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Please join us this Saturday, November 18th, from

Please join us this Saturday, November 18th, from 3 - 5 pm for an opening reception and holiday party celebrating the following exhibitions:
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"Hardly Strictly Mini"
This favorite biennial holiday exhibition and sale presents artworks by over 100 accomplished coastal Marin and Bay Area artists! There is something to delight everyone with painting, sculpture, photography, and more. This is the museum’s 30th “mini show” event. Purchases benefit the artists and Bolinas Museum. The exhibition’s opening reception is a holiday party, and everyone is invited. Come to savor the art, meet the artists, and see your friends.
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“Gordlandia: The Ceramics of Gordon Bryan"
Gordon Bryan’s vessels and sculptural works play with texture and forms from nature with layered glaze applications. His terracotta and stoneware pieces reflect pre-industrial ceramics and an interpretation of the ancient cretaceous period when flowering plants thrived on Earth. His ornately embellished "floreros" and vessels offer a glimpse into the dream world of geologic time. Bryan earned his BFA in painting and sculpture from the University of California, Berkeley, studying under Elmer Bischoff and Sidney Gordon. In 1982, he established his ceramic studio, Blue Slide Art Tile, in downtown Point Reyes Station. He became known for his highly original, artistic, and finely crafted tiles and murals that married art and function. Today, he creates hand-built ceramics that express both the imagined and the real and explore a balance of interior and exterior life.
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“Photographs from the Museum’s Permanent Collection”
This exhibition further celebrates the museum’s 40th Anniversary year and its high-caliber collection development through a selection of photographs by coastal Marin and Bay Area artists held in the museum’s permanent collection. While the museum always presents selections from the fine art collection in the Permanent Collection Gallery, we rarely focus on a particular medium or theme. This selection highlights the rich variety of the artists’ visions, styles, and printing methods.
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Image captions in comments.

This is the last weekend to see the current round

This is the last weekend to see the current round of exhibitions. Please stop by today or tomorrow to see Inez Storer in the main gallery, Alice Shaw in the photography gallery and StuArt in the CMA gallery. We’d love to see you!

Is the Bolinas cemetery haunted? Alice Shaw's pho

Is the Bolinas cemetery haunted?

Alice Shaw's photograph, taken in Bolinas in the cemetery at St. Mary Magdalene Catholic Church, conveys the serenity and haunting beauty of this cemetery, which holds so much local history. Shaw, whose work is currently featured in the Bolinas Museum Photography Gallery, achieves the sense of a glowing evening sun by patiently adhering gold leaf to every spot of light coming through the tree branches in her photograph.

Shaw attended Bolinas-Stinson School in the 1970s, near this historic cemetery that is said to be the oldest in Marin. The site was first established in 1853 by the Briones family of Rancho Las Baulines. In the early years, the cemetery was divided into sections for the Druids, Presbyterians, Catholics, and Briones family. Many of the area’s most dynamic characters who contributed to the development of the area are buried in the cemetery—from the early days of the township to today. There are members of the first non-indigenous settlers who acquired land from Briones, such as the Bourne, Strain, and Ingerman families, and Captain Alfred Derby Easkoot—the first settler of Stinson Beach. And Nils Odin, owner of the Schooner Saloon—now Smiley’s. Halloween is the time when the veil between the living and the dead is thinnest. Is the cemetery haunted? If it is, it is generations of spirits who gather to laugh and tell stories about this area that they all loved so much.

Image: ALICE SHAW, Graveyard Tree and Fence, 2022, Archival pigment print with 22k gold leaf, 30 ¾ x 21 ¼ inches, courtesy of the artist.

#graveyards #haunting #bolinashistory

Artist Spotlight: Alice Shaw Alice Shaw’s child

Artist Spotlight: Alice Shaw

Alice Shaw’s childhood roots in coastal Marin inspired her current exhibition at Bolinas Museum entitled “Alice Shaw: Motherland,” featuring images of the local landscape, flora, and fauna. To emphasize her reverence for the natural world and our need to protect it, she has applied elegant 22-karat gold leaf with intricate precision onto her photographs.

Shaw earned a BFA and an MFA at the San Francisco Art Institute and trained as a photographer. Her work is in the SFMOMA’s permanent collection. Her monograph, “People Who Look Like Me,” was published by Gallery 16, where her work is represented.

When did art come into your life?

I spent my formative years on a ranch in Stinson Beach; my parents and the other couple who lived there were artists. Artmaking was considered an essential aspect of life and an avenue for authentic self-expression. I attended the Bolinas-Stinson School and spent as much time as possible in the Art Shop.

Is there a particular work of art that is an inspiration to you?

I can’t say that a single piece of artwork inspired my current body of work. Still, it is highly influenced by Byzantine painting, particularly religious iconography and the application of gold to illustrate divine light. Its radiance is intended to embody the invisible while highlighting the devotion to the subject matter.

How does coastal Marin or the Bay Area influence you as an artist?

The Bay Area started as the Wild West and remains that to this day. It is a place people can come to and find their true selves. Many busts and booms have created financial instability here, but it continues to draw people worldwide who want to be free to be themselves, innovate, and pursue their dreams.

Do you have any rituals related to your creative practice?

When one is engrossed in the process of creating artwork, one can completely lose themselves in “The Flow.” When I walk around with a camera in hand, I become hyper-focused. It pulls my attention away from my busy mind. When working in the studio applying gold leaf to my photographic images, I often lose track of time. A good podcast is always good company.

Full spotlight at link in bio.

