Dead Letter Playground at Leo Kesting Gallery

By Head Hoods

Manhattan’s Leo Kesting Gallery has a group show opening next week with some of my favorite emerging artists. Dead Letter Playground: A Collection of Contemporary Street Art opens June 24th (from 7pm-10pm) and has artwork from Carolyn A’Hearn, Chris Stain, Clown Soldier, Dain, DickChicken, Doze Green, Elbowtoe, Elle, Ellis G, Faro, Gaia, Head Hoods, Imminent Disaster, Jen.Lu, Jordan Seiler, Know Hope, Laura Meyers, Lee Trice, Love Me, Matt Siren, Mister Never, Nicola Verlato, Peru Ana Ana Peru, Phil Lumbang, Shark Toof, Anthony Michael Sneed and Sweet Toof. Of course, the show also includes one of my least favorite artists, DickChicken, but nobody’s perfect (ps, because I know that somebody is going to give me shit for that comment, I’d like to clarify: I actually don’t mind DickChicken’s tag or find it offensive or anything. I just don’t think he makes anything remotely interesting indoors). The show runs through July 18th.

Here’s some of the work that will be at Dead Letter Playground:

By Jordan Seiler
By Faro

The Urban Romantic at the Irvine Contemporary

Irvine Contemporary is pleased to present new works and on-site installations by gallery artist Gaia. In Urban Romantic, Gaia will present new compositions that combine decollage, linocut prints, and painting on wood panels and new on-site street mural installations. Opening reception with the artist: Saturday, June 19, 6-8 PM.

Drawing on his new and evolving body of imagery depicting human and animal figures, Gaia’s work reflects on the ancient themes of animal and human sympathies, but now in the context of the city and the human built environment. Working with myth and symbolic animal figures, Gaia’s street murals are like the works of an urban shaman drawing on a positive force from animal protectors.

Gaia employs recognizable animal figures to remind us of lost human connections to nature and the environment. He constructs an image of a reversal of the “natural order” where animals intervene as protectors and avatars for a new awareness of the human condition in the natural world. He is known world-wide for street murals placed in areas to elicit surprise and reflection by passers-by who encounter the symbolism and fragile narratives of his work.

New works for the show after the jump. Check the flickr for more street work http://www.flickr.com/photos/gaiastreetart/

Continue reading “The Urban Romantic at the Irvine Contemporary”

Mural for Axis Alley

Just finished painting a huge mural for the second year of the Axis Alley Project. Full install begins next weekend and the opening will be May 23rd. Made out for an interesting piece for the fingers body and head become barely perceptible on the surface of this abandoned building right behind calvert street in Baltimore. Check out the flickr for more photos of other recent street work.

Pop Up Solo At Gallery Heist

Gallery Heist is pleased to present The Reinvention of Nature, the San Francisco debut exhibition for Brooklyn/Baltimore based street artist GAIA. The Reinvention of Nature – Opening reception: Saturday, May 15, 2010, 7-11pm MAY 15 – MAY 31, 2010 Gaia is a Brooklyn and Baltimore based street artist with a background in Printmaking and Sculpture. He is currently enrolled in his final year at MICA (Maryland Institute of Art) with a major in interdisciplinary sculpture. At the age of 21 Gaia has built an impressive resume having exhibited in art fairs and galleries through out Brooklyn, London, D.C, Miami and Los Angeles. His work has appeared along side street art contemporary geniuses such as Blek Le Rat, Shepard Farey, Swoon, Matt Small, D*face, Sweettoof, Brian Adam Douglas, Lucas Price, Nick Walker, Slinkachu, Imminent Disaster, EVOL, Pisa 73, Oliver Vernon, and Dalek just to name a few.

Marrying the animal and the human form, Gaia conjures mysterious figures that carry a heavy sense of mythology and recall a past when man and nature were once united. These romantic creatures stand in relief to the urban environment as they lurk and beckon in the city’s forgotten and neglected spaces. The conveyance of their story relies on the chance coincidence with a passerby, and even in that intimate moment, their narrative is precarious and delicate. Gaia works with linocut prints and painted images applied to paper and then mounted as paste ups on the street or on panels for finished works.

ABOUT THE GALLERY Art is an extension of our culture and our communities and in many ways art defines our times. Art is not a luxury it is a necessity. My mission is to foster innovative artistic expression and provide sanctuary for the creative process while stressing the importance of it. The walls of Heist will house work that is representational to this generation offering a contemporary program of artists who challenge and analyze our social and cultural responsibility, traditions, and behaviors; artists who are on the forefront of a conscious art movement. To encourage and support this conscious art movement, I have opened Heist and hope that you will choose to be a part of it. Gallery Hours: Tuesday – Saturday 12:00-8:00pm Mondays by appointment. Gallery Heist is located at 679 Geary Street near the corner of Leavenworth, southeast of the intersection.

Very Nearly Almost issue 11 launch party

Very Nearly Almost‘s 11th issue hits shelves this month, and so next week they’ve got a launch party for the magazine. Should be good fun. This issue’s cover artist is the UK’s INSA, and other artists from around the world are featured inside. In fact, make sure to pick up this issue of magazine because it’s where you can read an interview that I did with Case earlier this year. Plus they’ve got the legendary Mike Giant, the super-cool photographer Ruedione and one of my personal favorite artists, Gaia. Hope to see you at the launch.

And speaking of Ruedione, Acclaim Magazine has just posted an interview that Ruedieone did with Revok just moments before Revok’s infamous arrest in Australia.

Deny Me Three Times print by Gaia

Gaia‘s Deny Me Three Times image is one of my favorites by him, so I’m glad to see that Nelly Duff has just started selling Deny Me Three Times as a print. This isn’t a screenprint though, it’s made from a linocut (and if I’m not mistaken, that means that each print will be slightly different). The print is an edition of 25, and is pretty massive at 92 x 107 cm. They are available online from Nelly Duff for £350.

Also, this video with Gaia was made but in December, but it’s just gone online this week (this video is from Babelgum, so RSS and email subscribers may have to click here to view the video).