Math & Cultural
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| Location: | SLMath: Commons Room, 2nd Floor Deck |
Art at SLMath Closing Reception
Stephen Beal
Wednesday, July 8, 2026 from 5:30-7:30pm Pacific Time
Free & Open to the Public
Art on display throughout the 2nd floor
Address: Simons Laufer Mathematical Sciences Institute (SLMath - formerly MSRI), 17 Gauss Way, Berkeley, CA 94720 (Google Maps)
View Directions and Parking Information | UC Berkeley Campus Shuttle Schedule
Reception Location: SLMath (Shing-Shen Chern Hall), 2nd Floor Commons Room & Outdoor Deck
The general public and SLMath visitors are welcome to join us to celebrate our current art exhibit from 5:30-7:30pm (building closes 8:00pm) at the 2nd floor commons room and deck. This event is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served.
About the Exhibit
The grid — ubiquitous, logical, resolute, infinite — acts as inspiration, structure, and image in Stephen Beal’s work. In these paintings, the penciled matrices function as vehicles to explore the subtleties of color and brush stroke. Beal’s interest in the surface quality of paint, and its physical interaction with and manipulation of the grid, is what transforms his canvases into methodical, material studies with an undeniable presence. His paintings bring a musicality to the measured world of the grid.
Beal puts his shapes and motifs in conversation, energizing and subverting the graphic quality of his compositions. Rich exchanges occur across multiple axes: the artist’s hand traverses the vertical and horizontal—warp and weft—of the grid while also exploring a third dimension that oscillates between pencil plane and paint plane. With grid as structure and paint as subject, this collection of work offers a musical reflection on an illustrious visual form.
About the Artist
Stephen Beal lives and works in the San Francisco Bay Area. His work has been widely exhibited at George Lawson Gallery, Mark Wolfe Contemporary Art, Bucheon Gallery, Chicago Cultural Center, Galereya A3, Oliver Art Center, and School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Beal served as President of California College of the Arts (CCA) from 2008-2023, before which he was the provost.
| SLMath: Event Access and Parking - 17 Gauss Way, Berkeley, CA 94720 |
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Parking & Transportation to SLMath SLMath is located in the UC Berkeley Hillside Campus area between the Lawrence Hall of Science and Grizzly Peak Blvd. (View on Google Maps) Paid parking (50 cents/hour, via credit card only) is available in the Space Science Laboratory (SSL) lots near SLMath via PayByPhone app, website, or phone - please follow instructions on signage. The lot number is 9477. A limited number of accessible parking spaces are available first-come, first-served at the SLMath building entrance. (View parking areas) UC Berkeley's Hill Shuttle operates on campus from Evans Hall / Mining Circle to the Space Science Laboratory twice per hour. Non-UC Berkeley ID holders can ride for $1/trip, payable via cash only. The final shuttle of the evening departs SLMath / SSL at 7:15 PM. ( |