A short time ago in a galaxy closer than you think, the California Locos crash landed in a creative vortex known as Venice Beach. The California Locos: Gary Wong, Chaz Bojorquez, Norton Wisdom, John Van Hamersveld and Dave Tourje, entered the fray full force with an army of rebel support to make a stand for artistic freedom. The battle was waged and, after a mere four hours, the Locos claimed an overwhelming victory. The Rose Room was transformed into a gallery featuring the Cali Locos artwork, a new line of Dusters California Locos Skateboards and a film screening of “It’s A Crazy World Ain’t It – The Life & Times of John Van Hamersveld”. Juice morphed into a concert hall where Salba struck up the jams on deck, followed by the sonic assault of Los Savages, featuring powerhouses: Ian Espinoza, Bryan Head, Dave Tourje, Jim Grinta, Dave Ryan and Toby Holmes, with a guest appearance byLlyn Foulkes. Dan Levy brought the heavy artillery for his first solo photo show to complete the rebel strike. It was a night of good times & a triumph for artists throughout the universe.
To learn more about the California Locos, read more about each artist below, and go to www.californialocos.com.
Video filming by Dan Levy and Terri Craft. Photos in video by Dan Levy, Heidi Lemmon, Raimund Kallée and Neftalie Williams.
Photos by Neftalie Williams
Photos by Dave Tourje
Photo by Raimund Kallée
Photos by Heidi Lemmon
Photos by Dan Levy
PRESS RELEASE:
Opening night for the California Locos 2016, an epic original street/surf/skate artists show, will take place in Venice Beach, California, on June 25, 2016, from 7PM-11PM at the Rose Room, 6 Rose Ave. The California Locos 2016 show will run June 25-July 1, 2016 in Venice and will feature a variety of art discussions and mentoring panels featuring Christian Hosoi, Ivan Hosoi, Larry Bell, Oliver Bell, Jeff Ho, Jim Ganzer, Brad Howe and Michael de Nicola, moderated by acclaimed art writer, Shana Nys Dambrot.
Chaz Bojórquez, Dave Tourjé, John Van Hamersveld, Norton Wisdom, and Gary Wong—the CALIFORNIA LOCOS—represent 50 years of Los Angeles art, each having been influenced and inspired by the surf, skate, music and barrio culture, as well as formal art practice, that has combined and morphed in Los Angeles from the ’60s through today. The art they innovated—combining Graffiti, Surf/Skate, Pop Art and Punk—has gone global, and now the CALIFORNIA LOCOS boldly confront and challenge their progeny with original verve and style in this new show which explores both the sun and the shadows of Southern California.
The CALIFORNIA LOCOS—five pioneering Los Angeles artists whose roots are in graffiti, surf, skate, punk rock, as well as the contemporary artworld—bring their edgy, sun-soaked styles to an even larger audience with new works for a pair of week-long bicoastal summer shows, while launching the CALIFORNIA LOCOS skateboards by DUSTERS CALIFORNIA, led by creative director Nano Nobrega and premiering highlights from the documentary Crazy World Ain’t It—The Life and Times of John Van Hamersveld. In addition, a new collaborative poster design by John Van Hamersveld and Dave Tourjé will be released.
For the bicoastal shows—independent, DIY events sponsored by JUICE MAGAZINE that stay true to the CALIFORNIA LOCOS’ aesthetic of bucking the status quo—expect new works that explore the dichotomies of SoCal, plus an exhibition of the exclusive skateboard collaboration with the CALIFORNIA LOCOS and DUSTERS CALIFORNIA, as well as live music from eclectic blues provocateurs, LOS SAVAGES, featuring Ian Espinoza, Dave Tourjé, and Gary Wong with Norton Wisdom. Maverick artist/musician and American treasure, Llyn Foulkes, will also be joining the Los Savages jam session. SALBA (Steve Alba), legendary skateboarder, godfather of pool skating, guitarist and Skateboarding Hall of Famer will open the night’s musical festivities featuring a set with a special all-star group, Salba & His Heavy Friends. This is a show not to be missed.
Art critic, Shana Nys Dambrot, writes about the CALIFORNIA LOCOS in the Huffington Post “What they did changed everything — but what they are doing now is the best work of their lives.”
