Oooh,  “JARDINES, CACTUS Y FLORES”. Gorgeous! I’ve written about her paintings before {women facing away from the viewer}, but this is the most recent work of Spanish artist Alejandra Atarés. Those tiles, the flowers, and my goodness… those electric color palettes! These are just a few paintings destined for her soon-to-open show at Victor Lope Gallery in Barcelona tomorrow… Wednesday, October 10th at 7pm. Also, a few shots so you can see the scale of these botanical beauties {and a lovely bio shot of Alejandra by Santiago Garcés}:

Stunning.

Sigh. New work by LA based artist Seonna Hong. Seriously, I love everything she does every time she does it! Speaking of which, all of these pieces are part of a new show, titled “Things Will Get Better”… let’s hope so. The show opens TOMORROW NIGHT, October 6 from 6-9pm at Hashimoto Contemporary in San Francisco.

“This show is about reckoning. I found myself in the last couple years being overwhelmed by what was happening in the world and it forced me to rethink my place in it as a woman, a person of color, a mother, and as a citizen. I looked for inspiration in people around me, their activism, their work, their humanity and I found hope and community in that.”

So smart, so beautiful.

* BOOK TOUR INFO ALERT *  Seonna and I will both be at Hashimoto on Saturday October 20th! Yep, I’ll be there doing a talk, Q&A, and book signing from 2-4pm AND you can get Seonna to sign it too because her beautiful story/work is featured on pages 30 – 35… YAY! Mark your calendars for A BIG IMPORTANT ART BOOK – Now With Women in San Francisco!

Breath. Taking. I’ve written about New York based artist Jacob Hashimoto before {2014}, but after seeing glimpses of this absolutely stunning installation, titled ‘The Eclipse’, popping up over and over again on Instagram, well, clearly I had to write about him again. If you are in New York, please, please, please go to this … and then tell me all about it!

Governors Island (NY) Announces Immersive Public Exhibition by Artist Jacob Hashimoto. Two breathtaking installations [‘The Eclipse’ – shown here, and ‘Never Comes Tomorrow’] composed of thousands of delicate, hanging rice paper kites, cubes and funnels to be displayed in historic St. Cornelius Chapel and Liggett Hall Archway. ON VIEW: June 2 – October 31, 2018

Powerful. That word always come up when I write about the work of Iraqi born, US based artist Hayv Kahraman. I had the honor of writing her whole story in my latest book, A BIG IMPORTANT ART BOOK – Now with Women … which just so happens to be hitting shelves, worldwide, today! It is big, important, and filled with stories of unstoppable women – both contemporary and historical. Hayv’s bio and paintings are in Chapter 12 : Look To The Past {p.232 – 237}, as her work is directly influenced by her past personal experiences – fleeing Iraq with her family at the tender age of eleven, for example. Hayv is an extraordinary person and insanely talented artist. In fact, she has an absolutely stunning show hanging right now {install shown above} at Susanne Vielmetter Los Angeles Projects in Culver City. Here is a taste of what this show explores:

“Silence is Gold” powerfully reveals the important role played by sexuality and violence in claims to asylum and to humanitarian aid; but it also demonstrates that this works differently for different people. Women fleeing from the global South largely need to sexualize and sell themselves to cross borders, or to sell the very real violence they may have experienced [Note 3]. Trafficking victims must be at once innocent and ravaged; they must leverage their violation even as they must be ashamed of it. These women are required to provide the graphic details of their sexual exploitation, in ways that can end up being both horrifying and titillating for those who serve as legal or political adjudicators. ~Dr. Miriam Ticktin on Havy Kahraman’s exhibition “Silence Is Gold” at Susanne Vielmetter, Los Angeles.

Powerful. “Silence is Gold” will be up until October 27th at Susanne Vielmetter, Los Angeles.

I am so, so, so incredibly proud of this book … if you see it in a shop, snap a photo for me {and you know, buy it too!} 

Oh boy! If you’re in Chicago this coming weekend {September 28th – 30th} be sure to check out The Other Art Fair … So. Much. ART. Here are just five of my faves. And hell yes, I’m kicking things off with Isabella Di Sclafani’s Queens:

Gasp! I love it all! Go if you can … The Other Art Fair | Chicago : Mana Contemporary, 2233 S Throop / For hours, and ticket info visit their site. Oh! AND tomorrow night, September 27th there is a party for artists… that’s you!

Artists above: Isabella Di Sclafani / Chris Hyndman / Kaylee Dalton / Britni Mara / Erin Vincent

ps. The Other Art Fair will be in London and LA in October, and Brooklyn in November.

