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Weekly Blog

Welcome to Venison's Weekly Blog! Here you will find advice, show reviews, thoughts and short articles by the Venison Team. We welcome your input comments and thoughts in return! 
​Thanks for reading Venison Magazine!

Quarterly

Gathering: Artist Jennifer Pettus

7/27/2017

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​Abrams Claghorn Gallery
1251 Solano Ave, Albany, California 94706
​
Showing July 5 - August 31, 2017
Recption: Saturday July 15, 5 - 7 pm 
Artist Talk: Saturday August 12, 5 - 7pm




​www.jenniferpettus.com
@jeneticp
Amber's interview with Jennifer Pettus was published in our Winter 2015 issue, where you can see more the intricate details of Pettus's embroidery mixed into a complex work of art made of various materials. Whatnot is up as part of Gathering: A Venison Magazine Retrospective, through August 31.
"I think the idea of grey areas or fluidity (not only in terms of art but gender, sexuality, politics, etc) is just recently being embraced. I love the idea that art is like a membrane where ideas are constantly seeping, shifting and changing and I think that’s what this new fiber-based mixed media work does very successfully." -- Jennifer Pettus, Winter 2015
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Whatnot // Balloons, embroidery floss, satin, brocade, polymer clay, felt, tape // 12" x 11" x 2.5" // now on view at Abrams Claghorn

Artist Statement:

The complication of life inspires me to use complicated combinations of materials and methods in my work. I create three dimensional shadowboxes, free form assemblages, and installations that defy categorization with calculated hodgepodge. I spend a lot of time “making the stuff to make the stuff,” re-purposing second-hand and throw-away materials with techniques like knitting, knotting, stitching, wrapping, staining, poking, gluing, and smashing. I use excessive texturing in conjunction with vibrant colors and curious objects to create a visual pull, asking the viewer to come closer than they might otherwise to a work of art. My hope is to use this material mishmash to keep the viewer engaged with clues to a certain complexity behind the familiar
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Make-like // 56” x 21” x 3″ // hand dyed yarn and embroidery floss, washcloth, cranberry juice, felt, air dry clay, spray paint, pencil, colored pencil, marker, polymer clay, wool, rubber bands, earrings, various trim // 2015
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Get-up // 60” x 22″ // hand dyed embroidery floss, vintage lingerie, transfer ink, pencil, colored pencil, push pins, rubber, various trim // 2015
gathering: a venison magazine retrospective
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Opening | Aliens with Extraordinary Abilities

5/11/2017

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Aliens with Extraordinary Ablities
​Curated by Artist, Camella DaEun Kim
​​
Opening Reception | Saturday, May 20th, 5 - 7pm
Exhibition dates | May 20th - July 21st, 2017
​Mon - Fri, 10am - 5pm
​Immigrant Potluck | Saturday, June 10th

Fellows of Contemporary Art
​970 North Broadway #208
Los Angeles, CA 90012
​
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Original image courtesy of artists, collected and reconstructed by artist, Camella DaEun Kim
The title of this group show, Aliens with Extraordinary Abilities, is a direct reference to O-1 visa approved by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services to individuals who are classified as “aliens” possessing extraordinary ability in arts, science, education, business, or athletics, or who has a demonstrated extraordinary achievement in the motion picture or television industries. 

Despite having interest to take part in commonly shared discussions on “assimilation versus ​integration,” “race versus ethnicity,” “mainstream 
culture versus subculture,” or “economically motivated immigration versus politically motivated evacuation,” this show is compelled to observe the dialectical process that wages within the outsiders struggling to come to terms with their social environment.

While the eight artists in the show possess distinct backgrounds and manifest disparate approaches to art, each identifies herself as a “stranger,” oscillating between being an insider and an outsider by virtue of her individuality within her own circumstances. Drawing on personal experiences related to diaspora, race, gender, queerness, and social constraints, each artist’s work subverts and confronts the negative connotations of life as a foreigner.

Furthermore, both the curator and artists collaborated by playing both roles. As a whole, Aliens with Extraordinary Abilities amalgamates works ranging from photography, video, sculpture, and sound, site-specific installations. Together, they are collectively curated to touch on the ideas of ‘home’ and expand on the paradigm of the forever immigrant with multiple places of belonging, out of places or with no place to call ‘home’.
Featuring works by:
Jenny Donaire
Ting Ying Han
Gelare Khoshgozaran
Ann Le
Yoshie Sakai
Kyungmi Shin
Jimena Sarno
Kim Ye
The foreigner lives within us: he is the hidden face of our identity, the space that wrecks our abode, the time in which understanding and affinity founder. The 'foriegner' then is something hidden in ourselves, something with the potential to destroy 'home' and something that is beyond 'understanding' or relations with eachother. - Strangers to Ourselves, Julia Kristeva
For press inquiries, contact camelladaeunkim@gmail.com or foca@focala.org
​#alienswithextraordinaryabilities
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Q & A with Dustin Harewood

4/11/2017

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Dustin Harewood brings to canvas colliding worlds, where east meets west, both above and below sea level. His works mesh the importance of our climate and the heavy hand that media has, using the imagined to discuss our human footprint. Heavily influenced by the submerged landscapes, Harewood has used his memories to create a vibrant and elegant world.

by Nazish Chunara

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She's Got a Lot on Her Mind // Reef Studies
Tell me a bit about your background. Where did you grow up and when were you first exposed to art?

