LOOK INTO MY OWL

If you are in or traveling to California this month you will be pleased to hear that “Skateboard” has been extended through August 29th at the California Heritage Museum.

The museum has pulled together more that 275 skateboards from some of the most impressive collections available. The exhibit houses skates, scooters and modern boards tracing the development of the technology through the decades.

The California Heritage Museum is located in Santa Monica, the birthplace of contemporary skateboarding. It was here, in Dogtown that the sport of short shorts and banana boards matured into the physical and visual expression that is now cherished internationally.

SKATEBOARD: Evolution & Art in California
14 November 2009 – 29 August 2010
California Heritage Museum
Santa Monica, CA

If you are in NYC, be sure to stop by the Andrea Meislin Gallery for “Vapor Trails,” a selection of themed photography from Michal Ronnen Safdie.

Michal Ronnen Safdie, SKR21, ultrachrome print, 2009.

Michal Ronnen Safdie is an accomplished photojournalist with some amazing recent coverage from Israel, Darfur and Rwanda. “Vapor Trails” represents the gallery work of this socially active photographer. Her forays into the art world tend to initiate from an interest in the visuals of semi-natural phenomena.

Michal Ronnen Safdie, SKR3, ultrachrome print, 2008.

Summer is an excellent time to take in these daily patterns of progressive commerce. Find someone nice and lay around in the grass or get out and see this show.

Michal Ronnen Safdie, SKR8, ultrachrome print, 2008.

Michal Ronnen Safdie
Vapor Trails
3 June – 30 July 2010
Andrea Meislin Gallery
NYC

A selection of photographs from Peter Bialobrzeski’s series, “Paradise Now” is on view at the L.A. Galerie in Frankfurt, Germany. The series has also been released as a book available for purchase at Hatje Cantz.

Peter Bialobrzeski, Paradise Now Nr. 24, c-print, 2009.

The artist has skirted the edges of several large Asian cities documenting trees and plants that receive unnatural light from these urban areas. Some of the images have been left untouched while others have been digitally manipulated in post production with fantastic results.

Peter Bialobrzeski, Paradise Now Nr. 18, page 45 c-print, 2009.

Despite the futuristic allure exhibited in these works, Bialobrzeski clearly has environmental concerns. This work should be applauded for the reminder that without continued effort to change, this planet may be facing a dismal end.

Peter Bialobrzeski, Paradise Now Nr. 18, c-print, 2009.

Peter Bialobrzeski
Paradise Now
30 April – 26 June 2010
L.A. Galerie
Frankfurt, Germany

“Tattoo and Taboo” is a solo exhibition of large scale photographs from Kim Joon currently on display at Sundaram Tagore Gallery in Beverly Hills.

Kim Joon, Fragile-Dragon, digital print, 2010.

Kim Joon gained a passion for tattoos while inking the skin of his fellow soldiers years ago in the Korean army. The practice was and still remains an anathema in the eyes of his fellow countrymen.

Kim Joon, Fragile-Mermaid, digital print, 2010.

In the face of social convention, Joon saw an art form that allowed individuals to communicate something from within and literally wear their passions on their sleeve. With the aid of a three dimensional computer graphics program he constructs his intense compositions. Parts of bodies are intermingled with pattern derived from a combination of traditional design and contemporary commerce. Enticing shifts in scale are common in these fantastic yet familiar photographic realizations. Like many artists before him Kim Joon’s affection has risen from a place that had been kept from him.

Kim Joon, Cradle Song-Ferragamo, digital print, 2009.

Kim Joon
Tattoo and Taboo
8 April – 8 May 2010
Sundaram Tagore Gallery
Beverly Hills

“Incredible Me,” is an exhibition of selected photographs from Ivonne Thein’s series “Thirty-two kilos”. The show is up now and runs through the end of February at Galerie Voss in Duesseldorf.

Ivonne Thein, o.T. 04 (32kg), photograph, 2008.

Thein photographed healthy models in fashion scenarios and with the aid of digital manipulation was able to transform the images into these extremes. “Thirty-two kilos” was inspired by the artist’s fascination with the Pro-Ana movement. Pro-Ana refers to the belief by some that anorexia should be considered a lifestyle choice instead of a mental illness.

Ivonne Thein, o.T. 07 (32kg), photograph, 2008.

Identities in this imagery have been hidden by wigs and bandages in a venture to negotiate the humanity of her subjects. This objectification approaches the nucleus of the problem by displaying the absurdity of the goal. When the body becomes object criterions that sustain life cease to apply.

Ivonne Thein, o.T. 12 (32kg), photograph, 2008.

Ivonne Thein
Incredible Me
22 January – 27 February 2010
Galerie Voss
Duesseldorf, Germany

“Library of Dust,” a series of large scale photographs from 2005 by David Maisel is on view at the Von Lintel Gallery in NYC.

David Maisel, Library of Dust 103-566, c-print, 2005.

His subjects are the canned remains from the formerly named Oregon State Insane Asylum. The patients became part of this unusual collection because their ashes were never claimed by family or friends. In the mid 1970’s the canisters were placed in an underground depository which flooded repeatedly over the past several decades.

David Maisel, Library of Dust 1834, c-print, 2005.

The response of the copper containers to the water formed some astounding chemical reactions. Metaphorically, it is as though the inmates of the asylum, forgotten by loved ones have reasserted their individuality in an attempt to be once more remembered. The size of the prints amplifies the anomalies accomplishing a ghostly impression of portraiture.

David Maisel, Library of Dust 1470, c-print, 2005.

David Maisel
Library of Dust
21 January – 27 February 2010
Von Lintel Gallery
NYC

Twenty-three color photographs by Alexis Pike are showing in Berkeley, California. “Claimed: Landscape” can be seen by appointment at the Rosier Gallery through April, 6.

Alexis Pike, A Teton – St. Anthony Idaho, photograph, 2005.

Anyone that has traveled through rural portions of the American West has spotted these landscape murals at roadside shanties offering goods and services. Most of these scenes were painted by artistically ambitious small business owners or wayward nomads short on cash.

Alexis Pike, Drive-in – Burley Idaho, photograph, 2006.

The compositional aesthetic of Pike’s photographs spotlights the interaction of folk artworks and the environments they inhabit. The faded paint and cracked surfaces of these paramnesic murals engage the very real necessities of daily life and business. The layers of paradox embrace the compunctions of moving forward and falling back. More from this series can be viewed at this link.

Alexis Pike, Red Chairs – Bliss Idaho, photograph, 2006.

Alexis Pike
Claimed: Landscape
7 January – 6 April 2010
Rosier Gallery
Berkeley, CA

Bay Area artist Deborah Oropallo is bringing a large selection of prints down the California coast for her latest exhibition. “Wild Wild West Show” opens this Friday at Scott White Contemporary Art in San Diego.

Deborah Oropallo, Randi, permanent pigment print on aluminum, 2009.

The source material for much of this content is salvaged from online sources for cowgirl costumes. These advertisements have been digitally manipulated and superimposed on familiar Old Western photographs and recent rodeo imagery. The diluted figures blend with the landscapes and take on a frenzy that incites dimensional illusion.

Deborah Oropallo, Drill Team, permanent pigment print on aluminum, 2009.

As is the case with viewing most artwork online, scale is lost on these stunning pieces. Some of the works measure nearly seven feet on their long side. At this size, the digital artifacts sear with a saturated color palette that demands attention from a substantial distance.

Deborah Oropallo, Medals, permanent pigment print on aluminum, 2009.

Deborah Oropallo
Wild Wild West Show
8 January – 6 March 2010
Scott White Contemporary Art
San Diego, CA