Summer Breeze July 3, 2012

July 3rd-31st, 2012; Artist Reception July 19th, 2012, 5:30-7:30; Gallery hours Tue-Fri 11-6, Sat 11-5

Sandra Lee Gallery is proud to present SUMMER BREEZE, a two person exhibition of artworks by James Watts and Maria Lobo.

James Watts, a San Francisco based artist, exhibits his reclaimed and regenerated sculptural works. Using discarded refuse of both Man and Nature, Watts creates an evolutionary process before our eyes. He transforms abandoned materials through manipulation and oxidation techniques. Since the early nineties Watts has focused on creating pure sculpture that constantly moves and grows, disregarding decay and ruin and embracing the possibility of hope. From a distance, the pieces suggest organic objects pulled from the earth, but a closer, more intimate analysis reveals man-made refuse entwined, emerging, and abandoned. The surfaces are treated with chemically oxidized metallic paints which introduce a chemical evolution, mirroring the renewal of the combined objects. Watts received a BFA from the College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland and has gone on to participate in over fifty solo, group and juried shows across the country and in Japan.

Maria Lobo is one of Sandra Lee's new artists and will introduce her mixed media paintings alongside the sculptures of James Watts. Lobo was born and raised in Hong Kong and has infused her knowledge of Western art with Asian traditions. With her floating circular forms and watery lines, she searches for where she fits into time and space. Lobo uses acrylic paint, Japanese papers, and Chinese ink splashes to create negative space, patterns, and order from chaos. Her organic shapes constructed in a soft pastel palette are comparable to the artwork of James Watts. Maria exhibits her work in galleries internationally.

Official Website: http://sandraleegallery.com