Images from the New Giant Robot Gallery: ‘Year of the Monkey’

Yesterday, LA was treated to the newest Giant Robot Gallery, a ‘Year of the Monkey’-themed showcase featuring a typically excellent array of both veteran and up-and-coming artists. Even if you missed the reception last night, which saw several of the artists in attendance,  you’ll be able to view the pieces up until February 10th.

The Monkey King (Revisited) by Luke Chueh

Year of the Monkey by Maggie Chiang

Monkey and Plum Blossom by Martin Hsu

The Year of the Monkey

Traditionally, the Monkey sign of the Chinese zodiac represents mischievousness, playfulness, and cleverness–in other words, you couldn’t hope for a more fitting set of keywords for the new Giant Robot gallery, an excellently-curated show from one of the foremost voices in alt-pop culture and illustration. While some pieces locked onto some of the more traditional attributes of the Monkey, such as its affinity to water and metal, others chose to highlight the universal craftiness of the creature, while still others chose to accentuate its physical form. The pieces also ranged from more peaceful, contemplative imagery, as above, to more complex and nearly psychedelic pieces.

Abstract Monkey King by Yu Maeda

Hyotan Namazu by Candie Bolton

by Moira Hahn

Also impressive were the non-illustration submissions, which included sculpture, mixed-media works, and photography, to lend depth to an already stunning Giant Robot Gallery.

Earthly Delight by Aaron Brown

Print by Sean Chao

Giant Robot Past and Present

The Year of the Monkey gallery clearly indicates Giant Robot’s influence as a powerful tastemaker and venue for everything cutting-edge in the popular creative arts. GR started out as a print magazine with a focus on Asian American culture, with special regards to graphic arts, skateboarding culture, and collectibles, but steadily grew into a multi-faceted venture, and at one time boasted galleries and outposts in New York and San Francisco. Though their final issue was released back in 2007, they still continue to hold tremendous sway in art scenes in LA and beyond. Currently, GR occupies two locations on Sawtelle Blvd. near Westwood Village in Los Angeles, CA; GR2 (located at 2015 Sawtelle Blvd) functions as the group’s artspace, while the main Giant Robot store (located at 2062 Sawtelle Blvd.) boasts an array of merchandise from contemporary print artists, zine makers, and vinyl toy companies.

Giant Robot just finished celebrating their 4th Biennale at the Japanese American Museum in LA’s Little Tokyo district, which included pieces from such modern-day masters as Yoskay Yamamoto, James Jean, and Audrey Kawasaki. Today, unfortunately, was the final day to view the massive retrospective, but if Year of the Monkey is any indication, this certainly won’t be the last we’ll hear from GR.

Untitled by Miso

Untitled by Theo Ellsworth

Blooming Tea by Shihori Nakayama

The Bubble by Peter Chan

Monkey by Mari Inukai