Mind's-eye view of nature

Five new prints by Vija Celmins at Gemini G.E.L. show how seamlessly this exceptional artist is able to move among drawing, painting and printmaking, blurring the boundaries between the disciplines while exploiting the unique properties of each. Three images of stars in the night sky and two of silky spider webs continue her earlier exploration of those subjects in oil and graphite, while now weaving multiple printing techniques together.

Stargazing is an ancient occupation -- an activity whereby nature could be understood and brought under some semblance of control through the projection of recognizable pictures onto its otherwise apparently random attributes. White spots emerge from inky darkness in Celmins' "Night Sky 3," with brightness compacted near the center and darkness spreading in an arc across the lower range. Harnessing techniques of photogravure, aquatint and drypoint, she makes light magically appear to emanate from the paper's surface. Nature becomes a projection of mind.

Remarkably, two other prints reverse this procedure, scattering tiny points of black and gray ink across a field of off-white. (Think of a photographic negative of the night sky.) You are looking at nothing more than tiny polka-dots on paper, not unlike the so-called foxing that occurs when a print discolors, but through careful modulation and dispersal of the gray scale, the two-dimensional surface yawns into deep, visually infinite space.

Celmins' other two prints show wispy white filaments of spider web against gray backgrounds, which were made with multiple printing techniques. Each web is anchored to the four sides of the sheet, as if a diligent arachnid had been at work on the plate.

Spiders are a standard symbol for industriousness, and their webs are traps for unsuspecting passersby. Celmins' webs also create a visual pun for a printing term (a web is the paper configuration on a web press) while making remarkable visual snares for perception.

Gemini G.E.L., 8365 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood, (323) 651-0513, through Feb. 14. Closed Sunday and Monday.

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Sculptures merge delicacy, gravity

"Blue Bird," one of six new sculptures by Alison Saar at Jan Baum Gallery, features the copper-clad figure of a young girl seated on a small, bright red chair. What at first appears to be a thick, black braid soon turns out to be a tree branch growing from the side of her head. The outer reaches of the branch provide a delicate, distant perch for a carved and painted wooden bird.