I was born and raised in Brooklyn New York; East New York to be exact. My parents were from Barbados and immigrated to New York when they were in their late teens. My parents took me to Museums a lot, but my first major entry into the arts would have been Saturday morning art classes at the Brooklyn Museum. I did that for a few years, and it really made an impression on me. I think I was seven or eight at the time I started
At eleven we all moved to Barbados. That’s where I went to high school (secondary school.)

You have stated that "Reef Studies" are based off a kind of memory. From your use of mostly bright colors, I imagine that these memories are prominently good ones?

The reefs I swam around near the shore in Barbados were not the most colorful. ​​I've never scuba dived or anything to see the nicer ones.
The things I paint/draw are mostly made up; ideas of what these deteriorating reefs would look like. In the beginning I collected a bunch of reference pictures and tried to make studies of them. I lost interest in doing that pretty quickly.

The element of media in these studies says a lot about how we, as humans, treat our environment. Why did you decide to include Japanese newspapers, and what does it signify? 

My wife is from North Japan. We met at an art store here in Florida that she once worked at. I’ve made several trips to Japan to visit her family over the past few years. When I go I collect newspapers during the visits. After the Fukushima nuclear disaster, I remember being asked by many American/Barbadian friends and colleagues whether or not I would cancel my trips to Japan. I haven’t.
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Fractured Growth // Reef Studies // 15" x 15"
Japan consumes a large portion of the world’s seafood. I’m still not fully aware of what consequences the large amount of radioactive material dumped into the Pacific would have on them or the ocean.
​
The intrusion of the Japanese newspapers signifies their (as well as our) incursion on these underwater landscapes. 
So it is very much about Florida, Japan and Barbados. All places with a lot of coastline.
Do you think that painting a mural, or a creating public work in general, affects the message you are sending?

​The cool thing about murals is that they engage the public directly. Not many people attend gallery openings and museums. Everyone however either drives down the road or walks through their neighborhood and sees murals.

I really like your use of the circular canvas. I see the shape all throughout your work. What is the significance of that?
​
The circles! I just got tired of working on squares and rectangles all of the time. The circles keep me on my toes, compositionally they present a different set of challenges.
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Majestic Bathsheba // acrylic, spray paint and newspaper on wood // 2015
I also just find them to be more elegant and visually softer in their presentation.

​What is your preferred medium?

When I teach painting at College I prefer to use oils. When I’m working on my own stuff I prefer acrylics. I need for things to dry as quickly as possible because applying multiple layers to the surface is very important for what I’m trying to achieve.
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Garden // Mixed Media on Wood // 24" x 24" // 2016
What classes do you teach, and where?

I teach Painting, Drawing and Computer Graphics classes at Florida State College at Jacksonville.

What kind of response have you received about your work from your students?

My students usually say that they love my work... but what else could they say to my face?
The real question is, what do they say about it when I'm not around!

​​If there was one place in the entire world you could paint a mural, where would it be and what would it be of?

That's a great question. I'd love to do a dead reef mural in Aoyama Tokyo.
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Fading Garden 1 // Reef Studies // 16" x 20"

Upcoming

Dead Reef Season 2

​with works on paper and wood

Bold Bean Coffee
Jax Beach

2400 S. 3rd St Suite 200
Jacksonville Beach FL 3225

Mon- Fri 6:30 am - 7pm
Sat and Sun 7am - 7pm


@dustinharewood
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SOUP Experimental

3/27/2017

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As artists ourselves at Venison Magazine, we love speaking with our peers, discovering new works and learning about their methodologies. What do we love just as much? Connecting with artists in other parts of the world, who also love speaking with, and voicing artists' creative paths. We connected with SOUP Experimental last year via social media, and have been following them ever since. We reached out and learned so much about who makes up this team and what they do.
SOUP Experimental, just one year in operation has been spreading their talents in showcasing emerging artists in and beyond Florida. Ashton Bird, director, Chelsea Raflo, artist, and Victoria DeBlasio, Opinion Writer, tell us about how SOUP got its name and their very first exhibition.

