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Portola Art Gallery Newsletter
July 2026
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FEATURED ARTIST EXHIBITION
"A Second Look -- Unveiling the Familiar"
by Edwin Bertolet
Edwinbertolet_Stormpuddle_12X16_Oil
EdwinBertolet_Stormpuddle_12X16_Oil
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EXHIBITION:
"A Second Look -- Unveiling the Familiar"
by painter Edwin Bertolet
DATES:
July 1 - 31, 2026
LOCATION:
Portola Art Gallery at Allied Arts Guild
75 Arbor Road
Menlo Park, CA 94025
650.321.0220
http://www.portolaartgallery.com
HOURS:
Monday - Saturday, 11:00 A.M. - 4:00 P.M.
RECEPTION
Saturday, July 11, 1:00 - 4:00 P.M.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Edwin Bertolet 650.704.3512
ebertole@yahoo.com https://ebertolet.fineartstudioonline.com/
MENLO PARK, Calif. -- The Portola Art Gallery presents "A Second Look
-- Unveiling the Familiar," a collection of oil paintings by
award-winning artist Edwin Bertolet of Redwood City. A reception for
the artist will be held on Saturday, July 11, from 1:00 - 4:00 P.M.
The exhibit is composed of paintings done in and around the Bay Area
over many years -- the majority of them done plein air, and a few done
from plein air studies. The works convey the confident serenity and
quiet dignity that reside just under the surface of the seemingly
ordinary places we encounter.
Ed's works are imbued with a timeless serenity reminiscent of early
California impressionists. He explains: "While I may paint the same
place more than once, it will always be a unique work of art. Each time
I paint a subject, the weather, the light, the time of day, my
emotional response, and the way I approach it will be different than
the time before."
He continues, "I hope my paintings inspire viewers to take a second
look at the everyday places around us and appreciate the hidden beauty
of the San Francisco Bay Area. I hope to leave viewers with a sense
that there is something special beyond the familiar we see daily."
More of Ed's work may be viewed on his website:
https://ebertolet.fineartstudioonline.com/
Photos: High-resolution scans (JPEGs) of the artists' work are
available. For more information, please contact
Edwin Bertolet at 650.704.3512 or ebertole@yahoo.com
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In the Gallery
Please note, the Gallery will be closed July 4 and July 6
in observance of the holiday weekend. We hope to see you at the gallery
on another day!
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Robin Scholl
Robin Scholl
Robin Scholl
Robin Scholl
Before the Storm
15 x 24
Watercolor and Pastel
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Patricia Jones
Three Cherries By Patricia Jones
Three Cherries By Patricia Jones
Bok Choy Ii By Patricia Jones
Bok Choy Ii By Patricia Jones
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Yvonne Newhouse
Magpies On The Tyne1
Magpies On The Tyne
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Susan Jochheim
Market Day - Jochheim (Low Res)
Market Day - Jochheim
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Portola Art Gallery is pleased to announce an immediate opening for a
new artist member!
We are seeking artists working in a variety of mediums, including 3D to
join our cooperative gallery. This is a great opportunity to exhibit
your work in a vibrant space and be part of a supportive group.
If you are an artist-or know someone who may be interested-we encourage
you to apply. For full details and application requirements, please
visit the Portola Art Gallery website and click on the Membership tab.
www.portolaartgallery.com
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In The Community
Artist Kim Holl
Artist Kim Holl
Bart Charlow of the San Mateo Daily Journal wrote an article about Kim
Holl for his weekly column in June.
Artist Kim Holl credits painting and printing with helping her through
life's difficult moments. At the end of her process we get to enjoy her
artwork at Portola Arts Gallery June 1-30. There's a lot more depth to
it than this sounds. "Art is a space where fear quiets and gratitude
grows," Holl said, almost reverently.
It's in her bloodline. From her grandfather, a cartoonist at a major
Chicago newspaper, through her architect and artist parents, she comes
by it naturally. Holl recalls a journey at age 12 to Europe, coming
face-to-face with major artists in museums, and having the master
impressionists leave their mark on her longings.
Her art journey continued through high school into college, where she
double-majored in Art and Environmental Science. You'll see those dual
influences in her plein air oil paintings at the gallery, but this show
is not about that; it's about printmaking instead.
She started pursuing glassmaking as a primary medium and even worked in
Seattle at the Pilchuck, famous for Dale Chihuly's works. The climate
drove her south to the Bay Area, where the realities of making a living
brought her to a career as a teacher.
Glass wasn't working out for where her creativity was leading. It's
hard, technical and not a kitchen table pursuit. "It breaks, oh well,"
she jokes.
Painting filled the space it left.
Sundays she could break free to paint outside and keep her hand in art.
Once retired, she had freedom to explore more widely.
Fascinated with shapes, she took a break from realism and found her way
into abstraction. "It moves me, the energy, the expressiveness," she
said.
Now her expression has moved into print-making, monoprinting to be
precise. Yet even here you will see remnants of her history with
natural forms. Of late she is most interested in exploring the shapes
of magnolias and eucalyptus that appear in her show.
Holl's approach to monoprinting is not the standard, where you would
lay out an entire painting on a plate, press paper onto it, and pull
off a one-of-a-kind print. Holl goes for a layered approach, literally.
She enjoys color and doesn't want to get stuck on a few combinations.
So she randomly pulls three or four from a bag and works with whatever
she grabs.
Inking a gelli plate (gelatin and silicone) with a background color,
she pulls the paper off, then inks another layer, often with a stencil
she has cut from her sketches. Then layers another color with a
stencil, another layer perhaps with the leftover edge of the ink, and
so on, until she has the sense of depth she desires. And there is depth
in the resulting composition.
Classically, a painting has a foreground, middle and background to
tease the brain into perceiving depth. In this case she has layers of
color and form that are often translucent or transparent. You perceive
depth of space, yet you also get a sense of time as your eye moves
through.
"Rising Sun" has five layers on a yellow-orange background with the
sun. Four transparent leaf and flower washes overlap in blue, green and
purple, leading the eye through the scene.
In "The Space Between" four layers overlap transparently in blue and
green, over a background graded green to pink, with white spots and a
pentimento. They're too varied for me to cover all. Go see for yourself.
She doesn't fuss over results. For Holl it's about the Zen of process.
"I can get lost in this for hours."
Take a deep breath, take a leisurely look close up at her monoprints,
smile and feel the peace wash over you.
Artist reception June 13, 1-4 p.m.
Portola Art Gallery at Allied Arts Guild, 75 Arbor Road, Menlo Park,
portolaartgallery.com , (650) 321-0220.
Bart Charlow, author, artist and consultant blends over 45 years of
painting and photography with narrative storytelling. Explore the
intersection of observation and expression through his insights on the
local art scene, find his books at bartcharlow.com
and his art at bartsart.weebly.com
.
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Masthead:Photo
About Portola Art Gallery
Portola Art Gallery exhibits high quality, representational art by 22
award-winning Bay Area artists. Painting, pastel, photography,
ceramics, glass art, paper sculptures, works on paper and woodworking
can be viewed at the gallery, located at the Historic Allied Arts Guild
in Menlo Park, CA.
Portola Art Gallery at Allied Arts Guild
75 Arbor Road, Menlo Park, CA 94025
11:00 A.M. - 4:00 P.M.
Monday - Saturday
650.321.0220
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