Anniversary Issue 5 by artmazemag

Anniversar y E di tio n,

Is s ue 5, 2 0 1 7

Art Maze Magazine is an independent artist-run international publication which showcases experimental and progressive contemporary art, reflecting modern society and its environment, provoking conversation and action; fostering innovation and diversity of mediums which make today’s art scene so intriguing and versatile.

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We invite guest curators from internationally renowned galleries as well as independent art professionals to help us select works for each issue. We try to give spotlight to artists and engage with our readers and followers everyday through our social media, website and print and digital issues.

If you wish to submit to our online blog, you are welcome to send us a few images of your work and a written bio and statement to blog@artmazemag.com for consideration. For more details on blog submissions please visit our website: artmazemag.com/submit-for-blog-feature/

Artists are welcome to submit works in any medium: painting, drawing, sculpture, ceramics, printmaking, photography, textile, installation, mixed media, digital etc. Artists or any art organisations on behalf of artists from all countries are welcome to submit.

Writers You are welcome to submit an article, review or interview for consideration for online or print publications. Please send us an email to info@artmazemag.com

Please visit our website for more details on how to apply for print publications: www.artmazemag.com/call-for-art/ (or see p. 4-5) Artists are welcome to submit works to our online blog. This opportunity also provides a chance to be published in print issues bimonthly.

Issues Please visit our website to find out where to purchase print and digital copies of ArtMaze Mag: www.artmazemag.com/shop

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FRONT COVER:

www.artmazemag.com

GENERAL ENQUIRIES:

Kaley Flowers and Jack Sachs “L1nk Up” series ceramics

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info@artmazemag.com BACK COVER:

instagram.com/artmazemag

twitter.com/@artmazemag

SUBMIT TO ONLINE BLOG: blog@artmazemag.com

Featured image: Mark Posey ‘Art Show’ acrylic, oil, spray paint 44 x 52 inches (see more on p.104-105)

Una Ursprung ‘Untitled 32’ oil and spray on canvas 170 x 130 cm

Submit for print and digital publications

Submit for online publications

Writers You are welcome to submit an article, review or interview for consideration for online or print publications. Please send us an email to info@artmazemag.com

Issues Please visit our website to find out where to purchase print and digital copies of ArtMaze Mag: www.artmazemag.com/shop

FIND US ONLINE

CONTACT

FRONT COVER:

www.artmazemag.com

GENERAL ENQUIRIES:

Kaley Flowers and Jack Sachs “L1nk Up” series ceramics

facebook.com/artmazemag

info@artmazemag.com BACK COVER:

instagram.com/artmazemag

twitter.com/@artmazemag

SUBMIT TO ONLINE BLOG: blog@artmazemag.com

Featured image: Mark Posey ‘Art Show’ acrylic, oil, spray paint 44 x 52 inches (see more on p.104-105)

Una Ursprung ‘Untitled 32’ oil and spray on canvas 170 x 130 cm

Winter Edition Issue 6

Call for Art DEADLINE: NOVEMBER 30, 2017 Guest curator: Kristian Day, Independent Gallerist and Curator in London

Submit your work for a chance to be published in print and digital issues bimonthly, as well as online on our website and social media. ELIGIBILITY: The competition is open to all artists, both national and international, working in all mediums. Artists are welcome to submit works in any medium: painting, drawing, sculpture, ceramics, printmaking, photography, textile, installation, mixed media, digital, film etc. DISTRIBUTION: ArtMaze Magazine is an independent international publication which is distributed both nationally and internationally via book shops, galleries and museums, art events and via the online store: http://artmazemag.com/shop/ HOW TO APPLY: please visit our website for more details and fill in the online form via the following link: www.artmazemag.com/call-for-art OTHER OPPORTUNITIES: Artists are welcome to submit their works to our online blog. This opportunity also provides a chance to be published in print issues bimonthly. Please visit our website for more information: www.artmazemag.com or contact us at info@artmazemag.com

featured artwork by Lynnea Holland-Weiss (see more on p.114, 124-125)

Winter Edition Issue 6

Call for Art DEADLINE: NOVEMBER 30, 2017 Guest curator: Kristian Day, Independent Gallerist and Curator in London

featured artwork by Lynnea Holland-Weiss (see more on p.114, 124-125)

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We live in an exciting era where technology is revolutionizing the way the art world works. Artists from all over the world have an opportunity to stay up to date with each others’ work daily and discover new horizons for their own art through influences and collaborations. This issue’s cover work by ceramic artist Kaley Flowers and 3-D animator and illustrator Jack Sachs has become an outcome of two persons’ teamwork where artists never met each other, but connected through social media and discovered the potential of working together, which brought both their art practices to a unique combination resulting in a series of ceramic pieces. To find more about it, read Kaley’s interview on p. 38-39. At the heart of our publication we are proud to present to you the selection of works by Jacob Rhodes from Field Projects Gallery, NYC (see p. 54-113 and read Jacob’s interview on p. 46-53). Jacob Rhodes runs a dynamic space in the heart of New York’s art district dedicated to giving emerging and mid-career artists a platform to exhibit their work. This artist-run gallery hosts a diverse range of monthly and pop-up exhibitions that are curated by a number of guest curators, all of which prove to be as thought-provoking and captivating as the last. We thank Jacob and Field Projects for being so actively involved in this special anniversary edition. Our next issue’s curated selection will be led by Kristian Day, an independent gallerist and curator in London, who has devoted his life to showcasing

and promoting emerging artists all over the UK since 2016 having previously had profound knowledge and experience of working with internationally renowned galleries. You can read Kris’s interview on p. 14-21 and get an insight of his daily curatorial practice and vision. We currently have an open call for art curated by Kris, which lasts until November 30th, 2017 (for more details see p.4-5). Our editorial selection of works (p. 114-145) shows highlights of the submissions we receive daily for our online blog. We are enormously honoured to receive such great interest in our relatively young publication and we wanted to thank each artist who applied to be considered. We mark the first year in ArtMaze Magazine’s history with this 5th and Anniversary Edition. It’s been a fantastic journey and we are incredibly privileged and honoured to help shine the spotlight on so many talents and get an insight into their personalities behind the artworks and the challenges they went through to get where they are now. We would like ArtMaze to continue to serve as a platform of support for emerging and mid-career artists who have an innovative and progressive approach, creating groundbreaking work and inspiring the community. Editor and Founder, Maria Zemtsova

Featured image: Monika Ardila ‘Wearing Polar Being on studio’ textile embroidery and acrylic paste on faux fur 120 x 180 cm see more on p.92-93

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Featured image: Monika Ardila ‘Wearing Polar Being on studio’ textile embroidery and acrylic paste on faux fur 120 x 180 cm see more on p.92-93

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I N T E R V I E W E D

C U R AT E D S E L E CT IO N O F WO R K S

the journey of an independent gallerist and curator in London - Kristian Day ................................................................................................. 14

by Jacob rhodes

Royal Jarmon: ‘a tension between ourselves and our commercial environment at large’ ......................................... 22

Kelli Thompson ............................................................................................................. 56 Siru Wen ................................................................................................................................ 58 Julie Alpert ........................................................................................................................ 61 Ashley Catharine Smith ....................................................................................... 63 Una URSPRUNG .................................................................................................................. 64 Kelly Boehmer ................................................................................................................. 66 Caroline Wayne ............................................................................................................ 67 Eleanor McCaughey ................................................................................................. 68 Claire Scherzinger .................................................................................................. 70 SERPIL MAVI USTUN ........................................................................................................ 72 Kathy Ager ......................................................................................................................... 74 Auksė Miliukaitė .......................................................................................................... 77 Holly Knox Rhame ........................................................................................................ 78 Genevieve Cohn ............................................................................................................. 79 Stacy.O .................................................................................................................................. 80 Kellie Orr ............................................................................................................................ 82 Ji Su Kwak ............................................................................................................................ 83 Donna Festa ...................................................................................................................... 84 Sonja Molnar-Bernath .......................................................................................... 86 Kiya Major .......................................................................................................................... 87 Mandolyn Wilson Rosen ...................................................................................... 88 Madeline Donahue ...................................................................................................... 90 Monika Ardila ................................................................................................................ 93 james Tarry ....................................................................................................................... 94 En Iwamura ......................................................................................................................... 97 Austin Ballard .............................................................................................................. 98 Viliam Slaminka ........................................................................................................... 99 Marta de la Parra ..................................................................................................... 100 Masaru Suyama ............................................................................................................ 102 Mark Posey ...................................................................................................................... 104 Jessica Cannon .......................................................................................................... 106 Natasha Frisch ............................................................................................................ 108 Angela McIntosh & Darryl Pollock ...................................................... 110 S. von Puttkammer ...................................................................................................... 111 Michael E. Stephen ...................................................................................................... 112

Sean newport: Lifting the veil on reality ............................................... 28 John Foster: the mathematical midwife ..................................................... 32 In conversation with the online art platform ‘RatedModernArt‘. Open for viewing 24/7: Instagram’s role in revolutionizing the Art Market .................................................... 36 Kaley flowers: The silly and the sarcastic elements of Internet culture, the spirit of the digital world.................... 38 meet our guest curator: jacob rhodes, co-founder and head curator of field projects gallery................................ 46

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1 1 4 E DI TO R I A L S E L E CT IO N O F WO R K S Max Seckel ......................................................................................................................... 117 Patrick Brien .................................................................................................................. 119 Cristòfol Pons .......................................................................................................... 120 Zoe Hawk ............................................................................................................................ 122 Dan Isaac Bortz & Lynnea Holland-Weiss ...................................... 124 David Willburn ........................................................................................................... 126 Farnaz Nylander ....................................................................................................... 128 Isabelle O’Donnell ................................................................................................. 129 Cristina Getson ....................................................................................................... 130 Ryota Matsumoto ....................................................................................................... 131 Helena Lacy ..................................................................................................................... 132 Géza Ricz ........................................................................................................................... 134 Dana Oldfather .......................................................................................................... 136 Giuseppe Gonella ..................................................................................................... 139 Celan Bouillet ............................................................................................................ 140 Drigo ..................................................................................................................................... 141 Scott Albrecht .......................................................................................................... 142 Amanda Clyne ................................................................................................................ 144

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the journey of an independent gallerist and curator in London - Kristian Day ................................................................................................. 14

by Jacob rhodes

Royal Jarmon: ‘a tension between ourselves and our commercial environment at large’ ......................................... 22

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i n t e r v i e w e d f e a t u r i n g : K r i s t i a n R o y a l s e a n

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i n t e r v i e w e d f e a t u r i n g : K r i s t i a n R o y a l s e a n

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www.kristianday.co.uk

the journey of an independent gallerist and curator in London

K r i s t i a n D a y With about 20 years’ experience working in London’s energetic and ever-changing art scene, independent curator and gallerist Kristian Day shares with us his journey creating his own path towards doing what he truly loves. A believer in the importance of a strong connection between gallery and artist, Day’s own close relationships and involvement with the artists he works with can be seen in his work as a curator through his compelling exhibitions. Day discusses the ups and downs of being an independent curator, as finding permanent space for exhibitions in a city where costly rents continue to rise is often a struggle. Originally hailing from the Yorkshire city of Hull, where the curator formerly taught Art History, Day has put together an impressive number of unique exhibitions, with the most recent being “The Diamond Sea” at Saatchi Gallery, with artwork including paintings with an assortment of different styles as well as cyanotype work on paper. Desiring to create a platform to sell more affordable artwork to a wider variety of audiences, Kristian Day has also launched Paper Cuts, which sells high quality works on paper by a wide range of artists. Join us as we hear about the ins and outs of making your own way in the art world, the joy and satisfaction that comes from seeing your vision come to life, and the unforgettable stories you gain along the way.

Text by Christina Nafziger Interview by Maria Zemtsova Photo: Kristian Day in the studio of Karl Bielik. Photograph by Lorna Milburn.

www.kristianday.co.uk

the journey of an independent gallerist and curator in London

Text by Christina Nafziger Interview by Maria Zemtsova Photo: Kristian Day in the studio of Karl Bielik. Photograph by Lorna Milburn.

AMM: Hi Kristian, it’s great to be able to talk about your experiences and share some of your knowledge with ArtMaze community. You’ve spent almost 20 years working for London’s leading commercial galleries. Could you tell us more about these experiences and your observations in regards to how different galleries and artists work together and how they develop their relationships?

I’ve changed entire shows previously as I like to build them around the space in question. The Love, Peace & Happiness exhibition I curated at the Menier Gallery changed completely from its original concept for example. It was originally going to have a cartoonish, humorous feel yet the venue, with its bare brick, steel girders and wooden floors commanded something less frivolous and more sincere.

KD: Hi Maria, good question! I actually began my career in academia, lecturing in Art History back in my hometown of Hull. Most of my students were on the fine art courses so I was very much used to being around studios by the time I moved down to London to start working for galleries. I mention this as I always found it strange how separated the galleries felt from the studio practice of the artists they represented. To a certain extent the studios were treated like a warehouse, supplying inventory to be sold, and that never sat comfortably with me. I’m not saying all galleries are like this, I was always jealous of those that had closer relationships with artists and I’m fully aware that commercial pressures can force some dealers into this situation but feel it’s worth the extra effort to strike that balance. There’s a reason I got into this business in the first place, and that is to work closely with artists, if it was just to make money I’d have quit a long time ago!

AMM: Could you share with us some of your strongest tips in regards to the organization of a group exhibition? KD: I wouldn’t really want to tell anyone how to curate their own shows other than I feel it’s important to try and find your own way of doing things. Oh…and find a good van driver. AMM: You have a very strong aesthetic voice throughout your curatorial work. How would you describe your vision and what are the main aspects you are interested in when looking for emerging talents? KD: I’m not sure if there is one vision behind my exhibitions. I do try to stay true to myself I suppose, in that I like to think there is a certain quality to the work I show. It’s often pointed out to me that there is a high level of draftsmanship with the artists I work with and maybe an eye for a more classical composition but it’s not necessarily what I’m looking for in an emerging talent - maybe it’s just something I’m drawn to? I spend all day everyday looking at art so my tastes change all the time… and I hope that never stops. I’ve previously been pigeonholed as someone who only looks at painting which is certainly not the case, it may be the arena I feel most comfortable in but…I don’t really want to be too comfortable, that’d just be boring.

AMM: In 2016 you took the step of working independently and promoting emerging and midcareer artists in the UK. Did you always want to be an independent curator or was there something that gradually led you through your career to this kind of work? KD: There was a point a few years ago where I was considering leaving all this behind and starting a whole new career. I’d grown despondent with it all and felt like I was stuck in a loop, a Cork Street groundhog day! However, I’d started to notice the odd artist here and there that I admired, and frankly wished I could be working with. I’m not sure what happened but before I knew it I was going to private views every night after work. I’d make lists of pretend exhibitions that I’d have liked to put on but had no idea how to go about it, or really what I was doing it for! It reached a point that I realised that I couldn’t work full time for someone else, I had to just get out there and get involved. So I quit my job, after 13 years and basically spent the summer of 2016 gallery hopping and doing studio visits with no clear idea of what it was all for, other than a personal need to get back into the kind of art I’d always loved. Eventually, my pal Chris Mooney from the brilliant Arcade, took pity on me and told me to put on a show in his space in Old Street and that’s where it all started…thanks Chris, it’s all your fault! From there I was invited to work with various galleries and spaces over London, putting on 10 shows in the first year.

AMM: You’ve previously spoken of trying to collaborate with artists rather than just receiving their finished works. How does your interaction with artists evolve from your initial encounter with their work, to studio visit, and then to the realization of an exhibition?

Image (p. 16): From the exhibition ‘The Rude Gesture’ Thom Trojanowski Hobson ‘Bright White Electric Feel‘ oil and enamel paint, posca pen and collage on canvas 150 x 200 cm

So, to answer the question, I didn’t necessarily want to be a curator but I did feel a NEED to put together shows with the artists I admired. AMM: In your new role as an independent curator, what are the toughest and most rewarding parts of your job? What does your working day look like? KD: It’s always a challenge doing what I do, finding the venues, finding the artists…hoping that someone will turn up! There are so many stressful aspects to the role, I don’t think I’ve ever put on a show without some minor catastrophe happening along the way but I won’t bore your readers with them! Plus, it all becomes worthwhile when the exhibition opens and everything has come together. There’s a wonderful moment after every private view when you know it’s all gone well and all the hard work has paid off…usually just before I collapse in exhaustion. My working day usually starts with me worrying that I don’t have anything to do, and ends with me p. 16

“ T h e re ’s a wo n d e r f u l m o m e n t after ever y private view when yo u k n o w i t ’s a l l g o n e we l l a n d all the hard work has paid off… usually just before I collapse in exhaustion.”

Image (p. 17, top): From the exhibition ‘Barbarism Begins at Home’ Freya Douglas Morris ‘Morning’ oil on canvas 140 x 110 cm Image (p. 17, bottom): From the exhibition ‘The Diamond Sea’ Markus Vater ‘Tanzende ‘ acrylic on canvas 150 x 180 cm

worrying about having time to finish everything I need to do! There is no average day but more often than not I’ll be arranging a studio visit, which is the part of the job I enjoy most. AMM: Are you getting closer to a permanent gallery? How difficult is it to find a space/gallery/studio for a show in London? KD: I’m still working towards a permanent space. It’s funny as I get asked a lot about my nomadic projects as people are starting to look at this kind of thing as a viable alternative to the struggling gallery system whereas I’ve always aimed to have my own space and only started this kind of programme out of necessity rather than design. I’ve been very lucky so far in finding galleries to work with, that said I am always on the look out for interesting new spaces and love to hear from people interested in a collaboration. When the gallery does eventually open I’ll still want to carry on doing collaborative external events here, there and everywhere, it’s fascinating how different spaces have such different atmospheres.

KD: I first encounter artists in many different ways, degree shows, exhibitions, Instagram, open studios. I keep a ton of lists and, for want of a better term, mood-boards, with ideas for potential exhibitions, artists I think would work well together, whose art could create some dialogue whether supportive or contrasting. Then, when I’m introduced to a space I find an exhibition that I think could work well there, although, as I’ve mentioned before, the show will usually evolve from that point on until it feels like a good fit. I should mention that I do studio visits all the time, whether they are leading to a specific exhibition deadline or not so, most of the time, I will already know the artists I work with before proposing a show. AMM: Has your desire to be close to the creation of artworks meant that, initially at least, you’ve concentrated more on the London/UK art scene? Do you hope to repeat your collaborative process in other international art centres? KD: Sadly, time and money have been the big factors in keeping me and the exhibitions in London, don’t forget that for my first exhibition I had to collect all the works on the bus! However, I’ve never wanted to be solely based in the capital. As a Yorkshireman I’m very keen to work with Northern spaces for example. I’m also discussing potential shows with a few galleries overseas. I’m always open to new possibilities and the prospect of finding different spaces around the UK, or indeed around the world, to collaborate with is very exciting to me. If anyone out there has a venue then drop me a line!

