Art talk tomorrow!

Thanks so much to giaonthemove.com for the nice mention of my show, ShoeboxLA and good friend Paul Evans:

http://giaonthemove.com/2013/12/03/artplug-tuesday-sophia-allison-far/#comment-32463

Artplug Tuesday: Sophia Allison – Far

“To cause viewers to pause and notice the mundane in the environments they pass through, notice the bits of unexpected beauty that sometimes go undetected through their lives.” 

.

We remember Sophia Allison from last year’s exhibit of Doing Pennants: (Artist Made Pennants) at Fifth Floor Gallery, Los Angeles, which was organized by Paul W. Evans in 2012.

For those of you following the mobile art scene, this Los Angeles-based, multi-media artist has additionally been curating one-day, site specific, pop up exhibitions. ShoeboxLA, started in September 2011 (also with Paul). If you blinked, you missed it.

On November 21, 2013 through January 20, 2014, Sophia Allison has a home at the Moorpark College Art Gallery and will be presenting a solo exhibition entitled, “Far“ open to the public.

 As a special treat, she will also be giving an Artist Lecture on Wednesday, December 4, 1:00pm, in the Campus Center Conference Room.

In Far, Sophia offers an autobiography of sewn landscapes and works on paper. The work is directly connected to and inspired by the organic surroundings of her childhood home in the mountains of Western North Carolina and her current home in Los Angeles. Far alludes to not only the physical distance of familiar locations but also the emotional aspects of memories attached to specific places.

In her sewn pictorials, Sophia places a printed image on fabric and repetitively sews through the paper, forcing it into the cloth fibers while simultaneously destroying the paper. Parts of the image are recreated with thread on the opposite side of the material. The effect is two- fold: on one side, the landscape is clearly articulated; on the other, the paper image is obliterated, leaving loose threads and uneven textures. The image is simultaneously destroyed and built up; it is recognized as a snapshot of a specific location and at the same time it becomes fragmented and abstracted.

 

Far

I am happy to announce that I will have an exhibition titled Far at the Moorpark College Art Gallery on view from November 21, 2013-January 20, 2014. 

My artist talk will take place on Wednesday, December 4, 1p.m. in the Campus Center Conference Room.  The following is the press release:

Moorpark College Art Gallery

Administration Bldg.

7075 Campus Road

Moorpark, CA 91320

Gallery hours: Mon. - Thurs., 9a.m.-7p.m. & Fri., 9a.m.-12 noon

Contact: Erika Lizée, elizee@vcccd.edu

Moorpark College Art Gallery is pleased to present a solo exhibition by Sophia Allison. In Far, the Los Angeles-based, multi-media artist offers an autobiography of sewn landscapes and works on paper. The work is directly connected to and inspired by the organic surroundings of her childhood home in the mountains of Western North Carolina and her current home in Los Angeles. Far alludes to not only the physical distance of familiar locations but also the emotional aspects of memories attached to specific places.

Her recent works on paper are collaged abstracted landscapes. Allison paints acrylic on both sides of a piece of watercolor paper and allows it dry directly on her studio floor. As the paper dries, dirt, grit and grime from the floor attach to the painting, creating variable textures. The paper is then cut down into pieces for the collage works. The forms within these works undulate and flow, creating movement in the images that loosely resemble various mountain topography. The works are created from Allison's memory of local physical terrain.

In her sewn pictorials, Allison places a printed image on fabric and repetitively sews through the paper, forcing it into the cloth fibers while simultaneously destroying the paper. Parts of the image are recreated with thread on the opposite side of the material. The effect is two-fold: on one side, the landscape is clearly articulated; on the other, the paper image is obliterated, leaving loose threads and uneven textures. The image is simultaneously destroyed and built up; it is recognized as a snapshot of a specific location and at the same time it becomes fragmented and abstracted.

An artist lecture will be held on Wed., Dec. 4 at 1p.m. In the Campus Center Conference Room.

Green and Orange

More sketchbook work in progress:

felt tip pen, colored pencil on paper, 14" x 17"

felt tip pen, colored pencil and watercolor on paper, 14" x 17"

What's cookin', good lookin'?

Here are some beginnings (and middlins) of what's currently shaking in the studio:

( I think these two are conspiring against me.)

 Beginning of a large drawing. (Collage, ink pen, colored pencil on paper.)

 Detail of same work above.

View of top half of a mid-size work on paper. (Collage, cut paper, ink pen and pencil.)

Build a mountain; then tear it down

 

ink pen, colored pencil on paper, 14" x 17"

(detail)

(detail)

Red

This week's sketchbook piece in the works:

 acrylic wash, ink pen, colored pencil on paper, 14" x 17"

 (detail)

 

(detail)

Quick peek

Some quick and dirty photos of the new sketchbook work still in progress (all abstracted landscapes):

 

 cut paper

 cut paper

 felt tip pen on paper

felt tip pen on paper

So, how ya doing?

It's been a while.  Still making art almost everyday--creating, destroying and re-making again. Slow and steady...

I'm currently at work on some small/medium sculptures made of watercolor paper and foam core. Haven't figured out yet how they will be displayed-will the pedestals be part of the sculpture or separate beasts from the actual works? Remains to be seen.  Been nice to just make work and not worry about deadlines so much. 

I'm also working on some felt tip pen drawings and cut paper/collage-style drawings on paper; all are basically abstracted landscapes. But some are venturing on being completely abstract.  Will post some here as soon as I get a couple of pictures of them.

On a different note, is anyone really going to care about this once Mr. Deitch is gone?
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/culture/la-et-cm-deitch-moca-20130725,0,278228.story

Sure, there's a lot of work that needs to be done at MOCA but that seems to have been the case for quite a while.  So what else is new?  During my stint at the museum on the hill, there were always troubles or issues with the "higher ups."  Sigh.  It just gets so, so tired after a while.  Everyone seems to get in their own way-too many agendas. Thank God for the people who actually believe in the art they show, the art makers everywhere and the good art-things that continue to happen in and around Los Angeles. This good will continue too. With or without the head muckety-mucks to give their blessings.  Really, who needs 'em anyway? Keep at it, artists.  Just keep making what you gotta make and doing what you need to do to make your art happen.