The Bad Dads show was wildly successful and the 3rd installment of the trademark exhibit is scheduled to take place later this year.  With the aid of consistently impressive themed group exhibits, such as the Quentin VS Coen series, Spoke-Art has continued to establish themselves as one of the top underground contemporary/pop-art galleries on the West Coast.  Not only has Timothy Doyle been along for the ride but, with his -typically multiple- contributions to these shows, he’s remained one of the major contributing factors to Spoke-Art‘s success.  Nakatomi has found continued success in it’s own right and Doyle‘s art has continued to pop-up in such places as Gallery 1988 and on poster work for the infamous Alamo Drafthouse.  Still, for whatever reason, we’ve yet to really see Tim shine in a full-on show of his own.  Now, as with Serge Gay Jr. before him, Spoke-Art is honoring one of the artists who’ve helped them to become what they are today, by playing host to Tim Doyle‘s very first solo art exhibit.

For “Unreal Estate“, the printmaker has chosen to direct his focus towards the many destinations and landmarks that we, as a television viewing society, have only ever been able to visit on the small screen.  By doing so and providing a more “realistic” take on many of these environments (Sesame St., Arlen Texas, Springfield… somewhere), an unspoken conversation is created about where the lines of reality and personal truth truly begin and end.  Is the relation to and histories that we have with these pseudo-fictional locations any less authentic than the ones that we visit or pass through without any personal attachment or acknowledgement in our every day lives, or could they be even more authentic than any of them?  By creating art that imitates reality, when the reality that’s being imitated is art and the imitation is more reality-based, it not only makes for me typing this ridiculously confusing sentence that you’re currently reading, but it also provides the potential for Doyle‘s solo exhibit to turn the magnifying glass back on pop-culture and plead a case for it’s continued relevancy as a muse in the contemporary art world.  More than just an excuse to do something like paint cool pictures of action figures, “Unreal Estate” reminds us that, regardless of how much corporate marketing or product branding lifts their metaphorical legs to drip their pungent territorial markings over every square inch of our living environments, something tangible and meaningful can permeate through the cracks and become very dear to our identities as individuals, even forming bonds on a communal level.  In the end, whether it’s intentional or not might not even matter.

ADMISSION IS FREE!

Here’s the lowdown…

DETAILS:

What:
Tim Doyle’s “Unreal Estate”

When:
Thursday February 2nd 6pm-10pm (opening night)

Where:
Spoke Art Gallery -
816 Sutter Street, San Francisco CA 94109

Website:
http://www.spoke-art.com

Show will be on view through Thursday February 23, 2012

As an added bonus, the artist will be in attendance for the opening and we are happy to announce that the first 100 guests will receive a complimentary limited edition screen print.

RSVP here – http://www.facebook.com/events/233654490049532/

From my own personal experience, artist statements have historically been “the worst.”  Far too often, they seem to be nothing more than an opportunity for someone to try to convince you of their greatness and relevance that, if authentic, should already be obvious in their work.  Contrived little write-ups, they offer a forum for some pretentious goon to explain how they are providing you with perspectives that come deep from within their haunted souls; perspectives that are unique to them as extraordinary beings.  Perspectives that are important to the world and perspectives that you could have never witnessed or experienced without them.  Rarely passionate, they instead focus on ideas of passion and result in little more than far-reaching claims and pleas for acknowledgement.  Generally, I hate artist statements, because it’s far too rare that I actually feel that the artist is trying to actually connect with the reader and it’s far too rare that you can actually sense their passion or reason for creating anything.  It’s about talking over your head.  It’s about a need for a pat on the back and not passion for the topic or subject matter, but for their own egos.  The following artist statement shatters that mold and, because it reads as genuine, honest, and unpretentious, we’ve chosen to go ahead and post it this time and allow Tim Doyle to tell his own story about what the exhibit is all about.

Artist Statement

“Unreal Estate” by Tim Doyle

Last June, after the opening reception to the Quentin versus Coen show in San Francisco, the founder of Spoke Art, Ken Harman, invited me to have a solo show at his gallery later that year.  I was immediately flattered- and then the fear set in. If it’s just me, not only was I looking at months of work in secret- but the success or failure of the Gallery that month was up to my ability to create and be clever.

I initially was going to do a very diverse show with a bunch of unconnected works, essentially throwing the visual parts of my brain up on the wall and hoping people liked what they saw.  But after talking to Ken for a while, he seized on a couple of ideas I had and did what a good gallery owner should do- focus his artist.  This is the show that came of that.

“Unreal Estate” is a collection of locations that many of us know and have been to on a weekly basis at times, but we can never actually visit. These places are in our memories- transmitted and entrenched there through a cathode-ray tube.  Some of us have been going to these places for decades- some of these places were taken from us, way too soon..

It’s weird to think about a pop-art solo exhibition as an intensely personal show, but I’ll do my best to explain it here.  Over the summer as I was preparing for this show, I did some research on “All In the Family” (a print I hope to get to in the future) and how the exterior shot of the house was a real place given the fictional address of 704 Hauser St, in Queens. Surprisingly- in the early 90′s, “All In the Family” creator Norman Lear had a show called “704 Hauser” featuring a new family living in the same house, occupying the same fictional location.  Reading about that was an odd revelation to me.  See- I always felt like “All in the Family” was like a televised echo of my maternal Grandparents in a way- an East coast blue collar family living in a row-home, a loveable but gruff father figure, a loving if slightly crazed mother- all dealing with a world that was changing rapidly around them. It’s not a perfect fit, but the themes were there- the show FELT like a visit to my Grandparents, if that makes sense.  Last Summer I had driven by their old house in Delaware for the first time since my Grandfather’s funeral in 2001-ten years had passed, and it was a heady mix of emotions seeing the house still there, but now occupied by strangers.

Also, that summer I read the news that “The Simpsons” might be ending over a labor dispute, and found myself strangely affected by that probability. (I sided with the talent, obviously.) I had been there in the late 80′s watching their proto-versions on The Tracy Ullman Show and when they finally got their own program, my family and I made our weekly pilgrimage to Springfield.

The thought that the show might be leaving us, considering that I had spent more of my life watching Simpsons than NOT at this point, was a big deal. I thought of Springfield’s more famous locations- how all of us (in the western world, at least) know where to get a Squishy, grab a Flaming Moe, or remember when Jebediah Springfield lost his head.  And I realized these completely fictional physical landmarks of television shows are a kind of cultural geography.  A shared mental construct that we all participate in- and like actual buildings they will one day be torn down, their time-slots paved over, or we will maybe find new people living in those exact same addresses.

So this was the ooze of pop-culture and melancholy that I had kicking around in my head when I dove into this art show.  Artistically, I wanted to move away from what my audience would normally expect from me- big bold colors and a comic-book line quality.  I wanted to do these pieces in a more brushy, illustrative style, with more muted tones and colors that reflect a mood or time of day. My tried and true 4-color pop of past prints like ‘The King of Crabs‘ was going to have to take a back seat while I try something newish.  I wanted these to look more like my Ghostbusters “Ready to Believe You” or the American Werewolf in London “Stay off the Moors” prints did.  It was a style I really like working in, but is definitely more time consuming than my normal deadlines allow.  The lead in time I had for this show afforded me the luxury to experiment more with my style.

“Night over the SNPP”

16×20, Signed and numbered edition of 100.

The first three prints I created for the show were all inspired by The Simpsons- I knew I had to kick them out of my head up front and move on, as The Simpsons could very easily dominate the entire exhibit if I let it. I purposefully set these three images at night or sunset to force the color scheme away from the pastel and neon palette of the show.

I remember my Dallas-suburb Middle School placing a ban on Simpsons t-shirts in the late 80′s, as the show was considered a bad influence, and Bart an animated public-enemy #1. Now, the show is an American monument- a purple and green and yellow Mt. Rushmore in time and celluloid. The Simpsons is probably one of our most enduring exports- it’d be hard to go to a country on the globe where the characters aren’t recognized. Even in 1992 my young mind knew how out of touch the then-campaigning George Bush Sr. was when he said that Americans “…needed to be closer to the Waltons than the Simpsons.” He lost that election to the more media savvy Bill Clinton- pop culture affecting Presidential politics. Mr. Plow predating Joe the Plumber.

“Amanda Hugginkiss”

16×20. Signed and numbered edition of 100.

This one is my favorite of the bunch- the blue to pink split fountain echoing the setting sun.

The problem with starting a series like this is that you might write up a list of all the pieces you want to do, but once you’ve got a few images in, you’ve already thought of a whole list of brand new images you want to do first and the original ‘sacred cows’ you wanted to hit get bumped further and further down. (All In the Family is a casualty of this process.) This two part print of America’s favorite street is one of the ones that popped up and refused to wait it’s turn.

“10 cents gets you nuts”

18×24 signed and numbered edition of 100.

Next up, I went a little bit more contemporary with the Bluth Banana stand. This show wormed it’s way into me post-cancellation, I’m embarrassed to say. But I’d guess that’s the case with the vast majority of AD‘s fans today. As I was working on this print, the news broke that Arrested Development was in fact coming BACK to television, albeit through the subscription service Netflix, and later into theaters in a long-rumored film. This is fantastic news- and what I believe is a first for network TV- the internet spoke as a collective and WILLED this show back into production. This isn’t the case of some stiff in a suit saying “You know what was popular? 90210. Let’s do that again, even though no-one ever asked for it.” The only reason Dallas is back on the air is because people recognize it as a BRAND, not as a show anyone was dying for more of. But this is something…else. We weren’t done with the Bluths, and we demanded a family reunion. And we’re getting it. Now, who wants to start a Kickstarter to get Firefly back? The internet has spoken.

“The Big Salad”

18×24, signed and numbered edition of 100.

