Youth of Today
Paintings by Shawn Barber
Opening: Friday, July 8th (7-10pm)
We're taking limited number of emails to be added to the preview list going live on Wed., July 6th 3pm Pacific. To inquire, email: info(at)ffdg.net
On display will be 11 beautifully crafted oil paintings which are the next chapter of Los Angeles based Shawn Barber's "Doll Series". The "Doll Series" is Barber's response to living in a world consumed by popular culture. To Barber, it's been abundantly clear what motivates many young people in America especially since Barber has moved to Los Angeles two years ago to focus not only on his painting but to also open Memoir Tattoo with girlfriend Kim Saigh. With "Youth of Today", the "individual" personalities are saturated with a common ground- repetitive sadness fueled by the projected facade of synthetic surreality.
Shawn Barber's body of work focuses primarily on painting, portraiture, and documenting contemporary tattoo culture. Barber's intimate renditions of tattooed individuals balance both meticulous brush strokes and loose energy. Figurative in nature, these large paintings take on abstractions with explosive colors, meandering lines and paint dripping down the canvas.
Shawn earned his B.F.A from Ringling College of Art in 1999 and has paintings held in private collections throughout the United States, Canada, Asia, Europe and Australia. His paintings have been exhibited in diverse solo and group venues including: The Joshua Liner Gallery, NYC, NY; Billy Shire Fine Arts, Los Angeles, CA; The Shooting Gallery, San Francisco, CA; Mesa Contemporary Arts Center, Mesa, AZ; University of Houston, Houston, TX. His first published book of art titled 'Tattooed Portraits' was published by 9mm Books in 2006, followed by his second tome, 'Forever and Ever', a 256 page hardcover book dedicated to the Tattooed Portraits Series. Shawn is currently working on a third book in the Tattooed Portraits Series with Last Gasp Books, to be released in July 2012. Among his extensive achievements, he has taught drawing, painting and the business of art for 10 years at various art schools throughout the country. After years of documenting the art of tattoo, it was a logical progression to pick up the tattoo machine and add tattooist to his resume.
Shawn Barber's show Youth of Today opens Friday, July 8th @FFDG (7-10pm). and we're taking limited number of emails to be added to the preview list going live on Wed., July 6th. To inquire, email: info(at)ffdg.net
Going back in time here through the lens glass. Installing art shows, taking down art shows, hanging out w/ Mel Kadel and Travis Millard, sailboat maneuvers on the San Francisco Bay and other whatnots from the gallery life.
Shawn Barber opens Youth of Today featuring 11 new paintings on Friday, July 8th @FFDG (7-10pm) in San Francisco. Below are a few works included in the exhibition to give you a taste.
Youth of Today
Paintings by Shawn Barber
@FFDG, San Francisco
July 8 - August 13, 2011
Reception: July 8 (7-10pm)
We're back from a couple days off after a hectic last week. Thanks to R/GA for asking me to speak last Friday. Had a blast drinking Muffin Street beers and speaking to everyone about Fecal Face, how it got started and what it all means to me.
Also thanks to Mel Kadel and Travis Millard who were in SF last week setting up their show @FFDG which you can view in person as the gallery will be open this week Wed-Sat (1-6pm) - 248 Fillmore @Haight. Photos from the opening and of the work will be online in the next day or two.
If you don't need to be inside today and you're here in SF, get outside. Ride your bike to the beach or across the GG Bridge because it looks like it's going to be ridiculous out there today.
Los Angeles based Travis Millard and Mel Kadel will be showing individual and collabrative works at FFDG with an opening reception Saturday, June 11, 2011 (7-10pm). Both artists will be present and beer & wine served as usual.
Since Mel Kadel's last show at FFDG in 2009, her work has become much more layered. The thick layers of hand cut paper, with foregrounds and backgrounds,
are reminiscent of engravings. The technique has added dimension to the pieces and seems to add to the strength of the characters and their surroundings.
The work as a whole communicates interconnectedness and balance. The character is determined as usual, with patterns and obstacles surrounding her adventure.
Travis Millard's drawings included in the show explore a variety of themes, including waking dream states, ultra violence, repetitive movements and other oddities of the imaginative landscape. Ultimately, the work seeks to find respite in humor and peace through drawing from a host of modern personal anxieties.
Also on display will be Travis Millard's ghost sculpture project which is an experiment from the ground up. Unfamiliar with the process of roto-casting and minimal sculpture experience, this was achieved through trial and error, and the help of trusted associates. The result is an edition of 50 ghost sculptures and a video produced with the efforts of photographer Theo Jemison, animator Jim Dirschberger, and music by El-P.
