The artwork of Los Angeles-based Sarajo Frieden literally explodes out of the canvas, this challenging, confronting, colourful burst of shapes and textures, at once disjointed yet somehow perfectly in place. She says of her work: ‘The cacophony of hand-painted signs in a variety of languages serves as both inspiration and daily reminder that the ordinary is often extraordinary and nothing is what it seems. A host of disparate vocabularies from the worlds of fine, folk and decorative art, including Persian miniatures, Shaker trance drawings, Japanese ukiyo-e, and my Hungarian great aunt’s embroidery, can be found wandering through my images. I try to give form to the human experience as I see it’.

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Having spent his early years in Syria, artist Hagop Belian now resides in Los Angeles, leaving behind a BA in Mathematics and the option of becoming a weapons engineer to instead pursue an artistic path of self expression. His most recent work involves stories told by trinkets and treasures to represent rebirth, transformation, truth and change.

Some beautiful work by Los Angeles-based, Korean artist Steve Kim. Of his paintings he says: ‘Although I wish I could say otherwise, my paintings typically begin with an unpretentious, but slightly embarrassing,”Hey, that’s neat. That looks fun to paint”. If I’m lucky I’ll have my camera with me, but more often than not it’s something duly noted and set aside’.

It is with this attitude that I pick out photos to paint from. I browse the ever-expanding collection of pictures I’ve taken and when one catches my eye—for whatever reason at all—I go ahead and paint it. I don’t particularly revel in my use of photography. I am not mediating between its role in the arts or painting specifically. I use it because it’s practical, and alternatives do not exactly abound. Luckily, I like photography and post processing, so I happen to know enough to discern how it might influence my painting for better or worse.

With reference in hand, I set about the task of painting a painting. Sometimes with a specific idea of where to take it, but more often than not just trying to draw and paint what I see. If there is any meaning to be had in my work, it is in the fact that at no time do I turn off the part of me that turned me on to the image in the first place. In other words, as I paint, hundreds of little “Hey, that’s neat” moments occur within the painting. It might be some shape in the initial drawing, or some arbitrary wash of color—anything that stands alone and somehow asserts its right to exist. Although I gravitate towards figuration, or at least animate objects, there is a point where the inanimate things on the canvas seem to come to life and take over.

The real work is in deciding what should stay and what should go. Do I keep this little interesting bit of transparency in favor of opacity? Are these edges good enough or do I start anew? Is this thing really captivating or—be honest now—am I buying into my own schtick? There is a tendency to think of a final work as being a big, bold, confident statement by the artist. My best pieces, however, are often malformed , self-conscious things beaten into the shape of something passing for proud. My work has suffered the most precisely when I’d succumb to some predefined ideology or rhetoric.

A big concern of mine is how much of this process is transparent to the viewer? How can my paintings and the circumstances in which they were created be more accessible? A small thing I like to do is take pictures of my work in-progress. They serve either as a record of what could have been , or a way of holding myself accountable to my decisions. I think of them as potential points of entry for the viewer in what might otherwise be aloof, inaccessible work. This is one aspect of my practice that I would enjoy elaborating and expanding upon in the future. I really like the idea of a viewer charting the progress of a painting and deciding for himself the merits of each decision. See here. Look at this! I told you he zigged when he should of zagged’.

Born in Seoul Korea, but now working out of Los Angeles, Ramis Kim creates mixed media pieces which explore idealized childhood memories and invented narratives in imagined landscapes. An MFA graduate from Cal Arts in Valencia, Kim paints film and TV backgrounds when not creating her own art. Her work will be seen in a group show of Little Paper Plane artists, curated by Kelly Lynn Jones at Tinlark Gallery opening September 13.

