Friday 28 November 2008

Clowning around



This new group show at the Corey Helford gallery (L.A, surprise surprise...) asked 45 artist to reimagine the theme of clowns.


I find clowns as freaky as the next person, but some of the pieces are mind bending!
The show features really acessable designers such as Toki Doki and Paul Frank as well as some lesser known artists (and some of my personal favourites !).


see all the pieces from the exhibitionhere!.

Corey Helford Gallery
8522 Washington Boulevard
Culver City, CA 90232
T: 310-287-2340
www.coreyhelfordgallery.com

Santa's coming!


How good are some people with icing?? Seriously!

other voices, other rooms





Andy Warhol's exhibition at the hayward gallery opened recently, so I decided to go down and see what was what.

The exhibition was actually really interesting, as i had only really seen some of his pieces at the museum of Modern art in New York and personally I had not known much about Andy Warhol's life. And I'm sure watching Factory Girl doesn't count....

Obviously there is quite a lot of publicity surrounding his work and it goes without saying he is a widely recognised artist. I even remember being told to study him in Art in year 7 (ah memories...). But the exhibition really goes into detail in a very personal way, allowing you to nosey through millions of personal photos (my favourite being the ones where he was applying drag make-up), polaroids and time capsules from Andy's life.



The exhibition is really interactional and features a lot of really rare insights into his work including his films and factory diaries. The show almost makes a point of discounting Warhol's more publicised work by displaying it at an overly high level, as if suggesting it is a by product of his life, which in itself was art.

“Everyone knows the Monroe screen prints and the soup cans. This show will present a selection of other aspects of the artist which together will strip him bare.”

I recommend going to see the show, even if you are not a particular fan or Warhol's work as it is very insightful into his intreuging character. And no one can deny he was that.

The exhibition is running from 7th October 2008-18th Jan 2009 at The Hayward Gallery London.

Camilla D'Errico Interview


I recently had the opportunity to interview renowned pop surrealism artist Camilla D'Errico for a University assignment.
She is a really nice person as well as a very talented individual.

I thought I would put the interview up here in it's full as due to the word limitation of my piece I was not able to include all of it.

Where do you get most of your inspiration for you work? Do you keep a sketchbook?
I get my inspiration from lots of places, especially from manga, anime and other artists. I do keep a sketchbook.

How would you describe your work to someone who had never seen it before?

As far as my paintings go I’d describe them as portraits of girls juxtapozed with animals, and they girls are trying to say something but its up to you to decide what they’re saying. I use tons of colour and I like to give emotion to the paintings so that people can connect to them.

What is the art scene like where you are from, and did it influence you much growing up?
The art scene in Vancouver is pretty vibrant, not as much as LA, where most of my shows are. But still, Vancouver has lots going on, a huge Asian population, and a very laid back attitude, so there is no stuffiness or snobbiness like you might find in bigger cities or art circles.

Your work has been expanded into many products such as snowboards, magazine covers, toys, clothes. How important do you think it is to make art accessible for everyone?
Very important! I love expanding into all kinds of merchandise, its fun. I think that since art is so subjective, and there are so many ways of expressing ideas, the more that is out there, the better!

Tell me more about your high fashion line which is coming out...what is the inspiration for it and who do you picture wearing it?
My high fashion line is still in the very early stages of design development. I haven’t quite figured it all out yet. I want all women to wear it, it is going to be for everyone, but its going to be totally different from the casual clothes scene. I want to expand beyond tshirts and hoodies and give women something elegant to wear so they feel special and unique.

As an established artist yourself, is there anyone's work you particularly admire? Do you have any heroes?
Ashley Wood, Toulouse Lautrec, Kent Williams, Tsutomu Nihei, CLAMP, Terada Katsuya, Yoshitobe Abe and so many other artists. I also admire Lori Early, Kathie Olivas, Mark Ryden … and am friends with Tim Biskup and Gary Baseman, who are simply unreal artists!



How do you feel about the role of manga and Japanese art in the wider art community, and what would you say to people who do not perceive manga to be a form of art?
The culture behind manga is what inspires me - the differences between our cartoons and Asian anime, is that they don’t consider is a child’s media it is another way of telling a story. Once you allow yourself to see past the idea that cartoons are just for kids, it opens you up to a whole new world of ideas. And I grew up watching and reading as many manga as I could get my hands on; I love it.

