Curator/Director Stephen Crout from the ARTery gallery at the lab in Costa Mesa has put together a diverse show of four local artists from Orange County, Lindsay Buchman, Jon Ginnaty, Jeff Alu and Mark Cummings entitled Explorations OC: An Art Scene Subjectively. The first piece upon the back entrance is Jon Ginnaty’s installation which he quoted the piece as “all I need is my flip flops, a hammock, and a blender for my margarita”, this statement marks the work true to its core. As one enters the gallery from the right, the installation is set up in its own corner. The space is approximately 12 by 10 ft is composed of three colors; a terra cotta orange, white, and beige. There is a large hammock occupying the center, a small round table to its left with a terracotta built blender, margarita glass, bottle of tequila and a shot glass. Upon the wall there is a life guard triptych, 24 by 12 inch terra cotta slabs placed next to each other with engraved/sculpted life guard towers in the left corners and a pair of sandals, seemingly Rainbows to the right of the hammock.
The installation can be viewed as though you are taking a sneak peak into a space waiting to be lived in and enjoyed almost like a model home. The space untouchable, the objects of practical function mere décor. Places the viewer, the person in gallery as the customer, on seeker where the only real function of any object would be the hammock, thus the most practical piece of purchase. Ginnaty builds up the setting while enabling the viewer to input their own ideas upon it. Thus by purchasing the hammock you are acquiring the vision of the space that could be lived in as provided by the artist, hence bringing the artistic vision into its reality.
When speaking to the artist, a calm, happy Californian he said he “likes to see his works come to life through the different ways people see themselves in the space”. Which is when I suggested he should work in Hollywood sets, he agreed, considering something good to look into. As I left the installation a soft breeze came into the gallery doors gently swaying the hammock giving the scene a more tranquil and serene atmosphere, it is truly a work about life a midst simple pleasures. Very reminiscent of life here in Southern California.
Mark Cummings occupied a great deal of space with his series of oil paintings. His works hold a very seemingly studied and structured technique, reminiscent of the renaissance and baroque masters such as Rembrandt. His works show hardly any visibility of brushstroke as exemplified in his still lifes: Red Red Wine, Evening devotion and Lovely green. His artworks are evocative of glaze painting, in which the work is painted first in a grayscale, then translucent pigments are used with oil which enable the tones to come through from the grayscale, and create a very smooth yet toned finish. The extremity of softened edges upon the folds of the drapes blurring the edges give the paintings a more studied air. Cummings also painted a series of nude female figures, peaceful afternoon, tranquility, the bather and little surfer girl. In little surfer girl the figures huddled position with her arms gently about her knees, almost gives her a sense of movement in the calm space. She sits a top a blue cloth above a red surfboard, on a cliff set against a background of aqua and grey blues in the sky. The drapery in the work is as though a mere semblance suggestion of what once covered her, like a Roman toga in its classic in its motif/suggestion. The artist describes himself as a classic realist drawn to traditional painting. Trained in Florence, Italy taught in the nineteenth century French Academic methods. Cummings will have his work in the National Portrait Gallery in the nations capital beginning August 2010.
Lindsay Buchman a young and talented artist works in printmaking; combined intaglio, relief and monoprint. She uses old world technique to express an urban motif. She claims “Within my work there is a combination of both expressive and representational imagery, depicting emotions of the past, present, and future. Currently, I have been exploring my fascination with metropolitan life, which has become the focal point for my latest impressions.” In her piece City Ruins, (etching with monotype) she shows the flatiron building in New York as though a stamped print, with the expanded dictionary definition of city in the right hand corner giving length to its Latin derivation. Up on either side there are orange/brown curved shapes, which look intentional and planned by the artist. This tint to the work give it an antiqued look resembling an early 1nineteenth century newspaper, simultaneous to when the flat iron building was built, while at the same time because tinted shapes were planned gives the piece a modern edge, and a different interpretation. Buchman’s piece Sound (monoprint) places the perspective of the view at the bottom of a tall building, as though standing beneath the Eifel tower and looking up. The top and bottom of the vertical piece are covered in a lime green, thus placing further emphasis
upon the center which exposes the building and miscellaneous written font in its background. Buchman’s works hold unique perspectives and unparalleled visions. Her works are composed of three main elements, color, type print, and the print of the image, together she takes these features and creates works of art reflecting an urban atmosphere.
Photographer, Jeff Alu’s work resembles those of early photographer Alfred Stieglitz. His photographs were taken of simple subjects and compositions however depending upon the perspective were open to numerous interpretations of what was being represented. Alu claims “When I am out searching, I never have a set idea of what it is I’m looking for. I simply seek, occasionally finding exactly what it is I WASN’T seeking. For me, that’s the time I learn something new about life: When I discover a new path, a new way of seeing, a new reason for continuing my search”. The foreground, background and middle ground are all established foundations to Alu’s works. Occasionally the foreground and the background would be blurred while the middle ground clear, from a distance the image required concentration to perceive what was actually being presented. In this way Alu’s photographs play with the perspective of the eye and the mind. His work causes one to step back, re-think, read the title, come close, and then walk away fascinated learned, yet still in ponderence.
All four artists Jon Ginnaty, Jeff Alu, and Mark Cummings brought their own visions and mediums to this exhibit. Curator/Director Stephen Crout made a documentary series on the following artists which will air on PBS early next year. To get a sneak peak check out the posted episodes on the galleries website: http://www.coopgalleries.org/. To receive more information about the individual artists refer to their websites Lindsay Buchman: www.linsdaybuchman.com, Jon Ginnaty, www.jonginnaty.com, Jeff Alu:www.animalu.com, Mark Cummings: www.mcoriginals.com The exhibition will be up until Sunday, December 6th so check it out this weekend!
