“Pixel Pushers: An Exploration of 8-Bit Digital Media”
Curated By Giant Robot
Opening Reception November 13th, 2010, 7-10 p.m.
On view November 13th – December 11th
"Pixel Pushers" is a group show curated by Giant Robot’s Eric Nakamura, centering around the Famicom inspired custom Scion art car which will project the Giant Robot produced video game, Return of the Quack. The exhibition will feature not only video game inspired art, but a bank of retro custom pachinko machines in a pachinko parlor-like installation, an interactive environment by a renowned digital conceptualist artist, 8-bit sculptures, projected digital visuals, and 4 mini game consoles. The featured artists are: Jude Buffum, Matt Furie, Zach Gage, Len Higa, Chevy Ray Johnston, Nullsleep, Daniel Rehn, Shawn Smith and Kohei Yamashita.
The opening reception takes place on November 13, 7 – 10 p.m. at Scion Installation L.A., 3521 Helms Ave. (at National), Culver City, CA 90232. The reception is free with complimentary valet parking and an open bar. Exhibition is free and open to the public.
Artists will be in attendance. The exhibition will run until December 11.
About the curator
Eric Nakamura is the publisher of Giant Robot Magazine. Giant Robot Magazine began in 1994 as a stapled-and-folded zine and has grown into a full-fledged bi-monthly magazine available at most stores and newsstands. Giant Robot opened its first store in 2001, and formulated a combination of pop culture goods, ranging from Japanese import toys, graphic design and art books, and monthly art exhibitions. Giant Robot has since opened stores and galleries in San Francisco and New York City, and also operates a restaurant called gr/eats in West Los Angeles. Curating the exhibition is the publisher/co-editor and owner, Eric Nakamura who curates most of the exhibitions Giant Robot presents annually and the Giant Robot Biennale at the Japanese American National Museum. www.giantrobot.com
About the artists
Jude Buffum’s clients have included the New York Times, HBO, the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, and Courtney Love. His design and illustration have received awards from Graphis, Communication Arts, AIGA, Print, and American Illustration. http://www.judebuffum.com
Matt Furie generates richly detailed and hyper colored illustrations and paintings that reflect the crossbreeding of the primal creativity of Fraggle Rock and Labyrinth with the unrestrained violence of Chuck E. Cheese. http://www.mattfurie.com
Zach Gage is a designer, programmer, conceptual artist, and video game designer from New York City. http://stfj.net
Len Higa was born and raised in Hawaii and has worked for a few automotive companies specializing in research and development, racing, prototypes and concepts. He specializes in metal fabrication, prototyping/conceptualizing and auto/motorcycle building. http://onimotorworks.blogspot.com
Chevy Ray Johnston is a 21-year-old freelance game developer living in Vancouver. He has been developing video games for 7 years and is the creator of FlashPunk, a tool to make developing web games easy and more accessible to a wider audience. http://chevyray.com/
Nullsleep is the alias of Jeremiah Johnson, an electronic musician whose style could best be described as post-cyberpunk. Nullsleep is the cofounder of 8bitpeoples, an artist collective interested in the audio-visual aesthetics of early home computers. http://www.nullsleep.com
Daniel Rehn is the director of LA Game Space, a non-profit center for game development, research, and culture. He co-founded Playpower, a foundation enabling the creation of 8-bit learning games for developing countries. http://re.danielrehn.com/
Shawn Smith has received artist-in-residencies from the Kala Art Institute in Berkeley, CA and the Cite Internationale des Arts in Paris, France. He's also been the recipient of the Clare Hart DeGolyer grant from the Dallas Museum of Art and has exhibited extensively throughout the US. http://shawnsmithart.com
Kohei Yamashita manufactures and markets characters and character goods that recall old-school sensibilities, aesthetics, and execution. He has also designed work for the likes of Isamu Nogochi, Pilot pens, LEGO, and the Ueno Park Zoo. http://mountain-mountain.com/
More information on this, and past exhibitions is available at http://www.scionav.com/art
About Scion Installation L.A.
Dedicated to fostering independent artistic expression, Scion Installation L.A. is space that allows artists to explore their creative visions. Scion Installation L.A. hosts art shows and art-related events for cutting-edge contemporary artists from across the globe. One-hundred percent of all sales go directly to the artists. Gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday 11 am to 6 pm and by appointment: 310.815.8840.
