News

As we approach our one-year anniversary on April 5^th, we would like to take a moment to thank everyone for their support this past year. Since we moved here from San Francisco a few weeks before our opening in March 2013, we haven’t had much of a chance to slow down to reflect on each show.

To each of the artists that has shown in our gallery, a very big thank you, we wouldn’t be here without you: Dont Fret, Left Handed Wave, Hebru Brantley, Tiptoe, Jourdon Gullett, Justin Markin, Dan Hojnacki, Laura English, Nice One, Clam Nation, Erik Lundquist, Uriel Correa, Courtney Simone De Montfort, Ryan Geiger, Vincent Grech, Chris Silva, Tom Buban, Alex Yanes, Jenny Robinson, Michael Rodriguez, Ben Frost, My Dog Sighs, C215, Joseph Martinez, Simon WG Butler, Kim Alsbrooks, Pixel Stud, Audrey Heller, Maria Krouglianskaia, John Fekner, Jef Aérosol , XOOOOX , Zeus, David Soukup, FAKE, Jeremy Novy, Rene Gagnon, F63, Epyon5, That Stencil Guy, AIKO, Dmitry Samarov, Ian Ferguson, Julie Murphy, Steve Seeley, Jimmy Bunnyluv, Anthony Freda, Dave Pressler, David Cooper, El Gato Chimney, Hernan Paganini, Klub7, Raudiel Sanudo, Ruel Pascual, Fernando Chamarelli, Never2501, Casey Gray, Niels ‘Shoe’ Meulman, Max Rippon (RIPO), Word to Mother, Mary Iverson, Ferris Plock, Chad Hasegawa, REKA, Skewville, Stormie Mills, Andrew Poneros, Justin Penov, Greg Gossel, Jim Houser, Cope 2 & Indie184, Philip Lumbang, Denial, Jason Bryant, Dave Pressler, Lucx, Mike Ruta, Steve Seeley, Forsaken, Sentrock, Adam DeVarney, Helena Ecija Martinez, JC Rivera, T-money, Marcelo Eli, Czr Prz, Robert Donis, E LEE, Jake Castro, Dusty Rabjohn, !CHONGO!, Nate Otto, Juan Chavez, Nicholaus Jamieson, Paul Stacey, Adam Lundquist, Nick Fury, Charlie Megna, yoki, Priya Shah, Saro, Courtney Howell, Revise, Yams, Ben Giska, Ali 6, Stevie Dread, and Peter Kepha, and Grant William Thye.

To all of our neighbors, friends, collectors, and press, we can’t thank you enough for your support.

As we enter Year 2, we are excited to bring you our one-year anniversary show PAPER JAM in partnership with Australian print-house StupidKrap and curated by artist Ben Frost; solo shows with Stinkfish, XENZ, Never2501, My Dog Sighs, Greg Gossel, Dhear One; a couple exciting group shows; and a few art fairs around the country.

We will be expanding our secondary market work on our website this year. If you’re looking for a piece from an artist or have work for sale, please contact us. We currently have work available from Shepard Fairey, Ben Eine, ROA, Faile, Dolk, Beejoir, Anthony Lister, Static, Mau Mau, Hush, Sickboy, RYCA, Word To Mother, FAKE, Zevs, Mighty Mo, Phil Lumbang, and more.

Sign up for our email below, or send us an email with your mailing address and we’ll send you show postcards. Thanks again.

Best wishes,
Patrick

Vertical Gallery is pleased to announce its participation in SCOPE New York, one of the top art fairs in the world, known for curating the most innovative contemporary art. Running March 6-9, 2014, SCOPE will present the highest level of gallery shows, collector tours and curated projects.

We will feature UK artist My Dog Sighs, Australian artist Stormie Mills, and New York artists Andrew Poneros, Justin Penov, and Tiptoe in booth E15. This will be the New York debut for My Dog Sighs and Stormie Mills. Both artists have huge international followings, and both will exhibit brand new work at the art fair.

