Wednesday, October 5, 2011

URBNLUX: Graffiti For Life - Opening October 8th @ Crewest Gallery, L.A.

After decades of being underground, graffiti art is now in vogue. In fact, today, graffiti art is many a collector’s art of choice and is being used by numerous brands as they continually strive to be contemporary, compelling and relevant.

As graffiti art continues to grow in popularity, other areas of style and design will be influenced by its aesthetic sensibilities including modern architecture, furniture, lighting, house wares, fashion, etc.

URBNLUX: Graffiti For Life is a new, first-of-its-kind, art and design exhibition that will explore this convergence by showcasing several collaborations between renowned L.A. graffiti artist Man One and some of the today’s best industrial designers, architects and manufacturers. Man One will also be debuting several new original paintings.

Participating URBNLUX collaborators include: Reza Feiz, Cory Grosser, Benjamin Rollins Caldwell, Ando Pndlian, Roger Bennett, Brian Rupp, and Lantern Masters.

URBNLUX: Graffiti For Life opens on October 8, 2011, from 6-10pm, at Crewest Gallery in downtown Los Angeles; the address is 110 Winston Street, Los Angeles, CA 90013. Exhibit closes on October 29, 2011, from 6-10pm.

About URBNLUX Artist Man One

Man One has been involved with the Graffiti Art movement since 1987. A fine arts graduate of Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, Man One’s success as an artist has begun to change the way the world interprets graffiti art. His colorful murals and art have made their way from the underground graffiti movement to the mainstream, pioneering the evolution of graffiti as an art form on all levels. From corporate marketing campaigns to citywide mural commissions, his artwork reaches internationally and featured in many venues around the world. Man One is also the founder of Crewest Gallery, an graffiti art gallery and shop that acts as an advocate for underground artists of all mediums featuring monthly exhibits and offering products that cater to the urban artist's lifestyles.

About URBNLUX Artist Benjamin Rollins Caldwell


“Design and Conceptualization has always come naturally to me. Luckily, it’s also something that excites me. My operation is a modern studio furniture company that uses the skill and expertise of multiple craftsmen from different backgrounds. My company, BRC Design, makes limited edition objects, one-of-a-kind pieces, and custom projects. I work directly with the materials from the inception of the idea. For me, the physical acts of making an object is just as important as the cognitive evolution of the concept. My objective is to use materials in such a way that I completely transform their original purpose into something new and innovative. More often than not, the most fascinating aspect of a material lies under its exterior surface. I love tearing things apart to see what interesting parts I can find and wield into something completely unique.  Everyday I am surprised by what materials I stumble across and what ideas pop in my head. I submerse myself for countless hours tinkering around in seemingly mundane environments: thrift stores, salvage yards and abandoned warehouses. It is in these environments where my imagination runs freely until that spontaneous moment an object triggers my creative synapses and sparks an idea - a process that I cannot force but rather on that works itself out naturally. Sometimes the objects I discover simply inspire an overall design idea and other times the objects actually become the raw material for the piece.”

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

About URBNLUX Artist U1 Toy Arts


Working in collaboration with a multitude of artists, U1 Toy Arts is dedicated to creating unique art collectibles produced in Resin, Vinyl, and Bronze.  Representing a number of genres -  Urban, Lowbrow, Anime, Cartoon, Graffiti -  every piece is executed to capture the style and vision of each of the artists we work with.  U1 Toy Arts is a Los Angeles based company producing original toys, art, and sculptures for our in-house lines.  We frequently work with many of the major toy companies, as well, in producing prototypes for the mass-market.  

About URBNLUX Artist Gainey Ceramics


In 1949 John Gainey purchased the pottery company where he had been working, as it was going out of business. Throughout the years, Gainey produced ceramic containers to the retail garden centers across the country becoming the choice of professional architects, landscapers, interior and exterior designers. Despite many ceramic companies leaving California in the 1970's, Gainey Ceramics stayed and prospered. Changing processes and modifying equipment along the way, Gainey's success grew. The first line of ceramic tile, a private label client, was launched in 1991 and thus began the progression of Gainey Ceramics Tile. It is this dedication to making the best products, that has enabled the company to continue to grow in an industry that has seen the art of making pottery go by the wayside. A family-oriented business, many employees have been with the company or over 30 years. The employees making the pots and tile are true artisans, mixing, molding, baking, painting, polishing and inspecting the products by hand. Gainey Ceramics is dedicated to private label & proprietary tile production, as well as working with key customers in sourcing various artisan products from around the world. Acting as manufacturer, distributor, importer and logistics has enabled the business to continue growing as it has for almost 60 years!

About URBNLUX Artist AllPopArt


At AllPopArt we create pop art on canvas, custom portraits and photos on canvas from your photos. The best quality printing for your custom photo on canvas in pop art and other art styles. Whether you are looking for a special, one of a kind photo canvas gift or searching for a unique piece of art for your home, we will work with you from beginning to end to make sure you will receive a custom portrait that you'll cherish from years to come. 

About URBNLUX Artist David Rowan Johnson


Currently living in Venice, David Rowan Johnson is an avid skateboarder. Trained as an architect, he received his Masters from UCLA.  His love for making has drawn him to a wide range of investigations, from carpentry and custom interiors to product and graphic design. Eager to solve problems he strives to be innovative with his work.  The skateboard has had a long lasting and continuing effect on California’s culture and way of life.  As a reaction to this pervasive influence, the Venice lounger makes use of recycled skateboard decks, giving them a new life.  The skateboard has a number of inherent qualities that are apt for furniture design. Its curves can be utilized to conform to the human body, making the chair highly ergonomic.

