Independent, Independence!

This Friday we're kicking off Independence Weekend with a July 2nd BBQ for our biggest opening reception yet in the newly designed space. We're going to internationalize the most American of all holidays by adding a little Mardi Gras, Dia de los Muertos and Bastille Day for Carnival - La Luz de Jesus style!

Damian Fulton is quite simply the pre-eminent surf painter of this generation. What better way to celebrate the first ten days of summer, than by tossing back a cool one in front of two dozen painted boards, decks and canvases?

Robert Palacios has been the best kept secret in Los Angelino contemporary art until now! His Loteria-inspired pastiches will linger until you rush back here to buy one!

And the six very different artists in the Summer Showcase represent animated graffiti, radical puppetry, tiny portraiture, reclaimed materials, mechanical craft and teenage angst.

Gallery I: Damian Fulton & Robert Palacios
Gallery II: Michael Brown, Frijol Boy, Lauren Gardiner,
Cristina Paulos, Alyson Souza, and Fiddle Tim

PREVIEWS ARE NOW AVAILABLE FOR EACH! CLICK THE IMAGES!

DAMIAN FULTON
Preview online now!
"Surfploytation" opens 7/2

Damian Fulton is fascinated by the dichotomy and duality of Los Angeles seaside culture. The proximity of one of the world's most diverse and congested cities to the Pacific coast provides fertile material for Fulton's dark take on the California dream. Perhaps it's in the water.

Surfploytation continues Fulton's twisted ride down Pacific Coast Highway where Surf City is way more gritty than groovy. Car chases, girls with guns, noir nostalgia, a visual narrative that reads like conceptual art for a fictional surfploytation movie. For this show, experimentation with new materials native to his environment, balsa wood and fiberglass, skate decks, and surfboard fins, have this new work amped up to 11.

ROBERT PALACIOS
Preview posted!
"The Game of Life" opens 7/2

Robert Palacios was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. Drawing inspiration for his paintings from his childhood impressions and memories, life experiences
and his American/ Latino heritage, Robert's work is whimsical, playful and childlike.

He breathes life into his characters with careful thought and unique insight and defines his style as Pop Surrealism. One of his abiding inspirations has been a board game that he played often as a child called La Loteria ( the Mexican lottery game) which is played similarly to bingo but with a deck of cards with numbers and wonderful, mystical, magical symbols and drawings. "I still bring out that deck and peruse them for inspiration."

Cristina Paulos & Michael Brown
Previews posted!
Exhibitions open 7/2
Cristina Natsuko Paulos is an American born Artist of Japanese and Portuguese ancestry, growing up in the San Fernando Valley of southern California. She received her BFA from the California Institute of the Arts in Animation. She spends her time making comics, painting, illustrating, constructing puppet shows, and creating short cartoon films from her studio in Las Vegas, NV. "Intrinsic Duality" is her first featured exhibition at La Luz de Jesus.

Michael Brown's artwork is a tapestry of many mediums including acrylic, polymer clay, enamel and more, inspired by 1930's and 40's cartoons, hot rod art, and 70's pop culture. Throughout his diverse body of work there is a continuous theme of dark humor and addiction. "Invisible Friends" is a collection of small, but detailed pockets of dark humor that pull from historical events, medical rituals, magic, secret societies and the dark underbelly of what is considered taboo.

Frijol Boy
Preview posted!
Exhibitions open 7/2

Tijuana born artist Juan Muniz grew up in San Diego and learned English by watching Saturday morning cartoons. He moved to Las Vegas then attended Collins College in Arizona to learn more about animation. After moving back to Las Vegas, where he became a tattoo artist involved with the First Friday art openings, he acquired the moniker Frijol Boy which provided an outlet for him to show his "weird little character paintings." He's always trying new mediums, and has built a following for his multi-plane paintings which mix acrylic on plexiglass with pastel on wood. "In a world full of beauty and horrid things, I'm just trying to reflect it through my morbid, cute art."

Lauren Gardiner & Fiddle Tim
Previews now posted!
Exhibitions open 7/2

La Luz de Jesus alumni Lauren Gardiner's painted portraits have a habit of selling before they even hit the walls, such is the demand for her work among her collectors. Never one to sit on her laurels, she consistently improves with each show. There will be 8 paintings in total. A preview will be available just prior to opening.

Fiddle Tim is a pseudonym.
This is the debut exhibition of someone very special, and you'll kick yourself if you miss this. "Scumfuck" is a notebook show. The centerpiece of this exhibition is a portrait of G.G. Allin -the only among the dozen drawings included in this exhibition to reference fame of any kind. The fact that the this subject sought fame at any cost juxtaposes the chosen anonymity of the artist. This exhibition is an important pop-culture event, with artwork priced quite affordably. Prices and images are slowly posting, and a complete preview will be posted by tomorrow evening.

Alyson Souza
Preview posted!
Exhibitions open 7/2

Alyson Souza works in a very meticulous manner and believes strongly in creating well-crafted objects. She paints thickly, though realistically, with oil on wood. In the past her work has been three dimensional somewhat like an image in a pop up book. It has incorporated found objects and mechanical or electrical components. Most recently the work has been flat and painted on shaped wood panels. The largest of these are cradled to prevent future distortion. The term "New American Surrealist" has been used to describe her work and as labels go this is fairly accurate.
Also check out new Available work from Nathan Ota, Bob Dob & Ana Bagayan at Grand Central Art Center's
100 Artists See Satan Fundraiser

125 N. Broadway, Santa Ana, CA 92701
Saturday, July 3rd, 7-10PM
(Click HERE for an online preview)


No RSVP necessary -and you can even invite your friends!
You may reserve purchases by calling the gallery director and arranging payment. I also encourage you to take a look at the Upcoming Exhibition Schedule and sign up for the artist notification lists of your choice. Aside from the upcoming shows previewed above, we've also got Christopher Ulrich, Nathan Ota, Yumiko Kayukawa, Jessica Joslin, The Art of the Lowbrow Tarot, Daniel Peacock, Christine Wu, Matt Wood, Laurie Lipton and many more! We're also hosting book readings, signings and special performance events, like the NEW TEXTURE release party for Drew Alan Friedman on July 8th.

So do yourself a favor and check out the new and improved La Luz de Jesus Gallery. We've been breaking ground and pushing the envelope for nearly 25 years, and we've got no intention of stopping!

If you haven't done so, sign up for our newsletter to receive invitations to our gallery openings, book signings, musical performances and other special events. You can alter your notification settings to add specific artist event notifications and ensure that you receive previews for the artists of your choice!