Interviewed: kristian day

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Image (p. 16): From the exhibition ‘The Rude Gesture’ Thom Trojanowski Hobson ‘Bright White Electric Feel‘ oil and enamel paint, posca pen and collage on canvas 150 x 200 cm

Interviewed: kristian day

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AMM: Recently you’ve worked with Saatchi Gallery on “The Diamond Sea” exhibition. Congratulations! What an amazing achievement and what a great show you’ve put together. Could you tell us more about how this project came to life and how long it took to finalise the whole exhibition? KD: The Diamond Sea was an idea that I’d had floating around for quite some time. For those that don’t know it was named after a surprisingly romantic song by the band Sonic Youth. This got me thinking about ‘The Romantic’ in art and also actual, real life romance and all the highs and lows associated. In February I met Paul Foster from the Saatchi Gallery and it turns out he is a big Sonic Youth fan too, from then the exhibition began to take shape. I was very pleased to be able to show Kaye Donachie in The Diamond Sea, who has been a favourite of mine for some time. AMM: You’ve founded ‘Paper Cuts’, an online and offline marketplace for contemporary and less expensive works on paper. Where did this idea come from and what is the vision behind this project? How do you see it developing in future? KD: It is very important to me to try to appeal to as many different audiences as possible and I was very aware that the works I was showing were beyond the budget of most of the people coming to my shows. Small works on paper are, by and large, a bit more affordable so I was very keen to do something but the stumbling block was always presentation. Framing would be way too expensive and I didn’t like the idea of pinning things to the wall, especially as I wanted to show works by a LOT of artists. The eureka moment came while visiting my local record shop in Crouch End. It struck me that I could display the works like racks of vinyl for people to flip through. Most of my show titles are inspired by songs so it kept the musical thread going plus the display cases are easy to move around, meaning it’s basically an exhibition on legs that can travel around with me from show to show. Paper Cuts, in case you didn’t know, is a Nirvana song. The next phase of Paper Cuts is currently under development. I’ll be adding works by a ton of artists from around the world with a view to relaunching it with an event in December. I’m hoping the online store will be ready in that time too, the current website for Paper Cuts is fairly rudimentary so I’m trying to make it all a bit easier to navigate… with over 300 artists involved I’m sure you can imagine the sheer amount of admin it takes to get things in a straight line! AMM: With the age of social media and speedy connection, everything evolves fast in the art world these days. How do you feel about the current London/UK art scene? What changes and trends have you observed for the last 20 years working in the industry? KD: Everything changes, everything stays the same. Social media certainly helps artists raise their profile these days but I think the really positive aspect is the sense of connection artists can have, you may be alone in your studio all day but you can easily check out what your peers have been up to. I’m certain this has led to scenes popping up here and there but it has also led to support networks among artists too. As for industry trends there are certain worrying things happening. A lot of great galleries have closed this year alone and I fear it’s just down to the sheer cost of running a gallery, being in a desirable area and dealing with the rents is one thing but to feel compelled to show at several fairs every year on top of this with no guarantee of making a profit is concerning. Having said that I’m positive about the future, people will continue to collect and galleries will adapt to new business structures and start cutting their coat to their cloth a little more. p. 18

interviewed: kristian day

Image (top): Exhibition view of ‘Love Peach and Happiness’, featuring Gwennan Thomas, Nick Jensen, Fiona Curran, George Little, Jackson Sprague, Anthony Banks, Nicholas Johnson, Phil Root & Kiera Bennett.

Image (bottom): Exhibition view of ‘The Rude Gesture’, featuring Thom Trojanowski Hobson, Rae Hicks, Ben Jamie, Harry Bland and Dickon Drury

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interviewed: kristian day

Image (bottom): Exhibition view of ‘The Rude Gesture’, featuring Thom Trojanowski Hobson, Rae Hicks, Ben Jamie, Harry Bland and Dickon Drury

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Image (p.20): From the exhibition ‘The Diamond Sea’ Jonathan Lux ‘Brooklyn Farmacy’ ink on paper 40 x 30 cm

Image (p.21, top): From the exhibition ‘Geologies’ Anthony Banks ‘Coastlines’ oil, wax and distemper on linen with artists frame 58 x 53 cm

Image (p.21, bottom): Part of Paper Cuts Robin Mason ‘Grafted Together 2’ acrylic on primer paper 28.5 x 28.5 cm

AMM: Any weird or funny situations you’ve faced since becoming an independent curator or perhaps throughout your whole career? KD: I feel like I’ve been through it all Maria. Wolf whistled while carrying a large pair of ceramic buttocks through Mayfair, accidentally shouting at Jeff Koons, a Delboy-esque incident with a chandelier, a cleaner throwing away a Damien Hirst installation…I think I’ll save the rest for the book. AMM: Things like ‘don’t follow trends’, ‘be true to yourself’, ‘work hard’, ‘stay connected’ are most common advice these days. Is there any specific advice you can share, which has reflected in your own life and stimulated you to be where you are now?

“ I ’d s a y d o n ’ t w a i t too long to do what yo u l o v e . I t ’s a l l t o o easy to get stuck in a situation you don’t want to be in and can feel impossible to break out of the cycle. My biggest regret is that I didn’t start doing all of this ten years ago.”

KD: I agree with all of the above, don’t just say it though…act on it. I’d also say don’t wait too long to do what you love. It’s all too easy to get stuck in a situation you don’t want to be in and can feel impossible to break out of the cycle. My biggest regret is that I didn’t start doing all of this ten years ago. AMM: What would be your definition of success? KD: Don’t get me wrong, I’d be more than happy to be earning millions but I don’t think you should measure success on that. I think you’ve got to try and measure success against yourself, try to do a better show than the last time, try to outdo yourself. Otherwise there’s always going to be a bigger fish. AMM: Anything exciting you might be able to share with us about what you are working on right now or preparing in the coming year? KD: There’s lots happening, starting with a show in Manchester at the end of October and Paper Cuts in December. Alongside the larger group exhibitions I’ll be doing more solo presentations too. Do follow me in all the usual places or get in touch via www.kristianday.co.uk if you’d like to keep up to date! Interviewed: kristian day

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Image (p.20): From the exhibition ‘The Diamond Sea’ Jonathan Lux ‘Brooklyn Farmacy’ ink on paper 40 x 30 cm

Image (p.21, top): From the exhibition ‘Geologies’ Anthony Banks ‘Coastlines’ oil, wax and distemper on linen with artists frame 58 x 53 cm

Image (p.21, bottom): Part of Paper Cuts Robin Mason ‘Grafted Together 2’ acrylic on primer paper 28.5 x 28.5 cm

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www.royaljarmon.com

R o y a l J a r m o n ‘a tension between ourselves and our commercial environment at large’ Royal Jarmon is a painter and sculptor who jumps between mediums to create his vivid works that capture the imagination and then bring it back to reality. The commercial and stark references his works have are a refreshing and grounding way of looking at objecthood — and then back at painting again. Being an artist from the Midwest who traveled to New York City, he uses familiar imagery within dizzying urban landscapes to show us a tension between ourselves and our commercial environment at large. He pushes through moments of darkness with absurdity and wit that leave you within a mixed emotional conundrum. You don’t always know if it is alright to think something depicted is beautiful or funny — or beautifully funny. Jarmon is not afraid of pushing the tensions between the absurd and the way we perceive ourselves within this urban-centric lifetime. Each piece is flooded with color and optimism with a poetic undertow of cynicism and darkness.

Interview by Megan St.Clair

www.royaljarmon.com

Interview by Megan St.Clair

AMM: When you are referencing specific brands and companies within your works, do you feel they have an extra political charge? RJ: There is, but it is usually an intuitive conclusion which I will usually understand more after a work has been done a while. Looking back, it’s easier to connect the dots of what I was trying to do all along. AMM: How do you think about the often dangerous, or precarious placements of items in your paintings? RJ: It will usually be emphasizing something or creating abstract value to hold some part of the painting together; whether it be visual or conceptual. I like contrasts/tension as a flavor, so naturally it’s there in my art. AMM: What goes through your mind when you are creating your NASCAR crashing compositions? RJ: It usually connects with some event/mood that I or someone close is going through. There’s also a political dialogue about culture. Although the same as I said before, a lot of times I don’t know why I add things to a painting until a while after I’ve started it with an image in my head. The car crashes are funny, but dark. I guess I want them to convey the beauty that can accompany difficult times in life. AMM: Do you think humor plays a role in how you would like your work to be perceived? RJ: Yes, I do. It’s there but ambiguous, I want the viewers to create their own dialogue and draw on their own references. It’s funny but it’s not. Why is it funny? Why is it not funny? AMM: Do you think your life is exposed to the viewer through your paintings — or do you think you are exposing specific snapshots of someone else’s life? AMM: Can you talk about your background and how it drove you into the arts? RJ: I’ve always been especially drawn to anything I could work on creatively from a young age. I was born in CA but grew up in the Midwest so I was always wanting to get away. I didn’t go to college, so I spent most of my time making things and painting as I travelled throughout most of my twenties. Living in various places gave me the character that defines some of the flavor of the work. Now, living in Brooklyn a few years, I’ve been in a rich arts community that has helped me develop my craft.

RJ: Yes they expose my life. But it’s not about me, that’s just my material to work with. I’m often thinking of culture and human condition. AMM: How often do you think of the traditional still life painting when you are arranging your artworks? RJ: I’m not thinking about traditional still life painting too much. I’ll study some from time to time but not often.

AMM: Your work is vibrant and lively with layers of rich color; can you talk about the allure of the color plates you chose? RJ: I’m interested in all the relationships that can coexist in an image; also the intensity of those relationships. I like problem painting, finding the solutions makes for a good artwork. AMM: Could you talk about your relationship between painting and sculpture? RJ: They inform each other. I get bored easily. Having two types of work helps me get more done and learn new things. I bounce back and forth, sometimes a sculpture might help me see exactly how I can paint something in a new way.

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interviewed: royal jarmon

Image (p. 22-23): Royal Jarmon ‘Letting In’ acrylic on canvas 26 x 24 inches Image (p. 25): Royal Jarmon ‘Shy Guy’ acrylic on canvas 21 x 20 inches

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interviewed: royal jarmon

Image (p. 22-23): Royal Jarmon ‘Letting In’ acrylic on canvas 26 x 24 inches Image (p. 25): Royal Jarmon ‘Shy Guy’ acrylic on canvas 21 x 20 inches

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Image: Royal Jarmon ‘Happy Sad :)’ acrylic on canvas 24 x 24 inches

Image: Royal Jarmon ‘Fire Esape’ acrylic on canvas 60 x 54 inches

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interviewed: royal jarmon

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Image: Royal Jarmon ‘Happy Sad :)’ acrylic on canvas 24 x 24 inches

Image: Royal Jarmon ‘Fire Esape’ acrylic on canvas 60 x 54 inches

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interviewed: royal jarmon

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www.sean-newport.com

S e a n N e w p o r t Lifting the veil on reality Come explore the infinite colour patterns and perspectives that exist within artist Sean Newport’s landscapes of wood and shadow. Newport uses abilities and talents gained from a background of experience working in carpentry and interior design to construct intricate compositions that reach out towards the viewer, skewing optics and perception as wooden points jut out in different directions. Inspired by artists from the Op Art movement as well as the magic eye posters of the 90’s, Newport’s work creates challenging colour combinations that breathe new life into the potential of space and rhythm in a single piece of work. Sean Newport discusses with us his journey experimenting in the wood shop as well as his sketching process, which includes his “woodles” or “wood doodles”. The artist’s work remarkably transforms depending on the proximity of the viewers as well as the angle in which they look at each piece. Join us in conversation with the artist as we explore the dialogue created between his work and its environment as well as the ‘colour vibrations’ that buzz within the surface.

Interview by Christina Nafziger

www.sean-newport.com

Interview by Christina Nafziger

Image (top):

AMM: Has your work always contained such rich and vibrant, psychedelic hues?

courtesy of Sean Newport

SN: It’s been a progression of color exploration. The vibrant colors tend to vibrate more of their color onto surrounding shapes which is an aspect of my work I really love exploring.

Image (bottom): Sean Newport ‘Untitled 5’ acrylic and poplar wood 19 x 19 inches

AMM: The direction of each pointed woodblock in your work adds an additional element that skews and warps the patterns within your compositions. What level of planning goes into creating each visual affect before its creation? SN: I spent countless hours playing with these shapes and discovering possible patterns, which still seem to be endless. I photograph the patterns and start creating more. I’ve been doing that for years now. I also explore patterns with shapes that are already painted and ready to go onto a panel. Before I glue them down I pattern-play and document for days (if time permits). Other times I purposely make no pattern plan and start playing with each shape’s position in relation to the next, I’ll step back, or step up on a ladder to get a broader view and continue. I can’t decide which method I enjoy most, each offers different challenges and rewards. AMM: From where do you draw your visual influences? Where does your interest in optics come from? AMM: Tell us a bit about your journey finding your voice as an artist. Has your artwork always centered around 3-dimensional form? When did you begin experimenting with depth and perspective? SN: Being an artist is such a state of mind. Ever since I was a kid I was constantly drawing and creating. I gravitated toward the traditional disciplines of artistry like figure drawing, painting and ceramic sculpture. Once I graduated college I quickly realized the difference between making art and “making it” as an artist. I needed a job, experience. I needed to live more, in hopes to find my voice along my path. I picked up carpentry and started exploring creative interior design. My friends were constantly encouraging me to make art but I was still pretty clueless as to how to do that. In 2011 a friend invited me to be in an art show with all woodworkers. I agreed and using left over scraps from a carpentry project I began cutting small wooden shapes and exploring how they looked tiled next to each other. The piece I made for the show sold and I received encouraging positive feedback. With a bit of momentum I began making more work and continued playing with wooden shapes. It was such a different creative outlet and for me it seemed to flow more than any other medium. Each new piece I made taught me something that I implemented into the next piece. I learned so much from the shapes and how they interacted within their environment. Once I started painting them I discovered how they created optical challenges and color vibrations from one shape to the next. AMM: What is it about wood that has compelled you to choose it as your primary medium? Have you worked with other materials in the past? SN: I love wood! It’s such a fun medium! Being a carpenter I became comfortable with the tools of the trade and how to manipulate the wood to what I wanted. I also had access to a wood shop, which helped! Wood to me just works within the boundaries of how I operate. AMM: Your sculptures display meticulous and precise patterns. Do you create your wall sculptures by hand or with the assistance of technology and/or machines? SN: I use a table saw, mitre saw, belt sander, palm sander and good ol’ fashion elbow grease. The machines are cutters and shapers. I need them to do the tasks my hands cannot. I’m still pushing all the wood through the table saw and mitre saw. I have a few friends help me sand the shapes to get them to my liking. It’s kind of crazy to think about how much time I spend with each individual shape. In the planning aspect of my work I sketch ideas on graph paper or make woodles (wood doodles) where I explore arranging wood shapes in all sorts of patterns and then photograph them so I can reference them later. I know I could use a computer program to do a lot of my work but I really love the analogue aspect of my process. I also really dislike being behind a computer.

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SN: I love optical illusions. As a kid I would always stare at the magic eyes posters that revealed hidden images. I loved searching for mioré patterns (interference patterns) while in the car with my parents. The freeway overpasses always had them when the lighting was right. As an adult I started experimenting with psychedelics, which completely lifted the veil of the reality I thought I knew. I began to realize perception is malleable and repetition is everywhere. AMM: Your work seems to pay homage to the Op Art movement of the 1960s. Do any of the artists involved, such as Bridget Riley, who also experimented with pattern and perspective, inspire your work? SN: Absolutely. I love Bridget Riley’s work, as well as Victor Vasarely, Frank Stella, and so many more. I also am inspired by a handful of current artists like Barry McGee, Tauba Auerbach, James Turrell and Olafur Eliasson. AMM: Congratulations on your recent solo exhibition Eclipse at Cordesa Fine Art in LA! Can you tell us a bit about the show and the work it showcased? SN: Thank you! I really wanted to explore the passage of color, the perspective of the observer and the color’s source of illumination. I created color gradients that interact with the adjacent white surfaces of each individual shape. This creates a vibration of color that transfers from one shape to the other. Each wall sculpture can be hung 8 different ways, which highlight different views, patterns and colors. The sculptures interact with their environments so depending on how much or how little light there is and the direction of light source the sculptures will accent in various ways. Sometimes you’ll see a shadow that becomes a color gradient if the sculpture is rotated one way or the other. It’s an endless interactive visual playground. AMM: Do you have any advice for artists trying to make the transition to working as a full-time artist? SN: DO NOT GIVE UP!!! Just keep working on whatever it is you’re working on. Stretch your comforts and get involved in your local art community. Surround yourself with other artists and people who encourage and inspire you. Take notes and then reread them as often as you can. AMM: Where would you like to see your work go ten years from now? SN: To the moon!! Actually that would be pretty cool to have an art piece on the moon, maybe one day. I’d love to explore larger scale sculptures, at the same time creating more movement within the work itself. I want to show outside of the US so hopefully that can happen within 10 years. I have so many ideas I just need time to do them all. Interviewed: sean newport

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Image (top):

AMM: Has your work always contained such rich and vibrant, psychedelic hues?

courtesy of Sean Newport

SN: It’s been a progression of color exploration. The vibrant colors tend to vibrate more of their color onto surrounding shapes which is an aspect of my work I really love exploring.

Image (bottom): Sean Newport ‘Untitled 5’ acrylic and poplar wood 19 x 19 inches

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jlfad.bigcartel.com

J o h n F o s t e r the mathematical midwife The delicate, radiant sculptures of John Foster use geometric shapes to shatter light and colour, expelling transparent crystal blue and fiery magenta hues into streams of magnificent light. Fractals of rainbows become shards of triangle light reflections that transform not only the sculpture itself, but also the walls, ceilings and floors surrounding Foster’s work. The repetitive pattern of shapes found in his work combined with mesmerizing, stained-glass-like colours produce a calming, tranquil effect that beautifully illuminates its environment. Interested in colour theory and the energy and harmony it generates, the artist builds structures that radiate with a spirituality that can be felt in the viewer, especially when in its presence. Foster developed his artistic skills at Minneapolis College of Art and Design, where he studied Fine Art with an emphasis in sculpture. Join us as we discuss the details involved in the artist’s intricate process, his early beginnings in creating art and the adrenaline rush found in a breakthrough moment.

Interview by Christina Nafziger

jlfad.bigcartel.com

Interview by Christina Nafziger

“I feel a spiritual connection to geometry and mathematics in general. The ability to conceptualize and actualize, and experience these truths in space and time can induce a feeling of ecstatic bliss.”

AMM: You create artwork in a variety of different forms ranging from sculpture to mixed media. Is there an aesthetic connection between these mediums, or do you feel they are completely separate bodies of work? JF: I feel like my fingerprint is always on the work I make, both literally and figuratively. I like to think I am like a midwife for the work but I cannot escape the fact that each situation leading to and including the creation of this work is experienced through my movements, my clumsiness, my handwork, my physical existence. AMM: Both your sculptures and mixed media work seem to centre on geometric patterns. Can you tell us about your interest in these reoccurring, kaleidoscope-like shapes? JF: I feel a spiritual connection to geometry and mathematics in general. The ability to conceptualize and actualize, and experience these truths in space and time can induce a feeling of ecstatic bliss. AMM: You have some pieces available that are functional, like your interstellar sparkle table. Do you have a background or interest in industrial design? JF: My interest in functional design is absolutely credited to my time spent with Dean Wilson at Minneapolis College of Art and Design. As a maker, his technical skills were limitless, and his aesthetic sensibilities inspired me to think about furniture and architecture in a new and different way.

AMM: Tell us a bit about your background as an artist. When you first began creating, what kind of work were you making? JF: I’ve always been interested in color and geometry. I started making drawings and paintings at an early age. When I was five years old, I was diagnosed with a rare childhood immune disease that put me in a wheelchair, and to mitigate anxiety and deal with chronic pain, I was making art. I sensed almost a synesthetic relationship between chromatic energy and emotion. As a painter, I was interested in color harmony, but primarily observing what paint does, how it behaves. I didn’t want to leave brush strokes, I didn’t want it to be evident that my hands created the work, it was more for me; I was the one watching the painting develop. It was fun, but didn’t feel complete. AMM: Your glass sculptures allow shards of coloured light to shine through them, creating a beautiful effect that is unique to your work. What material do you use to produce such an effect and what inspired you to do so? JF: The material I use is acrylic...or Lucite, or Perspex, depending on which part of the world you are in. I originally wanted to make objects for photographic experiments, and this material seemed perfect for the exploration. Its optical clarity and workability are attractive to me. I am interested in working with glass also. Silicates are fascinating to me. AMM: Can you describe to us your process creating your incredibly complex and polygonal sculptures? JF: The complexity is a result of carefully considered symmetry, light transmission percentage, reflectivity, and polarization... but the steps required are relatively simple gestures.

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My degree is actually in Fine Art - Interdisciplinary Studio, with a focus in Sculpture. This allowed me to learn fabrication skills but also focused on critical and conceptual theory. AMM: Your Cargo Collective portfolio features moving gifs of your ‘light painting, light sculpture’ work. Can you tell us a bit about this avenue of your artwork? JF: This was one of the early explorations of displaying my work in 4 dimensions. I was taking video of the sculptures and converting to gifs in Photoshop. We have come a long way in gif production! AMM: Working in sculpture, it can often be difficult to find a studio that is suitable for the space required to create your work. Do you work from home or in a separate space? Tell us about your studio. JF: I have a studio, and it suits my needs. What I do is very loud, very messy, and my space gives me the freedom to be both of those things. It has concrete floors, work stations separated by various tasks... AMM: Describe a moment where you felt you had a breakthrough within your work. JF: These moments are amazing. It’s almost like an adrenaline rush-like a tingle, making me yawn from sensory overload as I catalogue the knowledge permanently into my skull. My eyes bug out and I scribble into my journal…these are moments of learning. It is exciting, as they are usually the result and reward of taking a risk.

It is a multi-step process, but a simplified technical rundown:

AMM: What person, artist or not, has had the most influence on you as an artist?

