Get a Heart on at Copro Nason.

Los Angeles - Feb 7th, 2004

by Samuel Proof

    

(fig 1.) Helen Garber "The Lovers" Picture by Elda Collier

In the wasteland that is Culver City California there is a small crowded gallery, Copro Nason. Some two hundred people are piling in, pushing through and spilling out into the back courtyard, and back into the street out front; all to see the Valentine theme show of some nearly 40 artists.
It is nearly impossible to move on your own accord, you must bend to the will of the crowd. It is a moving thing. You're sloshed up against the wall the see cherubesque children holding hands in love, and hearts galore. The crowd moves you into the ornately cut frame of Karl Abramovic's monkey genie that arises out of a heart shaped bottle. The frame is a bright yellow in a world of bitter artists playing off of sarcasm and broken hearts.
    Stuffed in a corner is Syracuse's Joe Vaux (see fig 2.) with a pink and black work something akin to the cast of 'Nightmare before Christmas' taking over a Shag painting. Shag's here too, ending the wall with "The Love Beast". The Shag Black cat ever present as it's female counter part sports a cat suit and waits for her Ram Man in purple on a Shays lounge.
    Mark Ryden presents "Good Children" a screen print that came straight off a box of shortbread out of the 60's. They're chubby faced lovers, inviting the watcher to travel back in time and they're being watched by the always detailed, empathic eyes of "Lala Lolita" by Sas Christian (see fig 5.). It's always the little things made big, and detailed with Sas, freckles and highlights on lips become the most sculpted parts, and the eyes always those large doll eyes.
    Our little group runs into Roxanne and Helen Garber, whose piece "The Lovers" (see fig 1.) hangs across the room. It's the largest piece in the room and one of the only pieces that presents a truth to love in this collection. Her figures are real people, in a real world situation. There is a tiredness to them, but it is not despair or bitterness or sarcasm like so many other paintings in this show. Helen is wrapped in all white and is this fragile little porcelain doll in a punk rock world.
    We meet up in front of Liz McGrath's "Give Your Heart to Jesus" (see fig 4.), a multi-media project, part painting, part diorama. It's a hinged box with a painting for the lid, and a viewing window into the bottom portion of the box. Little 18th scale train figures, little suicidal sheriffs are taking their own lives at gun point. They are watched over by the painting of the ever beaten but not defeated blonde woman, a mix of Courtney Love and Paris Hilton. (The hinges and latch invite one to open the box up, but we were never able to corner Liz ask if the box contained hidden secrets).

(fig 2.) Joe Vaux "Ode to Valentine"

    McGraff has two other projects here tonight, in a glass case in the back room are sets of butchers knives painted with the cartoon heads of cats. Each knife has a compliment. In the very back in the third project, Liz McGrath herself, with band in toe playing dissident country music.
    Other scukpture work included Matt Burlingame's "Free Pie" (see fig 3.) with a knife weilding machine that tempted clowns and "The Hungry Stranger" with it's Henryesque Rabbit.
    One last viewing before we leave, and I keep coming back to the comically horrific image of ugly protruding teeth and shiny gums of the woman in "Murder of Girls" by Dave Cooper. It's pixilated, pointalized, blurry and everything appears to have veins in it. Grotesque and hilariously absurd a bony hand grabs onto a thigh, which appears to be made of marshmallow fluff as the hand sinks in. A cat is clutched by the chubbiest of the woman, squeezing it so tight that we see even the cat has shiny gums. For some reason, highlights most likely, we are drawn to shiny gums and squishy knee caps. It is only one review that we even notice the corpse the girls are rejoicing over.
    Copro Nason has this way of putting together large shows in a small space, and it's understandable that with so many artists showing, so many people would show up. So though you're pushed around, and squished against walls it's always a show worth seeing, and on an opening night like this you have the pleasure of getting a handfull of chocolate, strawberry or white cake, accompanied by crackers, drinks and a Jell-O heart (mixed with condensed milk to look very realistic).
    
The Copro Nason show opened Feb 7th 2004.

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