Warholian is proud to present Japanese calligraphy artist Aoi Yamaguchi, alongside composer Sebastian Plano and contemporary dancers Celine Alwyn and Emmaly Wiederholt, in her performance of “Unibirth” at ArtPadSF.  The performance starts at 7:30 pm on Saturday May 19th, 2012 and will run approximately 20 minutes.  ArtPadSF takes place at the historic Phoenix Hotel located at 601 Eddy Street in San Francisco.

Tickets to the ArtPadSF fair are $20 at the door, and $15 online at http://www.ArtPadSF.com/

The performance will take place at the end of the fair day at 7:30 sharp (20 minute performance), with doors on the fair closing at 8pm.  The fair is open all day from 12:00PM – 8:00PM and features a great lineup of galleries and other events.

Unibirth is a live performance art project which is conceptualized, directed and performed by Aoi Yamaguchi, in collaboration with Argentinian contemporary composer Sebastian Plano, contemporary dancer Celines Alwyn and Emmaly Wiederholt. Inspired by unifying concepts of “universe” and “birth”, Unibirth celebrates the reincarnation of lives that exist in nature and signifies the infinite cycle of the universe, incorporating the physical movement of calligraphy, contemporary dance, sounds and visuals. The dancer represents the spirit of humanity – the music, representing the earth’s ensemble, and the poetry, written on the bodies and garments by the artist, awaken the spirit from long hibernation. Blessed in the brush strokes and divine sounds, the newborn spirit will be sublimed into the nature’s resonance.

Warholian is a press-based arts publication situated in San Francsico, California. Warholian focuses on both emerging artists, and the communities that emerge around their particular aesthetics. The website is headed by Editor in Chief/Head Photographer Michael Cuffe and has become known as one of one of the formost names covering the world of contemporary art and culture. Warholian presents an unprecedented view of the current art scene, it’s patrons, and the inspiring figures within it.

Founder of Jetset Graffiti, Daniel Lahoda, has created yet another haven for street art at Downtown LA’s LALA Gallery. Officially opening on April 21 with the aptly titled introductory exhibition “LA Freewalls Inside,” Lahoda’s first curated show was a major success with the gallery losing track of attendees once it hit over 1000.

Located in the up-and-coming Art District in a building that once served as a meat packing plant, the gallery effectively utilizes the abundance of vast industrial space. Outside, you are greeted by large murals from Cryptik, How and Nosm, Retna, Uglar Works and Push signaling that you have arrived.  The OBEY lined staircase leads you into the second floor gallery. Inside, the walls are adorned with an abundance of work from established and emerging street artists alike.  An impressive collection from the likes of Anthony Lister, Askew One, Becca, Cern One, Chris Brand, Cryptik, Cyrcle, Dale Vn Marshall, Dan Witz, Daze, Dee Dee Cheriel, Evan Skredestu, How and Nosm, INSA, Jaybo, Kim West, Kofie, Lady Aiko, Ludo, Poesia, Push, Pyro, Ripo, Risk, Ron English, Saber, Shepard Fairey, Swoon and Zes filled the space.

Lahoda opened LALA with the intent to serve as a place that artists involved in public art could also exhibit their studio work in a curated setting as well as to connect with admirers of the movement. For the last two years he has dedicated his time to encourage public art and improve community perceptions to the art form. He spearheaded the LA Freewalls program and helped renowned artists such as JR, Saber, Retna, Craola, Anthony Lister, Cern, Roa, Kofie, Swoon, Ron English, How and Nosm, and Risk secure walls for mural installations in Downtown LA.

To learn more about the LALA Gallery and future exhibitions visit http://www.lalaarts.com/. “LA Freewalls Inside” will remain on display until June 8.

-written by Keisha Raines with photos by Birdman

When you kick a can or shoot holes in the sides, after its been laying discarded in a gully for some time, little insects and life are likely to surge out to seek refuge. Then left alone as it’s intruder loses interest, it lies abandoned, quietly settling back into the natural landscape as the earth begins to engulf it once again. This cycle of interaction between the world and human kind is a tension explored, reconciled and opened up again in Brenton Bostwicks work. The Doorway Series is an eight panel show of Bostwick’s continual investment in the ‘organic movement’ of life, where the interchanges of humanity and ecology are unlatched with shot up old cans, polished wood fragments and other scavenged items.

Brenton Bostwick with "Sightless Vision" limited edition print (20 only) available by clicking the picture above.

Taking Duchamps ideas of the ready-made and fashioning them in a way suitable to the early Assemblage artist, the Doorway Series builds on a tradition of finding beauty in the everyday and the forgotten. Bostwicks sources his material, through a system of forging the landscape for pieces of broken foliage or discarded trash, which he claims, polishes and sorts into a system maybe only discernible to himself. He then creates by referencing the different bins for the right fragment of wood, fitting them together as if a puzzle pre-arranged for him. The resulting use of the ‘natural ready-made’ is a refreshing position to the old masters tricks creating pieces that are meditative to the natural and urban environment.

Where the artist typically deals directly with the figure and human form in his work, these pieces examine the traces or residues of the figure in its absence. The disregarded or functional products of society, whose structure is forever being challenged by the decompositional properties of nature. “Tapped Out,” one work in the series displays the mechanics of a human made hydration system where the water flows as if it were vines, growing directly on top of the intended moisture. As the artist would say, where we “attempt to organize, categorize, label and box the world around us, a massive undertaking given the effortless motion of nature as it works to reintegrate our tireless and hilariously futile efforts.” A similar work outside of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, where a facet springs from under the buildings name plate, spewing thick ribbons of bronzed(*not sure if it was bronze or wood?) sprawling flows, leaking carefully down onto the sidewalk.

The primary use of wood in the series is a trademark of Bostwick who was previously employed as a carpenter. Each piece takes on the skilled craftsmanship of an experienced hand in wood work. The intricate details and construction of the pieces contribute to the very building the work states ‘nature calls into question.’ An endless cycle of systemizing, erecting and understanding only to be problematize; resonating flux and ambiguity. The collection strives through this interrogation of natural and human struggle for control, never asserting which side it is on.

The original works by Brenton Bostwick are now on sale at the online gallery of Patron of the Arts. In addition to the Doorway Series a limited edition print is also being released, marking the debut of the artists return to paint- and on Wednesday, May 9th,2012, Patron of the Arts will be releasing a  very limited edition print of “Sightless Vision”, which can be purchased directly, here.

The ‘doorway‘ becomes an apt metaphor in which to interpret Bostwicks artistic transition. Situated around the notion of ‘sightless vision’, the painting is from a larger collection currently in progress. Continually seeking new means of representation and thriving through the growth of learning from new materials, Bostwicks progression from sculptor to painting has been much anticipated. He proceeds to examine the relationship and movement of natural life, with a palette of reds, greens and oranges opened up through the use of acrylic. Where the assemblage of found object allows Bostwick to create pieces of physicality, the paintings become doorways to different imaginative spaces.

