I am the Kilgore Trout of the Central Coast Painting Set

Hey Lurkers-

Things coming up in the near future:

I'll be filling in for the lovely and talented Anne Laddon at Studios on the Park this week, from Thursday April 11 through Saturday April 13 from 12 to 6. "Filling in" means I'll be painting in her studio, spilling Tab on her couch, attempting to sell her pretty pretty landscapes while I construct my Skulk series. I'm honored to have been asked. If you're in the area and sick/bored of what SLO has to offer (as I am), come to Studios on the Park, 1130 Pine Street, Paso Robles, CA.

I have also been put in charge..."in charge"...of wrangling more artists for a festival in Paso Robles. The Paso Art Festival has included an Emerging Artists Booth. It includes a hand-picked unit from the Young Savages group show. Each artist will be displaying 3 fairly new pieces of art, or I will be super disappointed in them.
Quick glance info:
Saturday, May 25th, from 10am to 4pm, in the park located directly across from the Studios on the Park building.
It's free to attend, so bring some money to spend on some cool paintings.

My friend Dave thinks he's being funny by writing a blog about fake sightings of me. Ok, so maybe it is pretty funny. Check the Flickr soon. That is all.

-N





"My biggest problem is that I am nice to the wrong people. If I had to draw them, I'd make them all look like coffin nails."- James Connecticut  (from the novel "The Soundtrack to Rows of Burning Monuments".)

Savage Press & "Personal" Works

Several news sources had good things to say about the Young Savages show held at Studios on the Park in Paso Robles.
The San Luis Obispo Tribune article can be found here.
The San Luis Obispo New Times article can be found here.
Tom Cochrun wrote a review of the show in his March 13th blog.
The Paso Robles Press article written by Hayley Thomas can be found here.
The show will be coming down on the 31st of March, do take a trip to Paso if you have the means.

I'd like to thank the following people for making the job of curating such a large show much easier: Joshua Brinckerhoff, Anne Laddon, Sasha Irving, Jennifer Grant, Amy Fordyce, Kelly Stewart, Bill Benica. These people were the unsung heroes in promoting one of the most successful group shows I have been a part of.




I can't paint knife-wielding foxes all the time. My other, more personal work has some ambiguity to it, mostly falling into nature themed areas.

Currently, you can see a handful of these pieces at Brick House Goods in San Luis Obispo, a slick, tasteful, clever furniture and housewares shop in the middle of downtown. An article with a word mentioning the display can be seen here.

The Skulk, Unraveled.

At the close of one of the most comprehensive group shows I have been a part of on the Central Coast,  I am relieved to have completed such a large task of coordinating between talent and venue. It was great to be a fly on the wall, listening to how artists & patrons--people--perceive works of art. I heard several comments on my latest acrylic work, the Skulk series:

Skulk 2, acrylic on canvas, 16x20"

Of the people I happened to catch commenting on it, I was given a prognosis of heavy issues with my mother or with women. Despite varying opinions, these pieces are not about women at all. I do not recall ever explaining my work in great detail within the confines of a blog or an interview, but here goes.
The very first drawings of the Skulk was part of a larger series of totem/herald illustrations I did with gouache and ink on watercolor paper. (See Flickr here) They were very popular and the entire series sold, including my very first acrylic painting after a 5 year hiatus from the medium. The buyer, a woman, felt empowered by the image. She had major changes going on in her life and the painting spoke to her. I felt great about selling it to such a recently freed spirit, and had a good hunch that if I made more paintings similar I could probably reach more people and, let's be honest, sell more pieces.
The idea was put on the shelf until I spoke with the director of the Studios on the Park. As we were talking about putting together the group show, she mentioned that I should do a solo show of some sort. Reviewing my Flickr site, she enjoyed several things, including the totem series. When it came time to turn in my work for the show, she pushed me to make a larger version (4 feet by 5 feet!) of the 16x20" Skulk painting, which later sold to a very classy woman who owns Deer Run in Cambria, CA, a cunning curio shop with amazing art and other artifacts.

Skulk 3, acrylic on canvas, 48x60".

What is it about these figures that evokes such reactions? Foxes, as I have noticed, are very popular imagery at the moment. The Young Savages show yielded not only my foxes, but artists Isaac Yorke and Beth Reninger also created fox-themed pieces. If I was the least bit hip, I would of probably avoided using them. Fox imagery is extremely varied from being messengers (Native Americans) to omens of rain (Japan) to bastions of intelligence (Celtic). They signify various afterlife connotations depending on the religion. Maybe it's the color--red--which can signify passion, desire, intensity.
If I was going to tell you that I thought of these things as I created the initial Skulk drawings, I would be relying on some heavy reverse engineering. It's simply a matter of common sense, a mixture of the peripheral fox knowledge and the need for a group of some kind of animal to be clever and slick enough to travel in a group on the prowl, not out of revenge, but on the offensive. Because they could, not because they needed to.
As this series unravels, and will most likely be shown at Linnaea's Cafe in October, I hope to create an entire room of these empowered figures, which in turn will create a visceral response to the viewer as they submit themselves to the will of the Skulk.

