Creep Machine Magazine – Contemporary Art & Culture

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  • “Profanity Pop” by José Rodolfo Loaiza Ontiveros at La Luz de Jesus Gallery

    “Profanity Pop” by José Rodolfo Loaiza Ontiveros at La Luz de Jesus Gallery

    Opening this Friday, August 1st, at La Luz de Jesus in Los Angeles is a new solo show entitled “Profanity Pop” by José Rodolfo Loaiza Ontiveros. As stated on the website “Mythology, Religion and the representation of power have manifested in all of the great works from antiquity. With Profanity Pop, Rodolfo pays tribute to specific historical works that have inspired many generations. Universal themes are once again narrated by beloved animated characters, but in the guise of the divine and with all the fragility of martyrs. Away from the paradise of happy endings, the pastel sprinkled drama takes on a vulnerability that juxtaposes subversively with situations never similarly interpreted.”

    I believe this will be the third time Ontiveros will exhibit a series of works at the gallery. There will be a few works from previous shows, but the majority of paintings in this exhibition will be new. I love the tribute to Caravaggio’s The Incredulity of Saint Thomas, seen at the top. Here is a small preview of some of the works. New works by Allison ‘Hueman’ Torneros, JINX, Katherine Brannock, Frank Forte, and Sean Stepanoff will also have new works on view as the The Laluzapalooza Jury Winners. Take a look at the full show here, and if you are in the area make sure to stop by. This exhibition will run from August 1st – 31st, 2014.

    Loaiza-Paloma-Negra

    Loaiza_Cinderella-Revenge

    Loaiza_Im-not-a-Sinner-Im-Just-Drawn-That-Way

    Loaiza_Painting-the-ROSSes-Red

    Loaiza_Saint-Daisy-and-her-pregnancy-test

    Loaiza_who-am-I-to-judge-him

  • Marilyn Myller Short Film by Mikey Please

    Marilyn Myller Short Film by Mikey Please

    Mikey Please is an animator working out of London, UK. He has created some amazing stop-motion animations for such clients as Zombigotchi, Brooklyn rock band TV on the Radio, DragonFrame Stop Motion Animation Software, and more. His 2011 thesis “The Eagleman Stag” won him a BAFTA Award, and he recently started Parabella Studios with award-winning animation director Dan Ojari.

    His latest short film is entitled “Marilyn Myller” that I am happy to share. The blurb on the website reads: “MARILYN IS TRYING REALLY HARD TO MAKE SOMETHING THAT IS GOOD. FOR ONCE HER EXPECTATIONS AND REALITY ARE GOING TO ALIGN, PERFECTLY. NO, IT WILL BE EVEN BETTER THAN SHE IMAGINED. IT WILL BE EPIC. IT WILL BE TEAR JERKINGLY PROFOUND. IT WILL BE PERFECTER THAN PERFECT. NOTHING CAN GO WRONG.” At first read the viewer might guess that this short will have a great deal to with art, or the creation of art, and not just in the fact that Mikey Please is using creative lighting techniques and foam to make this short. Marilyn is the artist, and by the end of this short I felt quite a few moments that resonated with what it is like to be an artist, how it feels. The end was not as I expected, but again was a situation that many artists have talked about and have maybe dealt with.

    if you check out the short on the Parabella Studios website, you can see some links to some reviews, one of which is by The Creators Project and even has some video showing how some of the effects were made.

    I admit that I watched this short about 5 times. It’s not only impressive in how fluid the animation is, the fact that Mikey Please used foam, but the music and energy in this short is well worth watching many times. Excited to see more by Mikey Please and Parabella Studios.

  • The Surreal Art of Yang Xueguo

    The Surreal Art of Yang Xueguo

    Yang Xueguo is an artist out of Kunming, China. He uses Photoshop to create these intense digital paintings that is sure to make any fan of surrealism happy. I was able to find an interview with the artist from 3DTotal that mentions that along with creating art, he is also a teacher at an art university in Yunnan Province. Not surprising to fans of surrealism, Yang Xueguo states that the art of Zdzislaw Beksinski and H.R. Giger had a huge influence in his work.

    See more of his work on CGSociety and Deviantart

    (Use your ← → (arrow) keys to browse gallery, or swipe on mobile devices. Esc to exit slideshow)

  • “Motion” by Erik Jones at Hashimoto Contemporary

    “Motion” by Erik Jones at Hashimoto Contemporary

    Erik Jones opened his debut solo show “Motion” on July 5th at Hashimoto Contemporary, a new gallery by Spoke Art’s Ken Harman. This show features a new series of works that “investigates form, both abstract and figurative, through a unique combination of hyperrealism and geometric expressionism.” Each painting employs the use of materials such as colored pencils, acrylics, oils, and wax pastel. Even in the photos seen below the texture of these materials is present, and is a nice juxtaposition against the photorealistic models intwined in color and abstract geometric patterns. I was happy to see that not only was there work with figurative elements, but also some abstract pieces that centered around color and shapes.