I don’t think there’s been a show as socially changing as Seinfeld, at least not for my generation. It had a cultural ubiquity that hasn’t been found since. The diversification of media and the multiplication of viewing options that cable afforded after this show took it’s bow pretty much guaranteed that. I believe it was truly the last great hurrah of the network comedy. I’m reminded of a quote from Alec Baldwin’s Jack character from 30Rock, where the show’s version of NBC’s business strategy was to “make it 1997 again through science or magic.” That ship has sailed, though- for if there was any justice in the world, Curb Your Enthusiasm would be just as popular as Seinfeld ever was. Seinfeld’s crowning achievement, I think, was to bring neurotic, New York Jewish comedy to middle America- something that not even the great Woody Allen was able to. It was a sit-com that injected stand-up culture into the living room in a way that Carson and Letterman couldn’t. Seinfeld was a comedy about the small things, waiting in line, ordering soup, licking an envelope- the narrative stuff that stand-up is made of. I would say the brilliant Louis C.K.’s Louie is Seinfeld’s direct descendant, with it’s seemingly free-form episode structure and stand-up framing device. While Seinfeld’s main competitor in the show’s early years was the overly sentimental and catch-phrase heavy Tim Allen vehicle, Home Improvement- in a few seasons Seinfeld would become a dominant cultural force and Home Improvement merely a footnote. The show made meanness funny, and all other shows seem tame in comparison. The ‘cool’ kids watched Seinfeld. The normal kids watched banal crap like Full House and Perfect Strangers. (I have to admit to watching both shows in my youth.) My group of friends was glued to Seinfeld every week, and it was all we talked about over lunch in the school cafeteria the following day. I don’t know how many inane conversations I had to endure of people trying to force a group of friends into the roles of the principals on the show. Consensus always made me come out as George- but at least no-one in my group was trying to figure out who was Chandler and who was Monica. I would have murdered everyone involved in that discussion. Even the language of the show entered common usage like a virus- if I say “Master of my Domain” you know what I’m talking about, regardless of whether you’ve see that episode or not. I could go on endlessly about the show, but this is an article about an art show about television. So-

For a show based almost completely around interior locales, there is one stand-out exterior shot in Seinfeld- the restaurant. Unlike the other prints in this series, the restaurant is an actual location you can visit and touch- reality and fiction intertwined. While the diner is called ‘Monks’ in the show, it is in fact Tom’s Diner (of the Susanne Vega song) on 2880 Broadway in New York. Fun fact I learned while researching this print is that the exterior of the actual diner in no way matches up with the set that was built in LA.

“Unreal Estate” opens up on February 2nd at the Spoke Art gallery on 816 Sutter St in San Francisco. Prints unsold at the opening will be available online the day after.

Thank you for reading this admittedly rambling run-down of the show.

-Tim Doyle

Here are some sketches/detail images of the same select sample images featured above…
[click images to enlarge]

GALLERY 1988: MELROSE

“Gallery 1988 x Adult Swim”

Opening Reception: Friday, Jan. 13, 7-10pm

January 13 – February 4, 2011

When it comes to the pop-culture-themed art exhibits, no gallery has proven more consistent or prolific than the Los Angeles area’s Gallery 1988.  Since 2004, G1988 has become one of the foremost destinations to view high quality work from from some of the most talented established and up-and-coming contemporary artists in the game.  With popularity and interest growing for their original space (located on the corner of Melrose and Labrea), founders, Katie Cromwell and Jensen Karp, found themselves expanding with a second location in Venice, allowing them to consistently run two separate, but equally impressive, exhibits simultaneously and in different areas of the city.  [The Venice location is currently hosting a solo exhibit by Robert Brandenburg].  Perhaps, best known for their themed group art exhibits -a coffee table book based around their annual Crazy4Cult show was just released, featuring a foreward written by yearly host/filmmaker, Kevin Smith- G1998 has become much more than just an underground forum for underground contemporary artists and the nerd culture to express their affinity for film, video games, and TV; they’ve actually received tremendous feedback, praise, and cooperation from the entertainment personalities and corporations behind the inspirations that they are paying tribute to.  Actors like Paul Rudd have personally purchased artwork, Funny Or Die co-presented the stand-up comedy-inspired IS This Thing On? exhibit that we previewed last year, and the Wet Hot American Summer-themed exhibit not only featured a screening for the cult film’s 10yr anniversary, but was actually presented with a Q&A with writer/director, David Wain.

Tonight’s [Adult Swim]-themed show is slated to set off the new year with one of the greatest exhibits that the gallery has curated/hosted yet.  Officially sponsored by the Cartoon Network‘s infamous late-night programming block, [GALLERY 1988 x ADULT SWIM] will feature more than 100 contributions from upcoming talent, G1988 regulars, and big name artists whose careers the gallery has often helped to play an integral role in over the years.  Among the contributors are folks like, Luke Cheuh, Olly Moss, Todd Slater, Audrey Pongracz, and Kevin Tong,  paying tribute to such [Adult Swim] classics and staples as, Family Guy, The Venture Bros., Space Ghost Coast to Coast, and Aqua Teen Hunger Force.  Don’t be surprised to find any of the artists, or even celebrities from the Adult Swim programs, mingling around the gallery on opening night.  We, of course, suggest making it down for the opening, if at all possible, both to be a part of the festivities, as well as for the opportunity to get first dibs on any artwork.  However, for those who are unable to attend, the show will continue to run until February 4th and, for anyone interested in picking up original works or prints, all artwork should be made available on-line for purchase at NineteenEightyEight.com shortly after the opening.

Check out a selection of preview images after the following details…

EVENT:

[Gallery 1988 x Adult Swim]
the art show.
January 13 – February 4, 2012

OPENING:

Friday, January 13th from 7-10 PM
G1988:Melrose
(Many of the artists will be in attendance.)

LOCATION:

Gallery1988: Melrose
7020 Melrose Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90048
Phone: (323) 937-7088

Full List of contributors:

Adam Hanson, Adam Setala, Alex Campos, Alex Chiu, Alex Todaro, Allison Sommers, Anne Benjamin, Audrey Pongracz, Augie Pagan, Ayami Kawashima, Becky Dreisdadt, Brandon Schaefer, Brian Holderman, Bruce White, Casey Weldon, Charles Moran, Chogrin, Chris DeLorenzo, Christopher Lee, Chuck BB, Clark Orr, Dan Bob Thompson, Dan Goodsell, Dan Lydersen, Dave Perillo, Delicious Design League, Derek Eads, Doe Eyed Design, Doug LaRocca, Drew Falchetta, Eric Braddock, Eric Tan, Evanimal, Fernando Reza, Glen Brogan, Graham Erwin, Irma Rivera, Iron Jaiden, James Flames, Jason Edmiston, Jason Hernandez, Jason Marz, Jaw Cooper, Jayson Weidel, Jesse Riggle, Jimbot, Joe Van Wetering, Joey Spiotto, Johnny Bergeron, Jon Smith, Jonathan Luna, Jordan Buckley, Josh Cooley, Joshua Budich, Julia Vickerman, Julian Callos, Justin Helton, Justin White, Kali Meadows, kaNO, Karla Hansen, Kevin Tong, Kiersten Essenpreis, Kim Herbst, Kyle Norris, Lauren Gregg, Lawrence Yang, Little Friends of Printmaking, Luke Chueh, Martin Ontiveros, Matt Chase, Michael Ramstead, Michael Steele, Michelle Coffee, Mike Maas, Mike Mitchell, Miranda Dressler, Monster Factory, Mylan Nguyen, Nicole Bruckman, Nicole Gustafsson, Olly Moss, Pedro Delgado, Rexbox, Reza Rasoli, Reilly Stroope, Ryan Brinkerhoff, Sarah ‘Sae‘ Soh, Scott Belcastro, Scott Listfield, Scott Scheidly, Sean Clarity, Sean Dove, Shana Bilbrey, State of Shock Studios, Steve Dressler, Steven Thomas, Todd Slater, Tom Whalen, Veronica Fish, and Zac Gorman

[click images to enlarge]

Jason Edmiston

(inspired by Robot Chicken)

Casey Weldon

“Kissy Kitty” (inspired by Tim & Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!)
11×14 print
(purchase print)

Bandito Design Co. (Ryan Brinkerhoff)

“Swedish Murder Machine” (inspired by the Venture Bros.)

BRUCE WHITE

“Blake Downs, M.D. ” (inspired by Childrens Hospital)
11” x 14”
acrylic on velvet (mounted on board)

Glen Brogan

Sebben & Sebben 2012 Calender (inspired by Harvey Birdman Attorney at Law)

Graham Erwin

“Space Funk” (inspired by Space Ghost Coast to Coast)

Mike Mitchell

“Sweeberrehwhy!” (inspired by Tim & Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!)
8×10 print
limited edition
signed and numbered

Sean Dove

(inspired by The Venture Bros.)

Doug LaRocca

Mouse Man (inspired by DangerDoom)
qee and spraypaint

Brandon Schaefer

“The Lab Aquatic with Hank Murphy” (inspired by Sealab 2021)

The West Coast has it’s share of quality art museums.  As for underground contemporary works, we have often found ourselves posting about 3 venues in particular: the pop-surrealism focused, ROQ LA RUE in Seattle, San Francisco-based Spoke Art, and Gallery 1988, with it’s dual locations in the Los Angeles area (Melrose and Venice).  All 3 regularly venture into hosting group shows, but both Spoke Art and Gallery 1988 have a heavy lean towards pop-culture-themed exhibits.  Another space that has long been on my peripheral is Gallery Nucleus in Alhambra, Ca.  Like the other 3, they consistently host amazing works with high-quality artists and it’s due time that we posted something about them.  Since Nucleus will be hosting the opening for their new Jim Henson tribute show, “The Lovers, The Dreamers, & Me” tonight (Dec. 10th), this seems like the perfect opportunity to do so.
Sesame Street and the Muppet Show are impressive enough, but sometimes it’s easy to let the only slightly less iconic Henson projects like Labyrinth, Fraggle Rock, and Dark Crystal temporarily slip the mind.  It’s even easier to forget about later-in-life programs like The Storyteller, the Jim Henson Hour, and Dinosaurs or his immeasurable contributions to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Star Wars franchises.  From Broadway to working on the debut season of Saturday Night Live, the puppeteers reach and contributions to American culture are vast.

For this upcoming exhibit, NUCLEUS has assembled a selection of artists who seem to be equally as varied as the figure that they are paying ehomag to.  Names like Threadless powerhouse / Team Coco poster artist, Mike Mitchell and Disney/Don Bluth artist and Little Mermaid art-director, Mike Peraza have pieces in the exhibit.  The typical mediums like paintings and sculptures will be on display, but there’s also a surprising number of paper-cut contributions (perhaps, with techniques and/or inspiration taken from the Muppet Big Book of Crafts).  What is really eye-opening, however, is that, among the approx. 30 different contributors featured in the show, the works are literally coming in from around the globe.  Henson‘s influence here in the states is huge, but it’s great to see that the rest of the world has been so equally touched by his genius.

If at all possible, make sure to show up to for the opening festivities tonight.
Remember…  ADMISSION IS FREE!

The Details:

THE LOVERS, THE DREAMERS, AND ME
December 10, 2011 – January 2, 2011
Opening Reception: Saturday December 10, 2011 (7 pm – 11 pm)

“Gallery Nucleus in Los Angeles is excited to present “The Lovers, The Dreamers, and Me”, a tribute art exhibition to the late visionary, Jim Henson. Timed with the release of Disney’s The Muppets motion picture and news on a forthcoming Henson biopic, Nucleus has invited more than 30 artists to pay homage to this universally beloved visionary whose inspiring concepts and characters have impacted our culture in a monumental way. The collection will showcase a multitude of pieces complete in a wide range of mediums from a roster of professionals who are also genuine fans. Expect to see a variety of artist interpretations of the Muppets, Sesame Street, Dark Crystal, Labyrinth, Fraggle Rock, and other Henson favorites.”

