Daniel Ash, Will Sergeant and Others Display Eclectic Art in New NYC Exhibit '‘A Portrait of America: Commemorating Visions of Hope, Loss and Celebration 2008-2012"

"21st Century Fallen" by Will Sergeant

On the eve of Election Day, Joy Wai Gallery will present A Portrait of America: Commemorating Visions of Hope, Loss and Celebration: 2008-2012, a group exhibition curated by LA-based conceptual artist Ramses Granados. Bringing together an eclectic international group of visual artists, musicians, photojournalists and cultural luminaries, A Portrait of America will offer a unique window into our past and present states of mind, and a time when hope bettered our fears.

Comprised of 40 works by 16 artists, this exhibition is a celebration of our country’s vast perspectives and experiences, and the political climate that we all helped shape in just the last four years, both good and bad. Two thousand and eight is undoubtedly a year for the ages, acting for many of us as a poignant counterpoint to the tragedies of 2001. To pay homage to 2008, and the changes the events of this year had on our national psyche, Joy Wai and Ramses Granados have curated a selection of artists who collectively speak to the American experience like no other, with a mix of adoration, loss, critical analysis, and tongue-and-cheek humor. The roster includes Daniel Ash (painter/musician, of Bauhaus, Tones on Tail and Love and Rockets, UK), Will Sergeant (painter/musician, of Echo and the Bunnymen, UK), Shawna Ankenbrandt (photographer, US), Giuliano Bekor (photographer, US), Courtney Chavanell (photographer, US), Wen Chi Chen (painter, US), Jeff Forney (photographer, US), Victor Holt (photojournalist, US), Christian Hooker (painter, US), Phantom Street Artist (graffitist, US), Ramses (conceptual, US), Xany Rudoff (mixed media, US), Paul Seftel (mixed media, US), Jen Starr (photographer, US), Bruno Tamiozzo (photographer, Italy), and Joy Wai (photographer, US).

In Daniel Ash’s mixed-media painting Freedom Ain’t Cheap (2012), the artist appropriates a U.S. flag image and infuses the right-hand portion with a cluster—bordering on chaotic—of stars and blemished stripes, supplemented by a single flying saucer, referencing his own alien status in the U.S. For the peculiarly titled One (2012), Israeli-born photographer Giuliano Bekor portrays two shirtless, star-bespeckled men—one donning an elephant mask, the other a donkey—sitting across from each other, poised to battle in arm wrestling. Atop their centerpiece table a miniature Civil War battle commences around the men’s elbows, while their wrists are tied together with a tattered remnant of the American flag.

While American artists comprise the majority of the show’s lineup, A Portrait of America also speaks to the immigrant experience in this country. “In 2008 I became a U.S. citizen,” says Joy Wai, Founder of Joy Wai Gallery. “It was during this time that I found myself part of the American experience; but it was the 2008 election that moved and inspired me. It made me realize I was witnessing a true moment in American history. This is what led me to create A Portrait of America.”

Following opening night at the Angel Orensanz Foundation, A Portrait of America will move to Joy Wai Gallery, where it will remain until December 6.
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WHEN: The opening reception for A Portrait of America will take place on Election Day eve: Monday, November 5, from 6:00 to 10:00 pm.
WHERE: Angel Orensanz Foundation, 172 Norfolk Street, NYC 10002
RSVP: By November 3, to event@joywaigallery.com

You Are Here: A Maze - Pictures from the Final Night, May 27th

You Are Here: A Maze ran for most of the month of May at chashama's art gallery on 44th Street. The exhibit was very well put together and I can see why it got excellent reviews (TimeOut pick of the week, etc.).

I have been to other exhibits at chashama's gallery and this had to be the most creative use of a somewhat small space.

There were performers in front of the gallery...

















A live band and a play in the middle of the maze...













and odd twists and turns throughout the maze.

chashama's New Gallery in Harlem Opens Tomorrow (May 7th)

chashama celebrates the opening of their new gallery in Harlem tomorrow with an opening night reception.




Celebrate chashama's NEW HARLEM GALLERY
Opening Reception: Monday, May 7th, 6-9PM -- food & drink served

Exhibition by chashama Harlem artists-in-residence: Elaine Benavides, Elaine Defibaugh, David Dallessandro, Vicki Freemont, Colwyn Griffith, Leslie Frank Hampton, Ademola Olugebefoa, Tara Parsons, Tim Roda, Christy Speakman & Richard Wager.

217 E.42nd is halfway between 2nd and 3rd Avenues:
4,5,6,7 and shuttle trains to Grand Central from Times Square
M104 & M42 buses to Third Ave; M101, M102, M103, M15 to 42nd St.

Thurston Moore - Street Mouth Art Exhibit at KS Art Through May 12th

KS ART presents New York-based artist Thurston Moore’s first one-person exhibition, Street Mouth. Although better known as the highly influential, experimental musician and co-founder of Sonic Youth, Moore has created a suite of photomontages which are razor-sharp visual equivalents of New York`s underground music and poetry scene around the late 1970s -- primarily joyful noisemakers circulating around CBGBs, Max’s Kansas City and St. Marks Church.

Deploying collage techniques mashed up through a process described by the artist as “a kind of punk photoshop,” these brand new works re-purpose vintage press clippings, press photos, and correspondence culled from Moore`s own archive. The results are a compelling series of personal, urban daydreams, cast from a fan’s perspective. Familiar downtown faces include Iggy Pop, the Ramones, Lou Reed, Patti Smith, Allan Ginsberg, and Kathy Acker. Screaming fields of disjointed imagery and deeply saturated colors collide and overlap, yielding tales from the pulp crypt of a not-to-be-forgotten New York underground. Only rarely do musicians translate their sonic talents so fittingly and so refreshingly into the domain of visual art.

"I am basing the work on exercises I did as a teenager cutting out pictures from Rock Scene, Creem and Circus magazines and collaging them as an obsessive diarist. Doing this work now utilizing some kind of punk Photoshop method where I can actually drop myself and other referentials into the pieces has allowed me (starting) at age 47 to create an ongoing open-heart bio-historagophy." -Thurston Moore

Genesis P-Orridge (Breyer P-Orridge) Has 5 Pieces in The Perfect Man Show Exhibit

Genesis P-Orridge and Lady Jaye have five pieces on display as part of The Perfect Man Show Exhibit at White Columns Art Gallery. The exhibit opened last Tuesday (Jan. 9th) and will be on display until February 10th.

White Columns is located at 320 West 13th Street in Chelsea.