Former curator of the contemporary collection of the Norton Simon Museum, Michelle Deziel, describes the CALIFORNIA LOCOS, “These native Angelenos grew up independently in all corners of this expansive city immersed in the myriad of colorful and intense L.A. subcultures—gangs, hot rod, surf, graffiti, skate, funk, punk and rock. Rather than suggesting a cohesive or coinable L.A. aesthetic, California Locos presents a collision of visions—a kaleidoscopic perspective of the urban art experience as seen and interpreted by L.A. insiders through highly individualized and expertly crafted works of art.”
The CALIFORNIA LOCOS received critical acclaim in both Los Angeles and Art Basel Miami for their 2014 debut, and with CALIFORNIA LOCOS 2016, this quintet of quintessential SoCal artists will ride the endless waves even further.
California Locos in Chinatown…
CALIFORNIA LOCOS:
Chaz Bojórquez, known as the “godfather of graffiti art”, is considered one of the first artists who successfully made the transition from street to gallery, and is credited with bringing the West Coast style of graffiti into prominence, evolving it from a Northeast L.A. gang-oriented form, into an extremely fluid calligraphic style of international importance. His iconic street image, a stylized skull called “Senor Suerte” (Mr. Luck), has become a seminal icon in graffiti art, becoming known as the first stencil tag- a full 20 years before Banksy made the stencil his iconic form. Bojórquez’s paintings are in the permanent collections of the Smithsonian, Laguna Museum of Art, M.O.C.A. and L.A.C.M.A. and many more. Bojórquez, a Chouinard alum, was prominently featured in the renowned Art in the Streets exhibit at MOCA in 2011, as well as numerous international exhibitions and is known as a primary influence on many contemporary graffiti artists such as Retna, Banksy and Shepard Fairey.Dave Tourjé was born and raised in the culturally eclectic Northeast L.A. of the 1970s and his upbringing amongst the skaters, gangs, and the area’s tribal friction plays heavily in his work – his presence as an original vertical skater showing through in the attitude and energy of his iconography. Also a musician, Tourjé was involved in the important L.A. Punk and Post Punk scene of the late ‘70s and early ‘80s. As a member of the influential band the Dissidents, he played shows with Camper Van Beethoven, Saccharine Trust and The Minutemen as well as many others. Tourjé’s complex, mainly large-scale reverse-paintings on acrylic glass, oscillate between high and low, punk and institutional hegemony and combine elements through many disciplines, having also attended Art Center and UCSB’s College of Creative Studies during the late ‘70s. He was the subject of a one-man exhibition covering 15 years of his paintings at the Riverside Art Museum in 2002. His work has been featured at the Orange County Museum of Art, and Laguna Art Museum, as well as numerous galleries since 1985.John Van Hamersveld is an American graphic artist and illustrator. He created “The Endless Summer” poster in 1966, and designed record jackets for pop and psychedelic bands, since the 1960s. Albums include Hotter Than Hell by Kiss, Magical Mystery Tour by The Beatles, Crown of Creation by Jefferson Airplane and Exile on Main Street by The Rolling Stones. He created the 1984 LA Olympics poster and 360 foot mural, the identity for Jimmy’Z surf brand, and the brand identity of Fatburger. Van Hamersveld’s work is in the collections of the LACMA, MoMA, Cooper Hewitt, and Smithsonian museums. His psychedelic renderings, whether for posters or albums, are widely regarded as some of the best of the form. Yet, what the public may be surprised to discover is just how dynamic the rest of his work is; his output as a draftsman, designer and photographer continues to be impressive and compelling.Norton Wisdom has been collaborating with musical ensembles for live art painting performances since 1979. His collaborations with renowned artists include The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Nels Cline (Wilco), Bernard Fowler (Rolling Stones), Ivan Neville, Stephen Perkins (Jane’s Addiction), Llyn Foulkes, National Bamboo Orchestra of Bali, the Disney Hall with Christoph Bull, and the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. His live painting performances have touched off a growing international movement of the same type, which he has been forwarding since the ‘70s, and he is known as a prime mover in this growing genre. His formal studio painting practice includes a meditative dialogue with trapezoidal shapes and gestural elements, which he returns to as a formal and continuous response in his evolution as a renowned third generation abstract painter. His early influences at Chouinard included John Altoon and Emerson Woelffer.Gary Wong studied under Emerson Woelffer and Matsumi Kanemitsu at Chouinard and was a vital part of the shifting dialogue integral to the formation of West Coast postmodernism as well as surf/skate/rock culture as we know it today, being part of the legendary underground collective the Jook Savages with Rick Griffin, as well as tight associations with the likes of Boyd Elder (Eagles), Ivan Hosoi (Hosoi Skates) and Jim Ganzer (Jimmy Z). His visual language is a sophisticated collage-based paint/draw process that often uses photography, and reflects his involvement in music as well as wider social and political concerns. His process combines his formal approach as well as a folk-like primal style. Known in the L.A. Blues scene as “Charlie Chan”, he is a legendary presence as a well-known bandleader, gigging regularly throughout L.A. Close friends and associates have included artists as diverse as Al Ruppersberg, Doug Wheeler and Terry Allen.