I prepare sheets of acrylic with a special dichroic treatment, and use a milling machine to cut out tiles to specification. I then carefully refine the tiles, assemble, and weld the edges together. Sanding, sanding, sanding... what you don’t see in the videos is that these objects have subtly rounded corners and are SUPER smooth. There is a lot of sanding and polishing, buffing, and delicate handwork, which is both time consuming and satisfying.

JF: This is a difficult question. One that I suppose I can’t answer yet. Everyone who has believed in me and supported me has made a lasting impact on me. If we are talking about artists who inspire me, I would have to say the first I guess famous artists who come to mind are Antoni Gaudi, Gustav Klimt, Duchamp... but the way we look at art has changed so much with Instagram that I would say it’s the collective creation, distribution, and digestion of images that has driven me to continue pushing myself as an artist.

interviewed: John Foster

Images courtesy of John Foster

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It is a multi-step process, but a simplified technical rundown:

AMM: What person, artist or not, has had the most influence on you as an artist?

interviewed: John Foster

Images courtesy of John Foster

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O p e n f o r v i e w i n g 2 4 / 7 : I n s t a g r a m ’ s r o l e i n r e v o l u t i o n i z i n g t h e A r t M a r k e t

AMM: Could you please tell us about the time you first started the venture with the RatedModernArt Instagram account. How difficult was it to build an audience and grow it to such a highly popular art account? RMA: @RatedModernArt (RMA) was created June, 2015. We were inspired by Art Basel, an annual art event. We started out posting a lot of images from the show and used the #artbasel hashtag which created a lot of traffic on our page right away. About a month later, other art sharing pages on Instagram contacted us and we started cross promoting with them which helped us grow quickly. AMM: How has RatedModernArt changed if at all from its start to now – have you found your role changing as your reach has increased? RMA: Our focus has always been the same, which is to connect people with art. The form of this can vary between pushing the fascination that art inspires, to placing an artist’s painting in the home of a collector. With the growth in our audience and a very focused page that has garnered interest from many wellknown players in the art space, things have become easier, as momentum and recognition are powerful forces. AMM: Instagram launched in 2010, and in only 7 years this platform has become the key social media above all others for many creatives – how early did you realize the opportunity of using Instagram as a tool for helping to promote the arts? RMA: When we first created the account, we didn’t realize Instagram had such a large role in connecting artists to galleries and art collectors. There weren’t many contemporary art sharing pages around back then—mostly lowbrow or kitsch — so we wanted to create a site that was geared towards higher end art. We realized the opportunity of using Instagram as a tool for helping to promote the arts after receiving positive feedback from artists we promoted telling us they received gallery representation and/or sold their artwork through us. Being featured on our page helped them develop relationships that might not otherwise have been possible. AMM: Did you always believe that a social media tool such as Instagram could turn out to be so powerful in terms of bringing together artists, collectors, galleries and art platforms from all over the world?

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RMA: Initially no, because the traditional way of looking at art in the past had been via art galleries and museums. Hundreds of millions of people are now using the app worldwide, and we have been able to subvert the art market with our Instagram page. We now think of our page as an international art gallery that is open for viewing 24/7.

Kaley Flowers ‘Astral.net’ polymer clay 7l x 5w x 6h inches

In an average art gallery, the artwork gets viewed by hundreds of locals. On our page it gets viewed by 580,000+ individuals worldwide! With just one click, any individual, no matter where they are, has direct access to the artwork we share. AMM: The New York Times earlier this year wrote an article around how Instagram has become a “commercial game changer for the art market” – it’s hard to disagree, but how do you see Instagram as a platform in the next 5 or 10 years? The world is constantly evolving; will it be just as integral? With Instagram we became able to reach out to vast international audiences with just a few clicks of buttons on our smartphones – this has almost replaced the traditional way of how art dealers used to approach galleries and how art was sold and showcased just a decade ago. Online self-representation/promotion has become a new trend amongst emerging artists and it has profoundly changed the way art businesses and galleries work now.

RMA: Instagram can and likely will be part of the future. While virtual reality and other improvements are possible, the simplicity of Instagram in representing things visually and being able to share them so easily is what gives it legs. In the next 5 or 10 years, we predict that there will be more art purchases through social media than via traditional art galleries, auction houses, and art fairs. We are already seeing a very large percentage of artwork getting sold after promoting artists and galleries on our page.

Hugely popular instagram account @ratedmodernart has become one of the top ‘Instagram galleries’ and has provided exposure for a vast number of artists who are proactive in self-promotion.

AMM: We constantly talk about how useful Instagram is, but in your experience, what are the limitations (if any)?

We’ve met up with the curators of @ratedmodernart, to discuss how and when social media exploded into the art world and became one of the key online platforms for artists, collectors, galleries and all creatives. What’s good and bad about it, what are the prospects…?

RMA: There are minor technical limitations, such as the number of hashtags you can use, but we’ve recently seen a lot of improvements with the app itself, such as the new slideshow features and max video duration moving from 15 to 60 seconds. It helps to have these options when presenting certain artwork, such as adding detail shots.

Interview by Maria Zemtsova

AMM: How do you decide what to post? What does the process look like and how many submissions per day/week do you receive? RMA: We post contemporary artwork from both emerging and established artists from all over the world. We receive around 50 submissions daily, and of those about 5% fit within our spectrum of interest. Once we select an artist or art gallery to sponsor, we continue working with them. Due to the high number of submissions, we have a waiting list for new submissions. AMM: Is there a particular style or theme of art that tends to get more ‘Instagram success’? RMA: Overall, if you look at most art pages, “satisfying” posts such as cutting of kinetic sand, paint mixing videos, playing with slime, or pottery videos tend to attract a lot of attention. Our most popular videos, ones that have gone viral, fit into that category. They are very successful, and we like to add a little fun to our page at times, but for the most part, we like to stick to higher end art. AMM: On Instagram everyone is equal, what are your thoughts on this? RMA: Instagram mirrors life. You can gain followers through the same means a person might attract people — humor, beauty, insight, common interests, etc. And of course popularity breeds more popularity. So to answer your question, I think everyone is equal in the sense that there isn’t some artificial barrier, but some are more popular than others and there must be some reason for that. AMM: RatedModernArt has a wide reach with a great audience including many prominent figures in art, who have been the most engaging? RMA: We have been very fortunate to work with a lot of big art collectors and celebrities (famous actors, professional athletes and musicians) who are all very engaging. It’s always exciting and rewarding when they contact us and inquire about artwork! AMM: Could you share the most memorable collaborating with artists/curators/collectors?

experiences

RMA: Ahh, there’s so many! A few months ago, we had the privilege of working with Klaus Biesenbach (director of MoMA PS1 & chief curator at large at The Museum of Modern Art, New York) who did a guest account takeover and curated our page for a day. And recently, we worked with Stafford Broumand (one of America’s top plastic surgeons and art collector) who did a guest account takeover. Both were fun experiences! It’s incredible how Instagram has connected us with influential individuals in the art scene today. Last year, Brett Gorvy and art collectors Niels Kantor and Carole Server also did account takeovers on our page and provided different perspectives which was refreshing. It was also a pleasure working with Simon de Pury, Swiss art auctioneer and collector. We’ve had many success stories with artists receiving gallery representation and memorable moments of artists who have connected with big celebrities after we’ve featured them. AMM: What would be your best advice to all those who want to gain bigger recognition on social media account and use it as a business tool? RMA: Focus and frequency. If you have a good eye for what others want to see and you are updating your page daily, you are bound to attract like-minded people. Also, investing in a good camera (or hiring a professional photographer) can make a big difference.

Interviewed: Ratedmodernart

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Kaley Flowers ‘Astral.net’ polymer clay 7l x 5w x 6h inches

Hugely popular instagram account @ratedmodernart has become one of the top ‘Instagram galleries’ and has provided exposure for a vast number of artists who are proactive in self-promotion.

AMM: We constantly talk about how useful Instagram is, but in your experience, what are the limitations (if any)?

Interview by Maria Zemtsova

experiences

Interviewed: Ratedmodernart

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www.kaleyflowers.com

K a l e y F l o w e r s The silly and the sarcastic elements of Internet culture, the spirit of the digital world Artist Kaley Flowers borrows the silly and the sarcastic elements of Internet culture and cleverly infuses them into her pastel coloured, ceramic characters. Harnessing her craft at OCAD University of Toronto, she uses the raw, tactile material of clay to embody the spirit of the digital world – filled with memes and gifs floating in cyberspace while seeping into our daily interactions and language. Flowers explains that being a part of a generation that has seen first-hand the drastic impact and changes that the social media surge has had on contemporary culture has heavily influenced her artistic practice. In her body of work, light pink and blue characters are often mesmerized in Flowers’ work by the recognizable, comforting familiarity found in the screens of iPhones and laptops. With titles like Egosystem, Digital Therapy, and Millennial V3nus, her shiny ceramic works lightly poke fun at the way we are often absorbed by the overwhelming amount of information and images online. The artist’s smart sense of humour reflects the funny memes and emojis that are used so often online while still embodying a unique voice that is distinct to Flowers’ style. In her series L1nk Up, Kaley Flowers connects with other artists online, launching different collaborations with incredible results, including the beautiful piece that adorns the cover of this issue. In her recent collaboration, she teamed up with artist Jack Sachs, who primarily produces work through 3-dimensional illustration and animation. Sachs, currently living and working in London, has done work for clients such as the New York Times, National Geographic, and MTV. With a similar visual language and aesthetic, Flowers uses clay to mould and transform Sachs’ funky creations into ceramic sculptures. Join us as Flowers discusses the benefits that can be gained through creative collaboration, her sources of inspiration, and the little things that make her laugh.

Text by Christina Nafziger Interview by Maria Zemtsova

www.kaleyflowers.com

Text by Christina Nafziger Interview by Maria Zemtsova

impact, being within one of the last generations to experience life before it was so accessible. When I got into clay, I think it was natural for me to embed this interest into my sculptures. I literally work with dirt, using ancient techniques and processes so I enjoy this contrast with technological content. For me it is an attempt to document and make tangible something that changes so rapidly. AMM: Social media and the Internet are part of our everyday lives and vital to a lot of creative businesses and artists. Apart from all the benefits of this new web and digital culture what do you think are the disadvantages? KF: For creative businesses and artists, there can be some disadvantages, specifically with regards to protecting intellectual property. Not only have I seen larger brands stealing, and profiting, from the designs of other artists and designers, but have noticed its occurrence within smaller communities as well. Especially in the ceramics realm, I feel there is a big problem on social media with the oversaturation and homogenization of certain trends. But, the benefits outweigh the disadvantages, and artists shouldn’t be scared to share their work online just for fear of being copied. AMM: With social media it is indeed becoming much harder to create something truly unique and not being over influenced by someone else’s ideas or even trends which work well in terms of sales and popularity. Has your work ever been ‘copied’ or have you yourself ever been really inspired by someone’s work or a trend that you wanted to create something similar?

AMM: Ceramics is quite a tough medium. It sometimes leads you to surprises after the work is fired or even during the process of working with clay. If you could change one property of clay what would it be? KF: Clay as a material is so extensive; its properties are vast and much of it can be manipulated through a number of means. Though things can happen that are unexpected, I think that ceramic artists quickly get used to it or learn to work with it, to not be so controlling and attached to their work. Personally I love the surprises of clay, it’s what makes opening the kiln super exciting! I generally only get annoyed when I’m being careless and break a finished piece. So really, I would not change any properties of clay, only the property of me being clumsy haha. AMM: You mainly create small-sized ceramic objects, did you ever think of going for a bigger size? KF: I have made a few large pieces, and now that I have a really great studio setup through an artist residency, I plan on working much larger and am thinking about installation projects. Though, I’ll probably always make small pieces as well since I like my work to be accessible and it’s a lot of fun, working small allows for a lot of experimentation. AMM: What makes you laugh? KF: Friends, co-workers, people I interact with day to day, and of course memes, I love a good meme :-)

KF: Yes, I’ve had certain pieces copied but have only had a bad experience once- I don’t mind as long as credit is given! Many times my own work is about trends and online culture so I’m often taking inspiration or using direct imagery and iconography. If intentional and specific I make sure to give credit, especially if taken from an emerging brand or artist. I get really inspired by art in general (especially mediums I don’t personally work with) which is probably why I started wanting to collaborate with other artists I admire. AMM: You’ve recently completed collaboration with Jack Sachs where he made a sketch, which you then recreated in ceramics. Congratulations on such a wonderful result. What inspired you to work together and how was the experience for you personally?

AMM: Hi Kaley, could you please tell us more about your endeavour with ceramics. What led you towards working with this medium? What appeals to you about ceramics?

Image (p. 38) : Kaley Flowers & Jack Sachs ‘Combo+++’ ceramic 6l x 1.5w x 8h inches

Image (p. 40): Kaley Flowers ‘Millennial V3nus’ mid-fire porcelain, glaze. 7l x 3w x 4h inches

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KF: At OCAD University in Toronto, I studied within a craft program that focused on fibre arts and textile design. In third year, I took a ceramics class and worked with clay for the first time ever. I immediately became obsessed with the material and started making all of my assignments in clay. I felt I was finally able to convey my ideas more naturally than I was able to with previous mediums I had worked in. I love all the processes and qualities of clay- there are endless techniques to learn and the plasticity of clay makes it pretty limitless. AMM: Can you tell us a little about how you’ve developed your style over the years? Can you remember the first piece you ever made? KF: That initial ceramics class I took was focused on surface techniques, so I started with making

illustrations on flat tiles. I spent a summer throwing functional pottery on the wheel and then went right into coiling large sculptures for my thesis project (called Intercosm). I started making musical instruments I called “emoji shakers” and over time continued making them more complex. The style and content of my sculptures have been consistent, but as my skills expand, they are becoming more refined and with the addition of more realistic elements. AMM: Your sculptures are influenced by digital culture and street fashion, web nostalgia, and the social impacts of the Internet. These influences are most relevant in our today’s society and we think it reflects fantastically in your work. Could you expand more on your concept approach? What was it that made you look into this particular theme? KF: Thank you! Since my thesis I have continued to expand on these themes and my experience of this digital age has definitely become a central influence in my work. I have always been fascinated with the Internet, and have truly witnessed its

KF: I’ve been following Jack on Instagram for a while now; I love his 3D illustrations and always thought they would translate well into ceramics. I approached him after seeing some sketches he posted and he sent me a few pages. Making his designs into clay was super fun and natural for me, I think because of the similarities in our work like super bright, saturated colours, and I think a similar sense of humour as well. AMM: How do you think collaborations between artists influence each other’s practices? What is good and bad about it? KF: My project with Jack is a continuation of “L1nk up”, where I collaborate with a non-clay artist whom I’ve only met online. I would like to at least do one of these projects a year – there are so many artists I follow online and I’m always interested in how they construct an identity for themselves through platforms like Instagram. For myself, it’s almost like a mental cleanser between my own projects, I think collaborating is a chance to think a bit differently and provide a new perspective and not be too stuck in my own head. I think the only bad thing would be if the other artist did not like what I made!

“I literally work with dirt , using ancient techniques and processes so I enjoy this contrast with technological content . For me it is an attempt to document and make tangible something that c h a n g e s s o ra p i d l y. ” Interviewed: Kaley Flowers

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AMM: Hi Kaley, could you please tell us more about your endeavour with ceramics. What led you towards working with this medium? What appeals to you about ceramics?

Image (p. 38) : Kaley Flowers & Jack Sachs ‘Combo+++’ ceramic 6l x 1.5w x 8h inches

Image (p. 40): Kaley Flowers ‘Millennial V3nus’ mid-fire porcelain, glaze. 7l x 3w x 4h inches

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Image: Kaley Flowers ‘Fr00tl00ps’ ceramic 3l x 2w x 6h inches

Image: Kaley Flowers ‘Digital Therapy’ ceramic, glaze, stain, underglaze. 19l x 9w x 18h inches

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Interviewed: Kaley Flowers

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Image: Kaley Flowers ‘Fr00tl00ps’ ceramic 3l x 2w x 6h inches

Image: Kaley Flowers ‘Digital Therapy’ ceramic, glaze, stain, underglaze. 19l x 9w x 18h inches

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Interviewed: Kaley Flowers

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Image: Kaley Flowers & Jack Sachs ‘uP’ ceramic 4l x 3.5w x 3h inches

Image: Kaley Flowers & Jack Sachs ‘Sesh’ ceramic 5l x 3.5w x 5h inches 2l x 2w x 2h inches

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Interviewed: Kaley Flowers

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Image: Kaley Flowers & Jack Sachs ‘uP’ ceramic 4l x 3.5w x 3h inches

Image: Kaley Flowers & Jack Sachs ‘Sesh’ ceramic 5l x 3.5w x 5h inches 2l x 2w x 2h inches

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Interviewed: Kaley Flowers

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AMM: Hi Jacob! You’ve got quite a history behind you being into music, US Army, art college and Yale School of Art. Could you highlight relevant experiences throughout your life, which have impacted your today’s work at Field Projects and your own art?

www.fieldprojectsgallery.com

Meet our guest curator

JR: I grew up in a small Hispanic town in Southern California called Oxnard. There was a great Punk/DIY scene there and through teenage trial and catastrophe I learned about my own personal ethics, agency, and responsibility in a community as a producer and consumer of subculture. Playing drums, producing records, and making zines in various Punk, Riot Grrrl, and Hardcore bands brought me to places and ideas that were absent in my public school education. I learned not only how to create opportunities for myself to travel and connect with other like minded communities but to facilitate opportunities for others. This was pre-internet and we would cold call other bands, whose numbers we found in Maximum Rock N Roll zine and see if we could jump on their shows and offer them slots in our shows. One of the many ideas I found in the DIY scene that I kept with me is that there is no hierarchy between the audience and the band. Being from a family who did not go to college I figured I would play music as long as I could while working random shitty jobs to support myself. By chance I met an art school recruiter through my day job at a video store. She suggested that all of the stuff I was making (music, zines, flyers, sketches, etc.) had a place in the art world. So I went to Otis College of Art and Design. Under a brigade of amazing conceptually driven artist-philosopher-teachers I greedily consumed ideas and expanded into territory I had only glimpsed in the Punk Scene or happened upon in an experimental video found in the back of a record store. I still draw upon those years of intense study, experimentation, risk, and debates. It was a heady time for me and I curated my first shows there, which consisted of switching the local bar’s sad-clowns on velvet art with a student group show in the school gallery. I also did my first Suitcase shows there; more on that later.

J a c o b R h o d e s

After Otis I was in deep debt for the first time in my life. So I joined the Army. They paid off my Art School, taught me the limits of my own will power and how to navigate the largest bureaucracy on the planet. After three years in the Army I went to the Skowhegan residency and then Yale School of Art for an MFA. Skowhegan was an amazing experience of diverse cultural practices and multi economic backgrounds. Yale was my first experience with the culture of the upper class and it taught me that there is a social aspect to the art world that I wanted to dismiss; it’s not just intelligence, hard work, luck and originality, you still need access. A couple of years after I graduated I opened Field Projects in New York’s Chelsea Gallery District to create that access for those who do not have it. For me it’s a return to my life in the Punk/DIY scene: producing subculture, showing subculture, creating opportunities for me to curate and for others to show their work.

C o - f o u n d e r a n d h e a d c u r a t o r o f F i e l d P r o j e c t s g a l l e r y

AMM: How was Field Projects started and what were the main difficulties of setting up an artistic space in Chelsea, NYC?

In a time when physical gallery spaces are becoming more and more scarce, Jacob Rhodes runs a dynamic space in the heart of New York’s art district dedicated to giving emerging and mid-career artists a platform to exhibit their work. This artist-run gallery, Field Projects, hosts a diverse range of monthly and pop-up exhibitions that are curated by a number of guest curators, all of which prove to be as thought-provoking and captivating as the last. Having an academic background studying studio art, and also being an accomplished artist, Rhodes seems to possess a keen eye for new talent and an understanding of the important role collaboration has in the arts. As an artist himself, Rhodes’ personal work investigates the place of masculinity in today’s culture as well as the dangers that exist in the interactions within the homo-social sphere. Text by Christina Nafziger Interview by Maria Zemtsova see Jacob’s selections for this issue on p. 54 -113

Join us as we discuss with the artist his eclectic background in the US Army and Yale School of Art, as well as finding a balance between creating his own work and running such an ambitious and eventful space like Field Projects.

