Dewey Crumpler | 8-bridges

Eight bridges connect the San Francisco Bay, so it is an apt name for a gallery platform that brings the Bay Area art world together.

Our mission is to maintain a vibrant gallery scene, despite restrictions on travel, celebrations and other larger gatherings. We want to support our artists by informing and entertaining curators, collectors and critics with potent online exhibitions of their work.

On the first Thursday of every month, we will launch 8 shows of artists relevant to the Bay Area. They may be working in this place, long considered an epicenter of change, or deeply engaged in the conversations the Bay Area holds dear, whether it’s related to technology, the environment, social justice or sexual identity, to name a few. In addition, each month will highlight the crucial work of a Bay Area non-profit arts organization.

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Founding Committee

Claudia Altman-Siegel, Kelly Huang, Sophia Kinell, Micki Meng, Daphne Palmer, Ratio 3, Sarah Wendell Sherrill, Jessica Silverman, and Elizabeth Sullivan

Ambassador Committee

Sayre Batton & Maja Thomas, Joachim & Nancy Bechtle, Matt Bernstein, Sabrina Buell, Wayee Chu & Ethan Beard, Natasha Boas, Douglas Durkin, Carla Emil, Matt & Jessica Farron, Lauren Ford, Ali Gass, Stanlee Gatti, Brook Hartzell & Tad Freese, Pamela & David Hornik, Katie & Matt Paige, Putter Pence, Becca Prowda & Daniel Lurie, Deborah Rappaport, Komal Shah & Gaurav Garg, Laura Sweeney, The Battery, Robin Wright, Sonya Yu & Zack Lara

Sponsors

Lobus, The Space Program

Jenkins Johnson Gallery

Dewey Crumpler

Visual Rhythm

Jenkins Johnson presents eight paintings by Dewey Crumpler, San Francisco Art Institute Associate Professor. His new Visual Rhythm series examines powerful structures that frame social interpretations. He also exposes the malleability that leads to empowerment and liberation. Re-contextualizing symbols such as the tulip and top hat, Crumpler examines Black consciousness, transforming space and time.

In the 19th and 20th centuries the top hat was a symbol of intelligence and means. Mimicking this symbol of white sophistication, ex-slaves developed a dance called the Cakewalk which transformed this elitist symbol into an avenue for mockery. This dance was adapted by whites, unaware of its sarcastic intent. This started the dance craze that led to the Lindy Hop and the Charleston. Crumpler’s series is also influenced by rhythm and blues, rock and roll, bebop, hip hop and jazz greats including Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, and John Coltrane.

The grids in Crumpler’s Visual Rhythm paintings reflect the skeletal structures that metaphorically hold our world together. His grids transform from barrier to agents of change, as symbolic elements create rhythms of endless angles, perspectives, and shadows. While we rely on the “grid” to interpret our world, Crumpler reminds us of its instability.