- written by Emily Kramer and with photos by Michael Cuffe

To purchase Brenton’s latest print “Sightless Vision” visit:  Patron of the Arts Gallery Store

For more about Brenton visit:  http://www.BrentonBostwick.com

If there’s one thing Brett Amory isn’t doing right now, it’s waiting. Debuting this month at The Outsiders gallery in Newcastle, UK, Amory’s new collection Waiting 101 explores in its subject matter the everyday quiet often lonely moments in life, through the very social medium of art and technology. Amory is best known for his Waiting series, which has spanned the last decade and delves deep into the shared psyche and simplicity of city life. But for now, he’s not waiting. He’s launching the collection in Newcastle, jetting around Europe, and putting up some seriously cool works along the way. Warholian finally caught up with him to speak with him about the exhibition.

“This show is documenting my everyday day to day,” he tells me. “My everyday experience and how it crosses over into others’.” Focused on landscapes and people in the Bay Area, and documenting them through the immediacy of technology never too far from his fingertips, Amory captures very real and subtle moments of a city dweller’s experience.

We all find ourselves doing it, whether it’s for the train, the rain, the sun, the job, the call, the girl, the guy—or both? For the past ten years Amory has been exploring the concept of waiting, through several different techniques and building from a vast repertoire of artistic experience. The series is an evolving, living document of his daily life, following often isolated figures in shapes and shadows, making compelling use of negative space.

The artist’s progressing inspiration, from his series based on the curios anonymity of passport photos and the printing techniques of a modern copy shop, to the delicate realism of painting on wooden panels and even taking aspects of Picasso’s cubism, Amory’s evolution as an artist has turned out a unique and breathtaking perspective.

The simple but sometimes profound act of waiting has been the focus of Amory’s maturation as an artist and technology has only helped to enhance that development. “Technology is always a part of the process,” the artist, who makes use of his iPhone’s camera and the app Instagram (recently bought by FaceBook for one billion dollars) to settle on which subject matter to paint. “But the challenge is not letting technology control the painting. I’m not mimicking what a computer can do, I am using the computer as a tool available to me in the way David Hockney used a fax machine to make art.”

In fact, the process is a major role in the aesthetic of Amory’s work. From photography to Photoshop, experimentation with printing and ultimately painting, Waiting 101 is a collection that conveys deep emotion through very stylized methods. He explains that while formal art education teaches how, it cannot teach the concept behind it.

Through his decade-long experimentation with his subject matter, he admits, “I used to look at the aesthetic of a piece first, but have learned since then that there’s so much more to art. How it’s made is more important, because your viewer is forced to focus.”

In this collection, the viewer is forced to focus on a common but overlooked theme in modern society, the anticipation of the next moment. Through his career Amory has been searching to give voice to the anonymous and familiar characters whose lives intersect with his on the regular. But Waiting 101 approaches this subject matter having closely intertwined these characters with everyone’s lives. Just follow Brett Amory on Instagram to see the digital snippets of a Bay Area commute, the homeless man standing on the same corner every evening, the woman waiting wispily for the bus, and you can actually play a role in the subject matter he chooses to paint. Technology has afforded him an easy spontaneity and immediacy that can connect the emotion behind a moment to a wider audience.

Its something he himself has gone through, and most of us face at some point in our urban lives—the sense of isolation among a crowd. Over the past ten years, Amory tells me he has been, “experimenting, trying out different ways of putting together images and asking myself, ‘What am I about?’ without getting too caught up in the recognition or what people are talking about.”

But for now, the waiting is over for this internationally acclaimed artist. People are definitely talking about Waiting 101.

- written by Aimee Dewing with photos by Michael Cuffe for Warholian

For more on ‘Waiting 101′ at The Outsiders gallery visit: http://www.theoutsiders.net/

Visit Brett Amory’s official website here: http://www.BrettAmory.com

Follow Brett Amory on Facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/BrettAmory

The Luggage Store gallery can be found off just off the beaten streets of 6th and Market in the Tenderloin District of San Francisco, hidden within a stickered entrance it is cultural gem in this rough and tumble neighborhood. In their latest show entitled ‘Me and My _____’ artists Rye Purvis, Erlin Geffrard, Henry Gunderson, Chad Hasegawa, and Spencer Keeton Cunningham transformed The Luggage Store into a set of five site specific installations.

Assembled by Gallery Director and Curator Daryl Smith, ‘Me and My _____’ highlights five top emerging artists in San Francisco art scene all under one roof. The Luggage Store, also known as The 509 Cultural Center is a non profit artist run multidisciplinary organization which organizes the community through the art exhibitions, educational experiences, and programs. It has become widely known for it’s commitment to creating culture, and offering a voice to artists within the Tenderloin area.

Chad Hasegawa is well known for his bears adorning mural walls throughout the city. The artist continues to receive recognition for his work, recently participating in both shows at White Walls and 941 Geary galleries. In his unique abstract manner, Hasegawa creates animals that breath color and life – often on a extreme scale. The artist created two wonderfully beautiful works for ‘Me and My ____’, as well as a bear “cave” in which patrons were invited to enter. Inside they were greeted with 4 wooden stools and a burning fire, a obvious retreat from the gallery conditions outside.

Erlin Geffrard has an energy to his work that not even paint seems to control. His paintings are oftentimes frantic, with imagery exploding off the walls, sometimes in simple and childlike manner. Upon closer inspection stories are revealed, and symbology takes center stage. In his site specific installation, Geffrard focused on creating a chapel that pays homage to figures from his own identity and within the rap community. His “saints” are tattooed, carry firearms, and drive lamborghinis while centered around the walls of his faux stained glass room.

Henry Gunderson continues to be an artist that is gaining recognition for his work, and many well known established artists and gallery owners mention his name regularly in conversation. Gunderson’s style is always highly conceptual, and can be best described as a visual puzzle that can be read in many ways. For ‘Me and My ____’ the artist brought in a number of his paper works and tacked them to corkboards hung within the gallery space. As if they were no more than notes on the wall, the works were allowed to simply stand on their own – a simple yet powerful concept. For his installation in the show, Gunderson covered a television with a “ramp” of dirt in which a bike can be seen embedded in the wall just over Hasegawa’s bear cave.

While continuing to build a body of mural collaborations ranging from Miami to San Francisco, Spencer Keeton Cunningham is finding acceptance in both street and fine art settings for his work. Cunningham produced an amazing painting for ‘Me and My ____’ which touches on native american aesthetics, while at the same time making it something completely new and original. Upon entering the a large wood frame box on which the painting hangs, one finds a video installation streaming clips of vintage war footage sitting next to a book with an upside down cross. Cunningham’s work continues to speak volumes about an individual’s place in society, and where culture fits within the mix of influences and emotions.

Rye Purvis blends iconography and celebrity into a mishmash of images that startle and intrique the viewer. For her installation, a cat clad in a bikini and a individual made of junk food (complete with cheeseburger head) sit on a set of swings. A painting of a woman (appearing to emerge from a floral wallpaper pattern) was hung within the pair, offering a playfulness to the commentary about what we ingest mentally and physically from our world.

‘Me and My ____’ at The Luggage Story is an impressive exhibition of talent, concepts, and styles from a set of artists that seem to be forging a clear path in the contemporary art scene. We highly recommend checking out The Luggage Store, and future exhibitions at this inspiring location.

