‘Culver City INVASION’ opens large…

Our ‘Culver City INVASION’ went off HUGE this past Saturday and was, for many, the highlight of the Art Walk. So many through this past Saturday afternoon offering up praise as one of the best, if not the best, show on the walk. It was humbling to hear it so often. Of course, that’s what makes art great – it’s all one’s personal perception… with that said, I’m sure many just didn’t get some of the art we represent, and that’s fine. As I so don’t get much of the work on display over in Culver City myself, but to each their own as they say. All I know is a slew of folks were making return visits throughout the day to view the progress of their favorite artist, and at several times throughout the day we had a line to get into the gallery. Many of the works created that day found homes as well, not to mention a good chunk of work from the group show, including both the major works from Ekundayo, our featured artist. All in all, an amazing day out in Culver City opening minds and exposing those we work with to a new audience.

Ekundayo‘s monster ‘Running Man’ piece (above) greeted patrons as they entered our ‘pop up’ show this past Saturday in Culver City. Measuring in at 4′ x 5′, it was a true showstopper and sold moments after the doors opened.

We filled up 9 pages (30 names per sheet) of new sign ups in our mailing list and gave out 2,000 lightbulb logo stickers, 2,000 1″ logo buttons and over 1,000 each of our June opening event show cards. To say we made a nice impact is an understatement. Thank you to all that came out, showed support and spread the word throughout the day and kept coming back for the live art, positive energy, and cold Grolsch beer. So many kept coming in saying they heard it was the show to check out, from press to fellow MOCA Contemporaries members to collectors to other gallery owners. Just an awesome day.
Please read on for a recap of the day’s events. The energy kept us going throughout the day, but when Sunday morning hit, the reality of what was in fact an eight hour long opening hit hard on the old body/mind. A packed house all day long made all the hard work that went into this event so very much worth it. Such a long and rewarding day.

Ekundayo early in the day working on his piece…

Ekundayo putting on touches towards the end of the day…

Jesse Hotchkiss mid-afternoon working away on his piece… look for this one to appear in his upcoming Thinkspace solo show this December. Can’t wait!

Hotchkiss laying in the details towards day’s end…

LC, aka Mr. NumberOnederful, laid down the beats throughout the day, along with a lil’ help from our good friend DJ Patrick Icon from C.A.V.E. Gallery… works from ELBOW-TOE were holding down the fort out front the DJ area.

Mear One arrived a bit late in the day, but once he set up, it was on. Watching Mear paint live is an event unto itself. Within a matter of a few hours he had rocked out a sick live work…

Mear laying in some final details…

Finished piece from Mear One at night’s end.

Michael Alvarez was out and doing his thing, here’s his piece towards the end of the day. Shortly after this a friend got to bustin’ on the piece as well. See our Flickr for more shots of that.

Michael Pukac working away on one of three pieces he completed that day. The man is a machine and his more refined oil works are just stunning. Look for more from him at Thinkspace next year, in the meantime, we’ll be having him out for numerous live painting events throughout year’s end including a special event with MOCA coming up later this June.

Pukac at work…

The crowd in the back gallery watching the live painters about 3PM… just a packed house!
One of the newest members of the Thinkspace family, Nathan DeYoung, grew a big crowd early and it never let up, with many returing throughout the day to watch his progress over and over, some collectors coming back to check in as many as four or five times.

DeYoung hard at work…

Close up of Nathan DeYoung‘s piece

Front of house about 2PM – just packed taking in the work of our artists. From young to old, we were getting some nice compliments on the variety and quality of work on view, not to mention the energy being given off by the 9 live painters and live DJ action…

Back of the gallery about 5PM… still packed and still pulsating out the positive energy…

Picking apart the work of David MacDowell. His piece had many figuring out the characters included and then discussing the meaning… good luck folks, Mr. MacDowell is a mad man (and that’s why we love him).

Taking in the work in the front gallery

Mid-poetry slam around 430PM – the crowd LOVED the slam and we can’t wait for Mike The Poet to invade Thinkspace on Sun, August 30th for the first of many Poetry Slams to follow.

