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The New Contemporary Art Magazine

Tag: Chet Zar

Samuel Araya

Artist Chet Zar and collector-author Jeremy Wagner have co-curated "Conjoined Vs. Grotesque," a group show celebrating “the Denizens of the Dark.” The show arrives Jan. 19 at Copro Gallery and runs through Feb. 16. Artists on the roster include Zar himself (who was last featured on HiFructose.com here), Kazuhiro Tsuji, Jay Weinberg, Shane Pierce, Louie Becker, Matt Dangler, Gene Ambo, Claudio Bergamin, Max Verehin, Vincent Villafranca, Dan Harms, Mark Rudolph, Miroslav Petro, Zack Dunn, Dominic Holmes, Carin Hazmat, Magnus Gjoen, Ronald Gonzalez, Bob Tyrrell, Rob Smits, Kevin Estrada, Wes Benscoter, Ed Repka, Dan Seagrave, Andreas Marschall, Scott Musgrove, Ryan Matthew Cohn, and others.
In a new show at Copro Gallery in Santa Monica, Chet Zar revisits the classic baddies of pop culture with the show "Villains." Just as he does in his art, the artist is able to tether his fascination with the dark and dystopic to art history. “I am interested in the villain archetype as a subject matter,” Zar tells us. “I always have been fascinated by them and I thought it would be fun to do my own take on some. Every great story has a great villain. They are just as important as the heroes. In fact, they create the opportunity for heroes. But more to the point, I just think villains are more interesting and fun to think about. I mean, which part of the Bosch’s ‘Garden of Earthly Delights’ triptych do people talk about? ‘The Garden of Eden’ or ‘The Last Judgement’? I think it’s at the core of what Dark Art is all about- dark imagery is just more fun and interesting to explore.”
This month, Copro Gallery in Santa Monica once again pays homage to Mexican director Guillermo del Toro, helmer of horror-tinged films like Hellboy, Pacific Rim, Pan's Labyrinth, and others. “Inspirations, Curiosities & Other Oddities” collects work from more than 50 artists. In turn, the show also pays tribute to the names that influenced Del Toro: Edgar Allen Poe, HP Lovecraft, Mary Shelley, and others.
More than 20 artists participate in the Painted Prosthetic Project, which raises money to assist homeless and wounded veterans. A gallery show, kicking off on Jan. 6, displays the works–created on prosthetic legs– before they’re auctioned off online at the end of the month. The gallery hosting the show is Arch Enemy Arts, which is based in Philadelphia. After the end of the run there, the pieces are shipped to Orlando to be auctioned off.
Chet Zar, a painter, digital animator, and make-up effects artist, brings his dark, dystopic vision to Copro Gallery with the solo exhibition "DY5TOPIA.” Running through Nov. 5, the exhibition transforms the entire gallery to match the doom and gloom of Zar's bizarre world of monsters. Yet, unlike other fictional worlds, the monsters and creatures in Zar’s images are sometimes suffering, fearful, or in a broader state of anxiety. Zar was last featured on HiFructose.com here, as part of his 3D group exhibition “Conjoined.”
Surrealist and sculptor Chet Zar's brain child, the "Conjoined" group exhibition, notorious for its mixture of whimsical and disturbing art works, has compelled crowds to Santa Monica's Copro Gallery for years. Featured here on our blog, the show is a presentation of 2D and 3D pieces by internationally known and up and coming artists alike who delve into subjects that are the stuff of our dreams and nightmares. The idea first came about in 2010, when Zar, who comes from a background in move special effects where 3D maquettes are a big part of the process, was eager to see a show devoted to more sculptural forms. "Conjoined" celebrated it's 6th anniversary last Saturday with the opening of "Conjoined 666", named after the "number of the beast" in most manuscripts of chapter 13 of the Book of Revelation, of the New Testament, and also in popular culture.
Tomorrow night, Chet Zar’s “The Demon Show” and Jasmine Worth’s “Dark Night of the Soul” side by side solo shows are opening at Last Rites Gallery in NYC. Both shows will be on view May 23rd through July 3rd, 2015. In "Dark Night of the Soul", Worth explores the act of transformation through suffering. Inspired by both the occult and female experience, the artist utilizes meticulous layering techniques to craft scenes from fairytales gone awry, swirling seamlessly between the sweet and the morbid. With “The Demon Show,” Zar’s subject matter is surreal and darkly humorous yet genuine in its existence, often revealing humankind at its barest form.
Last weekend, Santa Monica's Copro Gallery debuted their exhibition "Conjoined V," guest curated by artist Chet Zar. True to Zar's own dark, surreal aesthetic, the annual sculpture show features a variety of emerging and established artists with a penchant for all things creepy, curious, and bizarre. Kazu Tsuji's gigantic, silicone bust of Salvador Dali, Jessica Joslin's metal-adorned taxidermy animals, and surreal imaginings by Craig LaRotonda and Jim McKenzie are among the myriad of bold and pop culture-inspired works in the show. Take a look at some highlights from "Conjoined V" below and see it in person through February 14.
With Halloween just around the corner, we're seeing many exhibitions exploring darker themes and subject matter inspired by the season- from new works by the Black Moon collective to "The 13th Hour" at Last Rites gallery, and even Yayoi Kusama's "Pumpkins". Among the spookiest is opening tonight at Copro Gallery; Chet Zar's "ALL HALLOWS' EVE", coinciding with their group show "Roadside Attractions" (previewed here). Lover of horror cinema, monsters, movie props and all things Halloween, Zar contributes a new body of work with some of the holiday's most popular images in his style. Glowing skulls, witches, ghosts and the mysterious unknown are all represented in these colorful 60s-inspired illustrations.

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