THE VERY LAST "ARCADE" POST

This is the last time I will be posting about this show. No, REALLY! I know you are just sick sick sick to death of hearing about this show. The truth is, when you work so hard getting an exhibition together, you just have to keep shoving it down peoples throats! All in the hopes that you are noticed, and perhaps even bought!! For me, I tend to feel a bit sad when it is over. I get a case of the Post Exhibition Depression. It is kinda like the feeling a bride gets after all the presents are opened, and the honeymoon is over. WAAAA. So for me, once the show is done, I usually get the P.E.D. Which means I am expecting this to wash over in me in a few days. So, before the tsunami of self-pity hits, I want to share a couple more of the pieces in this exhibition.
I have talked a lot about the mixed media pieces in this show. Infact, I have gone on and on about the pinball machines made of repurposed materials with the flashing lights. They were the real show-stoppers. They were a BOATLOAD of work, and truthfully, I am not anxious to do more of these right now. So today I am gonna focus on the 3 paintings that I did for the show.
#1 - Sassony Arcade, 36" x 48"

The back story on this one is that it is taken from a photograph of an actual arcade in Los Angeles. I took a snapshot of this building in Google Maps for you:

As you can see, I took a whole whack of 'artistic liberty' with it. Now don't get me wrong,  I think it is fabulous in its current state of....well.......disrepair. But for this show, I felt it needed to be a bit more glossy and new looking. I worked up a bunch of different photoshopped versions, and the angle just worked!!


#2 "Scarlett Women". Which is 25.5" x 21.5" This one was a lot of fun. I love the colours on this one. Pink is a terrific colour to use. Yes, there is a lot of innuendo in the text on this! I know. Dirty. Thankfully as a gay guy, I can get away without being called a pervery misogynist! It was a lot of fun to do. I got the idea from old ads. 

You see, the pinball manufacturers used to send out ads to their clients whenever a new pinball machine came out. (I guess to make sure that they had all the latest machines??) So EVERY machine ever produced has a flyer-like advert for it. Cool huh?? Here are a couple of examples!

Do you love them or WHAT??

I love the 1950's "Eager Beaver". It is so simple and nicely designed. 

On the other hand the "Cactus Jacks" was obviously a more modern example. I like the high-rise jeans on the ladies.....and the size of the melons in this. RIDICULOUS!

#3 "Rocket Ride" 25.5" x 21.5". This is another large scale version of these ads. The colours in this one are some of my favourites. Teal with red and yellow. YUM!!

So folks, that is all she wrote. That is all the fat lady wrote. I hope you had a chance to come out to Gallery 129 Ossington. If you didn't, you have a few more days:

"Arcade" - runs to Saturday September 25th, 2010

Gallery at 129 Ossington (located at......get ready for it......129 Ossington Ave, Toronto, ON)

Gallery Hours: Wed. to Sat. 12 - 6pm or by appointment

And if you can't make it, remember, the unsold work will be there for a few months. You just have to ask to see it! Thanks to everyone for all the positive support on this show. I was really pleased with the work, and I hope to do more work like this in the future. Just not for a few months. WHEW!

LAST WEEK - "ARCADE"

Time flies, huh?
It just seemed like a month ago when I was franticly working to get the paintings done so that my new show could open. Oh wait, I WAS a month ago. Well, for those of you who haven't checked it out, you still have until Saturday, September the 25th. If you just cant make it, be sure to check out this little movie (that is also posted on my website).
I made it on my little mac, but be warned, the production values are not spectacular. It is a bit 'Blair Witch Project-y'. So expect a little drunken camera work. If you were expecting something Spielberg-y you will be filled with disappointment. Be pre-warned that there is some music with this little movie tour, so if you are watching this at the office make sure to turn down your speakers. OR prehaps turn up your speakers and attract a crowd of co-workers who can check it out too!! (can you tell I am not an office worker? ;-) If you are like me, you may just have the song stuck in your head for the remainder of the day. Also be warned that I got a bit heavy on the imovie transition effects! It is a bit of an illness.
Enjoy the video, and hey, try to make it out to my big exhibition this week! There is nothing like seeing it in person!!

MY INTERVIEW WITH TRISH BOON

Last week, I had the great pleasure of being interview by Trish Boon. She will be leading audiences through Gallery at 129 Ossington, during the Ossington leg of the Canadian Art Foundation’s Annual Art Hop on September 25th. Trish swang...er...swung....(that is why I leave the fancy writing to the professionals) by my "Arcade" exhibition while I was hanging it. It was a super hot day and we went next door for a iced latte. I was a bit nervous, because I tend to speak my mind and sometimes I forget to think first. It is a habit that has gotten me into trouble before! I have gotten out of interviews thinking "Oh, Rob, That was awesome!" and then when I read the article thought..."hmmm....I SAID that???".  Luckily any fear I had was almost immediately washed away. Trish had an easy to talk to style that was both effective and interesting. She shared a bit, I shared a bit. It was very nice. She was smart, and I like smart. She was also an interested audience which was refreshing! It was so enjoyable that when I looked down at my watch and noticed the time, I realized that I had spent over an hour talking her ear off. Thankfully, none of this came across in the blog! I would like to quote passages from it here, but I would rather you read the article, from her site. It is much better than I could have put it! 

On a side note, I have to say how nice it is to have someone really get what I am doing. And how happy I was that I did not come accross as a total BAH-FOON!

What did you think of the article??

CANADIAN ART FOUNDATION GALLERY HOP HOP HOP

Ok, so as you can see it has been A LONG TIME since I have posted anything. Here's the thing. I have been under the gun to get my latest show together. "Arcade" is less than a month away, and I am still getting the work done....I know what you are thinking - "way to leave it to the last minute, Rob".
Well, I can hardly hear you when you speak to me in that tone! Any-who.....so, things are going along swimmingly, and I am right on track for the big exhibition. I thought I would give you a few more details about the show.
The show opens for 'previews' at Gallery 129 Ossington from September 1st to 8th, and then the opening night is on Thursday September 9th from 7-10. We are doing this so that those of you cottagers have a last-ditch pre-school-start vacation on the Labour Day weekend! 
You're welcome! ;-)
Now, for this show, I am hoping to go all out - decorating the walls with an extra-interesting pattern to 'jazz up' the overall look of the show. I want to capture the excitement of an actual arcade. We will see how this concept translates on site!

As an extra bonus, on the 25th of September, there is an event running in the gallery district
"The Canadian Art Gallery Hop". You can have the chance to tour different gallery areas with key critics, curators and collectors—insiders who will introduce you to the artists and dealers who make the art scene tick. For more details, check out their site!

So, if you can't make it out to the opening night on Thursday the 9th of September, try to catch the tour!!


As an exciting bonus, I am being interviewed by Trish Boon who is leading the Canadian Art Foundation's Art Hop through Gallery 129 during my upcoming exhibition. I am meeting her for coffee to give her the skinny - the 411 - the scoop on all things "ARCADE"  and then if I am interesting enough, I will be featured on her blog in September! F-U-N. Having just spent an hour reading on her blog, I was really taken with how in-depth she gets. It was interesting to NOT read just a regurgitation of an artist statement!


So, that is all the news fit to tell! I will have more to say very soon! Just you wait for more!!