A second chance - Pehrspace, June 24th, 2006
Okay, as most of my friends know, and if you read this blog from time to time, you will know that I've spent countless hours last year and the present year assembling art pieces, which I have referred to as "OCD Art". Now, when I first started making these things I just did it for fun. I had no intent on trying to display them or show them in any way, aside from putting a few up on the walls of our apartment, there was not much to it, really. I made these things to keep myself busy, to keep my creative impulses engaged, as it were. However, I didn't stop making them, I kept going and going. Soon, they were everywhere and taking up way too much space in the apartment. My wife was excited for me to be doing something constructive, but at the same time, a little frustrated with pieces that were haphazardly hung all over the place. Something had to be done. And I took it upon myself to try and have them displayed somewhere other than our small-ish apartment.
Luck came my way by the name of a local Berkeley skateboard shop called 510. It is a great shop, one which specializes only in skateboarding gear and related paraphanalia. None of this "surf, skate, rollerbalde, bicycle" bullshit that you see so often at so called "skate shops". I appreciated and admired 510's courage to only be a skateboard shop. One of the great things about 510 is that it has this massive front window facing busy Telegraph Ave. Behind the window is a great white wall where art is hung each month by local skateboarding artists. The art is not always skateboard related, but the artists themselves are skateboarders. I truly enjoyed the fact that the shop embraced skateboarding and art so much; two of my favorite things in the world.
Anyway, I inquired at 510 about putting some of my art in the window space. It took a while before somebody got back to me, but they eventually did. The part owner of the shop told me to bring by a few pieces to check out, and to possibly plan a date to hang stuff in the space. I was excited. So I went down there, showed her and the other owner my art, they liked it, and we tentatively planned a date for June. This was about six months ago when I went there, during the shitty rainy season we had, where days were dark and streets soaked and flooded. Putting the art up a 510 gave me something to look forward too, I told my wife and all my friends. The next day I began work on newer pieces and scheming ideas for an installation. I now had something to work toward.
Fast forward to about a month ago. Since I had planned to hang the art in June, I went to 510 and inquired about the upcoming installation. But, while I was there, I noticed that somebody had just put up a new installation. It was okay, I thought, just more of the same birds and Polaroid photos and cartoon type drawing that make up so much of the "underground" art scene these days. I get so tired of seeing fucking bird tattoos and bird sketches, and scruffy little caricatures of people/things/animals. It is all becoming so contrived, to me, at least. So I asked the shop owner about the current installation and she said, "Oh, this guy just put up his stuff, so I think we're going to keep it up for another month. There is another person after him, and his stuff will be up for about two months as well. So that would put you in here at around, hmm...let's see...September." September!!?? What the fuck? I came in here during February, and you told me that the artists keep their work up for a month at a time? You never said anything about keeping work up for more than a month. And you said you booked all the artists to install works about three months in advance. My stuff should be up there right now!! Of course I didn't say all of that, just some of it. I was a little upset that I had waited all this time, only to be totally screwed out of finally showing my artwork. I told the owner that I was moving soon, and there wasn't enough time to show the art at the shop. She said, "Bummer". And I silently walked off while some grommet was asking her if the new DC shoes were in yet. Fuckers.
Fast forward, present. Okay, so it looks like I have a second chance to hang some of my OCD Art. This time it comes by way of dear friend Adam Hervey. Adam runs a small independent record label called Pehr Records in LA. Adam and I have known each other for years. We went to college together, and were also in a small drone-core group called Eucalyptus. Adam has been running the Pehr label for about 8 years now. He and his dedicated staff have recently found new digs in a performance/gallery/office space in Echo Park. Now, the Echo Park of today is not the gang infested, junkie hang-out it was years ago. It's actually quite nice up there. Sure, it has its share of problems, but what LA area doesn't? At any rate, Adam wants me to do an art show there, and also quite possibly resurrect Eucalyptus for a short set. This is all exciting news. Everything is in the works and it looks like it is really going to happen this time. If you are in the LA area on Sat., June 24th, come on by 325 Glendale Blvd., Los Angeles, CA at around 7:00 pm. The OCD art will be up and there will be bands playing at around 9:00ish. Below is a link to the Pehrspace calendar of events: http://www.pehrlabel.com/pehrspace/index.html
Of course, I am wary of anything happening until it actually happens. My pessimism gets the best of me sometimes. I need to work on that. But for whatever it's worth, I will finally have the opportunity to hang this art somewhere other than our apartment. Not too many people have seen this stuff, so I'm a little nervous. But what is any "art" worth unless you give people a chance to formulate their own opinions about it? I know I'm that way, at least.