Mel Kadel - Water Island, 22" x 30", pen, ink, and collage on paper
Travis Millard - Applewood Turnaround, 10" x 8", ink on paper
About Mel Kadel
Mel Kadel, born in 1973, grew up in Pennsylvania suburbs and graduated with a B.F.A. from Moore College of Art & Design in 1997. From Philadelphia, she moved to NYC for a couple years, and then headed west to California. Mel has been living and working in Los Angeles, CA. for the last 12 years, starting out showing drawings in small cafes. Now her work has been exhibited extensively all over the U.S. and abroad. Kadel has created a visual narrative that communicates the idea that we are all part of a large system, whether recognized or not.
About Travis Millard
Travis Millard, born in 1975, grew up in Olathe, Kansas and founded the Fudge Factory Comics operation in 1997, producing small run drawing zines, prints, comics, and assorted ephemera . Travis' work has been exhibited in the US and internationally, and has been published in numerous books and journals. Travis Millard currently lives in a cabin near some coyotes on the backside of a hill in a Los Angeles fire zone with with his partner, artist, Mel Kadel.
Mel Kadel and Travis Millard have put together a new zine for their upcoming show @FFDG opening this Saturday, June 11th (7-10pm). We'll have some available here online next week. In the meantime, enjoy the preview... Also included is a new one from Travis Millard... Give the dude some attitude!
Collaborative zine by Travis Millard and Mel Kadel
5.5" x 8.5"
56 pages, b&w + color insert
2 - color silkscreen cover
edition of 220 $15 for sale here
A week ago we held our first hotdog social @FFDG and we managed to ingest 40 hotdogs and plenty of Tecates throughout day all the while BBQing through the rain. That's our commitment to the hotdog. pics
BBQ hot dogs, in the rain, on the street = classy.
So many of you dig the Dog.
Jesse Balmer warming his insides with a cool Tecate.
The ghosts featured in this video were created, molded and cast in plastic by Travis Millard. The edition will be on display at Travis and Mel Kadel's show at FFDG on June 11th, 2011. For more info on the show check out FFDG.net
We're hosting a hot dog social @FFDG (248 Fillmore @Haight) Saturday from 4-7pm in honor of the closing of Henry Gunderson's solo show. We'll have some tasty Tecates and the basic franks grilled on the sidewalk complete with ketchup and mustard. There might even be some tortilla chips and salsa as well. mmmmmmmmm. See you tomorrow, and bring a friend because we'll have plenty of the hot dogs.
Those pigs are going to hell, but my taste buds are going to heaven.
Los Angeles based Mel Kadel & Travis Millard open their two person show Saturday, June 11th (7-10pm) @FFDG and both artists will be present at the reception.
Our neighbors Fifty24SF open a solo show "In My Room" from Swampy the same evening. The block should be a lot of fun on Saturday, June 11th. See you then.
Hey there Portland peoples, get to Together Gallery this Thursday for a show featuring works by husband and wife art makers. We have a lot of buddies in the show including Mel Kadel and Travis Millard who open a show together @FFDG on June 11th.
Brandon Getty from Stockton, CA emailed over Fecal Face's last news post before the end of the world... Why the hell are we open today when it's all going to end?! We should be running around doing good deeds so we don't get left behind w/ all the bad people.
Currently studying at Santa Cruz, photographer Raphael Villet stopped in FFDG a couple weeks back and mentioned his show at Adobe Books opening on May 28th. We've published Raphael's great photos in the past and dig his new work as well. Below is a taste of what you're going to see at the Adobe show. ~Oh, and the band Meat Market will be playing at the opening as well.
Here's an update on the Josh Keyes print we're soon to release. On Saturday we'll have a select number to sell directly out of FFDG from 1-6pm before releasing them online. On Monday we'll offer another portion of the prints to the approx 130 people who contacted us approx 2 years ago about being added to his preview list. If you think you may be on that list, be sure to check your inbox on Monday with a link to purchase (approx 3pm Pacific). Then on Tuesday we'll offer the last portion to all here on the site. 1 per costumer and first come first served.
Due to the overwhelming response to the print release, we are unable to personally respond to email requests about the prints.
Tucker Nichols emailed over this Whole Foods poster (below right) which looks a lot like one of Corey Arnold's photos (bottom left). Coincidence? Where they inspired by Corey's photo? Did Corey actually shoot the photo? Who knows and Corey is fishing for salmon right now (like this), so we can't ask him to find out.