SOUP Inspiration

Tallahassee’s cultural scene is in many ways an artist refined do-it-yourself community.  Everything from the bright, bold and anonymous folk art of local tradition to the beautifully blended dynamics of poetry and hip-hop becomes a reflection of expressive resourcefulness. The city’s flowing demographics and overall amount of creative variety cultivates unique curiosities with inspirations pulled from various ethnicities and geographic backgrounds. This blend of thought and personal origin emits a strong unique glow that’s easily noticeable as outpost here in northwest Florida.  Ironically, the DIY definition is very communal with artists curated exhibitions hosted at random geographic coordinates, abandoned 
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Nobodies // Oil on wood // 14" x 15" // 2016 // Chelsea Raflo
warehouses and of course, the pop-up house shows. Even the ‘art-park’ in our city prides itself in its inventive solutions to showcase artworks by offering gallery spaces in what was once a lumberyard. Sections of unpermitted artist constructed lofts from previous tenants intermingle with new, now safe, additions only adding to the artist imprint on the city. ​

The combination of what was left by the artists prior and diverse experimentation happening in Tallahassee made us romanticize about stories heard describing SoHo, Manhattan in the 1970s; moreover, the explorations that expanded the definition of contemporary art. One artist we’re particularly fond of  
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A Means to an End, and What an End Means // acrylic yarn // 21" x 18" // 2016 // Lucia Riffel
is Gordon-Matta Clark –his art, dinner parties, cooking and philanthropic mindset.

​Our name and our collaborative, multi-disciplinary approach were inspired by an important chapter in contemporary art history: FOOD, an artist-runspace co-founded in 1971 by Caroline Gooden and Gordon Matta-Clark with Tina Girouard. ​Located in SoHo on Prince and Wooster Streets, FOOD gave a platform to any creator, from cooks, poets, and performers to visuals and architects. The restaurant provided low-price meals to support those in need and invited members of the community and artists a-like to be 
guest chefs, resulting in memorable artist-rendered concoctions. FOOD quickly became known for Matta-Clark’s, Matt-Bone” soup, which featured oxtail, roasted marrow bones, frogs’ legs among other bone-type of entrees. Finishing the bowl, the bones were scrubbed then strung together as a necklace of leftovers the participant could bring home.Here at the intersection of art, performance, and social engagement, participants found that something as a bowl of soup could leave an imprint to last a lifetime. 
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Unfulfilled Living room // mixed media // 10" x 30" 18" // 2016 // Chelsea Raflo
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Left to right: Red Sherbert on Teal // White Ice on Blue // Video Projection // 2016 // Mark Crowley
SOUP has developed in response to the artistic vision and spirit behind FOOD, and though we’ve put forth a menu of decidedly less edible offerings, we are looking forward to the years ahead and all the possibilities they might bring.  At the heart of it all is the spirit to strengthening our community.  For us, this means exploring creative ways to form connections between all kinds of people and projects that might, on the surface, appear to have little in common, yet stirred together, produce something of delicious substance. 
Tallahassee’s supportive atmosphere has allowed us to extend nationally to where we are today and, it’s amazing to see how this seed of an idea has taken root and begun to thrive beyond what we could have predicted.  It didn’t feel quite like a seed at the time – in fact, it felt huge – but in hindsight, we can recognize that it was still just powerful potential that could only take shape through the resourceful act of collaboration and participation. Today SOUP is a blend of all these inspired efforts, simmering together to create a space of creative nourishment and free expression.

​-Ashton Bird, Chelsea Raflo, Victoria DeBlasio

SOUP's Anywhere But Brooklyn

SOUP experimental’s 1st exhibition Anywhere But Brooklyn featured – Brittany M. Watkins, who showed a magnificent installation titled Lucia;Not-Self in our Middle gallery. The second artist, Matthew Lawrence had four large, 60”x 60” paintings  in our Main Gallery. It was wild. We renovated the warehouse in three weeks, so the work was literally being installed as the gallery was being built. Ha! I would never work those shifts again, but I had tons of help and support! What do I mean by support? One night in particular, Gisela Fernandez and I were up until 8:00 am sanding joint-compound; the next day, Matthew Lawrence, Austin Yorke, Kathleen Saunders and Matt Adams were painting primer and moving walls while I was out cold from the 24 hour shift prior. The little moments too, friends would stop by with coffee, beer or pizza and check up on things or say hi. The excitement really caught on.​
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Anywhere But Brooklyn
The opening reception flew by in seconds, and I remember Lucia, Matthew, Brittany and myself crouched on cheap folding chairs in the front. We popped a bottle of champagne, sipped and soaked up our accomplishment. I don’t think I will ever forget that night.
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To be completely honest, at the time of selecting the two artists to exhibit –the selection was based more on my personal intuition and how the artists knew each other. Brittany’s installation displaying the inner-world of consciousness or lack of had a similar metaphor as Lawrence’s; both, the installation and paintings complimented each other very well. 
After the next few months, we quickly realized we needed reliable assistants, coordinators and volunteers. We started off with five people and now we are at 18.  SOUP experimental, including myself is a volunteer ran space that is exuberantly growing through people passionately believing in the idea of resourcefulness and experimental creativity.  We’re scrappy. SOUP has grown to have gallery exhibitions, performance and music nights, open-mic, facility rental, a touring exhibition, an off-site exhibition, written artwork opinion and artist interviews. 
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Untitled // asphaltum felt, construction adhesive, wood, plaster, gesso // 87" x 192" x 4" // 2015 // Ashton Bird
The exhibitions are ultimately selected by me, but our coordinators do have a huge influence on the final decision. Beyond the exhibitions, each section of staff delegates what events we should manifest or who we should interview.

