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"Men at (Art) Work," an exhibit of differing interpretations of abstraction, brings David Masters, Miles Frode and Allen Smith together in the main gallery at Rogue Gallery and Art Center through Feb. 17. The pieces range from cubist-inspired abstract paintings to innovative pieces that combine sculpture, painting and drawing. Masters offers intriguing sculptures with half-hidden interiors. He says he started making art constructions while in graduate school in Cleveland, Ohio. "I was confronted with the derelict nature of the housing there," he says. "The houses were falling in on each other. Some were beautiful Victorian houses. I started thinking about the architecture and would raid housing debris from the sites and create architectural, structural pieces. I was focused on the idea of home, but other people's homes." Eventually Masters' art evolved into a more intimate, personal style. His new pieces are like containers, with outer and inner surfaces that invite viewers to come closer and peek inside. The sculptures are covered in paint and frenzied pencil scribbles. "Why can't a piece of wood be just as valuable as a drawn line? If this piece calls for paint, I use paint. If it needs wood, I use that instead," Masters says of his use of diverse materials. "I'm getting to play with all these different mediums." Frode takes the more traditional approach, with abstract paintings inspired by the cubism of Pablo Picasso and the abstract expressionism of Willem de Kooning and Arshile Gorky. Smith focuses on abstract paintings with horizontal lines. They range from a minimalist gray painting with a single line, to a wall-size abstract painting overlaid by hundreds of horizontal bands. Calligraphy masters Cynthia Mish and Diane Amarotico will present "Art in the Letter" in the art center's community gallery — also through Feb. 17. Calligrapher Cynthia Mish says it's taken a lifetime to perfect her chosen art form. "I've been doing calligraphy for 30 years," she says. "With calligraphy, the whole body is involved in making a word, a sentence, a stroke. It's a state of mind and a balance. Once you get a sense of rhythm, beauty emerges. You learn it all your life. I'm still learning." Amarotico meditates on the power and impact of letters in many of her pieces. Using a quote from Gustav Barthel, Amarotico writes, "Letters, these seemingly commonplace little signs taken for granted by so many, belong to the most momentous products of human creativity." "She's a wonderful calligrapher," Mish says of Amarotico. "She's one of the best I've ever known. I don't think anyone surpasses her." The two often use calligraphy to bring quotes, ranging from funny to profound, to life. In one piece using a wisecrack from author Dorothy Parker, Mish pens, "A lot of good behavior is due to poor health." Rogue Gallery & Art Center, at 40 S. Bartlett St., will host a reception for the artists from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 20. Standing Stone Brewing Co. will serve hors d'oeuvres and handcrafted beer, while Grizzly Peak Winery will offer wine. During Third Friday's downtown art walk, a handful of art venues and shops stay open late to welcome visitors. Art du Jour Gallery, 213 E. Main St., is featuring landscapes, portraits and architectural paintings by Charity Hubbard, as well as winter scenes by other gallery artists, through January.