JR: In my second year at Yale I built a gallery in the front of my studio. The gallery showed artists who applied to Yale but did not get in or secret alter egos of artists who make art work that the dominant ego is ashamed of. It was named Wolf Suit gallery, and it offered a Trojan horse to an Ivory Tower. A couple of years later I was working at a Lower Eastside Gallery in New York and I asked my co-worker, the artist Keri Oldham (http://kerioldham.com/) if she would like to open a projects space with me. She had us looking at places within the week. As everything in a large city like New York affordable rent is the first hurdle, after that it’s just a lot of hard work and very little recognition, but you can always find satisfaction where you set it. As an Artist Run Space we are more hands on and expect the artists we show to have the same agency. We balance our own lives and art practices with promoting others’ practice and searching for collectors and opportunities for them. AMM: We really love the fact that you offer opportunities to other guest curators to arrange shows in your gallery. Tell us more about how you decide to collaborate with them and what you think other curators bring to Field Projects? JR: It’s always hard to give over your space to another but I think it’s really easy to go blind while navel gazing. So, inviting other curators in to Field Projects helps us broaden our vision of what we are and Interviewed: Jacob Rhodes, Field projects Gallery

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www.fieldprojectsgallery.com

Meet our guest curator

J a c o b R h o d e s

C o - f o u n d e r a n d h e a d c u r a t o r o f F i e l d P r o j e c t s g a l l e r y

AMM: How was Field Projects started and what were the main difficulties of setting up an artistic space in Chelsea, NYC?

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Image (p. 48, top left): Field Projects: Show #38: Body/Head Sahana Ramakrishnan ‘An Unwanted Gaze’ oil, mop strings on canvas 24 x 36 inches

Image (p. 48, top right): Field Projects: Show #38: Body/Head Cindy Ji Hye Kim ‘Demonstration/Illustration’ charcoal, graphite, and ink on paper 11 x 17 inches

Image (bottom left): Field Projects: Show #45: Sahana Ramakrishnan, ‘A Night In The Woods’ installation view

Image (bottom right): Field Projects: Show #45: Sahana Ramakrishnan: ‘A Night In The Woods’ ‘Both are foolish, both are strong’ oil ink, ferrick chloride, mop strings on paper 22 X 19 inches

“I think of Field Projects and Art as a platform where you get to share things that you are really invested in with others who are excited to think through the idea with yo u . I t ’s a p l a c e w h e re you don’t have to be an expert but you can still get at a complexed i d e a . I t ’s a l s o a p l a c e where failure can be the center of the idea. But what really draws me to t h i s p l a t fo r m i s t h a t i t ’s a place where people can be honest about how weird they truly are.”

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what we can be. We have an ongoing curatorial open call, where curators and artists can submit ideas for shows. Sometimes we tweak the show with the permission of the curators submitting and sometimes we don’t. Either way it’s a collaboration and community builder. We also invite guest curators for our Open Call. This is usually someone we respect and really want to work closely with, as well as broadening the opportunities for the submitters. All of the guest curators have gone on to curate exhibitions with artists they found in our Open Call, and that feels pretty great. AMM: You’ve mentioned that you’d like to arrange travelling exhibitions in collaborations with other artist-run galleries and expand Field Projects across the US and the globe in future. What drives you to be so proactive in providing so many great opportunities to others? Could also tell us more about your vision for the travelling exhibitions? JR: When I was at Otis I would do these Suitcase Shows, which were group shows that could fit into a suitcase. I would organize with another curator from another place (Mumbai, Berlin, San Francisco, Hong Kong, etc.) and you would each buy an airline ticket and travel to the other curator’s location. The host curator would provide the venue and you would provide the group show. I thought of it as a snapshot of an art scene from another place, but also parameters or rules (everything has to fit in the suitcase) in which to challenge your and your artists’ creativity and invention. I was and am still thinking about putting on exhibitions like putting on punk shows: what’s the cheapest way to get exposure. And through exposure how can we meet more like minded individuals who are willing to share knowledge and build something together. I think of Field Projects and Art as a platform where you get to share things that you are really invested in with others who are excited to think through the idea with you. It’s a place where you don’t have to be an expert but you can still get at a complexed idea. It’s also a place where failure can be the center of the idea. But what really draws me to this platform is that it’s a place where people can be honest about how weird they truly are. AMM: We enjoy the fact that you are providing regular opportunities with the call for art, which you announce twice a year. Not many galleries provide such opportunities, and most tend to work with those artists they have links with. What’s it like, finding and choosing artists for group shows in Field Projects? JR: The Open Call is a way we can do a lot of studio visits without having to travel the world. It’s really exciting for us because it allows us to see what’s happening beyond our immediate art scene. Sometimes we will find an artist who literally lives in my neighborhood but we have never crossed paths and other times we discover an artist from South Africa or India. About 85% of artists we show are discovered through the open call process. This year there was only one out of twelve exhibitions which was not curated out of the artist open call. And that exhibition was part of the curatorial open call. Of the eleven exhibitions we curated from the open call we did three solo exhibitions, one solo art fair, two 2-person pop-up exhibitions, three group exhibitions and two off-site group exhibitions. So I guess 85% is a conservative estimate. There is just so much good work out there and I want to show it all. AMM: How does your own art practice influence your work in Field Projects and vice versa? How do you balance time between the two? JR: I think my practice is rooted in the language of my youth and my experience out growing it. Because of that I look for work that uniques to the artist. Work that is operating on a high scale but that could only be created by this individual. As far as balance ….I think I operate under pressure best.

Interviewed: Jacob Rhodes, Field projects Gallery

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Image (p. 48, top left): Field Projects: Show #38: Body/Head Sahana Ramakrishnan ‘An Unwanted Gaze’ oil, mop strings on canvas 24 x 36 inches

Image (p. 48, top right): Field Projects: Show #38: Body/Head Cindy Ji Hye Kim ‘Demonstration/Illustration’ charcoal, graphite, and ink on paper 11 x 17 inches

Image (bottom left): Field Projects: Show #45: Sahana Ramakrishnan, ‘A Night In The Woods’ installation view

Image (bottom right): Field Projects: Show #45: Sahana Ramakrishnan: ‘A Night In The Woods’ ‘Both are foolish, both are strong’ oil ink, ferrick chloride, mop strings on paper 22 X 19 inches

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Interviewed: Jacob Rhodes, Field projects Gallery

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AMM: The art scene in NYC seems to be really flourishing with all the new popping art fairs and events. With the new technological progressive age, which boosts the artistic community worldwide, would you say this is a great time to be a young artist? JR: Yeah! I think there is more agency worldwide and therefore more opportunity to find your tribe and community and get to talking about the things you want to talk about. AMM: You’ve exhibited your own work at the Bronx Museum, Alona Kagan Gallery, New York, Federal Art Project, Los Angeles, Galerie Im Regierungsviertel, Berlin, and Bart Wells Institute, London. That’s an impressive list of international locations – how did you manage to get involved in so many opportunities? JR: DIY beliefs, hard work, searching and recognizing opportunities, and always trying to give more than you take. Galleries and museums want to show interesting and innovative work as well as work with someone who brings their own audience, collectors and community. It’s a symbiotic relationship. AMM: To all the emerging and mid-career artists wanting to establish their work and career as extensively as you did, what would you recommend? JR: I’m a true believer in creating your own space to show your work. Most of us don’t fit into a mainstream aesthetic or whatever is trending in the art world. But that does not make your or my voice less significant.

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Interviewed: Jacob Rhodes, Field projects Gallery

AMM: What’s next for Field Projects in the coming year? Are there any exciting plans you might be able to share with us? JR: Field Projects Berlin is in the works for 2018. This will be a collaboration between us and a couple of other Berlin Based artists. I’m excited to see what kind of exchange we can have and how the two spaces will affect each other.

Image (p.50): Field Projects: Show #40: Karen Lederer ‘Hands on’ ‘The Bathers’ marker, oil and acrylic on panel 40 x 30 inches

Image (p.51, top): Field Projects: Show #40: Karen Lederer ‘Hands on’ ‘Pass’ marker, colored pencil, oil and acrylic on panel 8 x 10 inches

“I’m a true believer in creating your own space to show your work . Most of us don’t fit into a mainstream aesthetic or whatever is trending in the art world. But that does not make your or my voice less significant .”

Image (p.51, bottom): Field Projects: Show #40: Karen Lederer ‘Hands on’ ‘Women of Leger’ marker, oil and acrylic on panel 40 x 30 inches

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Interviewed: Jacob Rhodes, Field projects Gallery

Image (p.50): Field Projects: Show #40: Karen Lederer ‘Hands on’ ‘The Bathers’ marker, oil and acrylic on panel 40 x 30 inches

Image (p.51, top): Field Projects: Show #40: Karen Lederer ‘Hands on’ ‘Pass’ marker, colored pencil, oil and acrylic on panel 8 x 10 inches

Image (p.51, bottom): Field Projects: Show #40: Karen Lederer ‘Hands on’ ‘Women of Leger’ marker, oil and acrylic on panel 40 x 30 inches

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Image (p.52): Field Projects: Show #43: Soft Animal Lauryn Welch ‘Undergrowth’ acrylic on canvas 10 x 8 inches

Image (p.53, top): Field Projects: Show #43: Soft Animal Colleen Kelsey ‘The Lovers 7’ ink and watercolor on paper 4 1/2 h. x 9 inches

Image (p.53, bottom): Field Projects: Show #43: Soft Animal Colleen Kelsey ‘The Artist and her Husband (After Rubens)’ ink and watercolor on paper 8 x 6 inches

Interviewed: Jacob Rhodes, Field projects Gallery

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Image (p.52): Field Projects: Show #43: Soft Animal Lauryn Welch ‘Undergrowth’ acrylic on canvas 10 x 8 inches

Image (p.53, top): Field Projects: Show #43: Soft Animal Colleen Kelsey ‘The Lovers 7’ ink and watercolor on paper 4 1/2 h. x 9 inches

Image (p.53, bottom): Field Projects: Show #43: Soft Animal Colleen Kelsey ‘The Artist and her Husband (After Rubens)’ ink and watercolor on paper 8 x 6 inches

Interviewed: Jacob Rhodes, Field projects Gallery

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Image on the right: Claire Scherzinger ‘Afterburn’ Oil and spray paint on canvas over panel 24 x 36 inches

c u r a t e d s e l e c t i o n o f w o r k s b y J a c o b R h o d e s

Image on the right: Claire Scherzinger ‘Afterburn’ Oil and spray paint on canvas over panel 24 x 36 inches

c u r a t e d s e l e c t i o n o f w o r k s b y J a c o b R h o d e s

K e l l i T h o m p s o n www.kellithompsonart.com

In my paintings realistic subjects are reimagined as artifice. I use highly synthetic colors and an overtly descriptive painting style to create an unnatural interpretation of flesh and objects. In my most recent body of work I have utilized hands and arms to incorporate the body while also pointing to the absence of body inside imagined worlds. Hyperbolic color planes and tactile, quotidian objects are used as props to enhance the color interaction and hint at the mundane within an overblown and histrionic constructed composition. Kelli Thompson received a BA from the University of New Orleans in 2006 and an MFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts in 2009. Her work has been exhibited in Louisiana, Georgia, Alabama, California, Missouri, Florida, New Mexico, Massachusetts, and New York and featured in the publications New American Paintings (Volume 86) and Art Voices Magazine. She currently lives and works in Ridgewood, Queens.

Featured image: Kelli Thompson ‘Hands and Plants (Let Down and Hanging Around)‘ oil on panel 42 x 36 inches

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Curated selection of works, Top pick

K e l l i T h o m p s o n www.kellithompsonart.com

Featured image: Kelli Thompson ‘Hands and Plants (Let Down and Hanging Around)‘ oil on panel 42 x 36 inches

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Curated selection of works, Top pick

S i r u

W e n www.siruwen.com

Featured image: Siru Wen ‘The damp boredom’ 35 mm color negative, inkjet print 18 X 28 inches

Siru Wen is an optimistically pessimistic woman and girl. She was born and raised in China, and is now temporarily settled in the US. She completed her undergrad in art, and continues her master’s degree in film production in UCLA. Her parents dreamed of becoming performing artists before having her, but now they work in the plastic bag business. She hopes she is living in and beyond their old, wild and distant dream. I am intrigued by human beings. I want to understand their sufferings, their loneliness, their ability and inability to love, their refusals and acceptances, their darkness and lightness, their hardness and softness. In the body of work, I explore the memory of longing, loneliness, pain and the fear of separation through abstract expressions and combinations of staged and street photos. They are my creation of almost a poetry of the sensations and emotions, moments and eternity, which I fail to explain or control - the desire, the presence and the hollow that is burned and turned over. As I hold the camera and the gaze, I grasp sometimes a feeling of temporary peace, a sharp sense of excitement, or even an absence of loneliness. In the end, I think I do get a little bit closer to the truth of humans, or simply the truth of myself. p.

S i r u

W e n www.siruwen.com

Featured image: Siru Wen ‘The damp boredom’ 35 mm color negative, inkjet print 18 X 28 inches

J u l i e

A l p e r t

www.juliealpert.com

Born and raised in the Washington, DC suburbs, Seattlebased artist Julie Alpert uses traditional art supplies and everyday materials in improvised site-specific installations. Her work explores decoration, disappointment, nostalgia and the trappings of femininity. She modifies and arranges found-objects in temporary room-size compositions that become frozen records of a private performance. Once the work is complete, nothing remains but photo documentation and a pile of broken and tattered materials, like the sad detritus of an epic celebration the night before. Julie has a BA in painting from the University of Maryland and an MFA in painting from the University of Washington. She has received awards from The Pollock-Krasner Foundation, MacDowell Colony, Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, Artist Trust, The New Foundation, The Neddy Awards and Roswell Artist in Residence Program. From 2009-2014, Julie was a member of SOIL Gallery. She is represented by Bridge Productions in Seattle.

Featured image: Julie Alpert ‘Look-alikes’ 2014 site-specific installation (house paint, acrylic, marker, tape, paper, vinyl, cardboard, altered furniture, lightbox, string) 10x6x10 ft photograph by David Wentworth

Curated selection of works

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J u l i e

A l p e r t

www.juliealpert.com

Curated selection of works

p. 61 p.

A s h l e y C a t h a r i n e S m i t h

www.ashleycatharinesmith.com Ashley is an artist living and working in Brooklyn, New York. She holds a MFA in Photography, Video & Related Media from the School of Visual Arts. Before moving to New York City, Ashley worked in Philadelphia as both a photographer for the newspaper and as a teaching artist at The Village of Arts and Humanities, a multifaceted arts organization dedicated to community revitalization in North Philadelphia. She is currently an adjunct instructor of photography at Drexel University and a teaching assistant in the International Center of Photography’s Teen Academy. My work uses photography, video, and fibers to investigate relationships between others and myself. The work addresses themes of gender, manipulation, power and control, and trust based upon my experiences with interpersonal relationships and societal pressures. It is driven by my desire to understand how gender differences affect our ability to engage in all relationships. The work acts to construct moments of closeness with the subject of the photograph through their printed image.

Image (p.62): Ashley Smith ‘Untitled #1 (Age 28)’ photograph, embroidery thread, seed beads 11 x 14 inches

Image (p.63): Ashley Smith ‘No gods. No boyfriends.’ embroidered photograph 12 x 12 inches

Curated selection of works

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A s h l e y C a t h a r i n e S m i t h

Image (p.62): Ashley Smith ‘Untitled #1 (Age 28)’ photograph, embroidery thread, seed beads 11 x 14 inches

Image (p.63): Ashley Smith ‘No gods. No boyfriends.’ embroidered photograph 12 x 12 inches

Curated selection of works

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U n a U R S P R U N G instagram.com/una_ursprung

Born in Taipei in 1985, Una Ursprung (née Hsu Chang-Yu) graduated from the Taipei National University of the Arts in 2007, and Ecole Européenne Supérieure d’Art de Bretagne site Quimper in France in 2011 (from which she received Diplôme National Supérieur d’Expression Plastique, the highest honor awarded by the National Arts Councils and Culture Agencies). Currently, she lives and works in Switzerland. Her works have been exhibited in Taipei, London, and Paris. Ursprung’s focal theme lies in landscapes, particularly forests and trees. Every forest from different stages echoes her life experiences at the time. From France, Taiwan, to Switzerland, her constant migration brought new scopes to her creative expressions. She utilizes a variety of mediums and techniques to explore the space and visual experiences of painting. Since 2016, Ursprung has been residing in Swiss countryside where she developed new methods of painting. She employs abstract lines to create a vivid contrast through the combination of oil painting and spray painting. The liberating and quick nature of spray paint immediately alters the careful and slow strokes of the original landscape constructed within the atmosphere of the forest. However, the visual message conveyed through the landscape does not collapse with the spray painting process but is rather expressed from the inner instead of the outer intentions. Moreover, brushstrokes that carry the body and subliminal messages float across the surface, transforming and reconstructing the visual message. Her paintings bring their audience into a realistic forest, following the artist. Ursprung fosters a vibrant forest that returns to the essence of nature, lacking the negativity and anxiety of modern civilization.

Featured image: Una Ursprung ‘Untitled22’ oil and spray on canvas 100 x 130 cm

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Curated selection of works

U n a U R S P R U N G instagram.com/una_ursprung

Featured image: Una Ursprung ‘Untitled22’ oil and spray on canvas 100 x 130 cm

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Curated selection of works

C a r o l i n e W a y n e www.carolinewayne.net Caroline Wayne is an artist and writer working primarily in textiles using techniques borrowed from a career in millinery. She graduated from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago where she was the recipient of several hat-making awards while maintaining a studio practice made up of intensive labor in needle and thread, and testing the boundaries of human connection. Translated into a writing project, in 2015 she launched Elegant Hustler, a website intended to blur the lines of anonymity and intimacy, setting the stage for future fiber work. Her beaded sculptures reflect ideas set forth in each essay and self-objectify the way she does herself in writing. As time-consuming as her dedication to keeping journals and records, the beadwork reflects a constant attention to contemplation, practice, and output. She is current Fellow at A.I.R Gallery in Brooklyn.

K e l ly B o e h m e r www.kellyboehmer.com Kelly Boehmer has exhibited and performed her work nationally and internationally including shows in Baltimore, Dallas, Miami, New York City, New Orleans, Pittsburgh, San Juan, and Sarajevo, Bosnia. She received her BFA in Studio Art at the Maryland Institute College of Art and her MFA in Studio Art at the University of South Florida. Kelly teaches Art Appreciation, Graduate Studio Art, and Research courses as a Lecturer at Georgia Southern University. She is a member of the performance art group, Glitter Chariot.

In my sculptures, imagery from a range of sources including art history, literature, beer labels, and cartoons are used with a tragic sense of humor. Symbols of fantasies are entangled with metaphors for anxieties. The creatures take on the complex magical and monstrous qualities of who we become in romantic relationships. Taxidermy creatures wearing glittery outfits surrounded by soft yarn and faux fur “soften the blow”, making anxieties, like death, easier to confront. Sheer fabrics give the monsters a vulnerable facet - making them both threatening and pitiful. Seductive colors and sensual textures are juxtaposed with repulsive elements such as entrails. Kitsch components are incorporated in a sincere and visceral way. All of my pieces are sewn by hand with an unrefined stitch. I reuse my materials by cutting up my old sculptures to make new work - similar to the term for the subtle evidence of corrections in a painting - pentimenti (originating from “repentance”).

I employ couture millinery and embellishment techniques to build fetishistic objects, wearable art, and 2-dimensional fiber work. Visibly labor- and time-intensive my beadwork celebrates the complexity of the female spirit while highlighting the inherent suffering built into each of our bodies. While actively ambivalent on the space between private and public, each project brings a new test of boundaries into question. When it comes to interpersonal connections, objectification, or self-exposure, I continue to ask, “Where is the line?”

Image: Kelly Boehmer ‘Puppy’ mixed media 4 x 3 x 3 feet

Image: Caroline Wayne ‘Just Like Plants’ fur felt, glass beads, faux pearls 4.5 x 6 x 6 inches

Curated selection of works, top picks

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Image: Kelly Boehmer ‘Puppy’ mixed media 4 x 3 x 3 feet

Image: Caroline Wayne ‘Just Like Plants’ fur felt, glass beads, faux pearls 4.5 x 6 x 6 inches

Curated selection of works, top picks

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E l e a n o r M c C a u g h e y

www.eleanormccaughey.net

Eleanor McCaughey’s work engages with painting as an amalgamation of still life, sculpture and portraiture. It explores contemporary representations of portraiture, referencing the tradition of still life. The title of McCaughey’s recent series of work ‘There is a policeman in all our heads; he must be destroyed’, has been taken from Adam Curtis’s 2002 documentary series ‘Century of the self’. ‘Century of the Self’ advances the thesis that Freud’s views of the unconscious set the stage for corporations, and later politicians, to market to our unconscious fears and desires. Eleanor’s work looks at self-expression, the way we examine and present ourselves, our attitudes to fashions and our desire for instant approval through the distorting lens of social media. The work juxtaposes past ideas of identity and power with new ideas, taking reference from elaborately embellished Asmat ancestor skulls, Christian iconography to the modern day selfie.

