Bryan Cunningham, Brice Eichelberger, Bruce Eichelberger, Jessica Goldfinch Jason Houchen, Chris Roberts-Antieau, Gin Stevens, John Whipple

December 3 - January 2
Opening Reception: Friday, December 3rd, 8-11 pm

La Luz de Jesus Gallery
4633 Hollywood Blvd.
Los Angeles CA 90027
323-666-7667
www.laluzdejesus.com
info@laluzdejesus.com

Cunningham uses his skills in painting and wood working to create unique mixed media assemblages. Each piece begins with a loose, canvas painting. Next the work is set with grommets and stretched in a hand crafted frame made from recycled wood and found objects. In the final step, Cunningham incorporates the use of vintage sign painting and carving to make each frame design unique. Cunningham resides and works in Detroit, MI. www.mutieonline.com/

Brice Eichelberger paints subtle stories of political, economic and social scenarios and twists of daily life experiences with an emotional balance of truth and fantasy. Unlike his twin brother Bruce (see below) In his youth, the reclusive Brice set out on a mission to teach himself to draw and paint after being told "It couldn’t be done." Brice was then given some hand-me-down paints and a few books and put his energies towards learning everything he could about painting and drawing. Brice cites Rembrandt as his first major influence, and Rob and Chris Clayton who inspired and a broadened his perspective and appreciation of art.

Bruce Eichelberger expresses his disdain for politicians, authority and religious intuitions and love for his long-haired girlfriend in pencil, pen ink, chalk and wood burning. From an early age, Bruce questioned his identity, origins and nihilistic outlook on life having grown up knowing he and his brother were given up for adoption at birth, which lead him into years of trouble, drugs and eventually, prison. When the brothers located their biological parents and discovered that their father was a talented artist and sculptor and their mother only wanted what was best for the newborns, Bruce decided to turn his life around and became even closer to his passion and through hard work the ability to truly express his talents. The Eichelberger brothers reside in Los Angeles.

Jessica Goldfinch was exposed to unconventional worldviews from a very early age. From her elementary school years at the counter-culture Free School in New Orleans through her graduate studies at the University of New Orleans, Goldfinch focused on studying world ideologies and creatively incorporating them into her art. Goldfinch's artistic curiosity has led her to travel to places as diverse as Nicaragua, Indonesia, and central India, and she frequently incorporates both iconographic elements and an Asian sense of balance in her work.

"Many religious myths have parallel storylines and meaning, and are thought to have the same historical point of origin," explains Goldfinch. To explore this complex nature of religion, the Holy Card series collapses religious concept and imagery into one ideal, incorporating iconography from the Egyptian bird god Horus to Michelangelo’s Pietà, as well as other religious signifiers such as the Christian cross, the veil of Muslim faith, and the HinduHer series humanizes the Divine and repudiates the Nicene Creed, the cornerstone Christian beliefs codified in the fourth century. Goldfinch depicts religious imagery in an organic, humanist sense that more truthfully fits our needs and concerns in present time, rather than relying upon a model created over 1,400 years ago.

These works are meant to investigate the commonalities of humanity and to dissect the global clash of cultures and values present in our world today.  Although the works illustrate the mystery and beauty of religion, they also are intended to be ironic and secular—an attempt to humanize the concept of “god.”  www.jessicagoldfinch.com/

Jason Houchen "Mustaches are Antlers"
Jason Houchen's "Mustaches are Antlers" focuses on the way people decorate and adorn themselves and the parallels that the process has with nature. Houchen mixes folk, graffiti, arcane and traditional techniques to create sculptures, mixed media and detailed burnt wood panels. From this amalgamation of styles combined with his Midwestern roots spring images of verve: Spirits and spirituality, antiquity and memories. A former resident of Los Angeles, Houchen currently lives in Chicago. www.jasonhouchen.com/

Pieces of fabric are Chris Roberts-Antieau's palette and her sewing machine is her brush. Roberts-Antieau creates "fabric pictures" inspired by American folk art, the drawings her son Noah did as a child, and the laughter and wonder she sees in everyday life.  Each of her unique pieces of art are made by cutting fabric shapes which are sewn onto a fabric background.  She also hand stitches with embroidery techniques to add color and details to the finished piece of art which is then hung behind glass in a hand-painted frame. While Roberts-Antieau sees things with a child-like joy and wonder, she doesn't just mimic a child's style; she applies a child's eye to adult realities. When you view one of  Roberts-Antieau's fabric painting you are reminded not to take yourself too seriously; and you may be given a chance to find again the wonder and joy that children find in the everyday.

Roberts-Antieau is the subject of a documentary which will be released in December of 2010 titled "The Life of Chris Roberts-Antieau: A Love Letter to Tom Waits." The film is created by Angela Klein Bryan Cunningham, Brice Eichelberger, Bruce Eichelberger, Jessica Goldfinch Jason Houchen, Chris Roberts-Antieau, Gin Stevens, John Whipplewho has worked for the artist for the past five years and is currently finishing post-production work on the three-DVD documentary and bonus features, which includes the feature-length film; a “visual soundtrack” CD/DVD featuring every single one of Roberts-Antieau’s artworks set to songs featured in the film; a demonstration of the artist creating an artwork with step-by-step instructions; and outtakes from the film. The CD/DVD is wrapped in eco-friendly fabric, designed to look like a love letter, sewn by artists at the Chris Roberts-Antieau Studio in Manchester, MI. The documentary traces the story of Roberts-Antieau’s life and art via interviews with the artist, including video capturing “real-time moments that follow her normal, wacky routine,” and explanations about “what inspires particular artworks,” Kline explains.  View a trailer for the film here: www.brookbankproductions.com/index.html

With this current exhibition Gin Stevens looks at and reinterprets his 2001 exhibition with La Luz De Jesus Gallery in which he traced the history of the Blues tradition in 30 portraits and culminated in a large scale work tracing the history with a tree dotted by small portraits of the three distinct genres of Blues music: Chicago, Delta, and Texas. With this new body of work Gin focuses even more on the portrait and images of these icons. Gin creates a photo-realist quality to the work, while  at the same time using small intricately drawn vignettes of times gone by to create his own romanticized view of these musicians and hardships they went through creating their art. Gin Stevens works and lives in Los Angeles and has exhibited with La Luz De Jesus Gallery on a number of occasions. When he is not working for The Man, Gin likes to relax with his lady and dabble in witchcraft and board games.

The subject matter of John Whipple’s somewhat antiquated and weathered looking paintings has no particular rhyme or reason but each one of his creations are fascinating.  Whipple starts most of his work with a wood panel, primarily using Finland birch because of the wood's beautiful grain and light color, pushing different painting processes through experimentation, sometimes taking old paper and collaging it for the base pattern. He also frequently integrates the grain of the wood into the imagery by drawing the design in charcoal and using a kneadable eraser to create highlights and define form. Once satisfied with the image, Whipple seals the drawing into the wood which serves to bring out the wood's grain and luster, then carefully layers thin transparent oil glazes over the drawing. Letting the oils completely dry between layers, Whipple builds up the color intensity while still allowing the drawing and wood grain to be seen. Whipple also sculpts, incorporating just about every found object imaginable into his pieces. John Whipple works and lives in Central Florida.