Bryan Ida – New Exhibition at Billis Williams Gallery Goes Visually and Emotionally Deep

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Bryan Ida, left, with galleriest Tressa M. Williams, right

Bryan Ida creates art that sings with meaning. It comes as no surprise that he once majored in music composition before turning to fine visual art.

His astonishing use of minute and meaningful words to shape fascinating, rewarding images of people – such as several such works recently exhibited in the group exhibition Bridging the Pacific at Torrance Art Museum, is just one way in which the artist expresses rich feeling and creates compelling work. Ida’s intensely detailed, powerful, and meticulous ink on panel works there depicted a very personal story, that of his mother and father, being forcibly “evacuated” from the San Francisco area in 1942, when Japanese Americans were torn from their homes and livelihoods due to World War II-fueled, race-driven paranoia. The delicate and precise nature of that work is that of an artist both empath and activist.

In his new exhibition, his fifth solo show at Billis WIlliams, Ida’s exhibition DEEP is entirely different, yet equally suffused with understanding, compassion, and purpose. Here, he goes to the heart of the human relationship with the natural world. Works are from two separate series,  one of which is filled with vivid color and geometric lines, the other is muted in palette, yet glowing, in  intimate, moving depictions of animals in a twilight sky.

The work takes on the complex beauty of the natural world,  and how human existence – as currently exercised – direly effects it.  Ida’s landscapes feature sliced images, as if viewed through slatted blinds, or seen through the limited vision that humans are presently capable of viewing the natural world. Vivid orange leaves are dissected by slats, as are startling emerald and chartreuse grasses and trees. Some images include intensely touching depictions of animals, such as the orangutan above or tiger below. The colors are vibrant, blunted only by their dissection.

The “broken” images spell out the dichotomy between how humans view and treat the natural world, as well as the earth’s innate lovliness.

With the artist’s Fading Light series, above, depicted animals emerge gradually to the viewer, as if transcending a twilight fog or thick, moonless dusk. The lack of illumination speaks to endangered species, extinction, and man’s disregard for other creatures. Yet, within each image, within each sensitive and almost angelic animal face, there is a glow, as if a facet of light had permeated a black diamond. There is still a ray of hope, if we will catch it.

 

Both series are not only masterfully beautiful but brimming with both sorrow and the ecstatic. Nature stands at the brink of a cataclysm caused by human carelessness and greed. As Ida says  “In the name of human advancement and expansion the cost to animal species and the environment is deep and irreversible. The true measure of a civilization is in its compassion and empathy, not in its ability to consume.”

In the face of loss and adversity, the flora and fauna, the creatures that share our world, are waiting for us to act and end the destruction our relentless quest for conquest has wrought. Ida presents the message without prosthelitizing, creating lush and poetic works that give viewers both thoughtful pause and thrilling beauty.

Experience the empathy and ecology and the consummate wonder in this exhibition – and let its meaning resonate.

Also at Billis Williams, see Stephen Wright’s liquid luminosity, in Beach Break in Gallery 2, all euphoric mid-sea sunshine and light in motion.

Both DEEP and Beach Break are on display through June 3rd; the gallery is open Wednesday-Saturday 10 a.m. -5 p.m.

  • Genie Davis; photos by Genie Davis and provided by the gallery

Spring Has Sprung – Art Blossoms at Loft at Liz’s, Durden and Ray and More

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Finally, the cold weather that has plagued Los Angeles seems to be ending, and spring flowers are everywhere.  And so are terrific group art exhibitions.

As if celebrating the season, the Loft at Liz’s serves up a delicious, vibrantly colorful exhibition, Finding Beauty. Splashing big with texture, color, and light, the exhibition is all about natural beauty and ecology, and is the creation of a new multi-disciplinary art collective, UOOORS. Curated by Fatemeh Burnes and Mei Xian Qiu, the exhibition features the works of Aline Mare, Fatemeh Burnes, Naida Osline, Neal Taylor, Ray Beldner, Marjan Vayghan, Rob Grad, Sue Irion, John David O’Brien, Kubo Hkla, Poul Lange, Ellen Friedlander, Naida Osline, and Mei Xian Qiu.

Stellar works in a variety of mediums even included an opening night performance:  a ritual burial of a deceased lizard, joining the soil of a potted plant. It’s a jubilant and delightful exhibition, from the rich painted works of Vayghan and Burnes to the lush and liminal photography of Friedlander. The gallery is open every day 11- 6 with the exception of Sunday, and runs through June 12th.

Downtown there’s even more art in bloom. Head downtown to the Bendix Building for a wide range of shows on multiple floors. On the 8th, don’t miss the terrific new group exhibition at Durden and Ray.  Curated by Hagop Najarian and Stephanie Sherwood, Expansion Joint offers a visually stimulating, richly entertaining exhibition. Debby and Larry Kline‘s sculptural works appear throughout the show, both tying the varied images together and adding notes whimsical and mysterious – perhaps bunny astronauts or interstellar adventurers, they “visit” works by Gretchen Batchellar, Carsten Bund, Kim Garcia,  Hagop Najarian, Stephanie Sherwood, and HK Zamani.  

