June promises a lot of art activity with this week's bounty of Art Walks, Open Studios, First Thursdays (San Francisco) and First Fridays (Oakland), benefits for great art institutions (Southern Exposure's 'Pop Noir', Creativity Explored's 'A Night at Findlay's Dance Hall', ART 94124's 'Artsfest'), and interesting museum events (Berkeley Art Museum's 'Community Day' and YBCA's 'Big Idea Night'). Have fun and see you out there. [I can be found this week at Oakland's First Friday Art Murmur on 23rd Street manning an Artcards table.]

Thursday:
+ Skinner "Worship thee kindly the dark hand that guides thee" at 111 Minna Gallery
+ "FOOL'S GOLD" at Ever Gold
+ Teppei Ando "Blowing It" at Cafe Royale
+ Micheal Dean, Nate Crane "Becoming Non-Object" at Hatch Gallery

Friday:
+ Yuval Pudik "Enduring Patiently" at Silverman Gallery
+ Bryan Alberstat, Jennifer Pickens, Jessica Ruth, Pat Spurgeon, Peter Ellenby , Tiffany Black "Visual Allegory ;;;broken stories" at Fort Gallery
+ "ART IN A BOX Launch Party!" at The Compound Gallery
+ Closing reception: Ira Hawkins , Sam Slater "RELEASE" at Forthrite
+ "just because there are questions, does not mean there are answers" New work by Sam Lopes, Joy Fritz and Friends at Blankspace
+ Amber Collision, Amy Cools, Helene Poulshock, Mali Mrozinski "Tendril" An Oakland Textile Art Show at Rock Paper Scissors Collective
+ Jennifer and Kevin McCoy "Show Me" First Friday Reception at Johansson Projects
+ Closing reception: Amanda Lopez "Retratos de la Familia" at Pueblo Nuevo

Saturday:
+ Benefit: "POP NOIR" Southern Exposure’s Annual Spring Fundraiser and Art Auction at Southern Exposure (Electric Works Gallery)
+ Benefit: "A Night at Findlay's Dance Hall" Creativity Explored's Dance Party and Auction at Creativity Explored
+ Art Fair: "ABCO CRAFT FAIR" at Abco Artspace

Sunday:
+ Charlene Tan, Emily Wilson "andmoreagain" at 2nd floor projects
+ Book Signing: Author, Edward Shanken "Visions of the Future: A Book Talk on Art and Electronic Media" at Exploratorium
+ Lecture: "Getting Our Hands Dirty: What We Do Best at Paulson Press" at Oakland Museum of California

Tuesday, June 2

Claire Fontaine "The Exhibition Formerly Known as Passengers" at CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts (Kent and Vicki Logan Galleries)
Potrero Hill: 1111 Eighth Street, 7pm

Wednesday, June 3

"Structure and the Meaning of Life" at Artseed (Thoreau Center Acre Cafe)
Marina District: 1013 Torney Avenue, 5-7pm

Thursday, June 4

+ Skinner "Worship thee kindly the dark hand that guides thee" at 111 Minna Gallery
SOMA: 111 Minna Street, 6pm-Late

Book launch: "Cutter Photozine Issue 2: Leaving a Mark" at SF Camerawork
SOMA: 657 Mission Street, floor 2, 5-8pm

Doris Jew Conrath , Jim Stone "2009 James D. Phelan Art Award in Photography" at SF Camerawork
SOMA: 657 Mission Street, floor 2, 5-8pm

"Leaving a Mark: Cutter Photozine" curated by Heather Renee Russ, Jesse Rose Roberts, Rachel Styer at SF Camerawork
SOMA: 657 Mission Street, floor 2, 5-8pm

"Oy Vey! Thursday" at Contemporary Jewish Museum
SOMA: 736 Mission Street, Third Street, $5, 5-8pm

"Ersatz Group Exhibition" SF Camerawork Member Show at SF Camerawork
SOMA: 657 Mission Street, floor 2, 5-8pm

Monika Lin "Small Offerings" at Toomey Tourell Fine Art
Downtown: 49 Geary Street, floor 4, 5:30-7:30pm

Alex Shahmiri, Andrés Alegría, Cindy Loughridge, Dottie L. Guy, Seth Restaino "In The City" at Public Barber Salon
Downtown: 571 Geary Street, at Jones Street, $5, 7-10pm

David Johnson, Jack Fulton "SFAI Revisited – Part II - Photography" at Togonon Gallery
Downtown: 77 Geary Street, 5:30-7:30pm

