New Multi Panel Collage

This is a new piece that is about 1/3 of its way to completion. The size is 13 feet by 4 1/2 feet.

I am excited about this new take on the work.

The Legal Limit: New small work.

Here are a few new small pieces. Top to bottom,

The Legal Limit, Screaming Thru A Drive Thru, That Rig Is Slammed, and Weaving Thru Traffic.

That Cat's Over The Limit: Small work.

Been in the basement grinding...started some small work. Here are some samples. The red one is Driving Between Lanes, 16"X16". The lighter one is, That Cat's Over The Limit same size. These pieces are a nice change of pace after the big pieces. The bigs will continue just took a break.

She Screamed Faster! : New Collage

After a summer of school travel. It was fun to finish this piece. She Screamed Faster, is 41"h x 51"w.

Pedestrian Panic: Small Collage

In the mix of travel to see colleges work has slowed. Although I was able to finish a small piece (33"x 33") using only the dot pattern paper-cmyk misprint paper. Its called Pedestrian Panic.

Tony Pace's School of Driving and Life: Where does art start. part 2

Have you ever experienced driving under an elevated subway, elevated rail line, or roadway? The flashing of light and shadow is like watching an old movie that has a strobe effect. That's where art comes from. Before you were the driver, you were the passenger, the one who could put their face against the window or out the window and look up at the flashing of light and shadow. In my case it was when my grandfather Tony drove.

Driving and hangin with Tony. That's where my art started: the love of cars and movement. Of course I didn't know it then. In a previous post I talked about some of the things I remembered about those hours that have coalesced into moments. Fragments much like a collage.

Some additional thoughts about Tony and the things he did that I try to capture in the collage pieces I create. I do not try to capture them in a literal way but in a way that is random like moments that flash by. Like an Ed Ruscha painting. Fragments of words pieces of imagery (some humorous) and alot that you are left to decipher. Rather than pinpoint those random events or surreal moments, I will list what has come to mind about what strange and wonderful things my grandfather did.

Always beep your horn under a bridge or overpass, don't worry about the other drivers trying to figure out what the hell some mad man is honking at. Its the act and each time saying hey cheech (this pre Cheech and Chong) listen,
like I couldn't hear it or didn't know what was coming.

If you see a cat on the side of the street roll down your window and make the sound of another cat screeching, as best you can. Tony had this down. The best was the reaction of the cat. Even better if you could combine this and the bridge scenario.

Stopping to help almost anyone who was broken down on the side of the road. This act of kindness by Tony was amazing. He was a great mechanic. Also Cars in the 50s, 60s ans 70s were allot easier to work on and fix. He would stop when he was alone or with my grandmother and aunt, or me and my siblings. He would stop even if he was going to be late to something. This did not always sit well with the passengers but the People he helped were so grateful . This may be a hard option today for many reasons some are its hard to judge what is safe and its hard to fix cars.

Some non-driving related things worth noting. Always have fireworks for July 4th and make sure to blow them up even if it is illegal. Then proceed to the local municipality's fireworks display and enjoy. Be sure to add some crazed narration about colors and size.

If you like dogs like my grandfather, you should always have some type of treat for your favorite dog pals with you. The treats Tony had on hand were caramel candies. Dog loved these things, although dogs love all food. This was a good treat because of its size, easy to have around and kids like them too.

This set of thoughts on my grandfather Tony and the ones from the earlier post about him may be a great starting point for anyone who would like to be known as an eccentric and entertaining grandfather.
Have a great 4th of July, and blow off some fireworks of your own. Tony would appreciate that.

Move Over, I'll Drive: New Collage

Speed is of the essence. Move over, I'll Drive is the name of the collage. By me driving you will be able to press your face against the window and see all that you would miss if you had to drive. In addition it allows me to stomp the accelerator and reach speeds that will set off all the photo radar cameras we pass adding to the light show. One other thing: having you distracted by the flashing lights from the cameras, you won't see me ducking so as not to have my picture taken by them. Safety is not relevant in a collage. Or in art.

There are some close ups of this piece and It should give you an idea of why it took some time to complete.

