Where to see artworks in Marin
Like many great things, happened by accident.
While on a trip to Venice, Italy, in 2003, Mill Valley resident Barry Toranto, with his camera in tow, started photographing the city around him, capturing its awe-inspiring and distinctive features. But one image, of a window showing through the glass replicas of famous statues, would grab his attention in a special way when he returned home to Marin. So, when he traveled to Paris the following year, he decided to try again, shooting to see how the windows’ reflections merged with what was on the other side of the glass — and it stuck.
A 20-piece retrospective of this series he calls Windowscapes can be seen through January at the Mill Valley Chamber of Commerce & Visitor Center.
“Looking through glass is always surprising,” says Toranto, a board member of the Mill Valley Fall Arts Festival, of his single-exposure works. “Changing the camera angle changes the reflections; shadows change the way objects show or do not show. Inanimate objects in a window can seem to have personality; photographs are inanimate and yet arouse feelings. They evoke our double life: who we are inside and what we become outside.”
Toranto, the former co-owner of WIGT Printing in Mill Valley, is a frequent exhibitor at Marin
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This photo is part of Mill Valley photographer Barry Toranto’s Windowscapes series.
Open Studios, which returns in May.
QWhat captured your imagination with Windowscapes?
AIn Venice, I’d never done a window like that, and there was so much depth, the way it shows the city a little bit. It told a story about Venice, and where I was. It just kept growing on me, and it kept bringing me back to look at it.
QIt’s striking how the angle of the shot can make such a difference.
AThe angles are really important. When I was first doing them, I was shooting a lot head on. So my reflection would be in there, which I didn’t really like. Although sometimes it’s kind of fun.
But eventually, I realized that if you went more at an angle, you could get more depth and see down the street. They became more three-dimensional.
… Now, I get people sending me pictures of a window they took all the time.
How has it felt different than your other work?
My newest series is Writing on the Water, using slight time exposure and photographing markings on the water. They are actually reflections funny enough, but it’s very different. It’s more looking at the surface and not how
Artiquity Gallery: 2 Inverness Way North, Inverness; 415669-4229; artiquitygallery.com. Through Jan. 7: “Laurie Curtis: Paintings and Pottery.” Through December: A selection of handknit sweaters and shawls by Bolinas fiber artisan Marlie de Swart. Ongoing: Paintings by resident artist and co-owner Kim Ford Kitz. Noon to 5 p.m. Fridays through Sundays.
Artist Within — a Cedars Gallery:
Art Works Downtown: 1337 Fourth St., San Rafael; 415451-8119; artworksdowntown. org. Through Jan. 20: “Cornucopia,” exhibit of artworks by AWD members and “The Small Works Exhibit,” featuring small sculptures and paintings from over 80artists. 1to 8p.m. Thursdays through Sundays. Jan. 12: Reception. 5 to 8 p.m.
1 Bear Valley Road, Point Reyes; 415-464-4157. Through December: Winners of the annual California Coastal Commission’s youth art and poetry competition. 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.
1501 Tiburon Blvd., Tiburon; 415-7892665; beltiblibrary.org. Through Jan. 11: “Contemporary Watercolors: Pushing Boundaries,” featuring water-based works by 27 artists. 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fridays through Sundays. Blunk Space: 11101 Highway 1, suite 105, Point Reyes Station; blunkspace.com. Through Feb. 11: “100Hooks,” exhibit of stylized wall hooks by artists from around the world. 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fridays through Sundays; by appointment. Bolinas Museum: 48 Wharf Road, Bolinas; 415-868-0330; bolinasmuseum.org. Through December: “Celebrating 40 Years of Bolinas Museum.” Through Dec. 31: “Gordlandia: The Ceramics of Gordon Bryan”; “Hardly Strictly Mini: A