March 13th Pomona Art Walk

I attended the March 13th Art Walk in Pomona and I can honestly say another great time! It was more packed than my last visit there and it seemed like there was additional galleries that were open this time around. My first spot this time was the dA gallery which is always the hottest place to be. They were featuring Looking at Blue or...No 5 Rick Caughman.

After visiting the dA we went down to the SCA Project Gallery and saw some contemporary ceramic sculptures by Nina Jun. Her pieces are definitely out of norm to say the least. Its amazing how she creates these sculptures to look like mylar balloons however they are rock hard to the touch (Yes, I had to touch one...ha). She uses these pillow-scapes to bring to life various depictions of landscape, houses, people, oceans, and many other recreations of life.

Constellation 1 by Nina Jun

Happy Hour by Nina Jun

After we headed next door to the Latino Art Musuem where they were hosting the "Hollywood Connection". Here we found these amazing self portrait drawings by Robert Perez, in which below is my favorite in which he has depicted, Penelope Cruz. These are amost exact replicas of the actors and actresses as if you are looking at an actual photograph.

Penelope Cruz by Robert Perez
Also, I was amazed when walking down the stairs where Shahla Rosa's work was featured. These paintings are captivating and have so much detail put into them. I didn't know where to look first when admiring the work, because every inch of the painting has something hidden in it.

Keith Wigdor & The Surrealist Revolution by Shahla Rosa

Oil on canvas

Deca Arcade of the Psyche by Shahla Rosa

Oil on canvas

Stepping into the Possibility of the Mind by Shahla Rosa

Oil on Cavas

Not to mention Julia Fernandez's work!!! Amazing use of color which is rich and warm in her paintings. You can't help but stop and admire her work.

La Sirena by Julia Fernandez

Oil on canvas

All in all a wonderful experience!! I had a great time taking in some art, music and dining...perfect for a Saturday night. I was more comfortable this time around going in and talking with other fellow admirers and playing the "I see, you see" game. I feel that I had a better appreciation for the work and was able to depict finer details in the pieces.

Placing

Blossoms 4 by Unknown Artist

Position: Entry way first wall space

The Dark Ocean byLindsey Cormier

Posittion: Opposing walls hallway

#070614 by Michael Keck

Position: Opposing walls hallwayPollination by Anni Adkins

Position: Living Area Opposing wallsYellow Rose by Anni Adkins

Position: Living Room Opposing walls

#11by Theo Alfonso

Position: Living Room next to Yellow Rose

I chose the positions by the relevance of color and also the type of art. As you can see I prefer Abstract art and the use of bright color. The opening piece starts off with a 3 panel display of cherry blossoms for the entry way which provides an immediate relaxing enviroment to the home. Following down the hallway are acrylic paintings in which texture is brought forth from the artist. The bright blue adds the relaxed feeling to flow throughout the home as the bright rainbow colors on a 3 panel canvas emerge a happy tone. Coming into the living area you are surrounded with the mixture of floral abstract art as well deep rich warm color, allowing you to feel safe, at home, and immersed in love.

Woman with a Book

I wanted to compare the popular Picasso painting Woman with a Book that I recently had the oppurtunity to see first hand at the Norton Simon Musuem, to a replication done by Bernie Pincus using Rosenbergs Criteria. Clearly the painting on the left lacks composition-richness of formal relationships. When looking at the strokes it does not provide a seamless movement to the stroke in comparison to Picasso's piece. When viewing Picasso's piece the outer lines look incredibly smooth and shapeful.Sensitivity to the fingers in Pincus's replication in the thumb area looks large and the thumb seems to lack the softness. The use of color in Picasso's painting is far more rich, with the deep purples that he uses instead of Pincus's bright yellow which takes away from the mood of solidarity. Further, her cheek in Picasso's painting adds a blushing tone of feminity and is dark and shaded in the comparison. Picasso has far more detail in regards to the window in the back and has captured the shadowing of the mirrored reflection frame; while Pincus's lacks the realistic shadowing. When looking at the body and placement in Picasso's painting he has used his space accordingly adding features of the chair, wall and bottom legs which the other painting is missing. Pincus has only the body featured and has taken up the entire canvas with only the body and has missed the other key components to Picassos' painting having no clear distiniction of planes.

