Buy An Art Piece And Preserve A Living Piece Of L.A. History

Up until the 1980's a multitude of artists like Charles White, Otis College of Art and Design students, and June Wayne would flock to the Los Angeles paper store McManus & Morgan. Today the store is 101 years old, and some of these artists still buy their paper here, but the younger generations of Angeleno artists are largely un-aware of this steel rooted institution of artisanship and dedication. Even fewer have ever heard of Gary Wolin the lone paper expert and unsung L.A. art historian behind the counter, nor do they know of his struggle to keep his once hollowed doors open. My readers have seen the short documentary Ink & Paper that tells the story of Gary and the neighboring letterpress shop, but a surge of new artists have come to L.A. and are still moving in to take advantage of the ever-expanding art and entertainment industries here. Well I am a young artist in Los Angeles, and I care about history. I care about quality local businesses too so I am going to put my money and art into the very place that cared enough to stick around all these years and offer what no corporate store could: knowledge, expertise, and unparalleled assortments of unique paper. God bless it, I think other young artists will care too once they hear about it!

... So LET THE ART SALE FUNDRAISER FOR MCMANUS & MORGAN BEGIN!

Buy one of my prints at McManus & Morgan and I will split the profits with the store. (the money I take in from the sale will most likely go towards buying paper from Gary anyway) We are asking $900 per print which is comparable to the price that Self Help Graphics and Arts is selling the same print for.

Now - Aug 31 2014, $900 for a limited edition 26" x 20" screen print by artist John Tallacksen and Self Help Graphics & Art, Four prints only #'s 41, 39, 37, 35 out of an edition of 50 all signed and numbered with a Self Help chop in lower left corner.

My work is about honoring the people and places in the communities of Pico Union and MacArthur Park in central Los Angeles. The scene in Serenata En El Callejón 12th and Alvarado was a real life moment not far from McManus and Morgan where my girlfriend and I saw a man serenading a woman in an alley with a small Mariachi band. It's moments like these, and places like McManus & Morgan, that expose the heart of our community. Please watch the short documentary in the comments section of this post and you'll see a small fraction of why I treasure Gary Wolin and his paper store so much. This limited edition that we are selling has enjoyed some amazing exposure. Having been created in collaboration with Master Printer Jose Alpuche in Self Help Graphics & Art's Professional Printmaking Studio, and then archived in institutions like the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the Mexican Fine Art Center Museum in Chicago, I wanted to use this edition's provenance to encourage my friend Gary and help off-set some of his overhead costs even if for a short time. I consider McManus & Morgan to be one of the most important arts institutions in Los Angeles. Watch the film below and consider purchasing an expression of the community that Gary and I share.
Self Help Graphics & Art values prints from this edition at $900 each. We are selling four prints from the same edition at the same price being careful not to under-cut such a prestigious organization. To purchase, leave a comment below, call me at (213)290-6777, or visit Gary at McManus & Morgan 2506 W 7th St. Los Angeles, CA 90057 9AM to 5PM Mon - Fri and 10AM to 2PM Sat.
We hope you join us in this unique celebration of community and the arts.

ACEO and 9"x12" Original Print Auctions

My ebay.com Auctions

Both auctions have a starting bid of .99 cents. The first House Sparrow: Neighbors is an Art Card Editions And Original (ACEO) 2.5" x 3.5" of a House Sparrow family that lives next door in the crevice between a pipe and the wall of an apartment building. This is a black and white linocut print with hand painted watercolor embellishments signed, titled, and numbered. Number 10 out of 19.

The second original print auction is number 2 from a limited "off-shoot edition" of only 4 prints. La Lavandaria On Pico is a linocut print on 9"x12" tan paper depicting my observation on a typical Saturday visit to the lavandaria (laundromat) in my L.A. neighborhood of Pico Union. The larger black and white edition (not offered in this auction) had 31 total prints offered to my monthly subscribers. Be among the first to receive a print from my monthly editions by subscribing: JohnTallacksen.com/Shop (online order form). Prints are shipped or available for local Los Angeles, CA pick-up on the 10th of every month.

