Gabba Gallery is Filled With Great Art – Through This Weekend

It would be hard to find a gallery that exhibits more consistently interesting art in a more convivial setting that Gabba Gallery in Fillipinotown. The current four solo shows on exhibit are no exception.

If you haven’t seen the shows yet, you must. The gallery features exhibitions by four LA-based artists: Anyes GalleaniKate CarvellasPatrick Haemmerlein, and Henry Niller, and is as always beautifully and conversationally curated by Jason Ostro and Elena Jacobson.

Female icons are the subject of Galleani’s Strong, which features richly layered mixed media works that depict resilliant well-known women such as Marilyn Monroe, and Angelina Jolie, below in “Angelina & the Dripping Pink Skyline.” There’s a futuristic aspect to her work, which combines photo montage, paste, and paint.  Her color palette is as LA as a winter sunset; her subjects as well-known as they are ripe for a more personal evocation.

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Haemmerlein is presenting his second solo show at Gabba. Working in mixed media on panel, he combines watercolor images with collages of sheet music and written materials; other images reflect Native American symbols and animal photography. Measuring Memories has an ephermeral and elegaic quality that deserves a careful look at each element of his work.

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Niller’s Anomalies encompasses two years of work in pen and ink drawings and mixed media works that build upon the concepts of the drawings. His reinvention of rock artists and bands also on exhibit make a terrific contrast with the drawings; both make powerful use of line and curve, and have a compelling tension in the images, which are fresh and filled with motion.

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Carvellas, with Time, Space, and Place used found objects and assemblage incorporating a wide-range of items while creating richly rewarding, delicately assembled works that honestly vibrate with meaning. Carvellas is creating astonishing sculptural forms out of discards and ordinary objects; she uses each in almost mosaic-like approach. 

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In her work above, “Branching Out,” she utilizes the natural beauty of a found branch, aligning it to a location through map. A mysterious shape in the frame and in the top upper right remind the viewer of a compass, perhaps an emotional one; while her use of colored toy squares beneath them are both perfect geometric compositions and haunting reminders of past memories and future dreams.

The title of her exhibition refers to philosopher Edward Casey as well of the study of archeology. She notes “Time and space come together in place, resulting in change that celebrates or disrupts cyclical time and leads to rituals that recreate the universe.” 

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However, she explains “Instead of rituals, I gather disparate objects from different places and times, unifying them to create my own new and unique ‘universes.'” These are universes indeed, astonishing small worlds that expand the mind and eye just from viewing them. She percieves and reveals patterns and meanings in the objects she uses, shaping, structuring, and altering our own recognition of them.

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With her piece “A Powerful Alliance,” above, Carvellas uses stencils, blocks, and a sundial-like configuration of small washers and hinges to create a piece that seems mystical, akin to a ouija board, a hierglyphic interpretation ready to transport viewers to another time or realm.

Many of her pieces here have the same effect: there’s something mysterious and magical to them, a heft that both her use of material and juxtaposition of images creates.

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Hurry on in to see each of these artist’s works, and take in the exhibiting artists in the gallery’s rear salon space as well, including the photographic noir of LA in the work of Stephen Levey, who recently had his own solo show at the gallery.

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  • Genie Davis; images provided by artists and gallery

Four Solo Shows About to Soar at Gabba Gallery

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Four solo shows are about to take on 2019 and give the new year an exciting spin at Gabba Gallery on Saturday January 12th. From the luminous black and white noir photographs of Stephen Levey, to the assemblage work of Jennifer Verge, to iconic pop art from Nina Palomba and Pastey Whyte, this looks to be a vibrant visual event.

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With Nini’s Weenies, pop art and street photography fuse in a colorful solo exhibition from Nina Palomba. Referencing Japanese pop culture and American roots, we see the true inspiration – of all things – in a hot dog, as well as Americana, such as fast cars and pin-up girls. The artist worked in Tokyo to combine classic American images with Japanese style for an entirely new look at our own nostalgia and Japanese culture.

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In After, photographic artist Stephen Levey uses his deep love for the city of Los Angeles — and his iPhone — to create rich and warm black and white images.  The unique beauty of his work, both in and of itself, and in the ways in which Levey surpasses the boundaries of digital phone-camera capabilities show breathtaking depth. The works here are noir-like in resonance, whether capturing DTLA or the detritus held in desert enclaves. The exhibition’s title refers to the way in which viewers may well see the world – and LA itself –  “after” viewing this rewarding collection.

