Group show @ State of the ArtGallery

Ithaca NY 1998

“IHS students’ show features angst, hope in self-portrait works” [ click image for larger view ]


Ithaca Journal

By David Estes

Published May 21, 1998

St Petersburg Time Neighborhood Report

By OLIVIA GIFFORD
Published May 21, 2004
http://www.sptimes.com/2004/05/21/Citytimes/Neighborhood_notebook.shtml

Salon to host free exhibit of artist's recent works
NORTH HYDE PARK - Look Salon, 209 N Armenia Ave., is hosting a free art exhibit featuring Danny King's recent works from 7 p.m. to midnight Saturday. The collection titled "Technicolor Voodoo" will be on display for two months at the art gallery and styling salon.
Opening night will also feature music by hip hop group Double Helix, the Bukkake Brothers from WBUL-AM 1620 and DJ Lazy from WMNF-FM 88.5.
The salon is open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday; 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday; and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. Call 376-8971.

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RaiseUp Group Show
Press Release
RaiseUp Group Show
Saturday, October 8th
8p.m. - 1a.m.
15th Street, Ybor
From: http://tampabay-online.org/eventdetail.php?id=67
 

RaiseUp is the first art book published by UpSceneMagazine.com. RiaseUp is
44 fullocolor pages featuring the work of 27 International artists. This 
includes a hnadfull of local artists as well as artists from Italy, New York,
Netherlands, UK and many more. The concept behnd RaiseUp is lack of
boundaries. Submissions were judged based on style only. if their sample
work was accepted the artisr was free to submit ANYTHING to be printed in 
the book.  A limited-edition of 1,00 books were printed, hand-numbered and 
signed.

To celebrate this one-of-a-kind publication, there will be a large group show
taking place on Saturday, October 8th from 8p.m. - 1a.m. in the space next
door to the Laughing Cat restaurant on 15th street in Historic Ybor City.
THIS IS A ONE-NIGHT ONLY SHOW. Upscene is not taking commissions of
artwork, and when work is sold it will be available to be taken home the very
next day! Copies of RaiseUp, which are available for sale online at 
upscenemagazine.com, will be sold the night of the show. DJ Sumatra will
join the party at 11:30 mixing it hard and soft.

Don't miss this special opportunity to see our local artists latest works
alongside a hand-picked selection of International artists.

Artists intersted in submitting to raiseUp Volume II can read submission
information on upscenemagazine.com

Artists include: James Mejia, Jeff Gilligan, Helena Kvarnstrom, Mauro 
Manuini, Brandon Dunlao, Lorraine Walsh, Ytje Mark, sarmel Ben, McCraw
Eric, Depalo Thomas hellstrom, Michelle Stavens, Ken echezabal, Johnathen
O-Brien, Nicole Kita, Max Boschini, Melissa catanese, Linda Zacks, Susan
Janvrin, Scott Saw, Jon Cancelino, ted Newsome, Jamey Neely, Aaron
Criswell, Mel Taylor, Danny King, Lumiere Solar.

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	Images courtesy of UpScene.com

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FROM: ARTBUSINESS.COM

SAN FRANCISCO ART GALLERIES - OPENINGS
BRAUNSTEIN/QUAY - LINCART - 871 FINE ARTS
DE YOUNG MUSEUM - SCION DASHBOARD - SOAP GALLERY
A. MUSE - SHOOTING GALLERY - NATIONAL PRODUCT - FINCH MOB
DRUG STORE - LIGHT OPERA GALLERY
04.27-29.06

***
a. Muse Gallery, 614 Alabama St., San Francisco, CA 94110; 415.279.6281: No Such Thing - Works by Danny King & Chelsea Heimbuch-Skaley.
Comment: Manipulated Polaroids, colored, texted, and enhanced with collage by Chelsea Heimbuch-Skaley; competent colorful urban animations with a folk art feel by self-taught artist, Danny King. New Gallery.