- written and photographed by Michael Cuffe for Warholian

For more on The Luggage Store visit: http://www.luggagestoregallery.org/

For more on any of the artists in this story visit their respective sites:

Chad Hasegawa: http://chadhasegawa.com/

Erlin Geffrard: http://www.bitchipaint.com/

Henry Gunderson: http://henrygunderson.tumblr.com/

Spencer Keeton Cunningham: http://spencercunningham.com/

Rye Purvis: http://www.ryepurvis.com/

Paul Chatem is well known for his colorful, illustrative “gear” paintings in which the viewer can actually take hold of a piece of art and “turn” it into something else entirely.  His unique approach attempts to cause a physical interaction between the work and gallery goer within the exhibition.

For his most recent show “Another Man’s Hero” Chatem slowly moves away from acrylic based works, and back into oils – a switch which truly adds another level of color brilliance into his work.  Mr. Chatem has always had an illustrative hand, but it is within his paintings entitled “I Owe You One Pig, By The Way, Your Daughter’s Pregnant” and the complimentary work “I Owe You One Daughter, By The Way, Your Pig’s Pregnant” in which we are seeing another level to Chatem’s work altogether.  Symbology takes center stage in “Another Man’s Hero”, and it is by far the best body of work from Chatem thusfar.

We sat down with the artist recently to ask him about his art, past, and future…

(Warholian’s MC)  Can you tell us a little about your particular aesthetic, and the subject matter you focus on in this particular body of work?

(Artist Paul Chatem) My aesthetic is a mixture of rusty tin cans, abandoned buildings, greasy machinery and classic cartoon illustration. The subject matter in the new show is a mixture of characters that ride the fine line between right and wrong. The main idea for the show was to explore the idea of one persons perspective of themselves versus how others see them. One man’s hero is another man’s villain. 

(Warholian’s MC)  How did you first decide you wanted to become and artist?  Your background?  What formal or informal training have you received?

(Artist Paul Chatem)  I always sketched as a kid. Mostly copying cartoon characters from the newspaper and comic books. As an early teen, a friend of mine showed me  E.C. comics, underground comics of the 60′s, and contemporary alternative comic artists such as Daniel Clowes and Jim Woodring. This really sparked my imagination and broadened my view of the world. After seeing the Helter Skelter show in 1992 at the MOCA in Los Angeles, which included Robert Williams and Raymond Pettibon, it was all over, my mind was corrupted and I had no choice but to make art.

(Warholian’s MC)  How has your process and subject matter evolved over time?  

(Artist Paul Chatem)  My process is always changing. I started out with the focus on ink drawings, learned how to paint in oils in art school and was taught faux finish techniques and carpentry in the movie business. Now I jump around mixing everything I’ve learned over the years to get the desired effect I’m looking for on that particular day.

(Warholian’s MC)  Who/what are some of your major influences?

(Warholian’s MC)  What’s next for you?  Any exciting projects or opportunities?  

(Artist Paul Chatem)  I’ve got a show coming up this summer in Germany at the Feinkunst Krueger Gallery, then in 2014 I’ll be in Italy at the Dorothy Circus Gallery. Other than that I’ll just be grinding away as always doing the best I can do with the time, money and energy I have to produce the work that I want.

Another Man’s Hero runs from April 14th – May 5th 2012 at White Walls gallery in the Tenderloin District of San Francisco.

- interview and photos by Michael Cuffe of Warholian

For more on the show, and available works visit:  http://www.shootinggallerysf.com/another-mans-hero

To find out more about Michael Page visit:  http://www.whitewallssf.com/

Michael Page is no stranger to color.  He has some of the most bold, and profound dream imagery circling contemporary art circles today.

“Vital force, evolution, and the development of organisms is what Michael Page, San Francisco-based artist, has based this latest body of work on,” states White Walls.  ”With a healthy interest in new life, spirituality, and the infinite variations of consciousness, Michael paints dreamscapes of alternative realities.”

The strength of Page’s work is in both scale and color palet.  In ‘Élan Vital’ many of the works art 5′ foot or bigger, while his contrasting tones and hues bring a warmth and depth to each piece.  His imagery and figures blend the borders of reality, and captivate the view within their surrealistic aspects.

Page creates his work by “tapping into” his own consciousness and trusting where it takes him – giving life to a body of work that travels from subject to subject – much the same was as an actual thought does.

We recently had the chance to ask Page a few questions about ’Élan Vital’ and where he’s headed with his career…

(Warholian’s MC)  Can you tell us a little about your particular aesthetic, and the subject matter you focus on in this particular body of work?

(Artist Michael Page)  I started creating this show at the same time my wife and I found out she was pregnant with our first child. Through that mind set, I began to create work reflecting the personal journal of life that we all go through. Essentially looking to create Pneuma, the life force, the spirit in us all.

(Warholian’s MC)  How did you first decide you wanted to become and artist?  Your background?  What formal or informal training have you received?

(Artist Michael Page)  The love to create art goes back as far as I can remember.  As a child it really was the one thing that I could turn to in times of confusion and conflict. It was always mine and no one could take that away from me. As I got older all the lines just started to connect. Meeting my wife and her inspiration really helped me find that artist again, the artist I was as a child. In the beginning, I had to work a full time job and paint only at nights and the weekends. At one point early on I was really into fashion and decided to go to school for it, in particular I wanted to design skateboard shoes. So I went to school part time and then somehow found myself in Florence, Italy, for six months taking art classes. While I was there I had a studio to work in twenty four hours a day seven days a week and sort of just taught myself how to paint. That experience was incredibly liberating, really making me feel like that kid again making art. During those months I decided that painting was the only thing that I wanted to do. I pretty much was obsessed with it and did not look back. The structured format of school was very unappealing, with how they would teach a student the “correct way” to paint, so I dropped out and moved to San Francisco. Overall, I cannot step away from my art; it flows in my blood creating an obsession impossible to overcome.

(Warholian’s MC)  How has your process and subject matter evolved over time?  

(Artist Michael Page)  The process has definitely evolved over the years. When I first started out, I was interested in creating little narrative stories similar to page layouts of books. Now each piece is more conclusive and tells the story in its entirety. Basically, I started to feel I was getting pinned down to one specific genre of work and I couldn’t stand it. I have seen artist that I admired when I first started out continue with what they do and to this day they do the same thing they were doing ten years ago. I respect that of them but I knew that was not me. I could not just sit back and be comfortable with doing the same thing day in and day out for the rest of my life..it was becoming like a boring 9-5 job. So I broke free from it all. Interests from other galleries and artist were lost who were not into or understanding why I was changing. I would get a lot of “you look like this or that” without them knowing that I was exploring myself and my work and at times without any conscious meaning my work would cross paths of other artists..non intentional at all it’s just the way the process is. Such as the light bulb was invented by two separate people at the same time across two separate continents. It’s the way the wave of consciousness works, for we are all painting into the aether. I never cared what anyone said and still do not. I have kept evolving and kept searching and still do search and will always search using abstract forms and shapes to create my spirit and what calls to me.

(Warholian’s MC)  Who/what are some of your major influences?

(Warholian’s MC)  What’s next for you?  Any exciting projects or opportunities?  

(Artist Michael Page)  They only thing I have planned right now is to work on the commission paintings I have been promising for sometime and to hang out with my little boy. I’m waiting for other opportunities to arise without jumping into anything too quick and waiting for the right challenge to come.

