Panels Installed on the Walls of Las Manos

Michael McGuire - Untitled - 12 x 12 inch panels, Acrylic Paint

Last Friday, during the opening reception for the latest Las Manos show, I hung most of my recent 12" x 12" color panels on the newly painted white walls. The initial installation was more orderly than this. As the weekend progressed and we continually moved them around as we showed various configurations and combinations, this is where we ended up. One of my concepts for these pieces from the start was a certain modularity and open-endedness to their final arrangement, but I did not anticipate this! I am more orderly - for example I had originally hung all the panels with an X in them in one rectangular area. But this is fun too. And I now see a connection to certain 8 bit characters from my past.

New Show at Las Manos - April 1, 2016

Andersonville Arts Weekend - Oct. 9, 2015

LasManosGallery.blogspot.com

Las Manos will be participating in the 13th annual Andersonville Arts Weekend, October 9,10 and 11. Please join us for an opening reception/party on Friday, October 9 to celebrate the kick-off. All of Andersonville will be hosting artists throughout the weekend and Friday night is 'The Night of a Thousand Parties', where most business showcase an artist and put on a little party. At Las Manos Michelle promises a new series of recycled wood pieces, and maybe an installation. Brian Schutz continues his exploration of abstracted architectural models, now encompassing darker tones into his paper and frames. I am working on a series of 12 x 18 inch panels in black and white, and will make some crazy installation out of those. The gallery looks amazing and the back courtyard is still very green, perfect place for a cocktail. Scout, around the corner, is planning to have two very talented artists, and they always put on a good party, so there are two fun events to get your evening started.  Did I mention how many new restaurants have opened in the neighborhood this summer? Hope you can make it to Andersonville and Las Manos on Friday, October 9. See you at 7pm.

A Few Photos As We Install The Show At Las Manos

Four Framed Drawings Being Installed

Michelle Peterson Albandoz - Untitled - American Flag, Wood - 35 x 59 x 4 inches

New Show at Las Manos Gallery This Friday March 27, 2015

See the Las Manos Blog to see a few photos of work in the show.

Andersonville Arts Weekend

The Opening Night Reception is Friday, October 10, 2014 - from 6 to 9pm. I will be hanging out at Scout on Friday and will be showing four beautifully framed drawings from my latest body of work there.

Untitled - India Ink, Acrylic Paint, Arches Watercolor Paper, 40 x 26 inches

I will also have unframed work at Las Manos Gallery. Michelle Peterson Albandoz and Tricia Rumbolz will also be showing new work. Stop by both places if you get a chance, it will be a fun night.

A Few Photos From Last Fridays Reception At Las Manos

Ted Harris, Michelle Peterson Albandoz and Myself in front the wall of my drawings.

The front entry of Las Manos Gallery.

The view from Foster Avenue with Ted Harris Lamps in window. 

A collaboration between Ted Harris and Myself. 

New Show, New Work

My concept for the show with Ted Harris that opens this coming Friday at Las Manos Gallery is various works on Arches 26 x 40 inch watercolor paper. As you might know if you have check in on this blog recently I have been dying, staining and/or adding watercolor washes to the paper for a few weeks now. On top of that I have been drawing, with acrylic paint pens, imagery derived from my architectural drawing past. I hope to have at least a dozen of these drawings and although they will not be framed, I'm going to make some sort of installation out of them on the plywood walls.

Untitled (Grid on Grid 1) - Watercolor, Acrylic Paint, Watercolor Paper - 26 x 40 inches

The opening reception is on Friday August 22, 2014 at Las Manos Gallery, 1515 W. Foster Ave in Chicago. The party will run from 7 until 10 pm. It should be a good one!

Ted Harris has been hard at work in his studio creating lamps to fit the scale and sensibility of Las Manos.

Nicole Hollander is creating what I can only call dioramas with fish!

Kathryn Trumbull Fimreite will be showing a beautiful DVD about the frustrations of creative endeavors.

