May 1 through June 12, 2009
Rather than depicting moments of cultural Diaspora, Shizu Saldamando gravitates towards the idea of fragmentation within the self as being more of a mulitplicitous evolving, fluid, whole, and never-ending process. “We are all part of unique subcultures and movements, both physically and psychologically that are constantly in flux, changing through influences, and morphing in style,” says Saldamando. Her paintings and drawings are an investigation into different social constructs and subcultures. She is an observer of backyard parties, dance clubs, music shows, hang out spots, and art receptions. By exploring subcultures through personal narrative, and employing an eclectic mix of materials, Saldamando hopes to neutralize fixed hierarchical social constructs where the viewer becomes aware of their own fluid subjectivity, and begins to question their assumptions regarding the subject matter in each piece.
For the title of this exhibition, Saldamando not only turns to the medium of the gold leaf, but also contrasts the self-reflective nature within each work. She explores the primarily marginalized social circles of youth, and the nuances and melancholy that come with growing up and losing innocence as well as the reclamation of innocence and hope that may have been denied or obscured due to antagonistic social structures. Stay Gold is taken from the 1923 Robert Frost Poem, and used so eloquently by Johnny in the novel, and later 1980’s teen social drama The Outsiders. Stay Gold becomes a plea for optimism in an otherwise bleak social context, and the gold leaf among various collage elements becomes a glorifying context of self- affirmation that underlines an uneasy and artificial disconnect.
Shizu Saldamando was born and raised in San Francisco's Mission district, and received her B.A. from UCLA's School of Arts and Architecture in 2000. In 2002 she attended ArtOmi International Artist Colony in upstate New York, and in 2005 she received her MFA from California Institute of the Arts. She has exhibited her work in both painting and experimental media exhibitions nationally, including Los Angeles', Freeways Festival of Experimental Media Arts, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco, The Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum in Chicago, Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego and The Phantom Sightings Exhibition at LACMA. She currently lives and works in Los Angeles.
Los Angeles Times/La Plaza blog
top right: La Otra Gerry, oil paint, gold leaf, washi paper & glitter on wood, 2009, 60x30 inches
second right and detail at bottom left: Cat and Carm, oil paint with collage & gold leaf on found screen, 2009, 35x70 inches
third right: Daniel y Uriel, colored pencil on paper, washi paper collage, 2009, 30x40 inches
bottom right: Carm's Crew, gold leaf, glitter, oil paint on wood, 2009, 36x48 inches
left: installation views
