The global Democracy is… conversation expands July 7 with the launch of the inaugural Democracy Photo Challenge.  The contest asks people around the world to complete the phrase “Democracy is…” through digital photos submitted online. The Democracy is… conversation leverages social networks and creative challenges to allow global publics to share, consider, debate, and learn from diverse perspectives on democracy.

Photo entries will be accepted from July 7 through July 28.  Democracy is… partners worked with Google’s Picasa Web Albums team to create the contest platform, which is the first of its kind, specifically to power the Democracy Photo Challenge. An independent jury will announce 36 finalists August 19, and the public will select 12 winners during a global online vote beginning August 19 - August 26.  The winners will be announced on the United Nations’ (UN) International Day of Democracy, September 15, with the winning photographs exhibited at the UN in New York.   

“How appropriate that the winning photos should be on display at the UN,” said jury co-chair and International Center of Photography Director, Willis Hartshorn. 

Carmichael Gallery invites you to The L.A. case, an exhibition of new works on canvas by German artist case. This is case’s first US solo exhibition and the second time he has exhibited at Carmichael Gallery.

case’s new body of work references imagery from elaborate, self-staged photo shoots using spray paint on canvas. Combining exacting technical expertise with an innovative hint of liberation and irony, he investigates the parallels that exist between the conflicting states of convention and controversy, manipulating beauty in a dark, thrilling and provocative manner.

case is widely recognized as one of the best photorealistic spray paint artists in the world. His groundbreaking technique, detailed in the book Ma’Claim: Photorealistic Graffiti, Falk Lehmann and Steffen Petermann, Publikat Verlags und Handels GmbH and Co. KG, Germany, 2006, has set new standards and established a strong international collector base and fan network.

Los Angeles’ Culver City Arts District is hosting its 4th Annual Artwalk this Saturday and its a must see self-guided day of art and culture. With 42 galleries and exhibition spaces open from 12-8pm there is more than you can probably see in one day.

Culver City boasts everything from blue-chip galleries like Blum and Poe, LAX Contemporary and Roberts and Tilton to emerging galleries like Cherry and Martin, Corey Helford, LeBasse Projects and Kinsey/DesForges. There are also some fantastic restaurants like Wilson and Fathers Office to dine in.

Speaking of art and dining, DailyduJour is co-sponsoring the Artwalk After Party at Royal/T, our favorite mini-museum and cafe. Join us and owner Susan Hancock for a great after-artwalk evening from 7-11pm. Grab dinner and some drinks while ...

Mark Moore Gallery is pleased to introduce new work by the innovative collaboration Asgar/Gabriel. Asgar/Gabriel's large-scale paintings are postmodern mise en scène where linear narrative is lost; where the figurative and the abstract, image and text exist simultaneously and vie for the viewer's attention. These dislocated canvases ironically serve to locate a contemporary audience who is perfectly at ease with the disjunctive over-stimulation of a world saturated by the media and the image.

In an age of appropriation, Asgar/Gabriel acknowledge numerous art historical influences. Elements of painting - from Baroque to Pop Art to Abstraction - are all absorbed and reassembled to create worlds where reality and virtuality interplay. Just as their youthful subjects set themselves adrift within this fragmentary, shifting landscape, the viewer happily succumbs to the sensory overload.

"Considering the flood of images inundating us every day, at the start of each of our works we face the question of the specific options that differentiate the painted picture from other pictorial media." -Asgar/Gabriel

DIVERGE

The Art of OddZoo

Opening Reception: Saturday, September 6th, 2008, 8PM – Midnight

1257 N. La Brea Ave.
West Hollywood, CA 90038

Exhibition Dates: September 6 – September 28, 2008

Carmichael Gallery of Contemporary Art is proud to present DIVERGE, the solo debut of OddZoo. The Hawaii-born and Los Angeles-based artist will showcase works of acrylic, oil, pencil and ink that reflect upon the adjustments we make, opportunities we gain, and things we learn when life unexpectedly shifts itself from its anticipated path. An opening reception with the artist in attendance will be held on Saturday, September 6th, 2008, from 8pm – Midnight. The exhibition will be open for viewing through Sunday, September 28th, 2008.

Whilst there has always been an intrinsically timeless quality to the work of OddZoo, there is a marked maturity in his newest pieces. Combining creative and life experience, the young artist continues to forge a unique identity in subject matter and style. This is particularly revealed in his broad range of expression, concentration to detail, and exciting use of color. Concerning his talent for the latter, OddZoo comments that he purposefully maintains a balance between careful preparation and emotional spontaneity - "there are times when I'll use certain colors because it pertains to some metaphorical significance...to intentionally provoke a certain mood. Then again there's times when I just really enjoy using a particular color and run with it." Inspiration arises from many aspects of his life and imagination, but it is music that is his "driving force...It will alter a mood, the way I handle my paint, thought process, everything."

Opening Reception:
Sunday, September 14th
6:30 - 9:30 PM
Exhibition Continues Through October 7th, 2008
 
This body of work, which captures an iconic party-colored, slightly skewed and awesomely beautiful view of Southern California of the seventies, is a departure for  Theo Westenberger, who during her short creative life was an award-winning magazine photographer.
 
Westenberger passed away this past February and was noted for her many covers including Sports Illustrated, Newsweek, Life, Entertainment Weekly, and National Geographic Traveler where she was a contributing editor for several years. She was selected by the Academy of Motion Pictures Art and Sciences to take a group photo of all the women who have ever received an Academy Award. The U.S. Postal Service chose two of her photographs of Native American dancers to reproduce on stamps. She also taught workshops in lighting and portraiture. In a time when female commercial photographers were virtually non-existent, Theo had shot three presidents and an award-winning array of actors like Clint Eastwood, Meryl Streep, and Jennifer Aniston for the best magazines in the world. Flavors in 1975 marks her debut as a fine art photographer.