Mark MauerRyan Graeff, Sharktoof and Pingping at Ghettogloss
This is what's going on in Los Angeles right now: You drive to an art gallery having a show. On the way, you pass several buildings, traffic light boxes and walls covered in graffiti, paste-ups and murals that city officials or property owners do their best to obliterate as soon as they possibly can.
Once you're at the gallery, you see the same art by the same artists hanging on the walls, selling for thousands of dollars. Amazing. I”m not saying this is wrong or bad or commercialism overtaking a “purer” art form. I just think it's strange, but pretty cool too.
Shark Toof's cigarette and shark themed posters can be found across Echo Park, downtown, and Hollywood (The old LA Weekly building usually had a couple small ones on it on the bricks facing Sunset), and they've been getting colorful and more detailed even on the street. The ones currently showing at Ghettogloss though are really striking.
Sex ads on newsprint (possibly even old copies of the LA Weekly?) peak out underneath the images.
Ryan Graeff displayed several of his downtown L.A. freeway and skyline canvasses, like the two above. (More of Graeff's work after the jump).
And finally, a wall of Ping Ping's anime girl paintings, which as far as I know, don't typically end up painted on the sides of buildings or construction sites. Guilty pleasure indeed.
The three artists' work will be on display at Ghettogloss through June 16. Check it out at 2380 Glendale Blvd. near the Red Lion and Panty Raid.
Ghettogloss frequently also has Graeff's amazing handmade painted books, featuring page after page of his work. They currently don't show any available on their website, but check the store attached to the gallery from time to time and you'll see clothing and unusual works from artists like Graeff and Sharktoof.
All photos by Mark Mauer
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