Artist Toban Nichols -- a former San Francisco resident who recently exchanged his Bay Area lifestyle for LA's expansive and creative community -- has three shows that will take over the Bay Area over the next two months. His work, as he describes it, "favors bright color, along with databending and media manipulation, with an eye focused on both current and nostalgic popular culture moments and icons."

That is to say, his work is, like, totally awesome. (He has a phenomenal series that use TV-culled images of Barbara Walter, Suzanne Sommers, and Agnes Moorehead, just to name a few, that doesn't come off as mere camp.)

He kicks things off tonight at the overwhelmingly titled group show "JIGSAWMENTALLAMA," running until December 12. His contribution to this show, delicately called "LockUp," is a series of prints "based around machine error: the use of texture, shape, and movement are representative of architecture, and is meant as a study and mirror of architectural ideas."

Other artists featured during tonight's kickoff are Kenneth Anger, Keith Boadwee, SONJA NILSSON, Craig Goodman, Jack Smith, Scott Hewicker, Margaret Tedesco, Harry Dodge & Stanya Kahn, Skye Thorstenson, Kalup Linzy, Ryan Trecartin, Anne McGuire, Grant Worth, and Austin McQuinn.

What: JIGSAWMENTALLAMA - a group exhibition and weekly film/video screening series
Curator: David Cunningham
Where: David Cunningham Projects (1928 Folsom at 16th Street, SF)
Date: November 12th - December 19th
Opening reception: tonight, 7 p.m. - 10 p.m.

As this post's title points out, Nichols will have two other shows in 2009: “The Tragedy Collection" at San Francisco Gay Bisexual Transgender Community Center on December 1; and “Oppobrium" at Adobe Books on December 10.