The Los Angeles Art Show, 2014
The Los Angeles Art Show was bigger ‘and’ better than ever in 2014, doubling in size to include jewelry and antiques. It was a smart move on the part of event management. The crowds increased but the feeling of being crowded did not.
The Hollywood Sentinel editor, Bruce Edwin, has written a general overview of the show (which you can read at that site in the link below), enabling me to focus on things I really, really, like. And women artists are something I like to see, especially the work of Maria Barrio, represented by Praxis International, which combines the elegant decorative detail of Gustav Klimt with the whimsy of Chagall in a contemporary manner.
Japanese Art
Additionally, I like to see things I don’t feel like I’ve seen before and the more art you see the more difficult this becomes. The Gutai collective, a group of Japanese artists active in the 1970’s through today, creates unique formal abstract compositions that have a cartoon-like otherworldly feeling of displacement.
Chinese Art
I enjoyed the abundance of Chinese painters, who paint as quickly as I do, as well as discovering a new artist named Yao Peng, whose work deals with the both femininity and feminist perspectives by presenting women who are usually presented as “sex toys” as human beings. That is something we need more of, both in Hollywood and in the art world.
Sexist Gallerist
The one thing we need ‘less’ of in Hollywood and the art world is prejudice. Sexism continues to rear its ugly head in both worlds, evidenced by a Czech dealer who made a fool of himself by stating “there are no great women painters.” Speaking of dinosaurs….
Antiques
On the antiques side, perhaps no one was as engaging as Mark Slotkin and Noel, who shared with me beautiful Victorian prints and Wooten desks.
Preferred Vendor List
This year also marks the first time I am creating a preferred vendors list of exceptional art dealers. It is not intended to exclude anyone and is by no means complete, but the following people and companies can be trusted to provide is excellent service, value, and quality. The highly recommended (people and organizations) are as follows in The Hollywood Sentinel at the link below.
It is my hope that those of you who would like to invest in art but don’t know where to start can join us next year for the 2015 Los Angeles show at the Convention Center. If you think you “can’t afford” fine art, start out with prints; one gallery for example, has rare Japanese prints for as little as $475. The show itself, of course, is well worth the price of admission.
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