Archive for the ‘Art’ Category

Art.Life Art Exhibition Downtown Los Angeles – On March 30^th, 2013, my close friends and I attended an exciting art opening in downtown Los Angeles – the Art.Life Exhibition.  This event was hosted by Amy Demirchian of EWI Collections where a portion of the proceeds were donated to the Los Angeles Art Alliance.

Opening nights of art exhibits are always enjoyable for me and I was pleasantly surprised at the excitement, energy and the honest gratitude I felt from the artists and from many of the people who attended.

Andre Miripolsky – Sharks of Hollywood and Sebastian St. George

The show was on a grand scale and it included such a great mixture of Art from mixed media, oils, prints and some incredible bronze sculptures.  This exhibit presented approximately 50 artists in an elegant 30,000 sq. ft. loft and what made it so appealing was that it was great to see so many different forms of artistic expression.

Liz Trdatyan & her awesome art – Perpetual Bliss

One of the highlights was discovering a new up and coming artist Liz Trdatyan, whose work showed an almost seemless fusion of creativity, technique, style and a strong sense of fashion, all culminating together on the canvas.  She uses paints, textiles, and even pieces of poetry to convey her expressions.

My favorite piece called Eccentric Muse, was the artist’s expression of the frustrations and conflicts she faced with her own sense of identity and culture, her struggles as a woman and how Hollywood objectifies beauty, hence most of the face in the painting being covered, except for the beautiful entrancing eyes.  The layering and the glazing technique adds a magnificent luster to the painting.  This is a truly a one of a kind and excellently composed mixed media work.

Liz Trdatyan – Eccentric Muse

Sebastian St George and Stuart Kusher – Renaissance Man

Now, moving on to one of my favorite forms of art: sculpture.  All of us were definitely impressed and moved by the bronze sculptures of Stuart Kusher, and not just because of the scale of his works, but because of the time he takes to pay attention to the small details, like the gentle sloping of the woman’s breasts as she drifts underwater in Patron Saint of Sanonofre.  It is the artist’s mantra of ninety-nine percent observation and one percent application that really shines through in his work.  I personally loved the way he infused a fresh twist to this classic medium, the twisted coils of hair and goatee on the Path to Stonehenge, the tree branches and leaves branching out of the head in Afrinesta, and the mohawk in…Mohawk Mafia.

Stuart Kusher discusses the Patron Saint of Sanonofre

Stuart Kusher – Patron Saint of Sanonofre

Now it’s time for a little drink, and what can I say about the spirits served around the bar?  Another one of my favorite new discoveries is Maya tequila (smooth).  The great people at Maya Tequila are rocking with a fantastic and unique bottle design that is sure to win over a lot of hearts!  I know it got mine!

Another winner was Mascarade, a new cocktail blend of French Armagnac, vodka, peach and apricot juices.  This tasty blend kept my friends going the entire night!

POP!  What is art nowadays without representing pop culture?  No one does it better than this particular artist, whose iconic imagery of Los Angeles has splashed all over magazines and billboards across town for the past three decades; not to mention that his Art has graced Absolut Vodka bottles.  Andre Miripolsky has once again created a fun, bright collection called the Sharks of Los Angeles and the Sharks of Hollywood to keep us uplifted in our spirits and our views of living in this temperamental town.

Sebastian St. George and Andre Miripolsky City of Angels

Andre’s Sharks of Hollywood had all of my friends and I laughing!  This painting is a fun, edgy and ballsy take on Hollywood reality.  Where else in the world do sharks eat sharks?  And shark directors eat their own films?  Oh and some of these Sharks are even on rollerskates?!?  Welcome to the hilariously entertaining and fascinating world of Andre Miripolsky.

Andre Miripolsky Sharks of Hollywood

Hollywood spoiler alert: Don’t get eaten by the sharks….., well, you certainly won’t by Andre, whose happy, honest and humble personality really left a significant impression on me and had me walking away feeling like I met a true gentleman, honorable and full of integrity.

Sebastian St George and Liz Trdatyan Art

Liz Trdatyan, Stuart Kusher and Andre Miripolsky are artists that are on the rise and worth watching and most importantly worth supporting and buying their work.  All in all a good time was had by everyone.  Art.Life is a must see event and well worth your time.  My friends and I look forward to the next Art.Life Exhibition.

Stay Luminous

Sebastian St. George

Liz Trdatyan – Perpetual Bliss

The Path to Stonehenge by Stuart Kusher

Awakening by Alex Fishgoyt is a breathtaking and awe inspiring piece of artwork.  Frankly, it’s much more than that.  It is an experience that dramatically engages the viewer.  Fishgoyt artfully invites you to enter his world and to believe in the dream.  Once the viewer dares to enter and explore he challenges you to join him on the journey.

At first glance the journey seems inviting, exciting and as you move deeper into it you begin notice that it is unpredictable, scary and maybe even dangerous.  Fishgoyt creatively illuminates your journey with hope as you cross a bridge over the vast and mysterious ocean to a brilliant white city.  Or how about a long journey down a shadowy back alley where even a small faint light gives encouragement to the inquisitive traveler?

