Sacramento Magazine 
October 1989 

COMING ABSTRACTIONS
Showing his vibrant oil abstracts in a local gallery—much less selling them at up to $1,5000 apiece—was the last thing 25-year-old Sacramento artist Corey Okada expected.

Though he’s more amused than surprised by his recent notoriety, saying he paints purely for pleasure, the soft-spoken Okada has splashed into the art community, first with graphite drawings at the ’87 Crocker-Kingsley show, and at the Accurate Art Gallery in last year’s citywide “Introductions ’88” exhibition. This month, Okada returns to the Accurate with a new crop of wild figurative abstracts, including “Kimberly Says” and “Winds Across the Hands of Fate.” 

But what the viewer sees is not what the artist sees. Okada’s acute red-green color-blindness requires an assistant to assemble his palette, and leaves art watchers amazed at his kaleidoscope-like use of color. 

An art student several years ago at American River College, Okada has since crafted to perfection more than just his paintings—pastries, to be precise. Toiling as the head pastry chef as Celestin’s restaurant on J Street, Okada spends nearly all of his time out of the kitchen in the studio.

Another local arts event this month will present up to 40 local artists opening their studios to the public in the Matrix Gallery’s Annual Studio Tour October 15. It’s a chance for the public to sample artwork in its formative stages. For details on Okada’s show and the studio tour, see Art and Special Events.

~ Jeff Davis