Jennifer Celio Explores the Past at Elephant

Posted on by Diversions LA

 

Jennifer Celio’s impressive solo exhibition, The Wilderness Within closed at Elephant a month ago, but it haunts the imagination – of both viewer and the artist. Celio transformed the intimate space at the Glassell Park gallery into a suburban house garage, one displaying souvenirs and objects that referred to the intersection of the urban (or suburban) world and that of nature. Referencing the hunting of exotic animals, and the hunting of memories and truth, Celio created a treasure-trove of reclaimed and reformed the stories of her childhood.

The quality of memories both restored and expurgated, held dear and in that transitional space between what we know now, and what we knew then,  brings a special poignancy to a terrific installation that serves as a life-size diorama of both the past — and the future of humankind.

The installation is based on Celio’s memories of her grandparents’ Southern California suburban home. The garage, which was also a workshop space for her grandfather, included some elements that were outside the scope of most tract houses of the era. Here were hung exotic animal heads that both horrified and fascinated the artist. Allowed to gather dust in the garage, there were other elements around her grandparents property that exuded the same repulsion and interest – an elephant foot ashtray,  among the memorabilia.  Adding to the somehow both fond and shocking quality of the objects, the artist learned as an adult that these artifacts were not the trophies belonging to her grandfather or half-forgotten purchases from an estate sale, but that they were from her grandmother’s safaris with her previous husband.
Celio’s mixed media work in this installation was a kind of wondrous and strange grab bag of memory itself: there were assemblages, vintage and personal belongings, 80s-style furnishings including lampshades made of macrame, and faux National Park posters. The latter were created in the look of the WPA decade with updated irony in the form of cell towers that look like trees, smart-phone selfie taking, and catch phrases encouraging social media use.
Here, too, were cigarette stubs made from worn pencils, a dart board with faux fur elements, and as a centerpiece, a seating area that includes the aforementioned elephant foot ashtray – this one crafted of paper, wood, and a vintage ashtray.
There are coffee cans that are painted with animal/Africa themes, an umbrella crafted of delicate paper, a series of witty paintings that feature drones.  Creating this immersive environment from diverse memories and facts, Celio used found materials extensively.
Surreal, elegiac, and profoundly intimate,The Wilderness Within was a “garage room” dream of art – all secret finds and perfect small elements, an alchemically transformed space that took the viewer back in time, and back into our hearts, to explore both our often complicated pasts and our relationship with nature, our impact on it and our human family.
Celio’s National Parks poster/painting was one of our favorite elements, and if you missed the magic of Celio’s installation itself, you can pre-order a piece of it: a limited edition giclee print of the work from the artist, who you can reach with a message, among other social media locations, here and here.

 

  • Genie Davis; photos: both my own and provided by the artist

Diverted Destruction at CSULA – 14th Iteration of Making Magic from Discarded Objects

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Co-curated by Mika Cho and Liz Gorden,  Diverted Destruction #14 @ Cal State LA, was an absolutely riveting exhibition in which magic was made. Can trash become art? Can magic happen from random discarded items? Indeed it can, in the 14th such exhibition, a series of art exhibits that was begun by Gordon and often hosted at her mid-city Loft at Liz’s gallery.

Yes, the art exemplifies the amazing value of recycling, and highlights the global environment, but it’s materials aside, the works here are imaginative, exciting, and diverse. While the show closed at the end of February, a catalog is available for purchase – and well worth keeping, rather than recycling! – and a 15th edition of the Diverted Destruction series, Demolition will be featured at Loft at Liz’s later this year.

Beautifully encompassing a larger space, the CSULA show at the Ronald Silverman Gallery featured the work of seven SoCal artists: Michael Arata, Kate Carvellas, Aaron Kramer, Dave Lovejoy, Vojislav Radovanovic, Anna Stump, and Monica Wyatt.

The invited artists,  Cal State LA art students, and the curators collected found materials of all kinds producing sculptural and assemblage work that defied category, each revealing beauty and meaning in the reinvention and reincarnation of destined-for-the-dump objects.

Michael Arata (above) created pure excitement in oranges, yellows, and whites, from a sofa to a protruding wall-bench, a striped dog, picture frames and pillows. The large-scale installation dazzled, revelling in its intensely immersive quality like an animated film come to life.

