This past week, one of the biggest  gallery events made its way to Los Angeles at the Convention Center. The LA Art Show, which had hundreds of different artist ranging from painters, sculptures , graphics ect all placed themselves in one building to be admired by those who admire the beauty in art and the stories that they tell. Earlier in the week, I nearly passed up the chance and opportunity to attend this event during opening night, but when something is being offered to you on numerous accounts you kind of figure it’s just a good sign. I was given two tickets as a kindly gesture from an older gentleman who felt that my smile had brightened his day and decided to bring my best friend.

Buzzed off of several Bellinis from a luncheon earlier in the day, I was in good spirits. I wasn’t expecting this event to be jammed packed considering parking was extremely  easy to find Downtown of all places and the streets were pretty calm. Once we made our way up the escalators,  I noticed there were actually two conventions in one building including the Jewelry show. I’m not one for diamonds and pearls so Elizabeth Taylor  could keep that. We made our way to the entrance where I ran into the gentleman who had given me my VIP tickets and immediately he walked us past the line. While assuming he was escorting us to our privileged area of the VIP where all the artsy Hob Nobbers were eating their Hors d’oeuvres and drinking their champagne, he stopped dead in his tracks and said “That’s all I can do for you”  ha! hilarious, he had so much persistence in making sure we made it through, but I wouldn’t have mind waiting. I appreciated his kindly gesture and we began to explore. Now mind you, when you’re dealing with so much in one room and it’s time to crunch the amount of time you spend, you’re bound to just run past a few things with a quick glance.

We weren’t all too sure if this was art within itself or if they were actually making the art as shiners. I didn’t get it, I didn’t understand it so we just kept on walking.

I’m a child at heart, so I automatically gravitated towards the Giant sized sweets. Blow Pops, Ring Pops, Candy Necklaces, were all a big part of my childhood in some way shape or form, but the colors alone had me  drawn to  it like a moth to light. So we wandered some more keeping track of time and how many stops we wanted to make while overall finding the value in actually speaking with various artist or those who were featuring them in their galleries here in Los Angeles. One black and white photo caught my attention. It was that of a decomposing white horse beautifully transformed in what would be a combination of a dream and your deepest darkest fears. A very chilling piece that you might only find in your nightmares. The second photo was of an actual corpse that could either be man or woman, an androgynous  person lying on their back after what appeared to be an autopsy. Naturally the first thing I noticed were the breast that had lost all its fat and tissue giving me the idea of what a females breast would look like if the implants were to have been taken out or deflated.

As I continued to pick a part the photo to get a better understanding of the provocative idea that was in the beauty of immortality,  my eyes started wandering towards some of the different portraits near by. I didn’t even take the initiative in seeing whose name or even face was behind this collection because I was in a cross world of what was in my mind and what was right in front of me. The eerie nature was that I couldn’t tell the difference of what was real and what wasn’t. The photo of a half woman and half horse almost had me second guessing my sanity, as I had forgotten that in this day in age a lot of digital tricks can be done to the effect of an allusion. I’m not too sure if I could position myself in the body of a carcass of a taxidermy animal that had been carved out, but hey to each is own in your creativity.

Joel-Peter Witkin and his identical twin brother, Jerome Witkin, both being featured in the same room for the first time. Both having the same haunting effects in their visions, but are fairly different in the aspects of how they portrayed their creativity.

I was clearly more intrigued with Joel’s perception in finding beauty in what may be perceived as ugly or grim whereas with Joel’s depictions is where you might find his oil paintings on the walls of a glorious mansion home. A little bit more discreet with a ghastly message

These two are clearly very talented individuals who have managed to create their very own identities with their great success, as they’ve accomplished a lot of recognition in the fifty years of contemporary arts. This was only the first course to what the Jack Rutberk Fine Arts Inc had to offer its audience where clearly if you want an eye full of what’s inside these two artists heads, you just might have to take a trip to the actual gallery.

http://jackrutbergfinearts.com/videos.html#jw-jpw

For more information please either visit their website
http://www.jackrutbergfinearts.com/
Or physically visit

Jack Rutberg Fine Arts, Inc.

357 N. La Brea Avenue

Los Angeles, CA 90036-2517

Speaking of nightmares

The cyclops missing an eye to any normal person would think that this was straight out of your next horror thriller while on the contrary it represents the artists tormented life. Unfortunately he has a social phobia with being around people and couldn’t be present at the time. Unlike the identical twins, I could get the same type of presence through his art, but from what I gathered, it was a portrayal of his brother being in an insane asylum. I wasn’t too sure of the connection between this large figure, but I kept my reservations while Lauren wanted to get up close and a little too personal. That’s all you girl!
The portrait on the left gives you clear insight to what we arrogantly and ignorantly disregard in the very nature of survival. Normally when we see the less fortunate, we don’t commonly see the bigger picture, we just see rugged dingy clothing and a sign stating either “Will work for food” or “Help” , but this portrait states the harsh truths that we avoid seeing in the bare. I will die without food makes you think huh? That’s art.

The crowd of people filling up the  space in the convention was in between being steady and just enough to observe all the art lovers within the city and those who might have traveled a bit to get a full days worth of what it would have taken in trips to many different galleries versus one.

People were taking photos, collectors were collecting and some were even trying to get a closer view with their oily finger prints even though a sign in clear bold print said Do NOT Touch. I can’t call myself an art fanatic or an oddball, but I can definitely appreciate art when I see it. Actually I found my own style. Not only in what was prompted on the walls for display or cleverly positioned for an accident waiting to happen, but more  along the lines of my very own eyes being a camera lense.

Hi Lauren say cheese!

I couldn’t help, but to find art in the people around me. Art Imitating Art and sometimes they didn’t even realize an admirer had the idea of putting them on a canvas. My friends make fun of me when I choose to only take photos that are candid. I get it…it’s not considered candid when you know that the camera is being angled at you, but the whole putting your hands on your hips pose or the thumbs up, is a bit corny to say the least. Then again having a photo of you as if you have a twitch in your eye isn’t all that appealing either, so I go for the in between. In the most inconspicuous way, I managed to take photos of a few individuals that built my creative side in order to shed more light of what I could get out of being in a room full of vibrational wonders.

Yeah… so I added myself too.  That’s the beauty of it all. There was so much to see and to take in, but you’d be surprised by the little things that tend to be missed when your focus is in just one area and so I took advantage of it. Some of these artist found ways of not only finding some clay and sculpting it into an unconventional masterpiece or taking a paint brush and just flinging it at a white wall, but they made with what they could find by way of symbolic meaning or trash left on the side of the road.

If you take a good look at this artwork would you be able to see the details in how it was actually made or do you just see it as a painting?

Lauren and I spent our time in areas that gave us meaning and gave us purpose to really take in the energy we got just from observation.
Anything that brought us inspiration or that we could relate our very own journeys of life to as we know it. That is what we were on a quest to finding.

Photo credit: Lauren

One particular area that I felt a sense of hope, joy and sentimental value from was Emil Emanuel Kazaz. Walking by, I had noticed a very peculiar sculpture that looked like it had been shaped out of clay yet it didn’t show to have the same effect if it were to be. The figures were from an era that reminded me of the time where women were full and men were robust. Their faces round, rosey and pudgy like a winged cupid or angelic angels. Grotesque mythological creatures living amongst humans that looked nothing like what we have today. In fact I remember an old cartoon movie from when I was a child made up of strange looking lions with curly hair. A prince a princess and a witch that was far from the dainty fairytales Disney portrays on film. This brought me back to that childhood movie and so Lauren and I stopped in to look at the amount of work and the entire collection that would have thought to have been taken from his very own gallery. This was definitely art that only a worldly traveler could truly appreciate from all depths of Europe.

One thing that I kept noticing was a woman who had a demented fascination with severed heads as she stood above her prize with a luring cheeky grin. I had to get a full answer as to what this all meant. I walked up to a young female who tried her best to emphasize the story behind these captivating pieces and when she couldn’t funnel down she directed me towards a woman who was sitting near by. I was so in tuned with the art that I failed to properly introduce myself and immediately asked for the story. She was kind, very lively and looked like she could of been the same vibrant art I was admiring, but only in human form. Bright red hair, beautiful angelic European face that you wouldn’t find too often in this city and style that subliminally looked like she could be worth a million bucks. As she was enthusiastically telling me the way of the artists mind, she soon started telling me a love story. It didn’t occur to me that this woman was actually Mrs. Emil Kazaz, Monet. I mean the name alone Monet, said enough just smoothly rolling off the tongue.