EVENT PARTNERS:
Dusters California – Dusters’ roots lie in the cradle of surf & skate culture in the golden haze of California. Bred from the same spirit that was born in the 60’s and 70’s when skateboarding, surfing, and music defined themselves against establishment. Dusters California is built by a team that understands, in and out, the functionality of these boards with more than 25 years of experience in the industry. Dusters has learned the importance of the fit and finishes of a skateboard and you can see that by analyzing every single detail on Dusters boards. Dusters California – originating from the heart and soul of skateboarding. For more information, visit dusterscalifornia.comJuice Magazine – Since 1993, Juice Magazine has been dedicated to the core of skateboarding, surfing and punk rock with a focus on in-depth interviews by the icons of skate, surf and punk rock culture. The Juice Magazine crew includes a line-up of surf and skate legends, and the honest approach of their stories and photos make Juice Magazine more than just a magazine. Juice Magazine is committed to giving credit to the true pioneers and innovators of skateboarding, surfing and music and keeping it punk.For more information, visit juicemagazine.comCalifornia Locos 2016 – California Locos 2016 is a multi-media exhibition of art, skate, music and film that brings together the work of five of the most compelling visual artists working in Los Angeles today. Chaz Bojórquez, Dave Tourjé, John Van Hamersveld, Norton Wisdom and Gary Wong, together and separately, embody the innovative, lively and rebellious spirit of Los Angeles. As diverse as the city itself, the methods and materials these reputed West Coast artists use vary widely, from Wisdom’s loose and spontaneous abstractions and performance painting to Van Hamersveld’s deliberate, psychedelic graphics, and from Wong’s sophisticated paint/draw paintings to Tourjé’s reverse-painted diatribes and Bojórquez’s painterly street graffiti. Their works speak to broader, more universal human experiences, resulting in both a local and global resonance – a connection to both L.A’s high-art sensibilities and the origins of rebellion. For more information, visit californialocos.com
CALIFORNIA LOCOS 2016
ORIGINAL STREET/SURF/SKATE ARTISTS SHOW IN VENICE BEACH, CA & VIRGINIA BEACH, VA
TWO SPECTACULAR EVENTS – WEST COAST AND EAST COAST
VENICE BEACH, CA
JUNE 25-JULY 1, 2016 Venice Beach, CA
JUICE, Venice, CA
The ROSE ROOM, 6 Rose Ave, Venice, CA 90291
Opening reception: Both locations, Saturday, June 25, 2016, 7pm
VIRGINIA BEACH, VA
AUGUST 13-20, 2016 Virginia Beach, VA
STUDIO 17, 536 Virginia Beach Blvd, Virginia Beach, VA 23451
John van Hamersveld knows how to Vegas. Check out this video of an outstanding visual
project he created for the famous Fremont street video ceiling in old school Vegas.