Élan Vital’ runs from April 14th – May 5th 2012 at White Walls in the Tenderloin District of San Francisco.

- interview and photos by Michael Cuffe of Warholian

For more on available works visit: http://www.whitewallssf.com/

To visit Michael Page’s official website:http://michaelpageart.com/

There are two things that you must know about Greg Simkins, first he’s the nicest person you will probably ever meet. Secondly, his art will blow your mind. At the always lovely Merry Karnowsky Gallery, Greg, better known as Craola, amazed gallery attendees with his new body of work at the opening of “Cloud Theory.”

Renowned for his ability to create whimsical images with impressive details and superior technique, Craola’s work for “Cloud Theory,” was no different.  As the title of the show suggests, inspiration for the show came from above.  What started as a childhood game of staring at the sky and looking at clouds form and daydreaming them into shapes, became fuel for his recent work. “I wanted to see what parts of my imagination would stick to these puffy shapes when I sketched them onto canvas,” explains Craola. “I started with a loose cloud shape for each piece and allowed the creatures to invade them however it seemed natural.” The clouds morph into birds, killer whales and assortment of creatures both real and fictional.

Teacups and antiques found their way in several paintings in “Cloud Theory.” These items represent his way of balancing the hectic elements with serene items from his childhood. Growing up he spent a lot of time with his grandparents who collected tea sets and antiques, these items today bring him solace and revert him to a simpler time.

Craola’s work reads like a story, his continual use of characters intrigues viewers. The white knight plays a reoccurring and pivotal role in many paintings. He is his hero in the back story of his work who is allowed to experience venturing “through the looking glass”, into a made up world that he refers to as “The Outside”. The knight is a shape shifter of sorts and his suit helps him hold his form. “Anything and everything I paint makes sense in this world,” he explains.  “Which gives me artistic license to paint whatever I want. There are really no rules there except to express whatever is going on in my head. A story has crept in there throughout the years, one that I can’t reveal entirely here, but will do so in the future,” he continues.

He alluded to themes in his previous show, “The Pearl Thief.” Again we see the use of pearls to represent dreams, with black pearls symbolizing nightmares. Once each pearl hatched it contains creatures and images that the viewer would see in his paintings. Hidden inside a majority of Craola’s paintings is INLE, in reference to the black rabbit of INLE from the book Watership Down. To him the black rabbit represented being fearless of death. Fans with a good eye can also find 280 in select pieces from Craola, the number is indicates the page in the book you can find the description of the black rabbit.

Despite the crowd of people circling Craola at any given time, he took the time to sign people’s books, posters and whatever else they had in hand. He took picture after picture and had conversations with anyone that came up to talk to him. It was refreshing to see an artist with such a huge following remain so gracious and congenial with his fans. “I really appreciate everyone who came out to the show and am humbled by the kind comments and great conversations I had,” remarked Craola. “My goal is to inspire others to create art and enjoy escaping into their imaginations and from some of the conversations I had it sounds like I am getting closer to this goal.”

In addition, the Merry Karnowsky Gallery is also displaying work from Johnny KMNDZ Rodriguez.  The two artists’ work will be in exhibition until May 19.

- written by Keisha Raines, with photos by Birdman for Warholian

Via Merry Karnowsky Gallery:

CRAOLA (GREG SIMKINS) - Main Gallery
Johnny Rodriguez (KMNDZ) – Square Gallery
April 21 – May 19, 2012
Opening Reception Saturday April 21

For more on Greg “Craola” Simkins visit his site here:  www.imscared.com/

Meryl Pataky is an artist unlike so many we know.  She strives in concept and technical form, with a wide range of skills that encompass working in neon, copperplate, and paper making.  Her work is often introspective, and most definitely bold.

In her latest show ‘Future Sailor’ at Lebasse Projects in Chinatown (Los Angeles) she takes us on a trip through both the internal and external cosmos.  Pataky’s work is on a museum contemporary level, while utilizing materials and ideas that have yet to be explored fully in the world of art and culture.

We sat down with the Pataky to discuss her work further…

1).  Can you tell us a little about your particular aesthetic, and the subject matter you focus on in this particular body of work?

In terms of aesthetic, I normally go for an aged look.  I patina/oxidize everything metal, even my hardware.  I dislike shiny store-bought hardware in installation.  I think attention to those details is very important.  For this show, I tried to harness a very large subject matter: the universe and the nature of existence.  I’m focusing on the elements in my work and specifically chose my materials so that they would reflect the elements that are made from the universe and stars.  I pride myself in working with many of those elements including all of the noble gases in my neon work.

2).  How did you first decide you wanted to become and artist?  Your background?  What formal or informal training have you received?

I knew I wanted to make things from a young age – I was pretty handy with Erector Sets.  I had a dream I had a robot as my best friend, like in the Iron Giant, and I woke up sad realizing it was just a dream and I immediately went to my Erector Set to re-create him.  I was about 8 or so.  I have formal training in the form of a BFA.  This is where I learned the importance of choosing materials and the attention to installation detail I mentioned.  It pushed my process further and the way I think about making art. 

3). How has your process and subject matter evolved over time?

I suppose my work, it’s process and subject matter has matured as I have over time.  I have always been interested in the human condition and what makes us tick and that curiosity has turned into a thesis that I base my work around.  I’ve done more research in an attempt to answer my own questions and that search has inspired me and helped my work to evolve.

4).  Who/what are some of your major influences?

Joseph Beuys, Patrick Stoner (my man and amazing artist), Eva Hess,  Cornelia Parker, my mother and father, Stephen Hawking, Neil deGrassi Tyson, Plato and the big thinkers, Anselm Kiefer and his lead plane and probably a lot more.

5).  What’s next for you?  Any exciting projects or opportunities?

I will be selling my jewelry at the Haight Street fair for RVCA this summer and taking work to ArtMRKT in San Francisco in May with LeBasse Projects.  Other than that, I’m taking it easy the rest of the year and taking the time to build out my studio a bit more.

More on Future Sailor Via Lebasse Projects…

Warholian’s own Michael Cuffe caught up with Pataky at her home, just as she was finalizing details on her show.  We hope you enjoy this glimpse into the artist’s style and aesthetic.

- written and photographed by Michael Cuffe for Warholian

For more on ‘Future Sailor’ visit Lebasse Projects here:  http://www.lebasseprojects.com/?page_id=4812

For more on the work of Meryl Pataky visit: http://merylpataky.com/

Erin M. Riley  just premiered her latest body of work “Forgotten in a File” juxtaposed alongside artist Hilary Pecis’ “Consensus”.

Riley focuses on finding found digital photos that were shared on the internet, taken for private eyes only.  The body of work plays upon the internal voyeur, paired with exceptional looming techniques from the artist.  Riley’s use of the loom to create a visual discussion on modern day digital relationships in tapestry creates an interesting blend of new and old world interactions.

Hilary Pecis meanwhile dives right into the digital domain of the internet, utilizing search engines at times in the creation of a particular image.  This is provides the viewer with an opportunity to take a more in depth look into the use of the internet in art, and shows how artists and technology are creating a new genre for themselves.  Pecis’ work also touches on our human relationships both in and outside of electronic domains, and how much visual information we’re actually consuming.