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Featured Artist Interview: Danny King

By Mel Taylor.

UpScene Magazine | January 16, 2004.

Is there anything  about your art that you would like to use this opportunity to get  out?

I like my art to be  like music for your eyes.  I want the viewer  to have to keep looking at it, even if it's simple. I want them  drawn in.

I'm inspired by everyday  things and I think of it as if I were writing a song. Sometimes I'll  write down song lyrics in a piece and it's almost like I'm sampling.  I hope people see the comic book aspect to my art, the graffiti aspect,  I love the old cave drawings, I like street art and hobo art off of freight trains too. I want it to  have all those elements, yet I want it to be easy and accessible to everyone  so that whoever looks at it will think, "oh that's a nice picture." They  may have no idea what the hell is going on in it, I may not even know  what the hell is going on in it, but I want all those aspects to be there. I don't even know why the content that comes out, comes out, the way  it does sometimes.  

I want each painting to look like a thought process, and I guess that  just proves how cloudy my thought process is. [laughs]

What other artists are you being compared  to?

There's just the obvious Basquiat comparison I get all the time.

Nobody else?

Not really. I will  get compared to general styles like people saying that my work looks  like skateboard art or hip hop art. Not so much  in Florida, but in New York people always seemed to find more local comparisons.  That let's me know that there was a whole wave of people thinking similar  things and expressing themselves in similar ways. Other than that,  it's just people asking me if I like Basquiat and I'm like, "sure, who  doesn't?"

Do comparisons bother you?

Nah, I don't care. Basquiat is the first  artist that I ever paid attention to in regards to actually painting  on material. I saw  his work and I was like, "whoa, I really like that, I don't know why  I like it, I can think of a million reasons why I don't like it, but  I like it."

And when was that?

My senior year in  high school. I didn't even think about painting  until then.

Did you not think of yourself as an artist until then?

No, I always knew  I liked art. I was always drawing. But,  I always thought of color as an assignment. I always thought color  wasn't my deal. Then, I started painting with a friend of mine  that I always drew with and at the same time we were like, "hey you know,  we both draw really well together, why don't we see what's up with some  color, you know?"

So, we started messing  around with it and we would work together and show each other our stuff.  And then, we would push each other by telling each other what we needed  to try next and stuff.

That's really cool to find another friend  and artist who's at the same level you are, in your art and motivation,  so that you can feed off of each other like that.

Yeah, it was. I always knew I liked art  because it was the only thing I did naturally and enjoyed. I never  really wanted to go to college, but I always thought that if I did, it  might as well be an art school.

What has been your art education?

I did a year at Pratt  Institute and then I tried some community colleges, but my brain just  wasn't up for it. I want to go back and learn  some more of the technical stuff.

What do you mean by technical stuff?

Like the computer  skills that all the jobs want you to have now. I  need to learn Photoshop and all that because it seems to be the only  way that I can get a real job doing something I like.

Really? I have a degree in Graphic Design and it doesn't do shit for me [laughs].

I got some job offers in New York with like Echo and Turntable Lab,  places like that, but because I didn't have the computer skills to put  my ideas into the computer, I couldn't take the job.

Where do you want your art career to take you, ideally?

I would love to just  be showing my work in galleries and doing freelance projects that people  would request. Like if somebody wants a logo  or a big painting on a building or something, they could call me. But,  basically I just want to be on like art tour, having my art shipped around  at different galleries and making a living at that. I want to  be a painter and just be able to say, "I am a painter."

How much time would you say you spend on your art weekly or monthly?

I don't know, art  is a sporadic process for me. The pictures  I like the most, the ones that are more dramatic and almost theatrical  are always a big process. Much of that process can be taking place  in my head way before I ever do anything about it. Then, I'll  try a bunch of different angles and change my mind a lot before I start  going ahead with a composition.

I know that art  is often a sporadic process, almost by nature it seems. When  you are in those dry spells, what usually brings you out of it?

