As part of the upcoming Silicon Valley Open Studios, five artists will gather together to show their works at the Cupertino home of Constance Guidotti, a photographer and digital artist in her own right. They belong to the Shadows and Fog Group, an informal association of several dozen artists that gathers every Friday at Coffee Society to compare technique and dish about any topic under the sun.

"We can get together and talk about travel and politics if we want," says Jim Chase of Sunnyvale, one of the newer members. Chase is a photographer who focuses on steam locomotives, and the Open Studios will be his first public exhibit. His fellow Shadows and Fog artists have provided much help in critiquing his work and helping him prepare for the show. "It's not about one-upmanship all the time. They give very good, constructive advice," he says.

This cooperative environment is characteristic of the group, members say. While the group's membership has always been very informal, Guidotti can trace its beginnings back to a photography course she took at Foothill College in 1980. Members have banded together to rent villas in Italy, tour Burma and Java and share tips in a noncompetitive environment ever since then. The unusual name comes from a Woody Allen film of the same title.

But it served as good inspiration for Kim Sterling of Santa Cruz, a muralist and another longtime member, who put together the advertising for the Open Studios. He picked works that revolved around the Shadows and Fog theme. "Everyone had something on the mysterious side," he says.

Guidotti has previously displayed works in her Monta Vista home for Open Studios, an area-wide event taking place over three weekends. The event gives artists the chance to open their studios and show off their work with no cost or overhead. The Open Studios administration takes care of guidebooks and advertising, a good deal for any artist. "It's a gift to the community," Guidotti says.

So, this year, she decided to open her home and garden to fellow members of the Shadows and Fog Group. Sterling gladly accepted the opportunity to show work in a different geographic area than normal, while Guidotti had to cajole Chase into joining. "It's important for Jim to do this," she says. "With his railroad pictures, there are a lot of people around here who would be interested in seeing them."

The additional two artists, Diane Cassidy and Marilyn Waite, came on board through connections with Guidotti, Cupertino's Distinguished Artist of the Year in 2003. Cassidy came into the group after meeting Guidotti in yet another Foothill College art class. In turn, Cassidy brought Waite and her slew of sculptures into the previously two-dimensional show through a writer's club.

The quintet's members have been previewing their work at Coffee Society, where they have met for their weekly get-togethers ever since the nearby Cafe Quinn closed. The display will remain through the end of April. Guidotti had arranged the show for herself months ago, but decided to share the space with her fellow Open Studios participants. "She could have done the whole thing herself," Chase says.

If the weather holds up, those works will join dozens more in Guidotti's prized garden and studio on May 8 and 9, the second weekend of Silicon Valley Open Studios. Waite will also show off her clay-molding skills through a demonstration on making pinch pots.

Guidotti had a fair turnout last year, and with other members of Shadows and Fog sure to come, isn't anticipating a lackluster showing. The group contains enough members to require Guidotti to count them on her fingers, but even though the ages range from 27 to 80, with occupations and races just as diverse, the group's members have found a common thread through their art.

But even if the exhibitors end up as the only ones there, the group's members' quick conversation and impromptu singing of show tunes indicates that they'll enjoy themselves nonetheless, with wine-from-a-box in hand. "We're just there to have a good time," Chase says.

The Shadows and Fog Group's members will display their work at Atelier Constance, 22640 Ricardo Road in Cupertino, between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. on May 8 and 9. For more information on Silicon Valley Open Studios, visit www.svopenstudios.org.