Exhibition dates: April 11 – May 31, 2005
Call and Response:
The Artwork of Jenny Bloomfield and Mel Lyons
Reception: April 21, 5 p.m. - 7 p.m.

Gallery 555
555 12th Street, Oakland, CA
Lobby Hours: Monday through Friday 7 a.m. – 6 p.m.;
Third Thursdays 7 a.m. – 8 p.m.
located in downtown Oakland
Open and free to the public. BART, AC Transit and Wheelchair accessible.

Presented by the Oakland Museum of California Professional Services division
Professional Services Exhibition Archive

Jenny Bloomfield, Three-Four, 2004, oil on canvas, 60" x 48"

Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) Off-Site presents Call and Response: Jenny Bloomfield and Mel Lyons at Gallery 555 in Oakland City Center. This exhibition features Bloomfield’s vibrantly rendered oil paintings and the elegant sculptural forms of Mel Lyons.

This collaboration between Oakland artists Bloomfield and Lyons grew out of the experience of sharing several studios over the course of the last few years. Painting and sculpture have been created in the same space. Rather than separating their activities, the artists found themselves organically integrating their concerns, compositional issues and working attitudes. Where they most strongly diverge and perhaps could hardly be more different is in the process of making.

The sculpture proceeds from a strict set of rules and is often designed before the making begins. The painting tends to respond more to its own making, accumulating layers of self-generated influences. The sculptures are made of painted wooden poles, implying lines and circles. Compositionally, they can suggest stripes, curves and grids. The paintings are constructed of similar compositional elements in their exploration of a parallel visual rhythm.

The pairings in Call and Response are not intended to provide direct correlations between specific paintings and sculptures but rather to emphasize the sense of responsiveness present in the studio. No one sculpture was made to emphasize the integrity of the response and the strength of the relationship between the sculptures and paintings.

Mel Lyons, Black Gray Blue Structure, 2004, painted wood, 42” x 100” x 84”

“ Artists tend to be sensitive to the notion of influence,” explain Bloomfield and Lyons. “In the process of making art one is constantly aware of other artists’ work and continually attempting to put these influences aside in order to allow for an honest and authentic approach. Collaboration turns that process on its head. It is liberating to accept direct influence as a positive thing – in fact, it is required. It is a challenge of a different order to be generous with what is most dear to one and to remain open-minded.”

Call and Response: The Artwork of Jenny Bloomfield and Mel Lyons is presented by the Oakland Museum of California in partnership with Shorenstein Realty Services. The exhibition is part of a changing exhibition series at Oakland City Center and represents an ongoing collaboration between the museum and Shorenstein to showcase contemporary artists. Gallery 555 is located on the lobby level of 555 12th Street.

Gallery 555 is managed by the Oakland Museum of California’s Professional Services Division. Professional Services is a museum department that shares the institution’s resources with the community by developing fine art and artifact exhibitions in public venues. For more information about Professional Services, please go to www.museumca.org/off-site.

Oakland City Center is a focal point for commercial and government activity in downtown Oakland. For more information about Oakland City Center, go to www.oaklandcitycenter.com.