Jonathan LeVine Gallery News

Doze Green public murals in Vegas

Tue, 19 Jan 2010 12:00:00

Currently exhibiting artist Doze Green recently completed a set of two large-scale public murals commissioned by CityCenter in Las Vegas, Nevada. The artist titled the project: Crossroads of Humanity. The two murals, which contain muti-figure imagery, occupy the surfaces of 6 conjoined walls (3 walls each). Wrapping around several corners, the total combined wall distance measures 80 feet wide by 20 feet high, per mural. The project took three weeks to complete, in November of 2009.

To check out timelapse video footage of the artist painting these murals, please click HERE.

Invader works at Tower Records!

Fri, 15 Jan 2010 12:00:00

On January 15th, 2010, No Longer Empty re-opened the legendary former Tower Records downtown NYC storefront with a multi-media art exhibition, entitled: Never Can Say Goodbye. Spotlighting more than twenty artists who work with sound, light, and image, to celebrate the store's historic role as the locus of the community.

The curators who organized the show selected three of the rubik album covers created by Invader which were part of his TOP 10 exhibition at Jonathan LeVine Gallery in June 2009.

To inquire about pricing and availability of these pieces, and additional works by Invader, please contact Jonathan LeVine Gallery.

NEVER CAN SAY GOODBYE curated by: No Longer Empty
Location: Former Tower Records storefront on corner of Broadway and 4th Street, NYC
Dates: January 16th—February 13th, Wednesday—Sunday, 12pm—7pm

For further info on the Never Can Say Goodbye exhibition, please visit the No Longer Empty website: http://nolongerempty.org

For images of the exhibition and opening reception, please click HERE.
For the full press release, please click HERE.

Shag and Baseman in Brazil!

Tue, 12 Jan 2010 12:00:00

On January 28th, 2010, Jonathan LeVine Gallery in association with Choque Cultural is pleased to present two solo shows in São Paulo, Brazil:

Gary Baseman—Dream Reality, and
SHAG—An Exquisite Hunger

These exhibitions continue the ongoing cross-cultural dialog between Jonathan LeVine Gallery in New York and Choque Cultural in São Paulo, which began in January of 2007 with Ruas de São Paulo: A Survey of Brazilian Street Art. The following year in 2008, Jonathan LeVine Gallery presented solo exhibitions for Brazilian artists Titi Freak as well as Stephan Doitschinoff (Calma) in New York, while exhibitions at Choque Cultural in Brazil included numerous American artists for group shows entitled Made In America in January of 2008, and Americana in January of 2009. Choque Cultural also hosted a solo exhibition of works by Tara McPherson in 2009.

These two shows will mark the fourth time Jonathan LeVine Gallery has collaborated with the Brazilian gallery on an exhibition of work by American artists on Brazilian soil.

SHAG and Gary Baseman
@ Choque Cultural, in Brazil
January 28th—February 27th, 2010

For further info, please contact: Choque Cultural gallery in São Paulo, Brazil.
Email: galeria@choquecultural.com.br
Call: 11-3062-4051 or
visit their website:

http://www.choquecultural.com.br

Babelgum Metropolis Art Prize

Wed, 16 Dec 2009 12:00:00

Video and performance art event in Times Square tomorrow, reception at JLG to follow!

Tomorrow, December 17th, there will be a free public screening across 3 Jumbotron monitors in Times Square, featuring finalist art video entries from the Babelgum Metropolis Art Prize—an international search for the best and edgiest artists, sponsored by Babelgum. The screening will be kicked off by Isabella Rossellini, the iconic actress/video artist who served as head judge for the contest. In a rare, public appearance, she will debut an outrageous new art video short of her own!

Jonathan LeVine Gallery will be hosting the reception with an awards presentation for winners of the competition following the Times Square event. The event will feature a live, interactive 3D VJ performance by multimedia artists : Sweat Shoppe. Please RSVP to : metropolis@babelgum.com

Thursday, December 17th, 2009

7—8 pm : SCREENING
Times Square — Duffy Square
47th and Broadway (adjacent to TKTS Booth).
Screens featuring the art videos include: Fox News Corp (43rd + Bdwy), MTV (Bdwy between 46th + 47th) and Clear Channel / CNN (47th + 7th Ave).

8—10pm : RECEPTION
Jonathan Levine Gallery
529 West 20th Street, 9th floor
New York, NY 10011

For further info, please click visit:
http://www.babelgum.com/metropolisartprize

Please join us!

