Category Archives: art

Pixel Pushers: An Exploration of 8-Bit Digital Media

“Pixel Pushers” is a group show curated by Giant Robot’s Eric Nakamura, centering around the Famicom inspired custom Scion art car which will project the Giant Robot produced video game, Return of the Quack. The exhibition will feature not only video game inspired art, but a bank of retro custom pachinko machines in a pachinko parlor-like installation, an interactive environment by a renowned digital conceptualist artist, 8-bit sculptures, projected digital visuals, and 4 mini game consoles. The featured artists are: *Jude Buffum, Matt Furie, Zach Gage, Len Higa, Chevy Ray Johnston, Nullsleep, Daniel Rehn, Shawn Smith and Kohei Yamashita.*

The opening reception takes place on *November 13, 2010 at 7 — 10 p.m*. at Scion Installation L.A., 3521 Helms Ave. (at National), Culver City, CA 90232. The reception is free with complimentary valet parking and an open bar. Exhibition is free and open to the public.

Artists will be in attendance. The exhibition will run until December 11, 2010.

Pixel Pushers: An Exploration of 8-Bit Digital Media

About the artists/
*Jude Buffum*’s clients have included the New York Times, HBO, the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, and Courtney Love. His design and illustration have received awards from Graphis, Communication Arts, AIGA, Print, and American Illustration. http://www.judebuffum.com

*Matt Furie *generates richly detailed and hyper colored illustrations and paintings that reflect the crossbreeding of the primal creativity of Fraggle Rock and Labyrinth with the unrestrained violence of Chuck E. Cheese. http://www.mattfurie.com

*Zach Gage* is a designer, programmer, conceptual artist, and video game designer from New York City. http://stfj.net

*Len Higa* was born and raised in Hawaii and has worked for a few automotive companies specializing in research and development, racing, prototypes and concepts. He specializes in metal fabrication, prototyping/conceptualizing and auto/motorcycle building. http://onimotorworks.blogspot.com

*Chevy Ray Johnston* is a 21-year-old freelance game developer living in Vancouver. He has been developing video games for 7 years and is the creator of FlashPunk, a tool to make developing web games easy and more accessible to a wider audience. http://chevyray.com/

*Nullsleep *is the alias of Jeremiah Johnson, an electronic musician whose style could best be described as post-cyberpunk. Nullsleep is the cofounder of 8bitpeoples, an artist collective interested in the audio-visual aesthetics of early home computers. http://www.nullsleep.com

*Daniel Rehn *is the director of LA Game Space, a non-profit center for game development, research, and culture. He co-founded Playpower, a foundation enabling the creation of 8-bit learning games for developing countries. http://re.danielrehn.com/

*Shawn Smith *has received artist-in-residencies from the Kala Art Institute in Berkeley, CA and the Cite Internationale des Arts in Paris, France. He’s also been the recipient of the Clare Hart DeGolyer grant from the Dallas Museum of Art and has exhibited extensively throughout the US. http://shawnsmithart.com

*Kohei Yamashita *manufactures and markets characters and character goods that recall old-school sensibilities, aesthetics, and execution. He has also designed work for the likes of Isamu Nogochi, Pilot pens, LEGO, and the Ueno Park Zoo. http://mountain-mountain.com/

More information on this, and past exhibitions is available at http://www.scionav.com/art

About the curator
*Eric Nakamura * is the publisher of Giant Robot Magazine. Giant Robot Magazine began in 1994 as a stapled-and-folded zine and has grown into a full-fledged bi-monthly magazine available at most stores and newsstands. Giant Robot opened its first store in 2001, and formulated a combination of pop culture goods, ranging from Japanese import toys, graphic design and art books, and monthly art exhibitions. Giant Robot has since opened stores and galleries in San Francisco and New York City, and also operates a restaurant called gr/eats in West Los Angeles. Curating the exhibition is the publisher/co-editor and owner, Eric Nakamura who curates most of the exhibitions Giant Robot presents annually and the Giant Robot Biennale at the Japanese American National Museum

About Scion Installation L.A.
Dedicated to fostering independent artistic expression, Scion Installation L.A. is space that allows artists to explore their creative visions. Scion Installation L.A. hosts art shows and art-related events for cutting-edge contemporary artists from across the globe. One-hundred percent of all sales go directly to the artists. Gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday 11 am to 6 pm and by appointment: 310.815.8840.

