Forgotten Saints That Never Were But Should Have Been.

After I became resigned to the fact that most of the boutiques on Los Angeles’ infamous Melrose strip sell clothing for pretty much the same three kinds of people, I stumbled upon The Congregation of the Forgotten Saints. This shop, which caters equally to goth-glam men and women and to those stepping in line with My Chemical Romance’s fashion senses, doubles up as an art gallery. From month to month, the shop holds an art show centered around a different and completely atypical theme.

Their current show, curated by fellow artist Jeremy Cross, supported/produced by Wild Card Productions / The Metal Awards & Forgotten Saints Clothing, and on behalf of Art Core Presents, is dedicated to “Forgotten Saints”. Over 40 artists from around North America have their works on display for this show, with almost all of the works being considered at least slightly blasphemous to a religious individual. The show’s tagline? “Saints that never were, but should have been.” This “should have been” extends to robot saints, monster saints, mythological saints, goofy saints, and pretty much any kind of saint you can think of.

Here are a few selected pieces from that show which really stood out as inventive or simply well-crafted.


Vince Locke‘s Saint Ebba is a painted Cthulu saint.

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Filipino/German artist Ted Von Heiland‘s Saint Solace is a mixed-media sculpture that features the only cyborg-esque saint of the show.

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Thomas Pendleton and Anthony Lawson‘s St. Mangina features… well — a rubber vagina — over the face of a saint. I wish I could share the entire artists’ statement on the piece, because it’s hilarious, but suffice it to say that it starts off with a cleverly punned, “GLORY HOLELUIAH.”

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Illustrator Jeff Rebner flexes his comic book muscles with “Aleistor SamHain,” a black-and-white skeleton-faced saint.

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With more than 35 other pieces on display at the shop, be sure to visit it if you happen to be in Los Angeles.

www.forgottensaintsla.com
www.bastardart.com
www.myspace.com/wildcardprods
www.myspace.com/themetalawardshow
www.myspace.com/artcorecfs
www.vincelocke.com
www.vonheiland.blogspot.com
www.ministryofink.com
www.boneseeds.com
www.rebnerwerks.com
www.myspace.com/thedirtylounge

Written by
Vee Hua 華婷婷

Vee Hua 華婷婷 (they/them) is a writer, filmmaker, and organizer with semi-nomadic tendencies. Much of their work unifies their metaphysical interests with their belief that art can positively transform the self and society. They are the Editor-in-Chief of REDEFINE, Interim Managing Editor of South Seattle Emerald, and Co-Chair of the Seattle Arts Commission. They also previously served as the Executive Director of the interdisciplinary community hub, Northwest Film Forum, where they played a key role in making the space more welcoming and accessible for diverse audiences.

Vee has two narrative short films. Searching Skies (2017) touches on Syrian refugee resettlement in the United States; with it, they helped co-organize The Seventh Art Stand, a national film and civil rights discussion series against Islamophobia. Reckless Spirits (2022) is a metaphysical, multi-lingual POC buddy comedy for a bleak new era, in anticipation of a feature-length project.

Vee is passionate about cultural space, the environment, and finding ways to covertly and overtly disrupt oppressive structures. They also regularly share observational human stories through their storytelling newsletter, RAMBLIN’ WITH VEE!, and are pursuing a Master’s in Tribal Resource and Environmental Stewardship under the Native American Studies Department at the University of Minnesota.

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