Scope-Miami 2009 through the eyes of Adam Wallacavage

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 12:00:00

Jonathan LeVine Gallery's program at Scope-Miami 2009 was full of incredible work by a total of 6 represented artists this year. Adam Wallacavage took a break from exhibiting at the fairs, which freed up his time to explore the city's numerous mural programs this year and take some fun photographs of all the goings-on, which he's been kind enough to share. Enjoy!...

Jeff Soto had work in our booth at Scope, as well as in Chimera—curated by David Hunt. Additionally, he participated in the Primary Flight mural project this year, his mural can be found on NW 2nd Avenue and NW 36 Street. Go check it out if you're in the Miami area!

That's Jonathan and a local street cat admiring Soto's handy-work.

Marc & Sara Schiller were in town checking out the sights and the public artwork.

Jeff Soto took a break from painting to sign a blackbook for a fan.

Speaking of books, Gary Baseman was in town and made drawings of nearly everyone that crossed his path in his personal sketchbook! Like Natalia Fabia, for example...

Roger Gastman...

Even Jonathan LeVine!

The legendary Max Fish created a pop-up location in Miami just for the week, serving up drinks to all their traveling NYC patrons as well as the locals, complete with performances by live bands and DJ sets each night.

When not at Max Fish, the nightlife included pool-side parties at some of the finest hotels in Miami Beach...

Private events, such as STAGES—Livestrong group exhibition...

And having some fun with friends and reflective photography tricks.

Whoa, twin Taras!

Adam and Jonathan also paid a visit to Sam and Tury of Friends With You.

Spent some quality time with Malfi and friends...

And enjoyed playing with all the toys in their studio shop.

(we all really miss the blow-up bounce-house the artists made for Scope-Miami 2008... sooo much fun)!

Santa came to town a little bit early this year, just to check out all the happenings during Art Basel week in Miami. Let's hope if some of you have been good this year, you might get gifted with some original artwork!

Happy Holidays Miami, we'll see ya next year!...

PS : If you haven't seen images of our program at Scope, please visit the online exhibition page, or click HERE.

Choque Cultural at MASP

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 12:00:00

Check out the beautiful photographs shot and compiled by Lost Art of the incredible exhibition curated by our friends of Choque Cultural at Museu de Arte de Sao Paulo entitled "De Dentro Pra Fora / De Fora Pra Dentro" which featured works and installations by artists: Stephan Doitschinoff, Titi Freak, Carlos Dias, Daniel Melim, Ramon Martins and Zezao. Click on image below to view photographs of the artists working on their museum installation:

Giant Robot Biennale 2 : 15 years

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 12:00:00

Last weekend, the Giant Robot Biennale 2 : 15 years exhibition opened at the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles. The show will be on view through January 24th, 2010.

David Choe, James Jean, Jeff Soto, and Souther Salazar are among the artists who have work featured in the show. We encourage anyone in the area to check it out! Meanwhile, here are some images of the incredible new large scale work James Jean created for the exhibition:

To view a video timelapse of Jeff Soto painting his piece for the museum show, please click here.

Todd Schorr : Book Signing 10/10/09

Sat, 03 Oct 2009 12:00:00

Previously exhibited artist Todd Schorr will be having a book signing event at the gallery for his newly released monograph American Surreal on Saturday 10/10/2009, from 3—5pm.

American Surreal
Todd Schorr
Published by Last Gasp
10" x 15" Quarterbound
120 full-color pages
$39.95

This is the latest collection of paintings by one of contemporary surrealism's most influential artists. American Surreal picks up where Dreamland—Schorr's previous bestselling collection of mind-bending paintings—left off. The viewer can look forward to countless hours of eye bulging investigative thought while examining the impeccably rendered subject matter that has become the hallmark of Schorr's outrageous vision.

One of the seminal figures in what has come to be known as the Lowbrow or Pop Surrealism art movement, Schorr has continually and systematically set the bar ever higher in his quest to bring classic old master painting technique to his pop-culture-infused subject matter. This latest collection continues that journey culminating with the epic masterpiece Ape Worship, included in this volume. Schorr's paintings are the subject of museum retrospectives in 2009 and 2010, and are highly prized and coveted by collectors the world over. American Surreal is sure to satisfy those with an overly-developed visual appetite.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"A living god of the underground art realm, Todd Schorr's monstrous masterpieces dwell almost exclusively in the rarefied world of the moneyed art collector." — Juxtapoz Magazine

"Todd Schorr's work now stands at the forefront of a new upsurge of the imaginative pictorial tradition, and the postmodern idea of each artist piecing together his or her own version of art history is suddenly seeming more reasonable." — Doug Harvey, art critic

Here are some video interviews the artist did for his Museum show at the San Jose Museum of Art:

D*Face Mural : Shuttered Storefronts

Thu, 10 Sep 2009 12:00:00

Photograph by Tom Blachford

Jonathan LeVine Gallery is pleased to present Shuttered Storefronts, a public mural by the London-based street artist known as D*Face. In conjunction with Ludovico Aversion Therapy—his debut solo exhibition in the United States, on view from September 12 through October 10 at Jonathan LeVine Gallery—the artist has painted an additional off-site mural on the gates of three empty storefronts in downtown New York City, using imagery to complement his gallery show.