What personality do you imagine for the girls that feature in your paintings?
They have very ambiguous personalities, they are multi-faceted – like most women!! I have a strong personality myself, but there are days when I am one person, and days when I feel like another. All in all I think that each person can see something different in every girl I paint, and that is a reflexion of themselves or of how they view the world.

You have previously worked on vinyl, do you have any plans to use vinyl or expand into different mediums again in the future? And which is your favourite medium to work in?
My favorite medium is the BIC pen when drawing a comic panel! I have done sculpture too, which is a lot of fun but takes lots of time. I am not a huge fan of painting vinyl blanks because I seriously hurt myself doing it! You have to take them apart, paint them, put them back together … but the end result is always worth it. I’d like to work with some vinyl toy companies to make some vinyl toys based on my characters.

Your work is currently being featured at the 'Dark Pop' exhibition; do you see your work going down a darker path in the future?
Dark is quite difficult … I am not a dark person myself, and so doing something dark was a nice change, but I couldn’t do dark on a regular basis. I think my essence is light, so I paint what I am inside. I have my dark and sad days, but in general, I am a child of light!

What can fans such as myself expect from your work in the future?
I am always trying to improve what I do, and practice makes perfect! The more I paint, the more I want to add details and refine what I am doing. I’ll be diving into a lot of comics work coming up, which I am very excited about. There are two projects I’m working on for clients, plus I am expanding my Tanpopo series. And of course I’ll be looking to make more merchandise and do some more collaborations.

And some quickfire questions to round off….

Your recent solo show was entitled 'Waterfall of Dreams', what did you last dream about?
I dream about the mangas I read before going to bed … so I am usually dreaming about being in that world and interacting with those characters 

What are you most proud of?
I am proud of how I never gave up on my dream and how I keep living that dream out. I am glad I never stopped or let criticism get me down.

The colour is your work is always very vivid and displays a strong sense of mood; do you have a favourite colour?
Pink

What advice would you give to yourself if you could go back in time?
Learn about contracts.

What is an average day in the life of Camilla D'Errico?
Art, art and more art! I wake up in the morning, take my time in waking up actually, then hit the computer to check my emails and see what’s been going on. Then I turn to my art, whether its comics or painting, I call or chat with my sister often because we have so many projects going on. I spend a lot of time keeping after these projects – so sending files, cleaning up images, answering emails from fans, etc. I try to paint at night when I cannot be disturbed. During the day I’ll also get lots of calls, or have to go buy supplies, etc. I have a pretty full day, but I still find time to read mangas too.

Your work is very fantastical and you have worked on numerous books, did you have a favourite book or fairytale when you were younger?

I have to say that Disney was a huge influence for me. I especially loved the Brothers Grimm tales.

Do you have a favourite piece of work that you have created?
One of my favorites is Jovey’s Antoinette

What is your favourite word?
LOVE

see more of Camilla's amazing work here!.

Monday 24 November 2008

It takes the cake



One of the things I've missed while being at Uni (besides the varied diet and less debt) is the fact that I have a nice bathroom at home.
Because, with cake related bathroom supplies such as this knocking about, I really want to replace my boring shower gel, pronto!
This added to the fact that it is from sephora (which is one of my main spending spots when in the U.S) makes it all the more desirable for my xmas list....
After all, who wouldn't want to smell like dessert??


To see more go here!.

Monday 17 November 2008

Explosions in the sky




Cai Guo-Qiang- one word, amazing!

His artwork 'aims to establish an exchange between viewers and the larger universe around them. '

To see more from Cai gohere!.

Tuesday 11 November 2008

Choke is a rom-com..what the?!



So anyone who is a fan of Chuck Phalaniuk or even just picked up a copy of fight club will probably be aware of the impending release of his next book-turned-film adaptation, Choke. Phalaniuk is famed for his dark comedy style, and that is one of reasons I like his novels, my personal favourite being Invisible Monsters.
So this is why, when I saw the advert I was slightly disappointed. Blasted across the footage was the quote 'Welcome to the rom-com fight club'-Loaded. I'm really hoping its not...but then I'm really sure I would never take 'Loaded's advice on anything...
Still, watching the trailer I do get a 'rom-com with an edge' vibe from it.
The other thing I noticed was the main actor Sam Rockwell...haven't I seen him somewhere before...oh thats right...CHARLIE'S ANGELS!!


