The reception is part of the Stockton Stroll, a bi-monthly event of openings and art exhibits. I will be showing more than 40 new works, including photographs, and mandalas created from my photographs. The entire show consists of images created in Richmond. There is a series of photographs from the Miraflores Redevelopment Project (the Sakai and Oishi Nurseries), a unique fence on Ohio Street, a variety of portraits and street scenes, and composite mandalas from original photographs. The show will continue through August 29.

(Click on images to see larger view)
Miraflores	Rare (Ohio Street Fence)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/fletcher_oakes/sets/72157620738255139/

I also want to remind people of my show which goes up at The Glenn Custom Framing and Gallery of Art, 7027 Stockton Ave, El Cerrito (map), on July 7, running through August 29. There will be an opening reception on Friday, July 10, from 7-9. I’ll be showing 40 new photographs and mandalas, some of which have been posted here, but none have been shown as hard copies before this show.

(Click on images to see larger views.)
Korean Dancer	Participant
Parade Monitor	Participant
Tattooed Belly Dancer	Sister of Perpeual Indulgence
Burlesque Dancer
Belly Dancer

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Mary Peace Head, one of the original Rosie the Riveters	Carribean dancer
Richmond Police Explorers

Later in the day was an opening for the art of Clayton and Betty Bailey and Kurt Wold at the Richmond Art Center. The opening was loads of fun and included free form jazz by Annelise Zamula and Bill Noertker.

On Sunday I attended a memorial for Archie Green who passed away earlier this year. Archie was a renowned folklorist, scholar, labor historian, activist, and much much more. Archie was a mentor of mine at the University of Illinois in the early 60’s who inculcated in me many of the Progressive beliefs which I hold today.

I will be in a show, “Our Town”, at the Eclectix Gallery in El Cerrito opening July 3, running through Aug 16. I’ll have two pieces, Little Coquette, and Slave, in this show, and I hope you’ll be able to make it to the opening.

Don’t forget my BIG show opening the following week, July 10. I will be showing 40 (yes, 40) new works at the Glenn Custom Framing and Gallery of Art.  The show is entitled “Visualizing Richmond in El Cerrito” and will include images from Richmond only, that were done in the last two years. It will be mostly straight ahead photography, both color and B&W, with a selection of mandalas.

(Click on images to see larger views or View as a triptych.)
Sydney	Gemma
Geraldine

Spring Photos
There are some very beautiful flowers and foliage in my neighborhood. These are some of the things that have grabbed my eye during walks through the area.

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	Century Plant detail
Proteus Detail

“After President Obama signed his stimulus bill into law, the NY Post ran a cartoon depicting the bill’s “author” as a dead monkey, covered in blood after being shot by police. You can see the image by clicking on the link below.

http://www.colorofchange.org/nypost/?id=1680-48965 target=”_blank”

The Post would have us believe that the cartoon is not about Obama. But on the page just before the cartoon appears, there’s a big picture of Obama signing the stimulus bill. A reader paging through the Post would see Obama putting pen to paper, then turn the page to see this violent cartoon. The imagery is chilling.”

THIS JUST IN: The New York Post is apologizing for a cartoon that critics say links President Barack Obama to a raging chimpanzee shot dead by police in Connecticut. But the newspaper also says the image was exploited by its longtime antagonists.

Big Lebowski Party

On a somewhat lighter note, The San Francisco Independent Film Festival held a Big Lebowski Party on February 7, a couple of weeks ago. Here are a few photos from that event.

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Last week I went to an opening of a great show at the Richmond Art Center, called The Art of Living Black. This show has been growing for the last 13 years and has become an extremely dynamic show with lots of good work. Below are a couple of photographs that I took there.

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Hershell West Program Director	Raife Pickett (Quilt by Raife and Margaret Pickett)

To see a few more photos, go to my Flickr set taken at the opening.

Of course, Obama was inaugurated, though maybe Roberts was trying to sabotoge Obama when he swore him in incorrectly. Was this a way to make Obama’s presdency illegal? Anyway, they did it right later on so that ploy wouldn”t work. Can you believe it, I felt a little sorry for W (just a little). Here’s this asshole who was responsible for all this death and grief, and for an administration that stole everything that wasn’t nailed down, and then some, and I feel like, wow, most everybody hates this guy. Can you imagine being so hated?

It’s sad what this government has come to. It’s all Party politics. How could every Republican in the House be against Obama’s stimulus package?

Greg Palast wrote an interesting letter the other day:
“Republicans are right. President Barack Obama treated them like dirt, didn’t give a damn what they thought about his stimulus package, loaded it with a bunch of programs that will last for years and will never leave the budget, is giving away money disguised as “tax refunds,” and is sneaking in huge changes in policy, from schools to health care, using the pretext of an economic emergency.

Way to go, Mr. O! Mr. Down-and-Dirty Chicago pol. Street-fightin’ man. Covering over his break-you-face power play with a “we’re all post-partisan friends” BS.

And it’s about time.”
Read More at Greg Palast.com

Here’s a few photos I took at the Free Palestine rally and march, in San Francisco, on January 10.

(Click on images to see larger views)