Pages

Sunday, November 29, 2015

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Saturday, November 21, 2015

DAY 1855 - Samurai Ceci 17

Drawing by Cecilia Beaven
Review

Cecilia Beaven is a young artist from Mexico City.  Her talents include painting, animations, murals and comics.  Her unruly line work is consistent and easily recognizable as her own.  Her drawings are the type of stream of conscious doodles that happen when day dreaming during a class or meeting, but on crack. 

She has a budding animation portfolio.  Her cartoons using emojis, charismatic frame by frame drawings, and bizarre music videos are entrancing.  The animations are unfiltered access to Ceci’s brilliant mind. Several of her short animations are self portraits.  A traditionally revealing painting genre, the animated self portrait is more rare. 

The black and white ink shines in samurai Ceci’s “Crocodilo”  The two critters are given more personality than most would give a reptile and each is adorned with patterns.  It’s these cheeky works that Ceci is known for. 

If you aren’t already in love with Ceci’s work visit her website and learn more. 

Friday, November 20, 2015

Saturday, November 14, 2015

DAY 1848 - Quetzalcoatl

Drawing by Anna Christina Frischknecht

      Artist and educator Anna Christina Frischknecht has been a contributor to the Shark blog for many years. Her body of work utilizes many mediums including paint, fabric, magazines and animation. Her quirky drawings and paintings come alive with as much vigor as her animations. 

     Her drawings are as ornate and elaborate as Mughal miniatures. They carry the emotive mark making of a Van Gogh. Her ink works have emboldened many subjects over the years, from horror comics to children’s educational books.  “I Must Have It” showcases a plethora of mark making styles and color pairings.  Her palettes vibrate like Josef Albers’ dreams.

     Besides being the creative director behind Los Coutlers’ music videos, Anna has produced many other animations.  The stop-motion short “The Vision”  uses collage elements and paint to reveal the spectacle built around products and branding.  In the video, hypnotized viewers visit an auditorium to see advertisements.  Anna brilliantly uses collaged ads as part of their own critique.  “Mascera’s Incident” reveals the struggle involved in the quest for beauty through consumer products. The animations have a grittiness similar to Bill Plymton’s toons. A pungent air of sinister sarcasm envelopes the piece. 

      Her talents as a painter can’t be ignored.  The hordes of detailed consumers in each painting are as epic as a Bruegel or Bosch. Multiple narratives fluidly intersect in one setting; often a bedazzled capitalist shrine such as a mall or salon. It would seem the grotesque people from Grosz’s and Dix’s paintings live on, shopping and grooming themselves in Frischknecht’s frightful scenes.  

     Spending time with any of her work is very rewarding.  See more of her art here on SharksEatMeat and at her personal site  annafrischknechtartwork.blogspot.com

Review by John Aaron Coulter


Wednesday, November 11, 2015

Tuesday, November 3, 2015

DAY 1837 - Birds

Artwork by Vikki Chu
Review

Vikki Chu is a prominent New York illustrator.  Her delicate drawings and watercolors enliven her subjects.  Her pattern making skills are prodigious, and patterned elements are used prominently in her paintings and illustrations.  Landscapes such as “Kremlin”,  “Caravan”, and “Cat’s Jungle”  are expansive.  The waves of architecture and land forms create a steady rhythm.  She often utilizes monogamous color schemes to support the patterns.  

Cheery animals are camouflaged in many of the energetic works.  “Sleeping Beasts” rewards the viewer for exploring the expansive scene of flora.  An undulating rhythm similar to the balance found in blue and white china floods each of Vikki’s domains. “Sleeping Swan”, again showcases the artists skillful hand as bands of pale plants set boldly atop darker vegetation. “Panther Blending In” and  “Twin Birds” also combine figures and frippery suavely. 

“Tibetan Buddhist Deities” is epic. Vikki brings her soft style to some traditional heavenly subjects.  Each deity possesses exquisite line work, spirited colors, and eloquent facial expressions. This work along with “Tapestry” are some of my favorites of Vikki’s oeuvre.

Vikki’s amazing ink skills are uncovered in her sketchbooks and shine through in her paintings and illustrations.  Her graceful style is even in attendance in her short “Flower” animation.  Whether she’s painting flowers, animals, cities, or patterns they are consistently  a success.  She’s always updating her websites, so support her and visit this link

Review by John Aaron Coulter