Sugar by Connie Lim

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Sugar by Connie Lim

Singer Connie Lim dropped the music video for “Sugar” off her album “The Hunted.” The use of colors in the music video immediately jumps out at you. (She had a release party over the weekend, but now it’s available online.) White, Red, Black, Gold, and Blue paint the video. These colors act like metaphors for the message that Connie Lim is expressing through her song. Here’s her statement about “Sugar”:

This video is inspired by the original subject of the song: sugar daddy relationships that young African women are pushed into in order to survive. While studying at UC Berkeley, I learned about how young school girls are oftentimes pressured into relationships with their teachers who have the resources to provide basic supplies from food and water to paper and pencils. The large number of simultaneous relationships that these teachers would have with multiple girls at the same time would spread the AIDS virus much faster than the average serial monogamy that other western cultures practice. This common dynamic between young female and authoritative male haunted me for the longest time… and then I realized… aren’t we all faced with these types of predicaments, regardless of the country we live in, the skin we bear, the gender we may be?

the whole concept of taking what is somebody else’s at the cost of you own “goods” is universal and common… You’ll be amazed how it’s everywhere, once you start looking. this is not trying to show what’s right or wrong. Far from it. It’s just accepting the fact that it exists, and also recognizing the fact that we can help each other through this. i hope this video helps us remember that we are all hunted in some way or another, whether or not in the realm of sugar daddy relationships. The only way to survive in this crazy world is to do it tribal style: supporting one another. Collaborate, my lovers… it’s all about collaboration.

Now dance!

Lots of dance coordination in this video. The expressive dance moves along with colors help facilitate Connie’s message.

Sugar by Connie Lim

Behind the scenes of Sugar by Connie Lim

TonyT Sessions

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Tony T Sessions

If you’re in the Orange County area on August 29th, you might be interested in checking out the Tony T Sessions. Ever wonder what an artist thinks when they create a song? The Tony T Sessions allows the artist to talk about the songs they created, perform, and interact with a live audience and fans online in real time. Doors open at 3pm, and the concert starts at 4pm. Here’s the artist line up:

Kristine Sa
KRISTINE SA is a singer/songwriter known for her sultry voice and heartfelt lyrics. She is also a beloved Vietnamese American television producer/host known for her young, bilingual, innovative style. Her career began with music in 2000, and now in 2010, includes a wide range of mediums, talents, and languages.

DAVID Applesauce TRAN

GIANA NGUYEN
GIANA NGUYEN has collaborated and appeared on various albums with artists in the Vietnamese and American music industries. Most recently, her vocals can be heard on Don Ho Production’s “New Wave Nonstop” and Tony T Nguyen’s “Soundtrack to My Life”, released in 2009 and 2008, respectively. Giana is currently working on her debut E.P. as an independent artist, and looks forward to announcing its release later this year.

CONNIE LIM
Connie Lim is one of LA’s best kept secrets… but not for long. Influenced by artists like Imogen Heap, Zero7, Feist, Morcheeba, Portishead, Natalie Merchant, Nina Simone & Bill Withers, Lim creates a blend of what she calls “retrotronica”: a blend of old school songwriting & electronic sentiment. Her highly anticipated EP “The Hunted” is a heart-felt anthem for the underdogs and outcasts. Watch as she shares some of her insights towards the making of her upcoming album.

TONY T NGUYEN
Tony T Nguyen, a native of the southern California area. Through the years has been influenced through many genres of music. Tony recorded and toured with The Living Rocks during the 90’s. At the turn of the century, he recorded and toured with Outta Place. Artists like Clay Cook, and Ricky Lawson, recorded with Tony on his solo album. Tony released his latest album, Soundtrack to My Life, December 2008. He recently collaborated with Kristine Sa on her latest iTunes release, “Lonely Asylum – Demo Collections.”