Image (p. 68):

Eleanor McCaughey is an Irish artist living and working in Dublin. In 2011 she graduated with an honours degree in Fine Art from Dublin Institute of Technology. Eleanor has exhibited both nationally and internationally including the National Portrait Gallery, London; the Royal Ulster Academy, Belfast; Antisocial Gallery, Vancouver BC; the Royal Dublin Society and the Royal Hibernian Academy, Dublin. She was awarded the Conor Prize for a figurative work from the Royal Ulster Academy in 2014 and the KM Evans Painting Prize, from the Royal Hibernian Academy in 2015. Her work is represented in the OPW art collection and private collections in Ireland, Europe, United States and Canada.

Image (p.69):

Eleanor McCaughey ‘Figura 1’ oil on panel 40 x 50 cm

Image (p.69): Eleanor McCaughey ‘Figura 3’ oil on panel 40 x 50 cm

Eleanor McCaughey ‘Tinfoil figure’ oil on panel 60 x 80 cm

Curated selection of works

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E l e a n o r M c C a u g h e y

www.eleanormccaughey.net

Image (p. 68):

Image (p.69):

Eleanor McCaughey ‘Figura 1’ oil on panel 40 x 50 cm

Image (p.69): Eleanor McCaughey ‘Figura 3’ oil on panel 40 x 50 cm

Eleanor McCaughey ‘Tinfoil figure’ oil on panel 60 x 80 cm

Curated selection of works

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C l a i r e S c h e r z i n g e r www.clairescherzinger.com

Claire Scherzinger is a visual artist and writer with a BFA in drawing and painting and creative writing from OCAD University. In the span of her short career as an emerging artist she has shown her work across Canada at the Contemporary Art Gallery in Vancouver; the Art Gallery of Mississauga; the Varley Museum in Markham; Eastern Edge Gallery in St. John’s, Newfoundland; Mulherin, Toronto and Mulherin, New York. She was also a winner of the Royal Bank of Canada funded National Painting Prize. Scherzinger lives and works in Victoria, BC, where she is pursuing a Master’s of Fine Arts.

Image (p.70): Claire Scherzinger ‘Uncorking ‘ oil and spray paint on canvas 30 x 40 inches

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Curated selection of works, top pick

Image (p.71): Claire Scherzinger ‘Thin Sun, Thin Rain’ oil and spray paint on canvas 72 x 48 inches

C l a i r e S c h e r z i n g e r www.clairescherzinger.com

Image (p.70): Claire Scherzinger ‘Uncorking ‘ oil and spray paint on canvas 30 x 40 inches

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Curated selection of works, top pick

Image (p.71): Claire Scherzinger ‘Thin Sun, Thin Rain’ oil and spray paint on canvas 72 x 48 inches

S E R P I L

M A V I

U S T U N

www.maviartstudio.co.uk

Serpil Mavi Ustun was born in 1979 in Çanakkale, Turkey. She graduated in 2008 from the Fine Arts Faculty of Mimar Sinan University, Neş’e Erdok Studio and attended Hüsnü Koldaş’s arctic mosaics, fresco and sigrafito workshop for two years. She has lived in London since April 2016. I am greatly influenced by the philosopher Heidegger’s statement that the work of art “creates a world of its own”. From this, I find a world created by the paintings themselves, as a result of my own direct dialogue with myself. This is a special, tranquil world reorganised with patience that invites harmony through imagination and purity.

Image (p.72): Serpil Mavi Ustun ‘Once Upon a Dream 2’ oil on canvas 80 x 60 cm

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Curated selection of works, top pick

Image (p.73): Serpil Mavi Ustun ‘Once Upon a Dream’ oil on canvas 76 x 61 cm

S E R P I L

M A V I

U S T U N

www.maviartstudio.co.uk

Image (p.72): Serpil Mavi Ustun ‘Once Upon a Dream 2’ oil on canvas 80 x 60 cm

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Curated selection of works, top pick

Image (p.73): Serpil Mavi Ustun ‘Once Upon a Dream’ oil on canvas 76 x 61 cm

K a t h y www.studioager.com

A g e r

Image (p.74): Kathy Ager ‘Don’t Let It Go To Your Head‘ oil on canvas 120 x 80 cm Image on (p.75) : Kathy Ager ‘The Cold Lover of Lust (Wins the Warm Drain of Spirit)’ oil on canvas 47 x 56 cm

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Kathy Ager (b1981) is a Canadian-born artist based between Amsterdam and Lisbon. It’s what flows beneath the surface that interests her. In Ager’s current body of work, she braves the mind’s basement, ventures into the heart’s deep dark woods, plundering pieces of people and things she encounters. The images that emerge are physical records from these intimate depths. Both deeply personal and universal, they are cryptic messages directed towards the audience. She challenges the viewer to face the discomfort and to see the

beauty and power in letting yourself feel. She describes subjects such as dead animals and raw meat, which frequently appear in her paintings, as the intimate and tender offerings of our nature which are subjected to the subtle brutality of consumable, disposable modern life and love. Sometimes strikingly eerie or underlyingly violent, her works are crafted in a way that is original and appealing to the eye, and in a way become the armour against the pain of letting oneself be vulnerable.

Curated selection of works

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K a t h y www.studioager.com

A g e r

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Curated selection of works

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A u k s ė M i l i u k a i t ė www.roostergallery.eu/portfolio/auksemiliukaite

Aukse Miliukaite (b. 1990) is an up-and-coming painter who studied painting at the Vilnius Academy of Arts and photography at the University of the Arts in London. She has held several solo shows and is an active participant in group exhibitions, artistic projects, workshops and plein-air sessions. The artist draws inspiration for her expressive multi-coloured canvases from painting and its history. In her work, Aukse Miliukaite includes several layers of historical painting production – works by Henri Matisse, Paul Gauguin, Paul Cézanne, Camille Corot, Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin and other artists. She adds elements of contemporary visual culture to historical compositions and constructs new narratives from details belonging to different periods, gives sofar-unknown meanings to famous classical works and provides them with new contexts. Manipulating the material of art history and faking it in a certain way, Miliukaite explores the life of a work of art since the moment of its creation and analyses how a work becomes encrusted with legends and myths and how its meaning changes in the course of time.

Image (p.76): Aukse Miliukaite ‘Indigenous oasis by the chalkboard’ oil on canvas 60 x 55 cm

Image (p.77): Aukse Miliukaite ‘Pere Jean’s path on early Easter morning’ oil on canvas 145 x 120 cm

Curated selection of works

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A u k s ė M i l i u k a i t ė www.roostergallery.eu/portfolio/auksemiliukaite

Image (p.76): Aukse Miliukaite ‘Indigenous oasis by the chalkboard’ oil on canvas 60 x 55 cm

Image (p.77): Aukse Miliukaite ‘Pere Jean’s path on early Easter morning’ oil on canvas 145 x 120 cm

Curated selection of works

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H o l ly

K n o x

R h a m e

www.hollyknoxrhame.com

Holly Knox Rhame grew up in Southport, Connecticut and attended the California Institute of the Arts for her BFA in fine art. She has shown at Nada with Artists Studios, the Select Fair, the Dublin Biennial and with Berry Campbell Gallery. Living and working in Brooklyn, NY, Holly has also participated in residencies all over the world including Finland and South Africa. Most recently she attended the residency program at MASS MoCA in June of this year. Currently she is investigating the formation of sexual fantasy, using painting and drawing as a mirror to access the internal architecture of her love map, the neurological hardware that dictates our romantic predilections. Using BDSM and ritual as research tools and glow in the dark paint to articulate arousal and activation, she intends to find the malleability in this map. In doing so she reclaims her sexuality as her own and revels in the fact that we are so deeply affected.

Image: Holly Knox Rhame ‘Body’ glow in the dark paint, acrylic on wood panel 36 x 48 inches

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Curated selection of works

G e n e v i e v e

C o h n

www. genevievecohn.com

Genevieve Cohn was born and raised in rural Vermont. She received her MFA in Painting from Indiana University and her BA in Art and Culture & Communications from Ithaca College. Genevieve has shown nationally, including at the Painting Center in NYC and the Grunwald Gallery in Bloomington, IN. She is currently a Future Faculty Teaching Fellow at Indiana University Northwest. The imagery of my paintings walks a line between the “real” world and a world shaped by emotional perceptions. These worlds oscillate between bold, immediate foregrounds and expansive, ambiguous scenery. While the landscapes in my work verge at times on abstraction, we are grounded by the conviction of the women who occupy that space. I am inspired by women who create in a world that wasn’t built to see them, so I paint women who are strong and capable. They navigate, fix, and hold together the strange worlds they inhabit. They pull their worlds together with string, and mold mountains with their bare hands. Often their tasks seem unclear, or even futile, but these women act as anchors in a world that is wrought with uncertainty. My painting process mirrors the rhythms of my life – sometimes loose and chaotic, sometimes reactive and intensely focused. I shift between transparent washes of acrylic and thick layers of paint applied with a palette knife. Much as we learn to see ourselves differently through time and transformation, I both build surfaces up and sand away at the paint to reveal earlier histories. I speak from a place of vulnerability with my paintings, with figures attempting to ground themselves in an ephemeral world. Life and painting are complex, requiring both pushing and pulling, building and taking away, acting quickly without clarity, and then slowly realizing the best path forward. I emphasize the power of that transformative process through the materiality of paint.

Image: Genevieve Cohn ‘Dog Woman, God Woman’ acrylic on canvas 72 x 96 inches

H o l ly

K n o x

R h a m e

www.hollyknoxrhame.com

Image: Holly Knox Rhame ‘Body’ glow in the dark paint, acrylic on wood panel 36 x 48 inches

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Curated selection of works

G e n e v i e v e

C o h n

www. genevievecohn.com

Image: Genevieve Cohn ‘Dog Woman, God Woman’ acrylic on canvas 72 x 96 inches

S t a c y . O www.stacy-o.com

Paradise Lost - this is the essence of Stacy.O´s work. Stacy.O ( born 1982 in Bielefeld,Germany ) is a contemporary painter who has lived and worked in Berlin since 2014. The conceptual issues of her artmaking are emotions, ideals and their utopia. She depicts human beings and bodies which could be intrinsically beautiful or erotic, but appear in a blunt, vulgar and at the same time vulnerable way. There is beauty, but never without stain. Her works suggest intrusiveness to their audience caused by the tensions between right or wrong, good and evil, beauty and decay, desire and disgust, that characterize her body of work. To look at her paintings creates a feeling like an unwanted touch or an embrace of a sweaty body. You can feel that there´s a deep substance and a very personal component. Her works don´t release the viewer without touching something. Stacy.O uses a strong language of symbolism. She is telling complex stories by just combining symbols and colours in a certain way. One of these frequently recurring symbols is the horse that depicts power, wisdom and dignity. Technically she is using the effect of strong charcoal tracings and fixative to create a mix of transparent

(vulnerable) and covering (powerful) texture of acrylic paint. She has exhibited in Berlin, New York, Los Angeles, Seoul and various places in Germany, France and Austria. Her works were represented in catalogues, such as Nordart 2017; Gallery Weekend Berlin 2017 (Priests and Prawns); Ostrale “error: X” Dresden 2016; Korean International Art Exhibition, Seoul, 2015.

Image: Stacy O. ‘With Chicken’ acrylics on canvas 140 X 200 cm

Image: Stacy O. ‘Innocence’ acrylics on canvas 150 X 200 cm

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Curated selection of works

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S t a c y . O www.stacy-o.com

Image: Stacy O. ‘With Chicken’ acrylics on canvas 140 X 200 cm

Image: Stacy O. ‘Innocence’ acrylics on canvas 150 X 200 cm

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Curated selection of works

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K e l l i e

O r r

with western culture reminded me that I am inevitably an Asian. Furthermore, the day-to-day forfeit of the change such as bumping into mirrors for miscalculating the size of my nose, having aches around the bridge of it, and lying about its authenticity reaffirmed that I am a citizen of South Korea. Both my country and I helplessly depend on western culture, especially the United States, on all decisions, and therefore digging our own graves. My work examines what it means to breathe through this newly obtained, stiff nose – a metaphorical symbol for self-adjustment gone wrong. I tear a part of my body off and alter it in the form of food, language, or toy to share it with the audience and/or hand over the control of it. By using the audience’s hands as a tool to manifest and conduct my body, I reenact my personal experiences as an Asian woman and employ the audience as conspirators and bystanders. Meanwhile, the recent THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense missile) deployment project in Korea has shifted my major concern from Asian identity in the United States to long-established American cultural colonialism in South Korea. I transform public objects with Korean language such as a safety fence and newspaper to expose the meaninglessness of these messages in the context of Korean history. Numerous sociopolitical decisions in Korean history were made for the South Korea-US relations rather than the national security, interest, and the needs of the people. Such decisions have only caused unfavorable consequences just like the exchange of my nose has become a discomforting and shameful part of my life.

www.kellieorr.com

Ji Su Kwak is an interdisciplinary artist whose work includes drawings, sculpture, photography, video, and performance. Kwak uses her body parts and public objects with Korean language such as a safety fence and newspaper to explore themes of home, intimacy, Asian identity, and South KoreaUnited States relations. Her work has been exhibited at Crude Creatures Contemporary Art Gallery and 33 Contemporary Gallery in Chicago, Illinois; Roundhouse Community Centre in Yaletown, Canada; and Mary Pratt Gallery in Fort Langley, Canada. Kwak studied BFA with emphasis in Sculpture at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She is currently living and working in Chicago, IL. Years of preparation that began from the reoccurring question, “how do you breathe through that nose?” eventually brought me to the cosmetic surgery operation table. My tiny nose, which I was able to breathe through perfectly fine, was newly shaped and the silicone that was implanted on the top of my nose rather made it harder to breathe through. This absurd incident of changing my body only to be affiliated

J i

S u

K w a k

www.jisukwak.com Kellie Orr is a 28 year old artist from Perth, Australia. Kellie’s work presents observations of social behaviour and personal identity development in western culture. Using oil painting methods to create detailed hyperrealistic and realistic portraits on canvas, her work depicts honest and intimate insights into the self within social constructs.

Image: Ji Su Kwak ‘I Love You’ a strand of hair, a glass cup, a tile sheet 16 x 18 x 16 inches

Image:

Kellie Orr ‘Layers‘ oil on canvas 52 x 40 inches

Curated selection of works

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K e l l i e

O r r

www.kellieorr.com

J i

S u

K w a k

Image: Ji Su Kwak ‘I Love You’ a strand of hair, a glass cup, a tile sheet 16 x 18 x 16 inches

Image:

Kellie Orr ‘Layers‘ oil on canvas 52 x 40 inches

Curated selection of works

p. 83

D o n n a

F e s t a

www.donnafesta.com

Donna Festa has paintings, drawings and sculptures in both public and private collections including the State Museum of Pennsylvania and Makeshift Museum in Los Angeles. She has exhibited in New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Philadelphia, Miami, Italy and UK. Her work has been published in many fine art publications including the special edition book Always Home. Festa is a graduate of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she earned a four year certificate in painting, the University of the Arts, also in Philadelphia, where she received a BFA in painting with teacher certification, and the University of Hartford in Hartford, Connecticut, where she received an MFA in painting. Her studio is in her home in Bangor, Maine. We all have them. Those heavy burdens that we carry with us making our shoulders droop. We push them down, far away from the surface. Bury them with food, drink, pills. Meanwhile, they make our hips wider, our hair grayer, our worry lines deeper. But we manage. Just manage. Image (p.84): Donna Festa ‘Woman Falling Asleep’ oil on wood 3 x 3.5 inches

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Image (p.85): Donna Festa ‘Man Keeping Warm’ oil on wood 4 x 5 inches

Curated selection of works, top pick

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D o n n a

F e s t a

www.donnafesta.com

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Image (p.85): Donna Festa ‘Man Keeping Warm’ oil on wood 4 x 5 inches

Curated selection of works, top pick

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S o n j a

M o l n a r - B e r n a t h www.supersonicoutfits.com

I’m a fresh graduate MA fashion-designer from Budapest, Hungary. I did my BA degree at BKF Art Department (today it’s called Metropolitan University) in 2013, and I finished my MA studies at MOME (Moholy-Nagy Art and Design University) in 2016. I love to work with textiles, this is my job, and my passion as well. I usually choose to work with textiles as a medium of art, so most of my works are rather conceptual, than fashion centered. This summer I started my own brand under the name: Supersonic Outfits. I made a mini - summer collection, based on slow fashion pieces, out of pure linen, with a hint of inspiration of Japanese minimal cuts. You can check this collection and my portfolio at supersonicoutfits. com! :) In general I love combining and experimenting with exciting colors and simple shapes. My heroes are Marc Chagall, Sonia Delaunay and Vera Neumann. I love everything infantile, naïve and optimistic, and to create a happy atmosphere around my outfits.

Image: Sonja Molnar Bernath ‘Panton 3’ The BLUE dress is an asymmetric one, was inspired by the Pantonic Model 5020 chair.

K i y a M a j o r www.kiyamajor.wixsite.com I am an emerging, queer artist having recently exhibited in Trace Queer Collective’s Plenty Queer exhibition in Brighton, UK, and the critically acclaimed BAD ART: Let Them Eat Fake show in London. My work has been featured in various magazines and articles, most recently chosen by I-D Vice as one of ‘5 queer artists you need to know’. Although my work ranges in medium, I am particularly interested in making large-scale installations and sculptures. Themes in my work include failure, humour, daytime television, the everyday, consumerism, naïve and queer culture. Through tacky immediacy my work mirrors the cheap and mass produced culture satirising the latest icons, trends and stereotypes. ‘Bananas Don’t Even Grow in Spain’ is an installation created on a two-month residency in Granada, Spain earlier this year. This photo series, created out of a collective feeling of spontaneity and creative irrationality, is a flamboyant and nonsensical scene of an artist’s appetite to create new worlds.

Image: Kiya Major ‘Bananas don’t even grow in Spain’ installation 20 x 16 inches

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Curated selection of works

S o n j a

M o l n a r - B e r n a t h www.supersonicoutfits.com

Image: Sonja Molnar Bernath ‘Panton 3’ The BLUE dress is an asymmetric one, was inspired by the Pantonic Model 5020 chair.

Image: Kiya Major ‘Bananas don’t even grow in Spain’ installation 20 x 16 inches

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Curated selection of works

www.mandolynwilsonrosen.com

M a n d o ly n W i l s o n R o s e n

Mandolyn Wilson Rosen (b. 1974) is a painter living and working in Saugerties, NY. She received her MFA from Bard College in 2008 and her BFA from Cornell University in 1996. In 2008 she received a Sam and Adele Golden Foundation Fellowship and a Joan Mitchell Foundation Grant to study with artist Rachel Harrison at the Atlantic Center for the Arts in Florida. Recent shows include “Best Kept Secret”, curated by Sue and Phil Knoll, at Geoffrey Young Gallery in Great Barrington, MA; “Taconic North” at LabSpace in Hillsdale, NY; and “Forced Collaboration II,” curated by Jacob Rhodes, at ArtSpace in New Haven, CT. Her work has also been included in “Mandolyn Wilson Rosen/Pier Wright” (2014), at Imogen Holloway in Saugerties, NY; “Do It Yourself” (2014), curated by Julie Torres, at Bushwick Open Studios in Brooklyn; “Studio Show” (2008), curated by Dean Daderko, at reedstudio in New York; and “Greater Brooklyn” (2005), at CRG Gallery in New York.

around me and my home (blankets, plants, kids’ clothes, building materials, etc.) I also use a personal visual language created from my own older works and my love of the Surrealists, Sigmar Polke and Philip Guston, among others. I return often to the themes of privacy and public information (which I hint at with walls, screens, curtains and eyes, for example). I have always used collage as a compositional tool, since long ago discovering, as a photography major in college, the jarring jump-cut effect of the work of Hannah Höch and Alexander Rodchenko. I tend to layer one visual element at a time (whether in paint or collaged materials), and those layers will sometimes end up collapsing the pictorial space into a shallow zone that seems shoved up against the picture plane. For me, this creates a feeling of compressed space that I find interesting because of its emotional possibilities. I like the introverted, shuttered tension I can make by not showing much out the window.

