A visit with an artist at work

Alvin Gregorio, artist in residence at the Shed, has left his mark on the studio. But his time there ends Saturday, when he’ll host a reception.The mellow tunes of songwriter Jack Johnson and the urban beats of rapper Jay-Z provided the soundtrack to Alvin Gregorio’s temporary Cannery Village studio on a recent weekday morning.

The eclecticism of his playlist is fitting, perhaps, because Gregorio is an artist who brings disparate elements into his work. A character from a children’s book might share space in a drawing with an exotic animal or a human subject with a scornful expression.

And nothing is sacred when it comes time for Gregorio’s search for a canvas. Years back, when he was a custodian at Cal State Fullerton, Gregorio dug out of garbage cans manila folders discarded by college professors. He drew pictures on the folders, colored in the images and later framed the finished products.

“This starts to be almost like chaos,” said Gregorio, pointing at a wall-length painting that includes a penguin, a young soldier and abstract scenes of war. It’s still a work in progress.

“The images don’t make sense together,” he said. “It’s not clear.”

To the observer, that is. Gregorio knows the stories behind his paintings and drawings, and he is happy to share them with gallery visitors.

On Saturday, at a closing reception inside the Shed Gallery, he will get his chance. Gregorio will display the works he has completed as an artist in residence there.

For the past three months, he has been given the Newport Beach gallery space as a gift from owner Tom Blurock and exhibition coordinator Jeannie Denholm, whose Southern California Art Projects and Exhibitions manages the studio.

Gregorio is the first artist in residence at the Shed Gallery, which is designed as a live-work space (although Gregorio, a 31-year-old Fullerton resident, doesn’t reside above his studio.)

“The space is small, and it’s nice because people can come in during studio hours and see the work,” Denholm said. “They can meet the artist and talk with the artist. We’re showing how the space is being used.”

Gregorio seems to be using the space to the fullest. The ground is filled with buckets of paint, prints and pictures of characters that look as if they hopped right out of comic books.

The name of the exhibition, “Ghettoasis,” has a personal meaning to Gregorio.

“I’m dealing with the trauma of life as a child, and this is a filter through which I can talk about that,” he said of the exhibition.

A Southern California native, Gregorio’s parents moved from the Philippines shortly before he was born. After graduating from college, he spent a year in the Philippines on a Fulbright scholarship, researching Filipino and family history.

His paintings are heavy on symbolism and deal with themes of family values and cultural acceptance.

“This one deals with the difference between assimilation and integration,” Gregorio said, pointing to one of his finished works. “They are the things I think about in my life.”

The artist, who teaches painting and drawing at Cal State Fullerton and Chapman University, has had visits from various gallery owners in Orange County since setting up shop inside the Shed Gallery.

“Technically, he is tight with what he is doing,” Denholm said. “His work has an urban sensibility to it that speaks to a generation.”

IF YOU GO

* WHAT: Closing gallery reception for artist Alvin Gregorio

* WHEN: 5-8 p.m. Saturday

* WHERE: The Shed Gallery, 3000 1/2 Newport Boulevard, Newport Beach

* COST: Free

* INFO: (949) 723-3406

* ELIA POWERS is the enterprise and general assignment reporter. He may be reached at (714) 966-4623 or by e-mail at elia.powers@latimes.com.

20060106isn910ncNo Caption20060106isn9bqncDON LEACH / DAILY PILOT(LA)Above, artist Alvin Gregorio paints at the Shed art gallery, a live-work studio in Newport Beach. Top left, Gregario stands next to one of his favorite works. 20060106isn9bqnc(LA)