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According to Levey,  “After is the largest solo show I’ve done to date, it consists of 31 images and contains some of my personal favorites. There are quite a few images in this show that have never been seen by the general public previously or made available for sale. I regularly hold a number of images back to be released at a later point as limited edition prints or to be made available to my private collectors. I made the decision to release a small number of these images for this show.”

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He adds “The theme of the show is based on the fact that a number of my favorite images all have something in common; the images represent items or places which have reached the end of their usefulness, appear abandoned or have been simply destroyed by time… hence the show title.” Why black and white? “I believe it best reprsents how I felt when taking the image, which was the total lack of life in these places/things.” Despite his words, the images themselves take on a quiet, elegaic life of their own.

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Jennifer Verge’s solo turn, Naked Truth uses an industrial pop style that includes assemblage, verbiage, and mixed media with smart urban flair. Using power tools, she merges found and recycled objects into her work, for a rustic look that contrasts and compliments her own uplifting text. Meditative and textured, the images are contemplative in form and message.

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It’s sunny-side up for Verge, who loves life and vigorously shows it, saying her inspiration comes from people who truly “live the hell out of life.” Adventure, rusty romance, and cutting-edge style shape the basis of her work here.

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And then there is Pastey White, whose Hand Painted Pop borrows its title from a 90s-era MOCA exhibition, but is highly original in execution. Then Chicago-based, Whyte was inspired to create his own hand-painted images, based on media and content from museum pamphlets, ticket stubs, vintage ads and social images, as well as drawings and writings created by his daughter.

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Whyte’s result is entirely personal yet relatable – and offers a story-telling narrative about today in America, and what that means to those of us living here.

In fact, each in its own way, the four solo exhibitions on view at Gabba all represent life in America, life in Los Angeles, life shaped through a movingly intimate lens that widens each viewers point of view to a new perspective.

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It’s the perfect way to start the new year, fusing the ultimate in artistic self-expression with a fond devotion for and insight into the passions, follies, dreams, and desires of American life.  The exhibition runs through February 2nd.

Gabba Gallery 3126 Beverly Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90057
(323) 604-4186
https://www.gabbagallery.com

  • Genie Davis; photos provided by Gabba Gallery 

 

Four Artists: One Opening Night at Gabba Gallery

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above, Nicholas Bonamy 

MIKE HABS | OLGA PONOMARENKO | CANTSTOPGOODBOY | NICHOLAS BONAMY

Opening September 8 at Gabba Gallery, artists Mike Habs, Olga Ponomarenko, CANTSTOPGOODBOY, and Nicholas Bonamy offer four solo exhibitions curated by gallerists Jason Ostro and Elena Jaboson.

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above, Olga Ponomarkeno

Each artist offers a unique perspective on modern life, from Habs themes of fantasy, luxury, and death to Ponomarkeno’s blissfully angelic woodland creatures; the layered mixed media pop culture of CANTSTOPGOODBOY; and Bonamy’s surprisingly serene take on life in Los Angeles. Whether they are taking on the fantastical or the realistic in terms of subject matter, these solo shows are entirely original and vibrantly adept at navigating the emotional waters of human existence. Lost In Hollywood - Mike Habs

Habs’ past work has followed a strong expressionist bent, but with his exhibition here, (gas)Lit, he relies on a collection of small Zip Lock bags, the type used to sell drugs, and shapes them into mosaic-like work that has both a dreamy sensibility and a precise, graceful style. Chicago born, Habs now works in Los Angeles; his work here evokes the pattern and flow of urban life, its vicissitudes and turbulence.

“This exhibition features some of my previous abstract expressionist work, as well as a new conceptual collection. The conceptual collection … will make commentary on some of the good and bad trends I am seeing in today’s modern art culture.” Habs adds  “I would describe the newest works as combining the intensity of the LA Graffiti writers with the LA ‘finish fetish’/minimalist movement, which became a staple of the Los Angeles fine art world.  The new work, though presented in a luxury aesthetic, carries with it a sense of impending danger and confusion. The intention is that the work will enable the viewer to question their own ideas of luxury and value in our increasingly instant gratification environment,” he says. Habs has an early-arrival alert for attendees: “100 free t-shirts will be given away to the first people in attendance.”

