Eric Joyner at opening night of his “Sweet Dominion” exhibition at Corey Helford Gallery
Photo credit: Sam Graham
Click hereto download photos from the exhibit opening
This past Saturday (February 20), the COREY HELFORD GALLERY unveiled their latest exhibition “Sweet Dominion”from San Francisco-based award-winning artist/illustrator Eric Joyner.Fittingly, the packed house of guests enjoyed platters of donuts and Rock’em Sock’em Robots tabletop games (both of which are signatures in Joyner‘s work), along with a Joyner-inspired DJ set including–Kraftwerk’s “The Robots” and Styx’ “Mr. Roboto”–from KCRW/Sirius XMU’s Chris Muckley.
Here’s some early critical praise for “Sweet Dominion”–Joyner‘s newest body of work and most ambitious to date.
“Though nearly every painting of his features both robots and donuts, how Joyner plays with their exact relationship is what gives the paintings in Sweet Dominion their liveliness…Unrestrained, childlike joy informs everything Joyner does…The Corey Helford Gallery, across the river from the Arts District in a somewhat run-down industrial area, is a perfect site for Joyner’s paintings. A visit to the reclaimed warehouse cannot help but be bracketed between sightings of “real” robots, the construction equipment at rest around the Santa Monica Freeway bridge.”
“…the 20-piece Sweet Dominion, continues the artist’s classic themes, which include old-school robots and glazed donuts, while throwing in some tiki, sea life, cats, cakes and other imagery…”
“Sweet Dominion” marks Joyner’s fourth exhibition at the gallery and shows new subjects such as rain, transformers, cakes, anti-gravity, cats and migration…Eric Joyner depicts the tenuous conflict between children’s toys and the adulthood as a portrait of another reality. He brings to life the feeling of glee and naivety inserted in the skepticism of a grown up reality. He explains that there is no rational explanation to the new show, only things he likes and finds interesting, which allows the spectator to imagine stories, create interpretations, and even dream a little inside Eric’s surrealistic world.”
“With his new collection, Joyner continues his exploration of life, mundane and fantastic, as experienced and transformed by two childhood pleasures: old-school robot toys and donuts. In addition to the retro ‘bots that are a staple of his work, several of the twenty new oil paintings offer updated visions featuring the well-known Transformers-iconic robots for a new generation. Ranging from nostalgia to gleeful celebration of adventure and exploration, Joyner’s work offers vivid sustenance for the inner child.”
On display through Friday, March 19, “Sweet Dominion”marks Joyner’s fourth exhibition at CHG and his first at the tastemaker gallery’s new expansive 12,000 square foot space on Anderson Street in downtownLos Angeles which launched this past December. For more info on Eric Joyner, visit ericjoyner.comand connect on Facebook, Twitterand Instagram.
With a variety of exhibitions lining up for the year ahead, the COREY HELFORD GALLERY has ignited a new era for the arts in Downtown Los Angeles.
NASHVILLE |