Kate Carvellas‘ (above) riveting wall and freestanding sculptures vibrated with color in many cases; other works were black and white, resembling planetary objects or relics from a lost city. Utterly unique in form, each work was like a profound puzzle, ready for viewers to put together as their own emotions and visual acuity dictated.

 

 

Aaron Kramer (above) offered interactive, whimsical, kinetic works that allowed viewers to touch, spin, and further alchemize his compelling, fantastical mixed media sculptures. The works were a visual art toy box.

Dave Lovejoy’s (above) installations, crafted from cardboard, were large-scale works, highly tactile in nature, reveling in illusionary depth. Utilizing primarily brown cardboard with individual, small, tile-like works of color, his wall work created the sense of walking into a small cozy cabin – in outer space.

Vojislav Radovanovic‘s (above) work spoke of celestial bodies and radiant beings, of stars transcendent and broken, of rising from destruction to reach a destiny of sky. Rich in color, the work spread wide like a hopeful prayer of art.

Anna Stump’s (above) use of recycled metal objects – paint cans, shovels, spatulas and the like – as a canvas for detailed, pastel landscapes shaped a lustrous fairytale, a memory preserved on the past, a dream for the future.

Monica Wyatt’s (above) mysterious, often translucent sculptures resemble stalagmites and stalactites, glowing and crystalline, formed from small bits of circuitry, plastic conductors and the like. Otherworldly, each piece shimmered with light and motion. The shapes also resemble DNA strands and constellations.

Taken as a whole or as works by the individual artists, this exhibition was a celebration of renewal, rebirth, and wonder – the materials of children and trash collectors spun into something entirely special as art.

Along with the artworks, Gordon offered two long buffet tables of found objects for take-home utilization.

If you didn’t see this beautiful series of works live, look for the catalog, and support these artists as they work toward saving the planet – through art.

  • Genie Davis; photos, Genie Davis

 

 

 

Paloma Montoya Top Pick of South Gate Inaugural Exhibition

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The City of South Gate has chosen Paloma Montoya’s “I’ve Lost my Head Before” as the work of an artist to highlight at the city’s new gallery and museum.  The  inaugural exhibit CUÍDATE / TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF, closes this Saturday, March 26th, after a two month run.  Themed around the idea of coping with life during the pandemic, the exhibition uniquely featured artists either local to South Gate itself or to Southeast Los Angeles.

The exhibition was juried by Color Compton founder Abigail-Lopez-Byrd, Chief Curator of the Museum of Latin American Art Gabriela Urtiaga, and artist Ozzie Juarez, founder of Tlaloc studios.

Montoya says her work here was inspired by her own struggle with depression, suicidal ideation, and management of mental health issues. The piece is a diptych. According to the artist,  “The first part symbolizes my long-term struggle with depression and how it progressed from childhood into adulthood. In some ways, I found healing through these dark moments whether through professional help or other means such as close family relationships and support,” she says. “In the first panel, depression is depicted by an anthropomorphic wolf which in itself is struggling to stay afloat. This figure goes through this cycle often, so while it appears as though it is decapitating itself, it continues to live, but like a chicken with its head cut off. In the second panel, a sense of relief is depicted. A sort of light at the end of the tunnel if you will. A vulnerable figure is depicted as a deer. The deer is in a state of peace and calm. I found myself in these moments after such dark places, and what helped me get to such a place was a deeper understanding of myself and a deep love for who I am.”

The piece is part of an ongoing cycle for Montoya. “The two-part work only focuses on the storm and the calm after it. It is more of a generalization of what my experience is as a whole dealing with major depressive disorder. Because it is a cycle for me, I feel that new works can be created stemming from what is depicted in this particular piece. I do have plans for new works that continue to discuss this aspect of my life.“

She describes her work over all as deeply personal. “It is really more of a journal into my life. I never considered myself great at words, so the best way for me to express myself is through images, images that I create. I attempt to be completely transparent and vulnerable in my work because I believe that is also what makes the artwork much more powerful. If the viewer can relate to it, then that’s great, but for me, it is mostly a cathartic experience.”

Montoya uses a rich and vivid palette. Working in gouache, she says “I enjoy the vividness of the colors and velvet-like texture that gouache creates. I typically tend to use brighter colors because it brings about a sense of lightness when my works can have a dark narrative. Brighter colors are also reminiscent of the natural world, which I draw my inspiration from. For the most part,  [I use]. very rich, brighter sort of palette, possibly colors leaning more toward the neon side sort of palette; but lately, I have had inspiration for works where colors could be depicted in the cooler/darker range.”

