SCION INSTALLATION L.A. GALLERY PRESENTS: “THE 2009 VICE MAGAZINE PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBITION”
Ninth Annual Photo Show Features Vice Photographers Jamie Lee Curtis Taete, Maggie Lee and Tim Barber
Opens July 25 Through August 8

Vice, the international arts and culture magazine distributed and published in more than 22 countries, comes to Scion’s Installation L.A. Gallery on July 25 for the ninth annual Vice Photo Show.

Best known for documenting youthful excess, questionable street fashion and powerful scenes of political unrest around the world, Vice presents this exhibition in conjunction with “The 2009 Vice Magazine Photo Issue” and is curated by the magazine’s managing editor Amy Kellner. The acclaimed annual edition has previously featured works from Terry Richardson, Ryan McGinley, Richard Kern, Jerry Hsu, Rennie Ellis and many others.

This year’s exhibition features Vice contributors Jamie Lee Curtis Taete, Maggie Lee, and former Vice photo editor, Tim Barber. Tim is also curating a mini group-show-within-a-group-show of photos featured on his online gallery, tinyvices.com.

Jamie Lee Curtis Taete is a 24-year-old English photographer whose candid images provoke intense reactions, often ranging from awe to disgust.  His work has been featured in Vice, Chief, PerezHilton.com and The Guardian, and has been shown in Mexico, France, Britain, North America and Japan as part of the Tiny Vices traveling exhibition.  Taete is a Vice UK staff photographer and maintains a photo blog at www.jamietaete.com.

Maggie Lee is a zine-maker, Pratt graduate and Vice staff photographer who has developed a chronological archive of her 21 years through captured light and photocopies.  Lee has shown her work in New York, New Zealand and Australia and has recently exhibited her Frenching zine at the New Museum’s “Younger Than Jesus” show.

Tim Barber, a photographer, curator, publisher, designer and former Vice Magazine photo editor runs the online gallery TinyVices.com. Founded in 2005, the site reflects various approaches to photography and allows emerging and underexposed artists to upload their work onto the influential platform.  For this exhibition, Barber will personally install a selection of works from the site.

More information on this and previous exhibitions is available at http://www.scion.com/space.

The opening reception takes place on July 25, 7 p.m. – 10 p.m. at the Scion Installation L.A. Space, 3521 Helms Ave. (at National), Culver City, CA 90232.  The reception is free with complimentary valet parking and an open bar.  All artists will be in attendance and Vice Photo Issues will be available at the event.  The exhibit will run until August 8, 2009.

Dedicated to fostering independent artistic expression, Scion Installation L.A. is a space that allows artists to explore their creative visions. The Scion Installation L.A. Space hosts art shows and art-related events for
cutting-edge contemporary artists from across the globe. Gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday 11:00 AM – 6:00 PM and by appointment - 310.815.8840.

Bic Plastics recently announced their first mini figures artist series, dubbed “Bic Buddy Artist Series 1.” The series features custom designs from 13 artists including: Ritzy Periwinkle, Marka27, COPE2, KANO and more. Ritzy’s design shows off the wings accessory, adding a new dimension to the standard figure shape. “I only had a couple of days to create two design options for BICS Plastics,” explains Ritzy.  “The chosen design was inspired by my experiences of Dia De Los Muertos in Oaxaca, Mexico, as well as the ongoing struggles of women all over the world, the revolutionary acts we commit on the daily and the incredible strength of my mom, who passed away 14 years ago.” The Bic Buddy figures will be distributed in the USA by DKE toys and in Taiwan by Pixie. They will be available in August with a preview at SD Comic Con next week, and there will be release/signing events in L.A. (AUG 15), N.Y.C. (AUG 20) and CHI TOWN (AUG 22).

Ritzy Periwinkle, aka Marisa Estrada is a Los Angeles artist and designer with deep roots in urban art and music culture. The name Ritzy Periwinkle, a pseudonym that started among her and her crew, stems from “Maritza” (the way her birth name was originally supposed to be spelled) and the Crayola color, “Periwinkle”. The tight beats and poetic lyrics of Hip Hop fuel her artistic creativity. Graduating from California State University Long Beach with a fine art degree with an emphasis in graphic design, Ritzy has created designs and artwork for Dilated Peoples, Aterciopelados, Sonic Youth, Calle 13, “I Am Legend”, Slick Rick, Arcade Fire and many more.  With art exhibitions in art and music hubs such as Los Angeles, Detroit and New York, Ritzy communicates a beautiful energy and respect for her community of women and people of color. Working in photography, illustrations, graphics, collage and creating a flourishing boutique t-shirt line, Ritzy compliments her gritty stylistic tendencies with a positive vibe that is attributed to her eclectic influences and unique background.  Ritzy Periwinkle happily mixes music and art to her own beat, bringing pure harmony to her creativity.