John Van Hamersveld’s ‘Great Wave’ mural honors Hermosa Beach surfing…
Early 1950’s Palos Verdes Surf Gang with John Van Hamersveld on the far right.Clark Foam logo designed 53 years ago by John Van Hamersveld…”I was still at Art Center College when I did it, I had to draw the type by hand with pen and ink the way my instructors taught me. When I did the Endless Summer Poster I had to draw the type for the mechanical for the printer in those days.”The Endless Summer: Documentary filmmaker & surfer, Bruce Brown, follows surfers Michael Hynson and Robert August on an around-the-world surfing adventure in a search for the surfer’s holy grail that Brown dubs “The Perfect Wave.” John Van Hamersveld designed the iconic Endless Summer movie poster using a photograph. He arranged the shoot in January 1964, after filmmaker Bruce Brown showed him the film’s opening scene. He positioned Brown in the foreground with his surfboard on his head and the film’s two stars between Brown and the setting sun. He converted the photo into an abstract design by reducing each color to a single tone and giving each image a single, hard edge… John Van Hamersveld describes the creation of the image, “With The Endless Summer poster, the guy with the surfboard on his head is Bruce Brown, the filmmaker, but people don’t know that. They ask questions constantly. “Who is the guy with the board over his head? The movie is about two people. Who is the third guy? I didn’t see him in the movie.” Bruce became statuary, so it’s fantastic.”John Van Hamersveld: 4th Edition “Pinnacle Hendrix” Poster.John Van Hamersveld. The Next Wave. Digital Print on Entrada from drawing.John Van Hamersveld: Duke Kahanamoku: Color Digital print on Moab from drawing.John Van Hamersveld. Gemengde Gekleurde #2. Solvent pigment on Canvas from drawings.John Van Hamersveld: 3rd Edition 1968 Pinnacle Indian PosterJohn Van Hamersveld interview by Josh Landau. Photo by Olivia Jaffe. Artwork by John Van Hamersveld… Juice Magazine #73… I was sitting in my room when my dad came in and said, “Hey Josh, this is John.” A tall man about his age stepped in and, with a grin, began surveying my rock and skate poster-filled walls from behind his round Lennon glasses. It honestly took me a moment to realize who it was, and then it struck me that my dad had said he was working with “The Endless Summer guy.” My brain dropped its jaw on the floor. The birth of California culture. One of the few molecules from the nucleus of surfing and skateboarding as we know it. I nerded out full on and declared my deep worship of his work. He thanked me and replied with “You know the one they always talk about…the birth of metal….BLUE CHEER.” I completely lost it. What a badass thing to say. I was standing face-to-face with classic album covers to classic albums by the Stones, Beatles, Kiss, and, yes, my favorite, Blue Cheer. I told him that my good friend has his text “Vincebus Eruptum” straight from the album cover tattooed on his arm. He didn’t seem to have a remark for it, but my dad quickly said, “We’ll find out where to get him some help.” Haha. No. My buddy Barrett needs no help and somehow Van Hamersveld didn’t need much either. When you look from his surf magazine work to rock albums and posters and even Fatburger’s logo, you’d surely think he was 10 people. John is an incredibly prolific badass whose impact and influence on 20th century youth culture is beyond measure or compare. – JOSH LANDAU
NORTON WISDOM:
Steve Olson talks art with Norton Wisdom for Juice Magazine #73.
Norton Wisdom creating magic. Photo by Dan LevyNorton Wisdom art and a tale of skate history from Wisdom… “In 1974, Topanga Beach became open to the public and I became a lifeguard at Topanga. These two brothers came up to my tower and started talking to me about skateboarding, and this is when Cadillac wheels were just getting going. One of them said they had found a pipe in Santa Monica at a construction site and they were doing insane skateboarding in this giant cement pipe. He said that he couldn’t wait for the surf to come up so all the other guys would go surfing and he would have the pipe to himself. That’s when I knew that skateboarding had moved into its own sphere. The next interesting thing was that my mom had a pottery yard across the street from the Marina SkatePark where Ivan Hosoi worked. It looked like a Sanford and Son junkyard, and she wouldn’t sell to anyone that she didn’t like, so she became a legend in the area. I would hang out with my mom, and the kids from the skateboard park would come and hang out at the pottery yard. Then Danny Bearer would hang out at the lifeguard tower. They had all started skating La Tuna Canyon, which was a mind blower because it was a challenging canyon, and they’d skateboard down to the lifeguard towers and hang out there. That tower became a vortex for all of that. I don’t know if Davey Hilton was part of that, but George Trafton was. That became my relationship to skateboarding through Danny Bearer, George Trafton, Davey Hilton and all those guys, surfing at Topanga. When the Marina skateboard park folded, I bought the Turning Point Ramp they had there and put it at my house at the beach. It looked like a capsule made out of polycarbonate. I had it for a while and, eventually, I sold it to a drummer up in Topanga Canyon and it’s still there.” – Norton Wisdom [Juice Magazine #73 interview by Steve Olson]