My ebay.com Auctions

Two Major Announcements

First-

For the last week I have been working on a screen print serigraph edition as an artist in residence with Master Printer Joe Apuche at the historic Self Help Graphics in East Los Angeles (Boyle Heights). This has been a tremendous honor to print in such a hallowed place with the great Joe Apuche. Some of my favorite artists ie Gronk, John Valadez, El Mac, Sonia Romero, Fabian Debora and others have held the same residency here. Like the artists who have gone before me, the result will be a color serigraph edition that will be collected by institutions like the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the National Museum of Mexican Art among other museums archives and collections. If you follow my facebook art page John Tallacksen Studio you can follow the progress and view pictures taken while working in the studio. More details to come.

Second-

John Tallacksen Editions are open to subscribers! You can receive one of my original prints every month either by mail or by local will-call pick up. Prints from the serigraph edition mentioned above will be sent to subscribers one of these months in the near future. The first 10 subscribers will pay only $50/print even if they renew their subscription later. Once the 10th customer has been paid for their account, the monthly cost will go up for the the 11th and so on. This is your chance to own multiple original works, some of which will be collected in museums around the U.S., for the same amount of money you would spend on one painting in the average selling gallery. Go to JohnTallacksen.com/shop to order now. There are 3 month, 6 month, and 12 month options available. 

Original Print Auction Fund-Raiser For Art Division

Original Print Auction Site

  Following the success of the Twitter Art Exhibit (which is still going strong) I am auctioning a postcard size original linoleum block print to benefit the same cause as the exhibit- Art Division.
  The auction starts at $15 plus $4 flat shipping rate and will end Saturday morning January 26th.

Matthew 1:23 Postcard Size Print Sold At Auction

Matthew 1:23 linocut print

Congratulations to Blainnoe for winning my latest auction on ebay. I hope you enjoy the new print in your collection!
The Oystercatcher piece in my last post still has just under 4 days left in the auction as of this writing. Check back often if you are a savvy original art collector.

Primstav 1: ACEO Edition

The same yet different

Aerosol paint and ink on elephant dung card stock (From the historic LA paper store McManus & Morgan) of ancient Norwegian Primstav calendar symbol for January 6th (Julian calendar). 

Number 25 is up for auction for the next 10 days here.

My birthday is January 6th. This piece represents a return to the beginnings of my identity in view of my Norwegian culture. This series will continue with editions of each Primstav symbol in order. Please view the pictures provided to see samples of how each card is the same yet unique. 

This card is signed and numbered with the rest of the edition

Two Latest Prints Just Posted

7th and Carondelet 

Corner Of Pico And Union

  Prints from both editions were just now posted in my online shop. Only one print of 7th And Carondelet will be sold in my shop; the rest of the edition of 15 are for sale on consignment at McManus & Morgan in Los Angeles. (see address below)

McManus & Morgan Fine Artist Paper

2506 W. 7th St (corner of 7th and Carondelet)

Los Angeles, CA 90057

Making A New Linocut Edition: Corner Of Pico and Union

Right now I am about to sign and number my second linocut edition Corner Of Pico And Union, and I couldn't be more happy with it. Master Printmaker Noel Hernandez at Self Help Graphics in L.A. is collaborating with me on the printing process. Of course I drew and carved the linocut on my own.
I can't recommend printing at Self Help Graphics enough. They have a long legendary track record in developing Latino artists in the L.A. area. 

Study for the final print

Above is a study I did on location in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Pico Union for the print. I later auctioned this small sketch off in my online auctions.

Noel applying the ink to the block I carved.

inked and on the press

The edition is now complete and drying on the rack

Shot of a final Artist Proof of this edition by Leo Jimenez

New Pico Union ACEO Auction

Pico and Union (Pico Donuts) by: John Tallacksen

Bid on this original painting here

This is the first in a series in which I hope to work out my relationship to my neighborhood as an Anglo male in a Latino community. The scene depicts a popular donut shop on the corner of Pico and Union where there are always men playing cards outside. The occurance of these men playing cards at this location is so common that when many of the youth watched me paint this card they recognized who and where it was immediately. I plan on using this as a color study for a larger painting of the same subject matter. The painting is a synesthetic piece meaning I used my Color-Grapheme Synesthesia condition to determine the color scheme. On the back of the card you will find the title "Pico + Union" written in the colors that my mind's eye sees each letter in which I used in this piece. Spray paint is a staple in the street art world and is rarely used by ACEO artists which is why I try to use it as much as possible.

