Yes, sharp-eyed reader, that's the same title as the previous post. That's because, despite the fact it's almost two years since I last put anything up here, it's now time for another announcement of another solo show at the Compound Gallery.Here's some information in picture form:
That's right, there will be a spectacularly sumptuous opening this coming Saturday, August 17th 2019 from 6 - 9 pm to which you are invited, an invitation you would undoubtedly be foolish to decline. Sorry for the late notice. I obviously have issues posting to this platform for reasons that are unclear to me. Maybe it seems too much like work? I don't know. I'll try harder in the future.In the meantime, here are a few images of the kind of thing you might encounter adorning the esteemed walls of the Compound Gallery, should you choose to attend.I hope you will.
2015 - The Year in Review (Kind Of)
What the hell happened to 2015?It managed to both arrive and depart without the production of a single blog post from this indolent reprobate.Is it too late to make up for this lackadaisical approach to communication? Probably. Nevertheless, here's my misguided attempt to make up for my lamentable lack of updates.
Okay, so lets start in October. It's as good a month as any. And it was the month that saw the creation and launch of the above limited edition bronze. This was definitely the year's most awesome project, embarked upon with the help and expertise of the good folks at The Compound Gallery in Oakland. Entitled 'The Pursuit of Happiness' it's a handsome bronze skull that sits proudly atop it's very own sturdy maple plinth, complete with laser etched profanity. Each and every part of this edition of 13 was hand finished by me at great personal risk and considerable discomfort. And, most astounding of all, every one of the 13 pieces was sold in exactly 13 days. (Well, one disappeared into a mysterious void in the Australian postal system, but that's neither here nor there, like the piece itself.)
Earlier, in September, I also took part in a group show at the aforementioned Compound Gallery.It was a boxing themed affair entitled "Knockout", and I my contribution was the oddly shaped mixed media piece above. If you're wondering about the unusual dimensions, I chose them after a great deal of contemplation and consideration because the wood panel was heftily reduced in price in the art store.Aside from all the Compound related activity, 2015 also saw me start to show work regularly at The Dove Biscuit gallery in Los Angeles, which is located downtown, inside The Last Bookstore. The work available there is mostly my letterpress prints, plus a few smaller mixed media pieces. If you're in the LA area it's definitely worth a visit, not, I hasten to add, because of my work, but because it's a totally cool old building stuffed full of new and used books and records for sale at bargain prices.Speaking of books, July saw my humble contribution to international art publishing. This took the shape of 14 pages inside this lavish volume which goes by the imaginative title 'Artist Notebook'. Unsurprisingly it's a collection of artist's notebooks.
It's publushed by Monsa, in Spain and is available for a mere €25,90 right here. And if you're wondering, the inside looks bit like this:
Okay I can tell by the glazed look in your eyes, and your incessant yawning, that you're getting bored with all this dreary rambling. I think we both knew it wasn't a great idea, so let me wrap it up quickly for both our sakes. Here's something interesting - it's that fucking gorilla again.
Yes it made another fucking appearance. This time in the form of a fully-fledged theater performance, complete with paying audience, at the Toronto Fringe Festival. That's in Canada, people. Which is cool. And this time I supplied the original artwork for the posters. Which was also cool.Finally, as is traditional in these sparse and sporadic blog posts I'd like to end with an apology, accompanied by an excuse. But first some visual evidence:
Yes, dear reader, that is my wrist. To be more specific that is my right wrist. The wrist I use to draw, paint, type this very blog and complete sundry other less glamorous tasks. This delightful snapshot was taken in the Emergency Room of a San Francisco hospital back in March, after my bicycle and I were involved in an unpleasant altercation with an automobile. Thankfully after the surgical insertion of about eight inches of titanium and several weeks spent in a variety of casts, everything was restored to full functionality. And, on an uncharacteristically optimistic note, it gave me a chance to practice drawing left handed.Anyway, as you probably guessed by now, I was planning to blame the utter lack of activity here on the results of this regrettable incident, but the fact is, it's really just down to idleness and inertia, so I won't insult your intelligence.As usual I offer a half-hearted pledge to update this nonsense more frequently, if only to avoid having to create another of these appalling anthologies in the future. However, if you are misguided enough to want to keep up to date with my artistic activities I'd suggest following me on some other social media minefields, which I actually do update regularly. These include Tumblr, Instagram, Flickr, Pinterest, Twitter and, of course my very own kingdom on the internets, which goes by my name with .com on the end.Happy New Year, I hope 2016 will be everything you wish it to be.And thank you for your continued tolerance.
Jesus. Now appearing in Chico, CA.
I have half a dozen Jesus related artworks appearing in The Jesus Show which opened last Saturday night at the fabulous RayRay gallery at 530 Broadway Street, Chico, California. Religiously speaking I go through life as a kind of disinterested agnostic until I have the misfortune to actually encounter organized religion first hand, at which point I rapidly transform into a card-carrying atheist. Despite this lackadaisical attitude to religion, when Ray Ray invited me to contribute to the show I decided to take the plunge, figuring I would be able to find a rich vein of humor in a subject that’s already knee-deep in absurdity. Hopefully I succeeded. Because when all’s said and done, if I did believe in Jesus I’d have to believe he would enjoy a good laugh.And, judging by this promo video for the show, the folks at RayRay agree:[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_ZxR906Sro?rel=0&w=560&h=315]If you're feeling particularly spiritually stout-hearted you can see all six of the pieces I made for the show on my Society 6 page right here. And if you can't be bothered here's one more to be going on with.
And just to make the whole thing seem totally legit, you can even read a review of the show right here. Apparently my contribution " isn’t a mockery of faith... so much as a playful, sarcastic teasing of any moral sanctimony." a statement I'd have a hard time disagreeing with. Hallelujah!Other Gallery Related News:After almost 10 years of being represented by Hang in San Francisco, I recently decided to part company with the gallery. New ownership and a change in attitude to things like 'output' and 'market value' had made me even less comfortable with the gallery than I already was. (I've always been pretty much the token supplier of 'quirky' artwork - along with the fabulous Dave Warnke - amidst a plethora of well executed but pretty asinine decorative abstract and landscape paintings.) This won't actually make any real difference to the amount that my work gets shown, since it's been quite a while since Hang actually Hung any of my work, but it does mean I won't be selling any more pieces through them. The good news for you and me is that, since there won't be a 50% gallery commission on every piece bought, I can actually sell my work for a more reasonable price and yet still make more money. With that in mind I've posted a bunch of new work for sale on my Etsy shop. If you have the time and the inclination I'd humbly implore you to have a look. After all, nothing say 'Happy Holidays, Sweetie Pie' like the gift of slightly dodgy artwork.