Hello Lurkers and Lurkettes-

It's been a productive year so far, I'm excited to say. Three big shows are in the works, which will keep me pretty busy this year. The newly relocated Tigerlily Salon on Higuera will be hosting a group show. I usually hate theme related shows, but this one seemed pretty cool and it has a lot of my fave peeps in it. Enticed yet? Yeah, whatever. Eat Your Heart Out will include my pals Lena, Sawdust, Lisa, Lakin and Issac. Show's on Friday, February 1st from 6p to 9p. Here's a dandy flyer:

In other news, I was asked to curate a show at Studios on the Park in Paso Robles. The Young Savages showcase will provide exposure for about 25 emerging or burgeoning artists. The list is super long, you should look at this flyer:

It's like...everyone, right? Well, almost. There are some really good artists that I didn't ask, but they will make an appearance at a later show. The main point of the show was to infuse a little youth into the gallery scene up there. I thought it was funny for them to ask me to lead a youth movement show, as I am no spring chicken, but "Mid-to-Late-Thirties Savages" just didn't have the same ring to it, despite the truth of it all.

Either way, I'm excited to see what some of the newer, twenty-something artists that we've invited into the fold will come up with. You should be too, many pieces will be under $200, and 2013 is a great year to buy original artwork from some up and comers. The show is on Saturday, March 2nd, from 5 to 8. Check the flyer for the address, lazy butts.

So, I've decided to go back to painting acrylic on canvas. I know I said I'd never do it, internet, but I didn't have a choice. I'm sorry, but you won't be disappointed. Check the Flickr for more info, in the meantime here's one of hopefully many pieces I make this year:

Haven't shown this one, titled The Uneasy Alliance, just yet, but it is for sale. Inquire within if you are interested. Goodbye for now, lurkers, thanks for stopping by.

Happy Holidays, Lurkers-
I have to say that all the trouble I went through to install the Pizza Lords show was totally worth it. Lots of people connected with the piece, and I got to meet some awesome artists like Audrey Roy and Cassia Lupo. Unfortunately, Walt Hall wasn't there to stalk, but I'm sure glad the guys from The Ragged Jubilee came by to say hi! Anyway, here are some pictures. Be jealous:

The Pizza Lords installation.

Official elbow rubbing with rock stars.

Adjusting the ugly PL mask on a pretty face.

Ty and Katherine, faithful conspirators in the Pizza Lords project.

Josh (Culprit Media Group) and I mugging for the paparazzi.

Stay tuned, SLO friends--the Pizza Lords installation will most likely be making an appearance in one way or another on February 1st at Coalition Skate. More details to follow. 

Have a happy holiday, friends and enemies. Thanks to all who came to shows and a special thank you to those of you who bought pieces.

Wins and Losses

Losses, as in losing one of the most frustrating jobs I've ever had. One of many hard losses this year. Coffin nails, the old folks call them.
Wins, as in this flyer done by C. Anthony:

Come to the show on Saturday December 8th, all new, never seen before work set in an installation-type format. Photos, sculpture, found items, and painted works all displayed on a 4x8 foot wall.

The Hive: 729 S. Spring Street, Downtown Los Angeles, CA. 7 to 10pm.

October sorta flew by, and not one post from yours truly. I am sorry, lurkers. I had quite a lot to do, as the little place I call home had a Halloween party. We (19 of us) decorate the house (this year, Undead Disney themed) and invite 300 of our closest friends in a quest to pay for a year's worth of toilet paper. I created a creepy mouse tribute hallway, where you had to crawl through his eye and out his butt to continue through the party. I couldn't of done it without the help of my pal Matt, a fifth year senior at Cal Poly. So, hey, thanks Matt, sorry to see you leave come December.

Speaking of December, big news! Nathan Cartwright, the owner of the Hive in Downtown LA finally took pity upon me and gave me a Featured Artist wall.

So, what have I chosen to do? Well, I have chosen to make it a group show, within a group show! Say what? Yep. I have a 4 foot by 8 foot wall, and I am paying tribute to the most awkward "graffiti" crew in San Luis Obispo, the Pizza Lords. Everyone loves pizza, and everyone will love the photography, sculpture, paintings and drawings that these guys and myself have created. We've also asked some really good friends to assist us in filling our wall. Scheduled to possibly appear are super artists Jeff Claassen, Jason Hudson and Nic Rodriguez. Nothing set in stone from those all stars, but trust me this show is a must see. It's on Saturday December 8, so in keeping with the "local handmade holiday" theme, nothing we sell will be over $125 bucks, in fact lots of things will be $25 or $50. Buy your loved one something strange for the holidays. I'm also offering free admission to anyone who wants to go. Feel free to contact me to be put on the swanky "potential buyers" list and save yourself $8!

Also of note-- a show in LA next week on November 7th! Get pumped, LA peeps!

As you can tell, this is a huge, fun show, a show my very good pal "Handsome" Eric Valdez is putting on. I will most likely have the most offensive piece in the place. I won't give away much, but it involves Jesus, Batman, and naked day of the dead wolf women. Come to the show, it's free, and stories about your weekend are usually pretty boring.

n