LOCATION/CONTACT:

GALLERY NUCLEUS

Address: 210 E Main St., Alhambra, CA 91801 · Get Directions
Phone: 626 458-7477
Website: http://www.gallerynucleus.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gallerynucleus

Opening Night Highlights:

• Hourly Raffle Prizes
• Meet exhibiting artists
• Live Holiday & Henson Tunes by Kwortet
• Complimentary cupcakes by Chwa Cupcakery
• Complimentary refreshments

Featured Artists:

Alberto Cerriteno, Anna Chambers, Becky Dreistadt, Brittney Lee, Cat Rabbit, Chuck Groenink, Colin Jack, Felt Mistress, Graham Annable, Helen Musselwhite, *Ian Abando, Isobel Knowles, Israel Sanchez, Jackie Huang, *Jared Andrew Schorr, Jeni Yang, *Julia Sonmi, Lorelay Bové, Lorena Alvarez, MaricorMaricar, Mark Facey, Meg Hunt, *Michelle Thies, *Mike Mitchell, *Mike Peraza, Naoshi, Olivier Tossan, Scott C, Sean Chao, Sebastien Mesnard, TADO, Wool Buddy, and Xavier Collette

SELECTED PREVIEW IMAGES:

To inquire about any of the pieces listed below, contact gallery@gallerynucleus.com

[click images to enlarge]

Mister Fungi (UK)

“The Crystal of Truth”
12″ x 9″
Acrylic and Watercolour on 300gms fabriano paper
Framed & signed

$700.00

(detail)

Olivier Tossan (Berlin via France)

“How It All Begun”
25″ x 38″
Giclee print
framed & signed

$500.00

NAOSHI (Yokohama, Japan)

“The Flying Girl – I will Fly Anywhere”
27.7″ x 13.8″
Sunae (finely colored sand crystals on artboard)
Framed & signed

$680.00

Mike Peraza (Burbank, Ca)

“MULIONS & MUPPETS
16″ x 12″ x 2″
Paper Sculpture
Framed & Signed

$2,400.00

(detail)

TADO (UK)

Doozers (1 – 4)
5″ x 4″ x 3″ (approx.)
Paper Mache / Clay
Signed

$250 – 300 each

Lorena Alvarez (Bogotá, Colombia)

“My First Bike”
13″ x 8″
Acrylics Over Cotton Paper
Framed & Signed

$550.00

Alberto Cerriteno (Portland via Mexico)

“THE JOURNEY OF UrSu”
13″ x 8″ x4″
Polymer Clay & Acrylics on Wood Panel
Framed & Signed

$1,800.00 - SOLD

(detail)

(detail)

Scott C (NYC)

“The Banjo”
Watercolor on Paper
12″ x 9″
signed & framed

$500.00

Sebastien Mesnard (Berlin via France)

“A Frog & His Boy”
5.7″  x 3.7″
Black ink
Signed

$500.00

“I ♥ You, Jim”
5.7″  x 3.7″
Black ink
Signed

$500.00

“Gonzo’s Trumpet”
5.7″  x 3.7″
Black ink
Signed

$500.00

Felt Mistress (UK)

“PEPPERDELICA”
45.0″ x 10.0″ x10.0″   (25.4 cm)
Mixed fabrics

$1,500.00

(detail)

Jared Andrew Schorr (Montclair, Ca)

“Muppet Spectrum”
8.6″ x 19.25″
Cut Paper
Signed

$1,000.00

(detail)

Mike Mitchell (Los Angeles)

“Best Buds”
14″ x 11″
Giclee print on cotton paper
Framed
Signed and number on piece

$250.00

“Sen. C Monster (R)”

14″ x 11″
Giclee print on cotton paper
Framed
Signed and number on piece

$250.00

“Oscar The Grandiose”

14″ x 11″
Giclee print on cotton paper
Framed
Signed and number on piece

$250.00

Prior to October of last year, we had never even heard the name Serge Gay Jr.  Since then, we’ve conducted/published an interview (March ’11) with the artist here on the site and I’ve personally purchased 2 of his works (an original piece and a giclee print).  The last year has shown itself to be quite successful for Gay, finding him earning a Grammy nomination -shared with director/frequent collaborator, Matt Stawski- for his work on Cee Lo Green‘s “Fuck You” video.  As the Bay Area gallery/publishing house, Spoke Art was launching themselves into the art world with their breakthrough Wes Anderson-themed art show, Bad Dads, Serge was catching our attention with his standout contributions to that exhibit.  Since then, Gay and Spoke Art have proven to be mutually beneficial to each others success, as the San Francisco-based painter has continued to submit impressive piece after impressive piece to such Spoke Art events as the multiple round (NYC, SF, LA) “Quentin vs. Coen – An art show tribute to the films of Tarantino and the Brothers,” the Pangaea Seed-curated shark exhibit/benefit “Sink Or Swim,” and  “Bad Dads II.”  This Saturday, the two of them will work together yet again; this time with Serge Gay Jr‘s work finally taking center stage in a solo exhibit of his own.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Not unlike the Haitian-born artist that paints them, Serge‘s work is multifaceted.  His strokes seem as carefree and fluid as flowing water, but the imagery is still incredibly bold an defined.  There are clearly political elements and the pieces can be fueled with plenty of social commentary, but, miraculously enough, they never feel heavy handed.  Some of the figures possess comic-like characteristics while, simultaneously, displaying a remarkable realism.  The subjects pronounce themselves, breaking outward from their framework and accentuating the depth that unfolds in the background.  Transparent ghostlike figures, objects, and text provide narration, breathing life and spirit into the work, providing interplay for the more solid and static figures and objects within it.  The compositions are undoubtedly engaging, but they still retain a high level of ambiguity in their interpretation.  There is nothing flat about the worlds created in Serge‘s paintings.  They possess a cinematic quality in relation to the way that they operate within time.  Sometimes it’s a CSI freeze frame  and the aftermath of a grimy hotel room.  Maybe it’s a slowly stirring clutter of figures.  Other times, it’s an airy surrealistic landscape that’s more cotton candy than concrete.  Their motion can be both stone and erosion… dust and wind.  The figures don’t always move at the same rate or even seem to appear on the same plain, toying with depth and compartmentalization like a diorama.

The subject matter is extremely personal, but maintains a universality.  This is most likely due to the many different defining aspects of Gay Jr‘s personality, as well as in spite of them.  He paints imagery relating to his birthplace in Haiti, as well as architecture and life that is clearly influenced by his current home in San Francisco.  Gender identity, racial identity, global destruction, personal morality… all of these things are addressed, but they don’t seem to create a conflict with Serge as an artist or seem out of place when grouped together in one singular presentation.  As a young artist, he has already managed to avoid the pitfalls that can be faced by the many who choose to limit and define themselves by any one of these particular subjects alone.  Serge is a black artist, who isn’t afraid to address some Afro-centric subject matter, but he’s more than that.  He’s more than a civil rights activist or a San Franciscan, a Haitian, a music enthusiast, a painter… any of those things.  He’s a human being, who’s aware of each of the components that make him a 3-dimensional personality and that’s why his imagery becomes so emotionally soluble.  Whether you’re a black artist, or an Asian artist, a gay artist, a female, an environmentalist,  or a political activist, it doesn’t matter, because if you continue to define yourself or your art by nothing else beyond that one singular aspect, while never broadening the interpretation of that experience, but expecting others to view you or your subject matter as something more than that, it’s unlikely that you or your art will ever present itself as anything more than the stale one-dimensional caricature that you’re trying to avoid.  Serge‘s solo exhibit -titled “Absolute Happiness“- is a great opportunity to finally catch a larger collection of the artists work in one place and to obtain a more well-rounded idea about his voice, what he’s capable of, and why he’s an artist worth watching as he develops throughout the future.

Here’s what Serge Gay Jr. told us, regarding the theme behind Absolute Happiness:

“The theme of the show is called “Absolute Happiness” because I wanted to showcase what the meaning of happiness is to me in all it’s different juxtapositions and trying to search for true happiness. Some people often define happiness as “living a good life” but to me it’s simply defined as an emotion as well as the little things in life when you can’t have it all. Not everyone is born with concept of “mental state of well-being”, but I’ve learned we can learn how to bring more meaning and satisfaction into our lives with what we have, to bring joy. For those, there are no absolute, and for some, it’s a never-ending quest. So I wanted to create a series that invites viewers through my eyes on this quest and most private journey ride to my very surreal, dream-like mind. Similar to a diary, my Art does tell a story of my everyday life of experiencing if it deals with tragic, love, lost, views, politics, travels, friendship, and happiness. As I create this surrealist expression movement that opens philosophical minds and understand my own social theories, I welcome viewers to see a world that I found out to be very unreal in all its complexities. In the end, you still have to go back to the root of it all and find what makes you happy.“

The opening reception for Absolute Happines” will take place at the Spoke Art gallery in SF from 6pm-11pm and will run until the end of the year.  Beyond the obvious reasons to attend the art opening in person, we’ve recently received the following information which pertains to an added benefit…

Opening Night Raffle

As an added bonus for attendees at this Saturday night’s opening, Serge Gay Jr. has generously decided to give away the above-featured painting, “Aperitif” during the night.

Spoke Art will be hosting a raffle for the original work, tickets will be $5 each, and 100% of the proceeds will be donated to the non-profit organization, Hand in Hand for Haiti. A small selection of signed and numbered prints will also be given away to raffle ticket donors.

More info on the organization here:
http://handinhandforhaiti.com/index.html

ADMISSION IS FREE!

Here’s the lowdown…

DETAILS:

What:

“Absolute Happiness”: Solo Show by Serge Gay Jr.

When:

Opening:
Saturday December 3th: 6pm – 10pm

*Show on view until December 31st*

Where:

SPOKE ART
816 Sutter St.
San Francisco, CA 94109

LINKS:

Serge Gay Jr: http://sergegayjrart.wordpress.com/
Spoke Art: http://spoke-art.com/
Facebook Event Page: http://www.facebook.com/events/272075719495243/

The following is a small selection of advanced images from the upcoming exhibit.

[CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE]

Brick by Falling Brick

36″ x 48″

One Third

16″ x 20″

Joe Blow

16″ x 20″

Over Flow

18″ x 36″

Gold Fishs

6″ x 8″ each

Color Me Black

20″ x 24″

DANIEL BARROW

City Arts Fest

Seattle, Wa

0ct. 22, 2011

Possibly one of the most unique additions to Seattle’s City Arts Festival, visual artist Daniel Barrow performed his Sobey award-winning “Every Time I See Your Picture I Cry” at FRED Wildlife Lounge on Oct. 22.  Having seen Barrow’s performance for the first time a couple of years ago in Milwaukee, I jumped at the chance to witness it again.  Without experiencing his work for yourself, it might sound odd to hear that it possesses a cinematic quality, but I definitely think that’s an apt way to describe it.  The performer manipulates lush, darkly comic illustrations manually via a simple overhead projector, sliding the transparencies back and forth, while narrating a tale of alienation and violence in the life of a failed art student.  The visuals are set to an original score of chiming, Pet Sounds –like instrumentals composed by Amy Linton (The Aisler Set), which provides a stunning backdrop to Barrow’s sad, matter-of-fact intonation, and serves as a cheery counterpoint to the often-grisly scenarios that his characters encounter.  The result is a multi-sensory psychedelic experience; cinematic, but unlike anything that conventional cinema could conjure.

