Thailand with D Young V and Eddie Colla

Last December D Young V and I decided we would go to Thailand. There wasn’t any real reason for this, but there wasn’t any real reason not to. Bangkok is hot. It’s hot in December, it’s hot at 3am. Bangkok also never stops. It’s busy at noon and it’s busy at 3am. It’s one of those cities that doesn’t require you to have any energy, it has it’s own current. All you have to do is step into it and you’ll get carried along. To that extent the trip seemed less like 16 days and more like one really long day punctuated by intermittent naps. That was 4 months ago. I would describe all the things I did and saw, but it’s a dense kind of  experience and honestly, I don’t remember a lot of it. There is this sort of high humidity fog over that part of my memory and I do remember some things that may not have actually happened. We’re very isolated in the U.S., something I never really cared for. For a few weeks while Dave and I were in Thailand the world was big again. Really big and really strange.

111 Minna – New work by D Young V, Eddie Colla and Hugh Leeman.

Our Buddy Sam Grant made this dope video of us preparing for the 111 Minna Gallery Show. The show is on view at 111 Minna through March 29th.

Made in China Exhibition

So let’s go back about 2 years…. My studio mate Ken Harman of Spoke Art gets an unsolicited email from an oil painting factory in China. The email explains how the factory is excellent in making reproductions of great works of art as well as portraits, landscapes, nudes etc. All at very reasonable prices.

I thought “shit, that would be a great show”. The idea was to have inexpensive copies of emerging contemporary artists and display them side by side. It calls into question so many things about our culture of individuality, the art world, marketplace and value. We had to do it. But we never did, UNTIL NOW!!!!

Our preoccupation with originality is filled with nuances and paradox. We assign market value to original art pieces for their scarcity, driven by the singular vision of the artist, yet we readily consume designer knock-offs from stores like Forever 21 and H&M, which make their profits from directly imitating the runway collections of Marc Jacobs, Donatella Versace and Alexander Wang. Is fine art something that, too, can be imitated? The rising popularity of giclees, art toys and limited edition sculptures seems to say that the answer is yes for many consumers.

My Gallery, loakal in Oakland teamed up with Ian Ross Gallery in San Francisco to bring you “Made in China”. Artists included in the exhibition are D Young V, Shark Toof, Zoltron, Ernesto Yerena, Akira beard, Peter Adamyan, Jessica Hess, C Kirk, Ian Ross, Eddie Colla, Nite Owl And Robert Bowen. Each artist submitted a piece for the exhibit and photos of those pieces were sent to Shenzhen China to be copied.
The pieces will be displayed side by side at the exhibition

What place do imitations hold in the art market? How do we measure the value of creativity? Viewers are invited to ask themselves these questions when viewing the original works and their imitations in “Made in China.

Come see for yourself Nov. 8th 7-10 pm at Ian Ross Gallery 466 Brannan St.    San Francisco, CA

facebook event page is HERE

Eddie Colla X D Young V at The Cotton Mill Oakland

Our buddy Night Owl invited D Young V and I to do a piece for this project over by The Cottonmill Studios in Oakland back in July. It was a good Friday followed by a free barbecue Saturday. The City of Oakland even kicked in a few bucks on supplies for this project (I’m not sure who arranged that) and I will always take city money cuz they ALWAYS take mine.

D Young V X Eddie Colla “Memento Mori”

Art Works Downtown is excited to present: “Memento Mori” a unique two-man exhibition by Bay Area artists Eddie Colla & D Young V.

Memento Mori, a Latin term for ‘remember death’, is an artistic symbol for remembering the inevitability of death, and is a continuing theme throughout Eddie Colla’s and D Young V’s work. The artists’ installations depict the end of the world juxtaposed to the rising up of a new world from ashes, and a future reduced to the tasks of survival and memory.

The show opens Friday, August 30, 2013 and runs through Friday, October 11, 2013 in the Art Works Downtown main gallery located at 1337 Fourth Street, San Rafael, CA, 94901. An opening reception will be held on September 13, 2013 from 5-8 p.m. A closing reception will be held on October 11, 2013, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Art Works Downtown is open to the public Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Included in this exhibit are the individual artists’ drawings and mixed media works on found objects. The gallery will also showcase a number of collaborative pieces designed specially for Art Works Downtown. These installations represent years of artistic collaboration, both on the street and in galleries, where their mutual styles, ideas, influences, and perceptions become clearly evident.

Eddie Colla x D Young V – 69 El Camino

David Young  and I painted this 69 El Camino last january, we finally had a chance  to get some footage together of this beast in action. A little inspirational driving Video…..

Epilogue prints release

D Young V, Hugh Leeman and myself are  preparing up for our opening of Epilogue at Hold Up Art Sept. 8th. On Sept, 4th our first collaborative work will drop at 1xrun.com. It’s a limited edition (30) print hand embellished by all the artists. Each print is unique and the edition number is incorporated into the design of each image. Get it here

 

There will also be a 2nd color way available opening night at the gallery. A super limited edition of 10

 

Eddie Colla X D Young V – limited Edition print release

D young V and I collaborated of this piece in  November. The Original piece is a 16×20 foot mural that was created as a part of Oakland’s First Fridays gallery walk. The Mural was reproduce on a 1 inch to 1 foot scale as a 16×20 inch Giclee print on 300lb Itlaian made cold press watercolor paper. This VERY limited edition print is a run of 20 only. Each print is signed by both artists and numbered.

Available at fiftyseven-thirtythree

Eddie Colla X D Young V X Art Murmur

Our good friend Nite Owl got us involved with this project for Art Murmur Oakland. A 16×20 ft wall to do whatever the fuck we pleased with. D young V and I  only had a couple of days to bang this out . I actually like short deadlines because it cuts through all the bullshit and indecision. You just get it done.  Awesome group of artists too. Nite Owl, Filth and Grime, Aura, Roar, 7seas, croma, onedr, Lydia Emily etc….

Indoor Mural Project – 941 Geary

I was fortunate enough to be invited to do a piece for 941 Geary’s “Indoor Mural Project” last month. This group of artists is amazing, Blek Le Rat, Chor Boogie, Apex, D Young V, Hugh Leeman, Casey Gray, Skinner, Augustine Kofie, Brett Amory, Hush, Damon Soule and more. Below are some pics of the piece, which is a self standing wall made out of newsboxes.

The doors are open to the public starting April 1st and will be open Tuesday through Saturday, 12-5 until the closing party on April 23rd, 6-9pm.