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above, Olga Ponomarenko

Also Los Angeles-based, Olga Ponomarenko’s work is infused with a sense of whimsy and delight. Riffing on Colette Miller’s Global Angel Wings Project as well as Renaissance-era painter Fra Angelico’s angels, here woodland creatures from bear to mouse stand before a wall of graffiti angel wings, personifying innocence, the angelic, the bliss that humans too could achieve if they recognized the paradise of earth and took a breather to revel in the truest aspects of life — its spiritual core — rather than corrupting the environment. Titled Angelos, Ponomarenko’s exhibition playfully considers both angels and the angelic right here in us as Angelenos.

Her careful attention to detail in creating these beautiful and humor-infused portraits and the soulfulness of her subjects adds to the viewing pleasure. Below, Ponomarenko adds some finishing touches to a bear’s claws.

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Ponomarenko gives us beautiful, amusing, and perfectly crafted work that is entirely unique,  and rivetingly alive. Her work is the epitome of magical realism, a true and touching look into the artist’s heart and city’s soul.

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A frequent exhibitor at Gabba, CANTSTOPGOODBOY’s Eleven is a vibrant, layered collection of mixed media pop art. From depictions of rock stars like Bowie and John Lennon to a Native American chief, he combines precisely detailed acrylic grayscale painting with the bright primary colors of a splattered background, colorful collages,  and the soft glitter of diamond dust. Take the feathered headdress of his native chief: the feathers bloom in searingly bright technicolor shades, a bursting flower garden of life and meaning. Along with larger scale canvas works, CANTSTOPGOODBOY shows a smaller series of paper works here, equally irreverent and blossoming with color.

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It is to some extent the absence of color as much as its riveting presence that most fascinates Nicholas Bonamy. With his mixed media landscapes quintessentially about Los Angeles, Bonamy establishes an alternative universe, one both recognizable yet delicately different in Gray. The exhibition’s title is rather misleading: his work is layered both visually and emotionally: each piece begins with a resonant image that is taken from the freeway or the Hollywood Hills; beyond these iconic images he layers paint and collage images, creating serene, mysterious views of LA that are dream-like, awash in the color of an LA sunset, edging carefully between surrealism and the hyper-realistic.

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Bonamy relates “I would describe my current work as cityscapes of unremarkable views of Los Angeles.  I try to create a sense of time passing using layering and collage. Some of the things I paint, I see almost every day, and every day they are as much the same as they are different. I want my work to be something that you can look at for years and always find new surprises.” According to the artist, “I make paintings because I like to make things that are interesting, or pretty, or both, but once they are finished, my fun is pretty much over. I send them out into the world and hope people will see them, and maybe connect, and feel some of the pleasure I experienced while making them.”  And for viewers, the experience is truly pleasureable and insightful indeed.

All four shows open September 8 from 7-11 p.m., and run through the 28th. 

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Olga Ponomarenko, above; CANTSTOPGOODBOY, below.

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The gallery is located at 3126 Beverly Blvd. in Westlake; free parking is available across the street behind 3125 Beverly Blvd. off Dillon. Regular gallery hours are Wednesday-Saturday form 1203, or by appointment.

  • Genie Davis; photos provided by Gabba Gallery and courtesy of the artists.

Four Times the Art at Gabba Gallery

Now through January 27th at Gabba Gallery, four strong solo shows in a range of mediums offer a bold beginning to the new year.
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With Give and Take, Cyrus Howlett offers a bright, vivid palette of red, yellow, and aqua against raw and uncoated wood. His images are of hands.
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Powerful, graceful hands are enigmatically suspended in an undefined space, offering images that have overtones of AI and VR and reveal the potential for understanding through gesture.
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With Evolution, Dytch66’s lush, hyper-realistic style is a beautiful outgrowth of his street art. The LA-based artist uses spray paint to create these detailed images, shaping resonant, graceful works with amazing precision.
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Above, Dytch66’s “The King.”
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Spacegoth creates a world here inhabited by playful devils and those humans who have left this mortal plane. There is a sense of the ominous and the playful coexisting side by side in these works, which at times feature words as well as images. In short, she’s filling The Void. 
Some images emerge from that void with a delightful sharp touch of the whimsical, as below, with “Nobody.”
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Other images, such as the above “I Spent a lot of time in the background,” have a darker resonance.
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With ARTSTAR, Kate Kelton uses acrylics on found and assembled woods, in an exploration of immortality and stardom.
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Her gorgeous black and white works have a throwback quality, as if they were created in another time or another realm. Beautifully evocative, her work is both romantic and fully alive, a celebration of the past and the promise of eternity.

The uniqueness of each artist’s work gives Gabba a strong start to 2018, with four fully-realized solo shows all in one fun space.

  • Genie Davis; photos provided by Gabba Gallery