The piece can be found at the following location:
200 Clinton Street (corner of East Broadway)

Obtaining permission for the property was made possible by the group No Longer Empty, as part of an ongoing series of community revitalization projects, including legal murals by urban artists in vacant spaces throughout the city of New York.

***VIDEOS***
To view a timelapse of the artist painting this mural, please click HERE.
To view a timelapse of the artist painting a second mural in NY, please click HERE.

ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION
No Longer Empty is a not for profit group that places high quality art exhibitions in vacated store fronts throughout New York City, with the belief that urban regeneration through artwork reflects the transformative nature that art can have on a community. Conceived as a meeting point between art and the economic crisis, the organization seeks to provide a platform to artists and to revitalize empty commercial spaces by creating more traffic and sites filled with positive energy. In a challenging time when the city is filled with empty storefronts, the organization offers a unique opportunity by supporting local business communities through the increased flow of visitors that these exhibitions bring. For further info, please visit: www.nolongerempty.org

ABOUT THE ARTIST
D*Face is a London-based sculptor and street artist. His artwork has been exhibited in galleries and on the streets of cities around the world. For over ten years, his wall stencils and three-dimensional urban interventions have tested public awareness and resistance when faced with visual alternatives to corruptive, persuasive commercial advertising. Reoccurring themes include: celebrity, fame, and mortality. The artist uses the term aPOPcalyptic to describe his work, which often features images of cultural icons as a commentary on conspicuous consumption in popular culture. D*Face’s early artistic inspirations include pop artists such as Lichtenstein, Haring and Warhol. Additional influences include: punk music, graffiti, skateboarding and skate magazines featuring graphic artists like Jim Philips and Pushead.

ABOUT JONATHAN LEVINE GALLERY
Jonathan LeVine Gallery exhibits a genre of work influenced by illustration, comic book art, graffiti, street art and pop culture imagery. We represent a mix of emerging and mid-career artists with an emphasis on cultivating new talent and creating an environment where artists can further develop their work. Since 2005, the first year established in New York, Jonathan LeVine Gallery has remained focused on maintaining its mission of community, and commitment to providing our artists with a nurturing arena for experimentation and discussion. The Gallery is located at 529 West 20th Street, New York, NY 10011. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 11am to 6pm. For more information, please call: 212.243.3822, visit: www.jonathanlevinegallery.com, or email: info@jonathanlevinegallery.com.

Isabel Samaras : Book Signing 9/19

Wed, 09 Sep 2009 12:00:00

Previously exhibited artist Isabel Samaras, whom some of you may remember from her 2006 solo exhibition Ex Animo will be having a book signing event at the gallery for her newly released monograph On Tender Hooks this Saturday 9/19/2009, from 3—5pm.

On Tender Hooks — The Art of Isabel Samaras
Published by Chronicle Books in April, 2009
9-5/8" x 10" Hardcover
160 full-color pages
$35.00

On Tender Hooks -- Isabel Samaras's quirky, sexy, pop-surrealist art has had a cult following for years—and now at long last her first monograph, On Tender Hooks, is here. Drawing her influence from classic TV shows and paintings by the Old Masters—for example riffing on Géricault's Raft of the Medusa by replacing the figures with characters from Gilligan's Island—Samaras has created a witty, erotic, and surreal body of work. This fresh and dazzling volume includes a three-way interview between Samaras and fellow low-brow artists Shag and The Pizz, as well as delightful and enlightening commentary from gallerist Justin Giarla and art writer Colin Berry, and an erotic short story by Lucy Blue.

Artist Isabel Samaras's work has been featured in numerous books, magazines, television shows, and a documentary film. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Blurb from The New York Times Blog—From painting homoerotic fantasies on vintage lunch boxes (The Lone Ranger and Tonto in flagrante) to bawdy television trays (starring Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock), Samaras went on to paint in oil on wood, using the techniques of the old masters to enliven the stuff of fairy tales.