Art Meets Architecture presents Deconstructed Los Angeles, works by Teale Hatheway from December 12, 2013 – January 4 2014, at the Fine Arts Building in Downtown Los Angeles.

See below for info about Art Meets Architecture and the Fine Art Building. Here is some info from the artist Teale Hathaway: I paint abstract architectural portraits through which I convey the spirits of buildings we have envisioned, built, lived with and, often times, forgotten. Using photographs from my explorations of the urban landscape, I visually decompose structures and reorganize some of their most compelling qualities into alternate compositions. This process of reconstruction results in puzzling paintings of familiar places and often incites an interest in viewers to confirm and experience the location for themselves (through a sort of self-imposed scavenger hunt), leading them on a similar journey to that which I experienced during the creative process.

By combining expressive resources and materials from traditional and contemporary art, I strive for a unique aesthetic. The effects of bleach, ink, burning and metal leaf enhance the texture of the coarse linen while acrylic fields offer smoother, colorful surfaces. The materials I employ create visual distinctions between coarseness/refinement, light/shadow, glitz/grit, and positive/negative space, resulting in an illusion of sculptural depth on the two dimensional picture-plane.

My subject matter is chosen as a means to ground myself in a tangible environment in which an understanding of the whole is made up of an experience of the parts. It demands my time to seek, immerse, observe and plot. My need to have an intentional, analog connection to my physical universe also connects me to a community of diverse individuals who value the city as stage. My goal is to make art that is socially relevant as well as culturally reverent, while indulging in our shared desire for beauty and belonging. http://www.tealehatheway.com/

ART MEETS ARCHITECTURE

Art is enhanced by context and when set within architecture has historical precedent and an intimate relationship with human experience. In the same way that a frame changes the way we view a piece, the space in which the viewer stands also affects the experience.

It is art in the context of architecture that fascinates us. We enjoy exploring the psychological aspects the artist is communicating. We have found that presenting art in the context of architecture provides an unexpected comparison to the traditional “white box” gallery environment. http://www.artmeetsarchitecture.com/

THE FINE ARTS BUILDING

The Fine Arts Building is a wonderfully detailed Romanesque Revival structure, unique in Los Angeles. Designed by Walker and Eisen, the twelve-story building features a two-story Spanish Renaissance “courtyard” lobby with a galleried mezzanine. The Fine Arts Building was originally intended to provide working areas for artisans, who could also display their wares in the bronze and glass showcased in the lobby.

The walls of the lobby are detailed in tile and terra cotta block designed to look like stone. The decorative work is by the famous Batchelder Studios. The figures representing Architecture, Painting, Textile Arts and Ceramics were executed under Ernest Batchelder’s personal supervision at a cost of $150,000. The original bronze figures throughout the foyer and corridor are by Burt Johnson.

The wealth of detail displayed in the lobby is also evident on the building’s exterior. The main entry consists of a two-story Romanesque arch, decorated in terra cotta with griffins, gargoyles, birds, and flowers. Elsewhere on the façade are stylized fish, flute players, and assorted fantastic creatures.

Colossal reclining sculpted figures of Architecture (with a symbolic capital) and Sculpture (with a torso) designed by Burt Johnson, rest on a corbel table above the windows on the second and third levels. Higher on the façade are recessed marble spandrels with black diamond-shaped inlays. At the top, sculpted figures flank the arcaded central section, which is crowned by an arcaded pediment above an open gallery.

The Fine Arts Building was restored and renovated in 1983 by developer Ratkovich and Bowers, and architect Brenda Levin. http://fineartsbuildingla.net/