Now Showing

Berghaus, Douglas and Riverhouse Editions. In the front spaces at Sandy Carson, there's a whimsical yet intelligent show called Clearing: The Kinetic Sculpture of Marc Berghaus. The pieces are mechanical, with the most clever use of machinery being "Freeway Chase," in which viewers look through the frame of a TV screen to tune into a miniature highway pursuit being played out on a rotating cylinder. "Freeway" is definitely memorable for its neat effects. In the inner reaches of the gallery is Life Is but a Dream: Caroline Douglas, featuring ceramic figural sculptures of people and animals having a magic-realist character. Douglas is especially adept at achieving stunning surface effects, with her skill in glazing readily apparent. The gallery is in transition right now, with new owners Jan and Bill van Stratton taking over from Sandy Carson herself. At this point, shows scheduled before the sale are continuing, but the van Strattons are also introducing themselves with Selections From Riverhouse Editions, an exhibit made up of pieces by famous artists created at their fine-print studio in Steamboat Springs. Through May 31 at Sandy Carson Gallery, 760 Santa Fe Drive, 303-573-8585, www.sandycarsongallery.com. Reviewed May 8.

Burnett, McInnis and Castator. In the front room at Space Gallery are three abstract solos that have been combined into a single, coherent exhibit, with one painter on the south wall, another on the north, and sculptures by a third filling the floor space in between. It really works as a whole. First is Michael Burnett, made up of recent paintings by the artist, who is the owner of Space. The new paintings are notably simpler and less heavily painted than his earlier work, as well as being lighter in color, more boldly graphic and downright lyrical. Opposite the Burnetts is Lewis McInnis, featuring some choice geometric abstracts by this Fort Collins-based painter who is all but unknown in Denver; based on his work, this is something that should be fixed. On the floor, in between Burnett and McInnis, is Mark Castator, made up of steel sculptures in the form of spheres and towers. Castator, out of Boulder, cuts steel tubes and pipes and welds the slices into assemblages. The spheres are extremely nice, but they are absolutely blown away by the much more interesting towers. Through May 24 at Space Gallery, 765 Santa Fe Drive, 720-904-1088, www.spacegallery.org. Reviewed May 8.

Dale Chisman. Since Dale Chisman is among the greatest abstract painters who ever plied their trade in Colorado, this show is unquestionably one of the most significant of the year. Recent Paintings by Dale Chisman is also a rare chance to see his work in depth, as it has been three long years since his last in-town solo, which was also at Rule. Chisman was born and raised in Denver and earned his BFA and MFA at CU in Boulder, but he also studied in London and elsewhere. For fifteen years, he lived in New York, where he became involved with that city's cutting-edge art scene. A little over twenty years ago, he returned to Denver. The paintings at Rule, all of them done in 2007 and 2008, are stylistically a continuation of his previous painterly interests while simultaneously covering new ground. They are notably airier and more atmospheric than his earlier efforts, and many incorporate linear elements, often a horizontal line that's meant to be a metaphor for the landscape — but we'll have to take Chisman's word for that. Through June 28 at Rule Gallery, 227 Broadway, 303-777-9473, www.rulegallery.com.

Clyfford Still Unveiled. A master and pioneer of mid-twentieth-century abstract expressionism, painter Clyfford Still was something of an eccentric in the artist-as-egomaniac stripe. His antisocial behavior led to a situation where 94 percent of his artworks remained together after he died — a staggeringly complete chronicle of his oeuvre that is now owned by the City of Denver. As a planned Clyfford Still Museum won't be completed until 2010, the institution's founding director, Dean Sobel, decided to preview a baker's dozen of Still's creations at the Denver Art Museum. Sobel uses the very small show to lay out most of the artist's career and stylistic development. Still worked his way from regionalism to surrealism, then wound up developing abstract expressionism with one of the greatest abstract paintings imaginable, "1944 N No. 1" — and the rest is art history. Through June 30 at the Denver Art Museum, 100 West 14th Avenue Parkway, 720-865-5000. Reviewed July 26, 2007.