This past weekend, Lebasse Projects hosted a traveling exhibition (see SF coverage) which featured collaborations by artists Risk and Nathan Ota. Titled That Was Then, This Is Now, the show brought together the two long time friends for an exhibit which showcased a superb collection of artwork diplaying each artist’s strengths and respective styles.
While Risk’s work often focused on graffiti-type iconography and lettering, Ota rendered the rest of the paintings with finely detailed settings and characters that at times felt surreal and strange. Although on first glance the differences between the two artists may seem too stark, they still managed to turn each piece into a seamless work of art that capitalized on each of the artist’s strengths. Although some of these larger pieces were the exhibit’s main attraction, the smaller works were also a key factor in the show’s presentation. One perfect example were the pieces which showed the ladder of success, beginning with the target sign and ending with the dollar sign sitting atop the hills.
This show proved that the artists could not have been a better match for each other and it will be interesting to see what lays in front of them if they decide to collaborate yet again. Take a look at all the opening photos after the jump…