Ritzy P was recently commissioned by Capitol Records to do three original pieces for the special domestic packaging of the Nat King Cole remix project RE:GENERATIONS along with the graphic design of the domestic and international packaging. Her artwork was featured in the accompanying exhibit and CD release celebration at Los Angeles’ Crewest Gallery, and she was interviewed and featured in issue 3 of Waxpoetics Japan in conjunction with this project. Other recent projects from Ritzy include participation in the Stoked Sessions LA benefit, the redesign of the LA Forum website (http://www.thelaforum.com/) and a microsite for Santana (http://www.supernaturalsantana.com/).

In addition to the Bic Buddy series, Ritzy is participating in a group show at Meltdown Comics Gallery on Sept 4th. The show will feature work from Los Angeles local artists as well as some old school New York City classics. She is also getting ready to launch her own line of merchandise to include new shirt designs, pillows, postcards, urban tea towels and posters. In collaboration with ceramist Jen E, the two will be creating ceramic pendants customized with Ritzy P designs and a series of urban Japanese small ceramic boxes - “little treasures.” Catch JEN E & RITZY P SUPREME GOODS at this year’s Winter UNIQUE LA show.

More info about Ritzy Periwinkle
Info on Nat King Cole RE:GENERATIONS

Ritzy P and others discussing the Nat King Cole project:

Ritzy P in FUEL TV video spot about Stoked

MID CITY ARTS PRESENTS: MIAMI GRAFFITI - Street Art Exhibit, Installation & Book Signing
Mid-City Arts continues to bring the best of street art to Los Angeles with its latest show honoring the Miami graffiti scene. “Miami Graffiti” opens July 11, 7pm – 9pm and will be on view through July 26th.

Rapidly becoming one of the United States’ top graffiti destinations, Miami, Florida is home to a deep well of talented artists driven by a fiercely competitive graffiti scene.  Miami’s profile has risen thanks to the city’s role as host to the famed “Art Basel” and most recently “Primary Flight.” “Primary Flight” is the internationally acclaimed, site-specific, street level mural installation that takes place during Art Basel. Artists that have graced the Primary Flight walls include Crome, MSG, Typoe as well as Blek Le Rat, Retna, El Mac, David Choe, Revok and many others.

Miami Graffiti by photographers Jim and Karla Murray is the first book to capture Miami’s graffiti scene. Documenting 20+ years of graffiti art and history along with Miami’s most notorious crews and writers, Miami Graffiti is a detailed presentation of South Florida’s past, present, and future of graffiti.

Mid City Arts’ “Miami Graffiti” show is a celebration of the release of Jim and Karla Murray’s book – they will be on hand to sign books -  and a showcase of some of Florida’s finest street artists from the MSG, TCP, SH and THC crews. Artists from these crews are coming out to Los Angeles and will be displaying their work in the gallery as well as customizing the gallery’s back yard space. Featured artists include Crome, Typoe, Acme, Enve, Murder, Afex, Kemo, Cynic, Gere, Flojoe and others. The show is curated by “Slow”.

The MSG crew formed in 1994 by a group of kids bonded through their shared street backgrounds and love of graffiti. Now, 14 years later, MSG has evolved into a creative collective that has expanded into everything from graphic design and fine art, to retail and product design, and everything in between. South Florida’s Crome is one that region’s graffiti pioneers. Crome’s work is an amalgam of sex, color, crime and fun. Drawing inspiration from Miami’s clashing of tropical South Beach & seedy underbelly of Downtown Districts, he creates images that reflect the dichotomy between the beauty, style and color of the former, while balancing it with the images of prostitution; drive bys and drugs of the latter. Crome is multifaceted and multi-dimensional.  He’s an artist with a dark past and a bright future making his mark on the vanilla, superficial Miami art scene.

