Die Antwoord

Die Antwoord performing at the House of Blues, Mandalay Bay. I hope that Die Antwoord enjoyed the craziness of Las Vegas as much as Las Vegas enjoyed the craziness of Die Antwoord.

Salon Show

In true salon-style tradition, a lively crowd conversed amidst a large assemblage of artworks at the opening of the Salon Show at Pop Up Art House on Saturday night. An open call had been extended for submissions to the Salon Show and writers were invited to submit for the Gazette, published in conjunction with the exhibition. There was also a curiosity cabinet containing vintage finds embellished by artists, along with PUAH merchandise.
Participating artists are Jason Adkins, Mark Brandvik, Matthew Couper, Rory Devine, Catherine Fairbanks, Laura Faw Boles, Ellary Eddy, Jared Flores, Susanne Forestieri, Drina Fried, Wendy Kveck, Matthew Marchand, Jane Marquez, Mark Mellon, Ford Minton, Ann Mowry, Brent Payne, David Sanchez Burr, Jim Seely, Kathleen Strukoff, Markus Tracy, Jevijoe Vitug, Holly Vaughn and Greta Waller.
The Gazette writers are Gregory Crosby, Scott Dickensheets, Hugh Fogel, Mat Gleason,
Danielle Kelly, Andrew Kiraly, Jenessa Kenway and Kristen Peterson.

Desert of Earthly Delights ... coming soon...

I've been extra busy lately in the lead up to my exhibition 'Desert of Earthly Delights' opening 1 March at Sin City Gallery in Las Vegas. I will also be giving an artist talk at 7pm at the opening. I will find a way to document the talk for this blog.

Green Felt Jungle Gym

I took advantage of the opportunity to hear UNLV Adjunct Professor Mark Brandvik speak about his current installation "Green Felt Jungle Gym" at the Rotunda Gallery in the Clark County Government Center. The title of the show is adapted from a 1963 book The Green Felt Jungle which aimed to expose the criminal underworld in Las Vegas.
Brandvik described his interest in the intersection of events and the environment. His earlier series of works "Notorious Deaths by Misadventure" were based on Las Vegas crime scenes gleaned from police reports and featured the otherwise innocuous street corner where Tupac Shakur was shot and the section of city street where jazz singer Joe Williams collapsed and died.
His 2003-2004 paintings of local buildings celebrated a particular vernacular of architecture which was not widely valued at the time, and many of the buildings featured in his works have since been demolished. Some however have been relocated, such as "La Concha" (image top left courtesy Brandvik's website).
The "Green Felt Jungle Gym' installation combines his early interest in sculpture with the clean simple lines of his architectural paintings which he described as "rising like sculptures from an isolated landscape". The installation was designed "like an Erector Set", constructed in his back yard, then deconstructed and installed in the Rotunda. Without the necessary constraints of transportation and a temporary installation, Brandvik would have chosen to create a solid welded construction allowing for interactive play.
This particular jungle gym has echoes of the Watts Towers, created by construction worker Sam Rodia over a period of 33 years, which Brandvik visited in Los Angeles. Brandvik's construction however, could only have emerged from the adult playground of Las Vegas, with it's eclectic mix of attention-seeking architecture.

Afterglow

After the '12 Inches of Sin' opening, everyone adjourned to the nearby Artifice for the Afterglow party hosted by photographer Carlo Roncancio and burlesque performer/femcee Lou Lou Roxy. Performers included Cha Cha Velour, Jeffery Brice, Dani D'Lish, Miss Karla Joy, Miss TriniTease, Heather 'Calliopie' Hermann and Lou Lou herself. The Sin City Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence were also on hand to give (and receive) a little paddling for a good cause and 12" spinning was courtesy DJ Carey Cowart.

12" of Sin - Preview Thursday

In true Sin City Gallery style, there was a party atmosphere with performers and a film crew at the opening of the juried award show 12 Inches of Sin. Submissions had been invited from artists working internationally in the broad area of 'erotic art', and 25 finalists were selected by a panel of 12 judges: photographer Christopher Ball from London, sex educator and artist Betty Dodson from New York, Allena Gabosch - Producer of the Seattle Erotic Art Festival, artist François Dubeau from Montreal, LA photographer Steve Diet Goedde, Alexander Donskoi - founder of Russia's first Erotic Art Museum, Hans van der Kamp - founder of AMEA World Museum of Erotic Art, Lisolette Gilcrest - founder of the Society for Women in Erotic Art Today, Fang Fu Ruan who holds a PhD in Human Sexology, Julian Murphy - artist and co-founder of Erotic Signature, Jerry Vile - the founder of Detroit's Dirty Show, and Sharp - Vice-President of the Tom of Finland Foundation.
The 'Best in Show' award announced by gallery owner, Dr Laura Henkel, went to Florida artist Allan Teger for his photographic work "Mountain Climber". The exhibition runs through to 26 February and a portion of artwork sales is being donated to the Sin City Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence who conduct safer sex outreach and raise funds for the Sisters AIDS Drug Assistance Program.
The picture of me with my vibrating friend James (bottom right) is thanks to artist Sharon Leong.
Next post - the after party at Artifice.

Defeat the Future at the CAC

Artist and curator Yo Fukui returns to Las Vegas with a band of super heroes intent on defeating the monster of the Future. Each of these five east-coast artists have developed individual super powers and were willing to share their secrets at an Artist Talk chaired by Matthew Couper at the Contemporary Arts Center on Wednesday night.
Yo Fukui shared that felt application is his secret weapon and he uses it to full effect in his sculptural works. Chad Stayrook has embarked on a ritualistic journey, invoking geometric symbols in the process of "allowing everything to be a miracle". Naoko Wowsugi has developed her powers in the area of 'relational aesthetics', working with her students to create a series of portraits and performance-based works which act as a buffer against the Future. Antonio Serna describes himself as a 'Curiosity Superhero' - he uses this skill to navigate the world, as evidenced in his willingness to explore war and 'Black Ops' in Romania. The fifth artist, Richard A. Wager wasn't able to attend the talk, but his super power appears to be the ability to transform utilitarian objects into metamorphosed material, such as his piece 'Persian Rug'.
Yo Fukui closed by saying"It is almost impossible to defeat the Future, as you know you are going to die. You can't beat it. It will continue. You just keep trying which is sad, but kind of funny too."
The photographs above were taken during the installation of the show and at the Artist Talk event.