~TOMOO GOKITA . . BILL BRADY – NYC POP-UP at JOHNSON TRADING GALLERY
BILL BRADY PRESENTS . . a TOMOO GOKITA – NYC POP-UP
the show of 12 black and white paintings on paper – opened MARCH 4, 2016
and runs . . thru March 31, 2016
JOHNSON TRADING GALLERY, 72 FRANKLIN ST, TRIBECA, NYC
see: BILL BRADY GALLERY
BILL currently has a big TOMOO GOKITA show on, up – at his new MIAMI space.
the show, called ‘Damage Control’ (is that an inside joke, lol ?) . . is the inaugural show for the gallery’s new permanent home at 7200 NW Miami Court – in what I hear is Miami’s very happening, Little River District.
and which same space I heard is, way large & tres beautiful, bye the way !!
congrats, Bill.
TOMOO GOKITA, painting on paper.
yes. the world needs a nurse. and, not a jolly one. a big, mean one.
start to put this place in some kind of global order, a kinder holding pattern – with a big, big . . time out room.
TOMOO GOKITA . . is the only artist I can think of, who is showing in NYC right now, who is hardcore enough to bring to the table, after the recent terror events. in Brussels, yesterday, and in Turkey, was it last week ? losing track – not a good sign.
TOMOO GOKITA, painting on paper.
yes, it’s a harsh world. and not in the R CRUMB context either.
outcomes uncertain, but still the same human bio drives: love, or at least sex. family, drama.
the human bio-reproductive circus – in all its gory, I mean . . GLORY !!
TOMOO GOKITA, painting on paper.
what is: sensuality ?
what is: the life span of a flower ?
is it . . too much to: hope ?
the questions they ask are precious, but the paintings themselves are . . not.
they verge on brut, and then circle right back again, to the timeless, universal human . . tale.
black & white – just dials it up.
to a whole new level of . . raw.
there are 12 paintings on paper that circle the room, and, most effectively. as they tell their open-ended, never-ending stories. we can all relate.
they look to be 16 x 20 in. – something like that.
each one is very unique, and very striking.
Tokyo-based TOMOO GOKITA – at the opening.
Tomoo Gokita (b. 1969) has been showing with Bill Brady since 2003, 2004 ? I do well remember the stir his openings always created at the cutting edge Bill Brady – ATM. Tomoo has gone on to huge success, among many other exhibits – in 2014 he was the honored subject of a large-scale solo exhibition, Tomoo Gokita: The Great Circus presented at the Kawamura Memorial DIC Museum of Art in Sakura, Japan.
re: going onto success, seems like so has . . Bill.
BILL BRADY . . . looking good, and doing even b-e-t-t-e-r.
PAUL JOHNSON of JOHNSON TRADING GALLERY – the GOKITA POP-UP / NYC host.
it was a really interesting venue, in and of its own, but also as a stage for Tommo’s stark, edgy work.
design + vision.
great pairing.
TAYLOR McKIMENS fresh off his big success with those huge head paintings at THE HOLE – Taylor told me he’s off to a 3 month residency in Greece and then . . omg, he’s moving to LA !!
oh no. we will miss you.
and yes, that’s a MISAKI KWAI piece behind him, on display in the Johnson Trading Gallery venue.
KAWS . .
I’m liking KAWS even more, be-KAWS !! I hear he’s been going around buying up young NYC artists’ work.
name one ? a very happy ANDY CAHILL, who painted those wild, crack-crazy pieces in the recent ‘Anthem of the Sun’ group show at CANADA.
TODD JAMES – REAS.
BRIAN WILLMONT, had some crazy big shows of his own work going on recently, and he owns/runs the totally trippin’ GREENPOINT TERMINAL GALLERY, in Brooklyn.
ERIC SHAW . . had a great piece in that way-ahead-of-the-curve, big ‘DUCKS’ group show, RYAN TRAVIS CHRISTIAN curated at GREENPOINT TERMINAL, last OCT 24 – NOV 29, 2014.
Eric’s piece was a crazy flat rendition of Donald . . Donald Duck, lol – called ‘DuckDuck’.
wtf, here’s the link – it was a great show.
see: ‘Duck’ – artlovers archive
PETER SUTHERLAND, with TOMOO GOKITA, at the opening.
you can begin to see how interesting the Johnson Trading Gallery venue is.
preservation, history, architecture + cutting edge design + painterly vision . . on this night, with: TOMOO.
I mean, where else would you get to just casually lean up against a classic, mint condition .. JUNZO SAKAKURA lounge chair from 1957 ?
or check out the contemporary .. ROBERT LOUGHLIN painted chair ?
yeah, I want that.
collector EUGENE HU . . looked comfy in a FELTRI armchair.
he had brought Tommo’s huge book, ‘TOMOO GOKITA – 777’ . . for Tomoo to sign, which he did.
table by – WILLY RIZZO
just . . . BE-KAWS !!!!!!
yep, that’s KAWS’ reflection in the mirror.
I used to see this guy walking the streets, in Bushwick in fact. way before he was famous. 16 yrs ago.
now, it’s funny to see his original, raw ‘roofies’ in Jersey, coming in off the tunnel. pure gold and nobody here much knows it. ain’t that the truth. was really so outraged when the city didn’t go crazy over his MACY’S balloon, too. remember writing a big rant about it. but, now . . it’s Tomoo coming up = big.
I wonder if they will give Tomoo – a MACY’S Thanksgiving balloon . . as if !!
‘they’ would never be cool enough, but just imagine – what a world it might be, if everybody were just that much more . . cool ?
TOMOO GOKITA, painting on paper.
ah, Tommo. you have us – in your black and white . . cross hairs.
oh, the drama.
of the hardcore romantic imagination.
yes – you do !!
realism – takes a swipe.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH