Joseph Lupo's Take...Comic Relief?

Joe Lupo, who teaches printmaking at West Virginia University in Morgantown created this sadbuttrue 3 panel strip in the style of the late underground comic book writer Harvey Pekar. If you click on the image, it should enlarge enough to reveal the text. Hey now, we obsessive compulsive types have to be able to channel our energies in some harmless way! At least the majority of us (besides being gregarious) have an appreciation for the ludicrous & amusing.

Internship at Bergamot Station - ASAP

The Lora Schlesinger Gallery in Santa Monica is currently looking for an intern to help out & gallery sit for the next two weeks, with the possibility of another short stint sometime in November.

If you are interested, or know of anyone who may be keen to do this, please contact Stephanie Mercado at Gallery@loraschlesinger.com

The commitment doesn't involve too many hours, but it would help if said person is available at least on Fridays / Saturdays.

While the internship is unpaid, it is a great opportunity make some lasting connections & to see and to hear how things work on the business end of the art world.

The pencil drawing repro'ed here (titled: Bird with Ball Balancing on Cat) is by former CSULB MFA student in illustration, Adonna Khare. She is represented by this gallery, as is Bruce Houston. I was at The University of Iowa with the latter, back when the earth's magma was just beginning to cool (the early '70's). To this day, I wish Adonna had taken some classes with me - she could have made some outstanding etchings!

Energy Exhibition - More Shameless Self-Promotion

Should anyone be in the proximity of Santa Ana, CA this coming Saturday evening (8/6/2011) please do consider dropping into the OCCCA (The Orange County Center for Contemporary Arts) from 6 - 10 PM. There will be an opening reception for "Energy" an exhibition that I've the good fortune to be part of, along with fellow printmaker (& Canadian) Sean Caulfield. Otherwise, I'd say that the majority of work appears either photographically or digitally derived. If those combination of factors aren't enough to entice you away from viddying instant movies on Netflix, perhaps the looming presence of not 1, but 2 upscale food trucks will tempt. "Brats Berlin" (one can only wonder if they'll actually have the dreadful currywurst) will be competing for your Yankee dollars with "Crepes Bonaparte," & Santa Ana's renowned "ArtWalk" will be in full swing.

I'm not certain which works by powerhouse Sean will be in the exhibition, but I'd guess something visually tasty, such as the above, titled Fire Horn, a mezzotint form 2005, might just be in the offing. The image below is from my hand, a woodcut/litho combo titled Perihelion/Aphelion. The Shanghai Museum of Art has a gallery of Qing dynasty paper currency, many of which incorporate the techniques of woodcut or engraving. Enthralled, I did small sketches in the gallery, one of which eventually became this print. I was interested in playing with not only ornamental pattern and decoration, but also with symmetrical duplication of the solar image that appears on many of the banknotes. I wanted to translate the nervous line energy from the sketch into the larger print, and to see if I could compositionally sequence the image in time through composing multiple inversions of it.

The address of the above is 117 North Sycamore Street, Santa Ana , CA, & no, that's not my late model blue sporty vehicle.

The 75 pg. catalogue is available for purchase at www.LuLu.com, for $25.00. Howard Fox, Curator Emeritus of Contemporary Art at LACMA did a bang up job writing an insightful essay.

Hand Pulled: The Complete Shag Print Collection (July 2 – August 14, 2011)

This comprehensive survey dating 1999 to the present will bring more than 250 limited edition serigraphs, etchings and pigment prints created by Orange County artist Josh Agle aka SHAG to Grand Central Art Center. In conjunction with this exhibition Shag and Watermark Printmaking, located at GCAC, will also collaborate on a new etching available for purchase in the GCAC Sales Gallery. Other Shag merchandise will also be available for purchase.

Grand Central Art Center will also be collaborating with SHAG on a limited edition poster with proceeds from the sale benefiting Japan relief efforts.

Opening Reception: Saturday, July 2, 7:00-10:00 p.m.
*Book and poster signing only 6:00-7:00 p.m.
Closing Reception: Saturday, August 6, 7:00-10:00 p.m.
*Merchandise signing 6:00-7:00 p.m.