The exhibition as a whole investigates space – both on Earth and apart from it. Edgy and surreal, witty, and, well, expansive, the show includes an eight foot ink drawing (just one panel in a larger piece) by the Klines, “The Dark Side of the Moon (Phase 3);” as well as Sherwood’s fascinating abstract-painted discarded furniture, fusing 3D with 2D work. Similar fusion but a very different style,  Zamani’s mix of dimensions comes in vivid chromakey blue and black; it’s a slash of color that commands attention. Bund’s mesmerizing digital painting; and Najarian’s vivid, delightful mix of the figurative and abstract, are also among this show’s thoroughly immersive works. In short, this is an exhibition that stimulates, amuses, and, well, expands the viewer’s sense of artistic consciousness. Don’t miss – the show is only up until May 21st, and is open on Saturdays 12-6, and by appointment.

Elsewhere in the building, Christopher Ulivo’s fantastical, narrative, fun, and intricate egg tempura paintings,  Ancient Rome Today glows with light and calls out for a detailed viewing through June 3rd at Track 16; the gallery is open Wed-Sat 10-6.

Pas de deux: Death’s Crook is a spooky, cool digital exhibition pulsing with eerie black and white appeal by Jacqueline De Jong and Ozgur Kar at Chatteau Shatto next door, through June 4.

The absorbing, highly textural group exhibition at Tiger Strikes Astroid – Theories & Prayers on Concrete, runs through May 21st, featuring work that examines migration both physical and emotional, by Adrian MM Abela, Mariam Alcantara, and Lupita Limón Corrales, curated by Jackie Rines. 

Next door at Monte Vista Projects, a two-person exhibition blends sculpture and painted works in Push & Pull, an exhibition offering the painted work of  Wendy Duong and the wiry, inventive sculptures of Connor Walden.

And, 515 Gallery serves up a group show of tasty abstract works, many geometric in nature, through May 20th. A. M. Rousseau, Sijia Chen, Fatemeh Burnes, Mei Xian Qui, Ave Pilada, Ruth Trotter, Carolie Parker,  Danny Shain are among the fine artists exhibited in Rewire. Contact these galleries for hours.

Now, go spring into art action!

  • Genie Davis; photos by Genie Davis

It’s Always Tiki Time Somewhere at the Catalina Museum for Art and History

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Serving as a truly beautiful adjunct to the Catalina Museum for Art and History’s permanent collection, now through September 3rd, visitors to Catalina Island can enjoy the transporting exhibition Tall Tiki Tales. Curated by author, tiki scholar, and cinematographer Sven Kirsten, the widely encompassing show includes artifacts from films shot on the island, dining spots, and resorts, as well as and original books and artwork that enhance the understanding of a cultural phenomenae that shaped tastes and traditions – as well as wildly fun beverages – both on and off Catalina.

Frequently serving as a film set that helped to popularize tiki as an art form, Catalina has a rich history in the development of America’s happy obsession with all things tiki, including the bars and restaurants that grew nationwide during the 1930s.

A highlight of the well-curated exhibition is an interactive one – visitors can sit down at a cozy table in a replica tiki bar to experience a unique design by master tiki bar designer Bamboo Ben. Viewers are transported to a blissful paradise with the sound of pattering rain upon sitting down. The only thing missing is a classic beverage.

According to Johnny Sampson, the museum’s Deputy Director and Chief Curator, Catalina Island served as a major film set for movie adaptations of works such as Nordhoff and Hall’s Bounty Trilogy and The Hurricane, W. Somerset Maugham’s short story “Rain” and The Ebb Tide by Robert Louis Stephenson. “Hollywood quickly adapted these and other stories into movies, using Catalina Island as an accessible backlot for far away South Seas locales…we had Christian’s Hut from the set of Mutiny on the Bounty, the Chi Chi Club at the Isthmus and in Avalon, Hotel Waikiki, and Hurricane Cove—which even had lighting effects and fans to recreate the thrill of Hurricane for its patrons.”

The fascinating mix of photographs, original art, and collector’s items – as well as the one-of-a-kind tiki hut immersive experience, beautifully support another look at the island’s past, a stellar permanent historical collection touching on other areas of Catalina life, including other film shoots, Chicago Cubs memorabilia, a wide ranging survey of Catalina pottery and tile, and a collection of photographs, negatives, and films documenting island life from the early 1880s to the present.

Viewers will also observe early phone switchboards, the evolution of transportation from the mainland, sport fishing items, and a wonderful collection of Tongva and Gabrielino artifacts. The fine art collection includes photography, plein air painting, contemporary sculpture, and examples of architectural and graphic design.

Combined with Tiki Tales, viewers will find an absolute treasure trove of art and history, as the museum continues to live up to its name with deep dives into island life and vibrant, intelligent art exhibitions.

