Must See Art in DTLA – Luis De Jesus, Vielmetter, Nicodim, Artbug, and at the Bendix

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There is a plethora of excellent art in downtown Los Angeles right now. It might, if you feel daring, even be possible to walk between them. Whether you go by foot, car, or public transport, here are some excellent shows that you simply should not miss.

At Luis De Jesus, two stunning solo shows use unique materials to create riveting, utterly original art. Hector Dionicio Mendoza Buscando Futuro / Searching for a Future, marks the artist’s first solo exhibition with the gallery, and it’s a splendid one. From wall art to giant sculptural forms, Mendoza shapes his figures from unusual materials, some of which he describes as “ethnic breads, ” as well as “wood, feathers, bark, and cardboard.” Monumental in size in some cases, and in meaning in every piece, Mendoza’s work is informed by his own personal experiences and the border politics of the U.S. and Mexico. His visualization of immigrant experience is richly moving, a series of browns and beiges and golds with the occasional splash of color from peacock feathers and recycled clothing. This is literally and figuratively colossal work.

Griselda Rosas‘ Donde pasó antes (Where it happened before) is equally passionate and glorious. Drawing from both personal memories and fairy tales, Rosas’ work is as vividly colorful as Mendoza’s is steeped in the brown of desert dust and southwestern landscapes.

Rosas creates mixed media collages from fabrics, cyanotypes, acrylic, watercolor, natural pigments and lush embroidery on linen and ostrich skin. Sculptural works represent ornamental slingshots. Her magical collages tell trenchant tales about colonization and resistance, while using skilled textile manipulation and fanciful figures. She blends mythic images and children’s stories, using a brilliant palette that vibrates with both color and meaning. Remarkable work.

Both solo exhibitions run through February 17th. Luis De Jesus is located at 1110 Matteo Street in the arts district.

Not far away, there’s a new kid in town, a small but well-curated art collective has shaped exhibition space for MAARLA members at Artbug. The opening show, A Mirror to the Sprawl features the brilliantly colored acrylic painting of Hagop Najarian; a riveting abstract utilizing found objects from Stephanie Sherwood; and a terrific series of diminutive vinyl cutout and acrylic flora from Surge Witron. Electronic timers animate a visually cool and thematically fascinating work from Carly Chubak providing apt social commentary on the cost paid for labor. Sean Cully offers a lovely, interactive wood rain stick sculpture, while josh vasquez exhibits a still life of a classic alcoholic beverage presented behind a thick wall of plexiglass, much as it would be on a shop shelf. Emily Babette Gross, Katie Shanks, and H. Leslie Foster II also offer beautifully wrought work.

The exhibition runs through the February 4 at Artbug, which is located at 441 Hunter Street, Unit B.

A short distance away, Vielmetter’s multiple galleries offer two separate solo exhibitions and one vividly delightful group show. London-based artist Celia Paul’s Life Painting in Gallery 1 offers a primarily pastel palette and soft focus on images that include the British Museum, a white rose, the Devon shore, and her “Standing Self Portrait.” Opalescent shadows and a gentle rhythm of brush strokes suffuse the quietly lustrous exhibition.

In the Greenhouse annex, a lively, vividly colorful group exhibition from artists Lavaughan Jenkins, Mario Joyce, Raffi Kalenderian, and Kiriakos Tompolidis showcases works of oil over foam and acrylic on wood panel from Jenkins that vibrate with color and texture; stained-glass-like collage and mixed media works from Joyce; cool and dream-like patterns in truly lovely work from Tompolidis created in acrylic, oil and photo transfer; and Kalenderian’s vivid and visceral images of everything from a ruby red cocktail to a burnished orange backdrop to a Glendale billiards hall. Both terrific shows are up until March 9th.

Closing soon, January 27th in Vielmetter Gallery 2, Todd Gray offers splendid 3D photo collages created from acrylic, oil and photo transfer in a tour de force solo exhibition Rome Work. Images convey thoughtful and startling takes on religion, colonialism, and outdated cultural tropes in a completely unique multiplicity of images.

Upstairs at Nicodim’s annex, a lustrous display of rich acrylic still-lifes glow with inner light from Massachusetts-based artist Nicole Duennebier, in her solo exhibition The Only Way Out is Through. suffused with radiance but dark, these dream-like yet intricately realistic images cast mysterious spells.

Down the hall at another Nicodim outpost, No Shortcuts to Aztlan, Christian Ruiz Berman’s multi-cultural kaleidoscopic images overlap with figurative, surreal, geometric, and abstract elements whose patterns are as supple and evocative as its layered subjects. Both shows are on exhibit through February 17th. Nicodim and Vielmetter are located at 1700 Santa Fe Ave.

