Art gallery

From the finest art to wine and cheese receptions, these galleries know how to showcase work from artists near and far.

Founded nearly 30 years ago by a nonprofit art organization, the Artisans Art Gallery in San Rafael is intended to “be a jumping point for artists to show their work to the public,” says Gallery Director J. B. Lowe. With a core group of artists who show their work, the gallery is “based in the community, and trying to give a community sense of art appreciation,” Lowe adds.

George Krevsky Gallery in San Francisco, a second-time winner, aims to make historically important art accessible to collectors of all levels. The gallery’s specialty is 20th-century American art “that focuses on a narrative that visually deals with the human condition,” says owner George Krevsky. One of the gallery’s most popular annual events is the Art of Baseball exhibition, which features art by a national selection of artists.

Jewish-themed art and values take center stage at the Peninsula JCC in Foster City. A recent exhibit, “The Art of Aging,” part of the JCC’s Life Cycle series, featured the reflections of various Jewish artists on the process of aging. Part of the same series was a Love and Companionship chapter showcasing ketubahs from Bay Area couples.

At Walnut Creek’s Bedford Gallery, the current exhibition, “Local Voice 2008: Defining Community Through Art,” showcases the work of artists local to Contra Costa. “People have been really enjoying the diversity and the approach to artmaking,” says curator Carrie Letterer. “There’s a lot of pride in the show.” Also winning in the East Bay was Mila Fine Arts in Berkeley.

Gallery Paule Anglim took second place in San Francisco.





1st Place




San Francisco

George Krevsky Gallery

(415) 397-9748

http://www.georgekrevskygallery.com




East Bay

Bedford Gallery

Walnut Creek

(925) 295-1417

http://www.bedfordgallery.org




MiLa Fine Arts

Berkeley

(510) 845-0653




South Bay/Peninsula

Peninsula Jewish Community Center

Foster City

(650) 212-7522

http://www.pjcc.org




North Bay

Artisans Art Gallery

San Rafael

(415) 460-5208

http://www.artisansartgallery.com





2nd Place




San Francisco

Gallery Paule Anglim

(415) 433-2710

http://www.gallerypauleanglim.com




Live music venue

These music venues have something for everyone: those who want their classical music served up in swank and style and those who prefer to grab a beer and listen to somebody grinding away on guitar.

Renowned for its innovative concerts, Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco has everything from extensive educational programs to an upcoming Day of the Dead concert. Just recently, conductor Michael Tilson Thomas “wrote, hosted and served as the musical director of a tribute to his grandparents” who were pioneers in Yiddish theater, says Gary Ginstling, director of communications and external affairs.

“I have yet to see [another large music venue] that matches the overall vibe and feeling of Shoreline,” says General Manager Tim Anderson. Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View has an intimacy atypical for a 22,000-person venue, and caters to all tastes. In July alone, the venue hosted the Police, the Jonas Brothers and John Mayer.

Garry Graham, owner of 19 Broadway, has been booking daily live music at the popular Fairfax venue for 24 years. “It’s an intimate venue,” he says of the 250-person club. Because of its laid-back, unpretentious vibe, 19 Broadway has amassed “a constant batch of regulars,” Graham notes.

It’s a very different scene at the Kanbar Center for the Performing Arts at San Rafael’s Osher Marin JCC, which tied with 19 Broadway in the North Bay. The family-friendly SummerNights outdoor concert series is particularly popular with families — and their picnic blankets. “It’s a welcoming place,” says Director Linda Bolt. “I love that every day I get to see [everything] from babies to the very, very elderly.”

Yoshi’s in Oakland has a full calendar of jazz musicians to keep its guests entertained, as well as a Japanese restaurant featuring the seasonal, fresh creations of Executive Chef Shotaro Kamio. One its next acts will be the Spanish Harlem Orchestra, a “heavy salsa” group performing Aug. 14-17.

Freight & Salvage in Berkeley and the Fillmore in San Francisco took second place.





1st Place




San Francisco

Davies Symphony Hall

(415) 552-8000

http://www.sfsymphony.org




East Bay

Yoshi’s

Oakland

(510) 238-9200

http://www.yoshis.com/jazzclub




South Bay/Peninsula

Shoreline Amphitheatre

Mountain View

(650) 967-3000

http://www.shorelineamp.com




North Bay

19 Broadway

Fairfax

(415) 459-1091

http://www.19broadway.com




Kanbar Center for the Performing Arts

Osher Marin JCC

San Rafael

(415) 444-8000

http://www.marinjcc.org





2nd Place




San Francisco

The Fillmore

(415) 346-6000

http://www.thefillmore.com




East Bay

Freight & Salvage

Berkeley

(510) 548-1761

http://www.thefreight.org




Live theater

Considering that the range of these theaters’ productions covers everything from upbeat musicals to Shakespearean tragedy, it’s hard to imagine anyone choosing reality TV over a night out for live theater.