CSUF Grand Central Art Center
125 N. Broadway Santa Ana, CA 92701
General Phone: 714.567.7233
Fax: 714.567.4145

Father's Day Entry - June Gloom is a Wonderful Thing

OK, I'll be the first to admit it, despite my own best efforts, today's post is not about prints or printmaking so... mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. Instead, I'm chronicling my late morning adventures at the "Long Beach Outdoor Antiques & Collectibles" an absolutely staggering visual smorgasbord of everything from the ridiculous to the sublime. Not for the faint of heart or weak of limb, it covers over 20 acres of macadam & occurs on the 3rd Sunday of each month. This event takes place at Long Beach Veteran's Stadium, which seems to be a part of Long Beach City College. The entry fee is $5.00, well worth the cost of admission, if only for the excellent people-watching aspects. The next one occurs on July 17th, but the better half swears that when he goes again, he'll wear his L.L. Bean day-pack loaded with water & fatty snax.

My first spot of something that had everything I want in the way of a "collectable" were the 2 hairdressing/barber signs below. The proprietor of the stall must have been off to the rest room, so I couldn't put my evaluation of these wonderful paintings to him or her, but I'm guessing that they were made by Joel Adjame of the Ivory Coast, or created by someone who has gotten his style down pat. (An adherent of the "Adjame School,"one might surmise.) I base my assessment on the use of a white background, simplification of style, placement of text, profile format, & the use of linear heart-shaped enclosures around each head depicted. Of course, I'm certainly no expert in these matters, as my only 1st-hand experience with this art form was merely having had the good fortune to view the exhibition at the Fowler Museum (back in '95), titled: "Crowning Achievements: The African Arts of Dressing Hair." A knock out!

Many of these house-painted signs are found hanging on buildings, or just tacked up to trees & over a chair in parts of Africa. Judging from the rough appearance of the plywood backs of these, I'd warrant they had a similar past life. I've always imagined that Botswana's #1 female private eye, Maa Precious Ramotswe to have a similar sign that advertises her considerable prowess in her chosen field.

Elsewhere, Daisy Mae Duke's (or Daisy Mae Abner's) Dogpatch denims were available for sale, & if those didn't suit every occasion, Miss Havisham's wedding weeds were also available.

The African trade beads from Nigeria were fabulous studies in both color and texture.

My modest purchases could all be carried in my pocket...3 new marbles to add to my collection!

It really wasn't cool enough today to warrant wearing the yeti's coat, but it helps to look like a fashionista while you attempt to figure out how to fit that overly large purchase into your somewhat smallish car. Roof rack & bungee cords?

Born to Endless Night

Born to Endless Night
Paintings, Drawings, and Prints by William Blake Selected by John Frame
March 12, 2011-June 20, 2011
Works on Paper Room, Huntington Art Gallery

Huntington library boasts a large collection of William Blake's etchings and prints, a sample of which are on display in a new exhibit.These prints and drawings were put together by contemporary artist, John Frame. These selected works include illustrations of the Book of Job. These powerful etchings show a mastery of detail and ability to convey the power of God and the power of the human spirit in the face of tragedy. John Frame is greatly inspired by Blake's portrayal of the Human condition and quest to explain our frailty. It is this essence of Blake that John Frame explores.
The new Blake exhibit runs concurrent with an exhibit of Frames work. It is intriguing to experience an artist body of work displayed along side the artist which inspired him.

The door opens up and you are immediately engulfed in the world of Frame. It takes a moment to acclimate to the surroundings as the lights have been dimmed and the “stage” is lit. His pieces are odd puppet like creatures, meticulously crafted by the artist and his wife. The fine details of every object suggest his thought in the attention he has given to the carefully chosen objects. All his pieces hold an old world appeal as if handed down through the generations.

The meticulous nature of William Blake's work is mirrored in the work of John Frame.

The puppet creatures of his dioramas have perfect working parts down to the smallest 1 cm movable fingers. The eyes are made to portray realism. There is a sense that at any moment the tiny creatures would move when not on view.

Frame's work is a visual as well as sensory experience, the dimly lit room with the lighted figurines help to create this mood. It is as if you wander from sequence to sequence, in a dream like state, focusing and refocusing your vision.
The main “stage” displays an array of figures and tiny scenes taken from Frame’s own dream, in which he crafted the figures and world in which the creatures exist.
There is a definite foreground, middle ground, and background. The stage is mechanical, filled with clock works and metal trinkets and doll heads all specifically lit or unlit.
The works of William Blake hand chosen by John Frame, on view are a mere demonstration of the talents Blake possesses, as seen in his series of the Book of Job.
Frame writes, “He [William Blake] grappled always with the basic questions of human life. “Prayer is the study of art. Praise is the practice of art,” he said [Blake], and, pursuing this dictum, he fashioned a world that was wholly his own and yet reached beyond himself toward God.