When I begin a painting, I usually start with the broken rhythm of contrasting patterns. I have always been moved by heraldry, graphic design and optical phenomena, and I’m still finding meaning in pattern of all kinds. The imagery in my work has lately absorbed the textiles and textures

Image: Mandolyn Wilson Rosen ‘Wine O’Clock Shadow‘ acrylic and collage on wood panel 14 x 11 inches

Image: Mandolyn Wilson Rosen ‘Situation Nominal‘ acrylic and collage on canvas 8 x 10 inchess

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Image: Mandolyn Wilson Rosen ‘Big Bang Breakfast’ acrylic and collage on paper mounted on wood panel 11 x 9 inches

Curated selection of works, top pick

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www.mandolynwilsonrosen.com

M a n d o ly n W i l s o n R o s e n

Image: Mandolyn Wilson Rosen ‘Wine O’Clock Shadow‘ acrylic and collage on wood panel 14 x 11 inches

Image: Mandolyn Wilson Rosen ‘Situation Nominal‘ acrylic and collage on canvas 8 x 10 inchess

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Image: Mandolyn Wilson Rosen ‘Big Bang Breakfast’ acrylic and collage on paper mounted on wood panel 11 x 9 inches

Curated selection of works, top pick

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www. Madelinedonahue.com

M a d e l i n e

D o n a h u e

Madeline Donahue grew up in Houston, TX. She received a BFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts and TUFTS University in Boston in 2006. She is currently pursuing an MFA in Painting at Brooklyn College where she is a 2017-2018 Teaching Fellow. She lives and works in Brooklyn, NY. My work reflects the complexities of human relationships and our all-consuming relationship with modern technology. I feel painting is an especially important medium at the moment because it is a way to respond to the world without always connecting to technology. By embracing a colorful palette, the paintings echo playfulness of an optimistic reality. With a focus on figure and place, I use painting materials to immediately mediate current feelings, observation and memory into artworks. Many times my images are fictionalized versions of myself or retellings of stories I have heard. Coming of age, sexuality and family experiences are represented as modern folklore or cautionary motifs.

Image (top):

Image (bottom):

Madeline Donahue ‘Your Parents’ Humping Sculpture‘ oil on canvas 48 X 36 inches

Madeline Donahue ‘Snake Pit Swim‘ oil on canvas, diptych 80 X 50 inches

Image: Madeline Donahue ‘Utopia’ oil on canvas 48 X 50 inches

Curated selection of works, top pick

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www. Madelinedonahue.com

M a d e l i n e

D o n a h u e

Image (top):

Image (bottom):

Madeline Donahue ‘Your Parents’ Humping Sculpture‘ oil on canvas 48 X 36 inches

Madeline Donahue ‘Snake Pit Swim‘ oil on canvas, diptych 80 X 50 inches

Image: Madeline Donahue ‘Utopia’ oil on canvas 48 X 50 inches

Curated selection of works, top pick

p. 91

Image (p.92): Monika Ardila ‘Islands and Keys’ textile embroidery and acrylic paste on velvet 100 x 180 cm

Image (p.93): Monika Ardila ‘The Boob and The Hand’ ceramics 13 x 25 cm

M o n i k a A r d i l a www.monikardila.com

Born in Bogotá, Colombia (1985) and based in Barcelona since 2000, I was lucky enough to grow up in a very artistic and creative environment, between art, graphic design, sewing arts etc. After that, my artistic reformation began studying humanities, electronic art and digital design, and a degree in contemporary art in Barcelona. In my artistic practice I seek to rescue looks, gestures, objects, bodies or matters that direct the gaze towards a common privacy. I am concerned about the reality of the person as something timeless and above all individual, the animality that makes us part of nature. Seen from the current context, our reality of being is not immune to the influences and pressures of an environment in which the image proliferates in countless ways and points in a massive way to interests, feelings, royalties, lifestyles, and even concerns. Blurring its outlines towards uniformity or standardization as a means of adaptation and survival. I believe in rethinking the social and technological context that surrounds us as a modifier of the perception we have about ourselves, and to confront at what point it detracts us from that animality and intimate nature inherent to the human being.

Curated selection of works

p. 93

Image (p.92): Monika Ardila ‘Islands and Keys’ textile embroidery and acrylic paste on velvet 100 x 180 cm

Image (p.93): Monika Ardila ‘The Boob and The Hand’ ceramics 13 x 25 cm

M o n i k a A r d i l a www.monikardila.com

Curated selection of works

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www.jamestarryphotography.com

j a m e s

T a r r y

Shot on original 4x5 Polaroid Film with a pinhole camera, The Mind State Project is a series of images representing experiences with anxiety, depression and stress. The images feature a circle that encapsulates the natural scene and represents how anxiety/depression can feel. Simply put, the larger the circle the more intense the feeling or memory of past events. In these isolated landscapes trees feature heavily: they represent the loneliness one can feel, but also the strength to survive and thrive.

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Curated selection of works

Image (p.94, left):

Image (p.94, right):

Image (p.95):

James Tarry ‘22.07.2017’ photography 20 x 14 inches

James Tarry ‘29.01.2017’ photography 50 x 40 inches

James Tarry ‘12.08.2017’ photography 20 x 14 inches

www.jamestarryphotography.com

j a m e s

T a r r y

p. 94

Curated selection of works

Image (p.94, left):

Image (p.94, right):

Image (p.95):

James Tarry ‘22.07.2017’ photography 20 x 14 inches

James Tarry ‘29.01.2017’ photography 50 x 40 inches

James Tarry ‘12.08.2017’ photography 20 x 14 inches

E n

I w a m u r a www. eniwamura.wixsite.com

En Iwamura investigates how he can influence the experience of viewers who occupy space with his artworks. When Iwamura describes the space and scale, he references the Japanese philosophy of Ma. Through his work, Iwamura intends to create such an encounter with site-responsive installations, and provide an opportunity for viewers to recognize Ma themselves. En Iwamura was born in Kyoto, Japan and has a BFA/MFA from Kanazawa College of Art and Craft 2011/2013 and a MFA from Clemson University 2016. Currently he is a long term resident artist at Archie Bray Foundation, MT, USA.

Image (p.96): En Iwamura ‘Romantic Archeology: Alien Haniwa’ ceramic, wood H9 x W12, x D6 inches

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Curated selection of works, top pick

Image (p. 97): En Iwamura ‘Romantic Archeology: Alien Haniwa’ ceramic, wood H18 x W12, x D12 inches

E n

I w a m u r a www. eniwamura.wixsite.com

Image (p.96): En Iwamura ‘Romantic Archeology: Alien Haniwa’ ceramic, wood H9 x W12, x D6 inches

p. 96

Curated selection of works, top pick

Image (p. 97): En Iwamura ‘Romantic Archeology: Alien Haniwa’ ceramic, wood H18 x W12, x D12 inches

Through an understanding of historically domesticated materials, I am drawn toward processes and technologies that were not created for art’s sake, but for utility and livelihood, i.e. textiles, furnishing, and architecture. Implementing traditional textile pattern-making and ceramic slab building techniques, the ‘Dappled Dunes’ series circulates between the material and the intangible. Typically associated with craft work, I am interested in the hybridization and declassification of caning and weaving as a gendered or domestic practice. By subverting the utility of the cane I can fashion an alternate narrative. Extruding the coiled resin through the open weave of the cane, I am combining the traditional and the unconventional, the digital and the analog, the colonial and the native. Austin Ballard (b. Charlotte, NC) received his MFA in Sculpture from the Rhode Island School of Design and his BFA from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, where he also served as an Assistant Professor in Textiles. Ballard has received numerous awards including a Joan Mitchell Foundation Sculpture Scholarship, Windgate Foundation Fellowship, Kenneth Stubbs Endowed Fellowship, two Dan Bown Project Awards, and the Rhode Island School of Design

A u s t i n B a l l a r d

Graduate Studies Grant. He has been awarded full fellowships to the Museum of Arts and Design (NY), Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown (MA), Ox-Bow School of Art (MI), Vermont Studio Center (VT), Wassaic Project (NY), McColl Center for Art + Innovation (NC) and the Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop (UK). He has been included in exhibitions at Brown University, Boston University, Ithaca College, University of North Texas, Broward College, and the Rhode Island School of Design. Previous solo exhibitions include WAVEFORM at the Hudson D. Walker Gallery (MA); The Shadow of the Palm is Deep at Real Art Ways (CT); The Indivisibles at Napoleon (PA), and Phase of the Devout at Ithaca College (NY). His next solo exhibition will be held at Wave Hill in the Bronx, NY. He currently lives and works in Ridgewood, NY.

V i l i a m

S l a m i n k a

www. viliamslaminka.blogspot.sk

I was born in 1985 in Humenné on the east side of Slovakia. In 2010 I completed my master’s degree in the Department of Painting and Other Media in the Academy of Fine Arts in Bratislava. In 2013 I won the 3rd prize in the VUB Foundation Award to Young Artists for Painting. In 2016 I was part of the Regular line residency at Oficinas Do Convento in Portugal. My artwork has been exhibited in various galleries in Slovakia, Czech Republic, Italy, Portugal and elsewhere. My current exhibition in Prague is called “Plastificator” while a recent exhibition “Slovenská. New Generation - Mal’ba 2006-2015 Slovakian painting” was in Gallerie d´Italia, Milan. My artwork is mainly based on popular culture, with an interest in current social problems. When creating, I emphasise simplicity, dimensional stylisation and colour. I used to play with my personal mythology (finding myself as a superhero) and creating participative projects. The processing of various topics is constantly accompanied by a concept of ‘Play’. Whether it is a play with material, theme or the manner of presentation, playfulness remains a significant aspect of my work.

www. austinballard.com

Image: Austin Ballard ‘Dappled Dune No. 6 (Black and White on Traditional)’ cane webbing, extruded resin 23 x 24 x 20 inches

Image: Viliam Slaminka ‘Well, ehm, like... you know’ mixed media, installation various dimensions photography by Michaela Dutkova

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A u s t i n B a l l a r d

V i l i a m

S l a m i n k a

www. viliamslaminka.blogspot.sk

www. austinballard.com

Image: Austin Ballard ‘Dappled Dune No. 6 (Black and White on Traditional)’ cane webbing, extruded resin 23 x 24 x 20 inches

Image: Viliam Slaminka ‘Well, ehm, like... you know’ mixed media, installation various dimensions photography by Michaela Dutkova

Curated selection of works

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Featured image: Marta de la Parra LUST (Damned) Still from the art film series, film 6

M a r t a

d e

l a

P a r r a

www. cargocollective.com/MartadelaParra

Marta de la Parra (b1987) is a Madrid born and raised visual artist, aesthete, and designer. While she majored in design, her education and interests go way beyond that. She was always fascinated by art. For that matter, art has been her lifelong passion, and it led her to study drawing in Florence, design in Milan and Madrid, and filmmaking in New York, among other courses, workshops, and specialized literature. She is a multidisciplinary creative who just had her first group show in Brazil. I am an art maker with a passion for art in all its forms and, even more, their intersections. Through my multidisciplinary work I investigate aesthetic, cultural, gender, sexual, and identity constructions, language, iconography, symbolism, heritage, feminist issues and art history, using both different and mixed formats. My works bear testimony to my constant search and research, in which the process not only is the way but is a key aspect of what the process generates. My work revolves around aesthetic. Beauty is not a shallow and banal matter. Beauty and aesthetic constructions

p. 100 Curated selection of works

are intrinsic to what define us as human beings. I agree with the philosophers Levi-Strauss and Ernst Cassirer when they define us as symbolic animals, in terms of the ability of all humans to generate narratives. Abstract and symbolic narratives. Beauty being one of them. My work revolves around inherited aesthetic, and resolves into aesthetic critical thinking statements. I am a visual artist. I rely on my art and my creativity. I firmly believe in the power of art. Moreover, I trust art as the strongest critical thinking tool I have. My art not only is the tangibilization of my creativity, it is also a, my, political instrument. Art defines us, but also dates and contextualizes the things that we create. My art production might be a collection of aesthetic statements, but they are also political resolutions, critical thoughts. Always beautiful, always inspiring, yet… always critical, always daring.

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Featured image: Marta de la Parra LUST (Damned) Still from the art film series, film 6

M a r t a

d e

l a

P a r r a

www. cargocollective.com/MartadelaParra

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M a s a r u

S u y a m a Image (p.102):

www.instagram.com/suyama_masaru

Masaru Suyama ‘He is at such a place again‘ acrylic on canvas 162 X 162 cm

Image (p.103, top):

Masaru Suyama was born in 1974 in Aich prefecture, Japan and graduated in 1997 from Nagoya University School of Engineering. Group exhibition work included the Acryl Gouache Biennale 2016 in Tokyo by Turner Colour Works Ltd. In 2014 the Liquitex Art Prize in Tokyo by bonnyColArt Co. Ltd.; 2006 ~ 2017 Shunyo Art Exhibition in Tokyo by the Shunyo-kai Art Society.

Masaru Suyama ‘Spinning a double helix‘ acrylic on canvas 91 X 116.7cm

Image (p.103, bottom): Masaru Suyama ‘Friend or foe’ acrylic on canvas 162 X 162 cm

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M a s a r u

S u y a m a Image (p.102):

www.instagram.com/suyama_masaru

Masaru Suyama ‘He is at such a place again‘ acrylic on canvas 162 X 162 cm

Image (p.103, top):

Masaru Suyama ‘Spinning a double helix‘ acrylic on canvas 91 X 116.7cm

Image (p.103, bottom): Masaru Suyama ‘Friend or foe’ acrylic on canvas 162 X 162 cm

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M a r k

P o s e y

www.markposeyart.com

I am a contemporary still life painter living and working in Los Angeles. I paint objects that have seemingly human qualities, often incorporating the imperfections that help shape personality. I received my BA from UC Berkeley and my MFA from Academy of Art University San Francisco in 2012.

Image (p.104): Mark Posey ‘Breakfast ‘ acrylic, oil, spray paint 40 x 40 inches

p. 104 Curated selection of works

Image (p. 105): Mark Posey Broken Chair’ acrylic, oil, spray paint 35 x 41 inches

M a r k

P o s e y

www.markposeyart.com

Image (p.104): Mark Posey ‘Breakfast ‘ acrylic, oil, spray paint 40 x 40 inches

p. 104 Curated selection of works

Image (p. 105): Mark Posey Broken Chair’ acrylic, oil, spray paint 35 x 41 inches

J e s s i c a

C a n n o n

Image (p.106) : Jessica Cannon ‘The Leaning Hours ‘ acrylic on paper adhered to panel 16 x 12 inches

Image (p.107, left): Jessica Cannon ‘Shadow Palm Venn ‘ acrylic on paper 30 x 22 inches

Image (p.107, right): Jessica Cannon ‘Lone Midnight Venn ‘ acrylic on paper adhered to panel 12 x 12 inches

My recent paintings depict waves in different formations – rising, leaning, and sometimes merging into each other at various angles. They are done in acrylic on paper, and are sometimes mounted to panel. The paintings are part of a longer history of working with landscape imagery but mark a shift into a more figurative and cosmic territory. This transition came about naturally, however with some reflection I can tie it to witnessing my father struggle with health issues, and the aftermath of the 2016 US election. Both experiences left me feeling anxious in relation to forces that had become increasingly visible. In winter 2017 I coincidentally began reading some introductory physics books and connected with their poetic descriptions of time and space. The feeling of smallness brought on by mortality and politics took on a different quality against the backdrop of the universe. This interior shift resonated with the imagery I was working with and expanded on a previous interest in collective symbols and Jungian archetypes. I’m originally from Brooklyn and moved to Long Island when I was little. I grew up going back and forth between the city and the suburbs, and spent a lot of time by the water. I received a BA from Tufts University in Psychology and English, and an MFA in Fine Arts from Parsons School of Design. Selected exhibitions include: Mixed Greens, The Willows, The Brooklyn Academy of Music, and The Hudson Valley Center for Contemporary Art. I’m a past recipient of the Brooklyn Arts Council’s Community Arts Fund Grant and Lower Manhattan Cultural Council’s SwingSpace Residency on Governor’s Island. Select press and publications include: The New York Times, Flaunt Magazine, phaidon.com, New American Paintings, and Hyperallergic. I currently live and work in Brooklyn.

www.jescannon.com p. 106

Curated selection of works, top pick

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J e s s i c a

C a n n o n

Image (p.106) : Jessica Cannon ‘The Leaning Hours ‘ acrylic on paper adhered to panel 16 x 12 inches

Image (p.107, left): Jessica Cannon ‘Shadow Palm Venn ‘ acrylic on paper 30 x 22 inches

Image (p.107, right): Jessica Cannon ‘Lone Midnight Venn ‘ acrylic on paper adhered to panel 12 x 12 inches

www.jescannon.com p. 106

Curated selection of works, top pick

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Image (p.108) : Natasha Frisch ‘Nowhere Near Here’ tracing paper, adhesive grass 12cm, overall dimensions variable

Image (p.109) : Natasha Frisch ‘Nasty Little Piece of Work’ tracing paper, adhesive, L.E.D dumpster 12.5 h x 18 w x 13.9 d cm

N a t a s h a F r i s c h www.natashafrisch.com

Natasha Frisch is an artist who employs modest materials, such as tracing paper and tape, to construct models and installations that closely approximate everyday objects and sites. Designed specifically for the site, each installation is created using photographs and measurements taken from real world objects, with the final piece constructed using a concise and intensive hand made process. Often dependent on the particular architecture of the space in which the work is being exhibited, the fragile and impermanent nature of the materials used ensures that the installations are temporary constructions existing only for the lifetime of the exhibition, if the work is to be shown again it must be re-made and all that remains of each iteration is photographic and video documentation. Inspired by urban folklore, forgotten architecture and the natural world, Natasha’s meticulous constructions via stillness and spatial displacement aim to challenge our reading of the built environment, and interrogate the slippage between the real and the unreal. Natasha completed her Bachelor of Arts - Media Arts - Honours at RMIT University, and since then has exhibited consistently both within her homeland and internationally. Her work has been presented in several solo exhibitions including, ‘Somewhere In Between’, Dianne Tanzer Gallery + Projects, 2010; ‘Nasty Little Piece of Work’, Next Wave Festival, 2004 and ‘Living’, Artbox at Sherman Galleries, 2001. Natasha’s work has also been featured in numerous group shows, a selection of which includes ‘Holiday Salon’, Lesley Heller Workspace, New York 2015; ‘Flora Society’, Gallery Factory,

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Seoul, 2014; ‘The Last Brucennial’, Vito Schnabel & The Bruce High Quality Foundation, New York, 2014; Paper Scissors Rock, Dianne Tanzer Gallery + Projects, 2011; ‘Grow Wild’, Utopian Slumps, 2008; ‘Elsewhere’, Nellie Castan Gallery, 2007; ‘Pleasures & Terrors- The City’, Blindside, 2006 and ‘Papercuts’, Monash Museum of Art, 2003. During 2012 Natasha was an Artist in Residence at the Contemporary Artists Centre: Woodside in upstate New York and spent a month in Murray’s Cottage as part of the Hill End Artist in Residency program in regional New South Wales. In 2013 Natasha was an Artist in Residence at The New York Art Residency and Studios (NARS) Foundation and presented her first solo international exhibition ‘On a Good Day’ at Gallery Brooklyn in New York, the project was assisted by the Copyright Agency Cultural Fund, American Australian Association, The Ian Potter Cultural Trust, The National Association for the Visual Arts and the Australian Government through the Australia Council for the Arts, its arts funding and advisory body. In 2015 she travelled once again to the United States to participate in the Artist in Residence program at Vermont Studio Center. Recently Natasha’s work was selected for the biennial exhibition CODA Paper Art 2017 at CODA Museum in The Netherlands from 5 June to 30 October 2017. Natasha’s work is held in private collections within the United States and Australia and by CODA Museum in The Netherlands.

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Image (p.108) : Natasha Frisch ‘Nowhere Near Here’ tracing paper, adhesive grass 12cm, overall dimensions variable

Image (p.109) : Natasha Frisch ‘Nasty Little Piece of Work’ tracing paper, adhesive, L.E.D dumpster 12.5 h x 18 w x 13.9 d cm

N a t a s h a F r i s c h www.natashafrisch.com

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A n g e l a M c I n t o s h & D a r r y l P o l l o c k www.angelamcintosh.ca www.darrylpollockphoto.com

“Twice Shy” began because Angela was directly inspired by the work of surreal portrait artist Barnaby Whitfield. Angela’s initial goal was to re-create neo-surrealism painting portraiture utilizing the mediums of makeup, and photography. Combining her love for collaboration, vintage, surrealism and portraiture Angela and photographer Darryl Pollock were able to piece this series together. “My entire life I’ve been drawn to the strange and unique; deviation from the norm. It’s natural to want to find or create environments to express our ideas in; to seek acceptance. I believe we are all most beautiful as our true selves, which can change due to our experiences. “Twice Shy” is a look at how we all deal with rejection in our own way, how feelings of hurt can change us is particular to the individual.”

