we they, we they

Last time I saw Clare Rojas she was telling spooky ghost stories out at the Headlands on a full moon night, and it's also been a while since I've seen her perform as her sweetly-singing alter ego Peggy Honeywell.  But she brought out her acoustic guitar last night at the Museum of Craft and Folk Art to celebrate the opening of her new show We They, We They, and anyone who wasn't already under her spell sure was completely charmed by the end of her short set.  The MOCFA always makes impressive use of its compact space and this exhibit is no exception, as almost every available inch of wall area is filled floor-to-ceiling with Rojas's flattened, folk-inspired paintings.  There are wily coyotes, willow branches bending low, hand-drawn sheet music, wizened figures engaging in mysterious rituals, quilt-inspired geometry, smooching pigeons, and much much more.  The title of the show speaks to Rojas's investigations into human relationships and the ways in which they can still be difficult and strange even in this time of intense interconnectivity.  Are the men and women in her paintings from an earlier time, or are they actually our contemporaries?  She deliberately blurs the line and does it in what is already an instantly-recognizable style.  The room bursts with so much color and pattern it was difficult for me to absorb it all in a single viewing (and with the distractions of the opening night scrum besides), but I fully intend to spend a few lunch breaks at the museum before the show closes in August.