What Not to Miss in New York This Week
first of all, happy week everyone! the weather in new york continues to be on the cloudy side, but spring feels like it is officially here - so there.
i am really excited to report on something art-related to you this monday morning. on saturday, i took myself out for an art run to catch up with things. while the original plan was to go see the artistic collaboration put together by miss, that ended up not happening because well...nobody was there. feeling kind of misled (it was raining too), i left in search of other things that needed to be seen on this little break of mine. everything else ended up being wonderful and exciting, but one case in particular was the most exciting of all!
my online friends, and silent readers, b. is in town with his show "corrupted luxury" at allouche gallery!
{b. detail from "do not cross"}
granted i was drowning in research and work obligations, this news came in later than what i term acceptable for myself. nonetheless, there is still time. the exhibition will be held at allouche gallery, in soho, on the first floor until march 20th. it is honestly, well worth seeing in person. for those of you who definitely cannot make it, they have a simple exhibition catalogue here.
i first encountered b.'s work when roaming about in athens where his base is. i had an urban design project located in the city's center, where his work at the time could be spotted in many locations brightening up alleys and corners. what was even more intriguing were the strong social messages hidden behind the seemingly cheerful first appearance of his illustrations.
granted i was drowning in research and work obligations, this news came in later than what i term acceptable for myself. nonetheless, there is still time. the exhibition will be held at allouche gallery, in soho, on the first floor until march 20th. it is honestly, well worth seeing in person. for those of you who definitely cannot make it, they have a simple exhibition catalogue here.
i first encountered b.'s work when roaming about in athens where his base is. i had an urban design project located in the city's center, where his work at the time could be spotted in many locations brightening up alleys and corners. what was even more intriguing were the strong social messages hidden behind the seemingly cheerful first appearance of his illustrations.
{street piece, athens}
b. was originally trained as an architect and worked as a graphic designer as well. this explains a lot about his work. the synthesis of what at the gallery, appears to be chaotic mounds of random objects is perfectly balanced leading the eye across the surface of his works. the first works i came to know and admire were mostly, like the ones above, human figures in yellow and white with clearly defined black outlines. they appeared to float about, and give a sense of elevation even though they were mounted on heavy, immovable concrete walls.
at allouche, it was really pleasant to see how his work has evolved since then. his inspiration is still drawn by the current social and political situation in greece. while some may think that could lead to exhausting the subject, or becoming banal - this is far from the case with b.. bright colors contrasting against his characteristic black outlines ease the viewer into what at first seems a bright and happy play with images. as one sits and observes each work, he is sucked into the details where all the meaning really lies. the collection of large scale canvases focus on the hoarding of wealth and at the same time, the materialization of values. things are spilling about everywhere, drowning the space, and in some cases appear as though they are about to swallow his whimsical characters. unicorns are placed next to signs proclaiming "death", "love" and "fake". everything is thrown into piles and it is up to the viewer to decide what is surviving and what is in danger of getting drowned in these hoards.
the works' scale and vividness easily draw the viewer in, which in the end, is the actual point - to get him to think of all the matters the artist is concerned with. what is value, and where do we place it today? has love become a commodity, to be placed on the same levels as fraud? where do we go from here? most important i find, is the contrast between the concept and the appearance of the work. the clean, playful graphics contrast with the theory, ideas and questions just posed making another point in and of itself. namely, one comes to wonder whether our prettifying everything - from our values to what haunts us - has made us pile it all into one pile like the ones he draws rendering them nearly indistinguishable.
in conclusion, b. is a young and influential artist working between media to portray social issues, raising thought and questioning. these issues though initially deriving from athens and greece in general, are undoubtedly ones that can concern people across all oceans and borders. allouche gallery put together a beautiful exhibition, designed to bring out all of the exciting elements of the artist's work. it was certainly, the best unplanned gallery visit in a long time.
read more about b. here
exhibition announcement here
b. was originally trained as an architect and worked as a graphic designer as well. this explains a lot about his work. the synthesis of what at the gallery, appears to be chaotic mounds of random objects is perfectly balanced leading the eye across the surface of his works. the first works i came to know and admire were mostly, like the ones above, human figures in yellow and white with clearly defined black outlines. they appeared to float about, and give a sense of elevation even though they were mounted on heavy, immovable concrete walls.
at allouche, it was really pleasant to see how his work has evolved since then. his inspiration is still drawn by the current social and political situation in greece. while some may think that could lead to exhausting the subject, or becoming banal - this is far from the case with b.. bright colors contrasting against his characteristic black outlines ease the viewer into what at first seems a bright and happy play with images. as one sits and observes each work, he is sucked into the details where all the meaning really lies. the collection of large scale canvases focus on the hoarding of wealth and at the same time, the materialization of values. things are spilling about everywhere, drowning the space, and in some cases appear as though they are about to swallow his whimsical characters. unicorns are placed next to signs proclaiming "death", "love" and "fake". everything is thrown into piles and it is up to the viewer to decide what is surviving and what is in danger of getting drowned in these hoards.
the works' scale and vividness easily draw the viewer in, which in the end, is the actual point - to get him to think of all the matters the artist is concerned with. what is value, and where do we place it today? has love become a commodity, to be placed on the same levels as fraud? where do we go from here? most important i find, is the contrast between the concept and the appearance of the work. the clean, playful graphics contrast with the theory, ideas and questions just posed making another point in and of itself. namely, one comes to wonder whether our prettifying everything - from our values to what haunts us - has made us pile it all into one pile like the ones he draws rendering them nearly indistinguishable.
in conclusion, b. is a young and influential artist working between media to portray social issues, raising thought and questioning. these issues though initially deriving from athens and greece in general, are undoubtedly ones that can concern people across all oceans and borders. allouche gallery put together a beautiful exhibition, designed to bring out all of the exciting elements of the artist's work. it was certainly, the best unplanned gallery visit in a long time.
read more about b. here
exhibition announcement here
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