New Linocut Edition Completed

7th And Carondelet by: John Tallacksen

linocut print in black ink on 8" x 10" white Lettra paper purchased at McManus & Morgan

  In this new edition of linocuts I produced an image of the corner of 7th St and Carondelet in Los Angeles. My two favorite shops reside on this corner Aardvark Letterpress and McManus & Morgan. This is a very limited edition of only 15 prints each signed, titled, and numbered. A good number of these prints are currently for sale at McManus & Morgan. For those of you outside of the L.A. area I may hold one or two prints and sell them online. Stay tuned for more news.

Trading Original Art With Sarah Trumpp

Monster Girl! by: Sarah Trumpp

Artist Sarah Trumpp is an administrator and Jury panelist in an art card trading site called IllustratedATCs.com. As I have mentioned in past posts, I was accepted into this group early in the year, and I have really enjoyed my trades so far. The ATC Sarah made for me is pictured above. I like monsters a lot so I specifically asked for one of her "monster children". I particularly like the shapes and size ranges in her character design and the texture she achieves with acrylic paint- especially the splatters. Trumpp has a joint website with two other artists at WonderStrange.com. Please go visit them.

On her profile she mentioned that she likes the H.P. Lovecraft character of the Cthulhu. I couldn't resist the macabre theme of the character so that's what I painted for her (see below). The behemoth is a creature mentioned in the Bible (see the book of Job) that I've always been fascinated with as-well so I pit the two up against each-other. I subscribe to the theory that the behemoth may have been some sort of sauropod.

Behemoth Vs. Cthulhu by: John Tallacksen 

Announcing JohnTallacksen.com

My portfolio is currently moving to JohnTallacksen.com! Please visit me there, but watch your step we're still under construction. You will notice that the PORTFOLIO tab in the upper left of this blog is now linked to the new site. JohnTallacksen.com will serve mostly as my portfolio, and will remain focused on that task. Most of the pages already have content, but you will soon be able to use the new site as an archive or record of my career in art. This blog and my facebook page linked above will still serve as a news feed for all of my new adventures. I invite you to get acquainted with my work through all of these tools.

Two New 10 Day ACEO Auctions Posted!

Western Tanager by: John Tallacksen

  Under an hour before the Lonesome George piece sold I was able to post two more ACEO's (one of them pictured above) in my AUCTIONS page. That was close! I don't like being caught without artwork for sale in my shops. It's embarrassing. Thank you to all of my buyers, collectors, and supporters out there.

  So here it is- the latest fruits of my labor! Click on my AUCTIONS tab up at the top to view all of my 10 day auctions. Both of these pieces have color palets chosen by my Grapheme-Color Synesthesia, and interestingly enough the colors that I see in the words "Tanager" and "Orchid" match the actual colors of the subject matter. 

  I'll be posting more during the week. I have a few interesting requests to work on that some of you have sent in. 

  FYI I've been working on a limited print series of a subject that is very dear to my heart. Stay tuned for images and info...

Remembering Lonesome George

Lonesome George by: John Tallacksen

  On June 25th Lonesome George, the last Pinta Island Tortoise died in the Galapagos Islands. This art card is in memory of him and his species that we've lost. God forgive us.

View other original art cards here

Six Seasons And A Movie Exhibit Continues Through Summer

Lo Rez of my submission 

  If you missed the opening week end of Six Seasons And A Movie (see my last post) there is still hope. Pixel Drip Gallery will carry the exhibit with them to two different locations through-out Los Angeles til this September. My original piece will be available for viewing and for sale along with 10 other reproductions (just ask the attendant on hand for reproductions). The schedule that Pixel Drip Gallery has released thus far is as follows:

-The Hive Gallery in downtown Los Angeles July and August. 

  The Hive is located at 729 South Spring Street, Los Angeles 90014. 

  Opening reception on July 7th from 8pm to 12:30am and cover is $8 

  Free admission at any other time of the month. 

  On display until July 28th

  Rotating the art for the August showing 

  A limited number of prints to opening reception and Art Walk, make sure to attend those days

- One final showing in September 

  You’ll have to wait until we get closer to the event date before Pixel Drip announces the details.

Six Seasons And A Movie Opening Reception Re-Cap

Me and Dan Harmon with my artwork

  The opening day/reception for the Six Seasons And A Movie art exhibition was a rush to say the least. Since this was a fan show for the hit TV series Community on NBC there was: a costume contest, text book signings, a "What is a Mexican Halloween?" contest, a live band, and even a playable demo of the  video game Journey To The Center Of Hawkthorne which appeared in one of the latest episodes. Nothing I could write here would begin to describe how cool it all really was. I will touch on some of the mountain peaks of the evening in this post. If you're reading this and you were present at the art show please add your reviews and thoughts in the comments section.

