CERASOLI gallery presents DAVID O'BRIEN 'Explosions in a Mental Sky' / TOFER CHIN 'Double Dip'

C E R A S O L I gallery is pleased to present a pair of exhibitions by two artists producing graphically bold works that blur the distinctions between the natural and synthetic worlds: David O'Brien: 'Explosions in a Mental Sky' in Gallery One and Tofer Chin: 'Double Dip' in Gallery Two at the C E R A S O L I gallery (8530-B Washington Blvd in Culver City). Opens March 14, 2009, and remains on view through April 15, 2009. Opening reception is Saturday, March 14, from 6 – 9pm. David O'Brien, a Los Angeles based artist who trained as an architect with the legendary Frank Gehry, creates large-scale, highly intellectual ink and color pencil paintings. O'Brien's background in architecture is evident within his work, where abstract compositions seem to crystallize into patterns that are ordered with mathematical rigidity while seeming to flow with the serendipity of a constellation or school of fish. With an interest in cultivating intuition and freedom more than knowledge, O'Brien strives to integrate his own highly personalized, hand crafted language with more universal forms and landscapes. From a distance, O'Brien's patterns are expansive, giving the beautiful illusion of a moonscape clustered with geometric stalagmites, astro dust floating through space. Approaching his work, however, we experience an incremental shift in our perspective, as one pushed for light years through a wormhole to get a closer look at the world and our place in it. 'Love is in a little crystal,' O'Brien states, 'some glowing pixels…’ It's in the edges of the explosion where O'Brien best reveals us to ourselves. Evoking the aesthetics of Op art, Tofer Chin's 'Double Dip' is a continuation of his latest body of work. Focused on sensory perception, he continues to explore 'a world of electronic psycho sexual energy.' For this show, Chin perseverates on LSD; its psychological and spiritual impact, as well as its entertainment and allure. The result - three, large format paintings; bear the trademark of inspired hallucination. As modified rainbow apparitions pop out of 2-dimensional surfaces and sharp colors seem to glide from glassy canvas onto the gallery wall, a line is blurred between the real and the illusory. Chin ultimately completes his trip with cause and effect: a limited-edition print on blotter paper, resembling perforated acid tabs and a photograph of an unadulterated rainbow. Mirroring the experience from which it came, 'Double Dip' is an enigmatic exhibition, intimate and communal; fleeting and impossible to duplicate. Tofer Chin, a Los Angeles native, continues to exhibit, in both gallery and museum, in Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Barcelona, and Australia. Past works appear in The Los Angeles Times, Flaunt, Nylon, Trace, Big, Vice, Rojo, and Idn. In 2006, Rojo published his first book of photography, entitled 'Finger Bang', and in 2008, published his highly anticipated follow-up, entitled 'Vacation Standards'. C E R A S O L I gallery is located at 8530- b Washington Blvd. Culver City, CA 90232, and is open Tuesday - Saturday 11am - 6pm. For additional information contact, Freddi Cerasoli at [email protected] or (310) 954 5974 http://www.cerasoligallery.com