent), a 40-day period of fasting, prayer, and penance.        
 
The origins of Easter stem from the Middle Ages; it was forbidden to eat eggs during the Lenten fasting period, this left a lot of uneaten eggs. From the surplus emerged the tradition of decorated eggs.       
 
The word is derived from the festival of the Anglo-Saxon Spring goddess Ēostre. Stories about the goddess Ostara were popular in newspapers at the turn of the twentieth century.            
 
Ostara (1884) by Johannes Gehrts
 
        
Passover eggs, commonly eaten during the Seder meal, inspired one of the most expensive traditions in history: the famous Fabergé eggs
 
 
Peter Carl ~ Imperial Porcelain egg 

 
These eggs were created for the imperial family of Russia and decorated with the most precious materials. Fabergé's first egg was made when the Tsar Alexander III requested that the royal goldsmith Peter Carl create an egg to offer the Tsar’s young wife, Maria Fedorovna.  
 
 

photo by MMMMM
 
 
During the jeweler’s career, Karl produced a series of fifty imperial eggs for the Tsar's family. These imperial eggs have since gone on to auction for several tens of millions.        
 
        
    
        
         
        
Net links:        
                  
Stephen Winick ~ Ostara and the Hare               
         
        
       
         
        
        
        
        
         
        
         
        
Styrous® ~ Easter Sunday, April 9, 2023                 












April 6, 2023

Depictions opening

Susan Matthews


The Depictions opening last weekend was quite a nice surprise but why I should be surprised by an exhibition curated by gallery owner Jan Watten is not rational as none of her shows are ever run of the mill.          

The show is a radical interpretation of portraits. A great example of that is the work by Susan Matthews that greets arrivals at the top of the stairs (see image above).        


photos by Styrous®







 
 

Christine Ferrouge, Jude Pittmann, 







 
 
 

Steven Andresen June Yokell & Tom White 




 
 
              Christine Ferrouge w/model
 
 
 
Dorie Meister & Susan Tuttle 

 

Jan Watten & Suzy Barnard 

 
Depictions will be showing at the Gray Loft Gallery in Jingletown until May  6 , 2023. Don't miss it. 

2889 Ford Street
third flooe
Oakland, CA 94601


 
       
Viewfinder links:       
         
Steven Andresen             
Suzy Barnard         
Gray Loft Gallery         
Susan Matthews           
Dorie Meister              
Jude Pittman                 
Jan Watten                      
Tom White     
June Yokell     
     
Net links:        
         
Suzy Barnard        
Gray Loft Gallery          
Susan Matthews                 
Dorie Meister             
Jan Watten                          
Tom White          
June Yokell                       
        
        
        
        
        
        
Styrous® ~ Thursday, April 5, 2023           
        












Hours: 
Saturday, September 3: 2:00 - 7:00 pm 
Masks are requested in the gallery.

Gray Loft Gallery
2889 Ford Street, third floor
Oakland, CA 94601



Styrous ~ Thursday, April 6, 2023



















Gray Loft Gallery ~ Depictions

 ~   

The Gray Loft Gallery is presenting Depictions, a group portrait exhibition of a stunning and diverse range of portrait and identity-based art, including expressionist portraits, photographic, mixed media and narrative portraits in realistic, imagined and unconventional representations of individuals created by eleven Bay Area artists.
 
 
Featured Artists:
Jayne Beihn,   Gene Dominique,   Christine Ferrouge,   Lin Fischer,   Drew Klausner,   
Sue Matthews,   Lynn McGeever,  Glenna Mills,   Jude Pittman,   Bill Prochnow,   
Ron Moultrie Saunders
 
 
April 1 – May 6, 2023
     
Closing reception 
Saturday, May 6, 5 to 7 PM



installation photos by Styrous®




Sue Matthews 


                                            Glenna Mills
 





Glenna Mills 
 
 
 

 Christine Ferrouge               






above & below: Lynn McGeever

     







              Jude Pittman 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

above & below: Lin Fischer

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 





 Ron Moultrie Saunders                  




Drew Klausner 




Gene Dominique








      
Viewfinder links:       
            
Gray Loft Gallery         
Susan Matthews          
    
     
Net links:        
         
Gray Loft Gallery              
Sue Matthews         
       
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
Styrous® ~ Thursday, April 6, 2023           
        









  



Hours: Saturday, September 3: 2:00 - 7:00 pmMasks are requested in the gallery.

Gray Loft Gallery
2889 Ford Street, third floor
Oakland, CA 94601



Styrous ~ Sunday, October 23, 2022