This is one of the quietest weeks of the year. The Barry McGee mid career survey show at the Berkeley Art Museum looks to be an interesting experience. However one feels about his practice - and I have to admit a bit of a soft spot for his brand of high-mission school - the preview images indicate the exhibition to be very 'full-on' and worth a visit.

Also exciting and the same night (Thursday), as part of the excellent Stage Presence show at SFMOMA, D-L Alvarez and Kevin Killian's The Visitor Owl is a performance/play conflating two Sidney Poitier films about high school into one complicated examination/conversation of/on "Cold War culture, student riots, and hollywood depictions of pedagogy, racism and adolescence". Highly suggested.

Curiously Direct Picks
Eli Ridgway//Jacqueline Kiyomi Gordon: No Touch= This is an excellent first solo show for Gordon at Ridgway. Featuring four very large works/installations and two (also large) wall pieces, it is a very ambitious exhibition which maximizes the gallery's available space without seeming overhung. (...at this point I went on and on...)  it is a must see, the best gallery show open right now and certainly one of the best which will occur this year in the bay area.

Tuesday:

+ Screening: Kazuo Hara "Movie Night at the OACC: Extreme Private Eros: Love Story 1974" curated by Tooth (of Black Hole Cinematheque) at Oakland Asian Cultural Center

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Thursday:
+ Performance: D-L Alvarez, Kevin Killian "SFMOMA's Stage Presence Performance Series: D-L Alvarez and Kevin Killian" at SF MOMA

+ Barry McGee "Barry McGee" curated by Lawrence Rinder at Berkeley Art Museum

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Friday:
+ Performance: Collin McKelvey (Orbless), Derek Gedalecia (Headboggle), John Davis "Summer of Video Art 2012 - Close to Cosmic" at Krowswork

Saturday:
+ Reading: Aaron Shurin, Christine Choi, Dara Khan, Denise Newman, Edward Foster, Ryan Funk, Sara Fontaine, Ted Rees, Truong Tran "Bay Area Poetry Marathon" curated by Melanie Farley at The Lab

Tuesday, August 21

+ Screening: Kazuo Hara "Movie Night at the OACC: Extreme Private Eros: Love Story 1974" curated by Tooth (of Black Hole Cinematheque) at Oakland Asian Cultural Center Oakland: 388 Ninth Street, Suite 290, $5, suggested donation, 7-9pm

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Thursday, August 23

+ Performance: D-L Alvarez, Kevin Killian "SFMOMA's Stage Presence Performance Series: D-L Alvarez and Kevin Killian" at SF MOMA
SOMA: 151 Third Street, Mission Street, Space is limited; advance tickets required. $18 general; $13 seniors; $11 students; free for SFMOMA members. Ticket includes same-day museum admission, 7:30pm

+ Barry McGee "Barry McGee" curated by Lawrence Rinder at Berkeley Art Museum Berkeley: 2626 Bancroft Way, at College Avenue, Open to all BAM/PFA members, 6-8:30pm

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Friday, August 24

Mark Bode, Metal Man Ed, Vaughn Bode "Metalmorphosis" at 1AM Gallery
SOMA: 1000 Howard Street, free, 7-10pm

Eric Bailey "Even After All..." curated by Anaya Nieto and Jodé Ly at Nieto Fine Art
Tenderloin: 565 Sutter St., Complimentary, 6-8pm

Book Signing: Andrew Schoultz "Andrew Schoultz Book Signing / Exhibition" at Park Life
Richmond District: 220 Clement Street, free, 7-10pm

+ Performance: Collin McKelvey (Orbless), Derek Gedalecia (Headboggle), John Davis "Summer of Video Art 2012 - Close to Cosmic" at Krowswork
Oakland: 480 23rd Street, at Telegraph Avenue, Side Entrance, 8-10 pm

Saturday, August 25

+ Reading: Aaron Shurin, Christine Choi, Dara Khan, Denise Newman, Edward Foster, Ryan Funk, Sara Fontaine, Ted Rees, Truong Tran "Bay Area Poetry Marathon" curated by Melanie Farley at The Lab
Mission District: 2948 16th Street, 7-10pm

Anger, Axis, Bates, Bg 183, Bio, Cap, Ceave, Cecs, Cense, Ces, Claw Money, Con, Cope 2, Crash, Curve TGE, Dceve, Dmote, Dondi, Dr. Sex, Egs, Egs, Enron, Erupto 327, Estria, Evade, EwokOne, Faust, Geso, Gorey, Horfe, Indie 184, Iz The Wiz, Jase, Jash, Jenks, Jick, Joker, Jurne, Kaput, Keo, Kuma, Lead, Med, Min, Monk, Mq, Nicer, Nmph, Nope, Oblvn, Oe3, Omens, Orfn, Oze 108, Pemex, PEZ, Quake, Queen Andrea, Rammellzee, Remio, Renos, S8n, Saze, Sibl, Skuf, Smash 137, Spray, Sye, TKid, Trike, Vans the Omega, Vfr, Vogue, Voice, Wand, Wane 1, Yen 34, Yes 2 "Leave the Beef on the BBQ" at Guerrero Gallery
Mission District: 2700 19th Street, free, 3-7pm

Screening: Eliane Lima , Isabelle Martin, Leslie Supnet , Mari Okada, Suzanne Oshinsky, Thalia Drori "GAZE: Screening #2, Labor/Memorial" at A.T.A.
Mission District: 992 Valencia Street, $6, 8-10 pm

Sydney Cohen, W. Scott Trimble at Swarm Gallery
Oakland: 560 2nd Street, free, 6-8pm

Artist Talk: Victoria Wagner "Our Mother the Mountain" at Marion and Rose's Workshop
Oakland: 9th Street 461, floor 1, free, 4-6pm

Sunday, August 26

Tour: "Behind The Scenes: Mills College Through The Years" at Mills College Art Museum
Oakland: 5000 Macarthur Boulvard, FREE, RSVP to museum@mills.edu, 1:00pm

Artcards San Francisco is a weekly email publication led by editor Jackie Im and Aaron Harbour. 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.