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Category Archives: Contemporary Art

Video: Behind the Scenes: Tim Burton at MoMA

We are sure most are familiar with Tim Burton as a director, producer and writer from his dark and quirky films, such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhand, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and the upcoming Alice in Wonderland. This weekend, we will also see the artistic side of his career when MoMA in New York opens a retrospective featuring well over 700 paintings, drawings, photos, puppets, costumes, story boards, short films, and slideshows – basically anything you can think of. Take a […]

Openings and Benefit: Juxtapoz 15th Anniversary Auction & Party

The much anticipated Juxtapoz 15th Anniversary party (previewed) went off this past Saturday and drew over 2,000 art lovers to the newly remodeled Factory Place Arts Complex in downtown Los Angeles. Mister Cartoon had all his classic rides out on display in the outside area as well as a beautiful chopper and his show-stopping pimped out Ice Cream truck inside with the rest of the art on display. Over 140 pieces were on view including just about every major name in our movement. If you […]

Openings: Eric Haze – “New Abstracts and Icons” @ Level 2 Gallery

Last night, AM attended the VIP opening of Eric Haze’s latest solo “New Abstracts and Icons” in Manhattan’s Level 2 Gallery. With DJ A Trak and Jay-Z’s DJ Neil Armstong working the turntables, many patrons of NYC’s art community and fashionistas came out to pay respect to an artist that has rocked the NYC scene for over three decades. Notables such as Kaws, Jose Parla, Logan Hicks, Charming Baker and many more were in attendance. The legendary New York artist came with a fresh new series […]

Studio Visits: Kelsey Brookes

Kelsey Brookes invades the sacred halls of Quint Contemporary Art this evening. The gallery has been around for almost 30 years now and is one of the most well respected spaces in the San Diego art scene, with several of their artists being picked for inclusion in the prestigious Whitney Museum of American Art’s Biennale in years past. For Kelsey, a San Diego based artist, this is a shining moment in his young career. For his debut solo show with the gallery, Kelsey has delivered […]

Highlights: Recommended openings for Nov 19 – Nov 22

As just about every noteworthy gallery in our movement prepares to head down to Miami for all the art fairs the week after next, the amazing shows somehow just keep coming. From the groundbreaking public opening of the amazing new PRISM space on the Sunset Strip in Hollywood this Friday featuring museum size work from the legendary duo of Barry McGee and Phil Frost through to “The Thousands” group show in the UK curated by RJ of Vandalog that just opened last night, there just […]

Openings: “Represent” Group Show @ Blackall Studios

A group show that we previewed here a while back, “Represent,” opened a couple weeks ago at Blackall Studios in London. Curated by Matt Small (interviewed), the show featured artists such as Swoon (interviewed), and ELBOW-TOE (interviewed) among others – all who have developed their own approach to portraiture. Once reserved for the rich, these artists use portrait painting to bring focus to social issues that otherwise may go unnoticed. In fact, part of the proceeds from the show Single Homelessness Project, a charity Small […]

Showing: Lava Collective “Cityscape” Group Show @ Dray Walk Gallery London

AM happened upon this good looking pop-up show at the Dray Walk Gallery in London’s Truman Brewery complex this week organised by the freshly formed Lava Collective. Lava brought over Brooklyn residents Peru Ana Ana Peru for their first showing of work in the UK, and their installation dominated the huge space. Peru Ana Ana Peru had just opened a show at Brooklynite Gallery a couple of weeks back (covered here), and we felt their use of audio and visual media as part of the […]

Openings: Walton Ford @ Paul Kasmin Gallery

Last Thursday, Chelsea’s Paul Kasmin Gallery hosted the opening of an exhibition of new large-scale watercolors by Walton Ford. At first glance, those not familiar with Ford might mistake his contemporary works for those of 19th century naturalist and painter John James Audobon. The similarity is intentional. However, instead of merely cataloging species as Audobon did, Ford uses the familiar visual language of the well-known wildlife artist and other early natural history artists to depict historically-based allegories of the violent collision of man and nature. […]

Showing: Kristin Baker – “Splitting Twilight” @ Deitch Projects

The Fall art season in NYC has been particularly good this year, and it seems to just keep getting better. We finally made it over to see the new Kristin Baker show entitled “Splitting Twilight” at SOHO’s Deitch Projects, and not ever having seen her work in person before, we were blown away. Baker uses tape to define forms, which she fills with acrylic paint and layers to create abstract landscapes and environments that explode with light and color. In addition, her technique of building […]

Benefit: MOCA gala raises $3.5 Million

Resuscitated from the brink of death, Los Angeles’ MOCA held their 30th anniversary gala last weekend to kick off their new exhibition “Collection: MOCA’s First Thirty Years.” The black-tie affair raised $3.5 million more for the institution and was capped off by the Frank Gehry-designed hat wearing Lady Gaga’s performance (seen above) with the Bolshoi Ballet where she sang and played on a rotating pink grand piano created by Damien Hirst. The piano, which can be seen after the jump, sold for $450,000 at the […]