A sharp juxtaposition
At Shulamit Nazarian, the exhibition “From Pangs to Pangolins” rearranges the way we think about things — in spades.
Organized by Houston artist Trenton Doyle Hancock, the eye-opening parade of paintings, sculptures, drawings, collages and a video combines works by three well-known artists who have made their careers in Los Angeles with five up-and-coming artists from around the U.S.
That combination could make “From Pangs to Pangolins” seem as if it’s not one show but two. That doesn’t happen. And that’s because the L.A. artists Hancock has chosen make works so different from one another that you’d never expect them to look good together, much less make sense in an exhibition.
David Hockney and the late Mike Kelley occupy opposite ends of the artistic spectrum. Kelley has a reputation for dark, heart-wrenching art about the various ways society fails its best and brightest. Hockney is known for his sensual, often hedonistic celebrations of his physical surroundings. But Hancock wreaks havoc with such simple categories.
Installed across the gallery from each other, Hockney’s iPhone and iPad drawings and Kelley’s four ink drawings look right at home with one another. Llyn Foulkes’ two mixed-media images bridge the gap beautifully. Their acerbic observations about local life link Kelley’s sharp wit and Hockney’s keen eye.
The Angelenos form the foundation that the other artists build on, riff off of and have all kinds of fun with. Cheyenne Julien and Nathan Margoni turn to Realism (via Kelley and Foulkes, respectively). Calmer and quieter yet no less biting are Zoe Hawk’s intimate oils.
Christopher Chiappa’s lacquered sculptures appear to have leaped right out of Hockney’s still lifes. JooYoung Choi’s jampacked extravaganzas stand out because they transform the best elements of Kelly, Hockney and Foulkes into a concoction all their own.
Shulamit Nazarian, 616 N. La Brea Ave., (310) 281-0961, through July 14. Closed Sundays and Mondays. www.shulamitnazarian.com