We sat down with the artists recently, to discuss their work and process…

Warholian’s Michael Cuffe:  Can you tell us a little about your particular aesthetic, and the subject matter you focus on in this particular body of work?

Artist Hilary Pecis:  The digital collages were compiled from images I found through search engines.  For the most part the pieces were created by using a single word or phrase to find collections of images.  I then took those images and put together a piece by using different methods.  I enjoy the democratic inclusion of images from Internet users.  It gives a general consensus for the word or phrase.

Artist Erin M. Riley:  This body of work uses images that depict intimate moments that are shared one on one and then online to many. I am interested in seeing images that represent women in different states of control and vulnerability. In this show I also included self portraits and still life pieces using personal objects.

Warholian’s Michael Cuffe:  How did you first decide you wanted to become and artist?  Your background?  What formal or informal training have you received?

Artist Hilary Pecis:  I don’t remember a time that I didn’t feel like an artist. My mom used to let us watch The Secret City with Commander Mark on PBS.  He taught kids how to draw spaceships and cities with dimension.  Later on I ended up in community college taking art classes which eventually led me toward art school.  I have both my BFA and MFA from California College of the Arts in San Francisco.

Artist Erin M. Riley:  I took art classes throughout high school and applied and went to an art college at Massachusetts college of art and design in boston MA and directly into graduate school at Tyler school of art in Philadelphia, pa. I have always been interested in being an artist but college and grad school helped to make it more of a reality.

Warholian’s Michael Cuffe:   How has your process and subject matter evolved over time?

Artist Hilary Pecis:  It has  evolved significantly over the last few years.  I had been making collages from pieces of magazine pages. I like the hands on cutting and pasting but there were several problems with that method of collage making.  First off, the images available in magazines can be a bit limiting.  There are really only so many images I could count on being in any given magazine. This resulted in many artworks that looked similar or being made with the same shapes and images.  Secondly, the materials are not exactly archival.  I used a few different mediums and binders to slow the deterioration process, but inevitably the pieces will have a short life span.  Both of these issues would not necessarily be a problem, if that was what the work was about, but it wasn’t and therefore I decided to switch it up and make work that felt more contemporary,employing more archival materials.  Using a digital word search turns up both expected and surprise images for my work.  The surprises are what makes it the most fun.

Artist Erin M. Riley:  I have always been a tapestry weaver but used to combine collage or mixed media into my tapestries or as a side project. My main focus now is handwoven wool tapestry and I am working constantly to improve my technique. My subject matter has changed gradually from using family photographs to found images online and now using found images and also using images I have taken or composed.

Warholian’s Michael Cuffe:  Who/what are some of your major influences?

Artist Hilary Pecis:  Rob Pruitt is one of my favorites.   His work is easy to relate to as a viewer.  It is clever and indicative of contemporary culture and it is aesthetically pleasing.  There are a slew of new photographers that I think are amazing.  Both Michelle Abelas and Sam Falls are two photographers who I admire.  Their practices are exciting, employing fresh means to achieve the finished pieces.

Artist Erin M. Riley:  I am completely inspired by day to day life and experiences. I  am constantly looking at images on blogs, Facebook, google image and all over. Television, current events, ect. I always look to Helena Hernmarck, a tapestry weaver, as an example of what is really possible in tapestry weaving.

Warholian’s Michael Cuffe:  What’s next for you?  Any exciting projects or opportunities?

Artist Hilary Pecis:  I have a solo show coming up at Halsey McKay Gallery, located in East Hampton which opens on June 21st.  Other than that just a couple group shows for now.

Artist Erin M. Riley: I am currently figuring out what’s next. I spent the last seven months traveling and going to residencies so I need to find an apartment and a job first. Lots of art to make this summer and I hope to get to work on new tapestries in may.

- written and photographed by Michael Cuffe for Warholian

For more on the shows, visit Guerrero Gallery at:  http://guerrerogallery.com/ 

Visit Erin M. Riley at her official site here: http://erinmriley.com/

Check out Hilary Pecis at her artist site: http://www.hilarypecis.com/

We came across artist Sergio Lopez’s work through a press release via Moden Eden Gallery and we’re immediately taken by his beautiful figurative work.  I had assumed the pictures probably didn’t do the paintings justice, so it was at the opening where we first experienced Lopez’s work in person.

I was attracted to Lopez’s use of Art Nuevo symbology, and design elements around his painted ladies. After viewing those works, I was taken by an even larger grouping of figurative works which Modern Eden Gallery had displayed in the second half of their space. Lopez has two distinct bodies of work in this current show entitled “Sacred Spring”.  One is an evolution of Art Nuevo, and the second is an absolutely stunning body of female figures enveloped in color and nature.  The work breathes light, and is a great example of the power of form and figure study.

We sat down with Lopez to talk about his work and his experience as an evolving artist.

Michael Cuffe (Warholian): Can you tell us a little about your particular aesthetic, and the subject matter you focus on in this particular body of work?

(Artist Sergio Lopez):  Well it’s grounded in realism, but I try to steer it into other aspects of art and design that inspire me. For example, all of the pattern and blending of the background/foreground things I do aren’t necessarily realism but I try to make it as believable as I can. The designs and patterns are a mix of my own designs and other patterns that fit into the aesthetic of what I am going for.

I don’t think it’s hard to imagine that an artist would enjoy painting the female human form as much as I do. I like painting classical nudes but I don’t feel like I’m challenging myself if I’m not adding my own thoughts and ideas to it. I would get bored if I didn’t try to push the boundaries of whatever style I’m working within.

(Warholian’s MC):  How did you first decide you wanted to become and artist?  Your background?  What formal or informal training have you received?

(Artist Sergio Lopez):  I’ve always been an artist as far as I’m concerned. The question is more about when I decided it was going to be my career, and basically my life. That was pretty much late in high school when I decided to go to the Academy of Art in San Francisco. It just so happened that one of the better art schools in the country was so close to my hometown of Santa Rosa. I went there for 5 years, right after high school, and once I left,  I’ve made my money from art in some capacity ever since.

(Warholian’s MC):  How has your process and subject matter evolved over time?  

(Artist Sergio Lopez): When I think of what I want to paint, I have switched from thinking about single paintings to thinking in series. It presents some challenges, but there are some advantages to that as well. When you know you have a certain framework to work inside of, you can devote more of your brainpower to dissecting that subject and seeing it from as many different angles as you can. You don’t have to come up with a new concept for every single painting you do. For me personally, that would be exhausting. It also gives you a bit of an advantage when approaching galleries because you can easily give em an idea of what to expect should they bring you on board for a show.

My subject matter has become more and more focused to try and be exactly what I want to paint. I’ve done concept art, illustration, and other things where you get dictated what you are going to paint. The more I do art the more I figure out exactly what it is that I want to spend my time making pictures of. I feel like its a process of subtracting the superfluous, like carving a sculpture from a big piece of wood, except there’s not much of a sketch to go off of.

(Warholian’s MC):  Who/what are some of your major influences?

(Artist Sergio Lopez): I have so many. I started a tumblr blog where aside from my own work, I post pictures of other artists who continue to inspire me. Artists such as Jeremy Lipking, Kent Williams, and a bunch of old school artists frequently find their way on there.

