There is an almost perfect split this week with SF openings neatly packed into their First Thursday time slot and Oakland rolling theirs out a day later with Art Murmur's First Friday (there are always a few renegades). Following in the tradition of summer programing, a fair number of group shows are taking place this month: Rena Bransten Gallery, Brian Gross Fine Art, and Needles & Pens have interesting offerings opening on Thursday;  SF Arts Commission Gallery is closing their group show; and Cathrine Clark continues her fascinating show that opened last week. For the most part, Oakland is keeping with the solo or two-person model, but these shows often beat to a different drum (and this may be the case with the intriguing Paint By Numbers group show on Sunday).

Wednesday:
+ Eric Michael Corrigan , Livia Stein at Andrea Schwartz Gallery

Thursday:
+ Closing reception: Pae White "In Between the Outside-In" at New Langton Arts
+ "Paper / Mylar / Vellum" at Brian Gross Fine Art
+ "Decline and Fall" at Rena Bransten Gallery
+ Closing reception: "Trace Elements" SFAC Group Show at SF Arts Commission Gallery
+ "Ocean + Beach" A Group of Artists Who Thrive in and Around the Coastal Zone at Needles & Pens

Friday:
+ Mark Inglis Taylor, Porous Walker "Brozone Layer" at Hatch Gallery
+ Closing reception: "just because there are questions, does not mean there are answers" New work by Sam Lopes, Joy Fritz and Friends at Blankspace
+ Alisha Wessler, Evan B. Harris "Back Channels" at Johansson Projects

Sunday:
+ "Paint by Number Group Show" at WE artspace

Wednesday, July 1

+ Eric Michael Corrigan , Livia Stein at Andrea Schwartz Gallery
SOMA: 525 2nd Street, 5:30-7:30pm

Thursday, July 2

+ Closing reception: Pae White "In Between the Outside-In" at New Langton Arts
SOMA: 1246 Folsom Street, 5-7pm

Erica Wheelock, Nate Watson "Shades of Grey" at NOMA Gallery
SOMA: 80 Maiden Lane, floor 3, 6-9pm

Lukas Beyeler, Terrance Graven at David Cunningham Projects
Downtown: 1928 Folsom Street, 6-9pm, Live Performance by Terrance Graven 8pm

Peter Onstad at A440 Gallery
Downtown: 49 Geary Street, floor 4, 5:00-7:30pm

Adrianne Watson, Ted Lincoln at Togonon Gallery
Downtown: 77 Geary Street, 5:30-7:30pm

+ "Paper / Mylar / Vellum" at Brian Gross Fine Art
Downtown: 49 Geary Street, floor 5, 5:30-7:30pm

Alan Ebnother, Rachael Jablo at George Lawson Gallery: Room for Painting Room for Paper
Downtown: 49 Geary Street, at Market Street, floor 2, 5:30-7:30pm

+ "Decline and Fall" at Rena Bransten Gallery
Downtown: 77 Geary Street, floor 2, 5:00-7:30pm

"COLD+HOT 2009" Glass sculpture, annual group exhibition at Micaela Gallery
Downtown: 49 Geary Street, Suite 234, 5:00-7:30pm

Chris Gentile "Reincarnation Blues" at Gregory Lind Gallery
Downtown: 49 Geary Street, floor 5, 5-7:30pm

Daniel Valadez "Severed Equilibrium" at Cafe Royale
Downtown: 800 Post Street, 8-Midnight

Hunt Rettig, Louise Lebourgeois at Dolby Chadwick Gallery
Downtown: 210 Post Street, floor 2, 5:30-7:30pm

"Exploration and Celebration" at Sandra Lee Fine Art Gallery
Downtown: 251 Post Street, floor 3, 5:30-7:30pm

"Every 1" at Hang Art (HANG ART )
Downtown: 567 Sutter Street, 6-8pm

Dennis McNulty "1981 Pervert" at Mark Wolfe Contemporary Art
Downtown: 1 Sutter Street, floor 3, 5:30-7:30pm

+ Closing reception: "Trace Elements" SFAC Group Show at SF Arts Commission Gallery
Civic Center: 401 Van Ness Avenue , at McAllister Street, 6-9pm

Performance: "PastForward" The 25th Anniversary Performance Series at The Lab
Mission District: 2948 16th Street, $8 sliding scale admission, Doors open 7:30pm, all shows start at 8pm

+ "Ocean + Beach" A Group of Artists Who Thrive in and Around the Coastal Zone at Needles & Pens
Mission District: 3253 16th Street, 6-9:30pm

"SPACECRAFT" Exhibition of CELLspace Studio Artists at CELLspace
Mission District: 2050 Bryant Street, 7pm

Word to Mother "Young Mind, Old Soul" at FIFTY24SF Gallery
Hayes Valley: 248 Fillmore Street, 6-9:30pm

Friday, July 3

Ian Hill "Dead Works" at D-Sturcture
Hayes Valley: 520 Haight Street, 8-11pm

"Jo Boyer & Jamie Treacy" at The Spare Room Project
Bernal Heights: 270 Anderson Street, 7-10pm

Ah-young Jeon, Bac Hoang, Hiroko Sakai, Monica Crawford, S. Newman, Shaina Lee "Art & Sake" at Gallery Chinoise
Oakland: 361 12th Street, Free, 7-10pm

Marie Rich "So Long Ago, I Don't Remember" at Fort Gallery
Oakland: 480 23rd Street, at Telegraph Avenue, 6-9pm

+ Mark Inglis Taylor, Porous Walker "Brozone Layer" at Hatch Gallery
Oakland: 492 23rd Street, at Telegraph Avenue, 6-10pm

Cage Norman "reworking Duchamp" at 21 Grand
Oakland: 416 25th Street, 6-9pm

Kimberley Campisano , Yasmin Lambie-Simpson "Shedding" at Red Door Gallery and Collective
Oakland: 416 26th Street, 6-10pm

Adrian Van Allen, Kari Marboe "Anatomies" at The Compound Gallery
Oakland: 1167 65th Street, floor 1, 7-10pm

YaChin Bonny You "Help Me Remember How Beautiful the World Is" at The Compound Gallery
Oakland: 1167 65th Street, floor 1, 7-10pm

Jessica Niello, Olivia Rogers at Forthrite
Oakland: 5857 San Pablo Avenue, Live Music, 6-9pm

+ Closing reception: "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

+ Alisha Wessler, Evan B. Harris "Back Channels" at Johansson Projects
Oakland: 2300 Telegraph Avenue, at 23rd Street, Free, 5-8 pm

Jessica Martin "Imaginary Landscapes" at Slate Gallery
Oakland: 4770 Telegraph Avenue, at 48th Street, 6-9pm

Marko Yamagata "From the House of Oona: Radi-Cool-Cut-ups" at Firehouse Collective (Firehouse Nouth)
Berkeley: 1790 Shattuck Avenue, 7-10pm

"This Town" Images of Our Northern California at Eclectix Gallery
El Cerrito: 10082 San Pablo Avenue, 7-10pm

Saturday, July 4

Lecture: Abner Nolan "Summer 2009 Visiting Artists Lecture Series" at San Francisco Art Institute
Russian Hill: 800 Chesnut Street, 3pm

"BAZOOKO'S CIRCUS" at Space Gallery
Civic Center: 1141 Polk Street, 21+, $ 4.00 at the door, 9pm-2am

Sunday, July 5

+ "Paint by Number Group Show" at WE artspace
Oakland: 768 40th Street, 5-8pm

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.