A few blocks away at the Bendix building, Tiger Strikes Asteroid presents the vibrant palette of Sara Vanderbeek. The Austin native uses vivid fabric dyes to create images reminiscent of Gaugin figures on linen. Works are hung from the ceiling – including cut outs of legs and objects of clothing – as well as on the walls for an immersive exhibition of a passionate palette. From pregnancy to social violence, while some subjects may be dark, others are more whimsical, and all are celebrations of the glories, indignities, traumas, and triumphs of life itself. Above all else, the joyousness of creation is hanging on the figurative line in these textile works. This is a wow. On display through February 4th.

Adjacent gallery space Monte Vista displays the layered, glossy works of Olivia Booth, works so deep that the viewer feels as if diving into the glowing abstract images is a real possibility. Using a combination of diverse materials that include flashglass and borosillicate, plastic, melted mirror, oil and rubber, the images are both gorgeous and gritty, shining and disturbing. The works will also be on display through February 4th.

At 515, the group exhibition On Painting covers a wide range of creativity in a series of abstract works that include Carlos Beltran Arechiga’s futuristic standout, as well as stellar works by Surge Witrön, Crystal Michaelson, Pamela Taguinot, Peter Nagy and Sasha Mariyem. Sleek, supple, and all about the brush stroke, this show closes February 3rd.

Also in the Bendix, Durden and Ray offers a fascinating collaboration between the Los Angeles based collective and a collective in Arctic Norway, Small Projects. Titled Beyond Horizons, the exhibition was curated by Jet pascua, and featured artists Marsil Andjelov Al-Mahamid, Jojo Austria, Arezoo Bharthania, Tanya Busse, Joe Davidson, Dani Dodge, Eva Faché, Stein Henningsen, Ged Merino, Ina Otzko, Jet Pascua, and Stephanie Sherwood.

The show focuses on landscape – both geographic and political, with note made of climate change and border conflicts. Conceptually strong, exhibition images are primarily abstract, and visually absorbing. Images of golden Joshua trees from Dodge and wonderful geographic landscapes created from the improbable medium of Scotch tape from Davidson join a vertically hung urban forest of images from Barthania among other stellar works by the LA team, while images from their Nordic counterparts include beautiful textile works and sculptures. The exhibition is on exhibit until February 4th.

The Bendix Building is located at 1206 Maple Avenue in DTLA. Go downtown!

Genie Davis; photos by Genie Davis

 

 

 

Begin 2024 with Epic Art Exhibitions from 2023

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Hurry this weekend to see the closing of the lush landscapes and dream-like, pristine views created by master artist Hung Viet Nguyen at Lois Lambert Gallery in Bergamot Station.

Likely the last iteration of Nguyen’s Sacred Landscape Series V — the artist plans new projects for the year ahead – Pilgrimage is lush, mysterious, magical, and of course, spiritual. Explore large scale works like “Sacred Landscape V #57,” in which a volcano is added to the lagoon-scape; or a vertical take on a similar scene replete with volcanoes, crater and waterfall, in “Sacred Landscape V #36.” Relatively new for Nguyen is his inclusion of small human figures in the vast and embracing landscapes. Some swim, some take selfies. There are flowers, arches, jewel-like stones.

Presenting portals, gateways, stars, and incandescent skies,  this series includes elements of gold leaf among the rich, rivetingly textured oil-on-canvas works. A smaller series within this body of work contains six perfect 12 x 12 more diminuitive landscapes, as well as eleven images sized 14 x 11.  These stunning smaller treasures would make a stellar start to New Year’s collecting resolutions.

But take note – the exhibition is only up through the 6th of January, so plan your weekend accordingly.

Above, Carlos Beltran Arechiga, curtor with artist Curtis Stage

You have more time to head south to the Irvine Arts Center, where the vibrant palette and complex sculptures, paintings, and assemblages of Revision are up through February 3rd.

Well worth the drive are the fascinating limestone and granite dominant scultpures from Naim Kurani…

dense, excitingly motion-packed oil on canvas and oil with wax and gold leaf on canvas works from the vivid brush of Hagop Najarian…

and multi-media abstract works than sing with bold excitement from Max Prexneill.

Also on display are a series of archival print’s documenting a live-art installation created by Stephanie Sherwood on site at the exhibition’s November 8th opening, the created installation is also on display…

you’ll also find mixed media assemblages from John Sollom that are deeply dimensional and serve as fascinating treasure hunts for the eye…

Curtis Stage creates illusionary world through his archival giclee prints on artist paper,  vibrating with black and white patterns,  and Surge Witron creates abstract acrylic and spray paint works that are equally powered by movement and light.