Awakening is filled with many possibilities.  First, you must be willing to get on the ship where there is no turning back.  This is a ship headed toward a gigantic wave.  Will this vessel capsize or will it break on through to the other side and transport us to our Awakening?

The woman is the fulfillment of the journey: a journey that is rich, fertile, beautiful and fulfilling – all that the dreamer is.  She completes the cycle of life.  Welcome to the journey of Awakening – a pathway filled with many awakenings.

Awakening – I was so excited to receive this huge package from FedEx today.  A big Thank You to Vladimir Kush and Karyn Anderson of the Kush Fine Art Gallery for turning me onto Fishgoyt’s amazing surrealism!  Also I greatly appreciate Alex signing and personalizing his work with an inspiring note to me on the back of the painting.

If you are interested in finding out more info on the awesome works of Alex Fishgoyt please contact Karyn Anderson 775 – 997-87 ZeroZero – Don’t forget to mention Sebastian’s blog for a discount.

Stay Luminous

Sebastian St. George

The Beauty of Nature is so inspiring.  These pictures fill me with amazement and awe at the incredible beauty and balance that nature is.  Enjoy these pictures.

Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.
~ Lao Tzu

Here are some AMAZING Nature photographs by awesome photographer Adam Jones  http://www.adamjonesphoto.com/

Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.
~ Albert Einstein

We cannot command nature except by obeying her.
~ Sir Francis Bacon

Love is a canvas furnished by Nature and embroidered by imagination.
~ Voltaire

The Beauty of Nature is such a gift we are all blessed with.  It something to enjoy, share and protect for all future generations

The Art of Personality is clearly defined in Frank Lloyd Wright’s masterpiece:  The Ennis House. Frank Lloyd Wright’s homes are not houses, they are experiences.  Breathtaking ones at that.  The Ennis House is one of Hollywood’s most famous and favorite sets.

This house has illuminated the silver screen in many awesome films:  House on Haunted Hill, 1958, my favorite film Blade Runner in which it was used for Deckard’s (Harrison Ford) apartment, Black Rain, Twin Peaks, Grand Canyon, Buffy The Vampire Slayer and countless other films, music videos, print ads and TV commercials.

The Style of Blade Runner. Rick Deckard’s Kitchen via kaktak

This incredible work of art was created in 1923/1924 with a Mayan-inspired theme of ornate concrete blocks and levels for retailer Charles Ennis and his wife Mabel.

Frank Lloyd Wright’s work is nothing short of extraordinary.  For me just looking at the pictures can give me goose bumps.  Can you image being inside The Ennis House or for that matter living in that state of aesthetics on a daily basis?  Honestly, it’s illuminating.

Photo by Tim Street-Porter for Christie's Great Estates

It’s during this period that Frank Lloyd Wright was fascinated with the medium of concrete and cement and what their possibilities were in structural design.  Three other Wright masterpieces were created during this same period using ornate textile blocks:  The Millard House, The Storer House and The Freeman House.

The Art of Personality – I first became interested in the Ennis House while researching Frank Lloyd Wright’s Hollyhock House located on Sunset and Vermont, which is an absolutely amazing work on art in it’s own right.  Then I saw an article in the Los Angeles Times about the Ennis House and the concerns on how it had fallen into great disrepair.  I was spellbound by the photos of the Ennis House and it inspired me to go to my local Borders Bookstore and buy several books on the House and Wright.

Photo by Tim Street-Porter for Christie's Great Estates

I was especially inspired to write this blog for two reasons.  One, my good friend Skip’s father was a brilliant architectural engineer who worked with Wright for almost a year back in the mid 1950s on a project in Santa Monica.  Second, I was happy to recently read in the Los Angeles Times that the Ennis House has been sold to Wright aficionado Mr. Ron Burkle.  Mr. Burkle has expressed interest and commitment to the complete restoration and preservation of The Ennis House.

Picture via tk3dmaker4

Thanks to Mr. Burkle Frank Lloyd Wright’s personality and art will live on for future generations to experience and enjoy.  Hopefully, one day I will be able to experience Wright’s aesthetics firsthand and I hope you do too!

The Ennis Fireplace - Picture via tk3dmaker4

The Ennis House is located at 2607 Glendower Ave., Los Angeles, CA. 

Make sure to check out 3T’s cool music video “Why” with Michael Jackson.  Also check out a scene from Blade Runner inside awesome The Ennis House.

One of My Favorite Places to Visit in Las Vegas is the Bellagio Conservatory & Botanical Gardens located in the Bellagio Hotel just to the right of the check-in desk.  It is truly an inspiring and breathtaking experience.  What’s even better is it doesn’t cost a dime; not to mention that is a wonderful refuge from the chaos of casino smoke and action.

Upon entering the gardens one is lifted up into a whole new realm of awareness and aesthetics.  You are greeted by the brilliance of flowers, rays of light, the sound of running water, the amazing aromas, the sounds of birds and the oohs and ahhs of the guests as they take it all it.  One cannot help but be captivated by the beauty and the awesomeness the themed displays that change with each season and/or holidays.