Divided into ten chapters, the story revolves around an art student-turned-garbageman who reclaims his childhood nickname of “Helen Keller” (so named because of a chronic eye infection problem).  Barrow assumes the voice of Keller, narrating the story from his perspective.  The garbageman relates the details of his chronic eye infections, dysfunctional home life, and failure to develop as an artist with clinical detachment.  In an attempt to express himself artistically, the character creates his own phone book of the city, person-by-person; each profile complete with a hand-traced portrait and biography.  Part of this effort involves combing through the trash of his subjects, whose sad detritus gently rotates in constellations of discarded diary entries, used tampons, and food wrappers.

The trash collector’s antagonist is a serial killer who escapes from prison, stalks him, and murders the people in the phone book one by one.  It is implied that the killer is a figure from the garbageman’s childhood; a neglected outcast nicknamed “Bag Lady.”  Much time is spent exploring the relationship between Helen Keller and Bag Lady, the latter of which is described as having spent “thirty days in an incubator, and thirty years paying for it.”  They are effective foils; the garbageman an erudite, dispassionate artist, and the serial killer the embodiment of impending, senseless, unthinking violence.  [The serial killer does attempt to communicate at one point by using his victim's blood to paint “EVERYTHING IS NOT OKAY. THE WORLD IS OVERPOPULATED. SOMETIMES POLITICIANS LIE" on the walls - sentiments that fit into our current political dialogue almost as well as they fit into a murder scene.]  Eventually the garbageman himself falls victim to the murderer, coming to an especially gruesome end.  Yet, even in the afterlife, Keller retains the same evenhanded tone, describing only mild disappointment at his demise.

Considering the poignant contrast of Barrow’s vibrant, sensory-rich performance with its musings on the sensory deprivation (as experienced by the real-life Helen Keller), the relationship between the visual and narrative elements of Every Time I See Your Picture I Cry is thrown into sharper focus.  From the beginning, the infamous deaf/blind namesake of Helen Keller looms large over the performance.  This is both literal, as well as figuratively true, with her portrait and biography serving as an introduction.  Quotes from her journals pepper the narrative as well, reinforcing the characters’ alienation from the world around them.  Indeed, the garbage man himself is -aside from his nickname- otherwise unnamed.  The overall structure of Every Time I See Your Picture I Cry is deliberately dense and multifaceted, mirroring the layers of beautiful illustrations that Daniel Barrow projects.  It’s an elegant relationship and one that warrants several viewings.

While the story is strangely abstract and the animation has a simple homemade quality, the overall effect is quite stunning.  Quick movements, such as a character bowing or stabbing another, are particularly striking, considering that they’re the result of merely sliding transparencies around an overhead projector.  There is a sense that Barrow is, in addition to an illustrator and storyteller, an illusionist plying his sleight-of-hand tricks to a room full of rubes.  Daniel’s inventive use of the overhead has a distinct charm, derived from the contrast between antiquated technology and a dense, highly discursive storyline.

At its core, Every Time I See Your Picture I Cry is an exploration of what it means to tell a story.  Daniel Barrow‘s ability to bring simple elements of sound and color together in a single space creates -as I’ve said- a cinematic experience.  It seems unfair, though, to describe his work in terms of the technology he deliberately eschews.  If anything, the illustrator’s work seems pre-cinematic, in that it relies on simpler techniques to deliver an experience that cinema eventually monopolized.  For anyone who has lamented the way that digitized screen time exerts itself over our lives, the illustrator/performer’s low-tech masterpiece will no doubt strike a chord.

After seeing it a second time, I definitely wished that there was a way to revisit the experience of the performance, after the fact, as well.  Unfortunately, it’s nearly impossible to find a representative example of Barrow‘s work online, besides a few still images and short clips of other works.  Having attempted (and inevitably failed) to explain to friends what exactly Daniel‘s show consists of, I can say that it’s definitely something that needs to be experienced live.  Although he has toured with this performance for several years, Barrow said that this was his first time in Seattle.  I was surprised by this, given that he is from Winnipeg and tours widely in Canada.  In any case, here’s to hoping we see more of his work returning to the area in the near future.

We first became familiar with SPOKE ART around this same time last year.  Back then, the Bay Area art gallery/publishing house was still finding it’s footing and, without their own permanent space to call their own, they had just recently held their inaugural art show in Oakland and were now preparing to launch their next exhibit at the LOPO gallery in San Francisco.  What really peaked our interest about this follow up event, early on, was that it was a group show themed around the talents of filmmaker Wes Anderson.  The impressively curated exhibit was titled “BAD DADS“, in reference to the overwhelming number of family issues -and more specifically, father issues- which are consistently represented in Anderson‘s work.  The amount of quality pieces that were created for and featured in the tribute show made BAD DADS an instant success, helping to catapult SPOKE ART firmly onto the radars of the contemporary art world as a force worth keeping a close eye on.  Over the last year, they have continued to put out tremendously successful exhibits -including 3 separate installments of  “Quentin vs. Coen – An art show tribute to the films of Tarantino and the Brothers – introduced us to exciting young talents like Serge Gay Jr., and have locked down a permanent space in San Francisco to host regular showcases for this amazing art.  This coming weekend, that space will be utilized to it’s full potential, as SPOKE ART revisits the original concept that is responsible for first truly putting them on the map.

The second annual “Bad Dads – an art show tribute to the films of Wes Anderson” will open this weekend at the SPOKE ART gallery in San Francisco.  To make accommodations and avoid possible conflicts due to the holiday weekend, there will be opening festivities on both Saturday and Sunday.  After that, the show will continue to run throughout the month of November, but if you have a chance to make it to one of the openings, we highly recommend it.  We also suggest getting into the spirit and dressing like a Wes Anderson character from one of his movies (you’re guaranteed not to be the only one).  In fact, there will be a costume contest with Spoke Art “giving away free prints and Team Zissou rings to [their] favorite Wes Anderson costumes all weekend long“.  Providing work constructed around their own personal interpretations of characters and/or scenes from Anderson‘s films will be nearly seventy different “pop surrealist painters, screen printers, street and new contemporary artists“.  Both limited edition prints and original pieces will be available directly from the gallery, as well as online.

Check out the rest of the details, as well as a selection of preview images, after this video from last year’s exhibit:

Click here to view the embedded video.

ADMISSION IS FREE!

Here’s the lowdown…

DETAILS:

What:

2nd Annual Bad Dads: A Tribute to the Films of Wes Anderson

When:

Opening:
Saturday October 29th: 6pm – 10pm
Sunday October 30th: 6pm – 10pm

*Show on view until November 25th*

Where:

SPOKE ART
816 Sutter St.
San Francisco, CA 94109

Selection of featured Artists:

Craig Tapecat McCudden, Johannah O’Donnell, David Rose, Saul Boxx Gonzalez, Jing Wei, Audrey Pongracz, Mihcael Ramstead, Dima Drjuchin, Nicole Gustafsson, Cate Rangel, Julian Callos, Michael Ramstead, Ruel Pascual, Jesse Riggle, Danielle Rizzolo, Bec Winnel, Steve Foundling, Lucas Gluesenkamp, David K Rose, Jason Spencer, Bennet Slater, Christopher Brewer, Blaine Fontana, Daryll Peirce, Justin Lovato, Alexandre Day, Owen Sherwood, Sandi Calistro, Gene Guynn, Dave Greco, Greg Gossel, Zoltron, Jason Levesque Rhys Cooper, Tim Doyle, and more…

LINKS:

Spoke Art
Spoke Art Facebook
Event Page

[CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE]

In the early days, Amon constructed groundbreaking works like Bricolage (1997) and Permutations (1998), which were jazzy,  downtempo, drum n bass-heavy releases with vinyl samples full of shambolic jazz kits and breakbeats.  Tobin‘s choice of titles are always telling and, by the time that albums like Supermodified (2000) and Out From Outwhere (2002) were released, the samples were becoming so altered  (“modified”) and were becoming so unrecognizable that it was sounding a lot more like the artist was siphoning his material directly from the outer limits of the cosmos, rather than mining it from anything terrestrial; let alone, dusty old jazz records.  From there came remixes, compilations, a “soundtrack” to the highly successful Tom Clancy video game, Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory (marking a shift into the use of self-created samples), and another soundtrack for a Hungarian film about competitive “speed eating” and taxidermy ( the album cover art is of a shack-dwelling man shooting flames from his dick).  The next proper follow up for the Ninja Tune golden boy, however, wouldn’t arrive until 2007‘s FOLEY ROOM.  Being a full 5 years since his last “real” studio album, I wasn’t even aware that it was on it’s way until I accidentally stumbled across it.  It was immediately engaging and I listened to it at least a half dozen times before learning that Tobin had approached the project with the intention of utilizing nothing but field recordings, in the tradition of the foley artists that create sound effects for film.  The CD came with a bonus DVD documenting Amon as he collected the samples from sources like roaring caged lions, electric toothbrushes on banjos, and buzzing swarms of hornets in a balloon made of foil.  These effects were masterfully stacked, mixed, and blended, achieving much more than mere novelty, but actually exposing the musical potential for such things as motorcycle engines and splashing water.  Realizing that there was a missing element, Tobin eventually recruited the talents of the legendary Kronos Quartet to fill out the sound by supplying the eerily haunted string arrangements, breathing into the songs with a wispy undertone of beautifully hypnotic doom.  Now, with his obsession to constantly move forward and continue to explore new avenues in sound, the electronic innovator has continued to alter his creation process and push his sampling/production methods even further with the release of the multi-media ISAM project earlier this year.

Click here to view the embedded video.

The video above demonstrates Tobin‘s use of a super wacky,  hi-tech fingerboard/midi-controller known as a “Haken Continuum” to create the sounds for ISAM.  You’ll notice that he’s sampling simple items around his studio before mutating and blending them to create something new and multi-dimensional.  This time around the man seems to have found ways to work smarter, instead of harder (although, any time that he saves is, undoubtedly, channeled back into some other element of tedium for the project).  Instead of hunting out field recordings from obscure locations, the producer recognized that, if those sounds created by various unorthodox outside sources could be harnessed for melodies and rhythms, finding new life in a musical context, then any unassuming item that’s already within reach in his studio or simply sitting on the coffee table in his living room should be utilized to operate just as well.  From there, the noises were processed, often being pushed through multiple filters each.  The above video shows such examples as a chair creak being synthesized or the ding of light bulbs being morphed into the twang of another sample.  Once the sounds of those original items are collected, they can be intricately manipulated through the continuum finger board.

