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Monday, August 2, 2010
City Review: Wind of Change
ART REVIEW"Wind of Change" at 1975 Gallery
Rebecca Rafferty, July 21, 2010
"Do Unto Others" by Eric Saner, part of the "Wind of Change" exhibit featuring the artists of Tattoo Kamikaze, now on display at 1975 Gallery.
[PHOTO BY MATT DETURCK]
"I've had so many friends over the years who became or were tattoo artists, and I've always been amazed at what they can do with the canvas of human skin," says genuine ink-virgin Erich Lehman, director of 1975 Gallery @ Surface Salon and member of the newish art collective Sweet Meat Co.
But Lehman also felt that the artists' non-flesh artwork deserved more exposure: "Even though tattoos are far more acceptable in the mainstream and far less shocking than they once were, the skill and talent that these folks possess seems to escape a lot of people, and I wanted to put bring that out to the floor for discussion."
The current show at 1975 is the second annual exhibition of the work of a local tattoo shop; last year Lehman showcased LoveHate, this time the walls went to Tattoo Kamikaze, which is located behind the Cinema on South Clinton and South Goodman.
"Wind of Change" has a word-play connection with the Japanese term Kamikaze, but is also the title of a song by The Scorpions, as well as the title of the shop's logo, by owner Mike Deuce, which features a skull with an aviator helmet and goggles. All of the works in the show were intended to be named for or inspired by 1980's metal and rock songs, though in the end, only a portion of them were, says Lehman.
If this group show was to be taken as representative of the shop's aesthetic, you'd think the artists worked almost exclusively within the traditional tattoo style. The exhibition abounds with decade-specific vixens with button noses, pouty lips, finger-waved hair, and heavy lashes and is spangled with emblems of American glory and arcane symbolism. But one perusal through the shop's blog proves that this team is as versatile as they come.
Eric Saner works with fierce, heavily outlined, popular Americana tats of eagles, stars, wolves, Liberty raising her torch, as well as fast and lovely ladies. "Girls, Girls, Girls" shows a sword-wielding lady pirate surrounded by two pinup beauties, and flanked by two more women, each wrapped in a huge snake, looking like they don't mind one bit. Mike Deuce's work is very boldly colorful, with a frequent use of jarring neon colors. In "Dirty Women," the petals of a rose part to sprout stockinged and heeled legs, in "Rime of the Ancient Mariner," a green, scaly, and bearded merman emerges from the waves. The finely executed rose he recently planted on one male client's throat made me consider the beauty of that location before I recalled my own arms-and-legs-only tattoo rule.
Sara Purr excels at symbol-heavy, esoteric themes.
Represented in the show are tarot and
palmistry paraphernalia, and the recurring all-seeing eye, as seen in the intense and vixen-y "Mrs. Crowley." "I never intended to be a traditional tattooer," she says, "I always saw myself as becoming a student of the Japanese style." But Purr fell in love with tattooing roses, "which led to a closer look at the classic style, which led to...the ladies! I've always drawn women's faces, ever since I can remember. Everyone likes to look at a pretty face." Also present are two photoreal pencil portraits, including "Mother," which has a 1970's look emphasized by a surrounding halo of colorful blossoms.The traditional style is evident in Josh Wright's work, but most impressive is his back-piece-sized work on the right-hand wall: Asian-inspired designs of demon warriors in colorful and elementally kinetic settings, and a fiery dragon coiling upward through gray clouds or waves. "Purgatory" is a Buddha figure meditating on a huge pink lotus, impassive, and with a radiating golden halo all set against a gray, wavering background; calm in a chaotic world.
Besides the obvious connection of being ink-covered lady artists, guest artists Chickenbone and Angela Bianchi, who both work part-time at the shop, were invited by the tat crew based on their own artistic talent. Bianchi's contributions are a mere three in number, but fierce enough to hold their own. Two works' titles allude to mythic tales: "Tension Awaiting Imminent Collapse" is a colorfully swathed and gasping geisha, positioned next to "A Shaving of the Horn that Speared You," a toothy and leering demon with green horns and a violent spray of red hair.
Fans will recognize painter, Eastman House exhibit preparator, and framer Chicken Bone's dark-humor portraiture, now shining through in the new medium of watercolor, which she transitioned to "on a whim" after years of painting in acrylic. Chicken Bone pairs lyrics and phrases with intriguing, up-close countenances, creating private associations that allow the viewer to "create their own narrative," she says.
The subjects confront the viewer with a hard intensity, but she's used the medium's watery quality to maximize vulnerability as well, in her typical mastery of nuanced and passing expressions. The two most striking to me were "Don't Be a Good Neighbor Anymore to Her" and "Words," which are also among the artist's favorites. She describes the former as "a bit broken down," but with a "subtle strength" and either defiance or complacence; the former as "far more bawdy," the tilt of her chin "almost dismissive."
It's always difficult to walk away from a talent showcase without giving into covetousness, and in this case viewers have their choice of artwork for the home, the body, or both.
"Wind of Change"
The Artists of Tattoo Kamikaze
with guests Chicken Bone & Angela Bianchi
Through September 24
1975 Gallery @ Surface Salon, 658 South Ave
360-4446, 1975ish.com
Tue-Thu noon-8 p.m., Fri 11 a.m.-7 p.m., Sat 10 a.m.-4 p.m
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