ART CITIES: San Fransisco-Drawn to Drawing, Part II

Hosfelt Gallery presents an exhibition that brings together approximately 200 drawings in a sweeping, cross-cultural, and cross-temporal exploration of drawing as a medium, method, and mode of thought. Spanning the 16th to the 21st centuries and encompassing artists from around the globe, this ambitious and thought-provoking installation offers a fresh and immersive look at the enduring power of drawing to reveal, communicate, and connect (Part II).

By Dimitris Lempesis
Photo: Hosfelt Gallery Archive

At once dense and intimate, this expansive installation invites visitors into a rich and varied visual landscape where time collapses and boundaries dissolve. The exhibition’s strength lies not only in the breadth of its scope but in the depth of its curatorial vision. Through unexpected juxtapositions and thoughtful sequencing, Hosfelt creates a space where European Old Masters are placed in dialogue with contemporary geometric abstraction; meticulous photorealism coexists with fantastical compositions created by fly larvae; and delicate thread drawings sit beside sculptural works rendered in three dimensions. One drawing, in a particularly striking example, employs graphite both as a material and as its very surface, pushing the definition of what drawing can be. These surprising and poetic encounters prompt viewers to consider the nature of drawing in all its forms: as mark-making, as observation, as storytelling, and as invention. Far from being a mere preliminary step in artistic production, drawing emerges in this exhibition as a vital, self-sufficient practice—capable of capturing emotion, recording time, mapping thought, and conjuring entire worlds. The included works are as diverse in their materials and approaches as they are in their cultural and historical origins. Whether created with ink, pencil, thread, or more unconventional means, each piece embodies the act of drawing as an immediate and deeply human impulse. It is this immediacy—this directness of hand to surface—that connects the artists across five centuries and multiple continents, forming a visual and conceptual tapestry of astonishing richness. This exhibition features work by a remarkable array of artists, both historical and contemporary. Together, their works form a compelling argument for the continued relevance of drawing in contemporary life. In an era increasingly dominated by digital imagery and fleeting visual culture, this exhibition reaffirms drawing’s unique capacity to slow time, capture attention, and transmit knowledge and feeling. Through Hosfelt’s curatorial lens, drawing becomes more than an artistic tool—it is a connective tissue that links minds across eras and cultures. It is a shared language of intuition, discovery, and invention. And in its purest form, drawing remains one of the most accessible, pleasurable, and profound means of artistic expression.

 Works by: D-L Alvarez, Rina Banerjee, Monika Bartholomé, Anthony Baus, Judith Belzer, Harry Bertoia, JB Blunk, Jonathan Brand, William Theophilus Brown, Joan Brown, Cameron, Tyrell Collins, Bruce Conner, Jean Conner, Russell Crotty, Fred Dalkey, Reed Danziger, Jay DeFeo, Beto De Volder, Mstislav Dobuzhinsky, Robert Duncan, Emily Feather, Nicole Phungrasamee Fein, Pier Leone Ghezzi, Max Gimblett, Ron Griffin, Susan Janow, Jess (Collins), Matt Jones, Karla Knight, Stefan Kürten, Andrew Li, José Antonio Suárez Londoño, Claire Lukas, Emil Lukas, Marco Maggi, Ruth Marten, Lucas Michael, Dan Miller, Tommaso Minardi, Lee Mullican, Alexandre Kyungu Mwilambwe, Sarah M. Newton, Mansur Nurullah, Arthur Okamura, Sono Osato, Nam June Paik, Patricia Piccinini, Liliana Porter, Roland Record, Lance Rivers, Lordy Rodriguez, Gideon Rubin, Salviati, Tim Savinar, Andrew Schoultz, Thomas Schütte, Shahzia Sikander, Wayne Thiebaud, Ana Tiscornia, William Tyler, Vivian Tong, Cornelius Völker, Andrea Way, William T. Wiley, Marilyn Wong, Paul Wonner, Domenico Zindato, and many others.

Photo left: Shahzia Sikander, A Kind of Slight and Pleasing Dislocation (Veiled Shiva), 1995, vegetable color, watercolor, dry pigment and tea water on wasli handmade paper, 11 x 8 in, 27.9 x 20.3 cm, © Shahzia Sikander, Courtesy the artist and Todd Hosfelt Gallery. Photo right: Alexandre Kyungu Mwilambwe, Nzoloko of Russia, 2021, wood dust and glue on found paper, 13 x 11 in, 33 x 28 cm, © Alexandre Kyungu Mwilambwe, Courtesy the artist and Todd Hosfelt Gallery

Info: Hosfelt Gallery, 260 Utah Street, San Francisco, CA, USA, Duration: 12/7-16/8/2025, Days & Hours: Tue-Wed & Fri-Satt10:00-17:30, Thu 11:00-19:00, https://hosfeltgallery.com/