Max Neutra and Amanda Marie Craft Intriguing Worlds

Saturday night proved a super busy one for Los Angeles’ art scene but I still looked forward to one show the most–Max Neutra and Amanda Marie. C.A.V.E. Gallery pulsed with the energy of laughing art lovers and the sounds created by a nearby DJ as artists Neutra and Marie premiered their respective shows “New Tongues ” and “From Here On Out.”

When I first entered the gallery, my eyes moved all around the room–to the giant painting of a giraffe towering over me, to the many bunnies protruding from a suit and ultimately to the wall in which the head of an owl displayed two dizzying light-filled eyes. I expected something exciting and maybe strange from the show because of my recent chat with the artist for CARTWHEEL and “New Tongues” did not disappoint. Each piece–whether brought to life on a small block of wood or a huge canvas–brought explosive color, impressive detail and–most of all–mystery. Neutra looked to explore the idea of the foreign and seeing and each piece definitely brought across the idea of how we view art and what makes something more interesting to the human eye. His signature bunnies of course filled the gallery, too–I even spotted one on the stairs.

In the adjacent room, Marie also created a sense of mystery with her portrayal of innocent yet strange children. Fun sparks fly around the children, sometimes from their eyes. Each piece feels like a familiar image you cannot quite put your finger on, except with a twist. The spray paint and stencil works feel whimsical and surreal, each scene placing the children in some sort of narrative that does not completely reveal itself. Some of that intrigue might come from the artist herself who shared that we carry the past as we face the future partially relates to her own pet fox.

By the end of the night, I felt the artists traveled places I did not quite understand – but I was fully along for the ride.

Top: detail of Bell System

detail, The Call

Max Neutra

detail, Owl

Communion

detail, Foreign Hospitality

Foreign Hospitality

 

we carry the past as we face the future

little soldiers

detail, let’s go to the astral plane

detail, every little boys dream

Amanda Marie