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On View: “Laluzapalooza 2015” Juried Group Show at La Luz de Jesus

Closing this weekend is La Luz de Jesus gallery's juried show, "Laluzapalooza", which sets out to find and highlight new names from the LA art scene each year. Since the '80s, this exhibition has seen several iterations and thousands of submissions spanning kitsch to pop culture and La Luz's claim to fame, Pop Surrealism. This year's installment is as eclectic as ever with a focus on labor-intensive work of all mediums. Take a look at our photos from the show after the jump!


Jeff Gillette

Closing this weekend is La Luz de Jesus gallery’s juried show, “Laluzapalooza”, which sets out to find and highlight new names from the LA art scene each year. Since the ’80s, this exhibition has seen several iterations and thousands of submissions spanning kitsch to pop culture and La Luz’s claim to fame, Pop Surrealism. This year’s installment is as eclectic as ever with a focus on labor-intensive work of all mediums. These include artists like Jeff Gillette (Hi-Fructose Collected 3), showing three new paintings of environments destroyed by natural disaster, including a dismal vision of future-Disneyland. Self-described “magic-realist” Genie Melisande offers figurative paintings of nudes accompanied by birds, representing themes of vanity and deliquesce. Other stand outs include an impeccably detailed, science-fiction inspired piece by Robert S. Connett (featured here), a new ink painting by Stephanie Inagaki, where she takes the opportunity to play with color, and a textured oil portrait by Christine Wu. Take a look at our photos from the exhibition below for more of these emerging talents. “Laluzapalooza” will be on view through this Sunday, March 29th.


Jeff Gillette


Dion Macellari


Stephanie Inagaki


Gabe Larson


Simon Kangiser


Ron Norman


Robert Steven Connett


Peca


Joshua Flint


Joka


Genie Melisande


Genie Melisande


Donna Abbate


Danni Shinya Luo


Christine Wu


Caitlin McCormack


Adrian Cherry

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The work of Los Angeles based artist Robert S. Connett, featured here on our blog, portrays a dark and bizarre world teaming with microscopic life. In his own words, "a collection of things that I find extremely appealing and engaging. I paint things that enchant me, and I paint because I enjoy seeing my imagination come to life." His images present rare and overlooked creatures, from aquatic organisms like ciliates, shrimps, and crabs, to a myriad of butterflies and rainbow-colored grasshoppers, that he best describes as miracles of life.
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