We are all artists, which I believe makes communication much more understanding.  I definitely wouldn’t say we all think the same though, which is even better –all of us have a flavor the other doesn’t, and each very much so complements one another.  It’s been amazing being able to see what and how much we’ve been able to do.

-Ashton Bird, Director

SOUP Experimental

694-2 Industrial Drive
Tallahassee, Fl 32310

@soupexperimental
@soupexp​

*List of artists mentioned in article available on SOUP's website.
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Q&A with Vieno James

2/10/2017

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Vieno James's body of work, Glory, opened at Offsite Gallery inside the World Trade Center in Norfolk, VA last week. His work is a mixed media study of history that compels me to dive deeper into those history books, and ask, what kind of history are we creating ​right now? I was so happy to be able to talk to Vieno about Glory, and several other interests!

Q&A by Nazish Chunara

First, I want to ask why. What drew you to discuss the US and war? Is this a subject you were always drawn to?
​My experience in Japan made me realize that a large chunk of the world views America negatively. I also realized that during my stay, I was somewhat a representative or ambassador of the American people. I knew that the United States exploited many countries in the name of “democracy”, and something in my gut told me that it was time to examine this subject. I wasn't always drawn to this subject in particular, I'm interested in anything that my heart tells me to examine. I needed to draw the work from my system and bring it into the physical world.
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What is your research process like?

I just go to the library and get lost. I walk almost unconsciously through the isles, stop when my spirit tells me, and grab the book that I'm “looking” for. After gathering about 10 books or so, I have everything to help me come to a conclusion on what I want to say in my work. After the books, I speak with “random” people in my community to get their opinions and ideas about the whatever the topic is. Funny enough, this usually confirms my thoughts. After that, I watch documentaries and news stories to inform myself visually and to stay up to date. 
In what ways have you found that we glorify war?

Glorification of wars and war heroes are all around. I see it in movies like Troy and 300. Kids are getting rewarded for kill streaks online everyday. I saw many Republicans during the campaign bringing veterans on stage to talk about our nation's good vs the evil brown people of the Orient. Our president, Trump, is trying to fight a war of attrition against ISIS, another good v. evil case. ISIS glorifies its martyrs and soldiers in this so called “holy Caliphate v evil Crusaders” war.​
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Tell me about the significance of the materials you use for Glory, and how you apply them onto canvas. (I imagine that this process is a performance piece in itself!)

It was a performance! I laid the work out on the floor, spilled paint on it to stain the canvas, and used a broom to paint the rest in. After, I spit on it and slopped mud everywhere. Then I finished it off with glitter. I actually got fired from my job while working on that piece because of the mess I made. My boss was pissed. 
Haha, anyways, I used mud, blood red paint, and spit in the areas that represent the battlefield. The blue areas are filled with glitter and the figures are almost like constellations in the night sky. To me it's a timeless heaven and earth view of the Battle of Gaugamela plains, Iraq and the current battles going on in the same area of Mosul, in our times.

The figures in the work are holding the traditional weaponry of Persian and Macedonian warriors. In many areas you can see the Macedonian battle technique of the phalanx being used by the figures. There are other symbols in the work, and they refer back to Picasso's Guernica; the fallen horse, the slain warrior with the broken blade, the flowers and the black bird in the top right.
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What would a battle stage map of the last decade look like for the US? What materials would you use to represent this?

Great question! I'm actually about to take a hard look at America with my next series. The work I'm thinking about creating most likely wouldn't be a battle map. The works will look like ancient Egyptian artifacts. It would be made of scrap metal, concrete, wood, denim, old auto parts, American flags, anything that could represent the absolute death of America's Industrial Age. I'd also like to talk about big businesses, gangs violence, American history and ideology; our role in the world. It would be riddled with transfer prints of the recent riots in this country, and figures and images of old industrial cities like Detroit. My ideas are pretty rough at the moment, but that's the direction I want to head in next. It'll probably be a 2 year project made out of multiple bodies of work that focus on different subjects like industry, agriculture, ideology, race, politics, and societal movement.
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You've scattered silhouettes throughout this body of work, as if they're peering into our world. Tell me a bit about mixing the abstract with the figurative.