Left:

Woman with a Book

Bernie Pincus

Oil reproduction

Right:

Woman with a Bool

Pablo Picasso

Oil on Canvas

Window to the West

The theme of this exhibit was centered on the west; however it gave a different interpretation of what I think most people portray the west to be. When thinking of the west I picture empty, non inhabited spaces and dirty images of cowboys. However this was a completely different view. Right when you walked in and looked to your right you saw paintings that were much cooler in color. They were of huge landscapes with bright scenery where it depicted a lost or loneliness effect to the animal packs that were traveling together. The paintings made you feel that each one was searching for something, was more defensive in tone and incorporated the background of the landscape in each painting. However when you went to the left you paintings have more warmth to them. The color choices are definitely more warm hues as well as the feelings portrayed. The paintings all have a friendliness, motherly emotion, and easy going feeling to their collaboration. When you start to walk down the hallway you are greeted in the distance to a definite window to the west. It is the largest painting in the collection and had beautiful colorful scenery into an image of the west that I think we forget lives there. It added depth to the hallway almost as if you were walking into the scenery of the land itself. Throughout the rest of the gallery throughout the hallway it seemed to focus on keeping collections grouped by water, wildlife, and then people of the west.

The best of show in my opinion was “Spring Ballet” by Bonnie Marris. Besides the fact that this artist is absolutely amazing at depicting the feeling or emotion of the wildlife she paints she brings out great vibrancy from her art. This particular painting has two horses depicted, one a white horse and the other a brown colt, frolicking in a pasture during the daytime. The painting is oil on canvas and has this intense lighting coming off of it illuminating the sun shining down on the coat of the white horse. It has almost an angelic feeling to it when looking at it. I was so amazed at the lighting that I even checked to see if the lights were simply shining down on the painting however there was only one and it was not directly on it. The artist captured such a beautiful scene and really transcended it through her work. She has the focus clearly on the two horses and doesn’t add much detail on the scenery. It’s almost like they are coming out of a dark forest like environment into rays of sunshine. She has grasped the detail of the hair of the horse in the wind all the way to the muscle structure and strength in the body. The painting quickly grabs your attention immediately when you walk in and look to the left; it draws you into the glow of the art.

Spring Ballet

Bonnie Marris

Oil 36x48 inches

The worst of show was “Coffee Time” by Donald “Putt” Putnam. I disliked the color that he used, it was too filled with pink and lacked other color. The painting displays a woman and a man in a bedroom setting. The woman looks unhappy, overcome by sadness or remorse and is sitting on the floor next to the bed unclothed. She has her blouse undone with her breast exposed with her hair unraveling from what use to be a neat up do. The man in the painting is fully clothed, with his boots still on laying on the bed. He exhibits a feeling of domination since he is lying at full length clearly not allowing any room for the woman sitting next to him on the floor. H e leaves room for his holster and gun yet allows the woman to crouch at his side, not even fully dressed. The portrait is clearly demeaning of woman and has the thought that this man is domineering over the woman who I felt ended such a great show with distaste.

The logic behind the gallery I felt was to incorporate different emotions as you progressed. As in stating earlier you had a feeling of companionship however that you were searching for the unknown or more lost in the vast west, then you went down the hallway and say visions of the west almost as you were traveling through these beautiful areas and on an adventure. You then get taken to the wild parts of the west, the wild horses, the wolves, and bison. You see the ugliness that lies in all areas of the world which was the demeaning picture of what humans are capable of and then get sidetracked again with the magic of the Indian tribes. You end the journey returning home with the warmth of family and companionship with the paintings of the mother and her cubs, the horse and her colt, etc. I think this was the logic behind how the paintings were set up; they were setup in such a way as for you to experience the journey yourself.