Angela is a commercial makeup artist living and working in the foothills of Alberta. She continues to develop and ignite her passion for the medium of makeup by creating expressive portfolio projects in which she can play with character design and application. Darryl Pollock is best known for her fashion and beauty editorial photography work. She enjoys adding an extra weirdness to her photographs. Whether it be a touch of kitsch or a hint of uneasiness, Pollock strives to stand out from the rest by avoiding trends. In collaboration with other artists, Pollock experiments with her photography by adding different artistic mediums; most notably body paint, as well as two dimensional digital design elements. She lives and works in Calgary, Alberta as a fashion and commercial photographer.

Image: Angela McIntosh & Darryl Pollock ‘Twice Shy’ makeup & photography 8 x 10 inches

S . v o n P u t t k a m m e r www.anchovyart.com

I have a love/hate relationship with Gustave Courbet, the 19th century French Romantic Realist. While I love the bluntness of his work, his stubborn commitment to the common folk of 1850s France, you can choke on the arrogance radiating off of his paintings. The more you explore his biography, the more repulsive his narcissism becomes. This was the first artist to demand his own solo show when the Paris Academy couldn’t fit his enormous paintings into their exhibition. God, the audacity! Why can’t I be more like that? Maybe I can be. Maybe instead of waiting to get my foot in the door of the art world, I kick the door down. By painting my cartoon avatar, Anchovy, in the likeness of Courbet’s self portraits, I expose his ego in the same bluntness characteristic of his work and make my own place in the annals of art history. I poke fun at this monumental artistic genius, in all his seriousness, and deconstruct the barriers that place him at the top of the art pyramid and me, an Asian female cartoonist, at the bottom. Look at how big my head can get. S. von Puttkammer was born in Englewood, New Jersey, in 1995. In addition to painting, she writes, makes performance art, and publishes cartoons on her Instagram @anchovyicecream. She is currently studying Fine Art at the School of Visual Arts.

Image: S. von Puttkammer ‘Me with a Belt’ oil on canvas 82 X 100 cm

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A n g e l a M c I n t o s h & D a r r y l P o l l o c k www.angelamcintosh.ca www.darrylpollockphoto.com

Image: Angela McIntosh & Darryl Pollock ‘Twice Shy’ makeup & photography 8 x 10 inches

S . v o n P u t t k a m m e r www.anchovyart.com

Image: S. von Puttkammer ‘Me with a Belt’ oil on canvas 82 X 100 cm

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Curated selection of works

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M i c h a e l

E .

S t e p h e n

www.michaelestephen.com

Michael E. Stephen is an Austin, TX based artist working in the expanded fields of sculpture and video. He received his BFA in Sculpture at the University of Texas at Tyler in 2009, and his MFA in Sculpture/Studio Arts at the University of Oregon in 2013. His work has been exhibited in various national and international venues including Artspace 111 in Fort Worth, TX; Punch Gallery in Seattle, WA; Pump Projects in Austin, TX; Demo Projects in Springfield, IL; Box13 Art Space in Houston, TX; Scope Art in Miami, FL; Los Angeles Center for Digital Arts in Los Angeles, CA; Disjecta Contemporary Art Center in Portland, OR; C3:Initiative in Portland, OR; City Union Rotunda Gallery in Lincoln, NB; Peoria Art Guild in Peoria, IL; Kino Kino Center for Art and Film in Sandnes, Norway and the LivinGallery in Lecce, Italy. Everything is an object and we are all a mysterious collection of them. A faded D.A.R.E. t-shirt / a trading card shoved into the spokes of a bicycle / Andy Capp’s Hot Fries from the ice rink / dysentery on the Oregon Trail / a teddy bear missing its nose due to over excessive kisses / slightly torn Priscilla curtains / cults / all religions / black Mr. Sketch scented markers / a chunk of the Berlin Wall / The Breakfast

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Curated selection of works

Club / cold glasses of milk / blanket forts / your parents’ copy of the Joy of Sex / a quartz crystal / Bewitched / a stranger’s Polaroid / your special penny / Drive-Ins / Disco / a gold plated VHS / Hawaiian Tropic suntan oil / a drafting pencil chewed by someone else / static on a TV set / first kisses / black eyes. I am a reverent collector of things, fascinated by those that conjure an affective resonance within our psyches, yet are culturally forgotten. Our attraction to objects is often mysterious. It is in this autonomous zone of attraction where I seek to reveal the curse in the casual. Cloaked in a psychotronic aesthetic of filmic culture, these carefully considered objects are sourced for their ritualistic and cult potential to create new autonomous relics that archive the complex visual experience of the 1970s-1990s. From an auctioned set of wisdom teeth to a piece of the Moon, these token objects convey both private histories and personal languages through their mysterious allure. Composed from appropriated, altered and cast materials, my objects are transformed, gaining new context while still securing the essence of their origin.

Image (p. 112): Michael Stephen ‘The Lost Boys’ found Polaroid circa 1987 4 x 4 inches

Image (p.113, left): Michael Stephen ‘Sanguine’ 12 x 12 x 12 inches

Image (p. 113, right): Michael Stephen ‘The Omen’ incinerated blank VHS cassettes and diamond dust cast into a rose 26 x 9 x 3 inches

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M i c h a e l

E .

S t e p h e n

www.michaelestephen.com

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Curated selection of works

Image (p. 112): Michael Stephen ‘The Lost Boys’ found Polaroid circa 1987 4 x 4 inches

Image (p.113, left): Michael Stephen ‘Sanguine’ 12 x 12 x 12 inches

Image (p. 113, right): Michael Stephen ‘The Omen’ incinerated blank VHS cassettes and diamond dust cast into a rose 26 x 9 x 3 inches

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Featured image: Dan Bortz & Lynnea Holland-Weiss ‘Not Looking’ acrylic, spray paint and oil pastel on panel 26.5 x 28 inches

E d i t o r i a l s e l e c t i o n w o r k s

o f

Featured image: Dan Bortz & Lynnea Holland-Weiss ‘Not Looking’ acrylic, spray paint and oil pastel on panel 26.5 x 28 inches

E d i t o r i a l s e l e c t i o n w o r k s

o f

Featured image: Max Seckel ‘Diary’ acrylic, gouache, latex and spray paint on canvas 36 x 48 x 2 inches

M a x

S e c k e l

www.maxseckel.com

Max Seckel is an artist and printmaker living and working in New Orleans, Louisiana. Max graduated from the University of Delaware in the Spring of 2009 and moved to Philadelphia the following fall. He volunteered briefly at Second State Press (2010-2011) before shortly thereafter joining and keeping a studio at artist collective Space 1026 (2011-2014). He then moved south to New Orleans in the fall of 2014 where he began volunteering at the New Orleans Community Printshop and Darkroom (2014-Current) and also maintains a personal studio where he paints and also produces small book and print editions via his Risograph machine. My work aims to explore my own reactions to and perception of the world surrounding me. Informed by memories, dreams, conversations, and just plain looking around and being I assemble a world constructed of absurdities and references. Objects are clustered together and arranged with little respect to context, intending to create a sense of wonder and confusion as the viewer works to make sense of the space and situation presented.

editorial selection of works

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Featured image: Max Seckel ‘Diary’ acrylic, gouache, latex and spray paint on canvas 36 x 48 x 2 inches

M a x

S e c k e l

www.maxseckel.com

editorial selection of works

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Image (p.118): Patrick Brien ‘Layered History’ oil on panel 23 1/2 x 16 1/2 inches Image (p.119): Patrick Brien ‘Surf’ oil and acrylic on linen over panel 21 x 18 1/2 inches

P a t r i c k B r i e n www.patrickbrien.com

Patrick Brien was born in Nashville, Tennessee in 1980. He received his BFA from Middle Tennessee State University in 2004 and his MFA from the Lamar Dodd School of Art at the University of Georgia in 2015. His work has been shown nationally, including exhibitions at Threesquared Gallery, Twist Gallery and Cumberland Gallery in Nashville, Southside Gallery in Oxford, Mississippi, and Rogue Space in New York, NY. His work is included in numerous personal collections across the southeast. Brien is currently an adjunct instructor at College of the Sequoias in Visalia, CA.

paintings are abstractions that provide moments of recognizable landscapes and objects to transport the viewer, briefly, into illusionistic spatial environments. These seeming moments of stability are often fleeting, as they almost always dissolve or collapse into painted versions of glitches. Areas of the paintings are reconstructed or patched or lead into completely other windows of imagery. What survives in the end is the sum of all of the ideas, experiments, failures, and reconstructions that occur within that pictorial space.

As virtual reality goggles and augmented reality have become more accessible, I wonder how these open frontiers might impact our notions of the built environment. Over the past few years, my paintings have evolved from picturing abstractions of physically built environments to ones that look as if they were constructed in digital spaces. My work acknowledges the connection between the internet and the canvas as portals available to transport the viewer into other places. The paintings are the result of all of the bits of visual information I collect as I go about my day. I tend to pick up pieces of torn magazine pages that I find on the ground and take pictures of layers of painted lines on the pavement with my phone. The works are painted in many layers and display many gestural and mechanical methods of applying the paint on the canvas. They reflect my interest in the way that digital interfaces have become enmeshed into the way that we perceive the world. In this way, the editorial selection of works

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Image (p.118): Patrick Brien ‘Layered History’ oil on panel 23 1/2 x 16 1/2 inches Image (p.119): Patrick Brien ‘Surf’ oil and acrylic on linen over panel 21 x 18 1/2 inches

P a t r i c k B r i e n www.patrickbrien.com

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Image (left): Cristòfol Pons ‘The convenant’ acrilyc on wood 80 x 68 cm Image (right): Cristòfol Pons ‘Thus shut up Zaratustra’ acrilyc on wood 80 x 68 cm

Louis 21 gallery in Palma de Mallorca in 2011. His work has involved publishing the first international book of illustrated poetry for the iPad, together with the poet James C. Pons Alorda, by Atem Books (Barcelona), 2012. Pons’s career has been recognized on a number of occasions. He won the Sant Antoni award for artists under thirty in 2007. His work was selected in the X call of Luis Adelantado Gallery in Valencia in 2008 and won the 1st prize of MAE (Emergent Menorcan Art) in 2010. Picasso said that “art is a lie that brings us closer to the truth”. Pons believes that reality is relative and subjective, and sincerity should not be a condition of art; there is a constant play with reality to fit his taste and order, explaining, with metaphors and exaggerations, real conditions such as a landscape.

C r i s t ò f o l P o n s www.cristofolpons.com

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Cristòfol Pons was born in 1981 on the small island of Menorca (Spain) where he currently resides. In 1999 he moved to Barcelona to begin his studies, in which city he made a Superior Cycle Arts Mural at the Massana School, and graduated in Arts from the University of Barcelona. Obtaining a Seneca scholarship enabled his further development at the Arts faculty in the University of the Basque Country (Bilbao). Contact and work with galleries in Barcelona has allowed him to exhibit in different national and international galleries. Highlights have been the show at the DNA Gallery (Barcelona) in 2007 (together with his brother Quique Pons, 1983-2006), and consecutive exhibitions between 2008 and 2011 in the Berlin Vierter-Stock gallery, where he has had several residencies. Collective shows have included the Luis Adelantado Gallery in Valencia in 2008 and

The relationship of his work with anonymous aspects of ‘those others’ and ourselves accommodates their anonymous beings, hybrids. Subjugation can be an attempt to distance, but highlights the importance of anonymity as an important social element, which is built, but lacks right if is not under a uniform consensus, fascism by all accounts. And even under that dogmatism, hierarchy and reviled remain. His recent drawings are somehow more introspective and luminous: the person and his shadow can return us to more positive visions, where the negative finds its opposite and those who flap blankets as if they are banners have the psychological coverings necessary to protect themselves. The representation of the blankets is taken out of blankets that extinguish fires (fire blankets), transformed into blankets against fear (fear blankets) where the individual can grow and protect himself. Hope, resilience, and selfimprovement are exemplified in the arrival of an invading army of flamethrowers who shed a blue fire that finally makes us immune.

Image (left): Cristòfol Pons ‘The convenant’ acrilyc on wood 80 x 68 cm Image (right): Cristòfol Pons ‘Thus shut up Zaratustra’ acrilyc on wood 80 x 68 cm

C r i s t ò f o l P o n s www.cristofolpons.com

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Z o e

H a w k

Zoe Hawk received her MFA in painting from the University of Iowa. Her work has been included in publications such as New American Paintings and The Oxford American, and she has attended artist residencies in Norway, Belgium, Qatar, and the United States. She currently lives and works in Doha, Qatar. My work delves into the world of adolescence, depicting girls and young women within carefully constructed scenes: at school, in the home, or out in nature. Themes of gendered socialization, anxiety, group dynamics, and performance are tackled within scenes of girlhood play and interactions, often stylistically referencing children’s storybook illustrations.

Image (p.122): Zoe Hawk ‘Waterway’ oil on aluminum 17 x 18.5 inches Image (p.123): Zoe Hawk ‘Murder Ballad’ oil on aluminum 22.5 x 18 inches

The narratives described in the paintings are meant to be sweet and somewhat familiar to the viewer, yet upon closer inspection they take a mysterious or unsettling turn. Sometimes conveying innocence and curiosity, other times confronting violence and fear, my work investigates the complex experience of coming of age. The costumes, colorful dresses, mournful funeral attire, and matching uniforms signify various modes of feminine identity, and set the stage for the girls’ interactions. Somewhere between childhood and adulthood - between fairytales and the dark realities of womanhood - these characters develop an intricate play of yearning, contention, camaraderie, and mischief, as they navigate their social and physical environments.

www.zoehawk.com p. 122

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Z o e

H a w k

Image (p.122): Zoe Hawk ‘Waterway’ oil on aluminum 17 x 18.5 inches Image (p.123): Zoe Hawk ‘Murder Ballad’ oil on aluminum 22.5 x 18 inches

www.zoehawk.com p. 122

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D a n I s a a c B o r t z & L y n n e a H o l l a n d - W e i s s www.dibortz.com www.lynneahollandweiss.com

Dan Bortz and Lynnea Holland-Weiss are an artist couple that make collaborative work in addition to their individual practices. While their approaches and styles differ from one another, they both make uninhibited figurative work that embraces color and reverberates everyday scenarios. Dan’s graphic, surreal and sometimes humorous ideas combined with Lynnea’s painterly and emotional hand create a dualistic expression of the world around us. Dan Isaac Bortz is a multidisciplinary artist with a focus on metaphoric and ecstatically colored visions. His subject matter always changes, but the work is often curious and psychedelic in nature. The scale of his work ranges from small detailed drawings, screen-printed repeat patterns on fabric, to huge painted walls. His work aims to invigorate the imagination and entertain the viewer. Sometimes his images reference dreams, while others reflect on anxieties, ecstasies and other dominant thoughts in the waking life. His work has a playful side that is a reflection for his enthusiasm to be alive in such an amusing world. Lynnea Holland-Weiss is a painter focused on the human subject and navigating a vibrantly emotional color palette. Coming from a background in dance, her interest in body language and charting people’s movement through space and time is deeply rooted within her. With her use of bold and unusual color combinations, she is interested in pushing ambiguity and androgyny within the figures and dissolving our ability to disassociate ourselves from one another. All of her work remains open for interpretation and relies on the viewers to bring their own history into the paintings to relate and create narratives. The duo both received their BFA Degrees from California College of the Arts. While primarily being based in Oakland, Ca, they have spent much time traveling, painting murals and doing projects nationally and internationally. And additionally have lived in other cities, such as Philadelphia, New Orleans, Sante Fe, and Cleveland.

Featured image: Dan Bortz & Lynnea Holland-Weiss ‘Move Makers’ Mural at Movemakers Philly: A Dance Studio focused on Hip Hop classes for Children and Adults (2100 Chestnut Street, 2nd Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19103) acrylic on interior wall 12 x 10 ft.

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D a n I s a a c B o r t z & L y n n e a H o l l a n d - W e i s s www.dibortz.com www.lynneahollandweiss.com

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D a v i d

W i l l b u r n

www.davidwillburn.com

Image (p.126): David Willburn ‘Artificial Structure, Artificial Landscape, 0918’ acrylic, watercolor, muslin on panel 12.5 x 12.5 x 1.5 inches Image (p.127, left): David Willburn ‘Artificial Structure, Artificial Landscape, 0915’ acrylic, watercolor, muslin on panel 12.5 x 12.5 x 1.5 inches Image (p.127, right): David Willburn ‘Artificial Structure, Artificial Landscape, 0912’ acrylic, watercolor, muslin on panel 12.5 x 12.5 x 1.5 inches

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Born in Fort Stockton, Texas, David Willburn lives and works in Fort Worth, Texas. He earned an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts (Montpelier, VT). His work has been shown nationally and internationally at venues including Dallas Contemporary (Dallas, Texas); San Diego Art Institute (San Diego, CA); University of Art and Design (Helsinki, Finland); Museum of Arts and Design (New York, NY); Union Gallery at University of Wisconsin (Milwaukee, WI); Museum of Contemporary Craft (Portland, Oregon), and Galleri Urbane (Dallas, Texas). My work exists at the intersection of craft and fine art, and within that space I explore traditions of drawing, painting, and sculpture. The process of making mixed-media paintings, embroidered drawings, and installation projects often begins with images and ideas culled from contemporary culture and politics – photographs or memories of a specific event. Items and scenes from my own home, social institutions, or mass media are starting points that are filtered through layers of abstraction and analysis as a way of stripping away the familiarity and objectness of things and situations. These reimagined ideas and compositions are loaded with more possibility. In these abstractions I find new narratives, and I look for ways to queer the materials, reshaping and repurposing things through form and subject.

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D a v i d

W i l l b u r n

www.davidwillburn.com

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F a r n a z N y l a n d e r

transfix the viewer in an altered reality through his images of the hallucinatory fantastic, Nylander’s paintings portray the common, sometimes mundane reality that we are familiar with but at the microcosmic level — dissecting to re-erect in order to get lost in the wonder of our nature.

www.farnaznylander.org

The works of artists from the late 1960s and early 1970s have become an important touchstone for her interest in painting. Responding to the legacy of Abstract Expressionism with a playful originality, Nylander constructs sections of her paintings with multiple layers of poured paint, and the outcomes are controlledrandom results: a sense of rhythm and order that emerges out of disorder and chaos. This provocative juxtaposition speaks to the decay and beauty nature can possess.

Nylander endeavors to create works that are involved in a physical discourse with the materiality, plasticity, and tactility of paint. The boundaries of paint’s limitations are exhausted at their extreme contrasts, integrating highly thickened and thinned paint. The paint is exploited: poured, scraped, smeared, squeezed, or dissolved into its molecular particles, manipulating oil’s versatility. The germinality of the medium defies the prescribed methods of representing space in terms of its correspondence between surface and form, eliminating foregroundbackground discontinuities. Nylander explores color and the inherent possibilities of the physicality of paint using a plethoric impasto technique, enhancing the way paint is traditionally applied. By accentuating the physical act of painting and eliminating the surface-to-depth oscillation, she invites the viewer to step closer and venture up to her work at a micro level, emphasizing the desire for immediacy and intimate dialogue. Just like Dali would

These methods Nylander uses are experienced as gravitational and intend to fuse abstraction and representation, challenging the so-called death of painting so to prove that this practice is not exhausted. She employs neither a solely expressive nor process-based style; rather, it is the chemistry that occurs in the space between the two styles that ignites her work. The enthralling colors evoke the palette of candy counters and ice cream parlors, but simultaneously, they address the myth of perfection and allure of beauty through the materials’ unnatural and noxious makeup. Recently, her interest has turned toward the dichotomy of attraction and repulsion: the sense of uneasiness that accompanies the intense visual pleasure of painting.

