In a new show at Weinstein Gallery in San Francisco, Miss Van’s work is shown alongside an artist born 70 years before her, yet also exploring both surrealist and feminine sensibilities. A dialogue occurs between Van’s new work and that of Leonor Fini, who the spot says “was arguably the most ferociously and heroically independent woman artist of the 20th century.” Fini passed away in 1996.
Urban Nation in Berlin celebrated the 8th and, reportedly, final chapter of its “Project M” exhibition series this past weekend. Curated in collaboration with London’s StolenSpace Gallery, the exhibit revealed new murals, ten large scale panels at the nearby Urban Nation office, and a collection of new works at Urban Nation’s gallery space by 10 artists: Shepard Fairey, D*Face, Maya Hayuk, Cyrcle, Word To Mother, Miss Van, The London Police, Joram Roukes, Snik, and Evoca1. Most traveled to Berlin for the occasion, making this installment a representation of Urban Nation’s international reach through its collaborators.
Martin Wittfooth
An esoteric concept that fascinated the first Surrealists, an “égrégore” is a sort of mob mentality. Scholar Pierre Mabille defined it as “a group of humans endowed with a personality different from that of the individuals forming it.” This concept of collective consciousness was the springboard for Yves Laroche Gallery’s eponymous exhibition, the gallery’s largest group show to date. With dozens of artists, many of whom are associated with the Pop Surrealist movement, the show builds its momentum from the multitudes of distinct yet complementary aesthetics joined together. Among the line-up are names that will be well-known to our readers: Josh Agle (Shag), Martin Wittfooth, Amy Sol, Joe Sorren, Liz McGrath, Annie Owens (Hi-Fructose co-editor-in-chief), AJ Fosik, Miss Van and many others. Take a look at our sneak peek below before “Égrégore” opens on October 30 at Yves Laroche Gallery in Montreal.
Soze Gallery in Downtown Los Angeles came to our attention over a year ago and has been steadily turning out bold shows by established and emerging artists, usually of the street art scene. By bold, we mean artists here sometimes go left field in favor of experimentation and collaboration. Among those who have shown on Soze’s walls, both inside and out, are Miss Van, Ciro, Moneyless, Dave Kinsey, Cyrcle, Retna, Victor Castillo, and Dan Quintana to name a few. The gallery is now moving shop to West Hollywood, starting this Saturday with “Further Adventures in Abstraction” by graffiti artist Remi Rough.
Urban Spree Gallery in Berlin is now making preparations for their huge street art show opening September 18th, “DUBL TRUBL”. Curated by artist Dscreet, the exhibition will boast 80 names you might be familiar with- Miss Van & Ciro, Ghostpatrol & Merda, Lush & Dscreet, Tizer & Ebot, Anthony Lister, Dabs and Myla, Pure Evil, and many more. The project is aptly named in anticipation of ‘doubling up’ artists who will be collaborating in addition to showing new work. We previously reviewed Miss Van and Ciro’s collaborative work last September, making this an anniversary of sorts. The artists in this show are paired because of their clashing styles, rather than similarities, celebrating the spontaneity and improvisation that comes with collaboration. It’s always fun when artists who don’t normally work together join efforts.
Street art has been criticized for being a boy’s club, so for the few internationally-prominent female street artists out there, it has been vital to foster a sense of camaraderie across national borders. This May, StolenSpace Gallery in London brings together two prolific artists, Olek and Miss Van, for two side-by-side solo shows that are in direct dialogue with one another. The two artists are long-time friends and admirers of one another’s work, and though they have been included in many group shows and street art projects together (during Miami Art Basel last December, they created neighboring artworks in the public art nexus Wynwood Walls), this is their first joint gallery project.