Tag Archives: Littletopia

LA Art Show casts a New Eye on Illustration’s emerging artists

The West Coast’s most comprehensive art experience, LA Art Show, is commemorating its 20th Anniversary at the LA Convention Center from January 14-18, 2015 and a handful of recent alumni from Art Center’s Illustration Department will be there to help celebrate.

Building on the success of last year’s partnership, Red Truck Gallery owner Noah Antieau again invited Associate Chair Aaron Smith to assemble a collection of work by Art Center’s Illustration alumni to showcase in “Littletopia,” a curated selection of galleries that are “bucking convention” in the art world. Smith has tapped emerging artists Zander Bice, Ranee Henderson, Ariel Lee, Valerie Pobjoy, Chris Youssef, Cassie Zhang to display their work under the “New Eye” banner, a term borrowed from the diverse tracks of study available within Art Center’s Illustration program. To add to the spectacle, upper-term students Addison Eaton and Erica Buttenschen will be presenting large, site specific sculptural installations at the fair.

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‘New Eye’ brings a collection of visionary Illustration alumni to L.A. Art Show

As the longest running venue for contemporary, modern, historic and traditional art in the U.S., the L.A. Art Show has connected collectors with established and emerging artists for nearly 20 years. Looking to build on that reputation, the organizers asked Red Truck Gallery owner Noah Antieau to curate a collection of work within the show to break down barriers, buck convention and create a new vocabulary. In turn, Antieau asked Aaron Smith, Art Center alumnus and Associate Chair of Illustration, to assemble a collection of work by Art Center’s Illustration alumni. The result is an Art Center installation entitled New Eye, which will join a selection of innovative galleries to form “Littletopia,” on display January 15-19 at LA Convention Center.

“Littletopia and the L.A. Art Show are a perfect fit for the Illustration Department,” Smith says. “We’re always looking to connect students and recent alumni with galleries and savvy collectors who understand the importance of investing in emerging artists. And the show offers us as a unique platform to offer those collectors a curated view of some of Art Center’s most brilliant Illustration/Fine Art alumni.”

So how is “Littletopia” creating a new vocabulary?  Smith notes that,  “the innovative, skillful and imaginative work of our alums is rooted in traditional and modern art forms; but our illustration perspective isn’t afraid to break down barriers or buck convention every now and then.”

Illustration alums whose work will be on display, include Erin Burrell, Ryan Cho, David Cook, Ben Sanders, Fleurette West and Julie Yeo, joined by current upper-term Illustration student Jane Lee (see their work in the above slideshow).

The term ‘New Eye,’ is borrowed from the diverse tracks of study available within Art Center’s Illustration program, which encompasses Illustration Design, Entertainment Arts, Motion Illustration and Fine Art Painting — with later forming the basis for the work at L.A. Art Show. “It’s a term that our students and alumni respond well to,” explains Smith, “and it really summarizes the fresh perspective coming out of the Illustration Department.”

In addition to the New Eye exhibit, many other Art Center alums will also have their work on view, including Mark Todd, Esther Pearl Watson, Aron Wisenfeld, Ray Turner and Aaron Smith himself.

Let us know some of your favorite works from the show and who else you bump into from Art Center.