Luck came my way by the name of a local Berkeley skateboard shop called 510. It is a great shop, one which specializes only in skateboarding gear and related paraphanalia. None of this "surf, skate, rollerbalde, bicycle" bullshit that you see so often at so called "skate shops". I appreciated and admired 510's courage to only be a skateboard shop. One of the great things about 510 is that it has this massive front window facing busy Telegraph Ave. Behind the window is a great white wall where art is hung each month by local skateboarding artists. The art is not always skateboard related, but the artists themselves are skateboarders. I truly enjoyed the fact that the shop embraced skateboarding and art so much; two of my favorite things in the world.
Anyway, I inquired at 510 about putting some of my art in the window space. It took a while before somebody got back to me, but they eventually did. The part owner of the shop told me to bring by a few pieces to check out, and to possibly plan a date to hang stuff in the space. I was excited. So I went down there, showed her and the other owner my art, they liked it, and we tentatively planned a date for June. This was about six months ago when I went there, during the shitty rainy season we had, where days were dark and streets soaked and flooded. Putting the art up a 510 gave me something to look forward too, I told my wife and all my friends. The next day I began work on newer pieces and scheming ideas for an installation. I now had something to work toward.
Fast forward to about a month ago. Since I had planned to hang the art in June, I went to 510 and inquired about the upcoming installation. But, while I was there, I noticed that somebody had just put up a new installation. It was okay, I thought, just more of the same birds and Polaroid photos and cartoon type drawing that make up so much of the "underground" art scene these days. I get so tired of seeing fucking bird tattoos and bird sketches, and scruffy little caricatures of people/things/animals. It is all becoming so contrived, to me, at least. So I asked the shop owner about the current installation and she said, "Oh, this guy just put up his stuff, so I think we're going to keep it up for another month. There is another person after him, and his stuff will be up for about two months as well. So that would put you in here at around, hmm...let's see...September." September!!?? What the fuck? I came in here during February, and you told me that the artists keep their work up for a month at a time? You never said anything about keeping work up for more than a month. And you said you booked all the artists to install works about three months in advance. My stuff should be up there right now!! Of course I didn't say all of that, just some of it. I was a little upset that I had waited all this time, only to be totally screwed out of finally showing my artwork. I told the owner that I was moving soon, and there wasn't enough time to show the art at the shop. She said, "Bummer". And I silently walked off while some grommet was asking her if the new DC shoes were in yet. Fuckers.
Fast forward, present. Okay, so it looks like I have a second chance to hang some of my OCD Art. This time it comes by way of dear friend Adam Hervey. Adam runs a small independent record label called Pehr Records in LA. Adam and I have known each other for years. We went to college together, and were also in a small drone-core group called Eucalyptus. Adam has been running the Pehr label for about 8 years now. He and his dedicated staff have recently found new digs in a performance/gallery/office space in Echo Park. Now, the Echo Park of today is not the gang infested, junkie hang-out it was years ago. It's actually quite nice up there. Sure, it has its share of problems, but what LA area doesn't? At any rate, Adam wants me to do an art show there, and also quite possibly resurrect Eucalyptus for a short set. This is all exciting news. Everything is in the works and it looks like it is really going to happen this time. If you are in the LA area on Sat., June 24th, come on by 325 Glendale Blvd., Los Angeles, CA at around 7:00 pm. The OCD art will be up and there will be bands playing at around 9:00ish. Below is a link to the Pehrspace calendar of events: http://www.pehrlabel.com/pehrspace/index.html
Of course, I am wary of anything happening until it actually happens. My pessimism gets the best of me sometimes. I need to work on that. But for whatever it's worth, I will finally have the opportunity to hang this art somewhere other than our apartment. Not too many people have seen this stuff, so I'm a little nervous. But what is any "art" worth unless you give people a chance to formulate their own opinions about it? I know I'm that way, at least.
posted by Joe @ 2:37 PM
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