When conducting “I see, You see” with my partner Megan one of the paintings we viewed together was “On the Edge of Night” by Daivd Yorke. This painting has a pack of wolves looking off to the distance over a stream in the shadow of the day ending enveloped in the forest. Megan saw that the pack was on defense and was waiting to strike on their prey. She saw that they were exhibiting communication through the wolf on the rock howling out to the sky almost as to call on more of them or sending a message to the wolves present. Megan felt this portrayed human instinct in the art. I agreed however I added that I felt that they were in the shadow of night waiting in this particular area because this is what they view as safe. The shadow acts like blanket engulfing them in their security. They are looking on almost as if watching for the sun to set so that they can begin their day. The reverse of what we do when the sun rises. These begins are children of the night and are waiting to go out amongst the dark to start their day. The howl signifies that they rule the night and as soon as the sun has set they are now the owners of the night.

On the Edge of Night

David Yorke

Oil 36x48 inches

The main message of the exhibit was “companionship”. In every picture neither animal nor human was alone. Each had a partner, pack, or family that was accompanying them on their journey or relishing with them in the beauty of the west. The animals in the art were displaying human emotion by exhibiting caring, nurturing, and protective characteristics throughout the art. The wildlife also showed happiness and strength throughout the paintings as well. The human beings although very few were shown to be traveling, working and relaxing as one also leading back to companionship.

I honestly don’t think that this theme would connect with others around the world. My first impression when hearing the “window to the west” was the name of the exhibit, I wasn’t exactly thrilled about going. I thought this was going to be a bunch of paintings with horses, livestock and empty spaces with dirt. I was pleasantly surprised when I saw that the paintings showed beautiful areas that normally we would never encounter out in the west. Also, it showed animals interacting in a way that most humans would never really get to see, because it caught them in the wild. This was definitely worth seeing and I think that it go against what people would expect to see when hearing “window to the west”.

Art Walk-Pomona Art Colony Follow-up

I visited the dA again on Thursday and was able to visit during their live draw night that they offer. They were actually in the middle of taking down the art work from the New Traditionalists exhibit and were prepping for their upcoming 2nd Saturday event. It was cool having the gallery pretty much all to myself. I wasn't sure where the class was taking place since I didn't see anybody other than the guys hanging up the work but they did allow me to come inside and ask a few questions about the various new works going up. It was quite different going into a peaceful dim light gallery with hardly any work up, compared to the night I visited previously with hardly any walking room and voices carrying over voices. The new exhibit going up is called Simply Wed and is a group art exhibit which is hosting art centered around weddings. The dA is hosting a wedding in the month of February and felt it appropriate with the theme of Valentine's day approaching to host this event. Normally they host the Simply Red exhibit focusing on the color theme but changed it up this year.

Also, during my visit I was able to receive additional information about visiting Leslie Brown's gallery in Corona, Ca. Definitely going to be more details to come after visiting her gallery!!!

Simply Wed hosted at the dA Center of the Arts

Art Walk-Pomona Art Colony

This was my first time ever experiencing Pomona's Art Walk and I have to admit I really enjoyed it. Who would've known living near this city that it had so much to offer from a artistic perspective. I had the oppurtunity to visit numerous galleries including the Soho, Latino Art Musuem, the Underground Pomona Art Colony, SCA Project Gallery, as well as the da. I have to admit though that nothing quite compared to the dA gallery. The dA is quite an experience, it seemed to be the main attraction of the art walk. Definitly the hot spot for taking in amazing art, good music, and let's not mention a relaxing glass of wine. This place was packed!!! It had a vibe like I have never experienced before, with people socializing and appreciating all the vibrant art around them. The dA was featuring the exhibit called, The New Tradionalists, featuring the work of 6 well established women artists who are located all over California. Two years before the dA had actually displayed the work of 6 male artists under the same theme, The New Traditionalists. Talking with other individuals at the gallery, they explained the theme New Traditionalists means uniting the past and the present together. All the artists featured have the appreciation of those who came before them, incorporate pop culture as well as there own imagery and conscious interpretation into their art work. After spending some time talking with a few people around me about the various artists on display it really helped me to appreciate the art and what their interpretations meant.

