INTERVIEW: Dave Tourjé on the Chouinard Legacy and Why It Matters to Los Angeles
At the opening night gala of the 25th annual LA Art Show on Wednesday, February 5, 2020, the “Chouinard – 100 Years of LA Art” exhibit attracted an enthusiastic crowd. Chouinard alumni, the California Locos, Art at The Rendon alumni, and fellow artists gathered to swap stories about the Chouinard school and its influence. …
INTERVIEW: Gary Wong on Growing Up in Los Angeles, Becoming an Artist, and His Solo Show at Lisa Derrick Fine Arts
Los Angeles artist Gary Wong’s first solo show of his career, “Allegory and Cypher,” opens Saturday, January 26, at Lisa Derrick Fine Arts, a new gallery in Chinatown. Wong was born in Oakland, but his family migrated to Los Angeles when he was around three or four. He grew up downtown, on the east side…
Robert Williams Pop-Up Auto Show at NHRA Motorsports Museum – Saturday August 11
If Southern California is hot rod heaven, then the National Hot Rod Association Motorsports Museum at the Pomona Fairgrounds is Nirvana. And on Saturday, August 11, the living god of hot rod art, Robert Williams, makes an appearance at the NHRA Museum for a discussion with curator and hot rod historian Greg Sharp as part…
Save the Date: June 25, “California Locos” New Works, Skate Decks
The California Locos–Chaz Bojorquez, Dave Tourjé, John Van Hamersveld, Norton Wisdom, and Gary Wong–five pioneering Los Angeles artists whose roots are in graffiti, surf, skate and punk rock—bring their edgy, sun soaked styles to Venice, CA with new works for a week-long summer pop-up–a show so big it needed two locations: 319 Ocean Front Walk,…
Out of Bounds: Prison Art Program Brings Pride, Rehabilitation
Although not as publicized in the mainstream as is perhaps needed, there are several prison-based art programs throughout the state of California. The Prison Arts Coalition website maintains a list of twenty-nine organizations with art programs ranging from theatre to literature which provide life-enhancing processes to inmates via the arts. Recently I had the opportunity…
Curly: The Importance of Arts Education and the Legacy of Chouinard
When the California Locos were hanging at Red Pipe Gallery, the Locos–Chaz Bojórquez, Dave Tourjé, John Van Hamersveld, Norman Wisdom and Gary Wong–gave a talk about their evolution. The name on all their lips as Chouinard Arts Institute. Four out of five of the guys had gone to school there, and Dave Tourjé had bought…