Travel Diary: Aqua Art Miami

By Chris Blackstock

Well the last time I did a travel blog I was in NYC saying whats up to Erik Foss back in May. Thankfully I’m still employed here and was able to travel to Miami for Art Basel. After a red eye flight out of San Francisco and a sweet three hour layover in South Carolina, we arrived in Miami the next day around noon.

This was the general feeling from the heat on arrival and the exhaustion from the flight. Off the plane and on to work.

Greg Gossel and his brother, Jake, were already knocking out the mural.

Steve was ready.

Tony and Dylan building Mike Shine‘s shack.

Sleeping on the job.

Casey Gray and “The Mac Man.”

Like father like son.

Went back out to see the final touches.

Fucking done!

Well deserved beer.

Our booth wasn’t too shabby this year. After all the hard work setting up the booth we decided to run around Wynwood to see some murals.

Checked out the Swoon/David Ellis spot.

Allison, David’s assistant.

Some Barry McGee action.

Tripping on shit loads of acid (or maybe just inside the “Anything/Everything” box).

Tes One getting up.

Amazing stencil work.

Checking out the Shepard wall.

Gotta love these Brazilian twins.

That night, we headed to The Shore Club for the Primary Flight party. Open bars, live painting, and a huge fucking pool to dive head first into.

Not the best idea. The next day, Casey and I checked out the fair.

Amazing shit all around.

AJ Fosik guarding the entrance.

Giving James Jean’s painting a blow job. It was pretty impressive in person.

EVOL

Shawn Barber

Cleon Peterson

Surfing Buena Vista

That night, we had the Gen Arts party at Aqua.

Sick.

The crew.

Lovely, as always.

My vision after losing my glasses.

The next night, we spent some quality time sneaking into Delano through a magical door filled with rusted propane tanks to check out Kid Sister.

Douching out! It’s Miami baby!

At some point in the trip, we went to ‘Olah and were spoiled with an amazing meal, free drinks, and dessert.

It’s a fucking cigar with matches. Delicious.

Nerding out on Barry McGee.

The place we were staying at wasn’t too shabby, either.

Checking out the yachts.

Life ain’t so bad.

Spent some quality time at The Deuce before we left to go back to SF, where it was practically snowing.

Ken and Sven from Arrested Motion.

Pork Chop and I.

My lady of the night.

At the end of the night I made a deal with the devil and the rest is history. Go figure, Miami rocks. Thanks to everyone who made it happen. Get it!

In loving memory of Robocious, Robotic dog. Sweetest cat ever. RIP.

When Greg Gossel was asked by Aqua Art Miami to install a public outdoor mural in front of the fair, he did not take the assignment lightly. Three weeks went into the preparation of this piece beginning with the initial design which Gossel printed out in sections. He then painted each square of the mural by hand to achieve his signature look.

When it came to the actual installation of the mural, Greg and his brother, Jake spent over three days wheat pasting the image onto the wall followed by more hand painting. After spending the entire day on a genie, the boys felt like they had been on a roller coaster. On the opposing wall, a mural by Antistrot (showing at White Walls in February 2024) remains from 2024. Both murals will continue to welcome visitors to Aqua Art Miami in future years.

Greg Gossel also showed works inside the fair:

Shooting Gallery solo show: Greg Gossel

White Walls Group Show

Also check out flickr for more pictures from Miami.

The Shooting Gallery Presents:

Fist of Fear, Touch of Death

New works by Morgan Slade

Opening Reception: Saturday, January 9^th 2024, from 7-11pm.

Through: January 30^th, 2024 and open to the public.

The Shooting Gallery is proud to present Fist of Fear, Touch of Death, new works by Morgan Slade this January. This body of work confronts the viewer with sexually appealing imagery that questions the fundamentals of American consumerism, advertising and fetishism. Please join us for the opening reception on Saturday, January 9^th 2024, from 7-11pm.

Morgan Slade alters digital photographs of scantily clad women wearing high school mascot heads with paint, pen and pencil. He transforms straightforward images to chaotic madness. His pieces prey on primitive natural instincts with a youthful aesthetic appeal and bright, vibrant colors. By defacing exceptionally attractive people, Slade aesthetically changes his figures to appear flawed in some manner. He creates visual metaphors of consumerism, advertising and technology by inventing his own symbols or by appropriating familiar icons.

