Giant Robot Store and GR2 News
I’ve been a Godzilla fan from the early days and I’m proud to be in this issue of Pen Magazine featuring the world’s beloved beast. One of the first questions from Japanese writers is about the “new” Godzilla and overall, I give it a thumbs up. I still long for the “man in suit” versions, but the newest actually works. In the end, I understand that Godzilla is cultish gone major, so making a huge Hollywood picture out of it has a difficult standard to achieve. How do you retain the old school charm and the new school needs of a modern film audience? It’s a subtle line. I recall another question being Godzilla’s toughest foe. I chose Mothra. Imagine a moth that huge… Actually, imagine a moth that’s tiny. The weird moth dust disgusts us all. Imagine how much dust would come off of Mothra? Mothra is disgusting. I’ll admit, I can’t read this article, so who knows what I said in it, but it’s an honor to be holding the treasured Godzilla items that I own. A vintage die-cast and a fairly modern vinyl figure. See Pen Magazine online.
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I curate art, but I don’t partake in creating it. A few friends know that I do little drawings once in a while – mostly to illustrate an idea or plan. They’re often simple doodles done in haste. After recently finding a page of little faces that I draw years ago, I posted an image and got a warm response. I decided to make a mug! I almost feel a bit of shame in showing my own drawing on a product since the artists I work with make such great things. I hope they don’t mind. It’s $12. If you have any interest, here’s the link. Here’s a photo of the mug in use!
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There’s near 100 photos here. So do take your time and relive Uglycon. Artists, friends, guests, and plenty of activities. We enjoyed it all. Thanks for being part, virtual or in person.
Holy crap, I just saw Dinosaur Jr. play a free show on a backyard porch with Dale Crover from the Melvins on drums. If you don’t get it, that’s sort of like seeing AC/DC with Jon Bonham, Metallica with Dave Lombardo, or you get the idea. Nothing against the real lineup–which rules–but this was a rad, one-time event that you had to be at.
Giant Robot is proud to present Gathering Whispers – a solo exhibition by Edwin Ushiro. July 12th – July 20th, 2014 Opening Reception with the Artist: July 12, 2014, 6:30-10:00 PM Giant Robot 2 2062 Sawtelle Boulevard Los Angeles CA 90025 Edwin Ushiro’s work contains a sense of nostalgia even for a person who didn’t grow up in Maui. The subjects of his works will range from beautiful, warm, and comfortable. One piece will include a not-so-obvious homage to Super Sentai (like Power Rangers). Kids will be jumping out of a pick-up truck as if they’re embarking on a battle against a kaiju. A piece about a bridge built by Okinawan craftspersons encapsulates ideas of change as it has been a subject of demolition to widen a road for more traffic. Another piece features sparklers which scares off bad spirits. While we travail through our daily activities, Ushiro’s calming nature comes through in his work and you’ll be enchanted by its ethereal look. His pieces have a look that’s all its own. It spans from drawings taken to digital manipulation, and then back to hand painting for finishing. It’s a laborious process that’s all his own. Come celebrate Gathering Whispers at Giant Robot 2. For more information about Edwin Ushiro, Giant Robot or anything else, please contact: Eric Nakamura eric@giantrobot.com 310-445-9276 Twitter Instagram Facebook About Edwin Ushiro Edwin Ushiro’s work resonates with the echoes of his boyhood in the “slow town” of Wailuku on the Hawaiian island of Maui. In his paintings, he recalls the sun-struck days of youth, when the world was fresh and magical, but also explores the eerie folklore indigenous to dark country roads and the boundless depths of the childhood imagination. While structuring his work around the narrative tradition of “talk story” native to the Hawaiian islands, he interweaves the uncanny obake tales of his Japanese heritage. Working in a unique mixed media technique which involves laboring in ink and acrylic over sheets of Lucite printed with assemblages of his more traditional drawings and paintings, he creates reflections on the past that are luminous and nostalgic, like cherished memories burnished by the passage of time. After earning a BFA with Honors in Illustration from Art Center College of Design, he worked in the entertainment industry as a storyboard artist, concept designer and visual consultant. More recently, he has exhibited in venues worldwide, including Villa Bottini in Italy, the Museum of Kyoto, the Portsmouth Museum of Art and the Japanese American National Museum. On August 13, Edwin will present new artwork in the HI Society exhibition at the Honolulu Museum of Art. A published monograph of his work will be released in 2014. He lives and works in Los Angeles. About Giant Robot Giant Robot was born as a Los Angeles-based magazine about Asian, Asian-American, and new hybrid culture in 1994. Over the past 20 years, the Giant Robot brand has expanded to include retail stores and galleries in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and New York, a restaurant, museum and...
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