Can you believe Memorial Day is here? Time to remember our service men and woman and say Thank you.

Well summer is here….Mellow out and hang with some friends….there are several festivals taking place all weekend Drawing on the Moon and Topanga Days celebrates its 40th year!

Our Pick of the Week takes place this Sunday…

Altered Space will celebrate its final month on Abbot Kinney (it’s closing June 30th) with a group show featuring NEW WORK by Lillian Abel, Susan Feldman, and Karrie Ross on Sunday May 26th. 

If you have lived in Venice or attended any of the early First Friday events, you may remember this wonderful shop, chock full of art in many forms, jewelry, accessories, furniture and of course the kind you hang on the wall too. Owner Sand Brim has gathered unique and wearable art from local artists and created a warm and accessible atmoshpere for both the artists and the public.

Brim gives us a look back….”When I first moved to Abbot Kinney in February 2005, the street was funky, vibrant, creative, and so enthusiastic about its future. I felt like I had landed exactly where I needed to be. We were looking for a place that strove to be an antidote to the crass commerciality that dominates much of LA’s retail environment. We are an artist driven business and Abbot Kinney was all about art and creativity at that time. At times it was scary. It definitely was a place where crime met art. Rents were reasonable and doable for a small art driven non-corporate business. And the community was about supporting local businesses. Change came: some good, some bad, and some downright alarming. The one thing that has not changed are the amazing restaurants. They are mostly all still here, with some notable additions. But in reality, it’s a different place now. It’s hip, it’s “in,” it has “arrived.” There have been some joyful times at Altered Space. We have presented some seriously talented people to the community. And we have been really lucky to have had some seriously talented staff, artists in there own right. We’ve had a good run. And now, for us, it’s time to go. Ladies and gentlemen, come June 30th, Altered Space will leave the building.” When asked what she misses most…she replies, “The way it was.”

So if you remember all the fabulous art parties that have been held at Altered Space, stop in say hi, make a purchase enjoy the final shindig this Sunday.

The group show features three Los Angeles-based artists. Lillian Abel paints in waves of color, resulting in compositions which inhabit a space not quite landscape nor abstracted color field, but somewhere in-between. Susan Feldman constructs “ladders” of reclaimed wood, yarn, and jute.  These climbing tools serve to lift and transcend, if ever so delicately bound to their earthly constraints.
 
Karrie Ross is a prolific painter immersed in the continuous application of energy, revealing a divine sense of order & purpose, amidst seemingly chaotic components.

Ross works in different medias… watercolor, acrylic, oil, pen and ink, sculpture, found objects, jewelry. She refers to her art as being “healing based,” always striving to create a balance within the surrounding environment, due to her Feng Shui training. She talks about her art, “I am particularly drawn to spirals, not only in shape but in the concept of the continuous movement of energy. At the inner-most workings of the atom is a vibration… THAT is what is the source… our generator of personal energy, the all that we are.”

See image: by Karrie Ross, Title: Sweet Memories #1 size: 10×10; oil, acrylic on canvas

For more information about Karrie Ross, see her website at http://www.karrierossfineart.com

On view: May 26th – June 29th

Parking is available in residential streets EAST of Abbot Kinney (Electric Ave, etc.)

What: Opening reception
Where: Altered Space Gallery, 1221 Abbot Kinney Blvd, Venice, 90291
When: Sunday, May 26th  3:00 pm – 6:00 pm
Website: www.alteredspacegallery.com