iPhone - Gamechange

by Gregg Chadwick 

 

Gregg Chadwick
The Station Agent (detail)
54"x54" oil on linen 2014
Private Collection, Los Angeles, California
Featured at the LA Art Show 2015 - LA Convention Center and illustrated in the catalog. January 14-18, 2015

In his biography of Apple cofounder Steve Jobs, biographer Walter Isaacson describes the unveiling of the iPhone on January 9, 2007 at Macworld in San Francisco:

"Every once in a while a revolutionary product comes along that changes everything," Steve Jobs said. "Today we are introducing three revolutionary products," Jobs continued. "The first one is a widescreen iPod with touch controls. The second is a revolutionary mobile phone. The third is a breakthrough Internet communications device ... Are you getting it? These are not three separate devices, this is one device, and we are calling it the iPhone."

In my paintings, I have often depicted communication devices. From phone booths in Tokyo and New York City, to a glowing computer lighting my daughter Cassiel in our Santa Monica home - people interacting with machines intrigues me artistically. In my graduate show at NYU, a public phone stands sentinel on an urban night in my painting "Oak Knoll Sandwich". In my more recent artworks "iPhone Light"and "The Station Agent" figures look down at their glowing screens as they make their way through life. I remember riding the subway in Manhattan in the early 1980s and looking across the rail car at the rows of seated figures looking down avoiding an unwanted gaze. Now, with cell phones in hand the downward gaze is ubiquitous across the world. Since the unveiling of the iPhone in 2007, we carry in our pockets and bags a device that is phone, music player, and computer in one. Thanks to the developments spurred on by the iPhone we are connected and protected. It is the availability of video on our phones that allows us to keep track of the abuse of force by unruly cops and get off my lawn civil no-gooders. And we can celebrate life by recording and posting silly moments of connection on Tik Tok and IG Reels. For many of us, all of life has become a film as we listen to the soundtrack of our journey across time via the music library in our phone. And sometimes we have to join Lizzo and ask - "Where the hell is my phone?"

Gregg Chadwick
iPhone Light
6"x4" oil on zinc 2013
Julie Weiss Collection, Los Angeles, California

Gregg Chadwick
Oak Knoll Sandwich
72"x96" oil on linen 1986
Private Collection, New York City 

Thank You Fired Twitter Folks

I joined Twitter in April 2009, in time for Iran's Green Wave and the BFD of Obamacare. Thank you to the twitter employees who have been with us along the way. Please read and share their goodbyes at #LoveWhereYouWorked pic.twitter.com/uotZb65YVN

— Gregg Chadwick (@greggchadwick) November 4, 2022

Writing a Chrysanthemum: The Drawings of Rick Barton

Fascinating new exhibition of drawings by Rick Barton at the The Morgan Library & Museum.

They write:

"Very little is known about Rick Barton (1928–1992), who, between 1958 and 1962, created hundreds of drawings of striking originality. His subjects range from the intimacy of his room to the architecture of Mexican cathedrals, and from the gathering places of Beat-era San Francisco to the sinuous contours of plants. Drawing almost exclusively in pen or brush and ink, he captured his subjects in a web of line that was sometimes simple and economical, but more often complex and kaleidoscopic. With the exception of small displays in cafés and bookshops in the 1950s and ‘60s, this exhibition of sixty drawings, two accordion-fold sketchbooks, and five printed works, is the first time Barton’s art is being seen by the public."

 

“Untitled [Seated figure in the Black Cat Café],” Sept. 27, 1960, pen and ink, in the exhibition “Writing a Chrysanthemum: The Drawings of Rick Barton” at the Morgan Library & Museum. UCLA Library Special Collections 

The Morgan provides details on Rick Barton's drawing: "The Black Cat Café, located at the edge of San Francisco's North Beach, was a cause célèbre in the fight for gay rights. In the 1940s it became a gathering place for the queer community, attracting the attention of state liquor officials, who often revoked the licenses of gay bars. For nearly fifteen years the Black Cat's owner fought in court to retain its liquor license. The Black Cat gained additional renown tor the popular drag performances of activist Jose Sarria, who mounted a historic, if ultimately unsuccessful. campaign for a seat on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1961. ...this figure who is absorbed in a book, bears some resemblance to Sarria."

More by Walker Mimms in the New York Times - Unearthing Rick Barton, a Boho Bard of North Beach

"His drawings from the early ’60s in 'craggy, neurotic, ruthlessly precise ink' are on view in a remarkable museum debut at the Morgan Library."

Catalog Available from the Morgan and also Here 

The Painter of the World

Gregg Chadwick

The Painter of the World ( Seol-min) 

12"x9"oil on panel 2021

At the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco a few years ago, I watched the Korean Buddhist Nun artist Seol-min paint a gorgeous artwork of the Water Moon Avalokiteshvara, also known as Guanyin. Her canvas was laid flat on the floor and she painted on top of it as if she was bodysurfing a gentle wave with brushes in hand. The large hall where Seol-min painted was quiet. The gentle sound of her brushes created a kind of music that echoed off the marble walls. My oil on panel painting "The Painter of the World" is my latest artwork inspired by this experience with the artist Seol-min.

The Asian Art Museum has created a video of Seol-min at the museum. I am in the background, off camera, watching the events.
Video Below. Link at: https://education.asianart.org/resources/korean-buddhist-art/

Featured at Saatchi Art's The Other Art Fair Los Angeles at Barker Hangar from September 23-26, 2021.

Thanks again to everyone who enjoyed my paintings at @theotherartfair Many of the paintings are available for purchase on my @saatchiart page. Link at: https://www.saatchiart.com/greggchadwick

#theotherartfair #theotherartfairla #art #artshow #la #losangeles #laartshow #laart #collectart #artcollector #artfair #santamonica #buddhism #buddha #saffron #light #SanFrancisco #AsianArtMuseum #CityOfLove #Korea #KoreanArt

 

Kamala Harris on Love

@kamalaharris at her best. (Which is very, very good.) https://t.co/gP9f5mNrXk

— David Rothkopf (@djrothkopf) October 11, 2019

Love Is Love!

Kamala Harris Officially Announces Her Candidacy for President of the United States

“We are here because the American dream and our American democracy are under attack and on the line like never before. We are here at this moment in time because we must answer a fundamental question. Who are we? Who are we as Americans? So, let’s answer that question to the world and each other right now: America, we are better than this,” - Kamala Harris Jan 27, 2019 Oakland, CA 

Sen. @KamalaHarris: "With faith in God, with fidelity to country, and with the fighting spirit I got from my mother, I stand before you today to announce my candidacy for President of the United States."

Full video here: https://t.co/qPadtK25Pr pic.twitter.com/rCIwj2NpGW

— CSPAN (@cspan) January 27, 2019

Kamala Harris shows why Trump's 2020 advisers are terrified of her. https://t.co/LPY50S9vPA pic.twitter.com/wYYs3ipaai

— Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) January 27, 2019

HARRIS: When we have children in cages crying for their mothers and fathers, don't you dare call that "border security." That’s human rights abuse.

🔥🔥🔥pic.twitter.com/CaF3TeUVN0

— Mikel Jollett (@Mikel_Jollett) January 27, 2019

“We know this is not going to be easy. We know what the doubters will say ... it’s not your time ... wait your turn ... the odds are long. They’ll say it can’t be done. But America’s story has always been written by people who can see what can be unburdened by what has been.” pic.twitter.com/FJ4lJ1yelc

— Maya Harris (@mayaharris_) January 27, 2019

SO proud of my Oakland today!!#KamalaHarris2020 pic.twitter.com/qEV9zeWK2j

— Gina Tomlinson (@GinaCTomlinson) January 27, 2019

Kamala Harris implores the country to act on global warming at her campaign kickoff: "Let's speak truth. Climate change is real, and it is happening now." Via @tictoc pic.twitter.com/ccEOOdvzvQ

— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) January 27, 2019

Please join me in celebrating the 39th Venice Family Clinic’s Art Walk & Auctions!

by Gregg Chadwick

Venice Art Walk & Auctions – Sunday, May 20 from Noon-6pm .