My Dog Sighs has found himself strapped in to a well-deserved meteoric rise. With an incredible international following in Israel, Japan, and the UK, five sold out shows under his belt, and a strong following of staunchly loyal fans on social media; My Dog Sighs is fast becoming an important figure on the contemporary art scene.

Stormie Mills has an international following for his iconic character based work that has seen him travel, work and show in London, Tokyo, Athens, Miami, and throughout Australia in Melbourne, Sydney and Perth. Working in a restricted palette of black representing dirt, white the attempt to remove dirt, grey a metaphor for the cityscape and silver for dreams, this palette is an expression of the sense of isolation inherent in his work. Stormie’s work investigates humanity in his pursuit to understand what drives our deepest desires and emotions.

SCOPE Art Show returns to landmark venue, Skylight at Moynihan Station, for its 14th New York edition. Located within the iconic New York City Post Office, SCOPE will transform the Postal Dock with its 30-foot vaulted glass ceiling into a dynamic exhibition of 60 international galleries, representing the best and brightest contemporary work from emerging and mid-career artists.

The fair opens on Thursday, March 6, 3-6, with an exclusive Platinum VIP Gala, continuing with a First View benefit for VIPs and Press on March 6 from 6-9pm, and will be open to the general public March 7-9.

Please contact Patrick for a show preview.

We have also introduced four new artists to our online gallery. PEZ, Scott Cooper, ALI 6, and T-Money. All work is available to view at the gallery as well. Here is a little more about each artist:

PEZ: PEZ is a Spanish graffiti artist. He started painting graffiti in 1999 in his hometown Barcelona. Specifically, he got into street art writing his signature, which soon took the shape of a fish. His works appear in the best-known street art books such as Street Logos, Art of Rebellion, and Street Art. His work also appears in documentaries such as: "Bomb It-The Movie", Muros Libres",” Free Walls" and "A Primer on Urban Painting". He has exhibited in Bogotá, Barcelona, Hamburg, Paris, London, NY, Portland, Miami and Los Angeles. Click here to view available work from PEZ.

Scott Cooper: Scott is a video artist, illustrator, and painter. Originally from San Francisco, he recently moved to Copenhagen. He has exhibited in California, Oregon and Hawaii. Scott was recently featured in Eight magazine. Click here to view available work from Scott.

ALI 6: Not much is known about this Chicago based street artist, but his work can be seen all around the city. Street Style Chi recently interviewed him, and Complex recently named him one of their favorite Chicago Street Artists. ALI 6 participated in our holiday skate deck show, and his 2-deck piece sold opening night. Click here to view available work from ALI 6.

T-Money: Another artist on Complex’s top 10 Chicago Street Artists, T-Money is a self-taught artist who works primarily with markers and draws inspiration for his cartoon doodles from all forms of art. Click here to view available work from T-Money.

We are open Tues – Sat, 11a – 6p, or by appointment.

Special thanks to everyone for their support of our holiday “Deck the Halls” show, with all work on skateboard decks. We had a record over 600 people join us for the opening night reception. The show is still on view until December 21. It is an off-the-wall show, so you can take your deck home with you (or have it shipped to you) when you make your purchase. The perfect holiday gift! Support the Chicago-based non-profit The Simple Good, support the artists, and support the gallery. Thank you.

Since we’ve opened in April, we’ve shown a wide range of artists, both in the gallery and online. We’ve sold many of the smaller scale works, but some of these outstanding available pieces were overlooked. For the holidays, we’ve created a small gift section in the gallery with all of these great pieces and have created a page on our website with all of the items: http://verticalgallery.com/collections/art-under-500

We have work available from Greg Gossel, Ben Frost, Simon WG Butler, Audrey Heller, Peter Max Lawrence, Fernando Chamarelli, GOONS, Joseph Martinez, Anthony Freda, Ruel Pascual, Pixel Stud, Jef Aerosol, Dan Hojnacki, David Soukup, FAKE, Nice One, Tinku, Rene Gagnon, Uriel Correa, Max Kauffman, F63 and brand new pieces from Jeremy Novy, Nancy Segal and YAMS. All for under $500!