The Poetry Slam in progress…

Michael Pukac continued to draw a crowd into the evening…

What a line up… Ekundayo, Michael Alvarez, Jesse Hotchkiss, Zoso, Michael Pukac and Nathan DeYoung on the end… to soon be joined by Mear One later in the afternoon (with Asylm and Anthony Clarkson holding down fort on the other side)…

Back gallery install shot…

Front gallery install shot complete with huge door coutresy of Gaia
Front gallery install shot

Back gallery install shot

Anthony Clarkson and Asylm going to town in the back gallery

Anthony Clarkson laying in some detail work. Look for this piece to be included in his upcoming show at Gallery 1988 up in SF…

Asylm laying in the framework of his piece…

Asylm near day’s end working away on his piece…

It would be impossible to guess at how many cellphone photos were snapped on Saturday, everywhere I looked, folks were snapping away in front of their favorite works.

Crowd in the front gallery late in the afternoon, about 6PM, still packed and active…

Dog day afternoon… we had a sign up welcoming dogs with a lil’ water dish out front… so many out on the walk with their owners, it was very cool how many were coming through the space that afternoon…

Taking in the work of Brian Viveros

Zoso doing his thing, creating just a beautiful work for a live piece…

Mike The Poet doing his thing with Zoso painting away in the background…

Front gallery title wall view (with glimpse into the back gallery)

Front gallery title wall view 2

Check out some add’l coverage here courtesy of Dailydujour.
View all the works in the show here.
To view the full photo set featuring over 200 photos chronicling the day’s events over an 8 hour period, please click here.
It was pretty much a packed house from about 1PM until we closed the doors at 830PM. Again, thank you to all that came out and showed support and had a good time.
Big props to all our artists that took part in the show, those that came out and rocked it live for us, the city of Culver City and all at City Hall that helped to make this event possible, Living Color Graphics, Grolsch, Citizen and the MOCA Contemporaries for their support of this awesome event.
See you all at our next event, back at our gallery, next Fri, June 12th!

‘Culver City INVASION’ tomorrow 12noon-8PM…

Lil’ sneak peek of the flavor to come during tomorrow’s poetry slam.

Mike The Poet and friends – 4PM

‘Culver City INVASION’ 12noon-8PM

During the Culver City Art Walk

8542 Washington Blvd (just a few doors west of Corey Helford Gallery)

‘Sneak Peek’ set here.

It’s going to be an awesome day, please come on through.

Get ready for this weekend (Culver City, Miracle Mile, Santa Monica Auctions)…

ARTWALK Culver City / Sat, May 30th 12noon – 8pm
This free, self-guided tour of local art galleries and exhibition spaces is sponsored by Sony Pictures Entertainment, 89.9 KCRW – the official Public Radio Sponsor – and LA Weekly with continued participation from The MOCA Contemporaries of The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (MOCA). ARTWALK Culver City opens the doors of the area’s art galleries to introduce a wider audience to the unique vitality of the artist spaces of Culver City. This event especially celebrates the Culver City Art District, a cluster of galleries exhibiting new and distinguished artists, which is located where Washington and La Cienega Boulevards intersect. The event will also feature live jazz, performed by the Los Angeles Jazz Collective, in the Culver City Art District. Dozens of restaurants and cafes will be open in Downtown Culver City and the Culver City Art District during the event and the Green Truck, serving healthy, gourmet organic food in a fast and efficient way, will be parked on the east end of the Culver City Art District.
Over forty galleries will be open from 12noon to 6pm and selected galleries will remain open until 8pm that evening. Culver CityBus will offer an ARTWALK Bus Pass and a special shuttle bus on the day of the event.
Please contact the Culver City Cultural Affairs Hotline at 310.253.5716 or log onto http://www.culvercity.org/cultural/artwalk.asp for more information on ARTWALK Culver City. The MOCA Contemporaries, one of Los Angeles’s premier cultural support organizations, is MOCA’s council for young professionals who raise funds and develop future leadership for the museum. For more information on The MOCA Contemporaries, log onto http://www.moca.org/contemporaries.