Michelle Peterson Albandoz promises on new large 'circular' piece, and Tricia Rubolz is always hard at work.

Tonight - Preview Reception For 'X Marks The Spot'

Join us tonight at Las Manos Gallery for the preview reception for our new show - 'X Marks The Spot'. If you cannot make it tonight, the show will be up through the month of June, including this weekend which is Andersonville's Midsommarfest (neighborhood street-fair). New work from Myself,  Michelle Peterson Albandoz and Tricia Rumbolz.

Untitled - Acrylic Paint on Panel - 12 x 12 inches

Upcoming Event - March 28, 2014

I am planning an event for  Friday March 28th at Las Manos Gallery. On that day I will have been using the gallery as a studio for six weeks - it is time to see if that exercise has been fruitful.

'Paper Thin'

March 28, 2014

From 7 to 10pm

Las Manos Gallery

1515 W. Foster Ave.

773 728-8910

Untitled (Spillway3) - Acrylic Paint on Acid Free Mat Board - 31 x 40 inches

I have been making a series of drawings based on the physical and conceptual qualities of blue prints, moving them in a minimal, process driven direction. They still evoke the 3 dimensional world, but speak of the process of drawing and the specifics of the materials. These drawings are very difficult to depict on the computer screen due to Moire Pattern interference so stop by to see them in person if you get a chance. 

Detail

I will be piggy-backing with the Chuck Meyers (http://chuckmeyers.com) painting show at Scout (http://scoutchicago.com) that takes place on the same night. They will open their reception an hour earlier at 6pm, and I will stay open later hoping to catch the crowd once Larry closes the doors at nine sharp. Chucks new paintings look beautiful and it will be an spectacular show. 

In addition, Derek Ottens and Christopher Ilth will be using the former 'She Art' space on the west side of Las Manos for a pop-up gallery that weekend, and they promise to fill it with their newest furniture assemblages and Chris's amazing collages Friday night. And I am hoping to install a piece in 'Wooly Mammoth' on the east side of Las Manos. (http://www.woollymammothchicago.com)

Drawings, New and Old, on the Gallery Wall

I'm settling into using the Las Manos Gallery as my studio space and I have managed to make a few pieces in the last week. There has been a surprising amount of traffic through the gallery, many of my friends and even a few walk-ins - distractions abound. But it is working on many levels, and I'm encouraged by the experience thus far. Pictured is one wall in the gallery this morning, with some new work, some old work and two pieces reconfigured.

  Left to right:
1. An old grid drawing cut apart and quickly reassembled. Looks like a figure from a petroglyph, maybe an ancient alien.

2. An old cardboard 'tapestry' piece. Recycled card board, India Ink washes, staples. There is a 'face' constructed within the piece, it is not immediately apparent in person but shows up well in photographs.

3. New India Ink Piece. Untrimmed top and bottom but roughly 22 x 58 inches.
4. Large India Ink Drawing. 45 x 70 inches when trimmed top and bottom.
5. Painted 12 x 12 inch panels. Acrylic paint pens. There are 7 panels pictured here and they can and have been arrange in many different configurations. Design your own contemporary painting!

6. New Cardboard and India Ink Drawing, 40 x 60 inches. I'm very attracted to the color of the cardboard. And it like the ubiquitous and mundane position in our culture.

February and March Developments

I have negotiated with Michelle, the owner of Las Manos Gallery, to occupy and use the gallery as my studio for the next couple of months. This is a win-win situation for us each as she is very busy with an upcoming show at Longview Gallery in Washington DC (http://www.longviewgallerydc.com/artists.php?id=146) and I am in need of more space in which to make drawings. I began what I am characterizing as a 'winter drawing project' last Tuesday but spent most of the week dealing with the weather and working out a few physical problems in the gallery. I hung a few things on one wall and made it my own in a small way. I hope to still have a variety of Las Manos artists on the other wall and insist that Michelle keep some of her work in the gallery at all times.