Silent Art Auction

Noon–6pm

Gregg Chadwick

Cool, Gray, City of Love

24"x24" oil on linen 2018

Honored that my painting Cool, Gray, City of Love will be featured in this year's 39th Venice Family Clinic's Art Walk and Auctions. In the years that I lived in San Francisco, on most weekday mornings, I would walk with my young daughter along Market Street to the Cable Car turnaround. She would board eagerly, her face pressed up against the glass as the car would climb a seemingly insurmountable hill. The Gripman would nod to me and smile as we rode together into the fog. My painting Cool, Gray, City of Love looks back to those San Francisco mornings. City of Love indeed.

Venice Family Clinic’s Art Walk & Auctions raises funds to help provide quality primary health care to 26,000 low-income men, women and children annually.

Services Include Medical + Dental + Vision + Behavioral Health + Substance Use Treatment + Child Development + Health Education + Health Insurance Enrollment

Sites In Venice + Santa Monica + Mar Vista + Inglewood + Culver City

Be inspired with me by the creativity and generosity of leading contemporary artists. Place your bid and join us in providing health care to people in need. Click here to view the 2018 Participating Artists.

View and bid on the entire auction at Paddle8 from May 7-May 18

Click here to bid early or if you can’t attend the event, to proxy bid.

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Artist Studio Tours

Noon–4pm

Meet local artists and get a behind-the-scenes look at their creative process. Your $50 donation also includes a 2018 Venice Art Walk t-shirt by signature artist Alexis Smith.

Click here to purchase tickets.

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Food + Live Music + Beer & Wine Garden + Family Fun + Dog Daycare + Bike Valet + Art Installations

Noon–6pm

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New This Year: Interactive Workshops

11am–5pm

Jewelry Making with Amanda Diaz

Family Crafts with Art Camp LA

Floral Design with Art Fleur

Succulent Arrangements with Big Red Sun

Art with Claudia Concha

Macramé Wall Hanging Workshop with Faithful Artisans

Candle Making with Flores Lane

Calligraphy with High Pulp

Tickets are required for the artist studio tours and interactive workshops and can be purchased in advance at venicefamilyclinic.org/artwalk. Questions? Call 310.664.7916.

Curatorial & Host Committee

Robert Berman, Beth DeWoody, Laddie John Dill, Sam Durant, Peter Fetterman, Andrea Fiuczynski, Robert Galstian, John Geresi, Adam Gross, Jacquie Israel, Jaime Manne, Ana Prvacki, Bert Rodriguez, Sonny Ruscha, Analia Saban, Jessica Trent, Billie Milam Weisman, Kulapat Yantrasast

Steering Committee

Joyce Akashi, Penny Akashi, Barbara Beezy, Kristina Campbell, Amy Coane, Debora Dale, Samantha Frank, Erika Fujitani, Cindy Henry, Shelley Hochberg, KC Mancebo, Etan Milgrom, Matthew Quan, Jodie Rea, Gwen Samuels, Jessamine Sison, Irene Weibel

"This is what systemic oppression looks like." - Eric Reid

Statement by @E_Reid35 regarding the Vice President's brief appearance at the game. "This is what systemic oppression looks like." pic.twitter.com/Aoy2GWons2

— Jennifer Lee Chan (@jenniferleechan) October 8, 2017

Statement by @E_Reid35 regarding the Vice President's brief appearance at the game. "This is what systemic oppression looks like."