Elvira Sarmiento, Viva Paredes "I’m Not From Here/ I’m Not From There/ I’m Glocal" at Togonon Gallery
Downtown: 77 Geary Street, 5:30-7:30pm

Nancy Spoelhof at Suite Five Salon
Downtown: 305 Grant Avenue, Suite 5, 6-7:30pm

+ "FOOL'S GOLD" at Ever Gold
Downtown: 441 O'Farrell Street, 6-9pm

+ Teppei Ando "Blowing It" at Cafe Royale
Downtown: 800 Post Street, 8-12am

Daniel Ochoa, Peter Dimick "Exposed" at Hang Art
Downtown: 556 Sutter Street, 6-8pm

Closing reception: Romanowski "CONSUMER CONFIDENCE" at Lower Haters Gallery
Haight Ashbury: 597 Haight Street, 7-10pm

Che Jen, Kenji Hirata "Reveberations" at FIFTY24SF Gallery
Hayes Valley: 248 Fillmore Street, 7-9:30pm

Christopher David Ryan "Everything You Need Can Grow" at Rare Device
Hayes Valley: 1845 Market Street, 7-9pm

"June Art Walk" Divisadero Street from Haight to Geary at Divisadero Community Gallery
Western Addition: 537 Divisadero Street, 6pm-Late

Jessica Katzky, Nikki Levine "The Life of a Teenage Girl" at Divisadero Community Gallery
Western Addition: 537 Divisadero Street, 6-9pm

Canan Tolon, Lori Del Mar, Susan Martin at SF MOMA (SFMOMA Artists Gallery at Fort Mason)
Marina District: 0 Fort Mason Center, 5:30-7:30pm

+ Micheal Dean, Nate Crane "Becoming Non-Object" at Hatch Gallery
Oakland: 492 23rd Street, at Telegraph Avenue, 6-9pm

"EAST BAY OPEN STUDIOS 2009" Artists Reception at Pro Arts Gallery
Oakland: 550 Second Street, at Clay Street, 8-10pm

Artist Talk: "Co-Motion" Video Installation by Cheryl Calleri and Thekla Hammond at Berkeley Art Center
Berkeley: 1275 Walnut Street, 5:30-6:30pm

Friday, June 5

"Into the Darkness" a vinyl toy exhibition at 1AM Gallery
SOMA: 1000 Howard Street, 6-10pm

"Eminent Domain Awareness Show" at Varnish Fine Art
Downtown: 77 Natoma Street, at First Street, 7-Midnight

Greg Gandy, Jeremy Mann at John Pence Gallery
Downtown: 750 Post Street, 6-8pm

+ Yuval Pudik "Enduring Patiently" at Silverman Gallery
Downtown: 804 Sutter Street, 7-10pm

"JUNE ART EXHIBIT – NEW WORKS" at Artist-Xchange Gallery
Mission District: 3169 16th St, 7-10pm

"FIRST EXPOSURES 'ZINE RELEASE PARTY" Presented by SF Camerawork at Adobe Books Backroom Gallery
Mission District: 3166 16th Street, 5-7pm

Open Studio: Jennifer Stalvey, Peter Sorensen "Signs Of Separation" at Studio 209
Mission District: 1890 Bryant Street, floor 2, 6pm

"Queer" at City Art Gallery
Mission District: 828 Valencia Street, 7-10pm

Anna Simson, FuryOne at Secession Art & Design
Castro: 3361 Mission Street, 6:30-9:30pm

jeff meadows, kristin farr "Forest Station" at Bibliohead Bookstore
Hayes Valley: 334 Gough Street, 6-9pm

Halsey Chait "MACROLECULE" at D-Sturcture
Hayes Valley: 520 Haight Street, 8-11pm

+ Bryan Alberstat, Jennifer Pickens, Jessica Ruth, Pat Spurgeon, Peter Ellenby , Tiffany Black "Visual Allegory ;;;broken stories" at Fort Gallery
Oakland: 480 23rd Street, at Telegraph Avenue, 6-10pm

+ "ART IN A BOX Launch Party!" at The Compound Gallery
Oakland: 1167 65th Street, floor 1, 7-10pm

Tour: "First Friday After Five!" at Oakland Museum of California
Oakland: 1000 Oak Street, 5-9pm

+ Closing reception: Ira Hawkins , Sam Slater "RELEASE" at Forthrite
Oakland: 5857 San Pablo Avenue, 6-9pm

+ "just because there are questions, does not mean there are answers" New work by Sam Lopes, Joy Fritz and Friends at Blankspace
Oakland: 6608 San Pablo Avenue, 7-10pm