View of West Wall of Gallery/Studio Space

Making that first piece in the new space was a bit of hump I had to get myself over.  The challenge of having materials in two places will be worked out over time, but my strategy is to begin with a modest and straightforward project. So drawing on mat board with acrylic paint pens seems like a good place to start. Pictured is my first drawing in the new space.

Untitled - Acrylic Paint Pen on Archival Mat Board - 32 x 40 inches

I hope to do an event in the space once I get things going here, and plan to post more often and regularly.

Color Panels At Las Manos Gallery

acylic paint pen on panel

Detail

I ended up with twelve 12 x 12 inch panels - we hung them vertically in two rows of six, abutting one another. Impossible to photograph but the detail gives a sense of what the color. 

New Work at Las Manos Gallery - Opening Dec. 14, 2013

Please note the opening reception takes place on a Saturday instead of the usual Friday. I will be there, but on the later side as I have a competing Holiday Party.

I have been working on a series of 12 x 12 inch panels utilizing a straight edge ruler and acrylic paint pens. I'm up to ten in number and each is unique. This work challenges my color skills but I see it as a good exercise and it has been fun. The panels can be displayed separately - but they are modular and mix and match in very interesting ways.

Detail

On the Wall of Las Manos Gallery

The show at Las Manos is on the walls until early July. Check with gallery for precise dates. lasmanosgallery.blogspot.com

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And a detail of one piece.

What's On My Wall - May 26, 2013

Busy week getting ready for a show at Las Manos Gallery. I work in my home, a one bedroom condo in the Lakeview neighborhood of Chicago, and it is not really large enough to do double duty as both a home and a artist studio. I really notice the cramped conditions when I'm working on multiple things simultaneously. This week I've been collaging cardboard, making watercolors of Lake Michigan and trying to fit a few things into store-bought frames. On the wall are two large stapled collage pieces headed for the Gallery. The new funky cardboard one was created out of leftover pieces of cardboard over a couple days of mad assembly this week. I haven't quite decided on it's orientation but if fit on the wall here and hanging gets it out of my way until the show. On the floor you can see some recent watercolors. They are created in layers and each layer has to dry completely before the next can go on. So I work on multiples at the same time and step over them as they dry. This photo shows the weeks worth, and it strikes me that these watercolors are a visual diary of the lakes changing colors and conditions. I use photos as reference for this series, mostly for color and tonalities. I hang my head and camera off my balcony and shoot between the buildings on Lake Shore Drive with the telephoto lens extended. Every once in a while I get a nice photo.

Invite for the June Show at Las Manos

The Opening Reception For 'Works On Paper'

The opening reception for the 'Works on Paper' show at Las Manos was last Friday. Great group of artist, nice work too. Below are some photos from the reception including me bar-tending out in the gallery courtyard on a very cool evening. But I was serving Hot Toddies (hot tea, , honey and a squeeze of lemon) and we had the fire pit going. Thanks to all who helped pull the show together.

Whats On My Wall - November 25, 2012

Time to get back to blogging more regularly, I've been less than diligent with the gallery moving and then the Thanksgiving holiday. As a start, a photo of my living room wall made yesterday morning. An opportunity to see one new piece, just finished this week, and the things I hang on my wall to contemplate. The tall column like cardboard construction toward the left will be in the December Show at Las Manos Gallery along with a companion piece. That show will open on December 7 at the new space at 1515 W. Foster St. Also pictured is some old work brought back to my living space as we cleared out the old gallery. Note my old school television, the metal yard sticks on the floor, and a very cool vintage wood relief that I found in a thrift store years ago.

The New Las Manos Gallery Space

Just a couple quick photos of the new Las Manos Gallery space. Located around the corner from the old location, now at 1515 W. Foster. Plywood walls will make hanging art much easier and the new clean look is refreshing. I'm still sitting in the gallery on Sundays from 11 to 5pm. Stop by if you get a chance.