Working out of Los Angeles, artist Josh Cochran creates amazing illustrations with a well-developed eye for detail and colour. He grew up in Taiwan, spending most of his time indoors, drawing fantastic creatures and comic book characters. Throughout grade school, he kept on drawing, resulting in a profitable career-clients including The New York Times Magazine, MTV, Nike and Target. He also has an amazing online store selling a great selection of prints and a few bags. You’ve got to be quick though

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One of our favourite illustrators, Marco Cibola (of Nove Studios fame) has recently launched a new site with updated illustration work and personal projects. We checked in with him to see what else has been keeping him busy: ‘My wife and I had a baby girl. Her name is Sadie. I’ve been working on a big series of paintings for my first solo show in LA. And a few commercial gigs here and there. Not much time for anything else except eating and sleeping’. Have you discovered any exciting new artists, illustrators, and bands that you can share with us? ‘I’m kind or rediscovering a few artists that I’ve always liked. Younger guys like Ryan Wallace and Joseph Hart are doing some really great work. I’ve been doing some reading up on Sol Lewitt too, I’ve been getting interested in the ideas behind his work. My wife turned me onto Ruth Asawa too. Her work is beautiful’.

‘From a music point of view, I’ve been listening to some “classical minimalist” stuff (sorry, I hate the labels). Steve Reich, Terry Riley and Michael Nyman are a few. Other than that, I’m also listening to Vladislav Delay, Nico Muhly, stuff on Dial Recordings, Echospace, old Basic Channel, Wolfgang Voigt, etc. I’ve been buying my music at a store in Toronto called ‘Slinky’ and Paul, the guy who runs it, has been turning me onto a bunch of really amazing stuff’.

What’s hanging on your walls right now?
‘A print by my wife, Anne Cibola. A large photograph by Davida Nemeroff. A small Gary Taxali print. A piece by Ryan Buchnea. A piece by Peter Mitchell and some of my stuff. We have a lot of stuff that we want to hang, but it’s all in drawers waiting for “framing” money’.

The Subliminal Projects space in Echo Park, Los Angeles is launching an exhibition of works on May 17 by Californian artists Dee Dee Cheriel [above and below] and Louise Bonnet. ‘Cheriel’s aesthetic is a satirical, yet touching illustration of how relationships between humans, animals, and nature are episodes of both compassion and discomfort. Her work features animal/human hybrids rendered in bright, bold colors who engage, often sexually, with each other and the larger natural environment’. While Bonnet’s work has been described as ‘a whimsical blend of hippieish style with punk iconography’. The show runs until June 13.

Los Angeles-base artist, Sean Chao, works mostly with acrylic, pencil, and gauche. His paintings are often environmentally themed, with the work above — Revenge is Cold — relating to the greenhouse effect.

We love the work of Los Angeles-based artist James Jean, so we tracked him down for an interview: Your work is very dramatic and rich in narrative. From where does the initial seed of any idea generally come from? ‘It comes from a combination of conscious decision-making and deep rooted memories and desires. Sometimes I start with a very clear idea, but inspiration is rare — usually I’m working out ideas through little thumbnails that mysteriously evolve into their own stories’.

How did the Fables project come about and what’s been your favorite cover for them so far?
‘The latest cover is always a favorite until the next one comes along. Fables was my first big assignment when I graduated from school in 2001. I got the call for the job a month after 9/11, when I was visiting someone in Austria. It was a little surreal to watch the aftermath of the attacks unfold in another country – the anthrax scares and so on – and then receive a message on my answering machine from DC offering me five covers, which would eventually define my career as an illustrator’.

You studied in New York but now live in LA. Why the move and what are the most apparent differences – culturally and creatively – between the two cities?

‘I moved because my wife needed to finish school in LA. Otherwise, I would have stayed in New York, through the hot disgusting summers and the slushy winters. To over generalize, the west coast is less ashamed of craft, of schtick, of kitsch, and of decoration than the east coast. There’s more inherent joy in making art here’.

The sketches on your blog are great. Are they destined to remain as sketches or will some of them burst to life as fully fleshed out paintings?
‘They’ll stay as sketches. Perhaps a few years later, my paintings will grow to incorporate more of these sketch elements’.

Could you seriously have asked for a more memorable name! It certainly helps huh?
‘I have to thank my parents for their foresight’.

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