As Mark posted in March, BB pal Kirsten Anderson, proprietor of the pioneering Roq la Rue gallery in Seattle and editor of the mindbending book "Pop Surrealism: The Rise of Underground Art," was busy curating a show with same title for the Sangre de Cristo Arts and Conference Center in Pueblo, Colorado. The show opened a few days ago and received a great review in the Colorado Springs Independent. So many of my favorite contemporary artists have pieces in the exhibit, like Tim Biskup, Joe Coleman, Don Ed Hardy, Mark Ryden, Isabel Samaras, and Gary Baseman. (Seen here, Baseman's "Dumb Luck V.") I wish I could see the show! From the review:
Kirsten Anderson, owner and curator of Seattle's Roq La Rue Gallery and exhibit partner, succinctly if simply wraps words around the basics of the genre in her statement: "This art, while giving a nod of respect to the Great Masters, surrealism, dada, the Pre-Raphaelites, futurism and vintage graphic design, turned around and gave them a hefty kick in the ass…"
Pop Surrealism's honest, sometimes brutal criticisms might leave some exurbanites dumbfounded. How does a tripped-out painting of a communist child saddling Barbie's horse reflect American culture? Search your commercialized soul inside this exhibit, where the Sangre boldly and very commendably gives credence to what artist Robert Williams calls "one of the most aggressive, vital and overlooked art movements since Pop Art."
