announcing
GRAY LOFT UPTOWN

We are excited to announce a new endeavor for us - we will be opening Gray Loft Uptown in the newly created The Orchard / Galleries on 25. a vibrant new arts venue located in the heart of the Oakland Art Murmur district. This dynamic 6,000-square-foot space was created to bring together artists, galleries and art lovers in one inspiring environment. The venue will house Gray Loft Uptown, alongside 10 other independent  established artists showrooms, offering a diverse and ever-evolving array of contemporary art. 

The Grand Opening celebration is Saturday, November 15, from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. and will feature live music, dance performances, and a stunning array of visual art. Visitors can meet the artists, explore the new space, and experience firsthand the creative pulse that defines Oakland’s 25th Street art corridor.

Located at 489 – 25th Street, The Orchard Galleries on 25 will be open every First Friday – in conjunction with the Oakland Art Murmur – and Fridays and Saturdays from 12:00 to 5:00 p.m., as well as by appointment.

Gray Loft Uptown’s inaugural exhibit in the venue will feature three solo shows: Simone Simon, Suzy Barnard and John Wood.

We are not closing our beloved Jingletown gallery that we opened in 2012 - but for now are concentrating our efforts into the the new space. Please visit!

Suzy Barnard

I’ve always had a rush of pleasure from the colors of my life--whether they be the cargo ships floating outside my San Francisco studio, my father’s quintessentially English garden, the brilliant bougainvillea trailing over my fence. I have wanted to capture the life force of these scenes in a full-bodied way.

Over the past 20 years, I have been fascinated by large, working ships—inspired, I am sure in part, by my family’s stories of sea travel to faraway places. With time, the wider environment of the sky, water and land became more dominant, the ships distilled into mere hints.  These abstractions allowed me to indulge in the realm of color, light and sensation. 

Recently, with a sense of nostalgic longing that I carry with me for the scenery of my homeland, England. I’ve shifted my gaze to explore the exuberant world of blousy flowers and unfurling foliage. They announce their brilliance at top volume, seemingly shouting out with joy and vitality, and it is this energy I am trying to tap into by making larger-than-life paintings.  In a world that often seems saturated with man-made sorrows, I feel an urgency to notice, savor, bear witness and share the astonishing offerings of our natural world.

Simone Simon

Born in Panama and raised on the East Coast, Simone eventually made her way to California to study at the San Francisco Art Institute, earning both her BFA and MFA in Painting. In the 80s she helped launch ARE Gallery on Market Street, contributing to San Francisco’s vibrant alternative art scene.

Alongside her artistic practice, Simone has explored body movement and psychology - dancing, teaching yoga, and working as a clinical hypnotherapist.

About her work:
“I see paintings as arenas where light and gesture are gathered and stored… Shapes and symbols build over time - marching forward like characters, forming relationships and memories. I work until a presence can be felt, an energy that might be provoked or invited to take center stage on the canvas.”

Simone has been represented by Gray Loft Gallery for 13 years and has exhibited widely in California and beyond. Her work is included in major corporate collections such as Oracle and Bank of America.

She lives and works in Petaluma, California. @simonesimonart

John W Wood

I search for a way to visualize rapture.

My interests are in the sensual, seductive qualities in life and I attempt to convey them through my art. I seek the sublime - those moments when images, sounds or emotions transport me - and I strive to create similar sensations in my art.

I love the tactile feel of drawing on paper. It has a rich, skin-like quality that yields to my marks in a way that canvas or a harder surface cannot.

Typically, I begin by working directly with a model, looking to find a connection between the figure, the drawing, and my own esthetic. Successive layers of graphite, crayon, oil pastel, pigment stick, and/or enamel combine to build each work of art. The back-and-forth "dialog" between the image and me often feels like a performance.

I often begins by drawing from the figure, following the sensual lines of the body over and over again without any clear intention, building up a base on which to develop the work. Areas of color are applied with pigment sticks, soft as lipstick, that can be thick impasto, velvety smooth, or scraped off to reveal layers of line and altered colors beneath. At some point the figure become less important, but the sense of fluidity and sensuality remain as an important element. He describes his work as a conversation that happens between the art and the artist, a kind of improvisational performance with physicality and momentum that brings out raw and emotional aspects. The work can be strong and daring, softly sweet, filled with anger and anxiety, or love and warmth.