A Hundred Miles From Anywhere: Almost There.

"Quality is Quantity. The quality of an art object is directly proportional to the quantity of something that it gives to someone who belongs to some constituency of interest" to quote Dave Hickey. This is a thought that has been rolling around in my dome while I work on this piece. I have found that as these collages progress there has been a determination on my part to place as much visual information in them as to capture the act of smashing the side of your face against the window of a car moving at speeds that would be considered reckless. A lifetime of driving in one moment. The result should be a visual that is revisited because you are always seeing something new that you missed at a previous viewing. This is what Peter Frank said about these collages in his review of my show in Venice, California at Gebert Gallery "They seem more immediately connected than ever, both to the experience of seeing things zip by and to the hyper-distortion that results from trying to record such experience through a lens". Here are some shots from last week. This piece is almost finished.

Tony Pace's School of Driving and Life: Where does art start.

The guy holding my sisters hand in this picture from 1961 is partially responsible for the work I do. He never taught art. He sold cars. My maternal grandfather, Tony. I spent more time driving with him than anybody else before I learned to drive. As you would expect cars were the deal, driving to get cars, going to see cars, being in car lots, sitting in the car waiting, and going to Jerome Ave in the Bronx NY where the greatest concentration of wholesale car dealers in the Northeast was located. These days spent with Tony were an eye opener for a kid.

Some examples of the entertainment were opening the glove box to find a handgun, that by the way only shot blanks according to my grandfather. Watching guys with rolling tool boxes whose profession it was to help diminish the mileage on some of the cars being bought. Other fellas who were handy with a hot iron used to re-burn tread in a tire that had very little (not recommended).

Other activities might include reading the NY Daily News race track results to find out what numbers came up. Going to visit the local bookie to place your bets. That could be going to the corner grocery type store. I was always amazed that they had some of the most unexpected products, toasters, blenders and vacuum's for example. Little did I know these products arrived at these establishments because they had been scammed by guys (those guys) who committed credit card fraud at department stores. In those days credit card purchases were only checked by phone if they were over a certain amount. These purchases did not warrant a phone check.
Time with my grandfather was like being part of scenes from Goodfellas that were not violent. I know there weren't many non-violent scenes in the movie, but there were some.

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Cars fast and big was a good thing as you can see from the image. How many people today roll in gear like he is wearing. A caddy was nice.

Showing up at my home with a Dodge Super Bee (basically a Road Runner hemi) making sure we

knew he, my grandmother, and aunt arrived by some engine revving and tire squealing. Once parked he would inquire who wanted to go for a drive. This drive was not sanctioned for adult consumption. The neighborhood kids were invited. When we would leave the street it was accompanied by burning some rubber, to the delight of the passengers and dismay of adult onlookers.

These memories are part of why I make art about moving, driving and remembering.

There is more to how this influences the way I make my collages. The Tony story to be continued in another post.

Avenues Of Scraping Steel: Finds A Home In L.A.

Gebert Gallery Venice CA sells Avenues Of Scraping Steel, my largest (6' x 10') collage piece made to date.

Orange County Arts Grant For Studio Paint Winner

For my collage "Your Going To Drive Me To Drinking If" I recieved a $500 grant today. It's ALL GOOD

New Collage: The Background. Now The Insanity Begins

Here are some images of the 7 x 8 foot collage about 1/4 of the way. The small strips are next. This could take awhile.

If You're In L.A.: Upcoming Group Show

Please Join Us This Friday, May 1st, 7 - 10 PM.

As Our Los Angeles Gallery Celebrates

One Year In Venice With Our Anniversary Group Show

Featuring

Tracey Adams · Dirk De Bruycker · Paul Ecke · Gloria Gaddis

Betty Gold · Bernd Haussmann · Judith Kindler · Perla Krauze

Gregory Lomayesva · Udo Nöger · John Randall Nelson · David Parke

Gay Patterson · Brandon Reese · Lee Silton · Hunt Slonem

Vera Sprunt · Michelle Stuhl · Pamela Sunday · Mark Vinci

Gebert

Gallery

Contemporary

Art

1345 Abbot Kinney Blvd,

Venice, CA 90291

Phone (310)