“Lifeguard Wrestles Shark, Gets Sore Nose” By BORIS YARO, LA Times Staff Writer… Shark bites are rare along the California coast, almost as rare as what happened to county Lifeguard Norton Wisdom, 23, in a bout with a 200-pound blue shark off Topanga Beach. It punched him in the nose. But Wisdom wasn’t complaining. No one else was hurt by the seven-foot monster and he and his partner. Bill Powers, finally managed to beach the thing after an hourlong battle. Wisdom said he and Powers saw the shark swimming near surfers as they were opening their lifeguard tower Tuesday morning. “His head was above water and his mouth was open,” Wisdom said. “He was in kind of feeding frenzy, but he didn’t have any object in particular that he was attacking. It was apparent that something was wrong.” Surfer Lyn Overby, 29, of Topanga, had already reached that conclusion. Overby said the shark had brushed against his leg, so he “just started paddling in, quickly.” Overby emerged unscathed, and Wisdom and Powers called for a boat. Told no boat was near enough, they entered the water. Powers with a three-foot pole with a gaff hook on the end and Wisdom with a spear gun. They paddled out on surfboards and tried to get the shark to go away, but the shark wouldn’t cooperate. First it turned on Wisdom, knocking the butt end of the spear gun into his nose. It turned on Powers when Powers hit it with the gaff hook, forcing Wisdom to fire the spear gun to distract it. The spear just bounced off the shark’s hide. For the next 40 minutes the two men wrestled with the shark in shallow water. Once, the shark disappeared. That worried Wisdom. “It’s one thing,” he said, “when you can see where his head is…” Finally they gained a solid footing on the beach and–with the aid of spectators–pulled the shark out of the water and tied it to one of the lifeguard tower’s support posts. After they caught their breath, the two lifeguards discovered the probable reason for the shark’s strange behavior. Someone, probably a fisherman, had shot it in the head. Out of its element, it shortly expired. – LOS ANGELES TIMES, January, 28, 1982…Norton Wisdom ArtNorton Wisdom ArtNorton Wisdom ArtNORTON WISDOM interview by STEVE OLSON
CHAZ BOJORQUEZ:
Chaz Bojorquez can get down on any type of canvas.Chaz Bojórquez believes that true self-expression comes from the soul. At an early age, in the 1950’s he experienced the graffiti tradition of the East Los Angeles Mexican-Americans. Los Angeles ‘Cholo’ style graffiti was dictated by an honored code of writing. Allegiance to that code of traditional writing brought you respect. In 1968, out of high school with a liberal arts/mathematics diploma, and one year of state college, Chaz enrolled into Chouinard art school (known today as Cal Arts). He also studied Asian calligraphy from Master Yun Chung Chiang (Master Chiang studied under Pu Ju, brother of the last Emperor of China). From all of these experiences, in 1969 he combined the tradition and honor from Cholo gang graffiti and the educational knowledge from art school, and with the spiritual skills of Asian calligraphy. Chaz was one of the first graffiti writers from Los Angeles, with his own style.“I feel that writing your name makes you exist, how you write makes you strong, and by writing on the wall, it makes you immortal.” – Chaz BojorquezChaz Bojorquez: Surf ArtChaz Bojorquez Skull
Chaz Bojorquez“When I started in the 1970s, there was only one can and only one tip — Krylon. It had low pressure, bad pigment and the paint would run down my elbows. So I went back to the old tradition of graffiti writers from the ’40s who used a brush. I use a brush and acrylic today.” – Chaz BojorquezChaz Bojorquez ArtChaz Bojorquez Art
GARY WONG:
Gary Wong aka Charlie Chan and Dave Tourje getting geared up for the get down on June 25 for the @californialocos @juicemagazine @dusterscalifornia show.Philosophic art-freedom began to fully manifest for Gary Wong in the late 70’s, hastened when he befriended a fast rising art star named Jean-Michel Basquiat. Basquiat had just arrived on the West Coast, showing at Gagosian’s gallery in Venice. Wong, for a day gig, did art cartage for many artists, including Basquiat. “I struck up a friendship with Jean-Michel and we kicked it around for awhile. I was able to see first hand what was happening to him with the gallery scene. At the time, he was still free and not tied up into having to produce a lot. He still had his aesthetic intact. So I took him quite seriously like, you know, ‘this kid is really saying something’. I was affected by his use of words, his use of images, his use of found objects. To me, it was a very Dada thing.” And this, among many influences, has contributed to Wong’s unique artistic statement. He paints on found paintings, makes collages mixed with primitive, visceral imagery, with abstract poetry scratched into the surface. The result: a simple, powerful, cryptic message. Today, Wong remains resolute in his direction. “Knowing what you don’t want carries as much weight as knowing what you do want.” – Words by Dave Tourje… Gary Wong will be presenting new works of art and playing with the Los Savages at California Locos 2016.Gary Wong ArtGary Wong ArtGary Wong ArtGary Wong ArtGary Wong ArtGary Wong and John Van Hamersveld. Photo by Dan Levy
DAVE TOURJE:
SoCal rock n roll surf skate artist, Dave Tourjé, grinds the Fruit Bowl in the golden days… This dynamic artist and musician has been described as “a freaking force of nature–an unstoppable creative giant.” Photo by Kevin ReganDave Tourje’s artwork, Ride Ride Ride (The Wild Surf), “extols direct references to Los Angeles’ pervasive surf culture. Tourje is an LA. native whose amalgam of multicultural inspiration is called upon in his artistic production. He grew up in the gang-riddled Northeast L.A./Highland Park area where gang members were called The Avenues and thug mentality prevailed. He was an early arrival to vertical skateboarding, and an avid surfer, which made him fast on his feet and able to fluidly negotiate difficult terrain. Living briefly in Mexico City while very young found him drinking in the work of great muralists – the legacy of artists like Diego Rivera and David Siqueiros sated his penchant for art made ‘for the people’. And his musical background as a player in the post-punk band The Dissidents added an unpredictable, almost irreverent tone, albeit a populist one.” as described by Annie Wharton. — Item of interest… Ride the Wild Surf is a beach party style movie filmed in 1963. Unlike most films in the genre, it is known for its exceptional big wave surf footage.Dave Tourje ArtDave Tourje ArtDave Tourje with the Los Savages. Photo by Dan LevyDave Tourje ArtDave Tourje ArtDave TourjeDave Tourje ArtDave Tourje
LOS SAVAGES:
Eclectic blues provocateurs, LOS SAVAGES, featuring Ian Espinoza, Dave Tourjé, and Gary Wong with Norton Wisdom will be playing live at the Cali Locos 2016 show in Venice Beach on June 25, 2016 at Juice Magazine. It is an honor to host the Los Savages, which highlights singer/songwriter/guitar virtuoso, Ian Espinoza, who was voted Best Western Duo (along with Gary Allegretto) by the Academy of Western Artists, and regularly charts #1 on the Top 30 Cowboy / Western albums. Ian has also played with a variety of bands including The Blasters with Phil Alvin. This will be a show not to be missed.
Los Savages. Photo by Dan LevyIan Espinoza, guitar and vocals (Allegretto/Espinoza, Drool)Dave Tourjé, guitar (Cohorts, Dissidents)Bryan Head, drums (John Doe, Roger Hodgson- Supertramp)Jim Grinta, trumpet (Michael Jackson, Andres Bocelli)
PRESS CLIPPINGS:
Huffington Post:
Founded in the mid-1800s, the Arts and Crafts Movement was a radical departure from the Industrial Age’s mass production and stifling social restrictions. Standing for fine craftsmanship, advocating social and economic reforms, and rebelling against conventional social morés, Arts and Crafts was in many ways the punk rock art form of its time. And while the progenitors of Arts and Crafts stressed craftsmanship, they were not opposed to manufactured goods; they just wanted the machines to be mastered and to produce quality items. It was also paramount that the decorative elements match the use of the item. Owen Jones, one of the movement’s founders stressed, that there must be “fitness in the ornament to the thing ornamented.” It’s that spirit, transferred through a century and a half of social upheavals that finds its way into a new line of skateboards which features artwork by a legendary group of artists, the California Locos. The Locos—Chaz Bojorquez, Dave Tourjé, John Van Hamersveld, Norton Wisdom, and Gary Wong—represent 50 years of Los Angeles art, each having been influenced and inspired by the surf, skate, punk rock, and the barrio culture that combined in Los Angeles during the 1980s and 90s. The art they innovated—combining graffiti, Pop Art, jazz and punk—has gone