Art Focus « Arrested Motion

Category Archives: Art Focus

Basel Week Miami ’12 / Art Focus: Jorge Santos

Posted by sleepboy, December 27, 2012

As you saw from our coverage and cover image for CONTEXT Art Miami, we were quite taken by an artist new to AM – Jorge Santos. Showing with 101/Exhibit as well as Evan Lurie Gallery, the American painter takes inspiration from the political turmoil and struggles of his formative years in Angola and Portugal to create surreal and brooding scenes, a seemingly frozen snapshot in some fantastic story. With his works overflowing with intriguing characters and details, we found ourselves continually discovering new things as […]

Art Focus: Eloy Morales

Posted by sleepboy, December 24, 2012

It’s been a while since we last had an Art Focus article here on AM, but it’s time to get back to introducing artists new to our site. Eloy Morales is a painter from Spain who specializes in large oil on panel portraits. He had his first show at the age of 15, and has been focused on creating art ever since. You may have seen his work at various art fairs as well as solos in his native country. Check out more of his incredible […]

Art Focus: Vasilis Avramidis

Posted by sleepboy, September 19, 2012

For our Art Focus this week, a new artist you may want to check out is Vasilis Avramidis. The Greek artist’s oil paintings depict scenes and objects that overgrown where inhabitants are attempting to control and maintain the lush vegetation. Avramidis draws inspiration from gardens that are both real and imaginary, his references vary from the far away reality of Gilgamesh’s Garden of the Gods to the gothic Highgate Cemetery. He currently has a show Caretakers on display in London at Jacob’s Island Gallery for those who want to see the […]

Art Focus: Ernest Zacharevic

Posted by sleepboy, August 25, 2012

This week, we would like to introduce you to the work of Ernest Zacharevic for our Art Focus feature. The Lithuanian artist has been recently putting up work in the streets of Penang, Malaysia that speak to his eye for placement. His murals frequently interact with existing three-dimensional elements and the existing architecture. Take a look at more photos below… Via Street Art Utopia.

Art Focus: Beth Cavener Stichter

Posted by sleepboy, August 18, 2012

This week’s Art Focus draws your attention to the raw clay sculptures of Beth Cavener Stichter. The Washington State-based artist uses animal forms as a study on human psychology and the unconscious impulses of the human mind. She states – “On the surface, these figures are simply feral animals suspended in a moment of tension. Beneath the surface, they embody the consequences of human fear, apathy, aggression, and misunderstanding.” For those interested in seeing her work in person, she has a show opening on September 13th in […]

Art Focus: Toyin Odutola

Posted by sleepboy, August 1, 2012

Our midweek Art Focus is on an artist new to AM – Nigerian-born, American artist Toyin Odutola. Using only pen and ink on paper, the tools of her trade create a novel look to her portraits which explore ideas of race and refers to skin as geography and terrain where she uses to draw on their individualities and experiences. She is currently in a group show at the Tamarind Institute in Albuquerque, New Mexico entitled Afro: Black Identity in America and Brazil “highlighting work by three Afro Brazilian artists […]

Art Focus: Jill Sylvia

Posted by sleepboy, July 28, 2012

This week’s artist who we want to introduce to you in our Art Focus feature is Jill Sylvia. The American artist uses an unusual medium – ledger paper – to create famous buildings in the United States utilizing a painstaking and time-consuming process. The symbolism of her raw materials is not lost on the viewers as she explores ideas of greed, debt, financial responsibility, and economics with a sort of an artistic hijacking of the idea of “accounting.” For those who are interested, head over […]

Art Focus: Hyungkoo Lee

Posted by sleepboy, July 9, 2012

For our newest Art Focus feature, we turn our attention to the sculptures of Korean artist Hyungkoo Lee. His Homo Animatus series of works feature skeletal representations of familiar cartoon characters created out of resin, aluminum sticks, stainless steel wires, springs, and oil paint. If you look closely, you will see the bones of our favorite childhood friends like Canis Latrans Animatus (Wile E. Coyote), Geococcyx Animatus (Roadrunner), Lepus Animatus (Bugs Bunny), Felis Catus Animatus (Tom), Mus Animatus (Jerry), Anas Animatus (Donald Duck) and his three nephews, […]

Art Focus: Fulvio di Piazza

Posted by sleepboy, June 30, 2012

A new artist here to AM this week for our Art Focus feature is also opening a show tonight, June 30th, at the Jonathan LeVine Gallery. Fulvio di Piazza is a Sicilian artist who specializes in surreal oil paintings, a selection of which, entitled Ashes to Ashes, will be on display at the New York showspace in his first solo exhibition in the United States. His current imagery includes fantastical volcanic landscapes with floating islands and re-shaped land masses forming heads & creatures, among other things – […]

Art Focus: Frieke Janssen

Posted by sleepboy, June 23, 2012

This week’s Art Focus is on Belgian photographer Frieke Janssen. Among her many projects, one in particular is titled simply Smoking Kids, which was inspired after seeing a YouTube video of a chainsmoking Indonesian toddler. She states “The video highlighted the cultural differences between the east and west, and questioned notions of smoking being a mainly adult activity. Adult smokers are the societal norm, so I wanted to isolate the viewer’s focus upon the issue of smoking itself. I felt that children smoking would have a surreal […]