The tracks on ISAM are definitely new explorations in sound and song structure, but they are meant to be listened to and enjoyed, first and foremost.  What I mean is that it is a project that is much more about the final product than the gimmick behind it’s construction or the individual elements that went into creating it.  Anyone can play you a recording of railroad nails being hammered in and instruct you to find the rhythm in it, but Tobin is a composer at heart, aside from being an audio scientist.  His means of creation are as much a method to construct elaborate soundscapes that listeners can interact with and become submerged in, as they are opportunities to indulge his own personal needs to expand his skill set and tinker with whatever newfangled contraptions that he has access to.

The song “Mass and Spring” (falling dead center at track #7 of 12) is one of the most fragmented start and stop-style offerings on the album, often coming through like a game of Sonic the Hedgehog, only if the main character was stuffed full of ambien and dramamine.  Propeller-esque shuffling is catapulted forward, only to reverse like a batarang.  It could often be difficult to decipher the individual field recordings on Foley Room, but they still seemed slightly more untouched and there were moments where an engine rumble or lion roar was definitely recognizable as such.   For the most part, every noise is used to meld into and enhance the music -for both projects- but if any of the samples do expose themselves and stand apart as individuals within the singular blanket of woven sound on ISAM, some of those moments definitely appear in “Mass and Spring“.  Busted jack-in-the-boxes pop up at random; their loosened heads fling off and plink down through bottomless wells.  Racketballs richocet off of plaster and sink into vats of  dense pudding after being launched from a bug zapper.  An antique elevator strains it’s weathered cables and the echo of rusty harp strings vibrate from the damp basement level and up through the hollow shaft.  It’s beautiful and dark, like the rest of the album, like the album before it, and like select moments on every piece of work that’s preceded it.  It’s entirely new, but it still has it’s creator’s stamp all over it.  It’s oddly foreign, but even more oddly familiar.

Early on (April?), Amon Tobin uploaded a full soundcloud stream of ISAM with written commentary of the album throughout.  Of this particular track, Tobin states the following:

“mass and spring is based on acoustic modelled ‘made up’ string instruments that behave very strangely when played due to the conflicting physical properties I’ve assigned to them.“

He continues with this train of thought in other comments on the stream, referring to the fictional instruments that he’s envisioned in his own mind.

“no samples featured on the album instead sythesised instruments are combined with multi-sampled instruments all of which are playable.“

“I love the idea of playing futuristic non existent instruments built a high level of detail in their construction but playing them actually quite badly : )“

Also featured on “Mass and Spring” are the “ooohs” of a “female” voice.  This voice also appears in the previous track “Wooden Toy“, with the “woman” singing actual lyrics.  Later, a separate feminine vocal appears on “Kitty Cat” (track #9).  Even prior to this, delicate “aaahhs” are introduced as early as the second track, “Piece of Paper“, continuing into “Goto 10” (track 3), with the addition of subtle “doot-do-dos“.  The “aaahhs” return later, buoying throughout “Lost & Found” (song #5) and adding an eerily angelic atmosphere to the track, but it isn’t until “Wooden Toy” that we actually hear it as an undeniably human voice beckoning our attention to actual verses.  Before that point, the vocals are little more than a additional instrumentation and/or used as accents, providing a slightly less robotic counterpoint to the various hydraulics, recoils, glitches, sonic thrusts, ruptures, and teleports that they assist in adhering together.

A lot of electronic musicians will try shit like this, throwing a random -generally female- vocal into the mix on an otherwise instrumental effort.  It’s similar with instrumental hip hop records, except that those generally have one of the artist’s pals stepping in to add a speedbump by awkwardly rapping over a track, while female singers typically sidetrack these sorts of releases by taking them into more dancey, house music-oriented territories.  In both circumstances, if done poorly (as they usually are), the introduction of an outside vocalist can really toss a temporary twig into the spokes of an otherwise fluid release, forcing it to attempt to regain it’s continuity after a disorienting hiccup.  Introducing multiple separate voices at different points can increase that possibility of disjointedness further.  One of the rare situations that such accompaniment actually works amazingly well is on Daedelus‘ Righteous Fists of Harmony EP, with the artist’s wife and Long Lost collaborator, Laura Darlington, appearing on various tracks seamlessly.  This is likely due to their close knit, intimate working relationship and understanding of each other’s abilities as artists.  Tobin finds a similar benefit with ISAM, which manages to become another such successful undertaking… almost.  I don’t mean that it doesn’t work, because, from the first time that I heard the album, I was incredibly impressed and surprised by how the introduction of vocals could benefit Tobin‘s tracks so remarkably.  The only reason that I use the term “almost” is because -previously unbeknownst to me- there technically isn’t any “accompaniment” or “outside vocalist” on the album whatsoever.  In fact, both of the “women” that appear on ISAM are nothing more than Amon himself, only with his voice pumped full of a convincing dose 0f electronic-based estrogen through some sort of SRS-inspired production wizardry.

Amon says the following of “Goto 10“:

“my own vocals synthesised and gender modified here.“

…and “Lost and Found”:

“My own vocals analysed and gender modified.“

Regarding his singing on “Wooden Toy“, he states:

“so here we have the first of two imaginary characters I’ve featured on the album. I performed the vocals which were then synthesised and turned into a female.“

Then, for “Kitty Cat“, he provides the following insights:

“here’s the second made up character vocalist on the record. this time she’s supposed to be older and has an american twang like some folk singer.“

“probably best to ignore the words.. they are pretty silly and more of a necessary biproduct of the experiment with synthesising vocals to create convincing characters.“

The other largely impressive and immediately noticeable aspect of ISAM is the severe lack of drums.  This is, perhaps, the biggest difference from the composer’s early work that relied so heavily on the beats to create a skeleton to drape the doom-laden flesh across.  You can’t spell “drum n bass” without the drum.  This release demonstrates the musician evolving into a completely different animal.

There are definite rhythms on the album, but they are far less overt than that of a wily jazz break or even a schizophrenic drill n bass gatling attack.  Moments of heavy impact do appear, like cannon balls thumping into a wet lawn, but even during these instances, no “real” drums or drum samples were ever utilized.  It’s not only impressive that he’s able to pull off such an undertaking, but also in the multitude of ways that he’s been able to make it work so fantastically.  The song “Calculate” relies primarily on glistening tonal bells and warm computer-like blips to create its’ framework over the occasional minor click and understated intermittent electrical surge.  “Bedtime Stories” threads the rustling clink of metal thumb tacks in a mason jar throughout the discharge of toy rockets, the reeling zip of a penny racer, and enough atmospheric pressure flux to make your ears pop.  All of this is supplied with a lathering of gentle bells from a music box lullaby.  “Night Swim” is a thoroughly cinematic piece, evoking images of stepping barefoot and sopping wet across jagged rocks to take shelter from the increasingly brisk night in a dark musty cave.  The music itself sounds like you’ve tucked your ears under water while listening to a recording of wind chimes through speakers that occasionally show static evidence that they’ve been slightly blown.  Or, as Tobin puts it…

“grains and fragments cluster together to make something that resembles a beat.“

and…

“fragments disassemble and they fall apart again.“

As with the Miles-esque approach to “the notes you don’t play“, much of the structural elements on ISAM are formed by the moments of absence or the spaces between the more defining sounds.  At other times, it’s the sheer and consistent amplification or deceleration of one sound in relation to those adjacent to it.  This is never more apparent than on the lurch and collapse of the track “Surge“.  Many of us might have memories employing a similar approach to formulating rhythms, by rapidly twisting back and forth on the volume dials of your parents radios, as makeshift childhood DJs.

The last track on ISAM, “Dropped from the Sky“, is like softly hang-gliding past the ends of physical space and into stark whiteness, only to see a new extension of uncharted Earth being created in real time all around you.  The outline of rigid cliffs and majestic peaks sharply cut through the nothingness and come into focus.  They are coated with rich moss and wild flowers that, just as swiftly, sprout in blankets across their surfaces.  First there’s an anonymous mist and then the waterfall that didn’t even exist a moment before.  Circling birds.  Prisms rainbow out from the water.  This space is so pure and untouched that there has been no need to furnish itself with these elements until you’ve entered them.  Now, as you do, we’re popping the tags on some fresh nature one cubic foot at a time.  It’s arguably the least bleak and most encouraging effort on the entire release, floating the album out on a memory foam cloud until the brief discordant plucks of, what is literally, the last few notes close the lid on the box.

“so now we have a melting pot of various elements and techniques employed throughout the album. electronics, vocal synthesis etc.etc.“

Tobin‘s intention to wrap up the release by revisiting all of the different aspects that have been explored throughout the rest of the album is in direct correlation to ISAM being an accumulation of all of the styles that the composer has experimented with and perfected over the course of the previous albums that have led up to it.  The dark beauty, calculated transitions between tracks, live samples, processing, synthesizing, etc. are all present.  It wouldn’t surprise me if the next release is his most minimal work to date.  Then again, it wouldn’t surprise me if it were even more elaborate, either.

Click here to view the embedded video.

ISAM has been released in a few different versions and packaging options, including a “6 panel gatefold CD, double heavyweight LP with printed inner sleeves, and a limited edition CD artbook featuring exclusive images“.  As with the general ISAM cover art (along with the rest of the images in this post) the photos in the artbook are of sculptures created by the UK-based artist Tessa Farmer, who has her work featured in such prestigious collections as the Ashmolean Museum and the Saatchi Gallery.  These new artbook featured works in particular -”constructed from bits of organic material, such as roots, dead insects and bones“- were created explicitly for/inspired by the music of ISAM and were actually part of a collaborative installation between Tobin and Farmer earlier this year.  The exhibit, titled “Control Over Nature“, was held at The Crypt Gallery at the St Pancras Parish Church in  London (originally “designed and used for coffin burials“) and entailed the music from ISAM and Farmer‘s displayed visual work complementing each other to create a collective experience where sight and sound overlap, merging into territories that transcend the typical physical senses.

Tobin‘s audio, on the other hand, was not created with the intention to accompany Farmer‘s sculptural work, whatsoever.  His sound collages are painstakingly manufactured to be visual enough on their own.  The idea to incorporate the sculptor’s work came after the fact, based on commonalities that the two artists share and recognized in relation to their current approaches to each of their respective fields.