About URBNLUX Artist VesseL USA


VesseL® USA Inc. produces the award winning Architectural Pottery Collection. Our hand crafted planters, containers and garden sculpture will carry a contemporary motif throughout your interior and exterior landscape design. The current collection of organic forms and geometric shapes continues to grow. Please use the navigation icons above for our current product menu. Architectural Pottery has been a luxury American Made product since 1950. Original designs are commissioned and produced from designer specifications. VesseL® USA Inc. is the sole licensor of Architectural Pottery designs.

About URBNLUX Artist Roger Brookes Bennett


Roget Bennett is a Licensed Architect who has developed many notable residential and commercial projects in Los Angeles, New York and London including The Open University, Beverly Hills Mall, Paramount Studios, DePortillo Residence, Krause Residence, Vidal Sassoon Exhibition, Aldreich Art Museum, Sears Nationwide Retail Redesign and Yale Law Library, to name a few.

About URBNLUX Artist Lantern Masters


Based in Westlake Village, CA., Lantern Masters, a family business, headed by Jackie Olesker, along with husband Stuart and daughter Sharyn, have been designing and manufacturing beautifully forged lanterns, chandeliers, pendants and sconces. Lantern Masters, Inc. is considered a foremost style-setter in the custom interior and exterior lighting industry. They are the first choice of many architects, interior designers and discriminating consumers. Collaboration with architects, interior designers, and their clients often leads to new designs for custom fixtures. Inspiration comes from many architectural periods in history; replicating historical fixtures from the 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th centuries are a specialty of Lantern Masters. Many of Lantern Masters clients say that their fixtures are the “antiques of tomorrow.” 

About URBNLUX Artist Brian Rupp


Brian Rupp is a writer, designer, composer and brand strategist based in Portland, Oregon. He served as Creative Director at ID Branding from 2003-2006, where he led brand-identity projects for Kodak, Microsoft, Intel and others. After building and overseeing the sonic-branding practice at Rumblefish for the following few years, Brian founded his own sonic branding agency, Timbre, in 2010 to help companies harness the evocative power of music to tell their stories and connect with audiences on a deeper level. When he's not developing sonic identities or music-based engagement programs for his agency clients (among them, Kaiser Permanente, Columbia Sportswear and National Australia Bank), Brian takes on small visual-identity projects and designs furniture to keep his design chops sharp.

About URBNLUX Artist Ando Pndlian

After graduating in architecture with several design merits, Ando established search+resQ, (search & rescue) an independent multi-disciplinary design studio as a clear and direct expression of his ideas. His work reflects a continuing interest in the union between research, design and culture, with insight for the way the user experiences design and the value each piece adds to the space. in conjunction with large scale public installations to product design and branding-ID for clients, Ando’s approach is conceptually process driven yet intuitive and sensory.

About URBNLUX Artist Cory Grosser


Cory Grosser is an American product designer, brand strategist and educator. In 2002 he founded his studio in Los Angeles. The same year, he had his first international exhibition in Milan and secured his first consulting project from a Fortune 500 company. Since then, he has gone on to become one of America's top independent product designers. His career balances design work for high-level European design brands, strategic consulting engagements for large corporations and teaching the next generation of designers. His work has been featured in books and journals worldwide, including the covers of several magazines. Surface Magazine named him one of the Top Avant-Garde Designers in America”. His work has appeared in television and movies in America and abroad. Cory has won several awards, including an ID Magazine Design Review Award, Best of Neocon Award, a Gold Award at IIDEX, and an I.Dot selection representing the best of Italian Design. His work has been shown in exhibitions and museums worldwide.

About URBNLUX Artist Reza Feiz


Phase Design was founded in Los Angeles in 2000 by award winning self-taught designer Reza Feiz. Working within his philosophy of “strength in simplicity,” he uses solid woods, metal and fiberglass in luxurious finishes to realize his simple, yet dynamic furniture, lighting and tabletop designs. With all of Reza's creations, he seeks to balance delicate physicality and practical functionality. He has shown his work worldwide gaining international attention, and has been acquired by some of the most discriminating clients ranging from Kiehl's to Tom Ford. Reza has been featured in a long list of publications, starting with Surface Magazine where Reza was named a “tag team” member - one of a group of select young designers who represent the leading edge of discovery in design. Los Angeles Magazine named Feiz as one of the city's hottest designers in its July 2006 issue, Flaunt magazine dubbed Reza a ‘Style Pioneer’ and more recently Fabrik magazine named Reza as ‘LA designer who influences world design.’

About URBNLUX Artist Kassy Dieujuste


Kassy Dieujuste is an Interior Designer her passion is in designing and creating new things. Each space is different, as is an individual, bringing out the beauty in all spaces no matter what shape or size, challenges aren’t always easy but the end result is what makes it worth it. In the Downtown area Kassy Dieujuste designed the bathrooms at “The Crocker Club” and collaborated with the owners in creating the theme, color layout, creating a 1920 speakeasy lounge, turning an old bank into a thing of beauty. In 2009 she designed The Pasadena Showcase House “The Powder Bathroom” and was featured in the newspaper for her design style and innovation tile design in her Renascence Bathroom. With several new assignments, her own Interior Design Company After Night Design has been around since 2006 and is on the rise. As an Interior Designer, which not only helps Kassy’s clients build and design the home of there dreams, Kassy is able to work with the contractors or builders to fully focus on the structure of the homes lay-out to give the client what there heart desires.