Image: Isabelle O’Donnell ‘Seedling Conveyor‘ turmeric, matcha green tea, black tea, fabric paint, resist, cotton fabric, hand woven wool. 18 1/2 x 25 1/2 inches

I s a b e l l e

O ’ D o n n e l l

www.isabelleodonnell.com

Image: Farnaz Nylander ‘Pink Dolphin’ oil on wood panel 12 x 12 inches

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Isabelle O’Donnell (born 1994 in San Diego, California) is an artist currently based in Portland, Maine. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Art from Maine College of Art, and has recently exhibited at Able Baker Contemporary (Portland, Maine); the Institute of Contemporary Art (Portland, Maine); the Chocolate Church (Bath, Maine); Young Space at Standard Projects (Hortonville, Wisconsin); Space Gallery (Portland, Maine), and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts Annenberg Gallery (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania). Her work has been featured in Peripheral Vision, Friend of the Artist, and Maine Home + Design. She has experience in curation, exhibition planning, and art handling, and was a co-curator for Collective Actions II: Unity of Opposites at the Institute of Contemporary Art (Portland, Maine), and the 2017 BFA Thesis Exhibition at Maine College of Art. She is currently the Exhibitions and Events Assistant at the Institute of Contemporary Art in Portland, Maine. Isabelle O’Donnell’s work is concerned with pattern, color, and texture, as well as

the continuing conversations concerning materiality and textiles as a means to explore and question painting abstraction. She draws influence from her personal history, traditional fiber processes, the natural world, and the saturated palette of mass produced consumer products. She situates herself as an artist within a growing lineage of contemporary painters whose work deals with painting’s intrinsic connection to textiles and craft, exploring its conceptual implications regarding feminism and labor, process and material, and pattern and ornamentation. Her work continues and expands upon these explorations through the combination and contrast of the varying mediums and processes of textiles and painting. This is visible through her use of both traditional and non-traditional painting surfaces and techniques in combination with textiles processes such as weaving, dyeing, and sewing. She seeks to combine these varying processes, materials, and motifs in order to acknowledge their correlations and explore the histories and disciplines that have shaped her practice as a contemporary artist. editorial selection of works

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F a r n a z N y l a n d e r

www.farnaznylander.org

Image: Isabelle O’Donnell ‘Seedling Conveyor‘ turmeric, matcha green tea, black tea, fabric paint, resist, cotton fabric, hand woven wool. 18 1/2 x 25 1/2 inches

I s a b e l l e

O ’ D o n n e l l

www.isabelleodonnell.com

Image: Farnaz Nylander ‘Pink Dolphin’ oil on wood panel 12 x 12 inches

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C r i s t i n a

G e t s o n

Image: Ryota Matsumoto ‘The Reverberent Ambience of Interpretative Codes for an Ancient Artifact’ mixed media 27 x 37 inches

www.cristinagetsonart.com

Image: Cristina Getson ‘Conversation with trees 1‘ acrylic on wood 24 x 24 inches

With a degree in engineering, Cristina Getson lives and works in Toronto, Canada, and has been painting in acrylics for the past 10 years. She has studied at the Gallery School at the Art Gallery of Ontario, and has been painting at a studio collective, Project: Art, since 2010. Striving to achieve a state of non-selfconsciousness in painting, Cristina is investigating boundaries – real and imagined, physical and psychological. She paints abstract works and plays with shapes and movement through interacting forms, lines, and the blurring of boundaries. The processes of layering, scraping, diluting, staining and fragmenting ultimately lead to the discovery of brilliant and unexpected patterns. How does one achieve non-self-consciousness in painting? By having the confidence to give up a measure of control, and trusting the painting to show you where it wants to go.

Ryota Matsumoto is a principal and founder of an award-winning interdisciplinary design office, Ryota Matsumoto Studio. He is an artist, designer and urban planner. Born in Tokyo, he was raised in Hong Kong and Japan. He received a Master of Architecture degree from University of Pennsylvania in 2007 after his studies at Architectural Association in London and Mackintosh School of Architecture, Glasgow School of Art in the early 90s. Matsumoto has previously collaborated with a cofounder of the Metabolist Movement, Kisho Kurokawa, and with Arata Isozaki, Cesar Pelli, MIT Media Lab and Nihon Sekkei Inc. before establishing his office. He presented his work for the 5th symposium of the Imaginaries of the Future at Cornell University in 2017 and currently serves as an adjunct lecturer in the Transart institute, University of Plymouth, NY. Matsumoto’s artwork reflects the morphological transformations of our ever-evolving ecological milieus that are attributed to a multitude of spatio-temporal phenomena influenced by the interaction between the socioeconomic and built environments. They are created as visual commentaries on speculative changes in notions of societies, cultures and ecosystems in the transient nature of shifting topography and geology. The artwork explores the hybrid technique combining both traditional media (ink, acrylic, graphite, and photo collage) and digital media, manifesting the collective recognition of a multiplicity of epistemological viewpoints in all cognitive dimensions of spatiality. The

R y o t a

varying scale, juxtaposition of biomorphic forms, intertwined textures, oblique projections and visual metamorphoses are employed as the multi-layered drawing methodologies to question and investigate the ubiquitous nature of urban meta-morphology, the eco-political reality of the Anthropocene epoch, the advancement of biomaterial technologies and their visual representation in the context of non-Euclidean configuration. Furthermore, the application of these techniques allows the work to transcend the boundaries between analog and digital media as well as between two- and multi-dimensional domains. His compositional techniques imbue the work with what we see as the very essence of our socio-cultural environments beyond the conventional protocols of architectural and artistic formalities, and that they conjure up the synthetic possibilities within which the spatial and temporal variations of existing spatial semiotics emerge as the potential products of alchemical procedures.

M a t s u m o t o

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C r i s t i n a

G e t s o n

Image: Ryota Matsumoto ‘The Reverberent Ambience of Interpretative Codes for an Ancient Artifact’ mixed media 27 x 37 inches

www.cristinagetsonart.com

Image: Cristina Getson ‘Conversation with trees 1‘ acrylic on wood 24 x 24 inches

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Featured image:

H e l e n a

L a c y

Helena Lacy ‘Blue Skye’ acrylic on plaster W13 x H12 x D9.5 inches

www.helenalacy.com

Helena Lacy is a London based Sculptor, Ceramicist and Installation artist who graduated from Wimbledon College of Art, with a degree in Technical Arts and Special Effects for Stage and Screen. She creates abstract sculptures from clay usually based on the female body as a form, she likes to take separate aspects of the body that are traditionally feminine such as the curves of breasts and hips, these parts are then put back together, creating an abstracted expression of the female body. This is the theme behind a lot of her work, being re-inventive with a single form. The themes behind her installations are often about audience interaction and engaging the senses. She works from her studio in Peckham. ‘Blue Skye’ is a sculpture that stems from a series titled ‘Sculpture in Skye’ developed from a project based on the female body. Combining the element of colour, a rich blue adds another dynamic to the work, creating a new surface to the sculpture, which mirrors the blue of the sky. This sculpture was taken to the Isle of Skye where it was photographed from different angles using the dramatic backdrops of the Highlands and the Western Isles of Scotland. Through combining sculpture with landscape, she saw how the context in which a sculpture is situated can change its interpretation, and can create a new piece of work entirely.

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Featured image:

H e l e n a

L a c y

Helena Lacy ‘Blue Skye’ acrylic on plaster W13 x H12 x D9.5 inches

www.helenalacy.com

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G é z a

R i c z

Image (p.134): Geza Ricz ‘Portrait of Gavrilo Princip’ oil on canvas 40 x 50 cm

Image (p. 135): Geza Ricz ‘The archaeologist’ oil on canvas 50 x 50 cm

Geza Ricz is a Hungarian visual artist. Since 2015 he has lived and worked as an Art Director in Salzburg, Austria. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 2011 and with a Master’s degree in the Faculty of Humanities in 2013 from the University of Szeged (HU). During his university years, he founded the subcultural and contemporary art association called SUB-ART; as the leader of the NGO Ricz organized and curated several events such as Tér-Art open air exhibition series, Voice of the Streets festival, street and fine art exhibitions. As one of the pioneers of street art in the region, between 1995 and 2005 he left behind mural works in several cities across Europe. At the same period, he traveled around the Balkans and gained inspiration for his early works. Ricz’s main artistic field is painting but he is active as a muralist and graphic designer as well. He has worked for clients like Red Bull, Burn, Leica, Telenor and Suzuki. His illustrations have been published in many magazines (e.g. The Red Bulletin, Symposion, Offline Magazine, K-arton, Magyar Szó, Atelier). He is a member of CTR-V art group, Random art group, and the Salzburger Kunstverein. Selected shows: Arte Laguna finalist exhibition, Arsenale, Venice (IT), 2017; TOAF, Arnolfini, Bristol (UK), 2017; Stephan Jäger International Art Symposium,Calpe Gallery, Timișoara (RO),2017; Hungarian National Saloon, Kunsthalle, Budapest (HU), 2015; Comics in Subotica, Contemporary Gallery, Subotica (SRB), 2015; Other City, Klauzál 13 Gallery,

Budapest (HU), 2014; No Pass Biennial, House of Hungarian Fine Artists, Budapest (HU), 2009; OMDK, Hungarian University of Fine Arts, Budapest (HU), 2009. Ricz’s recent paintings are defined by opposites. The contrast of figurative and abstract, damaged and sterile, organic and geometrical gives the essence of his new painting series. This contrast is characteristic of his color scale as well. Close to monochrome, black and gray shades are faced with the hint of sharp, bright colored shapes. The artworks were built layer by layer with the precise pre planning process. The artist imitates the image cut and layering technique of collages to create an unexpected contrast to his oil paintings. For the viewer, Ricz wakes up the wish to look behind the scenes by hiding some details and in this way creates unsolvable mystery on the canvas. His themes are mainly inspired by long gone matters, old memories, decay or abandoned places that give a nostalgic and sometimes melancholic mood to his artworks. Some of the works are connected to the Eastern European political and social atmosphere of his childhood.

www.gezaricz.format.com

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G é z a

R i c z

Image (p.134): Geza Ricz ‘Portrait of Gavrilo Princip’ oil on canvas 40 x 50 cm

Image (p. 135): Geza Ricz ‘The archaeologist’ oil on canvas 50 x 50 cm

www.gezaricz.format.com

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International in the Aria Hotel & Casino and the Bellagio Hotel & Casino, the Cleveland Clinic, and the prestigious Progressive Art Collection. Dana Oldfather currently works and lives just outside Cleveland, Ohio with her husband Randall and young son Arlo.

Dana Oldfather was born in Berea, Ohio in 1978. She is a painter who has been in exhibitions in galleries and museums in Australia and the United States including Library Street Collective and The Butler Institute of Art. She is proud to have been awarded the William and Dorothy Yeck Award for Young Painters and an Ohio Arts Council Individual Excellence Award. Oldfather was twice featured in the New York Times, and published in the book The Art of Spray by Lori Zimmer of Art Nerd New York. Oldfather’s work was recently exhibited at Texas Contemporary, Miami Project, Art Palm Beach, and Art Palm Springs art fairs. Her paintings are internationally collected privately and can be found in many public and corporate collections in the US including the Pizzuti Collection with The Joseph Editions, Eaton Corporation, MGM

These works celebrate paint while blurring the line between figurative and abstract. I use my camera roll for reference and images of family, friends, and movies drive the composition. As I build up layers of paint, the color and shape of the marks enhance and destroy a domestic scene. Abstraction ameliorates semi-realistic underpainting, and recent memories take new form. Silky ink stains, spray paint splatters, drips, blobs, scrubs, and oil paint strokes of varying weight and opacity twist across an ambiguous horizon. Anxiety drives the frenetic mark making, and the images resemble something spinning out or frothing into something else. The paintings shudder with a pulsing, nervous energy that emphasizes the fragility of comfort and happiness. I transform my insecurities as a woman, mother, wife, sister and friend into something tangible and beautiful; a bittersweet beauty is brightened by the shadow it casts. I am trying to come to terms with the frightening belief that this might be the best of all possible worlds. I am equally trying to reconcile the idea that, though beauty and struggle are inextricably linked, I may have some power over which prevails.

Image (left): Dana Oldfather ‘Two Living Rooms‘ oil, acrylic, ink, and spray paint on clear primed linen 60 x 48 inches

Image (right): Dana Oldfather ‘Carousel‘ oil, acrylic, ink, and spray paint on clear primed linen 60 x 60 inches

D a n a

O l d f a t h e r

www.danaoldfather.com editorial selection of works

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Image (left): Dana Oldfather ‘Two Living Rooms‘ oil, acrylic, ink, and spray paint on clear primed linen 60 x 48 inches

Image (right): Dana Oldfather ‘Carousel‘ oil, acrylic, ink, and spray paint on clear primed linen 60 x 60 inches

D a n a

O l d f a t h e r

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G i u s e p p e

G o n e l l a www.giuseppegonella.eu

2015; “De aeterno reditu” at Egbert Baquè Contemporary Art, Berlin in 2015; “Involved” at Galleria Giovanni Bonelli, Milan in 2013; “Evidence of Time” at Cloister of Madonna dell’Orto, Venice, Italy in 2013; “No Place left to hide” Casa dei Carraresi curated by Carlo Sala, Treviso, Italy, in 2012; “Suspended Oscillation” at 263 Bowery Gallery curated by SenaArt , New York, USA, 2011.

Featured image: Giuseppe Gonella ‘Walking Home’ oil on canvas 300 x 200 cm

Giuseppe Gonella was born in Motta di Livenza (IT). His interest in the visual arts manifested itself early, attending the atelier of his father Angelo, the well known Artist and Master of Arts in the field of mosaic and stained glass. In 2006 he won a competition for a scholarship and an atelier at the Fondazione Bevilacqua La Masa in Venice. In 2008 Giuseppe Gonella graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice (IT). Since then his work has regularly been exhibited internationally. Among the most important solo exhibitions are : “Chasing Lights” at Galleria Giovanni Bonelli in Milan in 2017; “Walking Home” at Magic Beans in Berlin, Germany in 2016; “Dittico” at MAC Museum of Contemporary Art in Lissone, Italy, 2016; “Mente Locale” L’atlante / Der Blitz, MAG Arco Galleria Civica G. Segantini, Italy curated by Denis Isaia and Federico Mazzonelli in

I am currently living and working in Berlin. My paintings explore the predicaments, dreams and fears that challenge contemporary humanity. My paintings invite the viewer to reflect on post-apocalyptic, dystopian and mysterious landscapes. I create ambiguous horizons that appear like a mirage. The works are fascinating and disquieting at the same time. The element that unites many of my works is the reference to fragments of memory and fleeting visions, translated in painting through the desire to keep a distance from a strictly mimetic vision. In contrast to the approach we see on television or in social media, destined to be rapidly consumed, my process in painting seeks to deal with these themes in absolute terms in order to treat them as genuine contemporary allegories. I am interested in the challenge intrinsic to all voyages towards salvation and the desire for liberty that is central to human experience throughout the ages. I challenge the canvas with poignant splashes of color to make existential content emerge, seeking evocations that are both intimate and universal.

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G i u s e p p e

G o n e l l a www.giuseppegonella.eu

Featured image: Giuseppe Gonella ‘Walking Home’ oil on canvas 300 x 200 cm

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D r i g o www. drigo.crevado.com

Drigo’s work focuses on the idea of keeping a young but conscious mind, and the merging of various cultures. In his work, he places his indigenous characters in unique, decorated head pieces; accompanied with colorful landscape-like environments, unique to each painting acting as a glimpse into the astral plane. Primarily working in gouache, spray paint, and acrylics, Drigo uses patterning and his bright color palette to convey heavy cultural influence within each of his beings. Recognizing his work as pieces from his subconscious; Drigo often continues to discover new ideas and meanings within a piece, even long after its completion.

C e l a n

B o u i l l e t

www.CelanBouillet.com Celan Bouillet (b 1985) is a mixed media artist currently based in Houston, TX. Inspired by travel, textiles and our relationship to place, Bouillet creates paintings with complex narratives and dense patterns. Bouillet received her BA in English and BFA in Painting from the University of Georgia in 2008 and her MFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art in 2013. She has received numerous awards and honors including: 2013 Full Fellowship recipient to Vermont Studio Center; 2014 Artistin-residence at Houston Community College SE; 2014 Best in Show at Lawndale’s Big Show; 2014 Best in Show at Gallery 500x EXPO, and 2015 HAA Emerging Artist Grant.

My work investigates ideas of home and our attempt to find our place in transient and surreal natural environments. These mixed media pieces are highly detailed and manipulate scale along with pattern to create complex narratives. Referencing folk tales, mythologies, and travel literature, my work blurs personal memories with fictitious histories of uncharted locations. Our inexhaustible and futile search for a better place – a personal utopia – leads us to fetishize location, both known and unknown. As our ideal is unattainable, we obsess over controlling the areas that we temporarily inhabit.

Image: Drigo ‘Here & There’ acrylic, gouache, spray paint 24 x 36 inches

Image: Celan Bouillet ‘Rock Garden’ gouache on Paper Collage 26 x 33.5 inches

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D r i g o www. drigo.crevado.com

C e l a n

B o u i l l e t

Image: Drigo ‘Here & There’ acrylic, gouache, spray paint 24 x 36 inches

Image: Celan Bouillet ‘Rock Garden’ gouache on Paper Collage 26 x 33.5 inches

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S c o t t

A l b r e c h t

Image (p.142): Scott Albrecht ‘Lessons In Perspective’ acrylic on wood 31.75 X 24 inches

Image (p. 143): Scott Albrecht ‘Hear / ereH’ acrylic on wood 20 X 15.5 inches

www.ScottAlbrecht.com

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The work I create is inspired by the day-to-day that happens around me - from the larger events, down to the smaller ones that we almost always ignore. I draw inspiration from these moments and use my work as a way to highlight these experiences and reflect on what they have to offer. Because of this I often see the final works as reminders or artifacts for myself of these ideas and situations, and have come to use this perspective as a guide in my work – to create something worth being reminded of.

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S c o t t

A l b r e c h t

Image (p.142): Scott Albrecht ‘Lessons In Perspective’ acrylic on wood 31.75 X 24 inches

Image (p. 143): Scott Albrecht ‘Hear / ereH’ acrylic on wood 20 X 15.5 inches

www.ScottAlbrecht.com

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Image (p.144): Amanda Clyne ‘Tuxedo’ oil on canvas 45 x 36 inches

Image (p.145): Amanda Clyne ‘Smoke Screen’ oil on canvas 48 x 60 inches

www.amandaclyne.com

A m a n d a

C ly n e

“And as she’d torn the shoulder of her dress, the folds slipped down and out the flowers fell...”- Ovid’s Metamorphoses, in his telling of the rape of Persephone. Many of us are at war with our bodies, subject to pain, judgment, discrimination, disability, and violence. While society struggles to acknowledge and address these persistent challenges, the concepts of visibility and invisibility are shifting in our burgeoning culture of self-display. Images of bodies are everywhere, and yet I question the limits of empathy created by these images. As Claudia Rankine wrote in her book Citizen: “...no amount of visibility will alter the ways in which one is perceived.” In grappling with this question, my studio practice has been progressing towards the idea of a utopic desire to exist without a body. In my recent Wallflower series, I replace the body with the remnants of historical floral still life paintings to create a kind of feminine camouflage glimpsed through a hall of mirrors. The cut flowers become a surrogate body striving to be seen. Evocations of absence and presence share

the stage. Borrowing from the affect of textiles and couture, each painting tells a different story of the fragile nature of seeing and of being seen. Amanda Clyne was a corporate lawyer who, after the trauma of 9/11, left her New York firm to become a painter. She studied at the School of Visual Arts in New York before graduating with the Drawing and Painting medal from OCAD University in 2009. In 2014, Amanda completed her MFA (Visual Arts) from York University. Her work has been featured in many publications and blogs, including New York’s Hyperallergic, Canada’s Flare magazine and Italy’s L’Espresso.

Most recently, she was awarded an Ontario Arts Council Emerging Artist Grant. Her work has been exhibited in Europe, the US and across Canada and is in the corporate collections of such companies as Mercedes Benz, Holt Renfrew and Astra Zeneca.

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Image (p.144): Amanda Clyne ‘Tuxedo’ oil on canvas 45 x 36 inches

Image (p.145): Amanda Clyne ‘Smoke Screen’ oil on canvas 48 x 60 inches

www.amandaclyne.com

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If you would like your work to be featured in our upcoming issues, please find out more details on how to apply to be considered. See p. 3-5 or visit our website: www.artmazemag.com. We have an open call for art for the next issue which provides publishing opportunities and lasts until November 30th, as well as the ongoing open call for online blog. For any questions, please contact us at info@artmazemag.com.

Featured image: Una Ursprung ‘Untitled37’ (detail) oil and spray on canvas 130 x 170 cm (see more on p.64-65)

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