With the launch of a new gallery on La Cienega’s gallery row in Culver City, Fabrik Projects Gallery is stepping off the printed page and firmly into the gallery scene with California Rising. The inaugural exhibit features contemporary art by 42 emerging and mid-career artists, most of whom live and work in the Golden State.
Curator and gallerist Chris Davies has assembled an eclectic exhibition that ranges from whimsical resins to inventive mixed media constructions and avant-garde paintings.
Jane Szabo’s lustrous photographs of personal family objects – still life work taken from her haunting Family Matters series – is represented with her “Fortitude.”
Stuart Kusher’s “Fragment,” a gorgeous golden wing sculpture is as rich as it’s material.
Megan Frances’ perfectly abstract tender green tendrils in her “Fleur de Lys 6,” above.
Nancy R. Wise’s “Purple Mountain Majesty,” a brilliant, pastel-colored vision of a California freeway in a dream, is another standout.
Working acrylic on canvas, Astrid Francis’ “Starry Nights,” above, is a non-representational, complex, and finely detailed work with bold, brightly hued creatures populating a rich backdrop of dandelion.
“Inner Space,” by fine art photographer Richard S. Chow, contrasts the vivid color of Francis’ work with his strongly composed black and white abstract exploring the interplay of light and space. The photograph is reminiscent of charcoal or graphite drawings.
Sarah Hadley’s sensual “Desire Under the Trees” features a sharply focused pair of woman’s legs, a recurring theme in Hadley’s work. This complex composite image features foliage, flowers and evergreens, all disquietingly echoing the image of the legs.
Betsy Enzenberger’s whimsical Mini Pops & Ice Cream Cones sculptural series challenges ideas of transience with resin sweets as classic symbols of an ephemeral childhood that will not melt away.
Fabrik Projects Gallery brings together a mix of paintings, photography, and sculpture in a show that vibrates with the color, hope, and resilience that does indeed mark the rising fortunes of California’s thrilling art scene.
CALIFORNIA RISING
2636 S. La Cienega Blvd. Los Angeles, CA.
September 9 – October 16, 2017
Lisa Broadway with Genie Davis; photos by Lisa Broadway, Genie Davis, courtesy of the gallery, courtesy of Richard Chow