450-9897

info@gebertgallery.com

www.gebertgallery.com

THE Magazine : Review of Avenues of Scraping Steel at Gebert Gallery, Venice

Mark Vinci
Avenues of Scraping Steel
Gebert Contemporary
Phoenix-based Mark Vinci has long been interested in the abstract evocation of speed. Doing the Italian Futurists one better a century after the fact, Vinci captures -- or perhaps recaptures -- the visual impression of speed as caught out ...read more at
http://themagla.com/cgi-bin/artmagla/review.cgi?ReviewID=217

Start Me Up: The beginnings of a collage

Images that are elements of the beginning of a new collage. These pictures give some sense of scale . The blurred color shot gives me a feel for the composition. The panel is 7 feet by 8 feet.

Merging Without Looking: New Collage

This piece was finished last week. Size h48 x 72w.

Finding a Ferrari in a Junk Yard: Motherload of Billboard Paper

Billboard paper printed with a screen dot pattern aka CMYK process is not done anymore, the last known batch in Phoenix was printed in 2005. It has been replaced with huge Epson Inkjet printers. Every Friday, I go to collect billboard paper mis-prints in the yard of the company that prints the majority of billboard paper not only for Phoenix, but for national distribution. I never thought I would see anymore of the screen dot pattern paper again...well you know where this is going. Motherload, baby! JACKPOT! Friday, they had two pallets loaded with this stuff. The raw materials that allow me to make my collages. I had been careful about how much I used before because I knew there would be no more, now I have twenty boxes with at least 60 sheets each that are 60" x 72" which is 36,000 square feet of possible collage imagery. Holy crap! Here are some images, check out the insane dot patterns.

Avenues of Scraping Steel: A Solo Exhibit at Gebert Gallery Venice California

The show ran from January 16th thru February 27th,2009. Gebert Gallery Venice is a new contemorary space on Abbot Kinney Blvd. The images below give some sense of what a great space it is to show art work. Sandro Gebert Gallery director along with Shawna, and David did an amazing job hanging and lighting the show. They also were great hosts for the opening weekend. Thanks

Video Installation at Scottsdale Museum of Contemorary Art.

“Swish Pan,” a new video art installation by Locked Horns’ Paul DeNigris and artist Mark Vinci.The video installation was the focal point of the entrance to SMoCA’s Flip a Strip exhibition which ran from October 4, 2008 through January 18, 2009.

Flip a Strip was a design competition held by SMoCA to “look at options for making strip malls economically viable, aesthetically interesting and communally meaningful.” Designers and architects submitted sometimes radical re-design plans for one of three strip malls in Phoenix, Scottsdale, and Tempe, and the exhibition at SMoCA will be showcasing the best of the submitted designs.

DeNigris and Vinci were commissioned to create a video that captured the essence of the competition - the repetitive and banal nature of the strip mall as something we rush past every day yet hardly pay any attention to. The challenge was also to create a video that evoked some of the same visual themes seen in Vinci’s art work.

DeNigris and Vinci shared directing duties; Keegan Ead once again provided timelapse images for the video; DeNigris and Julie Hoefflin were the camera operators.

Swish Pan from Paul DeNigris on Vimeo.

Gebert Gallery Scottdale show July 2008

Avenues of Scraping Steel is shown at the July Group show at Gebert Scottsdale. It is the largest collage piece (72"x 120") in the new body of work using billboard paper.

Luminous Shelter Videos

Three video pieces featuring the work of DeBartolo Architects, Produced in January 2008. The pieces are the first collaboration between Paul DeNigris of Locked Horns Productions and Mark Vinci. Working with us was Keegan Ead producing the timelapse images. The three videos were part of an installation at ASU College of Design. It was great to work with the DeBartolos and to capture a day in the life of these wonderful buildings.


DeBartolo Architects: The Commons from Paul DeNigris on Vimeo.


DeBartolo Architects: Miramonte Residence from Paul DeNigris on Vimeo.


DeBartolo Architects: Prayer Pavilion of Light from Paul DeNigris on Vimeo.