​Haha! They're there to watch the viewers. I only include them when the time is right though. Like when a brush stroke does not carry the emotional weight of seeing a human locked in combat.
What was it like preparing for your solo show Glory at the Offsite Gallery inside the World Trade Center in Virginia? It looked amazing!
​
Thank you, Nazish! Soooo many all-nighters in the studio. A lot of "Watch the throne." And a ton of frustrating moments. It was fucking amazing! I like having a fire under my ass when I work.
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I’ve noticed, looking through all the work on your site, you’ve touched basis with many important subjects: environmental, printed (press), war, race and more. Is there a subject that you haven’t covered but would like to?
​
Thanks for taking a look at everything, Nazish! This is going to sound boring, but agriculture, hunting, and food is my dream subject! I want to cover it so badly. If you control food, you control the world. I believe that crops and livestock are the only thing on this planet with intrinsic value. One ear of corn can produce fifty more. I'd probably talk about farming throughout history, slaves from around the world, what people grow all across the planet, hunting, gathering, and how it's shaped their food, culture, and modern society. It'd be a lifetime's journey around our planet.
It was a pleasure speaking with you, Vieno!
Glory
Exhibition Dates | Feb 3rd - Mar 24th, 2017
Gallery Hours | Mon - Fri 8:30am - 5:30pm

​Norfolks Arts  Offsite Gallery
1st Floor, World Trade Center
101 W. Main St, Norfolk, VA 23501
664-6854
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Bestiario/Menagerie

1/16/2017

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San Francisco-based curator A.R. Vazquez-Concepcion untangles threads of history, knowledge production, and colonialism in Bestiario/Menagerie, a vibrant, 10-person group exhibition on view at Adobe Books Back Gallery through January 28.

Bestiario or “bestiary”, roughly translated, describes a compendium of animals – imaginary and real – that was bound in book or illuminated manuscript form. Dating to second century Greece, bestiaries reflected a desire to understand the natural and spiritual worlds through collecting, categorization, and comparison.

Review by Roula Seikaly

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Abdiel Segarra Rios // No hay colonia como la mia (There is no colony like mine) Me equivoque pero lo hice con amor (I made a mistake but I did it with love) // 2016
​Centuries on, cabinets of curiosities were amassed as Enlightenment thinking and imperialist expansion brought western Europeans into contact with worldwide civilizations. Through dedicated study of physical artifacts, it was believed, a civilization’s value could be assessed. The sinister footnote to that ambitious effort is, of course, that colonized societies were treated as foreign, as the other, and in need of “civilizing” through paternalistic intervention.
The artifacts that were assembled in personal and later, public curio collections, were regarded as representations of the unfamiliar, and knowledge derived from observation was passed generationally as authoritative. In Bestiario/Menagerie, the objects and the artistic practices that produce them reject containment and the purported “authority” of knowledge through provocative juxtaposition.

Vazquez-Concepcion makes the most of Adobe Books’ intimate gallery, spacing each object to hold its own and, when considered relationally, deliver a deeper and decidedly more troubling understanding when viewed together. ​​​​
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Lionel Cruet // Scatter Sky // 2013/17
Marcela Pardo Ariza’s “Dissident” (2016), in which a humorously unruly pencil line interrupts the banal familiarity of a Post-It note, is both funnier and more frightening next to Fernando Pintado’s “Non Nobis Domine Non Nobis” (Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us) (2016). Its title excerpted from a short Latin hymn that expresses humility and thanks for spiritual blessings, this four-panel charcoal and paint piece portrays crusading Knights Templar who waged multiple wars to reclaim Jerusalem from Muslim invaders. In this pairing, notions of rebellion expand and align an innocuous graphite mark and state-sanctioned terrorists bent on delivering apocalyptic violence in the name of Christianity.
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Fernando Pintado // Non Nobis Domine Non Nobis // 2016
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Marcela Pardo Ariza // Dissident // 2016
Stretching diagonally across the gallery, Santiago Insignares’ colorful biomorphic sculptures “Restriction”, “Implication”, and “Posthumous” (2016) address traumatic experiences and how memory enforces such events as mile markers in our lives. Without knowing that the meat of Insignares’ inspiration includes systematic massacre, displays of tortured bodies, and domestic violence, these sculptures might earn little more than a passing glance. Insignares interrogates authority’s unchecked abuses, and how knowledge is obscured to mask the gravest offenses.
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Mya Pagan_ // Monstrixt // 2017
Maria Guzman-Capron’s “El Tigre y Yo” (The Tiger and I) (2017), and Mya Pagan’s “Monstrix” (2017) recall the first bestiaries and later cabinets of curiosities as embodied versions of fantastical hybrid beasts, but with a subversive twist. Working with discounted fabrics, Guzman-Capron fashions a half-tiger, half-human sculpture that lounges atop a low plinth as though enjoying celebrity status. Mya Pagan offers a playful Pan-like creature revealed by a drawn curtain – again half human and half animal – covered in luxurious fur and crowned with flowers and horns. Engaging objects both, especially because their inclusion within this exhibitionary context points to the wholescale degradation colonized people – women in particular – faced as they were enslaved, displayed like circus attractions for lurid consumer satisfaction, and civilized (read: stripped of their individuality and autonomy) for their own good.
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Maria Guzman // Capron_El Tigre y Yo // 2017
The motley assemblage that is Bestiario/Menagerie demonstrates both the best and worst of human inclinations: curiosity is an evolutionary gift. Building knowledge through collecting, comparing, and analyzing has helped the human species amass a compendium more comprehensive than any bestiary or curio cabinet could contain. When knowledge, or presumed knowledge, is used to subjugate others, we lose our humanity. Through these objects and the juxtapositions they activate, the knots of history, knowledge production, and the ever-present danger of using it to exploit others begin to unravel.
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Paula Morales // Arqueologia Digital // 2017
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Maria Guzman-Capron // Black Sandals // 2015
Adobe Books
​Back Gallery

