"Spectrum 17" Out Now!

Just released and now available through online retailers and major bookstores near you! I'm so honored to be shown among such an amazing group of artists again. It's another great volume, so grab your copy and enjoy!

Visit Spectrum's official site for more info, as well as to get a sneak peek flip-through of the book!

"Challenging, controversial, educational, and irreverent, the 15th anniversary addition to the award-winning Spectrum series reinforces both the importance and prevalence of fantastic art in today’s culture. With exceptional images by extraordinary creators, this elegant full-color collection showcases an international cadre of creators working in every style and medium, both traditional and digital. The best artists from the United States, Europe, China, Australia, South America, and beyond have gathered into the only annual devoted exclusively to works of fantasy, horror, science fiction, and the surreal, making Spectrum 17 one of the year’s most highly anticipated books. With art from books, graphic novels, video games, films, galleries, and advertising, Spectrum is both an electrifying art book for fans and an invaluable resource for clients looking for bright new talent. The entire field is discussed in an invaluable, found-nowhere-else year in review. Contact information for each artist is included in a handy index. Often imitated, never equaled, Spectrum 17 continues the freshness and excellence that was established 16 years ago."

Recent feature in this month's issue of "American Art Collector"

If you haven't yet, check out the current November issue of American Art Collector for a brief follow-up feature covering my recent solo exhibition, located in the magazine's "Sold!" section!

Art Basel Miami 2010

I am excited to announce that my work will be making an appearance at this year's Art Basel Miami! As most of you may know, it's one of the world's most prominent art events and most important art show in the US, presenting leading galleries, artists, and art enthusiasts from around the globe. It all takes place December 2-5, 2010.
Don't miss it! :)

For all information, please visit http://www.artbaselmiamibeach.com/.

Art Basel Miami Beach is the most important art show in the United States, a cultural and social highlight for the Americas. As the sister event of Switzerland's Art Basel, the most prestigious art show worldwide for the past 41 years, Art Basel Miami Beach combines an international selection of top galleries with an exciting program of special exhibitions, parties and crossover events featuring music, film, architecture and design. . . .every year, a greater number of art collectors, artists, dealers, curators, critics and art enthusiasts from around the world participate in Art Basel Miami Beach - the favorite winter meeting place for the international art world. (artbaselmiamibeach.com)

New projects & new work

Happy Autumn, everyone! My favorite season is here and there are a lot of new, exciting things going on! Two new paintings have recently been uploaded to the gallery section of my website, www.andreakowchillustration.com, so be sure to visit. I will post and discuss them here on the blog soon, too, so stay tuned and check them out on my site in the meantime.

I'm also officially scheduled to have another solo exhibition next summer at RJD Fine Arts Gallery, which I am super-excited about, and I'm currently beginning work on a major painting for two really great clients, which I will reveal at a later date. More large-scale work to come!

I also recently collaborated on a promotional shoot (see image) with emerging photographer, Lindee Robinson, currently a third-year student at my alma mater CCS, who's work totally rocks. Check her out on ModelMayhem and Facebook. I thought I'd share the teaser preview above of my model, Jennifer, and I in character and on location. It was one cold, blustery day for a shoot, and by the end of it, I was literally numb. A great time was had by all, though; more photos to come!

"Big Art, Small Canvas" Group Show

I will be featured in a new group show at RJD Fine Arts Gallery this month - Big Art, Small Canvas - which will include some of my smaller works (see one of them on card above, third from top). Be sure to check it out if you are in the area!

Big Art, Small Canvas

Opening Reception
September 25, 2010
6:00 -8:00 pm

Richard J. Demato Fine Arts Gallery
90 Main Street
Sag Harbor, NY 11963
631-725-1161
rjdgallery.com

"Tea"

36" x 48"
acrylic on canvas



In some ways, Tea parallels The Visitors in terms of concept and composition. A picnic on the verge of going awry, it involves an attitude of both panic and indifference; when we become unconscious of what we are actually doing because we are so caught up in our heads. The world, however, stops for no one as the goats and other animals reveal, continuing to go about their tasks, driven by their basic needs in their uncomplicated ways.