(Warholian’s MC):  What’s next for you?  Any exciting projects or opportunities?  

(Artist Sergio Lopez): I try to have something in the works for the future when I can. Aside from various shows later on in the year, there are some new galleries that have expressed interest in having me show with them. I’m always on the lookout for opportunities to show with new galleries if they are good prospects. I show a lot with the Christopher Queen Gallery over in the Sonoma Coast area.They like what I do, and they do well for me. I always have some new work for their shows.

Apart from all the figurative work I do, I am an avid plein air painter as well. I like to participate in the plein air paintout circuit, and the season is about to begin soon. Next month I am doing the Carmel Art Festival for the first time, which is one of the more prestigious events in the area so I am excited about that. In June I am participating in the Los Gatos plein air event for the first time also. I’ve heard all good things about it, so I am really happy to be invited to that one as well.

- written by Michael Cuffe for Warholian

To find out more about “Sacred Spring” visit Modern Eden here:  http://www.moderneden.com/collections/sacred-spring?page=2

For more on Sergio Lopez, visit his official site here: http://themainloop.com/Figures.htm

or follow on his Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/SergioLopezFineArt
 

Warholian’s own Birdman was able to swing by the studio of artist Greg “Craola” Simkins for an EXCLUSIVE sneak preview of his latest work entitled “Cloud Theory” at Merry Karnowsky Gallery, check em’ out!

- Warholian

Via Merry Karnowsky Gallery:

CRAOLA (GREG SIMKINS) - Main Gallery
Johnny Rodriguez (KMNDZ) – Square Gallery
April 21 – May 19, 2012
Opening Reception Saturday April 21

For more on Greg “Craola” Simkins visit his site here:  www.imscared.com/

Artist Adam Hunter Caldwell continues to evolve as an artist, and his latest works featured in “Discovery” a group show at Rook and Raven gallery in London is perhaps the best example of his work to date.

Caldwell seamlessly blends imagery together, creating visual poetry that itself has a much deeper artistic message.  The paintings pull the viewer in, allowing them to explore the subject matter further, and tell the story of inner contrast within each of us.

We sat down with the artist to discuss this latest body of work, his past, and where he’s headed…

WARHOLIAN:  Can you tell us about the more recent work you’ve been painting, and some of the symbology behind it?

ADAM CALDWELL:  I decided last year that I wanted to paint figures in interior spaces. As I sketched out compositions and ideas I began to see the rooms as a kind of body or the interior of a head and the figures as the self or mind inside. This sparked the idea of a series based on the mind body problem in western philosophy. Descartes was the first modern philosopher to really articulate the concept that the body/brain is purely mechanistic and that the mind is a completely separate non-physical  substance. The “problem” stems from how these two systems can interact.

 WARHOLIAN:  How has your exploration of the mind body dualism in your work affected you personally, and your overall aesthetic?

ADAM CALDWELL: I have been reading a lot of philosophers work on dualism and I see better how the concept has a direct influence on government and legal systems. I personally don’t believe that the mind and body are really separate, I feel that the problem boils down to the inadequacy of language to describe mental events in physical terms. My aesthetic has changed a bit from the actual painting I’ve been doing more than from the ideas, different colors and compositions are coming up in the process.

WARHOLIAN:  How do you go about picking the individual imagery in your work?  Are there any colors or palettes you prefer to work in?

ADAM CALDWELL: Once I have a general scheme for a series I sift through images from a huge collection of photos I have been taking myself, cutting from magazines, and pulling from the internet. For this series I have lots of tubes, ducts, gears and electrical chords that represent the mechanisms of the body. I also have a lot of text from Descartes books. Most of the interiors in my pieces are from abandoned and decaying mental hospitals. I love pushing black and white or sepia images against strong colors, trying to get them to work. I always use the same palette of colors but I’ve been moving from really warm, brownish hues into more blues and grays.

WARHOLIAN:  You come from artistic roots, can you explain again who your grandparents were and how they continue to affect your art?

ADAM CALDWELL:  My Grandfather was Erskine Caldwell. He was the best-selling author in the United States for many years. He wrote over 50 novels and hundreds of short stories and essays. My step-grandmother was Margaret Bourke-White a very famous photographer.  I’ve used many of her photographs as reference in paintings and I’ve always been influenced by my Grandfathers commitment to realistic depictions of social conditions.

 WARHOLIAN:  Do you have anything new and exciting coming down the road to tell us about?

ADAM CALDWELL:  I have a show up in London right now at Rook and Raven gallery. I have a show coming up in August with Brett Amory at Thinkspace in LA that I am working on right now. In November I am having a solo show at The Shooting Gallery in SF. This year is pretty packed and I am so grateful to have all these amazing galleries showing my work.

‘Discovery’ runs from April 13th until May 2nd, 2012 at Rook and Raven Gallery in London.

- Interview and Photos by Michael Cuffe for Warholian

For more on ‘Discovery’ visit:  rookandraven.co.uk/

For more on artist Adam Hunter Caldwell:  www.adamhuntercaldwell.com/

Follow Adam Hunter Caldwell on Facebook here:  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Adam-Hunter-caldwell-art/163629696984640 

Red Bull not only fuels many artists’ night life but it is also could be their ticket to Miami during the Art Basel season. On April 5, Lydia Emily, Gregory Siff, and Hans Hanover beat out fellow artists for an all-expense paid trip through Red Bull Curates: The Road to Basel. The competition took place at a packed show held at the innovative Lab Art Gallery in Los Angeles.

“It is very excited to see Gregory and Lydia blossom as artists and see their careers elevate with this opportunity,” commented Co-owner of Lab Art Rachel Joelson. “It is a really interesting time for them personally and for street art in general.” Other artists involved with the Los Angeles competition include Leba, Nathan Spoor, Codak, Destroy All Design, Benjamin Alejandro, Thank You X, Zombie, Jules Muck, Louis Carreon, Ernesto Yerena Montejano , Septerhed, Smear, Bryan Snyder, Aise Born, Kophns One, Mar and T$F. The completed artist fridges will be on display permanently at various locations throughout Los Angeles.

To make this all possible Red Bull partnered with Arts Fund, which produces arts entertainment programs in partnership with leading global brands. The Arts Fund invests in content and its’ connection to the audience, while building brand equity for music, art, film, and social entrepreneurs.

Twenty emerging street artist were chosen to enter the competition. Each contestant was handed a Red Bull cooler and went to town adorning the appliance with their own personal touches. Winner Lydia Emily showcased her signature look by pasting newspapers to the fridge then adding fine art touches with her intricate oil brushwork. The end product was a matador being assassinated by bulls, in which she received assistance from good friend and fellow artist Van Arno. On the night of the show, judges and curious onlookers passed and voted via text messages for their favorite artist. LA judges included Chad Muska (professional skateboarder & artist), Taryn Manning (actress, fashion designer, and singer-songwriter), and John Reiss (director of Bomb It).

“Everyone involved is excited about the increased popularity of the program. We had thousands of votes from the audience, which is off the charts for a program like this,” commented Bill Franchey of Arts Fund and co-Producer of Red Bull Curates. “The text voting actually went viral immediately to fans following the program via social media to
living rooms, galleries, and hangout spots across America.”