  As you can see Dan Harmon, the creator of Community, was in attendance so I caught a picture with him in-front of my work. Since my illustration is of the "Hulk Seacrest" scene from the episode titled Contemporary Impressionists in the 3rd season Dan told me that the thirteen year old boy in the episode was originally named Oscar so they could refer to his Bar Mitzvah as Oscar's Oscars. The script became too complicated so they changed his name to Howie among other changes. 

Closer shot of my work

  This is a moving art exhibit. I'm not sure of the details, but I hear the show will move to the Hive Gallery downtown and then to the Comikazi Expo in September. My original piece will travel with this show til September and it will be for sale along with reproductions of the piece that are $20 each. Please visit the show when you can. It's one of the most enjoyable art shows I've been a part of.    

  My contribution

One of the posters eventually signed by all of the artists present

Close-up of signatures by Julieta Colas, Paul Fernando, and myself

  This poster probably already went to the winner of the trivia contest during today's showing. 

 A Chain Of Communication or The Tale Of How I Was Involved (Condensed Version)

Apt 303 artist Victor Camba

Artist and Community enthusiast Victor Camba heard tell of the Six Seasons And A Movie show at a time an location unbeknownst to me.

Artist Chris Kawagiwa with his submission to the show

Victor then told his friend Chris Kawagiwa the good news. They were both very excited.

Artist Stephen Yan with his creation

Stephen reportedly heard about it from Chris...

Ralph Miranda with his "darkest" artwork

... and of course Ralph was in the mix. All four of them were like, "Cool cool cool cool."

Me

Then Stephen told me.

Paolo Encarnacion's contribution 

And Paolo hung his trollin' artwork right by the exit door where Shirley caught everyone looking at it all googly eyed.

EDIT:

Paul Fernando pictured here in life vest

The moment Paul realized poking a hole in the back of your raft doesn't make you go faster. 

The End

More Original Synesthetic Art

Black Skimmer 2 by: John Tallacksen

  I've just posted the art card above for a ten day auction. It is the third piece in my synesthetic series. If yI've posted a description of the process here. Each card in this series is signed and dated, but the title of the piece is also written in the colors that I see in my mind due to Color-Grapheme Synesthesia. The colors assigned to each letter is what I allow to determine the color scheme of each piece. 

  If you're not familiar with black skimmers they are these wonderful birds that hunt for food by flying very low over water while their lower beak is dipped in order to scoop up food. It's an amazing sight to see them fly so low and watch the line of ripples in the water that follows them.

Facebook Fan Page

http://www.facebook.com/pages/John-Travieso-Tallacksen/114249388598724?ref=tn_tnmn

Yes, I too have a facebook fan page! You are invited to visit me there.

Have you purchased or traded art with me?- post a picture of that piece in your home or collection. I would love to see it!

Edit:
In addition to this being a place to interact with my audience, this will also be another place to receive updates on new original pieces and art exhibitions. Keep it locked both here on the blog and on the facebook page for more news.

El Nombre De La Ciudad ACEO

El Nombre De La Ciudad by: John Tallacksen

  I created this card earlier in the year as a color study for a larger piece after becoming a fan of Fabian Debora's work. For me painting this piece was a way to cope with my city's lack of preserving or understanding it's own history. Currently there is a sort of ban on murals in Los Angeles which effects a lot of things negatively. Our city was named after a mural in Spain depicting angels surrounding the mother Mary.

  At the same time we have a lot of human trafficking going on in McArthur Park and other areas. I don't quite know how to defend the people being sold into slavery of different kinds, but this piece is the beginning of my action against it. Those of us in the church hold the purity of Christ's mother in high regard, but we need to do the same for God's daughters. This is why the young girl I've painted dressed as the Virgin de Guadelupe isn't supposed to be Mary. Instead this girl represents the average girl in L.A. 

Mallard Duck ACEO

Mallard In Flight by: John Tallacksen

  When I can I really like to make minimalist marks on my work. Something about simplicity get's me excited which is funny because I can be a very complicated and scattered person. This ACEO captures the action of a mallard duck taking flight from the water. I used watercolor, deco paint markers, as well as my signature aerosol paint to create this image. This miniature piece is created in a similar process to my snipe and sea gull cards.

Click here to bid on this piece