It seemed of little wonder anecdotally, 2008 varnish on canvas 200 x 260 cm

Official artist website here.

I prefer the effect of Katharina Grosse’s work on interior spaces, especially museums. Museum Directors must hold their breath when Grosse gets an exhibition approval … which walls will she flood with color … what walls will remain blank?! What about floors? Probably part of the contract to stay away from certain materials too. And most importantly, how do we de-install this?

I love this stuff.

Official artist site here.
Number of works on canvas at Gow Langsford.

peacock and sputnik
2008
oil on linen
135 x 95cm

paradisaeidae
2008
oil & resin on copper
30 x 20cm

Official artist website here.

The editors have done a great job listing 1,000s of artists, with concise biographical information for the majority of the artists and elaborated descriptions for well known artists like Boyd, Perceval, Shead, Smart, etc. Believe it or not, this isn’t 100% complete. There are still artists missing from the guide; not just new artists — mid-career too. That’s not a criticism at all. This is a great resource. The art scene is growing rapidly in Australia and it’s difficult for a book of this scale to keep up with the times. Maybe they could publish an annual soft-cover update …

$295 + shipping. Ship this behemoth by boat. Air mail cost would be frightening.

David Laity
Morning Air
Oil on linen
40 x 49 in
1998

Elwood Torana no.7
Oil on canvas
120×140cm

Beast
Oil on canvas
60×50cm

Hill End Landscape
Oil on linen
150×140cm

The Lot
Oil on canvas
150×160cm

Official artist website here.
Represented by Jan Murphy and Grant Pirrie.
Ben Quilty, Rust in Peace or Youth and young manhood, by Dougal Phillips, Art & Australia vol.45, #1.

First, some background. Los Angeles based artist Craig Carlisle produces paintings in a lush, saturated range of colors with a variety of characters. In fact, the continuity in his recent pieces has been a developing cast of charmed creatures: Pink Monsters, Birds, Butterflies, Teddy Birds, Flowers and Figures (always bald with no ears). Some of his works feature the perspective of a solitary creature within a landscape, while other paintings may include multiple subjects. When there is a pairing, we’re able to see personalities unfold and relationships bloom.

Without further ado …

What’s your typical day at work like?

My studio and my live space are one in the same which makes it easy for me to work on a painting for a few hours then break. I typically paint six hours a day unless I am in the final month before a show, then I usually paint eight to ten hours a day. The work usually begins around 9AM and usually ends one hour before sundown. This is because I paint with natural light and rarely at night.

Describe your studio.

I have two studios in my home. The main studio is a small work space which very organized. The table I work from is a vintage aqua blue kitchen table with a formica top. The table is approximately 36″ x 48″. The second studio is a large wall which easily allows me to work on my large canvases. The light in both studios are natural but backed with a light bulb if needed.

Big Head with Chocolate Eyes, 20×25.5in., giclee print, $450

Any rituals you have to perform before starting to work?

I start my work day after I have gone for a walk, usually to my local coffee shop.

What are you passionate about?

Family and Friends, Traveling, Sharing my art with the world, in no certain order.

Where do you find inspiration?

One of my greatest times of inspiration is experienced when I am traveling. There is something in how I am able to capture visuals in my memory and then translate them onto canvas which makes my art unique. These visuals might be how I reflect on a foreign landscape to my home, or the same with a face of a stranger as I walk down a street. Film seen in the theater usually gets my visual mind racing and I quickly want to return to my studio and paint.

How would you describe your artistic style? How has this style developed over time?

I have found my style has greatly been manufactured by the space I work within. Regarding studio space, in Ohio and New York City I had a storefront studio which gave me large space to make large paintings and display them for clients. Once I moved to California, San Francisco first, my space which I called my studio became my home, mostly because of the inflated market during the late 90’s and West Coast. Because of the shift from large storefronts to my home I found that it was important to adapt so my paintings became 16″x20 and smaller unless I received a commission for a large painting, then I would modify the space to complete the work.

Fuzzy Dinosaur in the Big City, 8×10in., Acrylic on Panel, 2007

Favorite Gallery? (could be LA or anywhere)

George Billis Gallery (my agent), Track 16, SixSpace

Favorite Museum? (could be LA or anywhere)

Pretty much any MOCA.

Which artists or creative people are you inspired by?

Some of my favorite artists are Donald Roller Wilson, Allison Schulnik, Esther Pearl Watson, Mark Ryden, Evan B. Harris, Aya Takano, Jeffrey Keith, Monica Canilao, Mark Bodnar, Georg Baselitz, Martha Sue, just among a few.

What’s coming up – what are you looking forward to?

A potential move. The building I live in is being sold and most likely will be leveled. So it’s time to start looking for a new studio. I haven’t decided yet if I will remain in LA or move to a new city

Hide and Seek, 16×20in., Acrylic on Panel, 2006

LA Specific:

Favorite Restaurant?

The Rose Cafe (Venice)

What’s your typical Saturday morning like? (favorite coffee shops, etc.)

I strive to make everyday a Saturday, or at least the feeling of a Saturday morning after working a five day 9-5 work week. Since I pretty much paint everyday when I do give myself a day off I think, “Oh it’s Saturday!!”. Basically, I start the day by going for a walk. I try to get the blood flowing before I start work.

