Figures and faces

“Return to Form”

On view at the Manhattan Beach Art Center

by Bondo Wyszpolski

This is a modest show, with a few representational works by each of four Southern California artists, that opened with a reception last Friday evening.

Brittany Ryan has made a name for herself with her figurative sculptures, which are like soft pastels or pencil drawings that have stepped out of two dimensions and into three.

Although not part of this exhibition, her “Canyon Series” from 2018 was comprised of four large-scale bronze hikers, positioned as if trekking through Laguna Canyon. They can be seen in front of the main campus of Laguna College of Art + Design.

Lucy Cui is a self-described concept artist whose focus is the environment and set design. She also has an interest in visual world-building.

Edgar Silva is a portrait painter, with a keen sense of tone and color. “I strive for honesty and sincerity that reflects our time,” he writes, “in Los Angeles’ working-class community.”

Nora Ann-Francis Martin-Hall has created large drawings of people, their bodies realistically portrayed but their heads drifting off into what resembles rippling reflections on water. She has also painted a large canvas titled “Excuse my Charisma” (2020), which is one of the highlights of this show.

The curators are Eric Brinkman and Eilen Stewart, and this is a tight, well-coordinated exhibition that is essentially, in their words, “a study of classicism through a contemporary lens.”

Return to Form can be seen through March 31 at the Manhattan Beach Art Center, 1560 Manhattan Beach Blvd, Manhattan Beach. Hours, Wednesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Call (310) 802-5440. ER