George C. Clark, "Winter Afternoon, Cocoa Beach, Florida," acrylic on panel
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Exhibits at the spacious Murphy Hill Gallery are assembled more by chance than by design, but that doesn’t mean that a trip out to the recycled Sears & Roebuck factory on Chicago’s West Side isn’t worth the short drive from the Loop. The masterly George Clark is the artist who stands out in this exhibit, showing works that span several decades of his life as a painter. Like Edward Hopper, he takes us to streets where the mysterious meets the ordinary, and his attention to detail will keep those streets alive long after he has stopped walking them. The large-scale photographs of John Sagami have a similar, mysterious feeling, but they are black-and-white, as in film noir, and invite the viewer walk down the back streets of his dark, urban dream-world that feels so much like a novel set in Shanghai. Then Pat Rose takes us back into the sunlight and lets us pretend that even the neglected margins of urbanity are only there to please the eye. Indeed, each of these artists has struck out in a different direction, and since they are all showing some skill, it’s usually enjoyable to follow them. (Chris Miller) Through February 28 at Murphy Hill Gallery, 3333 W. Arthington St.
Repurposing AI: A Review of Stephanie Dinkins at Stamps Gallery While this show is timely for everyone, I consider its setting within a university art gallery and emerging tech hub like the city of Ann Arbor a subversive provocation which Dinkins invites the greater public—including members of the university community—to consider our own positionality to AI and technology.
