Four excellent shows to see this week before they close:
Through June 29 - Words and Places: Etel Adnan at the CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts. Every year the graduating class of CCA's Graduate Program in Curatorial Practice puts on a kick-ass thesis show, this one over in the Wattis's newish space on Kansas. The curators focus on the abstracted landscape paintings and handmade books created by Adnan but also pull in videos by Chris Marker, The Otolith Group, Rabih Mroué, and Adnan herself to emphasize themes of memory and displacement.
Through June 29 - ¡Oye, Mira!: Reflective Approaches in Contemporary Latin American Video Art at SFAI's Walter and McBean Galleries. I'm not only vouching for the show, chock full of cutting-edge work, but am personally recommending the closing party Friday night which will feature performances by Future Twin, Gold Wood, and Shalo P. More audio and visual stimulation than you can shake a sword at.
Through June 29 - Cerberus: New Transmedial Work at Meridian Gallery. The trio of artists in this show use materials as varied as spit, honey, smoke, sheet latex, and upholstery foam to create their equally wide-ranging and wonderfully uncomfortable work. As for me, any show that references Virgil and the mythical guardian beast of the underworld is going to get an additional vote.
Through June 30 - CORNERWAYS by Stairwell's. I cannot say enough good things about the Stairwell's project by Sarah Hotchkiss and Carey Lin. The curators stage occasional site-based installations in (you guessed it) stairwells, often using these liminal spaces to challenge perception. Stop by this Sunday afternoon during the closing reception, and while you're in the neighborhood pick up a copy of the beautiful Stairwell's Takeaway zine, printed by my fave Colpa Press.