The program initially began as a pilot in San Francisco and will continue on to Chicago and then New York. The program will culminate in Miami during Art Basel week, where three ambassadors from each city will combine with artists from Miami for a group show. One lucky artist will be chosen as program ambassador by a luminary panel of judges, as well as a through text votes sent from the live audience in Miami and a greater social audience from artists’ and fans’ social graphs. Red Bull Curates allows involved artists to have their work exposed to the general public, as well as a wider international internet audience.

Fans can follow a mini-documentary series from city to city, highlighting artists’ passion and inspiration for their work. It will take viewers from the creative process, to the unveiling at the event, and culminate during the esteemed Art Basel week in Miami. Be on the lookout for the release of the LA episode of Red Bull Curates filmed by Director Robert Christian Malmberg shortly via: http://www.redbullusa.com/curates

The energy drink that gives you wings, is giving artists across the United States so much more than an energy burst. The chance to exhibit their work at one of the largest art fairs in America will have substantial impact on their careers.

- written by Keisha Raines with photos by Colin Young-Wolff for Warholian

For more on the photography of Colin Young-Wolff visit:  http://www.colinyoung-wolff.com

Beau Stanton is one of our favorite bi-coastal artists to keep an eye on. After his incredible Sanguine Machine solo show at Gallery Hijinks last year and dabbling with live painting and collaborative street art at Basel in Miami this December, he seemingly cannot be stopped. We recently visited his Brooklyn studio to see what Beau has in store for his latest and perhaps most ambitious venture yet: his first solo show in New York.

Archaic Ornaments at Bold Hype Gallery in Chelsea will feature Beau’s undeniable talent with oil painting and technique. His latest pieces illustrate surreal and mythical narratives of industrial decay, guided by delicately rendered and rather haunting sirens or oracles of another world.

Beau’s interests in history and the ancient dichotomies of creation and destruction, real and surreal, are found throughout each new work, as he continuously pushes the visual boundaries of his dynamic imagery and rich, rusted tones. Walking through Beau’s workspace, the energy of his work is undeniable. Each gear seems ready to slowly spin, each eye is entrancing, and a massive boat is deep in the throws of an ancient stormy sea. Shelves of old bottles, trinkets, and photographs serve as inspiration for the artist who has quite the eye for history. Beau picks these pieces up while exploring abandoned 19th century factories, buildings, and sites around the metro area.

Beau is also experimenting with silk-screening patterns in this set of works, a new approach that is definitely yielding a variety of exciting outcomes. Mixing mediums and working on a large scale are themes we will certainly see more of in this show, reflecting Beau’s unstoppable determination and craft.

 Archaic Ornaments is open at Bold Hype Gallery April 12th – May 5th, 2012.

- photos and story by Molly Cotter for Warholian

For more on Beau Stanton visit: http://beaustanton.com/

To see Archaic Ornaments at Bold Hype Gallery: http://www.boldhype.net/

Check out this video preview of the show below…

Archaic Ornaments by Beau Stanton from Street Culture Mash on Vimeo.

This past March White Walls gallery in the Tenderloin district of San Francisco was host to Sickboy’s latest show “Wonder Club”.  In a bit of a switch up, our Los Angeles photography correspondant Birdman happened to be in town to snap pictures of the show… and we’re just now getting around to sharing them now.  So despite this delay, we you enjoy this look back into Sickboy’s most recent work.

Via White Walls…

Hot off the heels of his critically acclaimed UK solo show last November, Heaven and Earth, comes Sickboy’s first US major solo show, Wonder Club. The title refers to a meeting place in the mind of the artist, where his cryptic street messages, surreal abstraction and comical illusions all come together. Sickboy’s new works reveal inspiration drawn from anatomical studies, the age of enlightenment, romanticism,comic books and fairytales.A solid body of work has been produced for Wonder Club, including eight large-scale (all measuring around four by three feet) surreally intricate, paintings, focusing on the inner workings of the human body. These large paintings, which bring the aesthetic of Sickboy’s street work into the gallery, are paired alongside installations which will act to transform the entire space into a dream world. Sickboy’s always innovative installations will be outdone with this show, featuring a few surprises and the “Artists’ Refuge,” an enclosed space built within the gallery that visitors may enter.

Amidst the dream land that Sickboy constructs you can expect to find smaller works exploring a new direction in mixed media ephemera, adorned on locally found San Francisco surfaces to place the artist’s imagery into a local context as well as a video collaboration with well-known London photographer Viktor Vauthier, capturing the creative process in motion.

“I see art as escapism, it’s an addictive solution to the daily deluge of life, the ‘Wonder Club’ is a place I can visit in my mind to try and bring daydreams to life, I have been documenting ideas as they happen and making sure I capture their essence by developing them into highly intricate finished paintings, it has meant a progressive shift from earlier freestyle work and more towards structured pieces that focus on content and message. This exhibition is for me a revisiting of the inner child and questioning what my dreams represent today.” – Sickboy

A leading artist to emerge from Bristol’s infamous graffiti scene, Sickboy’s humorous work has cemented his place in the upper echelons of the British street art movement. He is one of the first UK artists to use a logo in place of a tag, and his red and yellow street logo known as ‘The Temple’ can be seen on walls and wheelie bins worldwide. Sickboy has built up one of the largest bodies of street art works in UK history. His work hit the big screen recently in Banksy’s Oscar-nominated film, Exit Through the Gift Shop, and he is tipped by the leading financial press as one of the movement’s most bankable artists. His temples, slogans and audacious stunts – including the caged heart installation dropped outside the Tate Modern in 2008 – have landed him global recognition.

For more on the show and any available work visit:  http://www.WhiteWallsSF.com

For more on Sickboy visit:  http://www.thesickboy.com/

The ocean is often mysterious and dark, but it can also play a rejuvenating role within our lives. We’ve all had the experience of watching waves break, over and over, in a cycle that has been repeating itself since the beginning of planet earth. “Voodoo Chop” is the latest group exhibition at Project One gallery (in the Design District of San Francisco) which brings together a number of talented artists to examine the power of the ocean’s waves on our subconscious.

Artist Nick Flatt brings us another large scale work featuring a black and white ocean landscape classic of his aesthetic. The most intriguing part of this piece is crisp horizon line that cuts directly across the painting with precision, separating both water and air in a ying/yang style.

Christopher Jernberg is no stranger to surfing the waves of the ocean, and his intense interpretation of a wave about to break places the viewer in the path of nature’s power. “When it comes to the Voodoo Chop show I don’t think so much of the fantasy of a wave but what it is like to actually be out there in the ocean. I did a lot of water training and was made incredibly humbled and in awe of the ocean, it shaped my body to be like a superman, detoxified and energized my whole being and it made me realize how vulnerable we are out there, how insignificant and out of our normal control on land.”

Artist Aleksandra Zee creates site specific installations from reclaimed materials, and in Voodoo Chop she incorporated a driftwood “wave” that starts at one end of the gallery and crests at the other. Zee has exhibited at many other well known galleries around San Francisco, but it is her installations in retail spaces where her artistry and ability truly shine. The artist blends both contemporary aesthetics with “found objects” creating a seamless blend of the old and new, and we look forward to seeing more from Zee in the future.

