Give it a chance and you might love abstract art, too

Katie Ruiz was finding it, her appreciation for abstract art. Trained as a figurative artist and working as a textile-based artist who’s also a maximalist, the more minimalist abstract she found when she arrived in San Diego in 2017 was mystifying—and compelling.

“When I came to San Diego and I saw this very minimal, experimental abstract art, I was, to be honest, just confused. I was like, ‘What am I looking at? Why is this art?’ It took me a while to wrap my head around it,” she says. “Then I realized, ‘Wow, I’m thinking about this a lot, so it must mean something because that’s the sign of a good artwork, is that you’re thinking about it, right?’ Then I realized that I’d started buying abstract art because I wanted it on my walls because it was calm and quiet and contemplative.”

This is part of what she wants to share in “Non-Objective Lessons,” Space 4 Art’s abstract art exhibition on display at Art Produce Gallery through Feb. 12. Curated by Ruiz, who also serves as Space 4 Art’s programs associate, this exhibition is the first in a series of seven exhibitions produced by the local nonprofit that provides working space, living space, and arts education programming. A $200,000 Arts Ecosystem Grant from the Prebys Foundation all...