FIVE PAINTERS

Brendan Cass, Misaki Kawai, Wes Lang, Eddie Martinez, Jules de Balincourt
January 19–March 3, 2007

FIVE PAINTERS

Brendan Cass, Misaki Kawai, Wes Lang, Eddie Martinez, Jules de Balincourt
January 19–March 3, 2007

On January 19th, “New” Loyal proudly presents “Five Painters”, featuring work by Jules de Balincourt, Brendan Cass, Misaki Kawai, Wes Lang and Eddie Martinez.

Since its appearance on the Stockholm art landscape in February 2005, Loyal has been actively feeding the Stockholm art scene with exhibitions from advancing, young, international artists as well as debuting newcomers from Sweden. Loyal has found a passionate and supportive public in Stockholm, who have been making their monthly openings personal, dynamic and fun.

Now Loyal is expanding and opening a second location in a beautiful, 1500 square-foot, corner space at Torsgatan 53. Formerly the flower shop Byléns - a staple of the St Eriksplan area since the 40’s, Loyal transforms this grand space in a turn-of-the-century building into a haven for international contemporary art. St Eriksplan is fast becoming the new art gallery area of Stockholm with the opening of the Bonniers Konsthall this past fall and many galleries moving to the area. “Old” Galleri Loyal will live on as a project space.

Jules de Balincourt shows a stark reality where ideals and good intentions have in many ways been lost. In his refined and beautiful oil paintings there is a clever and clear-sighted spirit which mocks the condition of humanity. Jules, born in Paris in 1972, has become recognized as one of the important artists of his generation with exhibitions at PS1 MoMA, Whitney Biennial 2006, Saatchi Gallery, Zach Feuer Gallery and Arndt & Partner.

Brendan Cass With his large scale paintings Brendan Cass brings us to the kind of lands- cape often mused upon in travel brochures. Pulsating with color, the paint application is so loose and lavish that at times it appears to have been painted with an ice cream cone. While there is a sense of fantasy and idealism, there is loneliness and isolation in Brendan Cass’s landscapes. Rarely does an artist so cleverly navigate the territory between the abstract and the figurative. Cass has had six solo exhibitions in New York, most recently at Freight and Volume in December 2006 and previously at Canada Gallery, Kenny Schachter conTEM- Porary, Richard Anderson Gallery and Calvin Klein.

Misaki Kawai achieves focused and intuitive artworks with a playful humor where her fervor for pop-culture and traditional craftsmanship come together. Born in 1978 in Osaka, Japan, and moving to New York in 2000, she has quickly become recognized for her artwork and installations at P.S.1 MoMA, Deitch Projects, Jack Hanley Gallery, Kenny Schachter, and Miami’s Moore Space. Kawai exhibited in fall 2006 at the Watarium Museum in Tokyo and her second solo show in New York opened this month at Clementine Gallery. In March she has a solo exhibition at the ICA - Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston.

Wes Lang In his collage-like drawings and paintings Wes Lang relates a dark view of human history as well as often very personal sentiments, full of an intention to do good which often contrasts against the ultimate failure to do so. Created with a finely cultivated technique, there is at the same time a raw, wild spirit which aggressively challenges the preconceived ideas of the viewer. In addition to his work with Galleri Loyal in Sweden, Wes Lang has been exhibited widely with solo exhibitions in New York and Chicago, and group exhibitions in New York, Chicago, Boston, Athens, Paris and Tokyo.

Eddie Martinez With a playful and unruly visual language, Eddie Martinez coaxes meaning out of everyday life with a cast of recurring big eyed characters, plants and animals. His stream-of-conscious approach to drawing has successfully developed into large scale pain- tings. This past year Martinez had his first solo exhibition in New York at ZieherSmith Gallery, and has received glowing reviews in publications such as Art in America and Art Review. His upcoming solo show, “Darkness” opens February 15th at Aliceday Gallery in Belgium.

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