Petals Falling and Subsequently Blossoming
As we mentioned in our teaser a couple weeks ago, Edwin Ushiro will be opening his show “At Night, Lights Fell and Loved Ones Returned Home” this Wednesday at Sloan Fine Art. AM was looking forward to this show after his impressive showing at Lebasse Projects last September and were lucky enough to be able to catch up with Edwin for an interview recently where he discusses his thoughts behind the show, some of his process, and LOST among other things.
Take a look at all the questions and answers after the jump…
The Secret Life of a Rustling Brush
Arrested Motion (AM): Can you tell us a little about this new body of work? How did you choose the title “At Night, Lights Fell and Loved Ones Returned Home.” Will it be similar to your last solo where your paintings were based on ghost stories?
Edwin Ushiro (EU): The title is about the moments between here and there. It’s an airplane between departing and arriving. Much like ghosts, such stories connect the past to the present. In this series, I ask the presently abandoned space to tell us the stories it contain. And yes, many of them do include ghosts.
AM: We hear you have added a new dimension your paintings with plexi in the back. Can you explain how this changes your technique and why you decided to try it?
EU: Yes, I experimented with plexi glass before this series. It really adds a nice luminescence to the final product. It doesn’t really change the technique but adds another obstacle to conquer through my laborious process. Although if I am successful, the results are pleasing to me.
Passing
AM: From what you have told us before, you never know how the your paintings will turn out because of the delicacy of your process. Any paintings get destroyed this time around? Did any of them turn out differently than you expected?
EU: Unfortunately, I had to redo my largest painting in this series, “Passing” 3 times to get the result I wanted. Differently? Well, I did push my colors more that I have attempted in the past.
AM: Out of curiosity, since you are from Hawaii, do you watch LOST? If so, how do you think the final season is turning out?
EU: Yes, I am actually a big fan of LOST. As a local boy from Hawaii, it’s pretty fun to see how the crew dressed up certain Oahu locations to look like Korea and Los Angeles. On this season, I am waiting for a major table-turner or else it’s going to result in what I (and many others) predicted since season 4. I can’t wait to find out.
AM: Any shows or projects you can share with us for the rest of 2010?
EU: Oh, I am going to do a two person show with my friend, Yoskay Yamamoto in the next half of this year at Roq La Rue.