3130 24th Street
San Francisco CA 94110
​
Exhibition dates | Jan 7th - 28th 2017
Closing Reception | Jan 28th 6 - 9pm
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Meager Form, work by Camilla Taylor

1/4/2017

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​Meager Form
Work by Camilla Taylor
@camillataylor

​ Reception | January 13th, 2017 | 5:30 pm

Penny Contemporary
187 Liverpool Street
Hobart Tasmania, Australia
pennycontemporary.com.au
​@pennycontemporary

Photos by Mike Reynolds
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I won't tell you // unglazed stoneware, linseed oil, graphite // 7" x 9" x 6" // 2016
How often do we get out work done a week or so early? Not often, in my experience. Luckily Camilla completed her works for Meager Form early, and we got to reap the benefits. Here's a look into my studio visit with her!
Meager Form is comprised of sculptures and collographs that depict the relationship between strength and vulnerability. Camilla, who has been greatly influenced by TS Eliot for this series, spoke with me for about an hour and we discussed everything from art, to neighbors, family and social trends.

Preview by Nazish Chunara

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You will always hesitate // stoneware, graphite, linseed oil, synthetic hair, wrought iron, stainless steel // 34" x 43" x 4" // 2016
​Camilla used her own hands as a guide for these sculptures and was able to vary them in size and gesture. They're beautfully depicted, all the way down to the lines in the palms which are curiously detailed. The weight of hands versus the weight of hair provide a little fight. You only have parts of a body to create an identity, if that's even what you want to do. Camilla's works are intentionally left unidentified which leaves ample room for wonder. Whose body could be attached to these hands or feet or braid of hair? It could be yours, mine, your professor's, maybe your mom from a few years ago or the hand of someone you have yet to meet. It's pretty magical to think about.
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You will always hesitate (detail)
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You will always hesitate (detail)
Though these limbs leave room for you to elaborate on, they are also representative of the things we potentially have in common. We're all ideally born with ten fingers and a set of life lines to get our palms read. ​The exploration of identity is high right now, which makes Camilla's works stand out even more. There is no eye color, shape, finger nail, or skin color to point out and run with.
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Grasp // lost wax cast pewter // 6.5" x 3.5" x 3" // 2016
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Grasp // lost wax cast pewter // 6.5" x 3.5" x 3" // 2016
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Grasp // lost wax cast pewter // 6.5" x 3.5" x 3" // 2016
Alternatively, there's is much security to be found in There is space all around you. Wrapped in itself, these feet are kept warm, cozy and safe. It's like creating a personal bubble; there's space for yourself provided by yourself, which immeditely led me to the idea of the imporance of self care.

We can have our heads in the clouds, just as long as our feet are on the ground - isn't that how it goes? Camilla's works trigger a number of varying thoughts to tinker with.
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There is space all around you // lost wax cast pewter, synthetic hair // 25" x 14" x 4.5" // 2016
Reminicent of etchings, the prints below were made through the process of collography. The images are carved onto board, covered in ink and transfered onto paper. This was my first experience with it. Of course, I asked her if she ever considered incorporating color (I bet she's gotten that one too many times.) I realized that it's unnecessary because the texture created with this technique is so deep, that they are extremely vibrant as is.
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Hang limp // collograph on cotton rag paper // 42" x 30" // edition of 2 // 2016
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Look away 2 // collograph on cotton rag paper // 42" x 30" // edition of 2 // 2016
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Gathered hair // relief print on kozo paper // ed. of 3 // 50" x 11" // 2016
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Hair in a braid // relief print on kozo paper // ed. of 3 // 50" x 11" // 2016
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Loosening braid // relief print on kozo paper // ed. of 3 // 50" x 11" // 2016
Meager Form ships off to Penny Contemporary this week. If you have the chance, I recommend saying hello to Camilla and checking out the work personally! 
PS, Camilla has a new system of screen printing and it's with watercolor. Check out the following piece, along with many others in With Liberty and Justice for Some at Walter Maciel Gallery  Los Angeles, starting  January 7th, 2017.
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Thank you for having me over Camilla!
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John Wolf of Human Condition

11/11/2016

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I visited Human Condition the week of Halloween at the abandoned Los Angeles Metropolitan Medical Center. With three floors and over 8o artists, I decided to start at the top, with curation. I reached out to John Wolf, the Los Angeles based art advisor and mastermind behind this large exhibition.
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Patrick Mcelnea // Dr. Super Igor // single channel hd video // 2015

Q&A by Nazish Chunara

How did Human Condition come together? What was the process like?