AMON TOBIN:

“we’re both re-arranging and augmenting natural elements to make something imagined but tangible. We are both exploring new uses for familiar materials, or in Tessa’s case familiar creatures.  I’m trying to take an objective approach to all my source material, whether it’s field recording or synthesis based or a mixture of the two.  I’m treating it all as musically/creatively relevant and useful.“

When asked by NewScientist.com about presenting her work alongside Amon‘s music, Tessa simply states:

“It’s how my work sounds“

While stumbling around the internet -searching out a reference, video, image source, or verification for some random aspect of this article- I came across a link to Pitchfork‘s review of ISAM and, uncharacteristically, decided to go ahead and read it.  I can’t remember everything that it said, but I do remember a few key elements.  The first is that they gave it a relatively low rating (checking now, I see that it was a mere 5.9) and that score was the primary factor prompting me to reading ahead.  The second thing that I recall is that the actual content of the review felt somewhat favorable and didn’t really seem to support that final determination.  Maybe it depends on what you’re looking for, because the writer describes various aspects that I saw as positives with the project, while commending Tobin‘s capabilities as an innovator to move forward, but then seemingly contradicts himself by complaining about the artist’s structural tangents and that the album isn’t an accessible, head-nodding effort full of songs that are tightly packaged like little snack treats, more akin to some of his previous work.  The last point -and the one thing that really stuck out to me- was that the entire effort was dismissed by the reviewer as nothing more than a “transitional” album.  This is a claim that I find to be both semi-accurate and absurdly misguided.  Misguided, because I find nothing within ISAM that feels unfinished or like a work in progress.  This is a fully realized and expertly developed project that is fascinating and engaging for both it’s emotional qualities, as well as it’s technological accomplishments.  I find the claim to be semi-accurate because, with such an innovative and forward thinking artist, everything created is destined to be a “transition” to whatever he opts to tackle next, in one fashion or another.  That doesn’t mean that it isn’t also a destination of its own.

The one other dissatisfied accusation that is likely to be directed towards the ISAM project is that Amon Tobin is simply just too self-indulgent.  I, myself, might argue that any “real” and “genuine” art is.  If others feel that the work is too scattered and unfocused, like that previous reviewer, I have to question how engaged they have really allowed themselves to become with the piece.  A certain level of objectivity is definitely necessary to sufficiently analyze and critique something, but I feel it’s important to remember what/who you are actually writing these reviews for.  Shouldn’t there be some effort to try and experience the work in the same way that others who would look to you for your interpretation might?  How important is it to be able to share what you’ve discovered with the world?  How important is it to just have the soapbox?  I guess that what I’m asking is, “how self-indulgent is it to scrawl out your own critical opinions like this, just to toss them at the world like a raw slab of meat, in the first place?“  My assumption is that, to Amon Tobin, that opportunity to share what HE’s discovered with the world is probably the most important thing there is.  I feel that any mind-numbing technical legwork put into the project, that might be interpreted as general pretentiousness, has been more than validated by their end result.  His ability to finely tune and control each tiny fragment wasn’t simply used as a gimmick, it’s actually allowed him to form little moments of sound and pure emotion that, although they may have already existed in his head, would have been unavailable to him (and us) otherwise.  It’s like an amateur guitar “virtuoso” churning out some intricate Eddie Van Halen finger taps or cornball Joe Satriani licks.  If there’s no deeper connection to the music or what they’re doing besides the recognition of the difficulty involved -as is often the case- it can come across as the self-indulgent equivalent to flexing with one arm and smearing your own load into your belly flesh with the other.  But, what if that technique is utilized in a way that actually benefits the music and you connect to it; finding yourself traveling in a loin cloth through a firey swamp on the back of a pegasus, your experience is actually transformed, and you’re really into that type of shit?  Well, then it’s hard to argue that, at the very least, some of that showboating wasn’t self-indulgent at all, but was actually created for your benefit.  The level of self-indulgence that someone finds in a work might just be solely reliant on each individual’s level of personal connection to it, which -if you think about it- is actually somewhat ironic.  It’s difficult to fault someone for putting in such tremendous research, time, and efforts of tedium to be able to construct elaborate worlds, simply for our exploration.  And that’s what they are, open environments built for the listener.

As a reviewer, I find it nearly impossible to stand back and attempt to summarize this album through nothing, but logic and assessments restricted to it’s individual components.  ISAM is far too emotionally driven for that.  This is the type of project that you actually have to get inside of and wear for a minute.  Tobin has stated time and time again that it was not intended to be a “concept” album or even one of abstract experimentation in musique concrète.  It’s supposed to be an album that can be enjoyed by the listener on a level beyond intellectual appreciation.  You know… musically.  It’s hard to deny that there are fragmented moments and disjointed components throughout the album, but it’s the listener’s duty, as well as privilege, to be able to connect those dots themselves and fill in those gaps through their own personal experiences with, and reactions to, the material.  Real art exists off of the page, or canvas, or even the soundwave, or… whatever the medium.  Whether it’s through his music, Tessa Farmer‘s sculptures, or the elaborate and groundbreaking mutli-media live performance created for ISAM (covered/reviewed in part 2), a simple concrete narration is never provided; there’s always space to interject your own highly specific and personalized outlook into it.  Everything from the processing to the arrangements on the album are used to agitate and stoke the embers of the listener, beckoning them to follow the electronic piper like Victorian spectres through environments that unfold like a crossover episode of Ghost Hunters and American Pickers set on Cyberton.  With ISAM, Amon Tobin has managed to ride a very delicate balance; neither shamelessly pandering to his audience’s expectations or completely abandoning them in the woods without a handful of breadcrumbs.  If there’s one thing that’s become predictable about the electronic pioneer throughout his decade-and-a-half career, it’s that you can never predict exactly what he’s gonna do next.  He’s one of the most consistently forward thinking artists out there, in electronic music or any genre.  With ISAM, he has produced, what I believe to be, one of the most impressive projects of the year and I enthusiastically welcome whatever direction he chooses to venture into next.  I’m sure that there are others who would disagree with that sentiment, but Tobin doesn’t seem overly concerned if members of his fanbase do choose to jump ship.  It’s like he states with the comment that he’s chose to lead off the soundcloud stream with:

“anyone looking for jazzy brks should look elsewhere at this point or earlier :). it’s 2011 folks, welcome to the future.“

CITY ARTS FEST 2011

OCTOBER 20-22

(buy tix)

These days, the festival format is pretty much dominating the live music industry.  Not only is it a reflection of a financial necessity to redirect focus on the performance element in an age where recorded material is pirated to such a degree that “consumers” actually expect the product to be free of charge, but the idea to corral multiple artists and genres to present them like an audio smörgåsbord mirrors the desires of the growing demographic who listen to mp3s on shuffle and have come to rely on immediacy, expecting to have the ability to switch between any number or variety of options with no more than a simple finger swipe on their ipads.  The 90s had one primary standout festival, the touring Lollapalooza; now resurrected as a yearly one-off that doesn’t move from it’s static location in Chicago.  That model was mimicked with a more streamlined focus for the female-centric Lilith Fair (97-99, 2010), by the jam band revival set for the H.O.R.D.E. Festival (1992-98), and with the punk  fueled Warped Tour, which has opened it’s arms to a slightly more eclectic lineup -along with extreme sports- in more recent years.  There was also a couple of attempts at multi-day fests like Woodstock, but… I think we all know how that turned out.  Once Coachella started to really get rolling at the turn of the millenium, Bonnaroo picked up the formula on the other side of the country.  Then, slowly (and then, quite a bit more rapidly) the multi-day festivals with huge varied lineups really began popping up all over the country.  Rothbury, Wakarusa, Treasure Island Music Fest, ACL, Vegoose, Fun Fun Fun Fest, Outside Lands, etc. etc. etc….  The tours weren’t traveling as much anymore, so the people began to.  And what about those that can’t travel?  Well, if you won’t have a handful of festivals rolling through your city throughout the year, then I guess every city’s gonna have to throw a shit ton of festivals themselves.

Here in Seattle and the greater Washington area, we’ve already had the Sasquatch! Festival, The Capitol Hill Block Party, Bumbershoot, and Decibel Fest, this year, with the Earshot Jazz Festival scheduled for next week.  Last year, the folks at City Art Magazine decided that wasn’t enough and came up with the brilliant idea to launch the city-wide Heineken sponsored CITY ARTS FESTIVAL.  Not only did they toss yet one more festival into the already overflowing pile, but they also had the nerve to do it in the Fall, in an attempt to drag out the “festival season” which had, by all intents and purposes, already officially ended.  Summer’s over.  People are going back to school.  It’s getting cold, especially here in this city.  Is another music festival really fucking necessary?  Well… I’m not gonna waste my time with rhetoricals.  Instead, I’m just gonna explain why, in fact, it definitely is relevant, by pointing out some of the factors that set it apart from the others and make it a unique experience, while bringing attention to particular elements, performances, and artists that might be overlooked.

The BASICS / This Year vs Last

Modeled after other city-wide festivals like Austin‘s SXSW and Portland‘s Music Fest NW, the CITY ARTS FESTIVAL welcomes over 175 different artists to appear at more than 20 of Seattle‘s top venues.  Last year’s festival showcased performances by acts like Belle and Sebastian and Cat Power in such classic and beautifully majestic theaters as Benaroya Hall (home of the symphony) and the 5th Ave Theatre (est. 1926; originally hosting vaudeville acts).  That’s one main difference/benefit of City Arts taking advantage of all that the city has available; you’re generally not going to able to experience these acts playing in these environments.  This year is no different.  The main issue with last year was that it was the first year and with that comes a lot of learning.  At times if felt a bit scattered and more like a bunch of disconnected events, rather than one unified festival.  We covered the fest last time and, as someone who dealt directly with organizers, I can guarantee that kinks have been worked out and that this year is already running exponentially smoother.

Wristbands & Individual show tix

Unless you’re only planning on catching one event, our recommendation is to pick up the 3-Day All-Access Wristbands.  They are only $69 and cover access to any of the events throughout the entire 3-Day festival.  My only real concern with buying wristbands at festivals like this is how functional they truly are.  What I mean by that is, if there are conflicting acts that I was hoping to see scheduled at the same time or if my pass would limit access to an event that had reached it’s occupancy limit.  Last year, there was more than one event that was standing room only and festivals like Bumbershoot have always had occupancy limits which makes it incredibly easy to get locked out of the very shows that you bought the tickets for, in the first place.  This years City Arts Fest, on the other hand, is not only holding extra spaces for every event to, pretty much, guarantee that wristband holders are not prevented entry, but they’ve also done an amazing job with the schedule to avoid as many conflicts in that respect as possible and there is even a dedicated line for wristband holders.  Not to mention that for every wristband that you purchase, you’re automatically entered to win a Hawaiian vacation for two, through Alaska Airlines.

Broke as a joke?  There are actually a handful of City Arts Fest events that are completely free to the public.

SUGGESTED EVENTS:

There are obvious big names that people are going to want to check out.  These are the names that many people are buying the tickets for in the first place, so we don’t really feel the need to tell you to check out someone like ROBYN w/Yacht at the Paramount.  Then there are acts like CRYSTAL CASTLES – incidentally, scheduled late enough to check out after the Robyn set- who, although we “recommend”, are playing so much this year that their appearance at CAF isn’t one of the factors that truly adds to the uniqueness of this particular festival.  Mudhoney is always solid and worth seeing again, but as a local act, there will always be opportunities to check them out in the future.  Then there’s the one thing that really makes CAF a festival like no other: the focus on various forms of art.  This isn’t just another music festival, that simply includes the word “arts” in the title because it’s named after the goddamn magazine.  It’s actually a festival that, beyond music, also features discussion panels, visual art showcases, and film.  Here’s a heads up on a few events and exclusives that we feel that you should know about…

.

.