Mid-City Arts was established in September 2009 as an extension of the store 33third – LA’s premier source of street art supplies, streetwear apparel, and related books and magazines. The gallery was established with the purpose of showcasing local, national, and international artwork by up and coming and established artists with a focus on (but not limited to) graffiti / street / urban art. Recent shows have included work by Chaka, Retna and El Mac. Mid-City Arts offers a show space that interacts with other artists and events that surround the 33third Los Angeles location. The gallery’s artwork is available to view by the active customer base of 33third, which includes graffiti artists and fans of graffiti art. Mid-City Arts is open Monday through Sunday 12-8PM. For more information, visit: www.midcity-arts.com
Mid-City Arts is located at: 5111 W. Pico Blvd. Los Angeles Ca. 90019

Feel free to repost.

The show is up through July 11th at Scion’s Los Angeles gallery.
http://www.scion.com/space

Artists AJ Fosik, Asylm, Patrick Martinez, Christina M. Felice and Something In The Universe will be in attendance along with Beautiful Decay’s Amir Fallah. DJ Apt One will be spinning.
http://www.scion.com/installation

Miles Regis is a self-taught, experimental painter. Born in Trinidad, he has been greatly influenced by Caribbean artists such as Alexander King, LeRoy Clarke, Derek Walcott, Carlisle Harris, Boscoe & Geoffrey Holder and Michael and David Boothman. Regis’ paintings are distinctly Trinidadian in color and expression. He is particularly interested in experimenting with texture, and his multi-media works employ various types of paint, fabric, and found objects. Like a Caribbean backyard clothesline, the unframed paintings of Miles Regis hang freeform with everyday news. His works representing family, protection and daily life spill out on the canvas in graffitti-esque forms as if he only had a moment to scribble his thoughts before being run off by a conformist neighbor.

Regis’ work was recently showcased in CNN’s “African Voices” feature of actor Isaiah Washington, who collects Regis’ paintings; Other collectors of Miles Regis’ work include Ron Perlman and Nicolette Sheridan.

Pounder-Koné Art Space
3407 Glendale Blvd. (Atwater Village)
Los Angeles, CA 90039
323.913.2247
www.cchpkas.com/pkas2@sbcglobal.net

C E R A S O L I  g a l l e r y presents

MATT PHILLIPS ‘Out Through The In Door’  in gallery one
MARIO WAGNER ‘Some Are Here And Some Are Missing’  in gallery two
SETH CURCIO ‘Beyond A Shadow’  in gallery three
June 13 - July 8, 2009

Opening Reception: Saturday June 13, 6-9pm

http://www.cerasoligallery.com

C E R A S O L I gallery 8530- b Washington Blvd. Culver City,CA 90232
Tue- Sat 11am - 6pm / Tel. 310 954 5974 / info@cerasoligallery.com

image: Mario Wagner  Ghost, 2009, Paper collage & acrylic on canvas, 55 x 35″

C E R A S O L I  Gallery presents a selection of works by three artists working with collage as their medium, MATT PHILLIPS ‘Out Through The In Door’  in Gallery One, MARIO WAGNER  ‘Some Are Here And Some Are Missing’ in Gallery Two, and SETH CURCIO  ‘Beyond A Shadow’ in Gallery Three at Cerasoli. Opens June 13, 2009, and remains on view through July 8, 2009.

Utilizing a multi-faceted approach to painting, Matt Phillips’ large-scale, oil and collage on canvas artworks reference op-art, pattern painting, mosaics and textiles.  Phillips approaches his multilayered, dynamically textured, collage paintings as both object and illusion.  Prismatic, lively and rhythmic, accessible cube-grids and diamond quilt-piece patterns are viewed through transparent cracks, sketchy loops and crooked squares.  The artist’s intentional interruption of patterned space fractures his already frenetic compositions into kaleidoscopic abstractions.  Plays on shape, color and movement result in paintings that are both formal and lyrical, quirky yet familiar.  Originally from Roanoke, Virginia, Phillips received his degree in visual art and art history from Hampshire College, where he has taught as a visiting professor.

In Mario Wagner’s collage on canvas works, high contrast images of 1960s cool are layered onto large-scale vintage settings, tinted in lurid colors and populated by men in three piece suits and girls with shiny hair, clustered hands and disembodied eyes. Wagner draws from familiar Modernist techniques such as Dadaist collage and photomontage to create his paper collage and acrylic on canvas works.  Created using ‘analog’ processes with scissor, glue and acrylic, Wagner’s surreal scenes of intrigue and glamour exude an underlying false sense of nostalgia for a bygone era of an overindulged society.  Wagner, a German-born artist and illustrator, has been shown in numerous international exhibitions and his illustrations and artworks have been commissioned by Esquire, Playboy, Vanity Fair, and The New York Times Magazine.