And, if Tiki Tales made you thirsty or hungry, there’s a quick solution for that. Walk on down Crescent street to Luau Larry’s. The indoor  thatched roof hut and bamboo walls and delightfully kitschy ocean-themed paintings and murals here are even joined by an historic tiki wood carving, hanging above the booth we choose to sit in, a happy coincidence.

We enjoyed  vibrantly colored Polynesian- style cocktails – a bright Blue Hawaiian and the bar’s signature tiki drink, a Wiki Wacker with Cruzan aged light rum, Parrott brand, pineapple/orange juice and grenadine. The latter comes with imbibers’ choice of straw hat or bumper sticker. The food was fine too –  fresh, savory popcorn scallops and shrimp, a well-seasoned, fresh poke, and a first-rate seared ahi platter served with ginger, wasabi, soy sauce, and a nicely sweet, crisp cole slaw.

Currently, the Catalina Island Company is offering a terrific getaway – the Tall Tiki Tales package, that combines a hotel stay at the beautifully updated Hotel Atwater and a boat ride to Catalina – we had the pleasure of traveling from Long Beach via Catalina Express,  a safe, swift, and beautiful passage across the blue Pacific, arriving with a great view of the historic Casino building upon arrival in Avalon Harbor. We experienced the journey two ways – indoors in the comfortable Commodore Lounge, replete with a glass of Brut Chandon, and outdoors, with the wind whipping our hair and an eye trained on pelicans on a long flight.

In an upcoming article, our stay at the Hotel Atwater, a look at the in-depth Behind the Scenes casino tour, and additional dining experiences. For now, go experience a few Tiki Tales at the Catalina Museum for Art and History – and then raise a toast to the exhibition at Luau Larry’s.

  • Genie Davis; photos by Genie Davis and provided from the museum’s collection

 

Hyde Park Gallery LA Opens March 4th with Stunning Glass Art from Nao Yamamoto

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Glass and sculptural artist Scott Slagerman is opening the new Hyde Park Gallery LA, an exciting addition to the Los Angeles art scene and one he calls “spontaneous…I had no intention of making a gallery when I bought this building,” he explains. “I was renovating the space for my studio, and realized the front area was the perfect space for a gallery and showroom.” Slagerman says Los Angeles has  a dearth of new spaces for young, talented artists, and a lack of exhibition locations for glass artists in particular. Slagerman works in metal, wood, and glass, and has sculpture in the permanent collection of the Decorative Arts Museum in Paris.

For the first exhibition at his new gallery, Slagerman is presenting a solo show from glass artist Nao Yamamoto, titled The Altar. The artist appeared on season 2 of the Netflix series Blown Away.  At Hyde Park Gallery LA, her exhibition is highly pertinent for the space: the renovated building was once a church, and Yamamoto’s work is placed where a religious altar once stood.

“Nao represents a very major part of the LA glass scene, so it is exciting to have her here. She’s never shown in Los Angeles before,” Slagerman relates. “Her art fits the location perfectly.”

 

Yamamoto says her work for The Altar is comprised of three major wall installations with multiple pieces involved in each. “I have been shifting my ideas to think about the function of art, and why it exists. I am here to create an experience where the viewer is a real part of the show, where the viewer completes the show.” She adds, “I was really focused on creating a whole new coherent space, making new work made just for the gallery.”  The artist encourages viewers to experience their sixth sense, and engage a connection with inner peace. Works include lustrous lotus flowers, emerald leaves, natural crystals, and representations of candle flame, as well as geometric pieces that evoke representations of the “third-eye” and cosmic intuition.

While subsequent exhibitions will focus on the Los Angeles area glass art scene, the gallery will also feature exhibitions that include other mediums and artists as well, according to Slagerman. The LA-native asserts that glass art has a history in the city, and that the form is part of a burgeoning community. But with glass galleries of the past such as the Kurland-Summers Gallery long gone, it’s more than time for a new exhibition space.

“Our plan is to help people rediscover this under-represented and under-appreciated art form for both established and up-and-coming artists,” he says. The gallery will host artist receptions, art talks, special opening weekends, and tours of Slagerman’s own glass studio.

Born in Japan and working in the U.S., Yamamoto creates artwork that’s inspired by both the beauty of glass itself and the artist’s passion for nature. Her rich, colorful, and varied textures offer a resonating beauty that goes beyond the material of glass, creating inspirational works that soar with varied patterns and glowing light. For this exhibition, her works inhabit an almost ethereal, spiritual approach to glass work.

The Altar will open March 4th, with gallery hours from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; e 1-7 p.m. Sunday, March 5th, and 11-5 Tuesday-Friday. On Saturday, March 11th, hours are 11- 7, and a closing reception for Yamamoto’s work will be held from 5 – 9 p.m. on Sunday, March 12th.

Hyde Park Gallery LA is located at 2618 W Florence Ave, LA, CA 90043 in mid-city. For more information visit https://www.hydeparkgalleryla.com or call (310) 413-6493.