    I would have loved to see this show in person, but I imagine after such a strong debut show, this is not the last time we will see Erik Jones showing work at this gallery. Keep with up with new work, prints, and social updates on Erik’s homepage Theirison.com, and check out the rest of “Motion” here: Erik Jones @ Hashimoto Contemporary

    City-Searching-Erik-Jones

    Bridge-On-Mountain-Erik-Jones

    Her-Royal-Cloth-Erik-Jones

    Ken-Erik-Jones

    Ryu-Erik-Jones

    Mouse-Erik-Jones

    Ribbon-Erik-Jones

    Robe-Of-Ribbon-Erik-Jones

  • New layout and logo for 2014

    New layout and logo for 2014

    You may have noticed the Creep Machine has been redesigned. The website is now easier to navigate (hopefully), is responsive so that you can enjoy on it your smartphones, and continues our tradition of focusing on the artwork that inspires us. We hope this new layout aids in your viewing pleasure, and most importantly exposes you to some new art and artists.

    First, we have a new custom-made logo by the typographic mastermind Chris Parks from Pale Horse Design. Chris was amazing to work with and exceeded my expectations of what the Creep Machine logo would look like. Since the beginning of the site back in 2007, I have relied on free fonts to create the logo for the site, and while some of them looked pretty good they were in no way unique or truly represented what this site aims to be. This new logo finally does this. You can now see it on all of the various social media outlets for the Creep Machine, and we will also have this logo available on apparel in the near future.

    The other major graphics change is the background image. Previously we used damask patterns offered on free stock sites, or canvas textures we photographed. It was time for something unique. Joshua Harker created a pattern that fits the site perfectly and shows off that amazing style he is known for. Again, this exceeded my expectations and I hope you enjoy staring at it as much as I do. Love the ‘CM’ he was able to fit into the design.

    If you have been following us on Facebook, Twitter, or the new Instagram profile, you might have seen a post talking about a magazine from the Creep Machine. This was a goal of mine years ago and I am now working on the first edition. I will have some more details later, in the meantime please enjoy the new site, share it with your friends, and check us out on one of the many social media profiles you can find us on.

  • New Prints by Nicoletta Ceccoli

    New Prints by Nicoletta Ceccoli

    From a quick glance, Nicoletta Ceccoli‘s porcelain creatures, in their odd, sticky-sweet surroundings seem a bit like illustrations for children’s books. The artist’s palette of childhood pastels and ghostly whites, softly rendered into gentle forms, are nurturing and inviting. This lure gives way quickly, revealing the uncanny, visceral qualities of her creatures’ gestures and facial expressions, belying their innocence and emotively exploring the confusion of adulthood. They are, in their surreality, uncomfortably real.

    In connection with Nicoletta Ceccoli’s new exhibition Eye Candy, AFA Gallery is offering up some new, gorgeous, exclusive prints on their site that you can purchase here. Her new original paintings will be on view at AFA from November 17th through February 3rd, 2013.

    Just-Dessert-by-Nicoletta-Ceccoli

    Candy-Forest-by-Nicoletta-Ceccoli-610x473

    The-Princess-and-the-Prey-by-Nicoletta-Ceccoli

  • Books: Double Talk by KRK Ryden

    Books: Double Talk by KRK Ryden

    Porterhouse Editions is set to release the first book by artist KRK Ryden entitled “Double Talk”. This hard-bound book is a collection of homographs by Ryden, is 15-1/4″ x 9-3/4″ x 3/4″, 114 pages with 51 black and white illustrations with a short essay about the artist. The book comes in two editions, the standard with just the book, and the Special Edition (limited to 50) comes in a handmade, clothbound, foil-stamped, clamshell box, a bookmark, and a signed and numbered limited edition letterpress print. This book will be available November 20th, and pre-ordered books will ship November 26th. Take a look at the preview and then head over to Porterhouse for more images as well as a video that features KRK Ryden reading some excerpts from his book.

    Double Talk by KRK Ryden


  • Huff and Puff…

    Huff and Puff…

    Huff and puff as much as you want, but New York Galleries are made of brick, fuck you very much Sandy.

    If you don’t already know, Hurricane Sandy has severely hurt the New York art scene. Gotham has never experienced this kind of thing before (we’ve been flooded, but not to this degree). Everyone living here was taken by surprise when the Lower East Side and Chelsea gallery districts both got badly flooded. Artist studios in Gowanus and Greenpoint areas of Brooklyn were not only flooded, but the waters that filled their buildings are known for being severely polluted. What objects survived have to be handled carefully with gloved hands, and likely discarded as unusable. Sandy didn’t really throw a lot of rain at us, but the surge that came in from the ocean filled up gallery basements and went up as high as 5 feet in ground floor spaces.

    Here are some links showing images of the damage wreaked by the storm:

    ArtInfo: Hurricane Sandy Leaves Greenpoint Studios Wrecked, Destroying Years of Work

    From art critic Jerry Saltz: Saltz’s Devastating Tour Through Chelsea’s Ruined Art Galleries

    Hyperallergic’s multiple reports:
    New York’s Art World Assessing Impact of Hurricane Sandy
    Hurricane Sandy Report, 2 Days After
    Hurricane Sandy Report, 3 Days After
    Hurricane Sandy Report, 4 Days After
    (more…)