Kong500

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

WORKS BY CHRIS GEORGALAS
ART OPENING – THURSDAY OCTOBER 11th 7-9pm
Mazi’s at 112 Suffolk Street (btwn. Delancey and Rivington)

Featured above:
"Kong", 2007, oil pastel, acrylic on canvas and buoy, 5.5 ft. x 4 ft.

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Brooklyn Art Project member Joyce Manalo runs NYC based, ArtForward, an organization committed to curating work from some of the most fascinating new artists to come onto the scene. Joyce is currently working with Arthur Christopher Georgalas, who CBGB’s 313 Gallery describes as artist who "has been influenced by illustration, comic books, graffiti art and pop imagery" the gallery goes on to say that Georgalas represents the "next progression of a Duchampian ready-made aesthetic suited and amended for contemporary art." 

With our curiosity sufficiently piqued, we caught up with Joyce to fill us in on this intriguing artist, his interest in melding sculpture and paintings and his current show at Mazi’s at 112 Suffolk Street in NYC’s Lower East Side, that runs through October 31st.


BROOKLYN ART PROJECT (BAP):
Can you tell us a bit more about Arthur Christopher Georgalas?

JOYCE MANALO (JM): Chris is a mellow guy living in Williamsburg.  He’s a hands-on person, he currently works in Red Hook at a furniture hardware.  He’s quite prolific; in the span of two days that I haven’t seen him, he executed works on 3 big canvases.  In addition to cranking out works, he is quite detached from possessing them himself, because it’s more important for him that others personally and privately enjoy his work.

BAP: How would you describe his work?

JM: His work is both multi-dimensional in medium and nostalgic references.  His canvas is made up of attentively chosen “found objects”. The process of drawing, painting, sculpture and collage are all apparent in his works. The recurring subject of his pieces play on the audience’s recollection of virility in classical movies, art history, and childhood.

BAP: Where does he find his inspirations?

JM: Outside–the industrial landscape and debris of nyc and the bucolic detritus of upstate new york.  He is visually influenced by 50s illustrations, comics and japanese anime and toys.  The artists that inspire his work are Jean-Michel Basquiat, John Chamberlain, Marcel Duchamp, George Segal, Robert Gober, Tadeus Kantor, Henri Matisse, Claes Oldenburg, Andy Warhol, and Bill Woodrow.

BAP: What would people be surprised to know about Christopher?

JM: That he actually goes by his middle name Chris and not Arthur which is his first name.  Usually first names are less embarrassing than middle names. He likes to also drink jack and coke, which is too sweet for most.

BAP: Where can people see Christopher’s work in NYC and online?

JM: His work can be seen at Mazi’s until the end of October, and he welcomes studio visits in Williamsburg.  Since he just finished his new works this October, his website www.georgalas.net is still pending updates, but you can see the works of his solo show at www.art-forward.com/curatorial.

BAP: What is ArtForward

JM: ArtForward focuses on unconventional collaborations with the art community and business ventures outside the visual arts, to elevate emerging artists and their works to the forefront.  It is deeply rooted in working with local art councils, artist studios, alternative spaces, galleries, auction houses and contemporary museums to widen the channels for exhibition opportunities and cooperative projects in tandem with dispersing appreciation in the arts.