January 21 – February 8, 2012
PURE EVIL GOES POP! PURE EVIL’s first solo exhibition at the gallery.
“The show is inspired by Warhol and Rosenquist and by the 60’s and is a departure from a lot of the street art based work I have been doing.. I was inspired by Warhol’s diaries and his manic obsession to paint beautiful famous people. At a certain point he realised that he had kind of lost the plot, and he was kind of losing ground to new school graffiti artists like Basquiat and Haring and they gave him the boot up the arse he needed.
I was inspired by an email I got from a copy village in China, they sent me a list of all the paintings from the world of art that they could reproduce for me and I was struck by the fact that they had distilled Warhol’s entire career down to 3 works, an electric chair, a Jackie Kennedy and a Liz Taylor.. All available for cheap ! A whole life that had been turned into 3 tiny thumbnails available to buy NOW. Warhol would have loved the joke. I decided to run with the idea and turn myself into a copy village .
Edward Albee’s film ‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?’ starring Taylor and Burton brilliantly illustrates a nightmare couple who use alcohol to fuel anguish and emotional pain towards each other. I was amazed at the film and so I did a painting of ‘Richard Burton’s Nightmare’ / Liz Taylor’ and a print in 2 POP colourways and 2 months later, Liz died… Sales started to grow as the obituaries and TV specials morbidly repeated the same details of her life and her loves over and over again. ”
The upstairs gallery will feature new works by UK artist Pure Evil. Inspired by Warhol, Rosenquist and the 60s, the collection entitled -Pure Evil Goes Pop!- is a departure from the artist’s street artwork and celebrates Warhol’s obsession with capturing beautiful, famous people. Icon Elizabeth Taylor is immortalized in the painting -Richard Burton’s Nightmare,- created from a palette of strange hues with subliminal meanings.
-I have kept this whole collection of paintings very simple,- Pure Evil explains. ?The features of the women are simplified down to the most basic lines possible, cut into three stencil layers with a sharp blade, and laboriously sprayed to build up the faces. The eyes drip painted tears, the product of broken dreams of love.?
The opening reception for -Pure Evil Goes Pop!- and -Its a Jungle Out There- by Eric Joyner is on Saturday January 21st at Corey Helford Gallery. The reception is open to the public, and the exhibition will be on view through February 8, 2012.
Pure Evil
UK street artist Pure Evil (Charles Uzzell-Edwards) was born in South Wales in 1968. A descendant of Sir Thomas More, the Lord Chancellor who wrote the controversial work -Utopia- and who was later beheaded by King Henry VIII, the artist?s legendary lineage is influential to his aesthetic. He is known for exploring the darker side of the wreckage of Utopian dreams and the myth of the Apocalypse, a belief in the life-changing event that brings history with all of its conflicts to an end. He notes, -If you scratch the surface of my artwork you will find something dark lying beneath.- Pure Evil has exhibited in the United States, China, UK and France. www.pureevilclothing.com.
Corey Helford Gallery
Located in the Culver City Art District, Corey Helford Gallery was established in 2006 by Jan Corey Helford and her husband, television producer and creator, Bruce Helford (Anger Management, The Drew Carey Show, George Lopez, The Oblongs). Corey Helford Gallery exhibits a diverse collection of Contemporary artists in- fluenced by today?s pop culture, encompassing the genres of New Figurative, Pop Surreal, Graffiti and Street Art. Artists include Josh Agle (Shag), Ray Caesar, D*Face, Chloe Early, Ron English, Natalia Fabia, Kukula, Lola, The London Police, Sylvia Ji, Eric Joyner, Michael Mararian, Brandi Milne, Buff Monster, Risk, Amy Sol, Martin Wittfooth, and Nick Walker. Renowned for its notable exhibitions, the gallery has presented ?Charity By Numbers,? which was co-curated by Gary Baseman and featured an unprecedented lineup of artists including Mark Ryden, Marion Peck, Shepard Fairey, Todd and Kathy Schorr, Camille Rose Garcia, and Michael Hussar, as well as -La Noche de la Fusion,- an epic Carnivalesque festival and solo exhibition for Pervasive artist Gary Baseman. In 2010, Corey Helford Gallery partnered with Bristol?s City Museum & Art Gallery for the transat- lantic collaboration -Art From The New World,- a world-class United Kingdom museum exhibition showcasing work by a formidable group of 49 of the finest emerging and noted American artists. Corey Helford Gallery presents new exhibitions approximately every four weeks.
