'Half the Sky': Wide-ranging art from Chinese women

The distinguishing trait of Bing Yi's ink paintings and Chen Quingqing's robes is that they provide an emphatic "yes" answer to that old favorite avant-garde debate: Can there be continuing validity with characteristic (in this case, Chinese) traditional forms? Perhaps photographer Cui Xiuwen, though, deserves pride of place in this show for her eloquent tribute to China's newest generation of absent little girls.

This diverse display is a brilliant "first." A must-see.

Dashing duo

Cheltenham's Printmakers' Guild - which has made a name for itself with traveling shows to Vancouver, the Netherlands, and China - displays half the 85 works in the current "Pots & Prints" show at the Cheltenham Center for the Arts. Some of this work displays scintillating color, a feel for the structure of landscape, and a sensitivity to atmosphere, mood, and abstraction of natural forms. The profusion and variety of printmaking are remarkable.

An occasional sensitive installation has been achieved in placing together prints and clay objects that complement one another. An example is the matchup between Frank Hohenstein's brownish ash-glaze stoneware pitcher and Carol Wit's pair of monotypes, with their tamed, loose richness.

Meanwhile, Cheltenham's Clay Guild for professional clay artists offers a cheerful romp through the delights of functional and decorative pottery. A robust and often accurate art, its purpose here simply is to give pleasure.