CHARLES KRAFFT

(Visual Art)

CULTURE CLUB: VISUAL ART CURATED BY FREE SHEEP FOUNDATION

Thursday October 20

FRED Wildlife Refuge

FREE

Curated by the Free Sheep Foundation, the Fred Wildlife Refuge will be showcasing the work of local Seattle low brow legend Charles Krafft and it’s completely FREE to attend.  We recommend hitting this up, even if you didn’t purchase a ticket or plan on going to any of the rest of the festival.

Originally working as a painter in the more traditional sense, Krafft redirected his focus into ceramics, approximately 2 decades ago.  Juxtaposing  traditional methods of blue & white tin glaze Delftware pottery from the Netherlands with his own, often crass, social commentary, the artist invented what he refers to as “Disasterware“.  Beginning with his own parodies of ceramic collector’s plates -substituting flowers and fields for horrific imagery and that of historic tragedies- he eventually moved on to create everything from ceramic figures of grenades, automatic weapons, and swastika windmills.  His other big trademark comes in the material that he uses for the products itself.  Creating his own clay body called “SPODE“, the sculptor makes his own bone china containing human remains, by mixing in crematoria ashes.

Click here to view the embedded video.

.

.

MAN MAN: Live Laser Show

(music, visual/performance art)

Saturday

October 22

Laser Dome

Doors10:30 pm

$18 adv / $22 dos

All Ages

Dressed in his trademark white polo and tennis shorts attire (headband optional) with white smears of facepaint framing his mustached  snarls and grunts -not unlike a 70s Lord of the Flies porn-star version of John Mcenroe- MAN MAN frontman, Honus Honus (aka: Ryan Kattner), leads his multi-instrumentalist troupe through howling performances fueled with the tense cleansing energy of a ritual sacrifice.  Part Rain Dogs-era Tom Waits, part shambolic Captain Beefheart blues, part all-out tribal drum circle, and part something that’s all their own, the Philadelphia quartet has made a name for themselves through these explosive live shows that mix the spooky macabre vibes of a haunted house with the salvation of a baptist church ministry.  Recently, a more futuristic element of synthed-out blaster zaps have been swirled into the mix, evoking imagery of hovering UFOs blowing up dishwashers and other scattered household appliances in an abandoned junkyard.

MAN MAN isn’t new to the festival game -they’ve played Coachella, Bonnaroo, etc.- but, their performance at City Arts should be different than any before.  This time, they will be one of only 3 different CAF acts to perform in the Pacific Science Center ‘s laser dome accompanied by a live laser show!  Given the unique nature of the event, we don’t know exactly what to expect.  What we do know is that you probably won’t want to miss it.

Click here to view the embedded video.

.

.

COLOR ME OBSESSED:

Replacements Documentary

(FILM)

Price: $6 – 10

All Ages

In the middle of seeing all this music and art, why not take a moment to head over to the North West Film Forum to check out a movie?  It will give you a nice break, allowing you to sit down in a less crowded environment and change up the monotony, while still being engaged in the festival.  Our suggestion is Gorman Bechard’s newest film, Color Me Obsessed, a documentary about the pioneering 80s rock band, The Replacements.  I love a good documentary and can pretty much watch one about anything, as long as it’s made well, but sometimes, directors feel like the subject will carry the film all by itself and phone it in pretty hard.  One thing that I generally appreciate is when someone works to redefine the structure of a doc; to find and take a new approach to the format.  Color Me Obsessed promises to do exactly that, building a film around a subject that never actually appears in the film at all.  The following information -taken from the press release- should help to explain:

“Bechard has been a diehard fan of 1980s rock icons The Replacements for nearly 30 years, and Color Me Obsessed is a movie about that fandom. Unlike other music docs, there’s no concert or other footage of the band in the film—in fact, Bechard has still not met a single Replacement. Their music appears nowhere on the soundtrack. Instead, the film engages fans like Dave Foley, critics like Robert Christgau, and other musicians like Colin Meloy and Lori Barbero to talk about this iconoclastic, deeply influential group and their music. It was Bechard’s way of making a movie about his favorite band that anyone who’s ever had a favorite band can relate to. And if he picks up a few new fans for the Replacements along the way, even better. “

There are additional showings on the following 2 days, as well as a later 9:30pm screening on the 21st.  The reason that we recommend this particular Friday 7pm show, however, is because it keeps your schedule open and allows you to attend another CITY ARTS FEST exclusive later that evening.  The showing gets out at approx. 9pm but, if you scurry just a few blocks down Pike St. and over to the Comet Tavern, there will be an All Star tribute to the Replacements beginning at the same time (9pm) and running until 12:30.  That show is $8 for single tickets and will feat. members of The Fastbacks, The Cops, Virgin Islands, Kinski, Fort Union, Concourse d’Elegance, Cataldo, Kyle Bradford, Ben Fisher, Gabriel Mintz and a special appearance by John Roderick.

Click here to view the embedded video.

.

.

BUILT TO SPILL

(music)

The first time that I was supposed to see Built To Spill was in 1995.  The show was $8 and the opener was HEAT MISER, a band featuring Elliot Smith and Sam Coomes (Quasi).  I had the tickets, but I didn’t make it.  I saw them later that year at the Mercer Arena (now the Opera House) as part of the Bumbershoot festival, instead.  Believe it or not, the Bumbershoot tickets were even cheaper than the other ones, back then (we still sneaked in).  The last time that I saw BTS play was last November in Olympia at the Capitol Theater, a place that is both featured in the Built To Spill LIVE (2000) album booklet and a venue that frontman Doug Martch personally told me that he’s never been able to get a good sound out of.  That show resulted in a reunion of Martsch and K Records founder, Calvin Johnson‘s (Beat Happening) 90s collaboration, The Halo Benders.  It was a benefit and they came all the way out to play that show at a venue they weren’t even very fond of, based on the simple request of a family who’s young daughter was suffering from cancer.

I’ve been seeing BTS shows for the last 16 years (half my life) and in the last decade and a half, I’ve spoken to Doug a handful of times.  These conversations and quick interactions have been in places that vary from the green room at the Crystal Ballroom to sitting out on the sidewalk at night, post show on the streets of Olympia.  Whether we were discussing the possibility of arranging an interview for the site or it was back when I was just some 16 year old kid standing outside of the, now-defunct club, RKCNDY, he’s always been the same equally approachable, humble, and personable guy.  It’s that unpretentious realism that comes through in the music.  The last time that I talked to him in person was in ’09 after the band played a free show on the UW lawn.  He told me that he was in town recording their last album There is No Enemy.  There is some talk that he may be coming to town this time for a similar reason.  This City Arts performance will actually be the one and only U.S. Built to Spill show for the entire year.

I’ve seen Built to Spill so many times, at this point, that it would be hard to count, but it’s one of those rare bands that have burrowed itself into my life and, as cliche as it might be, have provided the soundtrack to so many different stages of it.  It’s interesting when you consider how big Elliot Smith became or bands like Modest Mouse, who not only use to open up for BTS in those early days, but have admitted to owing an insurmountable debt to Doug Martsch‘s work for their own existence.  Martsch, on the other hand, has always stayed a steady course, avoiding any fanfare, and simply offering up consistent work on a consistent basis, for the last 2 decades.  As one of the greatest indie rock bands of all-time, it’s ironic that their consistency is something that may actually play against them being celebrated more than they are, at this point in their careers.  People love a reunion /comeback and I have to believe that, if they had disappeared in the 90s like other groundbreaking acts such as Pavement and the Pixies, they would be getting even more recognition for what they’ve provided to the music world and people would be losing their goddamn minds over them playing a show right now.  BTS have just gotten stronger and tighter over time, as they add more and more to their repertoire.

If you haven’t seen them in a while, you’re likely to find something completely different the next time that you do.  They had a phase when they were busting out reggae versions of Elton John‘s “Daniel” and ending their show’s with 20 minute dub versions of “Cortez the Killer” (Neil Young).  A couple of years ago they began playing the M.I.A. hit “Paper Planes”, live.  When I caught them in Oly they played “Ripple” (Grateful Dead).  The first time that I ever heard a Daniel Johnston song was actually through their version of “Some Things Last A Long Time“.  Somehow, all of their covers sound almost too perfect.  Even the music of others is reinvented and takes on a completely new life through the filter of the Idaho 5-piece.  Everything they do seems so effortless, that it’s easy to forget how great they still truly are.  If you haven’t seen them in a while, this will be a perfect opportunity to remind yourself of just that.  If you’ve never seen them live, then this is a definite must see.  If they are, in fact, recording a new album in town, there’s a good chance they’re gonna premier some new shit at this show, as well.  They usually do.

Click here to view the embedded video.

.

.

Daniel Barrow:

Every Time I See Your Picture I Cry

(Visual/Performance Art)

I’ve never seen the full extent of what Daniel Barrow does as an artist, but there’s one thing that I can pretty much guarantee: you’re not likely to get the same exact experience anywhere else.  There are a handful of things that I do know about him:  He’s from Canada, he’s the 2010 Sobey Art Award winner, and he’s supported acts that range from Miranda July to Antony and the Johnsons.  I also know that he is an illustrator and that he likes to bring his artwork to life by animating full stories in real time in front of a live audience.  The equipment that he uses includes a simple CD player and overhead projectors.  To picture a man narrating a story that’s accompanied by drawings on sheets of acetate projected onto the wall, can sound a bit antiquated, but, based on the imagery that we’ve seen, the work is quite impressive.  Somehow, the combination of his illustration style and the method of delivery don’t feel dated, current, or futuristic.  Instead, they seem to exist is some fantastic alternate universe.  This year,  Daniel will be appearing at the City Arts Festival to present one of the stories/worlds that he’s created titled, “Every Time I See Your Picture I Cry“.

The following press release info should be able to explain what he does better than we can:

“Barrow has developed an intimate mode of ‘manual animation’ using the antiquated technology of an overhead projector. From a position amongst the audience he recites live narration while manipulating layers of transparencies in continuous motion. Accentuated by interference patterns and sleight-of-hand trickery, Barrow’s hand –drawn images contrive an absorbing tale of comic book grotesques. “Every Time I See Your Picture I Cry” is a bizarre confessional detailing the grand but hopeless scheme of an estranged garbage collector and failed art student.”

“Unloved and rejected by society, the protagonist begins a universal art project in the form of a telephone directory of ‘profound and intimate insights’ to chronicle the lives of those around him. As he snoops through the windows and waste bins of fellow citizens, his survey is rendered futile by a maniacal killer who follows in his wake, picking off subjects one by one. Invoking introspection, pathos and dark humor, this award-winning performance piece is accompanied by an unassuming Beach Boys-inflected score recorded by Amy Linton of The Aislers Set.“

The following footage is not of the show that Barrow will be presenting at the festival.  It’s from another one of Daniel‘s pieces called, “Learning to Breathe Underwater“, but it should still provide a quick glimpse into what this guy is all about and what can be expected by anyone that makes their way to check him out on Saturday the 22nd.

Click here to view the embedded video.

