Art That Binds

Strolling through the breezy group show now at the Viva Gallery in Northridge, the visitor could easily be pleasantly amused to distraction. Sure, it’s a definitively nice affair, bolstered by simple, sensuous art conducive to the summer mind-set. But what is it, the inquisitive mind wonders, that brings all this art together under one exhibition roof?

The common denominator here doesn’t necessarily have to do with female gender of its participants, or a certain stylistic penchant for vivid palettes and blithe aesthetics, although those things bind them together. It’s more of an organizational connection. They met through one of the Valley’s better-known art havens, Everywoman’s Village in Van Nuys, where the late artist-teacher Alex Vilumsons held forth and left a lingering influence on a number of artists in the area. Now, the artists belong to a Los Angeles-based group, Artist Co-Op 7.

Diversity is king (or queen) here, but the artists seem to share a tacit belief in festive color and in plying artistic means that mostly give tradition a spin.

In a work such as “La Femme & La Moo,” Dorene Laffer exhibits modest technical means and an appealing giddiness in a portrait of a girl in rain gear and a bemused Jersey cow. Tracy Levin, inspired by Central American art and culture, draws on a vibrant palette of color splashes and a folk-ish flair in depicting Los Angeles neighborhoods as if in a cartoon realm.

Musical energy translated into visual forms pops up in Sylvia Hamilton Goulden’s mixed-media pieces, especially in “Salon Picante” and “Jam Session.” Gwen Gainsford Farmer shows pastel nude studies of notable charm; while rich-hued floral painting, without apology or ulterior motive, is the objective for Adria Becker.

Ostensibly simple, utilitarian objects take on a new character of muted elegance in Joan Foster’s “Pinch Pots,” done in water media. Watercolor is the medium of choice for Susanne Belcher, as well, and she uses it with a unique pictorial sensibility, with bursts of image-making energy surrounded by calming margins of white space, like music fortified with moments of silence.

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Sharon Brooks’ faux naif pieces, with an appealingly loose and “clumsy” style, find figures and fragments thereof swimming in Cubist-like compositions. Landscape paintings of interlocking forms and warm hues are of interest to Carol Gillin, and dogs are the thing in Debbie Saunders’ huge, disarming portraits of canine faces.

Some of the most memorable pieces in the show are by Ellen Westendorf Lane, who mixes media and creates subtly compelling investigations into the animal kingdom.

“Deer Path” combines painting, collage, stitching and dried vegetation in its stylized evocation of a natural setting. Although the painting approach is straighter in “Hunting Party,” a portrait of prim horse people on their steeds, the sum effect is a dreamy atmosphere. It’s less about the hunt than a paean to the animals on all sides of the event.

BE THERE

“The Eclectic Electric Exhibit,” through July 10 at the Viva Art Gallery, 8516 Reseda Blvd., Northridge. Hours: Wednesday-Friday, 11 a.m.-4 p.m.; Saturday, noon to 4 p.m.; (818) 769-0748.