Moving on...haha... I will go see Choke, but I am slightly skeptical about the way in which the book had been adapted for screen...

The release date for Choke in the UK is November 21st.

To see the trailer go here!.
And for pure amusement, to see sam rockwell do the charlie's angels dance go here!.

A further reason why living in L.A is very enticing...






The drawing room, curated by the amazing Audrey Kawasaki!

If youre lucky enough to live in the L.A area then get yourself down to thinkspace!
Thinkspace Art Gallery
4210 Santa Monica Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90029
(323) 913-3375

To see more by Audrey Kawasaki go here!.
To see more from Thinkspace go here!.

Cakey Perry...yeah I went there!


Although nobody really needed to hear another reason why Katy Perry is the epitome of all that is amazing, she wore the best awards outfits I've seen in a LONG time at this year's Europe VMAs. One of my favourite pieces being this cupcake bag from Judith Leiber. I think Katy wore it far better than when it featured in sex and the city film, mostly because I barely noticed it in the film despite me being a cake obsessive and the bag practically having a starring role. However I also put this down to the fact that I was most likely blinded by the sight of the gawdawful louis vuitton crazy coloured mess that carrie gave her assistant...but enough of that as I could complain for hours...
This bag also incorporates my love for all things crystalised! I have big plans for my blackberry....

To see more by Judith Leiber go here!.

Dexter sweet stand




My favourite serial killer is back- season 3 is here! In America anyway....
To promote the launch date, these Dexter themed stalls were set up around America featuring faux magazines (such as Rolling Stone) with Dexter on the front, and of course blood red, colour co-ordinating sweets.


The last season launch for Dexter had blood spouting fountains set up everywhere, totally in tune with the show's black comedy. This would definately have scared me a bit if I'd have been cruising down the strip in vegas, it's like something our of 28 weeks later!

I can't wait to see the next series!

Yo....is that sushi?!




Bringing the term meals on wheels to a new level!
This is an ad campaign for a sushi restaurant, note the teensey orange banner!

Thursday 6 November 2008



Kelly Smith is an Australian illustrator. I'm always into the contrasting styles of paint and pencil illustration. Smith does this in a really interesting way. I love this piece of Gemma Ward!

To see more art by Kelly Smith go here!.

Monster mash with dance routines and a keyboard


The part of me that enjoys silly music to dance to loves VV Brown- Crying Blood!!

The video is amaze, and features a breakdown, AHA- take on me-esuqe drawing morphing and tetris climbing!


To see the video go here!.
To visit VV Brown's myspace go here!.

Saturday 1 November 2008

Jimmy Eat World riding flying cats!

Jimmy Eat World-Beautiful Day-Yo Gabba Gabba


Yo Gabba Gabba, possibly one of the best programmes EVER by the way, always features bands in amusing situations. The fact that the kids watching the show will most likely have NO idea who the bands are cements the point in my arguement that there is some serious tongue in cheek action afoot. But what else would you expect from a programme created by the people behind The Aquabats...
Also the host really reminds me of Dev Hynes of Test icicles/Lightspeed Champ pre haircut when he used to wear that mahussive furry hat everywhere...





I love this video mostly because Jimmy Eat World , despite being an established and sucessfull band, are not too pretentious and up themself to don flying dog and cat. 10 cool points.

In short- pure quality!

p.s. I really need to download the song, too cute!

Put the needle on it


Tattoos: they involve pain, blood, and my most feared of all things PERMANANCE. Don't get me wrong, I could go for a tattoo as much as the next person. However I KNOW that within the following months I would have figured out a better position I could have had it in, a different shade that wouldn't clash with my clothes/match too much, or even go off it altogether.
But thanks to London illustrator Julia Pott's temporary tattoos, I can enjoy the amusement of a ridiculous tattoo without having an identity crisis ensue as a result. I so need the pink unicorn!



To see more gohere!.