Art Walk 2009 / Sat, May 30th 12noon – 8PM

Muse, LACMA’s membership group for young artists and art enthusiasts, in partnership with the Miracle Mile Art Walk, will present Art Walk 2009 on Saturday, May 30th. Enjoy free admission to LACMA, The Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits, the Petersen Automotive Museum, and the Craft and Folk Art Museum from 12pm-8pm, followed by a fantastic after party at the El Rey Theater featuring live music, dancing, and complimentary drinks.

For more information, with downloadable maps, a full schedule of events, plus tickets to the after party, visit lacma.org/muse.

Santa Monica Auctions Annual Live Public Fine Art Auction

Sunday, May 31, 2009 starting at 1pm

Robert Berman Gallery [Gallery C2 + D5] in the Bergamot Station Art Center @ 2525 Michigan Avenue in Santa Monica

The Santa Monica Auctions is holding it’s 25th Anniversary Modern and Contemporary Art Auction on Sunday, May 31st, starting at 1pm at Bergamot Station Arts Center. Beginning in 1984, SM Auctions has been continuously offering important works for both the beginning art collector as well as the most sophisticated connoisseur collector. Santa Monica Auctions feature the work of both mid-career and established artists of all mediums including modern and contemporary painting, photography, sculpture, drawing, multiples and prints. Last year’s sale was highlighted with unique works by Ed Ruscha, Banksy and Ed Moses. This year’s collection is shaping up to include amazing works by Art Luminaries such as Andy Warhol, Jasper Johns, and Roy Lichtenstein. Highlights from this sale also include important works by historically important beat artist Wallace Berman, famed street artist Chaz, unique pieces by Chris Burden, a vast collection of very early and rare Raymond Pettibon original drawings from the 1980’s-1990’s, prints by masters Henri Mattisse and Pablo Picasso, and contemporaries Bruce Nauman and Shepard Fairey. Unlike other auction houses, SANTA MONICA AUCTIONS will take significant works for consignment right up until the date of the sale so there are always last-minute surprises.

Live previews are ongoing now in their galleries and the full catalogue can be viewed online at www.smauctions.com

‘Culver City INVASION’ coming up Sat, May 30th…

Thinkspace is proud to present:

‘Culver City INVASION’

May 30th 12 Noon – 8PM

During the 4th Annual ARTWALK Culver City

With special support from:
Citizen LA / MOCA Contemporaries / Grolsch

‘Pop Up’ Gallery Location during ARTWALK Culver City:
8542 Washington Blvd. (just a couple doors west of Corey Helford & Cerasoli)

* A portion of the proceeds raised will go to benefit the MOCA Contemporaries

With featured artist:
EKUNDAYO

Alongside works from:
Acorn, Allison Sommers, Anthony Clarkson, Anthony Pontius, ARMSROCK, Brandi Milne, Brian Viveros, Camilla d’Errico, Catherine Brooks, Cherri Wood, Craig “Skibs” Barker, Damon Soule, Dan-ah Kim, David MacDowell, Dennis Hayes IV, ELBOW-TOE, Erik Siador, Fafi, Fumi Nakamura, Gaia, Ghostpatrol, G.R.L., Hannah Stouffer, Joao Ruas, John Antoski, Joshua Mays, KMNDZ, Lilly Piri, Matthew Feyld, Microbo, Nathan DeYoung, Paul Barnes, Peter Taylor, Rebecca Hahn, Reuben Rude, Seth Armstrong, Skewville, Stella Im Hultberg, Timothy Karpinski, Tony Philippou, Tran Nguyen, Turf One, Yosuke Ueno, Yuka Yamaguchi, & Zach Johnsen

PLUS a live painting demonstration featuring:
Mear One – Asylm – Nathan DeYoung – Anthony Clarkson – Michael Pukac – Michael Alvarez – Zoso – Jesse Hotchkiss + more TBC

PLUS a poetry slam @ 4PM:
With ‘Mike The Poet’ & friends

PLUS beats curated by:
Mr. Numberonederful