“No Place Like Home” by Josh Keyes
Beyond Eden, Will Present the Best Galleries From the Lowbrow, New Contemporary, Pop Surrealist & Outsider Art Movements To An Audience Ready to Collect
CONVENTION DATES
November 22 – 24, 2019
VIP Night | November 22, 5pm – 9pm
General Entry | November 23, 10am – 7pm
General Entry | November 24, 10am – 6pm
TICKETS
https://tickets.designercon.com/purchase.html
Anaheim Convention Center
800 W. Katella Ave, Anaheim, CA 92802
For 14 years, DesignerCon has been a destination for designer toy brands, collectible artists and the people who love them, hosting world-renowned brands like MEDICOM, KidRobot, Mighty Jaxx, and Giant Robot. Now, for the first time ever, the convention will have a traditional art space dedicated to the lowbrow, pop surrealist and outsider art movements that flourished in Southern California. On the heels of Littletopia that drew crowds at the LA Art Show, Beyond Eden is spearheaded by Thinkspace Projects founder Andrew Hosner, as a way to connect DesignerCon attendees directly to the larger art world. Many artists who are prominent in the designer toy realm also have thriving fine art careers. Most notable at the moment is KAWS, who is best known for his OriginalFake series of vinyl toys, but recently made a $14 million sale of one of his museum-quality artworks.
The addition of Beyond Eden to Designercon is perfect for the evolution the convention has been undergoing for the past several years. Many avid fine art collectors actually get their start collecting designer toys—something that Designercon founder Ben Goretksy can attest to, personally.
Picking up where Greg Escalante’s Littletopia left off, Hosner’s Beyond Eden will be exhibiting many of the artists DCON attendees already know and love, plus the galleries who rep them, and other artists in their repertoire.
The inaugural archway welcoming attendees into the new section will be designed by Carlos Ramirez, formerly of The Date Farmers artist collective. The Date Farmers were a collaboration of artists Carlos Ramirez and Armando Lerma, best known for paintings and assemblages steeped in California’s Mexican-American experience, referencing street art, posters of the Mexican Revolution, and popular tropes of Hollywood and the media.
Galleries that will be part of this year’s programming include:
Thinkspace Projects
Founded in 2005, Thinkspace has garnered an international reputation as one of the most active and productive exponents of the New Contemporary Art Movement. Maintaining its founding commitment to the promotion and support of its artists, Thinkspace has steadily expanded its roster and diversified its projects, creating collaborative and institutional opportunities all over the world. Founded in the spirit of forging recognition for young, emerging, and lesser-known talents, the gallery is now home to artists from all over the world, ranging from the emerging, mid-career, and established.
La Luz De Jesus
Established in 1986 La Luz de Jesus Gallery is the brainchild of entrepreneur and art collector Billy Shire, considered primarily responsible for fostering a new school of California art and prompting JUXTAPOZ Magazine to dub him “the Peggy Guggenheim of Lowbrow.” Showcasing mainly figurative, narrative paintings and unusual sculpture, the exhibitions are post-pop with content ranging from folk to outsider to religious to sexually deviant. The gallery’s objective is to bring underground art and counter-culture to the masses. Past shows have been groundbreaking, exhibiting artists, such as Manuel Ocampo, Joe Coleman, and Robert Williams.
KP Projects
One of Los Angeles’ premier art galleries specializing in contemporary pop surrealism, new contemporary, and street art. KP Projects is home to several of the most significant artists working today. The gallery’s focus is to continually champion emerging and mid-career artists who push beyond the boundaries of formal definition.
Dark Art Emporium
The Dark Art Emporium is located in Long Beach, CA close to Los Angeles and Orange County in Southern California.The Dark Art Emporium is host to a variety of unique art pieces which would not normally be seen in an art gallery including taxidermy, oddities, strange photography, etc.
Modern Eden Gallery
Modern Eden is located in San Francisco’s historic North Beach neighborhood. Established in June 2010 by local artists Bradley Platz and Kim Larson, the gallery regularly exhibits new works of representational painting and sculpture. Our aesthetic ranges from realism to surrealism, with a program that focuses on elevating Bay-Area artists in the global art market through the sophisticated use of digital channels and the organization of groundbreaking exhibitions.
Tierra Del Sol Foundation
A strong and vibrant community is one in which all of its members contribute to the strengths and assets for the common good. Tierra’s mission is to empower people with disabilities to fulfill their potential and desire to become productive citizens who are accepted, included and valued for the contributions they make to the economic, civic, and cultural vitality of the community. We are actively working towards the day when people with any type of disability are fully recognized as an integral part of our community – as neighbors, co-workers, and contributors.
The 2019 DesignerCon will be held at the Anaheim Convention Center on November 22 – 24, 2019. The convention center is located at 800 W. Katella Ave, Anaheim, CA 92802.
More will be announced as details are confirmed.
About DesignerCon
Founded in 2005 by Ben Goretsky, DesignerCon brings together artists, manufacturers, distributors, and retailers in the designer toy / vinyl collectibles market and has grown to incorporate everything in the design world including apparel, plush, printing, sculpture, designer toys, and both fine and urban art. The steady growth DesignerCon has enjoyed correlates with its popularity in today’s art nerd, geek culture; collectors and designer toy lovers alike wait through the night for new releases, pre-orders for new artist collaboration apparel are sold out within minutes, and artists use the convention as an opportunity to announce exclusive releases and collaborations. www.designercon.com
Galleries that will be part of this year’s programming include:
