[ East Bay | Metroactive ]

Installation view, "Ruth Asawa: Completing the Circle." Through Sept. 22 at the Oakland Museum of California. Art Throb This week's art events Oakland Museum Of California "There is no separation between studying, performing the daily chores of living, and creating one's own work." Sculptor, teacher, artist, and mother, Ruth Asawa credits her art educators, Josef Albers, and Buckminster Fuller for teaching her this declaration of life. Everything we do, from the mundane to the profound should be used to create an artful life. Ruth Asawa did just that through both her eerily delicate sculptures and tireless efforts to reform the San Francisco school system. The Oakland Museum is currently showing a retrospective of Asawa's work in an exhibition titled, "Ruth Asawa: Completing the Circle." The show includes sculptures fashioned out of metal or concrete, some are even crocheted. Asawa created organic, and at times, seemingly living forms that invite the viewer in for close inspection and an intimate response. In addition to her art, Ruth Asawa's comprehensive contributions to Bay Area art education are also thoroughly documented. She was a woman who used her obstacles, whether it was racism or ignorance, to expose new facets of expression in both the museums and the schools. This exhibit is a wonderful dance between the influences of art and life. In conjunction with the "Ruth Asawa: Completing the Circle" exhibition, the Museum is sponsoring Drop-In Weekend Wireworks for children and families. These artist run workshops invite participants to create art of their own inspired by Ruth Asawa's wire and metal work practices. Join the workshops this weekend and realize how much of our own lives are works of art themselves. Sat/6 and Sun/7, 1-5 pm. 10th and Oak St., Oakl. 238.2200 -- Aimee LeDuc Museums Alameda Historical Museum 2324 Alameda, Alameda. Free. 521.1233. Permanent displays depicting Alameda's history from early Native Americans to circa 1940 in West Gallery. Berkeley Art Museum 2626 Bancroft, Berk. 642.0808. Through July 28, Matrix 198: "T.J. Wilcox: Smorgasbord." * Through July 28. "New Knowledge: The 32nd Annual UC Berkeley MFA Graduate Exhibition. * Through July 14. Komar and Melamid's Asian Elephant Art and Conservation Project. * Through July 14. "XXL." An exhibition of large-scale paintings and sculpture form the permanent collection featuring, among others, Still, Frankenthaler, Rothko, Ott, and Borofsky.* Through July 14. "Near and Far." * Through 2003. "Face of Buddha." Sculpture from India, China, Japan, and Southeast Asia. Museum of Children's Art 538 Ninth St., Ste. 210, Oakl. * 465.8770 Through July 22, "ArtEsteem Exhibition 2002: Who Are Our Superheroes?" The 4th annual ArtEsteem exhibition to assist in the childhood prevention project of the West Oakland Attitudinal Healing Connection. Oakland Museum of California 1000 Oak, Oakl. $6. 888.625.6873. Through September 22, "Ansel Adams: Inspiration and Influence." * Through September 22, "Ruth Asawa: Completing the Circle.* Through Aug. 25. "Scene in Oakland, 1852-2002: Artworks celebrating Oakland's 150th Anniversary." Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology Kroeber Hall, Bancroft and Telegraph, Berk. $2. 643.7648. Ongoing exhibition. "A Century of Collecting," examines artifact collecting as a form of cultural representation. * Ongoing exhibition. "Native Californian Cultures," an overview of Native Californian cultures demonstrating the great diversity of the Californian peoples. [ East Bay | Metroactive | Archives ]