Why Colin and I intentionally decided to kneel as a sign of respecthttps://t.co/NfangCnW0e

— Eric Reid (@E_Reid35) September 25, 2017

To understand systemic oppression you have to know its history. Watching @Ava’s 13th on Netflix will open your eyes

— Eric Reid (@E_Reid35) October 9, 2017

Everything Jemele Hill says here is 100% true and inoffensive.

ESPN is trying to silence a black woman for EDUCATING people about change. pic.twitter.com/2NP9B6DGxj

— Mikel Jollett (@Mikel_Jollett) October 9, 2017

The Gathering Episode 2: Voting Rights is a Moral Issue

“A truly moral agenda must be anti-racist, anti-poverty, pro-justice, pro-labor, transformative and deeply rooted and built within a fusion coalition.  It would ask of all policy, is the policy Constitutionally consistent, morally defensible and economically sane.  We call this moral analysis and moral articulation which leads to moral activism.”  —Rev. Dr. William, J. Barber, II

Gregg Chadwick: Revenant by Jeffrey Carlson - July 2014

Gregg Chadwick's "Revenant"
Jeffrey Carlson Reporting Editor, Fine Art Today 

Specters from a distant past ‐‐ or perhaps another level of existence ‐‐ people the nostalgic and visionary works of Gregg Chadwick.

Widely recognized for his figure paintings and cityscapes, Gregg Chadwick presents his latest work in an exhibition titled "Revenant," soon to be unveiled at San Francisco's Sandra Lee Gallery. The exhibition opens July 1, and the opening reception will be held July 10, from 5:30‐7:30 p.m.

Gregg Chadwick, "Salish Sea," 2014, oil on linen, 30 x 24 in.
Sandra Lee Gallery

In viewing Chadwick's paintings, it feels as though we are viewing these people and places through a screen of nostalgic vision. In passages the works are blurred and vague, suggesting forms more than representing them. This lack of definition suggests the uncertainty and vagueness of a lost memory or a fleeting dream; we can picture its shape but are often left grasping at its details.

Gregg Chadwick, "Calle," 2014, oil on linen, 24 x 18 in. 
Sandra Lee Gallery 

Gregg Chadwick, "Revenant," 2014, oil on linen, 24 x 18 in.
Sandra Lee Gallery

Chadwick's process, too, encourages reflection on the simultaneously fleeting and lasting nature of life's experiences. In each painting Chadwick creates a kind of palimpsest, layering transparent pigments and painting over the earlier image. In this way the past is built into the paintings themselves.

Gregg Chadwick, "The Station Agent," 2014, oil on linen, 40 x 40 in.
Sandra Lee Gallery 

Gregg Chadwick, "Deerhead Diner," 2014, oil on linen, 24 x 36 in.
Sandra Lee Gallery  

"Revenant" will remain on display at Sandra Lee Gallery through July 31, where a concurrent exhibition at Sandra Lee Gallery presents paintings by Evri Kwong. To learn more, visit Sandra Lee Gallery online.

This article was featured in Fine Art Today, a weekly e‐newsletter from Fine Art Connoisseur magazine.

Gregg Chadwick, "Mulholland Blue," 2014, oil on linen, 24 x 30 in.
Sandra Lee Gallery


 

Gregg Chadwick and Painting Time by Jeffrey Carlson - March 2013

Gregg Chadwick and Painting Time

Jeffrey Carlson Reporting Contributing Editor, Fine Art Today
March 2013

In a new solo exhibition, California artist Gregg Chadwick ambitiously explores the boundaries of time and of representational painting. 

Gregg Chadwick, "Grand Central," oil on canvas, 36 x 48 in.

  

Gregg Chadwick, “Il Poeta di Milano,” oil on canvas, 24 x 18 in.

The Time Between, a show of recent paintings by Gregg Chadwick, is now on view at Sandra Lee Gallery in San Francisco.