We look forward to seeing you at the gallery or hearing from you soon. Drop us a line at info@verticalgallery.com anytime.

Brazilian artist Fernando Chamarelli relies heavily on intuition to create his kaleidoscopic acrylic paintings and illustrations. His works, which explore mythology, culture, and emotion, create an incredible visual combination of calculated order and psychedelic chaos.

Chamarelli, who has not visited the United States since 2010, is looking forward to his solo exhibition at Vertical Gallery. He has shown in San Jose, Los Angeles, and Portland, but he is excited to be exhibiting in Chicago for the first time, and has been working diligently on his current body of work for the past year. In addition to several big works on canvas, Chamarelli plans to create a large-scale installation in the gallery. Although he has never visited Chicago, he does not expect to be disappointed by the city. “I imagine a big city like São Paulo, and I think it will be great. When I visited California for the first time, I realized that the people there really love art and appreciate artists. I think that Chicago will be no different. It will be a very fun trip… I just hope it isn’t too cold there in October,” he joked.

The artist, who started painting less than ten years ago, has already achieved major success and recognition, exhibiting all over the world, and winning the admiration of corporate clients like Absolut, Microsoft, Umbro, and Nike. Although Chamarelli started painting in 2007, it was not until he quit his graphic design job in 2009 and began to earn a living solely from his art that he truly began to identify as an artist. “Unlike other artists, I started drawing later in adolescence. I was attracted to all forms of art- caricatures, cartoons, realistic portraits, street art, tattoos… my style was still developing, until I began to paint on canvas,” he said.

Chamarelli, who has a degree in illustration and graphic design, employs his formal education when beginning a new piece. Working from a sketch, he then starts to flesh out shapes, balance, and color. Once the image is complete, he draws it on the canvas and begins to paint. “I rely heavily on my intuition,” he said. “Especially at the beginning of the work. Traces flow naturally, and unconsciously, the characters begin to appear.” Although his process is generally pretty straightforward, he is exploring the idea of using alternative materials. He is interested in experimenting with oil paint, painting on wood, and creating street murals.

He is not intimidated by a blank white canvas. “I have many things in my head that want to get out,” he said. To find inspiration, he reads about ancient civilizations and myths, and researches gods and symbols. He watches videos of other artists at work. He explores nature and finds inspiration in the rich Brazilian culture and natural environment. “I was born and raised in a small town in Brazil. There were many rivers and waterfalls that I visited often, and the organic shapes, birds, and fish that are present in my works are reminders of this period in my life. Brazil is a multiethnic country with rich culture- I like to explore this in my art as well.”

Although Chamarelli looks more to his inner self than outside influences to create, he finds creativity and influence in meeting interesting people, visiting new places, experiencing new things, and listening to experimental music and the music of northeastern Brazil. “Music is very important to me. I always say that it is the drug that I use when I’m creating.” Each image is created from his imagination, and for this exhibition, the works address a new era that we are entering. “A grand cycle is complete, and many ancient civilizations knew about it. These artworks are all about mysteries, myths, and fantasies that involve this important moment,” Chamarelli said.

The painter has plans to explore his creativity in new ways. Although he is enjoying his current practice, “I do not want to stop here,” he said. “Sculpture is the next step. However, I do not like to think too far in the future. Last year, I moved to southern Brazil, to a beautiful island called Florianópolis. I’m enjoying it here, but I’m thinking of moving to another country next year, for the sake of creating new experiences for myself. That’s all I know about my future right now, because I always let the art guide me. I trust her a lot.”

Fernando Chamarelli’s solo exhibition will be on display at Vertical Gallery from October 12^th until November 9^th, with an opening reception on October 12^th from 6-10 pm. Do not miss this chance to meet the artist and view his works, including a temporary installation exclusive to Vertical Gallery.

Interview by Shannon Gallagher