​The Human Condition stemmed from a personal desire to feel emotion. I had a shortlist of figurative artists that elicited a visceral feeling to me. At the moment of inception, I did not have  a physical space for the show. It was when a client of mine mentioned the acquisition of the abandoned hospital that a light bulb illuminated. Upon viewing the space I knew that it was within these walls that previously stored so much human emotion I would find a great fit for the show.  
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Polly Borland // Ring a Ring a Rosy // 2001
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Tanya Batura // Achromic B // 2012
There are so many wonderful artists and so many works of art. Did you decide that it was going to be this large when you initially started planning? ​
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​No! I initially thought maybe 20 artists. The space is so big, I couldn’t stop, there were too many great works to display, so I kept going, finally capping it at 87 ;)

​What were some frustrations that you encountered?
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​There were the day-to-day curatorial frustrations of artists whose works were not available, or the short timeline being a hinderance, but ultimately my own inner doubts that were the most frustrating. I chose not to listen to them, and forged ahead, not knowing if anyone would come see the show. Turns out people came ;) 2000 people on opening night.
Do you have plans to curate another show?
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Yes, it will be even more immersive and intense, a surprise, so no spoilers!
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Alexander Yulish // acrylic on canvas // 2016
What do you see through the lens of this role in the contemporary art world that you may not have otherwise known about?

​People are craving a different experience. The white walls of a gallery have gotten tired. The site specificity of unique exhibitions like this are what excites younger generations to educate themselves on the art world.
What is your role as an art broker?

As a private art dealer, I assist clients in creating outstanding collections based on pre-defined goals. I work in contemporary, ​ post-war, and emerging. I work tirelessly to source the best works for clients, whether new to collecting or established.
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Christopher Reynolds // 2013 - 2016
What is something every artist should know, from an art broker’s perspective?

Kindness and being really cooperative will get you everywhere. You have to earn your stripes just like anyone else. No one owes you anything just because you’re an artist. Your ego is not your amigo.  Share.

When or how did you decide to pursue a career in the arts?
​
I was a collector and passionate about art, educating myself at every chance I could get. It was an organic process to become an advisor as I was being asked by myriad friends and colleagues for advice.  It was shortly after I realized I could make a living doing it!
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Marl Verabioff // LOAN-DILF // 2015
Other than centers such as The Getty, I’ve never experienced art this way. What kind of feedback have you received about this exhibition?
People have been “delightfully” overwhelmed, they have mentioned enjoying having so many works to experience. The excitement of turning a corner and seeing something different and unexpected is a fantastical experience.
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Christopher Reynolds // video installation
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Owen Kydd // With Your Shadows // 2016
With the current political climate, what kind of efforts do you foresee within the contemporary art world?
​
Anytime there is dramatic political change, artists and culture rise up in response. Whether with blatant statements, or with process change and enhanced creativity - there will be a surge of new work that is truly inspirational.  Whatever your opinion on the new president, one thing is certain - disruption will take place, and positive movement in the art world, and I believe, enhanced investment in buying work.
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Amir Fallah // Evil Eye // installation // 2016
Photos // Josh White

For a full artist list, check out the exhibiton's website:
Human Condition​
2231 S. Western Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90018
Exhibition through November 30th
Hours | Fri, Sat and Sun 11:00 am - 6:00 pm

You can also see the works on Artsy
​
​#TheHospital
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Up Close and Wearable: Tides