Craig Carlisle is represented by George Billis Gallery. You can see his latest exhibition at Sharon Weiss Gallery, Columbus Ohio.

I first learned of Dale Frank’s work from Roslyn Oxley9 gallery in Sydney. On a recent trip down under I read a book review in the The Australian which described Frank’s new book titled So Far The Art of Dale Frank 2005-1980. The scope of the book and the production details sounded intriguing. I’d recently become interested in the artist’s work so I thought this title would be a must-have addition to my library.

Itinerary update: locate So Far.

Following my morning coffee at the Illy Cafe, I knew I could probably find this Dale Frank book by visiting his art gallery but I was in the CBD and didn’t feel like taking a cab anywhere. First stop: Art Gallery of New South Wales. The sales person here said they received one of the books but sent it back due to a binding defect. Hearing this got me a little concerned about the overall bindery quality. I knew the book had to be pretty heavy so maybe the damage could have been caused in transit to this one title. The salesperson agreed with that and kindly referred me to Kinokuniya Bookstore located downtown at The Galeries Victoria, level 2. I had lunch at AGNSW and then headed over to Kinokuniya.

Kinokuniya is The Place for all things books, magazines and printed matter. The store is a treasure trove. I asked a sales person whether they had a copy of the Dale Frank book. She searched for it on her computer system and came up with one copy. A-ha! Excellent news and now we simply had to find that one copy in the store. Believe it or not, it took about 60 minutes of hunting back and forth, aisle after aisle, several computer checks, speaking with other co-workers, etc. but we finally found it on their new books shelf. The reason we didn’t immediately see it? Stealth packaging: all white slipcase with a discrete sans serif type style treatment. The kind of thing easily missed amongst 100,000 other titles.

You know the smell of newly printed magazines or marketing collateral – that’s the smell of printer’s inks. If you’re a graphic designer you know what I am referring to. Slipping the book out of its case and a strong aroma wafts out. Smells like it was dunked in ink and paint.

Nice details: the cover has an interesting die-cut and the edges of the book have been gilded in primary yellow.

So Far The Art of Dale Frank 1980-2005
Published by: Black Inc (trading as Schwartz Publishing)
February 2008
Hardback, 432 pages

According to the Anna Schwartz website, “(So Far) … is considered to be a ground-breaking publication that will recontextualise Australian art literature, and further contemporary painting.”

I’d seen Frank’s work a few times over the past five years but I didn’t get it. Honestly, his varnish paintings remained a little too < other > for me. Maybe I thought the painting style was an effect; it was closer to chemistry than painting. Then I read the articles featuring Dale Frank’s work in Art & Australia vol.42, #2, Ticket to Ride written by Jane Ranikin-Reid and Dale Frank written by Ashley Crawford. The work clicked. My next experience with his work was the Sore Throat exhibition at RO9. The deep blacks and darker colors in his canvases were producing a murky evocative depth I hadn’t seen before. I loved each sinewy ribbon of color emerging from the blackness.

Conclusion: Now that I have the book, I think I need a Dale Frank painting in my life …

Represented by Roslyn Oxley9, Anna Schwartz.
So Far… review in The Australian.
Dale Frank, by Ashley Crawford, Art & Australia vol.42, #2.
Ticket to Ride Dale Frank’s Conceptual Abstraction, by Jane Rankin-Reid, Art & Australia vol.42, #2.
Queensland homestead at Shentel’s Blog.

Inside:

Outside:

Tony de los Reyes
Grand Bouquet Avec Tournesol
Oil alkyd on board
32 x 42 in

I recently learned Billy Howard at Howard House has a blue and white alkyd Tony de los Reyes in his ‘resale’ section of his website. Call or email him if you’re interested in the painting below.

Tony de los Reyes
Panier avec capucine, œillet d’Inde, rose trémière, clématite, pivoine et seringa
2002
Oil alkyd on panel
41 x 47 in

Craig Carlisle
Big Head In New York City, 1998
Oil on canvas
36 x 48 in

Carlisle, Craig
Double Head With Kissing Lips, 2000
Oil on canvas
46 x 57 in

Tie up a princess

Not so super now, uhu!

Mistress of insomnia

TK421 as a hero

He has an upcoming show at New Image Gallery titled “Quit Your Sobbing and Call Me in the Afternoon”. April 26 – May 31, 2008.

Here’s some work from his official site.

batgirl with web, 170×170cm

hulk arms mary2, 170×170cm

spinning tricks, 6×12′

wolverine1, 170×170cm

Untitled 2007

My House III, Edition of 100
Silkscreen in 7 colours, printed on 335 gsm matt custom art paper.
Signed, numbered and dated by the artist.
102 x 76 cm (40 x 30 in)

My House III is a silkscreen print that remakes the original text painting Wool made from the 90s. I really like how the registration is altered on each color plate. Produced by Brand X Editions, New York City. According to their website, My House I is still available at Counter Editions.

Tony de Los Reyes: Ahab’s America
Mar 15, 2008 – Apr 12, 2008

Eclipse
2008
Red bister on paper
77 x 108 3/4 inches, triptych

Pequod
2008
Red bister on paper
91 3/4 x 75 1/4 inches

Pequod (detail)
2008
Red bister on paper, diptych
91 3/4 x 75 1/4 inches