On display through collabortion with art collective Durden and Ray with curatorial support from Carlos Beltran Arechiga, this is a powerful exhibition featuring hybrid forms and exploratory juxtapositions. Above all, this varied exhibition sings with color, movement, and compelling shapes.

Above, artists Carolyn Mason and Dani Dodge

In an adjoining gallery, Into the Garden is a two-person exhibition that creates the titular Edenic space by pairing delicate, ephermeral fabric works by Dani Dodge with the mysterious and alien expandable foam sculptures of Carolyn Mason.

Viewers are invited to wander between the hanging, sheer fabric works from Dodge, alive with desert creatures, other flora and fauna, and shining from lustrous sewn-on jewels and beading. Viewers will feel as if they are walking through a soft, floating Mojave landscape that shifts, dreamlike, with evey step.

Mason’s fascinating mixed media sculptures are otherwordly and wondrous, creating a terrific contrast of form and shape that when combined transports the viewer beyond the gallery walls. This exhibition is also curated with Durden and Ray and Carlos Beltran Arechiga.

Up ’til February 3rd, there will be an artist talk the last weekend in January – again, don’t miss. 

Lastly – also through February 3rd, Icelandic artist Jónsi presents sound, light, and if you’re lucky, even a taste of Icelandic moonshine, in an entirely unique exhibition at Tanya Bonkadar Gallery in mid-city.

The artist and musician has created a sound-centric immersive environment, as well as color shifting, hypnotic LED light screens, sensorial-heightening herbacious scents of freshly cut grass and flowers, and the wave vibrations of a sculpture comprised of 100 speakers. It’s an entirely unique sculptural experience.

What are you waiting for? Go out and get arting before January slips away in post-holiday fog!

  • Genie Davis; photos by Genie Davis

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

Blooming in the Whirlwind Whirls Away

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Photo credit of installation artists, Dani Dodge

Durden and Ray together in collaboration with Level Ground have brought a brilliant mix of art, video, and poetry into being as a collision of light, color, sculpture, immersive experience and astonishing fun. The Blooming in the Whirlwind exhibition closes with an artist’s talk on December 5th.

It’s a riveting show at the Bendix building gallery, one that seems fraught with rich meaning and emotion. This whirlwind is a cavalcade of dreams, desire, and collaboration.

The conversation between collectives began with poems that inspired films, that led to visual art installations. Poets were paired with filmmakers, filmmakers with installation artists.

The title is fitting, referring to a classic poem by Gwendolyn Brooks written in 1968, another chaotic time here in the land of out of control hopes and dreams. But the exhibition itself took that chaos and made of it a thing of beauty and poignance, of fallen leaves and satin kitchens, of gilt edged tears and strangely alien sculptural “life forms.”

Curated by Level Ground’s Andy Motz, Rebekah Neel, Samantha Curley, and Simone Tetrault, poetry and filmmaker pairings included poets Christina Brown, Daniel Binkoski, DeiSelah, Jireh Deng, Karly Kuntz, Madeleine St. John, Noor Jamal, Simone Tetrault, and Tamisha A Tyler and filmmakers Andrés Vazquez, Anthony D. Frederick, Andrew Neel & Alex C. Smith, Ilgın G. Korugan, Labkhand Olfatmanesh, Leila Jarman, Meredith Adelaide, Rich Johnson, and Taree Vargas.

Curated by Durden and Ray‘s team of Arezoo Bharthania, Ismael de Anda III, and Sean Noyce were installation artists Bharthania, de Anda III, and Noyce, Dani Dodge, Kiyomi Fukui, Sean Noyce, Tina Linville, Reed Van Brunschot, Flora Kao, and Ricardo Harris-Fuentes. Artworks and many of the artists in the gallery with their work, shown below.

From Kao’s glorious autumnal forest to Fukui’s leaf-imprinted chair, de Anda III’s rocking, glowing drum kit, and Dodge’s tear-stained shower of TikTok images and gold leaf tear drops, to Bharthania’s photographic nightscape, Noyce’s towering layered sculpture, and lush tactile work by Van Brunschot, the harmony and kinetic connection between writers/filmmakers/and installation visual creators was vibrantly alive.

As with many exhibitions held at the D & R space, this collab effort was as fresh and compelling as it was entirely enjoyable. Collectives that make cutting edge cool and accessible? A resounding affirmative.

This exhibition was both response to the pandemic isolation and a glorious assault on the senses – power to the people arising from the pandemic and ponderous times.

Durden and Ray is located on the 8th floor of the Bendix Building in DTLA at 1206 Maple in the fashion district.

  • Genie Davis; photos: Genie Davis