Seth Curcio implements Xerox and laser copiers, billboard pasting, enamel paints, and screen prints — what he describes as “the accessible materials of mass commerce” — in the construction of his mid sized collages on paper and panel.  At first glance, Curcio’s pictures resemble familiar contemporary landscapes, but on further inspection, a perplexing multiplicity imbues Curcio’s images with hallucinogenic static.  Kaleidoscopic explosions splinter a high-rise building into a shadowy house of cards.  At other times, patterns multiply like mushrooms within celestial landscapes that mirror both the surface of the moon and the interior of the Mir space station. Disquieting and complex, each work encourages the viewer to decipher the authenticity, means of creation, and newly constructed narrative of its imagery. Resembling photo-real environments shredded and then pieced together from memory, an intricate mesh which captures the claustrophobic and endlessly reconstructed nature of our contemporary culture, Curcio’s works blur the boundaries between artifice and reality.  Curcio has served as director of Redux Contemporary Art Center and is the publisher of the art blog Dailyserving.com.

C E R A S O L I  gallery  is located at 8530- b Washington Blvd. Culver City, CA 90232, and is open  Tuesday - Saturday 11am - 6pm. For additional information contact, Freddi Cerasoli at contact@cerasoligallery.com or (310) 954 5974     Website: http://www.cerasoligallery.com

Singer + Songwriter, Amy Serrata creates music intended to heal and bring people together. Amy’s interest in singing arose at an early age listening to the sounds of Nat King Cole, Ella Fitzgerald, Ray Charles, Louis Armstrong to name a few. She sung in choir and started singing lessons at the age of 10 years old when she attended Nido De Aguilas, an international school in Santiago, Chile. As she got older she sung in several gospel choirs and through that experience continued to develop her vocal improvisational skills.
When she began creating her own music, she improvised by using poetry that she had previously written. The melodies started to naturally form and she then worked with producers Hyp, HMD & Nyambezi to round out the sound of her self -titled debut album, Amy Serrata.

Amy also collaborated with Willie Norwood, father of R&B star Brandy Norwood. He acted as Amy’s vocal coach and producer for the album. “The vibe between me and Willie is incredible, “ says Amy. “He helped me refine my harmonies and adlibs.  The music was good before but it was even better after I worked with him!  I look forward to working with him again.”

Amy Serrata features a seamless musical blend of soul, hip-hop and jazz, tied together with Amy’s signature vocals, and uplifting approach to songwriting. “I hope people can listen to my songs and relate to the messages or be touched by them. I wanted to give a message of confidence to others its ok to be scared by life sometimes.  But to let fear stop you in life is not ok.”

Amy leads by her own fearless example, drawing on her own struggles to provide material for the album, but always with a positive and inspiring twist. Her universal message and passion, combined with diverse musical influences creates a rich experience for the listener.  “My experience while making my album was amazing.  It was rocky and bumpy but the overall journey was sweet.  Nothing comes easily in life but I wanted this badly so I fought for it.”

Amy’s music is largely about personal growth and evolution. “My music is meant to heal and bring people together because the words are positive and they make us see that we are only human.  We all go through similar things but we can all be better and inspire each other to be our best.” She also tackles serious subject matter such as child abductions on “My Baby My Child.”

Look out for Amy performing various dates around California, including opening for Aloe Blacc, as well as collaborative performances with Bay Area MC Niamaj.
For more info:
www.amyserrata.com

Check out live clips:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulD19g8C4DI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIe-ZZ77O3s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRfv221_8Ws

FAESTHETIC AND SCION INSTALLATION L.A. GALLERY PRESENT “THIS MUST BE THE PLACE”
Think Faest: Art and Oddities Zine Delivers “Home”-Themed Works By Eight Artists In Two Tones

Opening on June 20, Scion Installation L.A. Gallery in Culver City and Faesthetic magazine present This Must Be The Place, a collection of art and oddities by eight American artists inspired by the zine’s minimally toned aesthetic.

Featuring work from Gluekit, Maxwell Loren Holyoke-Hirsch, Damien Correll, Joel Speasmaker, Matt Curry, Skull Phone, Dan Funderburgh and Jemma Hostetler, the acclaimed multimedia artists and designers explore the theme of “home” with the loose limitation of a two-toned color palette.