Music. A part  of a song will get stuck in my head and I'll have to go paint to get  it out.  

What kind of music does it for you?

I listen to everything, but old, rare funk and hip hop really do it.

Give me some names.

Um, like Sylvia Strickland,  21st Century Steel Band, um, Ghostface, Dinospectrum. So much  random hip hop, I can't even think of it.

What mediums are you primarily working in?

The overall continuous  medium is acrylic paint and markers and then I like to use spray paint  and other mixed media once in a while. I  like the quickness of the acrylic.

Are you always working on found wood?

Usually. I  do canvases sometimes and I want to do some wall-sized canvases, but  for the most part, my work just comes out better on the found wood.

Tell me your thoughts on the Tampa art scene?

I've been enjoying  it. People seem really open to new ideas here  and I like it. My overall view is that people want it, it's just  not in their face enough to catch on real strong. Everything here  is so spread out and there's no central gathering spot for people to  just be outside, around art and music. I guess there's the Castle  and Orpheum, but those don't really do it. I think the closest  thing would be Ybor, but everybody is like, "ew, Ybor." There  needs to be a place where you can just be outside and just be outside.  And, you can walk into a gallery if you want, but you don't have to go  into stores and shop to be on the property. Tampa keeps trying  to plan these art districts and they just turn into yuppie, "buy crap  and drink beer" places. There's no real place for artists to  gather here and hang out and create and listen to music and watch people  come and go freely and not have to worry about getting a fine.

Did you have that in New York?

Oh, sure. You can walk anywhere, in any  neighborhood and people are outside. They're selling stuff, they're  hanging out, whatever, and you meet cool people. Here, everybody  is like, "I'm gonna  be inside with the air conditioner and my flat panel TV and my two thousand  Play Station games." Go the fuck outside! People walk their dogs  and they're in a rush and they don't want to talk to anybody. We  need block parties and outside interaction. Damn, this is the south, I thought that when I came down here everyone would be on their  porch drinking lemonade, you know what I'm saying? [laughs]

So, you think  the Tampa art scene has potential, the art just needs to be in their  face more?  And  how do you think that would best be accomplished, by having more galleries,  or what?

Yeah, more galleries,  parties, more atmosphere, you know what I'm saying? We  need to attract all the people who like art but who think that all an  art show is is standing around and sipping on some fucking wine, you  know what I'm saying?  Why shouldn't an art show be a catered thing  with djs and dancing and partying? Partying around good art, you  know?

In New York, I remember  standing in line for art shows that were around the corner. I swear  to god, you would think a bunch of celebrities were inside, but all it  was was a fucking art show that was free to get in but you couldn't because  they were too full. And all the local  art celebrities were inside, so you would recognize them and be like, "oh  look, there goes so and so."  Tampa needs that, that's why I like  your magazine because we need more information and more gathering.

What do you think of the job that the existing galleries are doing?

They are doing fine. I mean it's still  the beginning, they're doing a good job for being new. We need to keep  building the momentum, you know. In five years, we should be better  and further.

Do you think there are enough local artists to sustain a big scene here?

Sure, there are a  ton of artists here who don't even know there is a scene here to be  a part of. Probably for every one person who  does, there are 20 sitting in their houses who don't think there's a  venue for them. Or, they don't think there's anyone who wants  to see their stuff, but there is, they just don't know it.

Tampa seems to be emerged in the Neo-Pop Movement, would you agree with that?

Yeah, people love Pop down here.

And, would you agree that the rest of the country seems to have surpassed  that and sort of moved on a bit?

Not really.  I  think everybody is doing the same fucking shit everywhere.

It seems that  your work is being sought out by a higher echelon of art seekers,  than some of the other Pop in the area. Do you have any  idea why that might be?

I didn't know that  was going on. I wasn't aware of that. [laughs] Yeah,  people come buy my art! Come buy it! Any art reps reading  this?  

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