Mark Ryden's first show in the last few years opened a couple of weeks ago (on Saturday March 10th), at a fairly upmarket, small gallery on Beverly Boulevard called the Michael Kohn Gallery in Los Angeles. For some reason I had no idea this show even opened, so thanks to the LASK crew we stopped by on the way from the Long Gone John Show last Saturday.
I've been past this gallery a zillion times, and it's demeanour and location, plus lack of anything I dig, has put me off going in. Its a different place for Ryden's art - but he's moved up a notch or too. I get the feeling teh gallery aren't used to his audience... consequently I had to chuckle, and get a bit mad, at the attitude of the staff. For instance, I'm flicking thru the price list ($4K for a small sketch study to $800K for the show's star piece) and an older woman asks to look at it, so gallery assistant girl offers her a printed price list and demonstrates the order to view teh paintings in (Its hip, the paintings aren't numbered). So I ask for a list too, and she kind of glares and says reluctantly "OK, but promise to return it" ... mmmm ... guess I don't look like I have enuf money ... I don't, but..... then she catches me taking photos, pretty funny as I'd already taken all the pics u see below, and teh gallery is tiny, plus no one is there. So she's VERY attentive...snigger. The after been in there maybe 9 minutes, and its 5:59PM the owner comes out, and says "it's way past 6, can you hurry up and leave please"...WTF? Kind of ejected I guess. I returned today, and the LA weekly has covered teh show and its packed again. I ask for teh list again, and she says EXACTLY the same thing to me, so I remind her I was here a week ago, and I returned the price list then, and I promised that I'll return it again....all said with barely disguised pissed offness. I also ask if ther is a show postcard - no there isn't - cheap ass bastards!
All that said, teh art is f'ing AMAZING - AMAZING
My pics are crap, but ther are better ones on Juxtapoz's site, plus pics of Ryden and his beard....unmissable. Anyway, check it out:
California Brown Bear:
Allegory of the Four Elements:
Ghost Girl:
Wood Spirits:
This was rad, the kid inside was creepy and cool, and teh sculpture had a Brendan Munroe thing going on:
The shows namesake, Tree of Life. This piece is killer. The fraem itself took 9 months to carve by 4 guys, or so I read. It is incredible tho. In fact, the framing thruout teh show is super impressive:
This piece was big installation with a train running around it, and lots of weird stuff that looked cool set up...like a Toybiz LOTR Treeperson, weird Rydenesque dolls,, and LASK spotted a Headorah in there too! So Mark reprezents for Skullbrainers there...probably:
California Brown Bear
RootKid (Imade this name up):
This reminded me of Pan's Labyrinth and the root baby under the bed, altho in reality it was probably vicea versa:
Foetal trapping:
I had teh white balance kind of screwed up...sorry. If u get a chance, SEE THIS SHOW. I think it runs thru April 28.
Speechless!