Montoya describes the work as significant in “showing transition.  Although this piece was done pre-pandemic, during the pandemic similar mental health issues rose…most of these issues were due to the pandemic itself. The pandemic was in many ways a transition for us… it ultimately leaves us with reflection, self-reflection and on the rest of the world, and how we can heal and heal one another through our own gifts.”

Viewers can see Montoya’s special gift at the South Gate museum and gallery this weekend, where along with a reception – and the last chance to view this beautifully curated exhibition, there will be an interactive installation and art activity, Weaving Hope, by Yeu Q Nguyen, from 1pm-4pm.

  • Genie Davis; photos provided

Light and Dark: Major Solo Shows at MOAH Cedar

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Now at MOAH Cedar,  stunning solo shows are filling the gallery spaces with color, light, and noir magic.

Gay Summer Rick’s evocative Southern California landscapes glow with sunset, sunlight, foggy mornings. A video presentation is a part of the exhibition, explaining in part her painstaking process, as well as the light spectrum that she creates. Her textured, luminous work speaks to sky and shadow, light and air. The viewer could almost float through these images and emerge again bathed in a prolific wash of color and glow. Follow the Sun is as meticulously created as Bonassi’s, but Rick’s work uses a careful application of oil by palette knife.

Her careful, poetic use of color gives us light along the sea and in the city, in mist or wildfire smoke, on a crystalline morning and in the stillness of dusk. Her paintings take us into a full spectrum of sunlight. The urban landscape of downtown Los Angeles provides the setting for a reverential sunrise gilding the summer streets of downtown in “City of Angels.” Heading west to the airport, “Into White” revels in a haunting wash of pale blue and white, as a plane lands in deep fog. The airport is again the setting for “Stand By,” as a rich pink sunset welcomes travelers to the LAX runways. While her work feels in so many ways influenced by and a love letter to Los Angeles light, Rick also depicts New York City in this exhibition. The twice-annual occurrence of “Phenomenon,” in which the sun sets precisely between iconic skyscrapers, takes on an almost supernaturally transportive loveliness in Rick’s skilled hands.

Positioned in the middle gallery space, Lynne McDaniel offers an equally evocative and stunning body of work. Unlike Rick McDaniel’s work glows without vibrant color – or perhaps just a dash of it. McDaniel’s May I Place You on a Brief Hold? flies into a chiaroscuro world, with bold dark and light contrasts creating rich dimension and light.

As she explores environmental issues and man’s fraught relationship with nature, her beautiful, shadowy landscapes haunt both with quiet beauty and the awareness that something just might be amiss. Like Rick, McDaniel also focuses primarily on the Los Angeles area, here depicting primarily the neighborhood sidewalks, streets, and trails around her home in the LA foothills near Pasadena. Elevating the ordinary elements of life to something extraordinary or worthy of deeper consideration, McDaniel gives us a brilliant orange and yellow tot’s pedal car, or a bright orange traffic cone positioned in the middle of a hauntingly curved dirt road lined with lush dark monochrome conifers. An intimate series of smaller, square works include a faint orange/gold shadow of light, as if appearing hazily from a sky grey with wildfire smoke; overhung with trees and shrubs, one bush takes on a reddish cast. As if emerging from a noir dream, the cityscapes McDaniel depicts are in palette, approach, and texture quite different indeed from Rick’s, but equally driven by the Los Angeles they love, and its light and shadow.

In contrast to these landscapes are McDaniel’s purely delightful images of her expressive black cat in “January/December 2020.” The feline’s gold eyes will rivet you, as does so much of McDaniel’s fine work. Look up above the doorway to be sure not to miss them.

Reviewed in another publication is the third, magnificent solo show now at Cedar, Jodi Bonassi’s gorgeous, color-jewel birds.

All three, Bonassi’s astounding winged creatures; Rick’s light-filled dazzling landscapes traversing the color spectrum of light; and McDaniel’s superb monochromatic and intimate depictions of our fragile neighborhoods and environment – these exhibitions are too fine to miss.

Visit MOAH Cedar through March 13.

MOAH Cedar is located at 44857 Cedar Ave. in Lancaster. The galleries are open Thursday-Sunday, 2 to 8 p.m.

  • Genie Davis; Photos: Genie Davis