The small engravings describe the scenes of Job’s life. It is in these scenes that the questions of man and his belief in the higher power of God as faced through tragedy are portrayed. The engravings contain text of bible which aids in the contemplation of the scene. The scenes are small yet captivating and draw you in towards your own contemplation. The engravings of the Book Of Job use only line quality to illustrate the scene. His use of line and tonal values are a clear distinction of an understanding of the engraving.

The Upright Man is Laughed to Scorn - Illustration 10 to the Book of Job Engravings

Then a Spirit Passed Before My Face the Hair on My Face Stood Up - 1825 llustration 9 to the Book of Job Engraving

Equally compelling were the small engravings of "Song of Innocence" and "The Sick Rose". These two plates were displayed side by side. They seemed to carry an air of innocence yet loaded with all the essence of the human soul. These works were illustrations that Blake and his wife hand colored for editions of books that he had written.

The Sick Rose
Rose
By William Blake 1757–1827

O Rose, thou art sick!
The invisible worm
That flies in the night,
In the howling storm,

Has found out thy bed
Of crimson joy:
And his dark secret love
Does thy life destroy.



T. Dana

Art and Magic at the Skirball Cultural Center

Art, magic, and Jewish history at the Skirball Center. Currently there is an exhibition highlighting Jewish magicians of the Golden Age, and especially Houdini.

"Masters of Illusion," Jewish magicians from 1875-1948 and the poster art that advertised their talent and enticed their audiences. Displayed among the memorabilia, the posters were revolutionary examples of the advantages of stone lithography. These color lithographs were amazingly detailed and usually poly chrome. The majority featured a common composition of a portrait of the magician, skulls, smoke, full skeletons, and women. Also popular were devils and small red or green devilish imps, crawling around the magician and whispering in his ear. These imps seemed comical, but they alluded to magics early association with witchcraft. A beautiful example of these litho posters is 'Rosini Napoleon of Mystery,' New York City, 1930. Here, the magician is the center of the composition, along with the portrait of his wife/assistant. Her head is floating above a cauldron and surrounded by smoke. At the base of the cauldron are red roses, and the entire scene is embedded in a grayed cobalt blue background. Interestingly, in all the posters, the magicians eyes do not look out at the viewer, but it is always the women as assistants who make eye contact. Unfortunately, pictures inside the exhibit were not permitted.

The jewel of the show was the artwork inside the "Houdini, Art and Magic," exhibit. This art was by artists who were inspired by the man and legend of Houdini. These artists portrayed Houdini as a symbol of strength, rebirth and innovation. Among the most famous devices Houdini used for his stunts, were paintings and drawings from various fans of the magician, educating the public of Houdini's craft of showmanship, innovative thinking in terms of technological advances and the constant renewal of his image. A lot of drawings included text. One of the most revealing was a pen, ink and gouash drawing on paper by Raymond Pettibon, 'No Title (The Desire To)' 2009. Pettibon made a dynamic composition of three male figures, possibly Houdini, falling out of a window and gradually breaking free of chains. Primarily thick and gestural lines formed the figures, and the text around them read, "The desire to seize and grasp all that was nearest, bound him to Earth, and caused his sympathies to revolve within a narrowing circle. Yet in that very power of adhesion to outward things, might be discerned the strength of a spirit destined to live beyond them." So insightful into the vision and human spirit inside Houdini.

There was one other drawing there that was significant to the connection between art making and magic. Whitney Bedford captured a life size portrait of the back of Houdini, hanging upside down and at the moment when he outstretched his arms after releasing the strait jacket he untangled himself out of. 'Houdini (Upside Down), 2007, featured a nostalgic palette reminiscent of the black and white film of historical photographs. She highlighted the span of his arms with a single pale yellow oil brush stroke, otherwise the figure is drawn in ink on unprimed paper. The medium is what parallels the tricks of artists to the tricks of magicians. Eventually the image will fade as the medium sinks into the unprimed paper. Mostly a contour drawing, this image speaks beyond what is visible. It conjures emotion and thought, that there are similarities between artists of all kinds.

The few images that were available for photographs were inside the permanent collection, featuring four thousand years of Jewish history. Always eye catching is the infamous Andy Warhol, and here he has on display pieces from a series, "Ten Portraits of Jews of the Twentieth Century," New York, 1980. There were three from this series of screen prints on Lenox museum board, featuring the Marx Brothers, Golda Meir, and Albert Einstein. The first two have large blocks of color on a black and white portrait, with nervous yet confidently drawn color contour lines. Albert Einstein is in similar composition, but entirely black and white. Such an appropriate tribute to genius, art and showmanship.

Corey King