In the past 22 years, 16 of the Berkeley Repertory Theatre’s productions have gone on to Broadway, including “Passing Strange,” which is being adapted for the big screen by Spike Lee. “We create a lot of new work — we give opportunity to new voices and to new plays,” says Terence Kean, director of public relations.

Marin Theatre Company boasts a combination of classics, world premieres, musicals and educational productions in its repertoire. “Lydia,” written by San Francisco native Octavio Solis, will enjoy its West Coast premiere in the upcoming season. Between its 99- and 231-seat spaces, Marin Theatre offers intimate spaces while “striving to bring the best professional work to the North Bay,” says Artistic Director Jasson Minadakis.

TheatreWorks’ diverse programming and casting contributes to the top-notch quality of the theater it puts on. Robert Kelley, artistic director of the Mountain View theater, says he tries to create a connection between actors onstage and audience members, keeping in mind “the spirit of innovation” inherent to Silicon Valley.

The American Conservatory Theater is a San Francisco institution, having put on its first performance in 1967 at the Geary Theater. A professional theater company with an actor training program, ACT was the first theater accredited to award a master of fine arts degree not affiliated with a university or college. Denzel Washington is one of the conservatory’s most famous former students.

Taking second are San Jose Repertory Theatre, Aurora Theatre Company in Berkeley and Traveling Jewish Theatre in San Francisco.





1st Place




San Francisco

American Conservatory Theater

(415) 749-2ACT

http://www.act-sf.org




East Bay

Berkeley Repertory Theatre

Berkeley

(510) 647-2949

http://www.berkeleyrep.org




South Bay/Peninsula

TheatreWorks

Mountain View

(415) 522-0786

http://www.theatreworks.org




North Bay

Marin Theatre Company

Mill Valley

(415) 388-5208

http://www.marintheatre.org





2nd Place




San Francisco

Traveling Jewish Theatre

(415) 522-0786

http://www.atjt.com




East Bay

Aurora Theatre Company

Berkeley

(510) 843-4822

http://www.auroratheatre.org




South Bay/Peninsula

San Jose Repertory Theatre

San Jose

(408) 367-7255

http://www.sjrep.com




Museum

At the Judah L. Magnes Museum in Berkeley, “it’s really about learning and engagement and being challenged and being welcomed,” says Acting Executive Director and Chief Curator Alla Efimova. The museum’s popular and innovative “Revisions” series invites an artist to reinstall or reinterpret its permanent collection, giving them a chance to become a curator.

With features such as a boat to climb on and a gravel pit for construction practice, clearly “this is not a museum where you go and look at things,” says Richard Winefield, executive director of the Bay Area Discovery Museum in Sausalito. As part of its dedication to developing creativity, “the play that happens here is child-centered, unstructured play,” Winefield says.

“It’s our wonderful building,” says the M.H. de Young Memorial Museum’s Assistant Director of Communications Jill Lynch, explaining why the Golden Gate Park attraction is a favorite in San Francisco. An especially popular program is Friday Nights at the de Young, when the museum stays open until 8:45 p.m. and presents live music, poetry readings, lectures and more.

The San Jose Museum of Art began as an art gallery, and has evolved into a full-fledged museum, with current exhibits such as “Robot: Evolution of a Cultural Icon,” which “examines the development of robot iconography in fine art over the past 50 years,” according to the museum’s Web site.

In second place are the new Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco, the Cantor Arts Center at Stanford and the Oakland Museum of California.





1st Place




San Francisco

M.H. de Young Memorial Museum

(415) 750-3600

http://www.thinker.org/deyoung




East Bay

Judah L. Magnes Museum

Berkeley • (510) 549-6950

http://www.magnes.org




South Bay/Peninsula

San Jose Museum of Art

(408) 271-6840

http://www.sjmusart.org




North Bay

Bay Area Discovery Museum

Sausalito • (415) 339-3900

http://www.baykidsmuseum.org





2nd Place




San Francisco

Contemporary Jewish Museum

(415) 655-7800

http://www.thecjm.org




East Bay

Oakland Museum of California

(510) 238-2200

http://www.museumca.org




South Bay/Peninsula

Cantor Arts Center

Stanford • (415) 655-7800

museum.stanford.edu




Readers Choice Awards 2008