“Some works might make viewers laugh out loud; others may provoke a smile while still others will probably induce no more than an unexhibited amusement,” (SJMA “The Lighter Side of Bay Area Figuration”, 1). Susan Landauer says this in regards to the latest exhibit at the San Jose Museum of Art. The show offers a wide range of pieces from the technically proficient to the texturally interesting; all had a lighthearted quality. I found “Joe Bot” …showed first 75 words of 810 total…

…showed last 75 words of 810 total…a quiet rebellion against the New York art world during the 1960s and 1970s (SFMA, 1). This exciting combination of medium and ideas still conveys a sense of “smartness” to the art despite the “low brow and…consciously articulated anti-intellectualism” (Chadwick, 309) through its humor. Bibliography San Jose Museum of Art, “The Lighter Side of Bay Area Figuration”. SJMA. September 2000. Chadwich, Whitney. “Narrative Imagism and the Figurative Tradition in Northern California Painting.” Art Journal. Winter 1985. Pages 309-314.