BREA : Artwork in Neon: Totally Tubular

While most people may think of neon as the stuff of shopping center signs and street-side advertising, an exhibit of neon art at the Brea Gallery is receiving rave reviews, officials said.

“It’s a medium many people have overlooked because of preconceived ideas of what neon is. People tend to think of motel signs and advertisements,” guest curator Jan Sanchez said. “But we think of it as a paintbrush when in the hands of an artist.”

The exhibit features works of about 20 artists who are members of he Coalition of Light Artists. The exhibit has been especially popular with children, who react to the strong visual stimulation of the medium, she said.

“The art world is coming to realize we are in a technological age, but some people are still uncertain about embracing neon,” she said. “Some old people are still going, ‘Well, I don’t know . . . ,’ but kids love it,” she said. “They respond to the fact that it’s a living entity; unlike most forms of art, it’s alive and jumps out at you.”

The gas-filled, electrically charged tubes first came to the Southland in the 1920s, when car salesman Earle Anthony brought back two from France, where the neon sign was invented in 1910.

The exhibit will continue through Oct. 20.

A “tube-bending” workshop for 7- to 12-year-olds is scheduled for Oct. 12. The workshop will use plastic tubing.

The gallery is at 1 Civic Center Circle. Hours are noon to 5 p.m. Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays; noon to 8 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays. General admission is $1, free for those younger than 18. On Thursdays between 5 and 8 p.m., admission is free for people who live, work or attend school in Brea.

Information: (714) 990-7600.