Detail from painting of Lynne Golob Gelfman.

Two interesting exhibits at two alternative galleries are opening up to kick off the 2014 season, each one in its own way dealing and working with patterning, textures and a visual outcome that can become beautifully illusionary.

At the downtown space of Dimensions Variable (a Knight Arts grantee), the accomplished artist Lynne Golob Gelfman will unveil “trued surface,” which will highlight her abstract paintings that are firmly rooted in the patterning of the natural and man-made world around us. Gelfman has always been drawn to the textiles of various cultures, and the intense, exotic landscapes of places such as North Africa and Brazil. Closer to home, she’s also been inspired by the waves and sand movements of Miami’s seaside, and even the more mundane patterns of chain-link fences and the grid-work of the urban cityscape. The results on the canvas are not glaringly obvious, but move and flow like the influences behind them.

As the notes to the show explain, “Gelfman continues to explore her engagement with the possibilities of mark making. In the new works from the thru series, she embraces her interest in textiles, old and new, and plays with paint, moving from the back of the canvas to the front and back again.”

Detail from drawing of Regina Jestrow.

At the 6th Street Container in Little Havana, another intriguing show, this time of drawings, will feature the work of Regina Jestrow. Born in Queens, she has been a quilt-maker for most of her career, and her drawings on paper and linen reflect this history. Although quilts have roots in most all cultures, in the United States African-American quilt-making has a particularly strong tradition – like improvised music, quilting in this tradition has an impromptu element, and a story to tell. Jestrow’s version “translates the movement of color and design, combining ideas from the traditional art of quilting and high art into her own personal geometric, organic, three-dimensional work. Regina’s artistic practice is made up of experimentation with traditional needlework, colors, geometric patterns and textures.”

The texture of both these shows would be a shame to miss.

“Trued surface” from Lynne Golob Gelfman opens Sat., Jan. 11 from 7-11 p.m. and runs through Feb. 23 at Dimensions Variable, 100 N.E. 11th St., Miami; dimensionsvariable.net. “Drawings” from Regina Jestrow opens Fri., Jan. 17 from 7-10 p.m. and runs through Feb. 17 at 6th Street Container, 1155 S.W. 6th St. (in the rear), Miami; 305-564-3958; 6thstreetcontainer.com.