Yeah, bad tattoos are basically a bummer, right? But they're also pretty much a rite of passage for bored and disenfranchised-feeling teenagers the world over. At least it was for about 95% of the people I know. Going to a reputable tattoo shop and getting a wizard or unicorn drilled into your lower back is totally fine, but nothing really takes the place of sitting around with a bunch of friends and some beers, enthusiastically taking turns poking each others' arms full of bad ideas-which actually is fun at any age.
OAKLAND -- First Fridays is hoping Oakland hasn't seen the last of the one of a kind event... The street art party is free to attend, but organizers say with police and other costs the price tag to throw the monthly party is $20,000... The City of Oakland has been footing the bill for months and after kicking in $500,000, it's pulling the plug... Organizers are now asking for donations and developing a vendor fee schedule to try and keep the party alive. ~continue reading
SAN FRANCISCO -- Guerrero Gallery, here in the Mission, opens their summer group show this Saturday, June 15th, featuring works from a steller lineup: Daniel Albrigo, Ryan Travis Christian, Alejandro Diaz-Ayala, Frohawk Two Feathers, Michelle Guintu, Justin Hager, Cody Hudson, Terry Powers, Rye Purvis, Victory Reyes, Jamie Williams, and Yarrow Slaps.
SAN FRANCISCO --- Southern Exposure hosts thier annual Monster Drawing Rally Friday, June 14, 2013 at THE NWBLK, 1999 Bryant Street (at 18th). Tons of great artists auctioning works at a starting price of only $60.
A live drawing and fundraising event with 120 artists working side by side. The event lets spectators to observe artists in the act of creation, providing the opportunity to watch a drawing come to life, and to purchase a work of art minutes after its completion. Drawings are available for purchase immediately for just $60 each.
~complete details
Wonder if our old emails with Banksy are worth a few thousand dollars. It seems everything the dude touches is worth a million dollars these days! Nutty and much deserved.
A disputed Banksy graffiti artwork removed from a gritty London neighbourhood has sold for approximately $1.1 million US at auction. The provocative Slave Labour (Bunting Boy) sold at a private auction held by concierge firm The Sincura Group at the London Film Museum on Sunday, according to Bloomberg news service. The spray-painted, stenciled work depicts a child labourer using an antique sewing machine to create a Union Jack bunting. -Continue reading
Germany's national railway is testing the use of mini-drones to curb damage to its trains from graffiti. Experts call the move pointless and excessive, saying that varnish for trains could solve the problem instead.
~continue reading
Daniel Cronin was hired to shoot photos for the ongoing feature series: the Road Trips USA: Pacific Coast... An interesting idea where the trip was live blogged/ tweeted/ Instagramed with people making suggestions for what to check out, and well, into FFDG they stopped.
Look ma, we made The Guardian U.K.
Come on, guys. Don't call San Francisco "San Fran".
Henrik Haven, who keeps us up to date in all that's Copenhagen, emailed over some photos from the Viborg International Billboard Painting Festival that's running throughout June. In this short installment he introduces us to the work of urban/graffiti artist and illustrator NYCHOS.
Kelly Tunstall, who's showing w/ Ferris Plock at FFDG this August 16th, recently finished some commissions for A16 in Oakland. Here's a little taste, and check out her last year's show at FFDG.
Brendan Monroe, whose show Melting Into the Floor runs through June 15th at LA's Richard Heller, creates these great wooden sculptures and featured a bunch in the show... He's often asked how he goes about making them and gives us at Fecal Face a little 'how to' on the process.
Mexico City based Curiot, whose sold out solo show Age of Omuktlans ran last March at FFDG, just finished this great mural entitled "El Retorno de Akhankutli" in Mexico. He recently completed one in Berlin too which we'll be posting in the coming week. The guy is very very talented in our eyes.
This made our day. Not only do we love pizza but we also love Henry Gunderson... So a board shapped like a hot slice designed by Henry Gunderson for The Good Company, well... this writer needs to go for a slice right now.
Wendell McShine (lives in Mexico City, from Trinidad) opened his newest show, Raccoon's Law, at Fifty24SF on Saturday night. ARYZ was a tough act to follow, but McShine held his own in the space... With a combination of a mural, a video, and both drawings and mixed-media works on paper, the diversity of this solo show was impressive. The Raccoon drawings were especially attractive as the way he executed them looked like they actually had fur coming off the page, and you can only imagine how soft it would be to touch. I was lucky to see his work in person through this show, and I hope to encounter more in the future.
