What do we want from our art scene? What is our art scene... what fuzzy crowd do we feel most at home in amidst any number of overlapping scenes?

There is a feed back and forth between these questions, and any answers are temporary and subjective. Perhaps the best thing one can do is point to positive examples whether they are exhibitions or artist's practices and say "more of these please!" 

For me, I want a scene much like this one but a little more relentless, a little less complacent, a little less focused on rehashing regional histories and more on pushing the contemporary scene in to new exciting places. I want more shows like Trisha Donnelly's New Works show at SFMOMA: confounding and weird. I want more new spaces and better support structures/interaction between new or temporary art venues (both locally and abroad). More Stairwells, Important Projects, Kadists and Royal Nonesuch Galleries and other stranger ideas. Less is not more in this instance, there is a definite ecology of newness which requires a minimum amount of life to sustain itself. 

thats just me... what about you? What do you want? How do you propose to get it?

Contact me at mrharbour@gmail.com with ideas, issues, etc.

Curiously Direct Picks 

(as yet not reviewed, but the shows at Highlight Gallery and Right Window are quite good as well)

SFMOMA//Trisha Donnelly: New Works= Truly new works which reconfigure the space of SFMOMA (versus many new works shows which feel more 'point and hang') The sound of this work pierces the borders of the specific display spaces and into the other galleries on the floor, a counterpoint to the Logan collection objects (which felt too neat and simple in this new context). The imagery in these pieces is obscure; there is no easy through-line or personal narrative on the wall at the ready to aid the viewer. Rather, the viewer is allowed to engage or ignore on terms laid out by the works and the viewer's own personal relationship to what is presented without any intermediary, without anything explaining why this/she is or isn't important. This freedom was incredibly refreshing.

Wednesday:

+ Chris Marker, Etel Adnan, Rabih Mroué, The Otolith Group "Words and Places: Etel Adnan" curated by Curatorial Practice Class of 2013 at CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts (Kent and Vicki Logan Galleries)

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Thursday:
+ Aaron Flint Jamison, Alice Channer, Anicka Yi "O the sleeping bag contains the body but not the dreaming head" curated by Mcintyre Parker at Altman Siegel

Friday:
+ Alexandre Arrechea, Amapola Prada, Ana Teresa Fernandez, Claudia Joskowicz, Eamon Ore-Giron, Edgardo Aragon, Felipe Dulzaides, Humberto Diaz, Julio Cesar Morales, leonardogillesfleur, Luis Gárciga, Maya Watanabe, Miguel Calderón, Sergio De La Torre, Yoshua Okon "¡Oye, Mira!: Reflective Approaches in Contemporary Latin American Video Art" curated by Tony Labat at San Francisco Art Institute
+ Christopher Lux "Potboiler" at Park Life

Saturday:
+ Open Studio: "SFAI Graduate Open Studios" at San Francisco Art Institute (Swell Gallery)
+ Lecture: "Inventory of Shimmers by Colleen Stockmann" at Carville Annex

Sunday:
+ Closing reception: Aida Gamez, Alex Nowik, Ali Dadgar, Alicia Mccarthy, Amy Rathbone, Anne Walsh, Azin Seraj, Brody Reiman, Colter Jacobsen, Craig Nagasawa, Cybele Lyle, David Gregory Wallace, David Snyder , Ehren Tool, Elizabeth Berstein, Farley Gwazda, Gordan Deng, Greg Niemeyer, Indira Martina Morre, Jan Wurm, Jeff McMillan, Jennie Smith, Jessica Hankey, John H. Greer, John McNamara, Katherine Sherwood, Keith Wilson, Kenneth Lo, Kim Bennett, Livia Stein, Lydia Greer, Matthew Troy Mullins, Miriam Dym for Suboptimal Products, Nancy Selvin, Narangkar Glover, Pamela Wilson-Ryckman, Regina Clarkinia, Rose Khor, Sara Bright, Sonya Rapoport, Veronica De Jesus "Conversation Continuum: A Benefit Show for Martina }{ Johnston" at Martina } { Johnston

Wednesday, April 17

+ Chris Marker, Etel Adnan, Rabih Mroué, The Otolith Group "Words and Places: Etel Adnan" curated by Curatorial Practice Class of 2013 at CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts (Kent and Vicki Logan Galleries) Potrero Hill: 360 Kansas Street, Free, 6-8pm

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Thursday, April 18

BAPC Members "OneShot X2" at Calumet Photo Gallery
SOMA: Bryant Street 2001, 5:30-7:30pm

Morten Løbner Espersen "Vertigo" at Hedge Gallery
North Beach: 501 Pacific Avenue, Free, 5:30-7:30pm

+ Aaron Flint Jamison, Alice Channer, Anicka Yi "O the sleeping bag contains the body but not the dreaming head" curated by Mcintyre Parker at Altman Siegel
Downtown: 49 Geary Street, floor 4, 5:30-7:30pm

Benefit: "Taste" at Root Division
Mission District: 3175 17th Street, South Van Ness, $75 (or 4 for $200), 7:30-10:30pm

Panel Discussion: Carissa Potter, Jeanne Finley, Jon Gourley, Jon Kuzmich, Lordy Rodriguez , Renetta Sitoy, Salma Arastu, Sarah Tell "SMMMASH" curated by Piero Scaruffi at Stanford Art Gallery (Thomas Welton Stanford Art Gallery )
Palo Alto: Lasuen Mall 419 , Stanford University - Cubberley Auditorium, Free, 6-8pm

