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The New Contemporary Art Magazine
Bringing two, varied backgrounds and sensibilities, Oliver Vernon and Christian Calabro collaborate on visceral, abstract mixed-media pieces. A show at Kirk Gallery, running through March 1, offers examples of this partnership through a dynamic set of works. A statement says that “parallel interests in art history stemming from Kurt Schwitters and early Modernist movements, their creative kinship developed over years before the artistic collaborations began in 2010.”
Canadian artist Alex Garant's "double-eyed" portraits, featured here on our blog, have become instantly recognizable for the dizzying effect they create. Her style of overlaying her subject's features like eyes and lips produces multiple images that are captivating but admittedly, also challenging to look at; for some, her works create phantom images, and even the feeling of being intoxicated. Her new series of portraits, titled "Wakefulness", is inspired by how our brains enter into a state of consciousness when we wake up.
London based artist Nathan James uses different approaches each time he has a new idea to develop. This "lack" of a signature style makes his art unpredictable, but he might be converging into one thing. Nathan James will soon make his US solo debut at Corey Helford Gallery in Los Angeles with "Dark Matter", featuring his "Creepshow" series that we featured here on our blog, and introducing a new series that he calls "Faceless". We sat down with him to talk more about the inspiration behind his upcoming show.
With the rise of technology, experiencing the natural world in modern society has become almost completely irrelevant. New Jersey based painter Angela Gram portrays this tension between nature and humanity in her paintings of dispersed animals. As animals become less relevant to our every day or apparent needs, we lose our connection to them entirely, to the point where they become like figments of our imaginations. She represents this idea by deconstructing the animal body. Tropical birds, black panthers, and river dolphins are just a few of the exotic species that she distorts as if their forms were disappearing into thin air.
Minimal and quiet, Brian Robertson’s artworks seem to be both a homage to cubism and other various abstract art movements, and to our curious obsession with space and the universe. Going against typical physiognomy, the LA-based artist dissembles people and objects with clean acrylic shapes and lines juxtaposed with controlled dashes of spray paint. Looking closer, you’ll also notice that various portals appear in his work — a black hole doorway to a starry universe, a triangular cut-out through which a blue line travels — perhaps a commentary on the loneliness of the human condition and the vast wonder of the universe. On a more humorous level, Robertson names every one of his people or objects with tongue-in-cheek titles such as Mr Pot-Head Worm-Mouth or Mr Yellow-Brick Shit-House.
Illinois based artist Anne Harris has a Renaissance-inspired technique, but there's an emotional realism in her portraits. One of her primary interests as a painter is to portray the complex relationship between other's perceptions versus our own. Her 21st century women evoke a certain self awareness in this respect. This may result from Harris' process which involves studying her own features in the mirror while she paints. Since her early work, her style has become progressively softer and more simplified.
In 1979, Andy Warhol conceived "Shadows" with a goal that would not be realized. Vibrant with the high energy of a 70s disco, the 102-piece painting was designed to wrap around Studio 54, but it never did. Yes, painting, singular. Although in multiple parts, Warhol's design is a visual décor meant to be shown as a whole. It has not been displayed in it's entirety quite like this until today, now on view at the MOCA Los Angeles.
The work of Taiwanese photographer Yung Cheng Lin (aka “3cm”) is a sensitive and surreal observation of the female condition. Sexuality, menstruation, maturity and birth are all running themes in his photos, an ongoing larger body of work. His critics take two sides; most praise his abstract, personal take on a woman's experience while others rejects it as objectification. 3cm rarely, if ever, grants interviews or interpretations of his work, so we can’t defend either. He wants his audience to look at his photos without interference. Take a look at 3cm’s latest work after the jump.