Art at New Wave Coffee
Got paintings up at New Wave Coffee in Chicago’s Logan Square neighborhood through the second week of February, along with my good pal Jeff Forsythe. A list of all the work with specs & prices is posted here, and below are photos and notes — click on images for larger versions.
These above are something new and somewhat exciting. I’ve been tinkering with logos, deconstructing them and compositing little studies, studying the effects, and here are first attempts at scale. This is a niche compositional mode I’d like to proceed with alongside other projects, and it could go a number of different ways from here, but for initial pokes I wanted to keep it simple and just test the basic formal strategy. See my 1/11 post for some photos of these in progress.
These pieces are 4’x4’, and I got a diptych from Jeff comprised of two 4’x4’ panels to hang directly across from them (pic at bottom); then I brought in several older works that are also 4’ tall (directly below) to create a strong lateral movement through the space. Besides great hanging scenarios for individual pieces, I think the continuity helps interests migrate from one piece to the next — not unlike comics panels — and correlations are easier to form. And whether guests are giving direct attention to what’s on the walls or not, I think the overall effect is a calm, holistic peripheral environment.
The yellow one on the left below is a precedent for the composite logos, something I did as part of a series in 2006 — below is the source (a poster I made for the Ranch Theater Co.) and compositional studies. Others in the series stuck strictly to the red/blue/brown color palette of the source material, but this yellow one was a pleasant departure.
Below is one of a series from around 2004 based on sketches from the Nelson Algren Fountain in Chicago, in what’s known as the Polonia Triangle where Milwaukee Avenue, Ashland and Division Street cross. Around the base of the fountain is a quote in bronze from Algren: “For the masses who do the city’s labor also keep the city’s heart.” In this painting, the upside-down “S” and “W” with an arrow in the top-right corner indicate where to sit on the fountain rim in relation to the inscription for this view.
Jeff Forsythe and I worked together to coordinate pieces from our inventories that’d make sense together in a visual dialogue as well as physical sense in the venue. The work we brought from his studio reflects his agenda around 2005–2006, including appropriated graphics and re-construed themes from Japanese art history. These look great in this space, and evidence a lineage into his more recent work — see jeffreyforsythe.com for examples of what Jeff’s been up to since these.
Everything will be up through February 11, so please stop in for a look-see if you’re in the area. All the work is for sale, and you can download specs & pricelist here.
Art at New Wave Coffee
January 9 – February 11, 2011
Weekdays 7am–11pm, Weekends 8am–11pm
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| Funderburk, Quadrant Logos, 2011 |
These pieces are 4’x4’, and I got a diptych from Jeff comprised of two 4’x4’ panels to hang directly across from them (pic at bottom); then I brought in several older works that are also 4’ tall (directly below) to create a strong lateral movement through the space. Besides great hanging scenarios for individual pieces, I think the continuity helps interests migrate from one piece to the next — not unlike comics panels — and correlations are easier to form. And whether guests are giving direct attention to what’s on the walls or not, I think the overall effect is a calm, holistic peripheral environment.
The yellow one on the left below is a precedent for the composite logos, something I did as part of a series in 2006 — below is the source (a poster I made for the Ranch Theater Co.) and compositional studies. Others in the series stuck strictly to the red/blue/brown color palette of the source material, but this yellow one was a pleasant departure.
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| Funderburk, Yellow “Rime Nightly,” 2000, and Blue Bubble series, c2004-5 |
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| Funderburk, Yellow “Rime Nightly,” 2000 |
The narrow blues ones are from 2004 or maybe ‘05 and have been living with family. I spruced them up this month with vivid high-grade ultramarine and afforded opportunity to improve some details; one thing led to another, of course, and I also amended the greens, reinforced the white areas, and tried to re-articulate the noodley tan-colored shapes in the bottom thirds a little better too, add some dimension… I’ll say I think they work better than they did anyway, heh. Ultimately, tried to adhere to what was there and not make a whole new adventure out of these. There’s five of them in all, but these four I think are best.
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| Funderburk, Blue Bubble series, c2004-5 |
In this little alcove are hung four framed studies on paper with acrylic, enamel and aluminum paint from the first week of December 2010.
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| Funderburk, left: Quadrant Logos, 2011; right: Study Series 101201, 2010 |
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| Funderburk, Study 101201.D7, 2010 |
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| Funderburk, View from Algren Fountain S|W, c2004 |
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| Forsythe, left: The Masters, 2005; center: Untitled, 2005; right: Lessons are Expensive, 2006, and Steadily Going Nowhere, 2006 |