The whole garden is surrounded by such a stunning architectural presence from hand-laid tile floors to luminous skylights that it’s almost hard to believe that it’s there.  This is Vegas after all LOL

I find this architectural environment liberating and a renaissance of beauty and art.  It is visually stunning in everyway.  A big Thank You to the incredible designers and workers who create these magical gardens every season.

The most recent theme for the 4^th of July consisted of a huge ferris wheel, the Liberty Bell with an American Eagle perched on top, a carousel / merry-go-round, incredible flowers, water displays and a walk-in cage with live parrots.  Don’t forget to check out Yogi and Boo-Boo as they prepare to fish in the koi pond.

One of My Favorite Places to Visit and every time I go to Las Vegas I always stop by.  As I was leaving I couldn’t help saying: “Bella Bellagio”.

SACRED GIFT by Vladimir Kush

Sacred Gift – Last week my friend Skip and I were in Las Vegas.  We had an incredibly relaxing week thanks to the Qua Spa at Caesars Palace.  We were just getting ready to Leave Las Vegas, but, unlike Nicolas Cage in the film Leaving Las Vegas LOL, when Kush Fine Art Gallery consultant Karyn Anderson called.  “Vladimir Kush is painting down at the Caesars Palace Kush Fine Art Gallery, come on down.”

Many of you have seen my blog Meet the new Salvador Dali and were touched by the incredibly luminous and inspirational art of Vladimir Kush.  I figured I might not have another chance to meet this master fine artist.  So, I twisted Skip’s arm a little and said, “Hey we gotta go see my favorite artist!”  Talk about a golden opportunity!  Actually to me it was more like a Sacred Gift.

Sebastian St. George and Vladimir Kush

Sacred Gift – Vladimir’s art has truly inspired me, so much so that I have become an avid patron of his work.  I found him to be a delightful and playful person; just like his paintings.  One of the things I love most about Vladimir’s work is that it is intuitive, expansive and touches on many subjects much like Luminous ROC.  I love the fact that Vladimir likes to paint about anything, as I love to write about anything.

Vladimir and Sebastian in front of Awakenings

It’s funny one of Vladimir’s friends came up and mentioned that he thought Vladimir and I were brothers.  We bonded and had a great time talking allegory, hidden signs and symbols, Polynesian mythology and the metaphorical journey of his work.

Vladimir has fun embellishing "City by The Sea"

Vladimir and I are standing in front of his painting “City by the Sea.”  He called it “The Squid” as he was embellishing one of the 88 numbered giclee prints.  The inspiration for the painting came to him as he was flying into San Francisco.  The painting reminds me of James Cameron’s “The Abyss.”  It’s spectacular to me in every way.

I felt very fortunate for the opportunity to watch him paint the final details of his new huge panoramic painting “Awakenings.”  To be able to spend some time with Vladimir Kush and talk with him, to me, that was a Sacred Gift.

If you are interested in finding out more about Vladimir’s art work you can contact Karyn Anderson at the Las Vegas Kush Fine Art Gallery:  Karyn@vladimirkush.com  or cell 775-997-8700  Mention Sebastian, she’ll take care of you.  Karyn Rocks!

“The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind
is a faithful servant. We have created a society
that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift.”
— Albert Einstein

Meet the new Salvador Dali – Vladimir Kush is, without a doubt, one of the most exciting painters in the art world today. His work is vibrant, vast, deep and overflows with a radiant abundance of colors, symbols and allegory. His imagery instills a wealth of dreamlike thoughts and visions. His craftsmanship while flawless and virtually seamless appears not to have any apparent brush strokes.

Vladimir refers to his art as metaphorical realism. In my opinion, he is the new Salvador Dali. He really has taken over where Dali left off.  It is surrealism at a whole new level.  I find that his work would best be described as a progenitor who dwells at the creative edge of our hearts and minds. (See his At the edge of the Earth painting below)

At the End of the Earth

Here are some highlights from Vladimir’s Bio courtesy of Kush Fine Art.

Born 1965 in Moscow, Vladimir’s parents learned that he at the early age of three or four had the “talent.” His father would start drawings and amazingly Vladimir would complete them.  Eventually, he would be formally trained at the Art Institute of Moscow under the Cezanne method, which he quickly mastered. After Kush’s first successful show in Germany in 1989 it brought him to Los Angeles and eventually Maui, his home today.

African Sonata

Vladimir sums it up for us: “Due to political and geographic restraints, I was forced to travel with my mind as a child, and it is this most of all that has shaped my artistic perception and voice, but I would likely never have painted the colors or clouds seen in my paintings if it hadn’t been for the sights of my tropical, second home.”

Fauna in La Mancha

Vladimir Kush explains further: “I want to touch my audience on a much deeper emotional or intellectual level than would be possible by painting a pretty landscape or still life where viewers are tempted to place themselves in the landscape, or consume the bowl of fruit—the goal of realism is also its limitation. I try to provide layers of meaning for viewers to explore and emotionally respond to the discoveries they find in my art.”

Take a Metaphorical Voyage into the World of Vladimir Kush.

Arrival of the Flower Ship

Sacred Bird of Yucatan

Horn of Babel

Divine Geometry