Slade’s artistic process involves painting his photographs onto archival digital proofing prints. He then sands down the paper to appear aged and weathered. He builds up layers of collage, gloss gels, gold leafing and allows the paint to move throughout the piece resulting in drips and splatters paint. While overtly combining preexisting methods, styles and techniques his painted photographs are stylistically unique.

Morgan Slade received his BFA in photography in 2024 from Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, CA. He has shot for several magazines including Swindle, Anthem, Juxtapoz, OUT Magazine, Western Interiors & Design and many others. Morgan has exhibited both photography and mixed media work in several galleries, including solo shows at Copro Gallery, Billy Shire Fine Arts and most recently Aqua Wynwood Art Fair in Miami. He has also worked in the publishing industry, heading US production for fine art book publisher TASCHEN.

The opening reception of Fist of Fear, Touch of Death, new works by Morgan Slade begins on Saturday, January 9, 2010 from 7-11pm. The exhibit will be on display through January 30, 2010 and is open to the public.

Travis Louie always has something up his sleeve. His imagination is home to an entire community of monsters, and Louie is privy to all their complicated relationships and other personal business. By observing and collecting the curious histories of these individuals, Travis weaves a narrative through each painting that extends far beyond what meets the eye.

This magician will never share his secrets, but we did manage to get a few answers out of him. Read on to find out how his kids add to character development, why he collects the discarded memories of others, and what he wants for Christmas.

What kinds of things did you draw as a kid?

I drew monsters of course, but I managed to draw some unusual things as a kid. I remember drawing Kolchak: the Nightstalker and scenes from the opening credits from Hawaii-Five-O for my grade school art teacher.

What artists inspired you to begin painting yourself?

Originally, it was the painted magazine covers for Eerie, Creepy, and Famous Monsters of Filmland Magazine. The local newspaper/coffee shop on College Point Blvd in Flushing, Queens always had a well-stocked magazine section with comics and the fantasy/horror/sci-fi zines. Artists like Basil Gogos, Frank Frazetta, Norman Rockwell, NC Wyeth, and James Bama were early inspirations.

If you could choose to receive any painting in the world as a Christmas present, which would it be?

I don’t know where I’d put it, but I often think about Gericault’s “Raft of the Medusa.”

What was the best New York moment you experienced this week?

Dinner with Fred Harper.

When was the last time you laughed so hard it hurt?

Laughter . . .what’s that? I’m so serious, my shoes hurt.

When did you begin painting strictly in black and white?

About six years ago. That will change back to color at some point.

If you could relate your art to one film, which would it be?

That’s a tough question, in that I’ve been influenced by many films over the years. I’d be like Mike Hammer in Kiss Me Deadly, but I would have to say it’s a toss up between Pan’s Labyrinth and Nosferatu.

Would you ever consider publishing your journal of ideas and stories?

At some point when I feel like revealing most of my secrets- of course we never reveal all of our secrets. That’s the ultimate trick of the magician. I liken myself and the rest of my artist brothers and sisters as magicians with very special skill sets that involve “tricks of the light.”

Are any of your monsters’ physical characteristics inspired by people that you know?

Yes, they are for sure. But never in a malicious way.  Aspects of different people’s personalities that I’ve come across over the years have manifested themselves in my works. There is also a lot of myself.

Where do you go to collect time pieces, 19th century antiques, and other trinkets?

Antique shops and such are places for me to collect other people’s discarded memories.

Many of your characters are obvious misfits, but some appear to be almost normal. When you create characters that lack physical “monster qualities,” is there an insinuated monster within?

Only in a few of the paintings. The characters that appear most normal have still been affected by unusual circumstances.

There is a nuptial theme to your new show, “Lifetime Companions.” What inspired this concept?

Actually the Nuptial Theme is kind of misleading. The characters in this series of paintings are more like lifetime companions; only a few of them are “married.” The theme came from the idea of how people come into our lives- not necessarily lovers or kidnappers with plans to take us on roadtrips, bound and gagged in the trunk of a Lincoln- but rather people that we meet who are a catalyst for a transformative experience in our lives.

In your paintings, how do you achieve such a vintage, graphite-like quality with acrylic paint?

The application of the paint comes from my training as a photo retoucher. In the old days we worked on matte prints and I had to match the grain of the photograph. We used very tiny brushes or very large ones to pull the tone across the surface in a gradual way. Mostly transparently, until I make a mistake.

