With Unnatural Selection, Robert Bowen presents a new body of work addressing his unanswered questions about biomimicry and the sanctity of nature. He continues to play mad scientist in a laboratory that should never really exist, fusing high technology with nature. To juxtapose these prophetic tragedies, he has also painted a series of creatures with a precious stone/gem element, based on the concept that people should protect nature in the same way they safeguard their most prized jewels.

THHE AUCTION is an annual event to benefit the neighborhood artists of Hospitality House’s Community Arts Program, San Francisco’s only free art studio. The city’s oldest human services agency, Hospitality House offers six programs that strive to tackle the root causes of homelessness. The Community Arts Program (CAP) offers creative self-expression and a vibrant community to low-income artists, and allows them to exhibit and sell their work.

This year Luna Rienne Gallery, Mothbelly Gallery, Fleetwood Annex, analogSF, and HH Community Arts Program are offering their walls to exhibit the auction pieces, generously donated by nearly 100 artists.

THHE AUCTION takes place from April 1-6. More information at thheauction.org.

Visual Indulgence is a foray into color and process with paintings by Ingrid V. Wells and Heather Robinson that are simultaneously playful and serious; simple and complex. Vibrant patterns are immediately inviting yet crafted through a deliberate and extensive process that involves modeling, masking, layering and more.

Wells' work in this series, titled Spectacle, begins as still-life decoden, composed of tiny plastic objects undulating in fake frosting and sparkles, that are manipulated and enlarged into bright, bold oil paintings. The feminine imagery investigates American pop culture aesthetics of joy as simultaneously oppressive and empowering.

Robinson’s work is from her series called “Pattern Seeking” which seeks optimism in times of increasing chaos and uncertainty. Her goal is to evoke positive emotion through repeating textile patterns in multiple layers that are meditative, soothing and satisfying, representing the push and pull of order and disorder.

Delineation is Daniel Chen's latest collection of oil paintings chronicling his travels to and memories of places like Taipei, Paris, Portland and San Francisco - places he loves and holds dear, like an old faded photograph.

The works trick the mind’s eye with their abstract geometric rendering of city- and landscapes that become more amorphous the nearer you get to them. Chen likens this to human memories, which are fallible. They hold hard engrained truths that often become hazy and blurred through time.

Analog is an artist's visual chronicle of the swinging tides of the global pandemic. Daniel Chen did not cope well in the beginning, living alone and consumed by negative thoughts compounded by the news cycle and societal upheaval. He attempted to numb himself through a fog of escape but the more he curtailed his inner dialog, the louder it became.

This collection of paintings exhibits his personal journey through shelter-in-place, and his eventual acceptance of things that are out of his control. Chen created each of the paintings with a set grid, which he used to study color, balance, and cadence. The body of work is a progression of emotions that shift from darkness to light.

Note: Analog was originally scheduled for 2021 but canceled due to unforeseen circumstances. We present it alongside his 2022 exhibition, Delineation.

Sowing Seeds features originals and reproductions of selected works by urban contemporary artist Norm “Nomzee” Maxwell (1969-2016). Created between the years of 2002-2015, these works are among his most colorful and positive, reflecting his growing family, fond memories of his Philadelphia youth and metaphysical aspirations. Despite his passing, his work remains not only relevant but also visionary.

The Norm Maxwell Family Foundation will be releasing three limited edition framed prints on canvas in conjunction with this exhibition, featuring Maxwell’s well-received paintings, Pop's Shop, Oh Snap! and Jumping James. Also on exhibit will be small works for sale, open edition prints on canvas and not-for-sale originals.

Born in Philadelphia PA in 1969, Norm Maxwell was fully susceptible to and influenced by street life, finding his expression in writing graffiti in the 1980s as “Ice”. Mentors and peers encouraged him to pursue an art degree, and his career began in Los Angeles’ Skid Row in the early 1990s alongside urban art legend Doze Green and Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Clarence Williams. Maxwell was a prolific artist whose skills and subject matter spanned the extremes of painting. From acrylic spray to oil brush, street life to ancient myth, and urban strife to family life, Maxwell addressed both the evil and beauty of humanity -- a duality that he personally struggled with during his short and magnificent life. He garnered commissions from patrons in Los Angeles, Paris, Seoul, Berlin and Dubai.

Rise, Sunflowers is a group art exhibition and fundraiser for Ukraine, curated by San Francisco artists D Young V and Mykola Bereza. The show brings together the Bay Area art scene and elements of Ukrainian culture to raise awareness and garner much-needed funds for humanitarian efforts and essential supplies, after the disastrous Russian invasion on February 24, 2022.

The title of the show is a reference to both human empowerment and Ukraine’s national flower (Sonyashnyk). The sunflower was introduced in the country in the mid-18th century and has since become a key component of the Ukrainian economy — its sunflower oil comprises nearly 80% of the global stock. In 1996 the sunflower also became a symbol of global celebration as it was used to mark the nuclear disarmament of Ukraine, which at the time possessed the world’s third largest nuclear arsenal. The sunflower has taken on new meaning as a symbol of solidarity, resistance, unity and hope since the Russian invasion.

The show features 27 local artists exhibiting affordable works of various media, the proceeds from which will be donated to Hearts for Ukraine, a Bay Area-based organization that delivers critical supplies to hospitals, shelters, schools, orphanages, nursing homes, refugee support centers.

The City Reawakens features new work by San Francisco painters Beryl Landau and Anthony Holdsworth, who visually chronicle the city as the dark cloud of lockdown is lifted and we reawaken to a changed world. While friends and notable figures have passed, and restaurants and theaters have disappeared, there is also new life emerging. Parklets have created an al fresco dining scene; papel picado decorates 24th and Harrison Streets in the Mission; and everyone is excited to establish a new normal.

For his latest series, Anthony Holdsworth traversed the city, taking his portable studio to the Castro and North Beach — even catching the eye of SF Chronicle’s Native Son, Carl Nolte. Beryl Landau's work for the show offers serene, balanced compositions and signature muted colors, adding another dimension to her symbolic, urban landscapes.

Assorted Flavors is a collection of food-related paintings depicting otherworldly musings and episodes of illusion with the artist's favorite edibles. Golden wrappers reveal worlds of chocolate confections; gummy fish pass the time on a quiet pier; and teacups burst out from pastry boxes. J.L. King's unique surrealist style emerges and immerses in this, her first solo gallery show.

Evolutionary Bloom is a visual exploration of what is, what was, and what might be in the natural realm. As the global climate shifts, species of flora (and fauna) become extinct, flourish for a time, and emerge/re-emerge. Artists Felicia Ann, Linda Larson and Ursula Xanthe Young capture human and floral species — whether indigenous to Earth or imagined on a distant planet — at the cusp of transformation in this colorful and ethereal exhibition.

Holidazical is a collection of small-scale works by fourteen established urban contemporary artists. Including surrealism, abstraction, photo realism and more, this exhibition showcases the diversity of art in the gallery program.