AutoErotica
"It's All About The Car"
A Group show…
Phillip Hall - Digital light painted photography
Bill Silveira - Auto inspired assemblage sculpture
Laurel True - Asphalt Mosaics
Show runs Through 9/9/08
AutoErotica celebration party 8/09/08, 6-9pm
Let’s face it…. Big old beautiful cars are sexy!
The US, with its love for the
car, is fighting the need to become fuel efficient, healthy and green.
But no, we don’t want to drive a Twinkie! Huge American cars are
in our blood and we aren't letting them go easily.
Each of these three Bay Area
artists have their own unique take on the love of the car and travel.
They honor our rapidly disappearing, uniquely American, decadent
automotive past.
About the Artists:
-Philip Hall
When it comes to capturing the
fine art of automobiles, Hall understands that the beauty of light is
in the details. For more than 30 years, Hall had looked at light from a
different perspective. An award-winning lighting designer,
photographer, filmmaker and lighting control specialist, it has always
been his medium of expression.
Philip’s lighting
projects include; televised visits by The Pope, the Queen of England, 4
Presidents of the United States, celebration of the Golden Gate Bridge,
feature films, commercials and thousands of permanent lighting systems
in the Bay Area, his favorite being the renovation of the San Francisco
Opera House. His work is included in the private collection of Jay Leno.
Ever since Hall focused on the
definitive detail in that 1953 Corvette, his subject has been the
elements of the automobile. Artist statement: "What intrigues and
stimulates me is how shadows detail life, enhancing or diminishing
perceptions or emotional reactions to my artwork. Reality is defined in
my work by revealing the mystery of an image -- its light and shadow --
through crystallizing or distorting pixels until the inherent beauty of
an image is revealed." www.philhall.biz
-Bill Silveira
Slightly curmudgeonly, a bit
on the eccentric side, with a maniacal enthusiasm for the automobile
since his early youth, Bill Silveira enjoys making art out of discarded
auto parts, rusty scrap metal, and other unique items that seem to find
their way into his vast collection of interesting and eclectic junk. A
business owner and resident of Oakland's Jingletown arts district since
the early 1990's, Silveira likes to think of himself as "Sanford and
Son-ish with a slightly twisted bent."
Owner of Automania, this
semi-retired used car dealer is also well known in the film industry as
the guy who can provide you with just about anything you need from
classic cars to caskets for your photo shoot. Learn more about Bill Silveira
on Kim Larson’s blog.
-Laurel True
Laurel True is a Bay Area
artist specializing mosaic, mixed media and public art. She is the
co-founder and director of the Institute of Mosaic Art in Oakland, CA
and principal of True Mosaic Studio, a professional mosaic studio
specializing in site- specific architectural commissions and public art.
She travels widely to teach
and facilitate large- scale, community based projects and maintains
artistic or residential bases in Oakland, New Orleans and in Ghana,
West Africa. She lectures internationally and has been featured in many
books and publications.
"In her new series of mosaic
relief panels, artist Laurel True turns away from more traditional
mosaic materials such as ceramic, glass and stone, instead creating her
works from asphalt, concrete and other roadway detritus collected from
her Oakland neighborhood.
True bases her works' designs
on random and intentional road markings such as tar lines, cracks and
skid marks made from sideshows and car spinouts. True's series is a
visual and conceptual investigation of what beauty might be found in
urban landscapes, exploring the ugliness, grit, solidity and underlying
grace in both her materials and surroundings."