Giant Robot Exhibition Opens At Japanese American National Museum
November 19, 2007
LOS ANGELES — Giant Robot Biennale: 50 Issues recently opened at the Japanese American National Museum, launching a new series of collaborative exhibitions on Asian American pop culture at the museum.
A groundbreaking publication showcasing Asian American and Asian pop art, Giant Robot began in 1994 as a staple-and-fold zine and has now grown into a full-fledged, full-color, glossy, bimonthly magazine, available at bookstores and newsstands in major cities around the country.
Developed with Eric Nakamura, publisher of Giant Robot magazine, the exhibition features artists with whom the magazine has worked in the past, whether in the pages of the magazine or in the associated gallery spaces in Los Angeles, San Francisco or New York City.
The exhibit shows a wide range of works from cinematic photography by Pryor Praczukowsk to David Choe’s graffiti-like murals. Also included are panels by indie-comics artist Adrian Tomine and the pop culture-inspired works of Seonna Hong, Gary Baseman, APAK, Souther Salazar and Saelee Oh.
“This exhibition is the first in the Salon Pop series that includes collaborative displays that feature artistic innovators in a new evolution of fine art and pop culture,” said Nakamura.
Also on display are Sashie Masakatsu’s oil paintings, reflecting the nostalgia of pop culture-influenced youth, and Eishi Takaoka’s meditative sculptures.
Giant Robot capitalized on its magazine’s following by opening its first Los Angeles retail store in 2001, hawking a combination of pop culture goods ranging from Japanese import toys to graphic design and art books.
Today, they operate a store and gallery in San Francisco and New York City, as well as a restaurant called gr/eats in West Los Angeles.
“Giant Robot has helped to transform the landscape of the boundaries of art, often working with brand-new artists,” said Irene Hirano, the museum’s president and CEO. “This show represents another step for our institution in reaching out to younger audiences.”
The exhibition, which runs through January 13, 2008, is sponsored by the James Irvine Foundation and Imprint Culture Lab, which was founded by interTrend Communications, a Long Beach-based Asian American advertising firm.
The Japanese American National Museum is located 369 E. First St. in Los Angeles’ Little Tokyo. For information, call (213) 625-0414 or visit www.janm.org.
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