I want to touch that unicorn hair. This is just a tiny glimpse into the beautifully bizarre portfolio of American artist Hilary White. Gorgeous compositions, delicious colors, and material lists that look like this: paint, resin, glitter, leather, cloth, spikes, hair and the list goes on. LOVE! Also inspiring… this description of her work by Paradigm Gallery:

“Inspired from her work with children within the Foster Care system, White’s latest series of truly original, eye-popping sculptural wall pieces meet at the crossroads of theology, science, and wholly imagined realities. Employing a range of mediums from hand-cut wood, plastic, and paint to resin, glitter, and even hair, White creates tangible manifestations of faith, and what she refers to as the healing process through art making.”

If you happen to be in Philadelphia next week, you can see her latest show/series, titled “Seeing Impossible Color”, at Paradigm Gallery. The opening reception is on Friday September 28th, 5.30-10pm. The show runs until October 20th.

Sparkly stars, rainbows, mermaids, and a land full o’ fairies! Today I’m talking to California based artist, teacher, and restorer of all things magical … well, at Children’s Fairyland in Oakland, anyway! Shannon D. Taylor is a very busy woman, but that doesn’t stop her from adding a little bit of magic to pretty much everything she does. Listen right up there under “Southern Star”, or subscribe on iTunes.

Alright, first things first, a few of Shannon’s pieces that I’ve written about before:

See? Too good not to show again!

Next … ping pong paddles and saws, because when you do an art residency in a giant warehouse filled with thrifted goods, this is the kind of thing that can happen:

Oh, those tigers. And do you see what I mean about her sparkly starry skies? So dreamy!

Now not only is Shannon a talented painter, she’s also REALLY good at finding vintage frames to house her gorgeous work. Look at this:

Gasp! They’re all so fabulous, each one filled to the brim with Shannon’s weird & wonderful worlds. Also, I really need to go thrift shopping with her. A lot.

So, when Shannon isn’t making her own work, she’s teaching at the California College of the Arts … and I desperately want to be in her six hour sketchbook class! Here is a tiny peek into her sketchbook:

Ha! And a lovely self-portrait too! You is beautiful, Shannon.

Alright … and when she’s not making her own work, or teaching, she’s restoring the magical bits and pieces at Children’s Fairyland in Oakland! This is the super fun event at Fairyland we were talking about:

… and that’s the piece I made for it! 10″x10″ wood panel, complete with chunky gold glitter paint because when you make something for Fairyland, YOU ADD GLITTER. If you can go to this party, GO! Artists making art in front of your eyes that then sells for $40/piece? Yeah, GO!

And finally, you thought her work was magic… wait until you see her studio:

Ah-mazing! I wonder if any gnomes or fairies share that crazy-cozy space with her!?  And yes, that’s Shannon’s latest self-portrait… kickass kimono included. Thanks so much to Shannon for fitting me into her crazy schedule; thanks to Saatchi Art for supporting the episode; and of course, thank YOU for listening. There will be more art for your ear next weekend.

Other links:

1. California College of the Arts
2. Children’s Fairyland, Oakland California
3. Tickets for “Drawn Together” : Friday September 28th, 2018  6-9pm
4. Bedford Gallery, Walnut Creek CA
5. Shannon on Instagram, aka magicmakerdreamweaver 
6. Discount Universe {home of that awesome kimono}

Strange new world, indeed! This is the latest work by Minneapolis based Jennifer Davis, and all of it’s hanging side by side right at this very moment. “Strange New World” is currently at Artspace in Raleigh, North Carolina and will be up until October 27th … in other words, wait for Hurricane Florence to make her way through, THEN pop in to see the show. Safety first, art a very close second. Happy Friday … stay safe, east coasters.

What!? Oh my word … gigantic wooden Dairy Queen treats! This is the newest work by American artist Camp {Campbell} Bosworth. If you are anywhere even close to Waxahachie Texas this coming Sunday – September 16th, 4-7pm – get yourself to the opening of “THANK YOU, PLEASE DRIVE THRU” at Webb Gallery Oh, and maybe grab a peanut buster parfait on the way. Happy Monday.

Spoke NYC is pleased to present The Moleskine Project VII, a group exhibition curated by Ken Hashimoto and Rodrigo Luff featuring over 60 international contemporary artists. SIXTY! Here’s a quote from Rodrigo:

“The show is a tribute to how artists have developed and grown by using sketchbooks to dive deeper into the personal realms that fuel their artwork, exploring new ideas, concepts and even experimenting with different media and styles. An energetic visual dialogue of imagery flows from frame to frame, forming a collective sketchbook that allows us to appreciate the radically individual approach taken by each artist.”

The opening reception is this weekend – Saturday, August 4th from 6 – 8pm {210 Rivington St, NYC}. For more info, you can email them at nyc@spoke-art.com.

{Artists shown above: Travis Louie  /  Michael Reeder  /  Matt Ritchie  /  Alex Garant  /  Alessandra Maria  /  Daniel Bilodeau}