Aline Dargie has studied textiles at the California College of the arts, and her interpretations of waves that hung throughout the gallery were simply stunning in concept and design. Hand dyed fabrics interwoven with metal fibers gave each work a shimmering mystical quality, and caught the eye of many visiting gallery patrons. Her signature piece was an textile interpretation of sunset light bouncing off the Golden Gate Bridge, casting reddish purple hues on the water below. A perfect concept paired with amazing technique.

Photographer Trent Mitchell aims to “produce contemporary photographs that celebrate the natural phenomenon of the breaking wave”. His photographs capture a beauty in the form of each wave, and give them individual personalities which are clearly defined in the frame.

The colors of artist Llewellyn Ludlow capture the hues and beauty of the ocean waves, and even hints of what lies beneath. A longtime surfer, it is clear within this artist’s body of work that Ludlow holds a deep love and appreciation for the water. His paintings hold a spiritual air which give the viewer the feeling of standing on the beach, taking it all in.

As a photographer for Surfer Magazine Todd Glaser is no stranger to the ocean. He has traveled the world covering some of the most impressive names in the surfing community, and has assembled quite an impressive portfolio while doing so. Glaser’s highlighted work in “Voodoo Chop” is some of his best, and most definitely eye opening.

Photographer David Orias also has had his work featured in numerous magazines around the subject of surfing. His work almost has an ease to it, which invites the viewer to spend more time within the photograph, exploring every subtle detail.

Voodoo Chop “An exploration of the tranquility, ferocity, and mystique of the ocean’s waves” runs from April 4 – April 30 , 2012 at Project One gallery, be sure to check it out.

- photo and review by Michael Cuffe for Warholian

For more information on the show, or any of the artists featured above visit: http://www.projectonegallery.com/voodoo-chop-april-4th-to-april-30th/

We could stare at Kris Kuksi’s insanely intricate sculptures for hours. His massive works created by the glueing, mending, and folding of thousands of found trinkets and collectibles, set the stage for beautifully rendered ancient human battles of power, creation, destruction, and religion. Kris’s latest (and largest) pieces were recently shown at Joshua Liner Gallery in New York, where we had the chance to catch up with the sculptural master:

Can you tell us a bit about how you first became interested in art and being an artist?

KK: Not sure if I really can recall “how”– I just knew I was born in the ways of an artist. Yet, my childhood had a lot to do with harboring creativity growing up in a rural setting outside Wichita, Kansas, which left lots of time to nurture my imagination to entertain myself. We didn’t have cable television and Atari was just making an appearance, although not enough for me to have too much interest in developing a need for video games. Therefore, I think I escaped the world of distraction and settled into creative solitude comfortably.

2. This is your third show at Joshua Liner Gallery, how is Triumph different from the rest?

KK: Basically, the difference is bigger works. More challenging pieces with new engineering problems that had not existed with other large pieces I’ve done before. Also, there is a defined harmony between the pieces expressing more balanced works in relation to  masculine and feminine power. The two largest symbolic objects from the entire show are between a life-size goddess-like woman and a nearly 11 foot tall WW2 German Ferdinand style tank fitted with a chapel on top.

3. This show was super diverse too, with a painting, a bronze Church Tank, and a 11ft installation. What’s your favorite medium? Why?

KK: My favorite thing to do is to build things, so I have a particular attraction to the sculptures just because I do believe that is what I get excited about more than anything else. But I have a second love for painting, and I felt it was time to showcase that ability in this exhibit. I really enjoyed doing it all.  And, for the future, I know there is uncharted territory stirring as well.

4. Where do you find most of your materials? Are there any pieces or trinkets in particular you love working with or finding?

KK: I find them wherever I can, and I enjoy visiting little ma and pa hobby shops as much as possible. Many things do have to be purchased online, but I really need to see the object to know what I can do with it before I collect it. What I love finding the most is a very old, rare, or discontinued collectable that would help to make my creation unique. My biggest goal now is to go to Japan and seize many fun trinkets and collectables there.

5. What’s next for you?

KK: Diving deeper into my insanity rummaging for undiscovered parts that will provoke something new that I can manifest. In other words, I see myself creating more complex works that stem from new ideas that will bring bigger challenges that result in my life having the perfect amount of stress and anxiety because I can’t seem to be happy without it! Now where did I put my glue?…

- written by Molly Cotter with opening photos by Yojiro Imasaka for Warholian

For more on Kris Kuksi’s latest show “Triumph” visit Joshua Liner Gallery here: http://joshualinergallery.com/

To visit the artist’s personal site, and to see more of Kris Kuksi’s work: http://kuksi.com/

On March 15 street artist Lydia Emily had her first solo exhibition, “Behind the Bamboo Curtain,” at LAB ART. Renowned for her politically charged paintings, Lydia chose instead to shed light on the ongoing atrocities occurring in Tibet by the hands of the Chinese government.

The evening began with a Buddhist blessing from a Tibetan monk and Sri Lankan monk. However, the focus of the show was not religion but on humanity. The title of the show, “Behind the Bamboo Curtain,” is a reference to the block of information concerning Tibet from China. To convey her message Lydia uses Sunday New York Times on canvas with oil paint on top. Spread around the front of the gallery was a series of oil paintings of monks engaged in a range of activities. From praying to long boarding.

Instead of painting the horrific treatment the Tibetans are forced to endure, she chooses to divulge just enough information to make people curious and encourage them to find out the facts for themselves. Her work has the ability to engage an audience and make them interested without forcing the message down their throats.

One of her most striking pieces is a lone, unarmed monk wrapped in a robe facing a line of camo dressed men holding body shields. The painting perfectly highlights the violent assault on Tibetans matched by their peaceful response. The show featured several impressive large scale paintings as well. A large portrait of the Dalai Lama bowing while being shackled to a ball and chain tagged with MADE IN CHINA. The painting exemplifies Lydia’s way of pointing out injustices and combining it with humor. Her ability to call out society and politicians while adding common sense and fusing it with her impeccable talent as a fine artist sets Lydia a part from the rest.

Following the show, Lydia, Daniel Lahoda from LA Freewalls, and Birdman will embark on a trip to San Francisco to continue the projection project they started in Downtown LA last week in collaboration with the non-profit organization KarmaBlast.

Afterwards, Lydia plans to continue to expose the plight of the Tibetans. As the daughter of a civil rights activist, Lydia lives by one simple motto, “once you know something, you can’t not know it.” Meaning, once you know of an injustice it is your responsibility to do something. Her dedication to sticking up for people’s rights is inspiring and makes you reexamine your own choices.

“Behind the Bamboo Curtain” will be on display at LAB ART until April 14.

- Review by Keisha Raines with Photos by Birdman

For more on Lydia Emily visit: http://lydiaemily.com/

Visit LAB ART at: http://www.labartgallery.com/

Chalk + Anthony Lister from Chalk LA on Vimeo.

Anthony Lister has been a very busy man. Mr. Lister stopped by Chalk gallery to grace their walls with one of his special ladies as he was ramping up for his latest series of work at New Image Gallery. Warholian’s own Birdman was there to capture it all on camera.

For images from opening night, visit:  warholian.com/2012/03/10/anthony-lister-2/

- Warholian