Artist Talk / Inez Storer: Life Lessons Saturday,

Artist Talk / Inez Storer: Life Lessons
Saturday, October 21st, 3 – 4 PM

Artist Inez Storer’s creativity is playful, thought-provoking, challenging, and wildly imaginative. Please join us for this artist talk, in conjunction with her exhibition "Museum of Rare and Wonderful Things," to hear stories of her art process and inspirations from her life as she turns a lively 90 years old. Highly creative immigrant parents nurtured Storer, and as a child, she often accompanied her father to Hollywood studios, where he was the Art Director for Paramount Pictures. In the early 1950s, she found teachers and mentors at UC Berkeley, the Pasadena Art Center, and the San Francisco Art Institute, where, after teaching at several universities, she eventually had a long and fulfilling teaching career. Widely exhibited as an artist, Storer, an Inverness resident, is fascinating!

This event will be in person and Livestreamed via Instagram.

Photo of Inez Storer by Daniel Reichert.

We're scheduling curator guided school tours of ou

We're scheduling curator guided school tours of our exhibitions from now through the end of the year. Learn more at the link in the bio. ⬆️

From the Archives: Macramé Park This 1970s photo

From the Archives: Macramé Park

This 1970s photo captures a happy gathering of Baulines Craft Guild members, friends, and family celebrating the completion of Macramé Park—a gift to the children of Bolinas! The artful playground was built by master weaver Alexandra Jacopetti Hart (now Alexandra Hart) with help from her apprentice and many friends. It was located next to the Bolinas Community Public Utility District building, which housed the Bolinas Children's Center on Big Mesa. Hart collected driftwood logs on the nearby beach and built a framework for all of the rope work in this macramé masterpiece. It was a true labor of love and a source of joy for the kids.

Alexandra Hart has been deeply involved in the counterculture since the early 1960s, along with innovative friends like Stewart Brandt, Bill Graham, and Ken Kesey. The civil unrest and activism that developed during the 1960s evolved into the youth back-to-the-land movement of the 1970s. Valuing a do-it-yourself and made-by-hand philosophy, many makers became master artisans. At the time, there was widespread public appreciation and demand for beautifully handcrafted functional items. In this spirit, Hart saw the need for a playground and conceived of this full-scale handcrafted sculpture.

Hart was one of the founding members of the Baulines Craftsman Guild (later The Baulines Crafts Guild), established by Tom D'Onofrio in 1972. The guild paired apprentices with masters in many mediums and gained national recognition. In 1974, Hart and fellow guild master photographer Jerry Wainwright, created the book Native Funk & Flash, presenting some of the wild creativity of the era, including Macramé Park. In 2017—for the 50th anniversary of the San Francisco Summer of Love—the book and its subjects had a revival in museums and history exhibitions. Macramé Park was a popular children's play structure for years. Weather and wear took a toll, but the end came by vandalism when—sadly—someone cut the ropes.

Image: Unknown Photographer, "Macramé Park, CA," c. 1970s, Gelatin silver print mounted on board, 19 x 23 inches, Gift of the Tom D'Onofrio Family, 2023.20.1.

#macramepark #shelter #handbuilt #driftwood

Alice Shaw: Motherland / On View Through November

Alice Shaw: Motherland / On View Through November 12

In this exhibition, Alice Shaw applies 22-karat gold leaf to her photographs of Bolinas landscapes, including local flora and fauna, to emphasize her reverence for the natural world, which stems from her deep roots in coastal Marin. Shaw grew up in the 1960s and 70s at the historic White Gate Ranch that once stood above Stinson Beach with panoramic views of the surrounding land and sea. Her parents and their friends are renowned artists, and from an early age, Shaw carried a passion for creativity.

Visit us this weekend, Friday 1 -5 pm, and Saturday - Sunday 12 - 5 pm to see this stunning exhibition as well as "Inez Storer: Museum of Rare and Wonderful Things" and "StuArt Chapman: Freebox Neckties." Admission is always free.

More information at the link in bio.

Image: ALICE SHAW, "Nasturtium" (detail), 2023, Archival pigment print with 22k gold leaf, 14 ½ x 10 inches, courtesy of the artist and Gallery 16.

Yesterday was a good day! What an incredible turno

Yesterday was a good day! What an incredible turnout for our artist talks and opening reception. Thank you to all who joined us. 3 new exhibitions on view, come see!

Please join us this Saturday, September 23, from 3

Please join us this Saturday, September 23, from 3-5 PM, as we celebrate the opening of our new exhibitions:
"Inez Storer: Museum of Rare and Wonderful Things," "Stuart Chapman: Freebox Neckties," and "Alice Shaw: Motherland."
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3 PM Artist Talks
4–5 PM Reception
Free and Open to All

Images:
1) INEZ STORER, "No One is Perfect," 2023, Mixed media on panel, 52 x 48 inches, courtesy of the artist.

2) STUART CHAPMAN, Assorted Freebox Neckties, courtesy of the artist.

3) ALICE SHAW, "Blue Echium," 2023, archival pigment print, 18 x 12 inches, courtesy of the artist.

#bolinasmusuem #stuartchapman

They’ve arrived! #barrymcgee totes and t’s in

They’ve arrived! #barrymcgee totes and t’s in house. If you bid in the auction on the last Saturday you’re automatically entered into a lottery to win a tote. We’ll be contacting winners this week. If you’re desperately wanting a T-shirt or tote there are ways to get one. Hint - tell all your friends to follow @bolinasmuseum and you might be first in line.

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