Leslie Brown, Birth of Consciousness

Leslie Brown was the main artist displayed that night and this is where I fell in love with her painting Birth of Consciousness. This immediately caught my attention as soon as I walked into the gallery. It had its own wall, in which it literally had the ability to simply take your breath away when first gazing upon it. It has a mysterious almost mythical quality to it and is three dimensional when viewing. It was one of the largest paintings displayed, taking over three panels. When speaking to a couple gentlemen they explained that Leslie is known for portraying her visions or dreams into her work. She is considered to have the gift of being able to be the interpreter of some sort of higher mystic power for the unconscious mind. This holds true to her work, when viewing different pieces it makes the viewer feel as if you are in fact within a dream. There are so many things going in her work that its hard to focus in on just one thing. The masked woman above adds a mysterious sexy and feminine aspect. The woman holding the crystal ball looks as if shes the one dreaming trying to see what happens next within this state of unconsciousness. The peacock is a symbol of regal and beauty, the man in the background is a guardian and symbol of strength, while the women looking down is almost the puppet master of the dream. I love how she has the deep blue colors which add a cold and insecure feeling, while transitioning to the center with the warm red hue which adds lust, admiration and security.

"I see, you see"....

Entangled by Leslie Brown

Another great piece by Leslie Brown, this is one of her prints that was selling for $350. She has pretty reasonable pricing I felt for the quality of work. More of a pop culture piece, I think this piece shows the relationship of ones inner self. Showing two women who are one in the same going thru ones inner struggle. It shows a calm beauty while in the background a frustrated woman entangled by a cord. The cord could symbolize life and depicts one putting her best face forward to the public while yet masking her problems. A dual personality at its best. When admiring this piece I had the oppurtunity to share my thoughts with a fellow admirer of the piece. Their view was different from mine in that they saw this piece as a work depicting what woman go through every day to look beautiful to stay true to societies expectation of what they consider beauty to be. The woman they felt looked frigid, untouchable, and uncomfortable yet she had a sleek and upper class demeanor. The woman in the back looked unkept, tired, and sad at having to go thru this process of beautification. The piece called out the entangled feeling of keeping up with society. Although, our initial views were different we agreed that this piece was in fact showing an interpretation of what we struggle through to please society.

All in all a great experience at the dA, I actually plan on revisiting for their next opening so there will definitley be more to come....

Trip to Norton Simon Musuem in Pasadena, CA

I recently visited the Norton Simon located in the beautiful city of Pasadena. Norton Simon houses a pretty vast array of art from European, Asian, modern and contemporary, prints and photographs. The Norton Simon also has an absolutely amazing sculpture garden located on its premises. I was fortunate enough to visit on a clear and sunny day and had the oppurtunity to take in the true beauty of the garden. The Garden itself is a living work of art, with plants from all over the world. It has a large pond featuring two distinct trees that are true guardians of the garden, a Moreton Bay Fig and a Cockspur Coral Tree that are truly a site to see.

My favorite piece was the Sitting Cheetah which definitely adds a presence to the garden. The artisit Gywnn Murrill, has captured the beauty of this bronze piece with sleek and smooth lines, while making this piece appear extremely life like. Murrill has created a pose that makes the sculpture seems as if it is territorial and on watch of the garden it sits in.

Sitting Cheetah, 1996Gwynn Murrill

American, 1942-Bronze, Edition of 9, Cast No. 739-1/2 x 54-1/2 x 38 in. (100.3 x 138.4 x 96.5 cm)

Norton Simon Museum, Gift of The Ernest Lieblich Foundation

P.2001.01© 2008 Gwynn Murrill

After walking through the garden I found myself heading to the European Art of 14th-16th Centuries where I found several compelling pieces. One particular being the Coronation of the Virgin altarpiece by Guariento di Arpo, that simply pulls you towards it the minute you see it. It is truly an amazing site to see, it is tempera and gold leaf on panels and holds Italian tradition in the way it displays the major events of the New Testament in pictoral form of the life of Christ. This picture doesn't give this altarpiece justice, there is a glow that comes off this work that is truly inspiring and spiritual to the admirer. This piece most likely was displayed at one point in a place of honor, such as a church or cathedral.

Coronation of the Virgin

Guariento di Arpo Italian, c.1310-c.1370

Tempera and gold leaf on panels (32)overall: 86 x 104-3/8 in. (218.4 x 265.1 cm)

Norton Simon Art FoundationM.1987.3.01-32.