.

.

Freestyle Fellowship

(hip hop)

In the late 80s – early 90s, the West Coast managed to carve out their mark on the hip hop world through the introduction of gangsta rap groups like N.W.A. Around this same time, there was a little South Central Los Angeles health food center known as The Good Life that began hosting weekly workshop-style open mic nights.  The Good Life was somewhat of an epicenter for talent to grow at the time and that environment helped to birth a good deal of future “conscious”/”back pack” rap legends.  The Pharcyde came out of that area and time period and was connected to that scene.  The Good Life crew, specifically, retained a heavy focus on freestyling and some incredibly talented battle MCs came out of those open mics (ex. Otherwize took the title over Eminem in the 1997 Rap Olympics).  Jurassic 5 was born out of those Good Life open mic sessions, as was the entire Project Blowed collective and compilation (feat. rappers like Busdriver and Abstract Rude).  Both part of the Good Life scene and members under the “project blowed” canopy, was a crew by the name of Freestyle Fellowship that incorporated live jazz elements, toyed with scat-like vocal deliveries, and caused some immediate quakes in the rap scene that are still being felt to this day.  Over time, FF members split off to pursue solo careers of various success (Mykah 9 and Aceyalone, especially) and, although certain members may have done work with each other over the years, a proper Freestyle Fellowship full-length hasn’t been released since Temptations in 2001.  Even the 2001 Shockadoom Ep was originally recorded in the nineties.

After all this time, Freestyle Fellowship has finally reunited with the lineup of Mykah 9, Aceyalone, P.E.A.C.E., Self Jupiter, and DJ Kiilu Grand, and are releasing a new album called, The Promise.  In all honesty, the “conscious” rap movement is one that I lost patience with years ago.  Everyone wants to come across as deep, but are far too overt with letting the listener know how “conscious” they are, instead of simply delivering mind-blowing and thought provoking material.  Freestyle Fellowship is the type of crew that has always been focused on the actual craft of their art and whatever labels and/or honors that were bestowed on them came after the fact.  If you’re seriously into hip hop and continue to eat up some of the conscious rap trash that’s being spewed out these days, you owe it to yourself to hit up this show.  After all, these are the guys that these lesser artists are imitating.

Click here to view the embedded video.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

CLICK HERE to check out the full schedule

CLICK HERE to view a pdf grid of the entire festival

Since making a massive entrance onto the art world last year, Ken Harman‘s Spoke Art has grown rapidly from it’s original concept as a “transient art gallery and publishing house” to locking down a permanent residence in San Francisco to host their expertly curated monthly art exhibits.  Even with their new space, Spoke Art remains a hybrid between the two; a solid stable location that still  maintains it’s mobility.  Growing up as half Peurto Rican and half non-practicing Jew was similar, “Yeah, it is a religion but, technically, we’re Jewish… ethnically, I mean… but… we’re not religious.“  It can get a little confusing.  Last week we posted a preview for SINK OR SWIM, a group art show held at the Spoke Art Gallery that was organized by outside curators.  This week, we have a preview that’s the exact opposite: an exhibit curated by Spoke Art that is not only being held outside of the gallery, but in an entirely different city, altogether..

Back in April, Spoke Art took it’s first real jaunt outside of the Bay Area, heading to New York City‘s Bold Hype Gallery for it’s tremendously received “Quentin vs. Coen – An art show tribute to the films of Tarantino and the Brothers”.  The show featured more than 100 different artists -painters, sculptures, printmakers & more- interpreting the works of infamous Oscar winning filmmakers Quentin Tarantino and the Coen Bros.  Following its success, the exhibit was transported to the West Coast in June and Quentin vs. Coen: ROUND 2 was held at the recently acquired Spoke Art Gallery in San Francisco.  Tomorrow marks the 3rd and final installment of the nationally touring art show and, this time, it’s scheduled to be held in Los Angeles as part of the multi-gallery event, Beyond Eden Art Fair.   Not unlike it’s Bay Area predecessor, Quentin vs. Coen: ROUND 3 will feature pieces from the previous 2 installments, along with a healthy blend of new contributions.  [Scroll down to view a selection of preview images from the event].

ADMISSION IS FREE!

Here’s the lowdown…

DETAILS:

What:

“Quentin vs. Coen : ROUND 3– an art show tribute to Tarantino and the Brothers

When:

Saturday October 1st: 6pm – 11pm
Sunday October 2nd: noon – 5pm

Where:

LA Municipal Art Gallery at Barnsdall Park
4800 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90027
www.beyondedenartfair.com

LINKS:

Spoke Art
Beyond Eden Art Fair
Spoke Art Facebook
Beyond Eden Art Fair Facebook Group
Event Page

[CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE]

Gene Guynn
“True Grit”
24” x 24” (circular)
oil on wood
$950

Blunt Graffix – [Artist Matt Dye]
EZEKIEL 25:17 “and I will strike down upon thee”
Screenprint on Royal Metallics – white gold
Edition of 15
26 x 26”

Steven Foundling
“Takin Er Easy for All Us Sinners”
Polymer Clay, Wood, Acrylic Paint, Fabric
8” x 8” x 13”
$1200

Jason Liwag
Every Dog Has it’s Day
S/N edition of 50.
18” x 24”

Michael Ramstead
“Traditional American Folk Song”
Oil on wood
16″ x 12″
$400

Max Dalton
“First Things First”
Giclee print, signed, 1/1
24″ x 36″
Framed – $1,500 [ON HOLD]

Bruce White
“Anton Chigurh”
Acrylic on black velvet
11″ X 14″ (comes framed)
$300

Ruel Pascual
“AKA Mommy”
18″ x 24″
oil on linen
$900 – SOLD

Nicole Guice
“You Can be a Spy Too, Madam”
ink
$550

Terry Fan

 

PURCHASING DETAILS:

To view available pieces from the previous installments CLICK HERE.

As they are off-site for this show, Spoke Art requests that those who are unable to make the event in person, but are interested in purchasing a piece, do not contact the gallery number. Instead, please send an email to spokeartgallery@gmail.com. Please be sure to include your name, phone number, and best time to contact you.

All work is sold on a first come-first served basis.

Payment plans are available on certain pieces, so please do not hesitate to ask.

Prints will be released later via the Spoke Art site, so keep tabs on that, if you’re interested.

When I was growing up in the 1980s, it was nearly impossible to think about sharks without thinking of the movie JAWS.  Although the original film was actually released in 1975 -the first 80s sequel wasn’t until JAWS 3D (1983)- it was such a groundbreaking cinematic accomplishment and it permeated our culture to such a degree that it was difficult to see imagery of a shark swimming without instantly hearing that infamous John Williams tune doom-thumping through your skull.  JAWS helped launch Spielberg‘s career and has even been credited as the father of the summer blockbuster.  The film transcended the horror movie genre in such a way that the idea of a killer monster shark not only felt like a plausible storyline, but it also felt as it were a real life inevitability.  Those of us who were not marine biologists -especially, those of us that were incredibly young- accepted the idea of JAWS as the quintessential interpretation for the cartilaginous fish and often internalized it as a reality.  What it taught us was that, completely unprovoked, a shark will eat your ass whole.  Even more, they just might jump up onto your boat or simply bite the goddamn thing in half.  In 1987, the Discovery Channel began airing their annual shark week series to help us regular folk gain a wider respect and understanding for these majestic animals of the deep, which had been striking unwarranted fear into the hearts of so many for so long.  It’s fair to say that, over these last 2.5 decades, leaps and bounds have been made in the way of remedying the PR disaster which began for shark kind in the mid-70s, but logic and fear can not always co-exist on the same plane and it can still be difficult to shake off the impact made with those original negative impressions (not unlike with the HYUNDAI EXCEL).  In reality, humans are a great deal more of a threat to sharks than they have ever been to us and many species of the animal have become increasingly endangered.  According  to NOAA Fisheries, “over 100 million sharks are killed each year” by humans, both accidentally, as well as intentionally.  Fortunately, organizations like PangeaSeed have been erected to help reverse this trend and, in association with San Francisco‘s SPOKE ART, they are presenting a new group art exhibit with the hopes of raising some money to help aid in that endeavor even further.

Based out of Tokyo, PangeaSeed is a non profit organization who’s mission is “to bring to light, and eventually an end, to the cruel practice of global shark finning.“  To raise money for the cause, the organization has produced and curated a new group exhibit called SINK OR SWIM, which will be opening tomorrow night in San Francisco.  Hosting the event will be the Spoke Art gallery; masterminds behind such highly successful exhibits as “BAD DADS” : A Tribute to the Films of Wes Anderson and “Quentin vs. Coen” – An art show tribute to the films of Tarantino and the Brothers.  As could be expected by any Spoke Art event, PangeaSeed has recruited an impressive list of talent to be a part of SINK OR SWIM, each of whom is contributing new original works or prints to the exhibit.

Here’s the full list of contributing artists:

Dave Kinsey, Josh Keyes, Jeff Soto, Jim Phillips, Rhys Cooper, Brad Klausen, Natsuki Wakita, Shark Toof, Akinori Oishi, Mike Stilkey, Rah Akaishi, Faunagraphic, Tim McDonagh, Clint Wilson, Mario Wagner, John Fellows, Spencer Keeton Cunningham, Matt Dye, Yoh Nagao, Wrecks/Nao Harada, Cupco, Paul Chatem, Skount, Koji Harmon, Jessica Ward, Michael Glinski-Gale Hart, Skinner, Claudio Ethos, Alison Sommers, Nathan Spoor, Dan May, Roland Tamayo, Ingri Haraldsen, Jen Lobo, John Malloy, Josh Hart, Kaitlin Beckett, Ben Wilson, Serge Gay Jr., Tapecat and Kevin Earl Taylor.

And here are the specific details about the event:

EVENT:

SINK OR SWIM – A Benefit for Sharks and Oceans

OPENING RECEPTION:

Friday September 23rd
6:00pm -10:00pm
(show will be on view until Sunday, September 25th.
Times: Fri 6PM – 10PM, Sat and Sun 12PM – 7PM)

LOCATION:

Spoke Art Gallery
816 Sutter Street
San Francisco, CA

For official Facebook event page CLICK HERE.

Below is a selection of sample works from the exhibit, selected for preview specifically to show the variety and quality that this exhibit has to offer.  All works are available for purchase with all proceeds going to the PangeaSeed non profit.  All sales are on a first come first serve basis, so attending the opening and/or visiting the exhibit this weekend is the best way to insure that you get your hands on any piece that you might have your eye on.

*Following the opening weekend, remaining original works and prints will be available through PangeaSeed, so please be sure to sign up for their mailing list for more info and updates.*

Make sure to visit Spoke-Art.com and PangeaSeed.com for updates.

To inquire about purchasing a particular piece, whether listed below or featured on the Spoke Art website, please use the following contact information:

EMAIL: SpokeArtGallery@gmail.com
PHONE: 415-796-3774

[click images to enlarge]

Alison Sommers

“Herd”