From Kojiki to Modern Heroism, a two-person exhibition of new paintings by the New York-based Japanese artists Tat Ito and Hiro Kurata, opens on Saturday, February 13th at Joshua Liner Gallery. This is Ito and Kurata’s first solo show with the gallery.

As invoked by the exhibition’s title, the two artists draw from Japan’s earliest narratives to layer their thoroughly contemporary painting with a rich lexicon of visual and historical motifs. Tat Ito has created a unique pictorial style that combines high-color, graphic abstraction with echoes of Edo-era history painting. In his acrylic-on-canvas works, finely rendered scenes of court life, village squares, and columns of military figures are depicted from an elevated, detached perspective. Yet, jostling the picture plane forward and back are flat, decorative passages of Day-Glo grids, camouflage, and other graphic patterns. In the panoramic painting Kagutsuchi (“fire god” in ancient Japanese mythology), columns of orange-suited figures dodge explosions and atmospheric clouds of polka-dotted, Yayoi Kusama-style smoke. The artist describes this approach as “a metaphor for Japanese contemporary art and culture upon which the Western viewpoint is floating,” if not entirely mixing.

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On February 13, New York’s Joshua Liner Gallery will introduce Refuge, an exhibition of new paintings in watercolor by the Canadian artist Tristram Lansdowne. This is Lansdowne’s first solo show with the gallery. Lansdowne’s paintings of architectural ruins focus on themes of permanence, decay, and function inherent in constructed environments. Depicted with the delicacy of Roman frescoes after millennia of wear, these palimpsests carry traces of past lives, such as weathered billboards, chipped paint, graffiti, political campaign posters, or electrical wiring. The lightness of Lansdowne’s watercolors imbues these glimpses into the ravages of time with a gentle patina. Yet there’s ambiguity in his approach. An idealistic view of the past is juxtaposed with the emotional vacancy of urban decay, a circumspect view of human progress in which outmoded architectural ideas mix with discarded pieces of the landscape.

Tristam Lansdowne / Refuge
Joshua Liner Gallery
548 W. 28th Street
3rd Floor
New York NY 10001

Opening reception, Gallery II: Saturday, February 13, 6–9 PM

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Joshua Liner gallery is pleased to present Kris Kuski’s “Beast Anthology” and Candice Tripp’s  “Tiny Drama.” The Hays, Kansas based Kuski uses “junk” to create assemblages of toy soldiers, mechanical parts and plastic skulls, among other things. The diverse elements come together to create impressively complex sculptures that touch on morality and “optimism of power.” On the other hand, Tripp works in oil and ink on canvas.  Her nineteen pieces bring to light the repression of  childhood memories.  At first the works seem almost nostalgic, but in reality they also discuss the difficulties of childhood and society’s impulse to trivialize those challenges.  Be sure to stop by the show when it opens on November 21 from 6-9 pm.

Joshua Liner Gallery
548 W.28th St, 3rd Floor
New York, NY 10001

Sylvia Ji will be one of the many artist that will be showcasing her work at Joshua Liner Gallery for their group exhibition from August 15 to September 5, 2009. Artists featured will include the following: Candice Tripp, Chloe Early, Cleon Peterson, Damon Soule, Dave Kinsey, Evan Hecox, Greg Simkins, James Roper, Joe Sorren, Jud Bergeron, Kenji Hirata, Pat Rocha, Robert Hardgrave, Ryan McLennan, Shawn Barber, Stanley Donwood, Stella Im Hultberg, SUB (Tony Curanaj), Sylvia Ji, Tat Ito, Tiffany Bozic, Travis Louie, Tristram Lansdowne, and ZAnPon. This show is not to be missed!

The opening reception is this Saturday August 15th from 6-9pm.

Joshua Line Gallery
548 West 28th Street
3rd Floor
New York, NY 10001

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Kayukawa, "Kotori Chan (Little Birdie)"

Joshua Liner Gallery will open its new show July 11th featuring Yumiko Kaywkawa’s “Higashi No Kamisama” ( God from the East) and Ben Tour’s “Crash Burn”. Both artists will also be in attendance for the opening Saturday July 11th from 6-9 pm.

Since Yumiko Kayukawa’s initial trip to the U.S. in 1997 Kayukawa’s artwork has taken on a life of its own: A mix of Japanese tradition and Western pop input, with the natural world intertwined to share the spotlight. She incorporates Japanese iconography and pop symbolism, along with the vague (and not-so-vague) sensuality of the female figure, to draw in and engage the viewer. In this way her paintings reflect how life titillates and distracts, while nature plays its role as our true underlying life source.

Canadian-born artist Ben Tour (b. 1977) channels a dark, often haunting sense of humanism in his work. His observations deftly inform his paintings, enabling him to capture the essence of a character, and then distort that view any way he desires.

Joshua Liner Gallery
548 West 28th street
3rd Floor
New York, NY 10001

Saturday July 11th from 6-9 pm.

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Tiffany Bozic, "The Raft"

Joshua Liner Gallery will be releasing a new limited edition giclee print of Tiffany Bozic’s most recent painting ‘The Raft’ which we will be exhibiting later this year. The edition is being printed by  Electric Works in San Francisco. ‘The Raft’ is a limited edition giclee print on paper, hand signed and numbered by Tiffany in a limited edition of 50. The print measures 24 x 20 inches and is being offered for $250.

This is only Tiffany’s second limited edition print ever so do not expect these to last too long. Please contact the Joshua Liner Gallery for more information or if you would like to purchase the print.

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Mike Davis "Forward, Not Straight"

This is the final week for Mike Davis ‘Stories From the Other Side of the Bridge’  Heidi Taillefer ‘An Uncanny Lineup of Serendipitous Connections.’  at Joshua Liner Gallery, Saturday June 27th is the last day to view both exhibits.

Joshua Liner Gallery
548 West 28th Street
3rd Floor
New York, NY 10001

Gallery Hours
Tuesday — Saturday
11 — 6PM

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Perfect Model of Inefficiency. Damon Sule. Acrylic on Wood. 22 x 30 inches.

Joshua Liner Gallery in NYC will host two openings this coming Saturday, October 11th [6-9 PM].  Damon Soule (above) presents his stunning otherworldly landscapes for his solo, Amused Loon.  Chris Mendoza offers a new body of work consisting of masonite carvings and ink-on-handmade paper drawings for his solo, Daily Habits.  Chris works inside out – starting with individual marks that eventually mesh together to form a larger  complex whole. Two strong shows in one spot  — a great way to spend at least part of your Saturday evening.

Joshua Liner Gallery
548 West 28th Street
3rd Floor
New York, NY 10001

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