Art MoCo: June 2008 Archives

"Black Friday"
Posted by sabine7

Installation | Jun 30, 2008

Valerie Green created a sculptural photo installation of 583 shoppers in several retail districts of Los Angeles in the period that falls between the day after Thanksgiving and Christmas. Called Black Friday because retailers go from being in the red to in the black, this day is often the opposite for consumers who accumulate more debt along with goods. Green arranged the shoppers by district and shopping bag to form an installation that flows along gallery walls. The viewer is at first fascinated by the detail and the painstaking work, then becomes overwhelmed by the sheer numbers, and finally the very meaning of the piece.

Artist: Valerie Green
+ valeriegreen.la

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Takashi Homma:Tokyo
Posted by sabine7

Books | Jun 29, 2008

What is remarkable about Takashi Homma: Tokyo is that there are no Harajuku girls; there is nothing cute or Kawaii in sight. This is not the Tokyo that has been fed to the world in most recently. The picture is much bleaker. Homma comments visually on a Tokyo of suburban architecture, North American fast food, children on their own or engaged with artificial playmates, and thus this superb collection of photographs by one’s Japan’s most well known photographers is like a caption-less photo essay. Beautifully produced by Aperture, this first international monograph includes a useful essay by Ivan Vartanian.

Paperback, 256 pages. Aperture, 2008. $29.70 at Amazon.

+ Takashi Homma:Tokyo at Amazon

Art MoCo Meta
Posted by sabine7

Meta | Jun 28, 2008

Japanese artist Yonuko makes intricate decorative hairpins, tsunami-kanzashi, from old kimono fabrics. Via PingMag

Creative Review gives us a taste of some of the work from the graduate student shows currently on in London, such as Free Range (top) and D&AD New Blood (bottom).

"Natural History Museum Part 1"
Posted by sabine7

Exhibition | Jun 27, 2008

Natural History Museum Part 1 is an exhibition of new work by Carlos Ramos inspired by the large-scale dioramas usually found in natural history museums. But there is nothing dusty about Ramos’ works, twenty-four large-scale paintings, which update the traditional experience to which so many children were exposed. Polar bears are caught in mid-snarl and mid-swipe; elephants set a family scene on the savanna; crocodiles periscope their way dry or wet; and the shark encircles the sea lion.

Artist: Carlos Ramos
+ coreyhelfordgallery.com

"If Only I Knew Your Name"
Posted by sabine7

Painting | Jun 26, 2008

Kevin Ledo is a Montreal-based artist focused on the ideas of beauty, desire and idealism. His paintings often portray these concepts, sometimes with a dose of irony and Catholic influence, by way of the human form. Sometimes Ledo’s colours are toned down completely; at others they edge out the representational aspect, as in the case of If Only I Knew Your Name and A Street Ad Caused Desire, where the pinks and purples are anything but soft and flowery. And who knows why, but there is something about the stencilled piece that follows, Gymstars, that grabbed and kept us.

Artist: Kevin Ledo
+ kevinledo.com

"Vectorfunk"
Posted by sabine7

Digital | Jun 25, 2008

Matt W. Moore has taken doodling to a new level with his various series of eye-catching illustrations and graphics. Vectorfunk 2 is a series of posters that combine line, form and colour in ways that pop – all of which contribute to a sense of action and movement within each piece. The Geometry posters incorporate symmetry, which does not take away from the excitement, but rather adds a kaleidoscopic aspect to MWM’s work. Looking at these pieces feels like being a kid at an amusement park, with access to all the rides, carny games and candy.

Artist: Matt W. Moore
+ mwmgraphics.com

"Rock's Retaliation"
Posted by sabine7

Painting | Jun 24, 2008

Matthew Williamson’s Nature’s Revenge series focuses on shapes occurring in nature. Mushrooms, stones, spores, olives and bonsai swirl together in a state of vengefulness. There is something sci-fi/fantasy about these seemingly botanical maelstroms, as though anything could happen once everything got going. Stones could get violent, mushrooms and spores are probably prone to anger, but who would suspect the olives to be so physical?

Artist: Matthew Williamson
+ earphexhibitions.com

"The Riveted Kingdom"
Posted by sabine7

Photography | Jun 23, 2008

Jasper de Beijer creates miniature scenes that reflect the excesses of Victorian engineering out of paper and cardboard, then photographs them. The projects of the Victorian era, like the Crystal Palace or the steamship Leviathan, have so impressed the artist that his focus is to create iconic images that encapsulate the dreams that these inventive visionaries brought to fruition. Because the work is based on detailed dioramas, there is an air of the unreal that surrounds it, yet it remains, at the same time, recognizable.

Artist: Jasper de Beijer
+ fette-gallery.com

Show and Tell: Exploring the Fine Art of Children's Book Illustration
Posted by sabine7

Books | Jun 22, 2008

Show and Tell: Exploring the Fine Art of Children's Book Illustration by Dilys Evans is an intelligent examination of the topic and a look at the work of a dozen illustrators in this field. Personal favorites are Lane Smith and Hilary Knight, but other artists whose work is discussed include Brian Selznick, Betsy Lewin and Harry Bliss. Evans has represented many illustrators for years and is a passionate expert in the field, so this book is a delightful exploration of a contemporary area of art that is so closely linked to text.

Hardcover, 144 pages. Chronicle Books, 2008. $16.49 at Amazon.

+ Show and Tell at Amazon

Art MoCo Meta
Posted by sabine7

Meta | Jun 21, 2008

Whitney McVeigh paints watercolour and ink portraits for her mysterious, yet colourful, Heads series. Via Culture Hall

Mel Robson uses waterjet cutting to create new shapes out of old crystal platters and ceramic plates, then casts them in porcelain. Via Whip Up.

"Paper Boat"
Posted by sabine7

Mixed Media | Jun 20, 2008

Both Sweet and Illicit is a new body of work by Amy Rice, currently available at Seattle’s Bluebottle Art Gallery until June 28. A gocco printer acquired in a craft store (usually very hard to come by) allowed Rice to use this technique on antique love letters and journal pages as backgrounds for her latest work. Rice’s tendency towards found objects as background in her mixed media work adds an extra dimension to already compelling narratives.

Artist: Amy Rice
+ bluebottleart.com