Posts Tagged ‘ Johnny Tragedy ’

The goodfoot will have an art opening, last thurs Feb 24th, 2011. The show will be up until March 29th.  This months artists are, Adam Sheppard, Joel Barber, johnny Tragedy & Tripper Dungan.

Adam Sheppard has been painting and creating art in his native home of Portland for the last 20 years.  “I work in a variety of styles and I am always experimenting with new techniques. Often I paint on objects found by the roadside or things placed next to garbage cans. Cabinet doors seem to be a popular item to throw away. I prefer painting on wood. To me It has a soul, and is more durable than canvas.” “Sometimes I create pop art, sometimes it  is abstract or illustrative. Finding a subject that I identify with and can make the viewer relate to is often the greatest challenge. I am inspired greatly by the natural environments of the northwest, as well as the hard architectural lines of the city.”  “I love Portland, snow, Frankenstein, and blackberry pie.”

Joel Barber’s formal education left him with a balance of fine art technique and design sensibilities that are apparent in his work. A lifetime of creative enthusiasm has provided him with many opportunities for experimentation with this balance, while seeking new visual languages, context, and interface between art styles and culture that effects our world. Joel’s paintings reveal various visual motifs. Many of the themes develop during the painting process, often improvised, and continue to evolve into more complex conceptual ideas.  Joel’s work has often paired mechanical techniques and graphic design style with painterly texture, and natural material such as woodgrain. The influence of pop culture, graffiti art, and graphic design affect his interpretations of traditional landscape and figure. Visually, Barber dwells in the area where there is an oscillation between the paint on the surface and the image contained within. “My first very prolific series began in 1999, in which I manipulated closely cropped photos of women’s faces, with photoshop, and used these images to map out compositions on canvas. It was an excellent experiment because the repetition gave great context and a reference point for the effectiveness of each style or technique. Now, I’ve returned to these same compositions, curious to see how the last decade has affected me stylistically.”

Johnny Tragedy was spawned by God fearing cowboys on the dusty trails of Montana. Life was so boring that he started to create art. Johnny Tragedy wishes to bring happiness and joy in this tainted journey we call life.

When Tripper Dungan was 4 he got in trouble for coloring in his brothers HeMan™ coloring book and He has been in love with art ever since. Tripper went to a magnet high school for the arts in Las Vegas, Nevada, and upon graduation made his way up the west cost via Astro Van, train and thumb. He arrived in Portland Oregon in 2002 where he has been painting, performing shadow-puppet shows, having art parties with the fabulous Junk town artists, and making cartoons.