"This art is exuberant and eclectic and seems to be characterized by chaotic compositions and gritty graphics," says exhibit curator, Leonie Bradbury, who viewed this unique style of art during a recent visit to Los Angeles. "The main influences are graffiti, street art, Mexican murals, folk art and cartoons, and most of it centers on Los Angeles, a city that continues to assert itself as a hub of creativity and visual culture."
Bradbury's trip to Los Angeles was made possible by a generous travel grant from the New England Foundation for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts. While there, Bradbury visited many local galleries and was able to secure the participation of Dave Kinsey, Jeff Soto, and Aaron White in her budding exhibition. Upon her return, she came across the work of Date Farmers in Juxtapoz Magazine and felt they would be the perfect addition to complete the exhibit.
Artists Kinsey and Soto will travel to the Montserrat campus in a few weeks to create site-specific installations of their work, with the help of Montserrat students, and they will also give artist talks that are open to the public. "Since West Coast art is seldom shown at New England exhibit venues, I hope this will greatly benefit not only the Montserrat community, but the greater Boston metro communities as well," said Bradbury.
DATE FARMERS, an alias created for the artists Carlos Ramirez and Armando Lerma, have collaborated since 2001, when they met on a date farm 50 miles outside of Los Angeles. Lerma lives and works in Echo Park (Los Angeles) and Ramirez resides in Brawley, (a small town near the Mexican border). While Date Farmers' work is often created in Caochella Valley desert just North of L.A., their paintings possess the hard-edged, gritty quality attributed to urban art. Inspired by low riders, murals and native Mexican folk art, their work demonstrates a distinct Chicano influence, reflecting the prevalence of Hispanic culture in and around L.A. Visit www.newimageartgallery.com to view Date Farmer's work.
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