SUE JIN
Sue Jin is an inspirational figure in the world of Asian American Artists. After graduating in 2005 with a BA degree in Anthropology from UCLA, she decided to pursue her passion for music. Since then, she has performed throughout Los Angeles and Hollywood, been a featured artist for numerous university events, appeared on MTV’s My Own, and was a top 10 finalist for Asian American Popstar. Her originality, sincerity, and soul, are what make her one of the most inspiring upcoming Asian American artists of today.

Tony T Sessions
Sunday, August 29, 2010
White House Event Center
1238 S. Beach Blvd
Anaheim, CA 92804

ADMISSION
ALL TICKETS INCLUDE FOOD AND DRINKS
Presale: $15 General Admission
$20 VIP (Near stage seating and gift bag)

LINK for PRESALE: http://www.tonytmusic.com/tickets

At the door: $10 for High School students with valid ID and under
$18 General Admission
$25 VIP

Opportunity for Sponsors:

Donation of $1000
– 10 VIP tickets
– Gift Bag
– Company advertising on print, web, and video

Donation of $500
– 6 VIP tickets
– Gift Bag
– Company advertising on print, web, and video

Donation of $250
– 4 VIP tickets
– Gift Bag
– Company advertising on print, web, and video

Photoshoot with friends and artists:

$5 per photo. On the spot professional printing!

$10 The Official “The Tony T Sessions” Artist Compilation CD
ONLY 250 copies available! A cd with music from all the artist performing that night! A donation will be made to Sweet Relief Charity.

Artist merchandise will be sold at the event!

TonyT Sessions Concert Announcement

Rice Paddy Art

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Rice Paddy Art

Rice Paddy Art is Japan’s answer to crop circles. Utilizing technology and art, the villagers at Inkadate, Japan plant thousands of rice shoots to form incredible images. Three months later, the fruits of their labor attracts thousands of visitors. Check out these unbelievable works of edible art.

Rice Paddy Art

Wonder Woman Makeover

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Wonder Woman Makeover

Wonder Woman is getting a makeover at DC Comics. Bestselling artist and DC Comics Co-Publisher Jim Lee has redesigned her costume for the modern era. Starting with Wonder Woman #600, her outfit will include midnight blue jacket, black tights, and boots. Out is the swimsuit style outfit made popular by Lynda Carter in the 70’s

Here’s some thoughts from Jim Lee about the change:

“There’s nothing more daunting than re-designing an icon, but what was refreshing and novel in Joe Straczynski’s directive to be bold in our choices was that we were starting with no preconceptions. This was no mere tweaking, no change of half-measures like haircuts or alterations of color schemes. We decided to go for broke, take no prisoners and let me tell you—it was difficult. Wonder Woman’s costume is so infused into our understanding of the identity of the character that it took many numerous back and forths ’til we broke down what existed, got back metaphorically to the clay from which Wonder Woman started and something new started to form. A design worthy of the mantle of Wonder Woman but one that didn’t scream classic superhero! So we played down and scaled back the iconic elements—the stars, the eagles, the double WW’s, lightened up the motifs and added armor which could pass as street gear. Visually, the character seems edgier than before but stylish enough to warrant a second, albeit cautious, glance. The jacket and boots confirm the costume’s functionality and the open, thinner tiara and shaped bracelets reveal a lighter, even youthful, bent to the Amazonian Princess. All in all, a difficult but rewarding reworking of an iconic costume to usher in a new age; a fresh look worthy of the character defining journey JMS has in store for her ultimate rebirth!”

Wonder Woman Makeover

Taiyo Na interview with channelAPA.com

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Taiyo Na interview with channelAPA.com

channelAPA.com East Coast Tour videos continues with Taiyo Na. We speak with him about his music background and what influences his music. Last year, Taiyo Na released his music video Lovely to Me (Immigrant Mother). He tells us about this music video and his collaboration with Magnetic North. Taiyo Na is also one of the guys behind the Sulu series. If you’re in New York, you can also see him as one of the hosts of the TV show “Asian America” on PBS.

Look for Taiyo Na and Magnetic North at the Home:Word release party tomorrow along with Heather Park and Cynthia Lin.

Taiyo Na interview with channelAPA.com