+ Amber Collision, Amy Cools, Helene Poulshock, Mali Mrozinski "Tendril" An Oakland Textile Art Show at Rock Paper Scissors Collective
Oakland: 2278 Telegraph Avenue, at 23rd Street, 6-9pm

Lawrence Jordan "Mystic Transformations" at Gallery Extrana
Oakland: 2912 Telegraph Avenue, 7-10pm

Mike Meyers, Val Britton "The Echo Fields" First Friday Reception at Johansson Projects
Oakland: 2300 Telegraph Avenue, at 23rd Street, 5-9pm

+ Jennifer and Kevin McCoy "Show Me" First Friday Reception at Johansson Projects
Oakland: 2300 Telegraph Avenue, at 23rd Street, 5:30-7:30pm

Performance: "Kalman Spelletich's Walking Machines at Art Murmur" at Johansson Projects
Oakland: 2300 Telegraph Avenue, at 23rd Street, 5-9pm

+ Closing reception: Amanda Lopez "Retratos de la Familia" at Pueblo Nuevo
Berkeley: 1828 San Pablo Avenue, 7-10pm

Saturday, June 6

+ Benefit: "POP NOIR" Southern Exposure’s Annual Spring Fundraiser and Art Auction at Southern Exposure (Electric Works Gallery)
SOMA: 130 8th Street, $35, 7:30-10:30pm

"Roberto Venosa" PUSH Studio & I.A.M.U presents at PUSH Studio
SOMA: 864 Folsom Street, 6-10pm

"What’s the Big Idea?" LATE NIGHT PARTY at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
SOMA: 701 Misssion Street, at Third Street, Free, RSVP recommended, 9pm-3am

Debra Greene, Jil Weinstock at Limn Art Gallery
SOMA: 292 Townsend Street, 4-6pm

+ Benefit: "A Night at Findlay's Dance Hall" Creativity Explored's Dance Party and Auction at Creativity Explored
Mission District: 3245 16th Street, $50 in advance, $55 day of the event, 7:30-11pm

Annie Galvin "In a Golden State" at Studio 3579
Mission District: 3579 17th Street, 6-9pm

Art Fair: "Crucero Artero: A bi-monthly arts bazaar in Studio 24" at Galeria de la Raza
Mission District: 2857 24th Street , 2-9pm

"What Is Art?" at Art Club SF
Richmond District: 2901 Clement Street, 4-9pm

Karyn Yandow , Susan Scott "Transformations" at Soap Gallery
Bernal Heights: 3180 Mission Street, 6-9pm

"50 Bucks" ART 94124's One-Year Anniversary Benefit Exhibit at Art 94124 Gallery
Hunters Point: 3900-B 3rd Street, 11am-5pm

Benefit: "Artsfest 2009" at Art 94124 Gallery
Hunters Point: 3900-B 3rd Street, Third Street and Fairfax Street, 11am-5pm

Open Studio: "EAST BAY OPEN STUDIOS 2009" at Pro Arts Gallery
East Bay: Check webite for maps Various Locations, 11am-6pm

+ Art Fair: "ABCO CRAFT FAIR" at Abco Artspace
Emeryville: 3135 Filbert, 12-6pm

Sunday, June 7

"Threads" at SOMArts Cultural Center
SOMA: 934 Brannan Street, 3pm

+ Charlene Tan, Emily Wilson "andmoreagain" at 2nd floor projects
Mission District: 3740 25th Street, floor 2, 7-10pm

+ Book Signing: Author, Edward Shanken "Visions of the Future: A Book Talk on Art and Electronic Media" at Exploratorium
Marina District: 3601 Lyon Street, 3-4pm

Open Studio: "EAST BAY OPEN STUDIOS 2009" at Pro Arts Gallery
East Bay: Check webite for maps Various Locations, 11am-6pm

+ Lecture: "Getting Our Hands Dirty: What We Do Best at Paulson Press" at Oakland Museum of California
Oakland: 1000 Oak Street, FREE w/ Museum Admission, 3:30pm

"Community Day: Localize! Environmental Activism at the Grassroots" Part of "Human/Nature: Artists Respond to a Changing Planet" at Berkeley Art Museum
Berkeley: 2626 Bancroft Way, at College Avenue, 11am-3pm

Artcards San Francisco is a weekly email publication led by editor Emma Spertus. Email event submissions to sfinfo@artcards.cc or use our submission form. New: you can now add an image to your listing by using the submission form.

+ = Editor's pick
? = Opening not confirmed - check site for updates.