If an introduction to the work of William Brice, young California artist, is needed, it can be obtained with the full impact of his present ability in the new show at the Alan Gallery, which consists of nine large canvases. Any or all of these works would look well on a specious wall to be ornamented with subtle art. Previously this artist dug deep into the forces of nature in order to represent them with serious craft. At present, however, his talent and craftsmanship have been appreciably enhanced. Nature is important to him still, as he frankly declares in his titles; but without going all out abstract he invests his painting with beauty. Note, for instance, the unassertive design in one painting, which represents him most effectively, in the unfolding of foliage from one tender stage to another, and the design of sea and rocks made profound by the sense of the sea’s mysterious movement. First rate imaginative paintings, they improve the artist’s rating as a thoughtful decorative painter appreciably.