Produced and distributed in close partnership with Chicago-based crowd sourced t-shirt company, Threadless.com, Faesthetic began in 2001 as a photocopied zine and developed into a high-quality experimental arts magazine with international participation and readership.

About the artists:

Gluekit: www.gluekit.com
With a firm belief that glue is good, Christopher and Kathleen Sleboda explore design in the forms of typography, visual narration and spatial relationships.  Their illustrations, images, products and type have been exhibited internationally and featured in Typomofo (2009), Over and Over (2008), and major magazines including New York, Rolling Stone, Newsweek, Wired and Nylon.

Maxwell Loren Holyoke-Hirsch: www.lorenholyoke.com
Raised in San Diego by artists, Maxwell’s early life was marked by paint splatters and graphite smudges.  His hunger for new, bold colors inspired him to move north and delicate notions emerged from singed and stormy linework.  Thriving on thematic opposition, controlled chaos and exploration, his images rise from an array of materials, including wood, wax and manually moiled squid ink.

Damien Correll www.damiencorrell.com
Originally from Philadelphia, Damien is a designer and illustrator living in Brooklyn.  Formerly of the Rad Mountain collective, he is now a creative partner at the small design studio Part & Parcel.  His work has been featured in New York magazine, XLR8R, Juxtapoz, IdN, STEP, NOVUM, The New York Times magazine and Faesthetic.

Joel Speasmaker: www.thisisforest.com
Forest is Joel’s Brooklyn-based multi-purpose studio that works in the areas of graphic design, art direction, publishing, branding, Web design and development, illustration and curatorial projects.  As the previous publisher of The Drama magazine, Joel now acts as art director for Anthem magazine.  He has exhibited and curated in galleries including Subliminal Projects, New Image Art, Little Bird, Lump and Okay Mountain, among others.

Matt Curry: www.ninjacruise.com
A graduate in illustration from the Rhode Island School of Design, Matt is the principal of the Washington D.C.-based, award winning design studio Imagefed and has been nominated for two Grammy awards as a designer, illustrator and painter.  His visual language drawn from mythology and religious iconography has graced album and magazine covers, limited edition products and galleries worldwide.

Skull Phone: www.skullphone.com
Skull Phone is a Los Angeles-based artist whose iconic yet morbidly ironic image of a skull holding a cell phone speaks coldly and anonymously to the public through the streets.

Dan Funderburgh: www.danfunderburgh.com
Dan is a wallpaper designer and artist in Brooklyn, NY. His patterns, prints and installations are varied, but demonstrate an unabashed love for decorative arts. With influences ranging from renaissance tapestry to American op art, the work is a repudiation of the fabricated schism between art and decoration. Some of Dan’s work can be found in the collections of the Cooper-Hewitt Design Museum and the Miami Museum of Modern Art.

Jemma Hostetler: www.jemmahostetler.com
Jemma Hostetler (née Gura) is an art director and designer working in branding, product, print and interactive. Her work, such as “Prate.com - an aesthetic exploration,” has been featured in numerous reviews and books, including one she co-authored challenging designers to push the boundaries of their creative tools. Jemma is co-founder of Sans Nom, a design studio located in Toledo, Ohio.

More information on this and previous exhibitions is available at www.scion.com/space

The opening reception takes place on June 20, 7 p.m. – 10 p.m. at the Scion Installation L.A. Space, 3521 Helms Ave. (at National), Culver City, CA 90232.  The reception is free with complimentary valet parking and an open bar. The exhibit will run until July 11, 2009.

Dedicated to fostering independent artistic expression, Scion Installation L.A. is a space that allows artists to explore their creative visions. The Scion Installation L.A. Space hosts art shows and art-related events for cutting-edge contemporary artists from across the globe. Gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday 11:00 AM – 6:00 PM and by appointment - 310.815.8840. For more information, visit www.scion.com/space.

About Scion
Scion, from Toyota Motor Sales (TMS), U.S.A., Inc., was developed with a new generation of youthful buyers in mind.  Scion’s mission is to provide distinctive products, the opportunity to personalize, and an innovative, consumer-driven process at the retail level.  The Scion brand features three ground-breaking models with a wide array of standard features: the xD urban subcompact five-door, the iconic xB urban utility vehicle, and the tC sports coupe.  The brand often applies new practices in all aspects of its business and pushes the creativity envelope with non-traditional advertising and marketing to engage young consumers. Scion also supports originality through its programs in the artistic community.  For more information, visit www.scion.com.

Preview images from the show