Archival note: This post was originally a New Year studio update and announcement roundup.
Hello friends, and happy New Year!
2018 was a year of the highest highs and lowest lows for me in my professional and personal life. The year began with the birth of my first child, and the opening of my second solo show, Big House, at DENK gallery. In early August, Samuel Freeman Gallery presented a solo booth of my work at the Seattle Art Fair, and I was flying high until the sudden passing of my father from lymphoma turned my world upside-down. I’ve managed to stay relatively productive in the studio in the time since, but the heartbreaking loss of my dad underscored what is important to me in life beyond painting, which includes my family, friends, and the Los Angeles artist community.
- New Paintings: Odysseus Outwits the Giant & James Joyce, Muscle Cars, Palm Trees
- Big House Catalog
- Nothing Special – Exhibition Project
New Paintings: Odysseus Outwits the Giant & James Joyce, Muscle Cars, Palm Trees
The series that kept me most occupied over the summer is a small group of paintings that stem from the You Are An Eagle Now work shown at the Seattle Art Fair. I cast the Eagle Scout as protagonist in several new “gutter” paintings that guest-star an appropriated image of James Joyce as the one-eyed proxy for Polyphemus. Follow me on Instagram (@fjstockton ) to see new works and works-in-progress.
“Big House” Catalog
I recently self-published a catalog documenting the installation and key works from the Big House show at DENK. Big House was comprised of 15 multi-paneled, mixed-media works composed as one cohesive installation of painting.
Each dust jacket for the Big House catalog features a spray-painted, hand-printed linoleum cut of the Two Palms motif, signed on the front and limited to an edition of 10. $250
Nothing Special – Exhibition Project
I’ve been working hard to tidy up a an area in my studio building to be used as a project space for showing the art of friends and colleagues. Nothing Special, is intended to become a space for conversations around contemporary art. You can follow Nothing Special on Instagram here, or just search for @nothingspeciallosangeles
The first show will feature new collages by artist and filmmaker William E. Jones, and a new dimensional painting by Mark Flores. William and Mark have been making work side-by-side for over 20 years, but have never done a two-person show together. I’m very grateful and excited to feature these new works in Nothing Special’s inaugural show.
I will host public receptions from 3-6 pm on Sunday, January 13 and February 17, and by appointment.
Warmly,
Frank J. Stockton
