Visual Aid artist Charles Bierwirth is best known for his tongue-in-cheek paintings exploring masculinity, Purrrrseus marks a return to the animal imagery he began working with in the late '80's. When encountering these works, the viewer is cast as a modern day Perseus, facing head-on the giant, monster-like Felis catus, also known as the domestic cat. In these photo-realist paintings, faces of tabbies and albinos are meticulously-rendered in huge, close-ups, become fascinating, only slightly disturbing celebrity icons that stare fixedly into space or directly at the viewer.

Found vintage studio portraits of cats are the source material for Bierwirth's paintings, which are created directly on unstretched canvas tarpaulins.

Meet Charles Beirwirth on Saturday, April 25th, at Visual Aid between 1-6PM. The exhibition runs from April to July.

Always wanted to check out the arts and culture heart of San Francisco? Explore the Yerba Buena Neighborhood with the very popular Yerba Buena Gallery Walk April 25 from 1-6pm - visit Visual Aid and other local galleries in 4 blocks and enjoy free admission, and surprisingly lavish refreshments along the way.

Participating galleries include Varnish Fine Art, Catharine Clark Gallery, Baer Ridgway Exhibitions, 111 Minna Gallery, Crown Point Press, 871 Fine Arts, Braunstein/Quay Gallery, Chandler Fine Art, Modernism, RayKo Photo Center, Sculpturesite Gallery, SF Camerawork and The Artists Alley. Afterward, Hotel Palomar (San Francisco's Art Themed Hotel), will host a post Gallery Walk wine reception from 6pm - 8pm ($5 donation will benefit the Yerba Buena Alliance).