It’s Armory Week here in New York and the city is back in full force. With four major fairs–The Armory Show, Independent’s new 20th Century edition, SPRING/BREAK and Art on Paper–and countless exhibitions, events, pop ups and public programs, there is no shortage of...
From the Editor September-October, 2022; Volume 17, issue 1
Dear Reader, As I’ve been saying since the dawn of Artillery (16 years ago now): LA is the most vibrant art city in the country. This isn’t exactly a revelation, so why focus on LA—yet again—in this current issue? Because we felt it was worth revisiting the subject in...
Beautyful Migrations The Diaspora According to Njideka Akunyili Crosby
Njideka Akunyili Crosby is having quite the year. Her figurative paintings are on the walls of esteemed museums and institutions across the country, often featuring portraits of herself, friends and family. Akunyili Crosby’s unique style consists of painted, drawn and...
Racial Reckoning Mark Steven Greenfield Illuminates the Black Experience
In 2020, Mark Steven Greenfield unveiled a new body of work, “Black Madonna,” followed by “HALO” in 2022, both at the William Turner Gallery in Santa Monica. Gallery owner William Turner told me in an email that the “Black Madonna” show was a natural progression of...
Let There Be Light Daniel Hawkins’ Desert Lighthouse Turns Five
“It looks like the unlicensed pot farms have ceased operations.” Daniel Hawkins is surveying the Mojave Desert landscape surrounding the hill on which he built a fully functioning 50-foot solar-powered lighthouse in 2017. Below us, an elaborate compound of white tents...
Layering Subjectivity Q&A with Zoe Walsh
Zoe Walsh is a Los Angeles–based painter originally from Washington D.C. They received their BA from Occidental College and Masters from Yale University. Represented by M+B Gallery, Walsh has exhibited their work in group shows around the world. In 2019, they were...
CHEECH MARIN’S NEXT MOVE An Explosion of Chicano Art in Riverside
How apt that the new Cheech Marin Museum for Chicano Art and Culture in Riverside, California should open in a repurposed public library. Libraries are historically accessible spaces for learning and intellectual research. Museums, on the other hand, still struggle to...
FALL 2022 PREVIEW HIGHLIGHTS
Get ready for the big 2022 Fall art season. This is traditionally the biggest show of any other time in the art world where most galleries put their best foot forward with their September and October exhibitions. We’ve selected a few highlights coming...
Basquiat Paintings Seized by FBI Art Brief
Jean-Michel Basquiat, some say, was an artistic genius. His paintings’ auction values now equal or exceed those of his friend and mentor, Andy Warhol. A couple of top-notch Basquiat shows wowed New York City this past summer, including a major exhibition sponsored by...
YANOE X ZOUEH’s Massive AR Murals The Digital
What do we imagine when we think about art in the most primal form that it has taken throughout the ages? It is easy to pick out important sculptural works or historic paintings on canvas—but often overlooked is the pureness of paint on a wall. Whether looking back to...
13 Ways of Looking at Kayla Decoder
It can be a disservice to describe an artist whose art describes a constantly changing self. 1. Kayla Tange looking platonically calm, platonically Asian, platonically a performance artist, dressed in an all-white so crisp it might be paper, in a great glass box...
Tableaux Vivants Bunker Vision
Back in the days before television, radio and movies, a popular form of entertainment was the Tableau Vivant. People would pose in costumes alongside elaborate props to reenact historical events, or to mimic paintings and statues. If you have ever encountered the...
SIGHTS UNSCENE Information Booth Worker with Red Nails, Norton Simon Museum, Pasadena, CA, 2022
SHOPTALK: LA Art News Aspen Art Week, Tom of Finland Fest, and more
Lonnie Holley Visits LA One of the best gallery shows this year was the self-taught artist Lonnie Holley’s solo show at Blum & Poe, and one of the hottest tickets was a recent Saturday afternoon talk between Holley and Jane Fonda. That may seem an odd pairing, but...
COMMENTARY: Stop Being Supportive
“Dictatorship in the arts, democracy in everything else.” —Dave Godin It might come as a shock to some young people but there was once a time when not every single person was an artist. People are always talking about “the role of the artist in the digital age,” as if...
ASK BABS Bad-Ass Art-Collecting Grandma
Dear Babs, I follow your column and thought your answer to the question concerning censorship of art in one’s own home for the sake of one’s grandchildren was spot on. I’d like to take this issue a bit further. I own a Larry Clark photo that I proudly display on my...
POEMS "Poem April 3" and "Do It Again"
Poem April 3 The language you are now reading will be born tomorrow morning when the sun that resides in each one of us turns back into music. You and I will be in transit, as usual, rolling along the new roads, practicing our stories in case we’re asked about our...
CODE ORANGE September-October Winner & Finalists
Congratulations to our winner Gayle Nichols-Ali and our finalists, Gayle's photo is seen above and first in our photo gallery in the September/October 2022 online edition of Artillery. The following photographs are the finalists. Please see the info below on how to...