CultureVulture Emily S. Mendel, Author at CultureVulture

Mildred Howard

“TAP: Investigation of Memory”

Art & Architecture March 3, 2019 Oakland,

A powerful multimedia piece entitled newly installed at the Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) is the creation of lauded artist and long-time Berkeley resident, Mildred Howard. I spoke with Mildred Howard about the origins of her mixed media work, ...

Louise Lamson .
Photo: Kevin Berne/Berkeley Repertory Theatre

Metamorphoses

Theater February 18, 2019 Berkeley,

With vivid and fond remembrances of Berkeley Rep’s extraordinary 1999 production of acclaimed writer and director Mary Zimmerman’s “Metamorphoses” (produced at UC’s Zellerbach Playhouse), I wondered whether a re-do could ever live up to ...

Monet: The Late Years

Art & Architecture February 17, 2019 San Francisco,

“Monet: The Late Years,” an exquisite and enlightening exhibition, presents the evolution of the fabulous French Impressionist Claude Monet (1840-1926) from 1913 to his death. After a lapse in painting brought on by the deaths ...

Creditors

Theater February 14, 2019 Berkeley,

“Creditors,” written by the much-admired and influential Swedish playwright August Strindberg (1849 –1912) known for his forward-thinking and naturalistic dramas, has been produced much less frequently over the years than some of his more ...

Kimono Refashioned

Art & Architecture February 11, 2019 San Francisco,

An exquisite experience awaits all who see the San Francisco Asian Art Museum’s new exhibit, “Kimono Refashioned,” which examines the influence of the kimono on global fashion from the Victorian era to the 21st ...

Seascape

Theater February 4, 2019 San Francisco,

Edward Albee’s (1928-2016) trenchant view of life, combined with his inventive, creative mind, resulted in plays that are disruptive, adult, intellectual experiences. And his 1975 play “Seascape,” which was awarded ...

Q & A w/ Masako Miki

Art & Architecture January 28, 2019 Berkeley,

Much-admired Berkeley-based artist and designer Masako Miki is the 273rd artist in the MATRIX Program for Contemporary Art at the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive. (BAMPFA). MATRIX is an ongoing series dedicated to presenting cutting-edge art and ...

Photo: Alessandra Mello/Berkeley Repertory Theatre

Paradise Square

Theater January 22, 2019

An innovative, ambitious, and multilayered world premiere musical, “Paradise Square,” about the companionable life of Irish immigrants and free blacks in the Five Points slum ...

Untitled (Ocean), 1977; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, bequest of Alfred M. Esberg; © Vija Celmins; photo: Don Ross

Vija Celmins: To Fix the Image in Memory

Art & Architecture December 18, 2018 San Francisco,

“She is an artist’s artist, with a unique vision,” said Neal Benezra, director of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) of Vija Celmins, the much-admired Latvian-American artist whose first full retrospective in more than 25 years ...

Ben Levi-Ross as Evan Hansen. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

Dear Evan Hansen (National Tour)

Etc December 10, 2018 San Francisco,

The national tour of “Dear Evan Hansen,” a contemporary, yet multi-generational, poignant yet uplifting musical show just rocketed into San Francisco’s Curran theater. Don’t wait to see this winner of six 2017 Tony Awards® including Best Musical. There is a ...