Arrested Motion

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Contest: Sam Flores Painting Giveaway

Posted by sleepboy, January 28, 2009

To celebrate Upper Playground’s 10th Anniversary, Sam Flores has decided to give away a large painting (6 x 4 feet) to one lucky fan. The medium is acrylic and spray paint on wood framed canvas. Also, as a way of thanking fans he has made a series of 200 illustrations/drawings available at a very affordable price. Photos of these as well as all the contest details after the jump…

Google Icon x Jackson Pollock

Posted by sleepboy, January 28, 2009

Google is celebrating influential American abstract expressionist painter Jackson Pollock’s birthday today with their ever changing icon at the top of their search page. We wonder what percentage of people who use google everyday actually recognized the reference. If you haven’t watched the 2006 documentary “Who the #$&% Is Jackson Pollock?“ we recommend it as it has become somewhat of a cult classic for the art world. The video centers around a truck driver named Teri Horton who may have purchased a Pollock painting worth […]

Preview/Interviews: Craola @ Fifty24SF

Posted by sleepboy, January 27, 2009

Greg Simkins, or as he is popularly known, Craola (something he kept from his graffiti days) is opening his first show of 2009 at Fifty24SF on February 5th. His show “Seeing Things” (teased) expands on the pseudo still life format he has been working on, and the fact there is something alive in the arrangement that makes you take a second look. He talks about this as well as some other things an interview with us after the jump.

Benefit: Herakut @ Phillips de Pury

Posted by sleepboy, January 27, 2009

Herakut (interviewed) will be participating in a benefit auction for the charity War Child (viewing March 10-12, auction March 14) with Phillips de Pury. Not only will the canvas “You Sure?” be up for bidding, but there will also be other works on display (in progress) pieces showing the level of completion of a single piece. If you would like to meet Herakut, they are slated to be at the reception (March 10) to discuss their work. A picture of the sketch after the jump.

Teaser: Takashi Murakami @ Gagosian Gallery – UK

Posted by juggernut3, January 27, 2009

Fresh off a successful retrospective at the Museum fÃ¼r Moderne Kunst in Germany (here), Takashi Murakami is getting ready for his 4th and final stop of his historic retrospective tour at the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao in Spain on Februrary 17th. But before then, the reknowned Gagosian Gallery in the UK will be serving up a show of new works by the master of Superflat to run in tandem with the show in Bilbao (Feb 10th – April 9th.). Here’s a little teaser of Murakami’s famous […]

Preview/Interviews: Brandt Peters @ G1988 LA

Posted by sleepboy, January 26, 2009

Brandt Peter’s show “Cackle Factory” (teased) opens next week on Tuesday, February 3rd at Gallery 1988 LA. He brings his beautifully rendered menagerie of characters with him for his first solo show on the west coast.Â Brandt talks with AM about the themes of his upcoming show, his collaborative work with his wife and fellow artist Kathie Olivas, and future plans and projects.Â Check the interview after the jump.

Ryden x Nagi Noda

Posted by sleepboy, January 26, 2009

Although the fashion line was released a while back, we only recently saw the amazing ads for “Broken Label” – a collaboration between Mark Ryden and the late Japanese designer Nagi Noda. This line was sold through Colette in Paris and featured Ryden’s well known imagery. Apparently, the dresses were one of Noda’s favorites and she must have known her time had come because she was said to have died wearing her “Mark Ryden dress, Chanel boots, and perfect make-up with Viktor & Rolf lace […]

Louvre – Abu Dhabi

Posted by sleepboy, January 26, 2009

Amidst troubled world economies and tepid art sales, stories of galleries closing and museums in trouble are being reported more frequently. Although art institutions in Europe are perhaps in a better position because of heavy government subsidies when compared to the U.S., in these times, they too are seeking additional, more creative means of funding. News has come out recently that the Louvre is setting up their first-ever endowment fund with the $230 million installment paid to them from the United Arab Emirates. We are […]

Openings: ART LA 2009

Posted by stephen, January 26, 2009

AM swung by ART LA 2009 (previewed) this past weekend to scope out the latest in contemporary art being exhibited by the 60 emerging and blue-chip galleries on hand. Tim Fleming, Director of ART LA, describes the fair best, “ART LA, the New Los Angeles International Contemporary Art Fair, is an internationally acclaimed art-world event that has become one of the most significant annual cultural events in greater Los Angeles. ART LA has developed into a local community platform for Los Angeles based galleries to […]

Teaser: Shepard Fairey Retropective @ ICA Boston

Posted by juggernut3, January 25, 2009

It’s really no rest for the weary. Just as Shepard Fairey completes from a fruitful yet exhaustive trip to Washington D.C.Â (AM covered the entire trip here), he continues his break-neck schedule and immediately resumes focus on continuing preparations for his upcoming retrospective at the ICA in Boston which starts February 6th. The expansive retrospective curated by Pedro Alonzo, will showcase over 200 works, including not only screen prints, collages, stencils, stickers of his early days, but includes his recent fine art art works on wood, […]