How many hours do you spend on the hair in any given painting?

It depends on the size and amount of details; could be a week to a month. Some of that time is spent brooding over what steps to take on a piece. For instance, the painting of “Henry with his one flat surface and his favorite spider Herbert” took a month even though it is only 16x20in.

Do you ever draw or paint non-figurative subject matter?

I used to do watercolor landscapes plein air. But that was when I was in school.

Do your kids ever give you ideas for characters?

Actually, my daughter has come up with a few ideas, she’s very proud of that. The daughter of one of my closest friends came up with the “Tangle-Fairy.”

Be sure to stop by this Saturday, December 12th from 7-11pm to experience Travis Louie’s Lifetime Companions in the flesh.

Click here for the Lifetime Companions preview at Arrested Motion

Video interview with Travis:

Greg Gossel‘s current solo exhibition at Aqua Art Miami shows a mix of new and old styles. Departing from his usual pop color palette, Gossel simplified his new screenprint/collage pieces by limiting himself to black and white. His eight new canvases are clearly in line with his usual style but their lack of color allows the imagery to speak even more boldly. With a more documentary feel, you might imagine these works as advertisements pasted on a New York City wall or torn from a yellowed newspaper.

Below are selected works from the exhibition (which can be viewed in its entirety here). If you are in Miami this week, stop by Aqua Wynwood’s Booth 20 before tomorrow, December 5th to experience a new side to Greg Gossel.

You may know Patrick Segui for his scientific shadowbox dioramas, but we have recently uncovered a whole new side to this artist. He uses his new blog to crack open the vault, pulling all kinds of old drawings from his sketchbooks. These drawings are a fun take on cubism, Parisian cafes, jazz, blues and soul music. Also of interested are images from Segui’s studio filled with antiques, curiosities, and aging books. We already know from his first blog, Riveted, that Patrick is infatuated with anything vintage (as if his art didn’t say it all).

Scroll down for a few images from Patrick’s art blog or go straight to the source here.

We love Patrick’s explanation of the self portrait pictured below:

Such a classical theme among artists that over the years, like my forerunners, I’ve indulged in. It’s always been either out of boredom, or lack of imagination at the time. Introspection or cheapest “model” money can buy…you decide. Anyhow I’ve always kept some of the craziest in my sketchbooks. Here’s one i still like. It was at the time a more elaborate sketch for a diorama, a project for a group show called: “portrait of the artist.” I ended up doing one of George Grosz instead, more interesting without a doubt.

Tomorrow marks the opening of Miami’s Aqua Wynwood art fair where galleries, artists, and collectors venture from all over the world to share their love of art. Greg Gossel has been in the spotlight this year, as he was elected by the Aqua committee to create a large scale mural on the building facade. He came prepared with a fresh collection of wheat paste images to create a larger than life collage reminiscent of his signature works on canvas and wood.

Gossel is also making a splash indoors with a solo exhibition that includes 14 pieces in color and 8 new canvases in black and white. Aqua Art calls for a venture into new territory, and Greg has lived up to his name with these dynamic new works. Exhibition details below:

Solo exhibition by Greg Gossel

December 3-5,2009

Aqua Wynwood art fair, Booth 20

View exhibition online

We are also happy to have the artists Morgan Slade, Casey Gray, Aaron Nagel, Ramblin Worker, and Jesse Hazelip in Miami with us. We appreciate their efforts to be here, showing devotion to their craft and support of the gallery. Stay tuned for updates and we hope to see you in Miami this week!

Yes, we know that Yumiko Kayukawa‘s opening reception for Wild Wild East happened over two weeks ago; yet Thanksgiving and Aqua Art Miami have kept us busy. We haven’t forgotten about sweet Yumiko, who looked dazzling as ever in a room full of her paintings on November 14th, 2024. It was also great to see Mike Giant, C3, Akira, Aaron Nagel, Casey Gray, Fanee, Erik Otto, D Young V, and other artists here showing support.

If you missed the chance to meet Yumiko in person, read the interview she gave us here. Also be sure to view her full exhibition online and scroll down for flicks from the opening reception. You can catch the last days of Wild Wild East through this Saturday, December 5th at The Shooting Gallery for a playful dose of Yumiko’s imagination.

Yumiko poses with Wild Wild East

Akira and his girlfriend

The always stylish Fanee

Chris Blackstock and Mike Giant