There’s only 10 days left to this epic show at White Walls Gallery in San Francisco, but if you haven’t scoped out Philly-based artist AJ Fosik’s new works yet, get over to White Walls right away!!! Fosik offers a brand new rendition of classic wall-mounted animal heads using thin sheets of cut wood, nails, and paint. The show, entitled Aliens In Our Midst, features mythical beasts crafted in a way that makes them reminiscent of ’80s neon color palettes meets Eastern architectural ornamentation. See more of his recent work on his Flickr or MySpace.

www.whitewallssf.com
www.myspace.com/aaaajaaaay
www.flickr.com/photos/36098170@N06/

Just stumbled across this really awesome zine. Printed in black and white and accented by one color, it’s a zine that features illustrations from low-key artists centered around a central term. For the limited edition zine above, artists created pieces around the sentence, “Don’t worry about the smiles; they’re normal.” Click here to purchase a copy or here to view the spreads on Flickr! Awesome!

testeverythingzine.wordpress.com/store/
www.flickr.com/photos/testeverything

Imagekind has just written up a blog post featuring 31 pieces from their various members who do photo manipulation. Most are great, a couple are not so great, and way too many seem to play off René Magritte.. and umbrellas! Why so many umbrellas?

Above, a piece by Vanessa Ho, which is available for purchase here. It would certainly be interesting to set this piece upon a textured floral background such as the one in the piece itself, wouldn’t it? I can’t say I feel much other than annoyance for her artist statement on the subject, though, but maybe it’ll speak to you.

“Me looking at me. Me on the wall, me in the fiery red room, me out in the cool blue room. Which is real? All is real, none is real. Imagination. That is real.”

www.imagekind.com

Beth’s Cafe is a popular Seattle late-night eatery that has drawings from its patrons plastered all over its walls. Most of it is witty and meant for fun, but there are a few pieces that can be appreciated not for their humor, but for their artistry. This is one of those pieces. Artist unknown (and details are welcome).

No one should be able to accuse illustrator Travis Lampe of not working hard enough, because it’s quite clear from his show at Roq La Rue that Lampe has got his shit together and his vision clear. As if coming up with a dozen amazing paintings isn’t enough, Lampe presents us with wood-cut panels and stuffed creatures that absolutely solidify the necessity for his twisted world of fairytale. All of his pieces are also connected by a queer little rainbow that makes the whole show have continuity. My favorite, although not pictured, is Lampe’s depiction of the standard hunter’s trophy animal head — only Lampe’s is a sagging head of clay, textile, and paint.

Showing alongside Seattle’s “Bag Painter”, Chris Crites, this show at Roq La Rue is not to be missed. It is positively delightful.

www.travislampe.com
www.bagpainter.com
www.roqlarue.com

Now on display at Cherry Street Cafe (the 1212 1st Ave. location) are the tripped out works of artist David Stevenson. The above piece is entitled Battles, and it turns what might be a Seattle cityscape into a living, breathing organism. The symbolism hidden in Stevenson’s pieces surely mean different things to different people, but one has to appreciate the creativity in how he makes different worlds collide. His work will be up through the end of the month, so go check it out, and also see some other really good art.

www.cherrystreetcoffeehouse.com

 I’ve always been intrigued with the mystery of the Victorian era, where our understanding is generally limited to sepia-toned photographs and phonographs playing old-fashioned tunes. Imagine the local saloon, packed with the neighborhood characters, clinking cups overfilling with beer.

Now fast forward to the present time, where we can raise our glasses to Travis Louie, the artist who has brought historical magic into our imaginations through his own. His collection of Edwardian portraits is so enchanting, so skillfully executed in detail, it is easy to forget these mythical creatures aren’t real. Or are they?
They all seem to have a story to tell, and I’m dying to know all of them.

Although his Copro Nason Gallery exhibition just ended, I know that Louie is only getting started. We have yet to anticipate the arrival of his next show at Roq La Rue in August and his upcoming book, Curiosities.

So cheers, ’cause I’ll definitely drink to that.

www.travislouie.com
www.travislouie.blogspot.com