These sculptures were the past meeting the future and the future looking into the past. A love story bench with two aged people sitting near a swan lake pond. The sappy movies we all secretly in love with only wishing we could live out. That’s what I was admiring. I was falling in love with their love by every word she was speaking. I even began to tear up when she had said that each sculpture was made of her years prior to have meeting. This was only what I wish I could have and yet I felt so inspired and connected. She gave me a personalized signed book and her information so that I could do an entire write up of just their love alone. Considering my most favorite hated holiday is right around the corner, maybe this will be my good luck charm to truly believe in something that I never really had. I could only imagine how extremely lucky their only child at the age of four is when learning the story of his two adoring parents and the love that they share.

An absolute angel!

When asked what was the inspiration behind the bronze I wasn’t expecting what was given. Love songs are one thing. Poems are another. But when your future soul mate can see you before you even physically exist in the clear visions of his eyes. That’s art in its truest form, but their Forever Love story runs deeper.

For more information please go to
Kazaz Gallery

And in the coming month check out my full review on WowWednesday

It was getting closer to closing time and we picked up our pace just a little bit faster. My arms were practically dragging on the floor from gifts and informational books I had collected to put under my coffee table. The VIP area wasn’t much of being “Very important” at all. I mean we could have stood in a long line just to get some dry wine that doesn’t meet the expectations of what I actually prefer, only to sit in a roped off area as if we were on show ourselves.  No thanks, we’ll pass on that.

While making a short cut through all the sanctioned off dividers , we walked into another designated area that seemed as if it was being solely occupied by just one artist, somewhat like Emil Kazaz. Raw crystals in their natural forms, astrological portraits with protruding bronze sculptures.

This spoke to me in many words considering that I carry crystals everywhere I go and have a clear understanding of astrology beyond the minimal amount of clarity in some of the tween magazine you might find on a bookstore shelf. The colors were  magnetic which is typically the attraction in crystals and their properties. The art collector himself, Guy Simard, was just as magnetic in his lively energy surrounded by everything that balanced having a good aura. I loved the exuberance he released when he talked about the work and his favorite color, that being purple.

Guy Simard

I don’t even think I had a chance to fully enjoy his work after speaking with him.
His giddiness is what would make him the life of the party at an extravagant dinner whether he be a host or guest. I could definitely see some of these sculptures sitting in my home especially the Amethyst Quartz which so happened to be one of the very first crystals I owned as a child for its stress reliever and positive vibes.

For more information please go to www.simardbilodeau.com

We were starting to wind down and so were my arms. So we pretty much rushed through everything else that wasn’t being bombarded by obnoxious people that didn’t know the first thing about saying “Excuse me” .  Lauren and I really didn’t have a system other than to just walk around in circles, and anything we might have bypassed we took a moment to look at and then moved on to the next. Going through aisles of human traffic, became more cluttered as the person on the intercomp kept making countdown announcements. In one area I saw a crowd forming and above the sea of people I saw an enormous life like head that looked far too real. I thought it was a life sized human, but no it was just the head with a handle bar mustache.

Didn’t the sign say don’t touch?!

Now this was something you would find in the movie magic Hollywood studios here in Los Angeles. Even looking at the model up close, you could see the subble of facial hair in the jawline and even the ears.

Ca-reepy! How would you like to have this mounted on your wall or as the first thing you run into when you walk inside the house.

There were many talented individuals and I’m happy that I had the chance to explore a room full of vivid imaginations and take a clear look inside the minds that are under appreciated on the exterior surface. Coming from someone who tends to live inside their mind almost quite frequently…. I get it. I understand the depth of it all, it’s just that I express myself in a different light. Though in the meantime I’m still going to give credit to where it’s due that would allow me to escape into another world away from the one I’m living in.

Xox