Inside the outside

Two locations in Sacramento, the Short Center North and the Southside Art Center, have been working with developmentally challenged adults for years. The centers’ art programs are extensive, giving several people the chance to make art in a wide array of formats, from painting to the performing arts. The classes give these students many hours to make art with the guidance of supportive and constructive teachers. The results are astounding. Naturally, these people grow and learn about the creative process. But also, with the amount of artists and the number of works created, some outsider art gems are produced; many of the works are bold and to the point and embody uninhibited expression. They have a quality that makes one stare at them and not be able to explain exactly what about the works keeps the eyes from going anywhere else. Inside, Outside, North & Southside, an exhibition of works by the two centers’ artists, opens Thursday at the Toyroom Gallery, on the alley east of 24th Street and just north of Second Avenue; it will run from 6 p.m. until “late” through Saturday.