9/28/2016

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Preview by Nazish Chunara

Tides is a series of wearable garments by Amabelle Aguiluz, whose work we've been following since the beginning of the year. ​Her influences very much derive from bodies of water and the organisms that live in them. From the first time I saw her work at Art Share LA to her collaborative residency with Szalt Dance Co and their production of Water Stories, we've seen so much growth and transformation in the making and function of her hand spun, machine knit, designs. Materials include found, donated yarns, and 100% fair trade cotton, allowing the artist to keeping the project eco-friendly. ​
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Amabelle has worked with fashion in the past, so when I visited her studio her for an interview for our Spring issue, I asked if she'd do it again. Needless to say, I'm extremely excited about this! 
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I wanted to work with light and shadow to see the knitted textures in motion. The goal was to see how each of the pieces transform through layering by building texture upon texture.
Tides is a project inspired by sea foam and water created without set patterns. Each piece is unique and would be difficult to replicate. I started with experimenting with small shapes relying on intuitive knitting to guide me. Then I molded and hand stitched each knit swatch to build each garment. The process became a puzzle and each shape became part of a collage. The layers show stages of growth and my interest in texture and volume. The knitting approach happens very organically; it is how I relate to the way patterns form in nature and in the ocean - free flowing, never creating the same shape twice.
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Amabelle Aguiluz is an artist living and working in downtown Los Angeles. Her practice incorporates clothing, textile, fiber sculpture and installation processes that study rhythm, nature, poetic expression and human experience captured through the repetitive motions of crafting. She studied at Politecnico di Milano, Italy and graduated in 2011 at The Fashion Institute of Technology, New York BFA in Fashion Design with an emphasis in Knitwear Design and Textiles. Her installation and wearable artwork has been exhibited at Art Share LA, MorYork Gallery, The Last Bookstore for Maiden LA 2016, Women's Center for Creative Work as part of LA's Public Art Biennial Current LA: Water in Los Angeles and The Triennale Internationale des arts textiles en Outaouais, Canada. ​
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Designer // Amabelle Aguiluz  // @amabelleaguiluz
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Photographer // Mike Carreiro // @mikecarreiro

Model // Ashley Chung // @chungashley
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Hair // Sydney Costley // @sydney_costley

Stylist // Natalie Hemmati

MUA // Aaron Paul // @aaronpaulbeauty

These Days LA // @thesedays.la (for those of you who have your eye on the new organic cotton bulky knit sweater)
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GROWTH / DECAY -Review

7/5/2016

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GROWTH / DECAY
Jun 30, 2016 - Aug 20, 2016
             Paradigm - Phillidelphia, PA                                                   Antler -Portland, OR                                   Gallery hours: Tues, Thurs, Sat 12:00pm - 6:00pm                          Gallery hours:M - Sat 11am - 6pm , Sun 11am - 5pm                         
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Michelle Konczyk // Metempsychosis
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Michelle Konczyk // Atrophy

Review by Danielle Schlunegger-Warner

Growth/Decay was co-curated by Susannah Kelly and Neil Perry of Antler Gallery with Sara McCorriston and Jason Chen from Paradigm Gallery. Both Galleries were started by artists and enthusiasts that wanted to create a space for building community and showing the work of emerging artists. Growth/Decay was a great opportunity for artists to gain exposure in a new city and broaden their network of fellow emerging and established artists.  I believe it is also a good push for galleries to show work by new artists and reengage viewers by refreshing their rosters. While I still loved pieces by artists that both galleries had shown before, I was personally delighted to learn about Michelle Konczyk's stunning works in watercolor, as well as Nick Pedersen's surreal digital environments. I am looking forward to seeing this model used more in galleries across the country and internationally. 

The opening at Antler drew a large crowd staying packed all evening for Alberta St.'s Last Thursday art walk in Portland. While attending the opening I had the opportunity to speak with the curators and a few of the artists visiting from Philadelphia.  Sara McCorriston explained to me that when the two galleries were conceiving the show, they needed to find a theme broad enough that could facilitate two pieces from all the artists. "We gave each other the opposite theme... I see Antler as more of a 'growth' gallery, and Paradigm leans more towards themes of decay... "

The abundance of flowers and animals that were present in these artworks and previous exhibitions show the curators' draw to artists working with themes of nature. This is certainly a true for Antler Gallery. David Rice, Christina Mrozik, Brin Levinson, and Zoe Keller are just a few examples of artists that speak to artists' connection with nature and their reaction to human led climate change. While still within the themes of nature, Paradigm generally seems to curate towards the breakdown, complexities, and the absurdities of being human in a natural world by bringing in artists like Drew Leshko, Caitlin McCormack, Nick Penderson and Jeremy Hush to their roster.
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 All of the works Growth/Decay can be viewed online and purchased through Antler Gallery & Paradigm Gallery 

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Press Release 

Paradigm Gallery and Antler Gallery are excited to present a co-curated group exhibition which spans two themes and two cities, with an opening reception on each coast. Both galleries invited 16 artists, asking them to make two pieces tackling the themes of Growth and Decay.

We live in a time when progress and destruction -- physical, economic, and sociological -- seem to go hand in hand. This theme opens up space to consider the binary nature of the world we live in. The theme was selected as we felt it was universal enough to be explored by the vast majority of artists yet also offered a distinct duality which fulfills the desire to open different shows in each city. Both aspects of the theme needed to be cohesive with the other but also be able to stand alone as its own show in isolation, as all of the "Growth" works will be on display in Philadelphia at Paradigm Gallery and all of the "Decay" works will be on display at Antler Gallery in Portland, with openings less than one week apart. The works may be viewed as stand alone pieces, but many also serve as diptych works.​
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