In these paintings Chadwick works lightly and suggestively, as if in the haze of a fragmented vision. Some figures are located in recognizable time and space, like three young women who stroll an open road, one texting and another snooping. In other works the subject is far more enigmatic, the spaces indeterminate, and the figures distorted or mirrored.
The conceptual foundation for Chadwick’s recent work comes from a study of time as perceived by the ancient Greeks, who categorized it in two distinct ways. Chronos denoted sequential time, measurable in units, whereas kairos conveyed the significance of a moment and was qualitative in nature. A kairos was indeterminate in length and potentially great in importance, as in “an appointed time.”
Chadwick’s stated intention with his works on time is to “break down the illusions of linear time passing and expose the coexistence of past, present and future.”

Gregg Chadwick, “I Canti (The Cantos),” oil on linen, 80 x 60 in. 

Gregg Chadwick, “The Time Between,” oil on canvas, 24 x 18 in.

The artist’s conceptual vision neatly dovetails with the goals of the broader contemporary realist art movement. Chadwick paints scenes that are representational yet imaginative; they are, at one and the same time, rooted in tangible existence and removed from it. His figures are real and unreal. Engaged in everyday activities or detached from their surroundings, we see them as women and men of the world and as specters of superhuman existence.

Gregg Chadwick, “Three Secrets,” oil on canvas, 30 x 24 in.

Based in Santa Monica, where he paints in an old airplane hangar, Chadwick has shown at galleries and museums nationally and internationally. He earned his BFA from UCLA and his MFA from NYU. Chadwick has held notable solo exhibitions at the Manifesta Maastricht Gallery (Maastricht, Netherlands), AD Space 2000 (Tokyo, Japan), and the Lisa Coscino Gallery (Pacific Grove, California), and he has participated in group shows at the Sandra Lee Gallery, Arena 1 Gallery (Santa Monica, California), and the Arts Club of Washington (Washington, D.C.).
Chadwick writes a blog, Speed of Life, in which he examines art’s intersection with society. He also frequently posts recently completed work to his Flickr account, which can be viewed here.

The Time Between will be on view through March 30, 2013. 
An opening reception will be held the evening of March 7, from 5:30‐7:30 p.m. Sandra Lee Gallery is located at 251 Post Street, Suite 310, in San Francisco.

For more information, visit www.greggchadwick.com and http://sandraleegallery.com. 

This article was featured in Fine Art Today, a new weekly e‐newsletter from Fine Art
Connoisseur magazine.

Filed Under :

Locations : California, Milano, Monica, San Francisco, Santa Monica, Tokyo, Washington, D.c. People : Gregg Chadwick, Painting Time

Gregg Chadwick, “Proserpina,” oil on canvas, 48 x 36 in.

Bono Takes on Trump in San Francisco

by Gregg Chadwick

Incredible & riveting political statement as @u2's Bono creates a pseudo conversation with @realDonaldTrump in a surprise set at Dreamfest! pic.twitter.com/Aeq5tXXBGP

— Marc Benioff (@Benioff) October 6, 2016

Bono and I have a bit of a history with Bullet the Blue Sky and its deeply held meaning in terms of a vision of America. I wrote Bono in 2008, the night before his planned meeting with then VP candidate Sarah Palin. (Full letter here- Bullet the Blue Sky ) 

I asked Bono then to "please remember what America means. Please remember your inspiration to write and perform "Bullet the Blue Sky" as you watched the Reagan administration's support of Salvadoran death squads and Nicaraguan contras. America is not torture, Abu Ghraib or Guantanamo. America is the promise of hope and liberty." 

Last night in San Francisco, Bono spoke truth to a candidate in love with power and himself.  They posted a video of the song with a simple title - Liberty... 

Bravo to U2!