Artist Talk: Osvaldo Ramirez Castillo, Sanaz Mazinani "Fellowship Talks: Osvaldo Ramirez Castillo and Sanaz Mazinani" at Kala Art Institute
Berkeley: 2990 San Pablo Avenue, free, 7-9pm

Friday, April 19

Lecture: "Photo Alliance Lecture Series: Richard Misrach" at San Francisco Art Institute
Russian Hill: 800 Chesnut Street, Lecture Hall, $10 general / Students $5 with ID, 7:30pm

+ Alexandre Arrechea, Amapola Prada, Ana Teresa Fernandez, Claudia Joskowicz, Eamon Ore-Giron, Edgardo Aragon, Felipe Dulzaides, Humberto Diaz, Julio Cesar Morales, leonardogillesfleur, Luis Gárciga, Maya Watanabe, Miguel Calderón, Sergio De La Torre, Yoshua Okon "¡Oye, Mira!: Reflective Approaches in Contemporary Latin American Video Art" curated by Tony Labat at San Francisco Art Institute
Russian Hill: 800 Chesnut Street, FREE, 6-9pm

ARYZ "Style is the Limit" curated by FIFTY24SF at FIFTY24SF Gallery
Hayes Valley: 248 Fillmore Street, 7-10pm

+ Christopher Lux "Potboiler" at Park Life
Richmond District: 220 Clement Street, Free, 7-10pm

Saturday, April 20

Performance: Christine Bonansea, Kathleen Hermesdorf / ALTERNATIVA "SONIC BODY SERIES" curated by Christine Bonansea at Kunst-Stoff Arts
SOMA: 1 Grove St, $15, 8:30pm

Alberto Ybarra, Charles Papillo, Douglas Alan Struble, Gabrielle Curry, Hugo Kobayashi, Jake Kobrin, Joe Spear, Johnny Ringo, Joshua Coffy, Patrick St. Clair, Ricardo Miranda, Steen Kjorlie "3rd Annual Emerging Artist Exhibit" at Driftwood Salon
SOMA: 39 Isis St., Free, 6:30-9:30pm

Performance: Paul Rucker "Sonic Interpretation: Performance by Paul Rucker" at Catharine Clark Gallery
SOMA: 150 Minna Street, Free, 3-6pm

Aaron S. Moran, Andrea Petrachi, Andy Vible, Bartek Elsner, Clemens Behr, David Oliveira, Duncan Johnson, Jonathan Leach, Joseph Cohen, Laura Judkis, Lauren Rice, Matt Hosey, Matthew Craig, Ron Ulicny, Vadis Turner "Off the Wall: Contemporary Sculpture" at Mirus Gallery
Downtown: 540 Howard Street, 6-10pm

Brian Goggin, Chris Mars, Christian Rex Van Minnen, Chuck Sperry, Isabel Samaras, Jennybird Alcantara, Jessica Joslin, Lee Harvey Roswell, Lucien Shapiro, Ransom & Mitchell, Rob Reger, Robert Bowen, Ron Garrigues, Victor Castillo "DECADE-1: 10 Year Anniversary Group Show" curated by Jen Rogers, Kerri Stephens at Varnish Fine Art
Downtown: 16 Jessie street, suite 120, 6-9pm

+ Open Studio: "SFAI Graduate Open Studios" at San Francisco Art Institute (Swell Gallery)
Potrero Hill: 2565 Third Street, Free, 12:00-5:00pm

+ Lecture: "Inventory of Shimmers by Colleen Stockmann" at Carville Annex
Sunset: 4037 Judah Street, 7:00pm

Jenny Sharaf "Blonde Ambition" at Backstock Gallery
Oakland: 3231 Grand Avenue, Free, 6-9pm

"Art Swap" at Mills College Art Museum
Oakland: 5000 Macarthur Boulvard, Free, 1-4pm

Sunday, April 21

Closing reception: "Outside the Box II Closing Tea and Cake Walk" at Compound Gallery
Oakland: 1167 65th st., Oakland, CA 94608, Ground floor, free, 3 - 6 p.m.

+ Closing reception: Aida Gamez, Alex Nowik, Ali Dadgar, Alicia Mccarthy, Amy Rathbone, Anne Walsh, Azin Seraj, Brody Reiman, Colter Jacobsen, Craig Nagasawa, Cybele Lyle, David Gregory Wallace, David Snyder , Ehren Tool, Elizabeth Berstein, Farley Gwazda, Gordan Deng, Greg Niemeyer, Indira Martina Morre, Jan Wurm, Jeff McMillan, Jennie Smith, Jessica Hankey, John H. Greer, John McNamara, Katherine Sherwood, Keith Wilson, Kenneth Lo, Kim Bennett, Livia Stein, Lydia Greer, Matthew Troy Mullins, Miriam Dym for Suboptimal Products, Nancy Selvin, Narangkar Glover, Pamela Wilson-Ryckman, Regina Clarkinia, Rose Khor, Sara Bright, Sonya Rapoport, Veronica De Jesus "Conversation Continuum: A Benefit Show for Martina }{ Johnston" at Martina } { Johnston
Berkeley: 1201 Sixth Street, 2nd , Free, 1-4pm

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