Nathan James

Longer, brighter days are ahead, and Gallery Neubacher adds to the incipient glow with "Valley Boys," a fortuitous pairing of local painters Nathan James and Andy DeCola. Similar to Colin Bowers, DeCola's 2003 exhibiting partner at Neubacher, James meets his peer's abstract love of colour with a strong figurative propensity. The subjects of James' oils range from relatives to porno models; like another James (Rosenquist, that is), he recontextualizes faces and bodies alongside products, emblems, scribbles and patterns, delimiting and dismantling pop culture's beautiful barrage. "I was told I just had to check out this purple..." speaks for itself: James places a peevish-looking nude against similarly tinted expressionist splashes, amusingly equating aesthetic and sexual desire. DAVID BALZER

"Valley Boys" opens Mar. 4, 7-10pm, and runs to Mar. 27 at Gallery Neubacher, 81 St. Nicholas. Tue-Sat 11am-6pm. 416-963-5138. www.galleryneubacher.com.