Ingrid Wells just got her MFA from The San Francisco Art Institute and these oil paintings from her Honey Boo Boo's Amurrican Starquest were on display as part of the recent MFA exhibition... Ingrid Wells works and lives in San Francisco.
Henry Gunderson emailed over some photos from his recent group show with Andrew Luck, Jordan Bogash, and Mario Ayala "Out The Window" which ran at the Los Angeles based Prohibition Gallery.
I got there the day after the tornado came through. It was like nothing I had ever seen before. My mind just could not grasp what my eyes were seeing. It was just too much to take in, too much to process. So, I did what comes naturally and took images. It sort of helped me separate from the chaos and helped me focus.
Check out this, what could be, one of the longest murals ever created. Hyuro from Valencia, Spain was recently in Copenhagen for the solo show "In/Between" at ArtRebels.
Rachel Ralph spotted Barcelona-based ARYZ working on his mural in the TL a couple weeks back, and we forgot to share the pics. His show at Fifty24SF opened back in April.
Jeffrey Cheung emailed over some photos from a recent one night show he had at Terra Gallery/ event space. The May 19th show also featured live music by Oakland garage rockers Twin Steps and Coldtergeist.
Great solo show by LA based Alison Blickle (Born 1976) up now at San Francisco's Eleanor Harwood gallery. History of Magic Part 1... The Hermitage runs through June 15th 2013. -- 1295 Alabama St. Hours: Wed thru Sat (11-6pm)
Well, it looks like John Felix Arnold rocked Tokyo with his opening with Koutaro Ooyama at Spes Lab a few weeks back. Even a language barrier couldn't prevent the success of their collaboration. They invited everyone they met on trains, in cars, cafes, bars, restaurants, and people responded by attending, and bringing their families and friends as well.
Last Thursday evening, I was lucky enough to get invited to Nickelodeon's premiere party for their newest cartoon, Sanja & Craig, created by three awesome dudes - Andreas Trolf, Jim Dirschberger, and Jay Howell. Hosted at Tony's Salon with pizza provided by Pizzanistas, the premiere party was filled with libations and celebrations, even a break-dance battle broke out. Congrats to everyone who worked on the show, and especially Trolf, Jim, and Jay who all have been working tirelessly on it. Sanja & Craig premiered Saturday 10:30 am 11 am on Nickelodeon. You can watch Sanjay and Craig Episode 1: Brett Venom on hulu. and read about how the guys came up with it in this interview with The LA Times. Now, here's some photos from the premiere.
Drawing Stories is a new series from our buddy Travis Millard. Grab a cup of hot coco, get your slippers on and enjoy some time with your uncle Millard.
Los Angeles Christofer Chin (Tofer) emailed over some install shots of his current show Ar running in NYC at Lu Magnus through June 29th. Simple/ clean and continuing his op artstyle Tofer Chin features new paintings, photographs, and sculpture continuing his exploration of geologically and architecturally inspired Minimalist forms.
TrustoCorp's all new work for their exhibition at LeBasse Projects in Culver City, Los Angeles is a perfect continuum from past work that embraces the bipolar "have/have not" socioeconomic identity of Los Angeles, which they recently established their new studio in.
I didn't know if you came across this video yet, but I ran into my friend Brian Hanson yesterday who helped film and edit it. It's a film short documenting the work and philosophy of Huntington Beach surfboard Shaper Tim Stamps. Super rad and really inspiring! Anyhow take a peek.
Last year, Eric Caruso a teacher at Harry Wirtz Elementary School (Paramount, CA, near LA) had an idea to invite some artists to paint some murals at the school because there wasn't an arts program for the kids. That brilliant idea resulted in some awesome murals by artists Seitaku Aoyama, Yusuke Hanai, Rich Jacobs, Tim Kerr and Albert Reyes.
Ryan De La Hoz' show in the Upper Haight at RVCA runs through this Saturday... And the next time you're in the Mission, be sure to swing through his new shop on 14th St, Cool Try... We need to get over there soon and do a little photo feature for ya.
The Book and Job Gallery (San Francisco) really stepped it up with the opening of Daniel Chen's loveBlast on May 4th. Complete with a doorman, piano player, old fashioneds, and some really nice paintings, I could hardly believe I was at the Book and Job. The paintings varied in size, and the show was balanced nicely between them, the spray-can work on the walls, and the smaller drawings displayed throughout. The kind notes Chen wrote on the walls are certain to brighten your day, and the rest of the work is definitely worth a look. It was a very classy evening and I hope they continue to intersperse shows like these into their schedule in the future
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