ON VIEW FROM JUNE 2
THROUGH JUNE 28, 2026

Please Join Us for
A Special Reception with the Artist
6-9pm Thursday June 4th
during the Laguna Beach
First Thursday ArtWalk!

Skidmore Contemporary Art is pleased to present Skylark, an exhibition of work by Brighton Smith, a contemporary artist raised in Orange County, whose recent paintings embrace the California-based pictorial traditions of landscape painting and the Light and Space movement.

With his attention decidedly aerial, Smith situates himself within a longstanding tradition of painters rendering atmospheric phenomena with idealized gravitas, ranging from the historically idealized blue expanses of the Italian Renaissance to 17th-century Dutch Baroque cloudscapes and the emotionally charged skies of 18th-century Romanticism.

Rather than merely revisiting historical conventions, Smith reinterprets them through a contemporary lens, merging realism with expressionism. His skies became both contemporary and timelessly suspended between sensory immediacy and painterly invention.

Skylark is Smith’s tenth solo exhibition at Skidmore Contemporary Art; High Speed Horizon was on view on 2026. His work has been exhibited extensively across the United States and is held in numerous private collections internationally and notably within the permanent collection of the Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art at Pepperdine University in Malibu, California.

EXPLORE SKYLARK ONLINE

Please note: We warmly welcome your visit; viewing original art in person is its own reward!

ON VIEW FROM MAY 5
THROUGH MAY 31, 2026

Please Join Us for
A Special Reception with the Artist
6-9pm Thursday May 7th
during the Laguna Beach
First Thursday ArtWalk!

Skidmore Contemporary Art is pleased to present Pop Geometry, an exhibition of work by Andy Burgess, a contemporary artist known for his vibrant, geometric depictions of modernist architecture. His series-based work reflects the optimistic vision of progress associated with postwar art and industrial design.

Blending elements of cubism, midcentury modernism, and color field painting, Burgess's visual language of acknowledges the work of Richard Diebenkorn, David Hockney, Paul Klee, Agnes Martin, and Sonia Delaunay in his use of hard edges, flattened planes, broken yet continuous areas of tone, and richly textured grids of intersecting colors.

A meticulous layering of reflectivity, translucency, hue and texture elevates Burgess's visual analysis into something both personal and emotionally resonant. Vivid color palettes ranging from sun-washed neutrals to saturated reds, teals, and citrus infuse his renditions of iconic midcentury modern dwellings with wit, whimsicality, and bravado, making them as much about fantasy as fact.

Pop Geometry is Burgess’s second solo exhibition at Skidmore Contemporary Art; Eclectic Color was on view on 2023. His work is held in prominent corporate, private and institutional collections, and is exhibited extensively across the UK, Europe, and the US; including a 2018 solo show at the Tucson Museum of Art.

EXPLORE POP GEOMETRY
We warmly welcome your visit; original art is best viewed with the human eye!

PREVIOUSLY ON VIEW
APRIL 31 THROUGH MAY 3, 2026

In Evening Calls, Jennifer Bain presents a new body of paintings inviting us to contemplate the natural world. Bain is known for her extraordinary studies of golden finches, bluejays, and iridescent hummingbirds (among more exotic kestrels and cockatiels).

Whether setting them in expressive botanical environments, or against fields of expressive abstract bands of color, Bain balances precision and spontaneity. Her compositions celebrate luminous color, geometry, gestural expression in a personal language with symbolic subtlety.

Working primarily in ink and acrylic on clayboard and panel, Bain’s paintings draw from traditions of naturalist observation while embracing contemporary abstraction. Her work has been widely exhibited in galleries and collections across the United States. Her distinctive approach to her subject matter has established her as a singular voice in contemporary nature-based painting.

In Evening Calls, Bain expands this language across both intimate and medium-scale works, creating an immersive visual environment that invites viewers into moments of contemplation, movement, and connection within the context of discovery, healing, and metaphysical reflection.

EXPLORE

JENNIFER BAIN:
Evening Calls

HERE

PREVIOUSLY ON VIEW
JANUARY 20 THROUGH MAY 3, 2026

At once grounded and transcendent, Herrmann’s paintings embody a dialogue between place, memory, and the universal resonance of color.

As one critic noted, his works “boom across a room or murmur gently to a close observer,” revealing a duality of energy and introspection.

Whether inspired by Minoan art, Appalachian light, or the streamlined beauty of sea life, Herrmann’s canvases invite viewers into a sensory world where color speaks with clarity, complexity, and feeling.

Herrmann seeks to capture what he calls “absolute color” a kind of chromatic essence plucked from his environment, then reimagined into bold, music-inspired compositions.

EXPLORE JAZZ SUITE

We look forward to your visit.

The guiding philosophy at Skidmore Contemporary Art is driven by optimism and a hip sense of beauty. Our gallery is known for representing painters who are recognized for their professional dedication and creative integrity. In a suite of skylit spaces, a steady rotation of solo and group exhibitions resonate with Southern California’s artistic traditions such as figurative realism, architectural studies, hard edge and painterly abstraction, pop art, and photorealism.

The following gallery selections, also on view, represent works by the following artists:

RICHARD BAKER

LAURA BROWNING

ANDY BURGESS

TR COLLETTA

DARYL GORTNER

COURTNEY MURPHY

ERIC NASH

BRIGHTON SMITH

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