For me, the two figures represent a collective consciousness and contrasting emotions. The figure on the left is that little voice that keeps us in check when we lose ourselves. She's aware of what's going on unlike the other, who is transfixed in a world unbeknownst to us, her overflowing cup of tea indicative of several things. Humans are an excessive lot, draining precious resources from a world that still manages to sustain us, and a part of this painting speaks to that. The neutral sky and hazy landscape gives this painting an air of ambiguity, which further serves the purpose of this picture, as I wanted its essence to be one of dark playfulness tinged with uncertainty.

"Queen Anne's Lace"

30" x 24"
acrylic on canvas



The concept for this painting started out as a simple pun on words before shifting to something a little deeper; a view from a more feminine perspective, my love for expansive, earthy landscapes, fields in particular, and a childhood favorite of a wildflower that I used to pick. When I was a child, relatives of mine had a home with a wide field running behind it, and everytime I went over there, the only thing I wanted to do was run down that hill that was blanketed in daisies and Queen Anne's Lace. It's a flower that is both so complex yet so simple at the same time; the way I myself sometimes feel. Funny how ordinary memories often find their way into the paintings in one form or another, even without me knowing sometimes, and they play a large role in this one. Those were the days; the field was my empire, the buzzing insects my court, and the flowers my crown!

"The Visitors"

48" x 60"
acrylic on canvas



My largest to date, The Visitors came about through an image that flashed in my mind, as well as the thirst to dive into a more complex composition and scene. I have been wanting to go "big" for a while, as I was yearning to create a scene where the viewer can feel able to physically step in and be a part of the action. It was an all-consuming process, and I never lost the fever for it all throughout the course of working on it, which can be a rare thing sometimes.

The scene itself serves as an allegory for the struggle to create order out of chaos. As human beings, suppressing various emotions underneath a calm exterior is not uncommon in our day-to-day lives. So many people have connected to this painting in one way or another. I wanted to get a sense of the "heat" - hot summer wind coming through open windows across a drought-ridden field, the heat of the oven, the dizzying swirl of movement and sound, things on the verge of losing control - chaos personified. Yet, the figures appear almost unmoved. Perhaps it's just another day in the kitchen. The interaction between all the elements speaks of what lies beneath the surface. I deliberately composed the perspective and size of each animal and object to serve the purpose of encouraging interaction with the viewer. I want anyone who looks at this picture to feel like they can pull up a chair to sit across from the central figure and be a part of the whole environment.

Thoughts of interest. . .

As I paint I contemplate things a lot, and with that often comes the urge to turn a few pages in a book on an artist I admire; be it the need to find inspiration, encouragement, or to simply remind myself that I am not alone in feeling profound emotions towards similar things.

"I. . . have inherited that strange love for things remote, things delicately perfumed with that sadness that is so exquisitely beautiful. . . I only dare hope that I can commune these feelings to you in my work - sometime."

"I feel so moved sometimes toward nature that I could almost throw myself face down into a ploughed furrow - ploughed furrow understand! I love it so."

-- N.C. Wyeth

Just some random thoughts for today that I felt were worth sharing.

RJD/101 Group Show

I'm excited to be part of a spectacular current group show this month at RJD Fine Arts Gallery, which features other select artists from the gallery and those of Miami-based gallery, 101/exhibit. It's the first joint show between the two galleries and runs from August 7 - August 27, 2010. I was also super-excited to see my work featured on the show posters and promos (see poster above, clockwise from upper left: David Bowers, Phillip Thomas, Jason Alexander, me!). If you haven't already, be sure to check out the show if you are in Sag Harbor!

“RJD Fine Arts Gallery & 101/Exhibit Present Their Gallery Artists" Including: David Bowers, Jason Alexander, Bo Bartlett, Michael Costello, and select RJD Gallery Artists

August 7-27, 2010

http://www.rjdgallery.com/
http://www.101exhibit.com/