Gregg Chadwick Artist Talk on Feb 27th 2016 - Last Week for Mystery Train at Sandra Lee Gallery and More Studio Notes from Gregg Chadwick - Winter 2016

  I reorganized my paints yesterday after fervent months in the studio painting the work for Mystery Train. Tubes of oil paint squeezed into empty twisted shells and stray caps marked only by a tell tale ring of color  were discarded. Brushes, newly cleaned, stand at attention ready for new work. A clean glass palette now sits on top of a used stack of brightly daubed surfaces. Painting trains seems to bring daily reminders of change, of process, of journeys. When a train or plane turns around for its trip back home, there is little time for introspection. Vehicles are cleaned, engines refueled, often a new crew is added - new passengers and new travels await. As Mystery Train prepares to depart San Francisco, I ask you to celebrate with me at a closing party and artist talk on February 27th at the Sandra Lee Gallery (details below) if you are in the Bay Area. I have listed below a series of events, exhibitions, press, and more that give a glimpse into the excitement around Mystery Train and my art. Thanks for taking the time to look at and ponder my paintings!
Hope to see you soon. - Gregg Chadwick

1. Artist Talk and Closing Party for Mystery Train on Saturday, February 27, 2016 2-4pm 

      Santa Monica-based artist Gregg Chadwick  has been painting for three decades. His current studio is an old airplane hangar where the flurry of takeoffs and landings on the runway outside seems to creep into Chadwick’s paintings as he explores movement and travel within his light-filled paintings.  His current series of paintings is entitled ‘Mystery Train’ and evokes the railways of America that Chadwick says run in his blood. His grandfather worked as a fireman, stoking coal in steam engines before advancing to train engineer on the Jersey Central Line. Chadwick often says that family gatherings brought the rhythms of the rails home. The sounds of railroad workers echoed in the music that Chadwick’s relatives played in the shadows of the train lines outside. For Chadwick and many others such as writer Greil Marcus, filmmaker Jim Jarmusch, and musicians Junior Parker and Elvis Presley, the enduring mythos of America and its legacy is wrapped in the blues notes of the song ‘Mystery Train’. Chadwick will speak about these influences and how they shaped his current paintings.

       Sandra Lee Gallery 

      251 Post Street, Suite 310

San Francisco, CA 94108

415.291.8000

art@sandraleegallery.com

2. Gregg Chadwick's 'Mystery Train' Celebrates the Rhythms of the Rails! by Kathy Leonardo
Read more about Mystery Train in the Huffington Post:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kathy-leonardo-/gregg-chadwicks-mystery-t_b_9203570.html?utm_hp_ref=arts&ir=Art

3. Much thanks to Alan Bamberger for his photos and comments on the "Mystery Train" opening at Sandra Lee Gallery on Feb 4 -
Sandra Lee Gallery: Mystery Train - Gregg Chadwick.
Comment by AB: "Dreamy dynamic portrayals recall the heyday of rail travel and the nostalgia it evokes."
More from Alan at: http://artbusiness.com/1open/020416.html

4. Mystery Train: Influences and Inspiration (Videos and More) http://www.greggchadwick.com/Gregg_Chadwick/Mystery_Train__Influences_and_Inspiration_%28Videos_and_More%29/Mystery_Train__Influences_and_Inspiration_%28Videos_and_More%29.html

5. A selection of Gregg Chadwick’s paintings from the Mystery Train series was exhibited at the Palm Springs Fine Art Fair from February 11-14 in the Sandra Lee Gallery booth. 
(Photo by Eric Minh Swenson) Gregg spoke at the booth on February 12, 2016. Jersey Rain (Across the Tracks) was illustrated in the catalog and Gregg’s talk was featured as well.
http://www.palmspringsfineartfair.com/gregg-chadwick/

6. A solo exhibition of Gregg Chadwick’s paintings entitled Cities in Time, hangs through March 2016 at Vedder Price in Century City, California.

7. Gregg Chadwick’s painting Pigalle is featured on the cover of the latest issue of
    Black Fox Literary Magazine.
http://www.blackfoxlitmag.com/

8. A Balance of Shadows: Gregg Chadwick's Paintings 
    Authored by Kent Chadwick
    Hardcover – February 6, 2016
     Available Online at Amazon