global, just like that ulitmate SoCal sport, skateboarding. Arts and Crafts utilized folk art motifs raised to a higher level as well as stylized images from nature as its foundations. And the art that the Locos create, with its roots in graffiti, surf, skate and punk rock, is modern edgy “folk” art —these folks being urban punks whose experiences with nature were the beaches where they surfed, the cement pipes and empty swimming pools where they skated, and the streets where they ran. These five skate decks, intended for use, appeal to art collectors and art-loving skaters alike, and each are as individual as the artists themselves. The California Locos skateboards, manufactured by Dusters California with Creative Director Nano Nobrega, carry through the founding concepts of the Arts and Crafts Movement. Noted art critic Shana Nys Dambrot commented, “It’s a rare enough thing, the creation of commercially available design objects emblematic of countercultural art history and contemporary fine art, with epic attention to the finer points of rough, sexy, funny, political, and avant-garde post-punk beauty. Yet these decks retain the rawness of the unique original works that have inspired generations — including the coming up of the designers who produced the line. Furthermore, these works’ production value and durable craftsmanship are at the apex of functional design that only the world’s leading design and distribution outfit could deliver. “ The California Locos/Dusters boards will be included as part of a bi-coastal show featuring new works by Bojórquez, Tourjé, Van Hamersveld, Wisdom, and Wong that explore both the sun and the shadows of Southern California. The week-long shows, sponsored by JUICE Magazine with Terri Craft and Dan Levy, begin appropriately in Venice, CA for the week of June 25 to July 1 and then move to Virginia Beach, VA August 13 to 20th, at Studio 17. Each show’s opening night will provide a multi-media experience with live music from Los Savages (featuring Ian Espinoza, Bryan Head, Jim Grinta, Toby Holmes, Tourjé and Wong) with live painting by Wisdom, and clips from the documentary Crazy World Ain’t It—The Life and Times of John Van Hamersveld. The Locos received critical acclaim in both Los Angeles and Miami for their 2014 debut, and with CALIFORNIA LOCOS 2016, this quintet of quintessential SoCal artists will be riding the waves styling the streets even further. – Shana Nys Dambrot
WhiteHot Magazine:
“Artists have a responsibility to their work to raise it above the vernacular.”
– Rene Ricard, The Radiant Child, Artforum, 1981
To raise one’s art above the vernacular is to make monumental what no one could before, to take that which is tangible and forge the unreal; to avoid what’s popular in exchange for extraordinary. No group of west coast artists–from this writer’s perspective– manifest the words of the late, great art critic, Rene Ricard, better than the California Locos, artists who helped inaugurate the California-as-brand lifestyle as spectacularly as the Beach Boys or The Mamas and the Papas with their 1965 smash hit California Dreamin’. Back when Abstract-Expressionism, Assemblage, Finish Fetish and Light & Space inseminated the Rock, Surf, Punk and Skate culture of Los Angeles in the 1960’s and 70’s, a new, bastard-like, breed of artist emerged and a nascent groundswell of pure native-Angeleno voice started to clamor throughout the entire SoCal urban-sprawl region–around places like Avenue 43 in Highland Park (a no man’s land of turf wars and violence and home to the Avenues Gang) or along the Arroyo Seco, the ‘dry stream’ that runs up and through this Northeast LA hood. Highly individualistic and unconventional, these artists were born with such a counterculture mindset and fervor, with such dynasism and a style completely their own, that the artist–like the art itself–deviated from the easel to the skatepark, from the gallery to the ‘Locals Only’ break at Huntington Beach, from safe studio with brushes to enemy territory with spray cans, from stretching canvases to shaping surfboards, these artists created an art form that characterized and interpreted their SoCal lifestyle like no one before them. Theirs was a subculture born on the periphery of legitamacy, in gangs, punk bands and surf line-ups, and they rolled fiercely independent, rebellious and fearless and have names like Tourjé, Van Hamersveld, Wong, Bojórquez and Wisdom and who are without question equals to their east coast rivals –to the likes of Rene Ricard’s ‘Radiant’ children Basquiat, Haring and Rifka. These are artists who upon further DNA testing (and a few record breaking auctions) will prove beyond doubt that they are De Kooning’s, Ruscha’s, Baldessari’s, and Hockney’s, legitimate heirs. –by Gregory de la Haba