P© 2010 Norton Simon Art Foundation

There was a piece that I felt everyone has seen at one point or another, which was Adam & Eve by Lucas Cranach the elder. This is an oil on panel displaying Eve as a temptress with unlikely anatomical proportions. Adam is standing by the tree with the dangling serpent with a ring its mouth clearly showing the temptation of evil. The painting was clearly for pleasure and not for religious use.

Adam and Eve, c. 1530Lucas Cranach the ElderGerman, 1472-1553

Oil on panel (one of a pair)75 x 27-1/2 in. (190.5 x 69.9 cm)

Norton Simon Art FoundationM.1971.1.P© 2010 Norton Simon Art Foundation

Moving to the European 17th and 18th Century section, my favorite piece was an oil on canvas Christ Crowned with Thorns by Matthais Stom. This is truly a depiction of Christ's pain and misery during the cornation. The picture is dark only lit by a single candle light, showing the cruelty and mockery of the people surrounding Christ. This scene is told in three gospels and depicts one of the last and final scenes of Christ.

Christ Crowned with Thorns, c. 1633-39Matthias Stom Dutch,

c.1600-after 1651Oil on canvas43-5/8 x 63-3/8 in. (110.8 x 161 cm)

Norton Simon Art FoundationM.1977.25.

P© 2010 Norton Simon Art Foundation

The Triumph of Virtue and Nobility Over Ignorance by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo is an oil on canvas that was a ceiling painting for the Palazzo Manin in Venice. This painting has a magnificent way of creating an area that is limitless in space. The figures look as if they are floating amongst the vast wall that this piece is hung on. It displays Virtue, Nobility, Fame and Ignorance all within the portrait and dissplays the vanquishing of ignorance. Tiepolo has used rich and saturated colors, which allows the story to be told without any words.

The Triumph of Virtue and Nobility Over Ignorance, c. 1740-50Giovanni Battista Tiepolo Italian, 1696-1770

Oil on canvas (Ceiling painted for the Palazzo Manin, Venice)126 x 154-1/2 in. (320 x 392.4 cm)

The Norton Simon FoundationF.1972.26.

P© 2010 The Norton Simon Foundation

When touring the modern and contemporary art section of the musuem I found a piece called, L.H.O.O.Q by Marcel Duchamp. This is a piece that is humoring the work of Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa. Duchamp has drawn a mustache and goatee on what is considered the ideal of feminine beauty. The name of the painting has the artists sense of humor as well as he plays on the words which in french sounds like"Elle a chaud au cul", which translates to "There is a fire down below". This piece I felt was pushing the envelope more, since it was altering the image of a well known piece representing beauty and making it into an object of humor.

L.H.O.O.Q. or La Joconde, 1964 (replica of 1919 original)Marcel Duchamp French, 1887-1968

Colored reproduction, heightened with pencil and white gouache, Edition of 35, No. 6 (Arturo Schwartz edition)comp:

10-1/4 x 7 in. (26.0 x 17.8 cm); sheet: 11-3/4 x 7-7/8 in. (29.8 x 20.0 cm)

Norton Simon Museum, Gift of Virginia Dwan

P.1969.094© 2008 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris / Estate of Marcel Duchamp

Last but not least the musuem was offering an exhibition on Devine Demons: Wrathful Deities of Buddhist Art. This was nothing like I had ever seen before, it had sculptures, ceremonial daggers and figures that were all beautifully handcrafted. These demons serve as protectors of the Buddhist faith, while depicting blood, fangs, and wicked expressions. Though exuding an eerie feeling while walking thru this exhibit, you can't help but appreciate the craftsmenship of the work.

Mahakala, 19th centuryTibet

Opaque watercolor on cottoncomp: 29-3/4 x 19-1/4 in. (75.6 x 48.9 cm);

mount: 31 x 20-1/2 in. (78.7 x 52.1 cm)

Norton Simon Museum, Gift of Beata and Michael McCormick,

P.2001.07

There are so many more equally beautiful and remarking paintings and sculptures on view at the Norton Simon, however these are just a few that I fell in love with when visiting. This is definitly a musuem of choice when you are trying to stay local and take in what these great artisits have contributed.