Giant Robot art shows | Barry McGee (TWIST) as Ray Fong @ GR2 + Dehara @ GRSF + Leif Goldberg @ GRNY

[GIANT ROBOT new york]

GR2

2062 Sawtelle Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90025

gr2.net | (310) 445 - 9276

Giant Robot is proud to present the art of Ray Fong at GR2.

Not much is known about the famously shy Bay Area artist, except that his

work is most often seen on the walls of San Francisco–particularly around

the friendliest playgrounds and cheapest Chinese restaurants. Using

brush-like penciling and pencil-like brushstrokes, Fong depicts people,

patterns, and words with equally astonishing amounts of craftsmanship and

economy. Unlike many street-related artists, his public work is not

intended to show off skills, claim territory, or seize immorality; it is

playful and meant to entertain the eyes and lift the spirits of passers

by. It is not for art lovers, scenesters, or aesthetes, but the people.

Fong’s show at GR2 will be his first in a gallery setting. Expect his

newfound freedom to trigger an inspired mix of pencils, pens, paint, and

possibly electrical tape.

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Giant Robot SF Presents:

The Jingi : Japanese Yakuza Spirit

Figure Exhibition by Yukinora Dehara

622 Shrader Street, San Francisco, CA 94117

February 25th – March 22nd, 2006

Opening Reception: Saturday February 25th, 6:30 – 10pm

Giant Robot is pleased to announce Yukinora Dehara’s first exhibition in San Francisco, and second show with Giant Robot.

From farmers, salary men, ghosts, gangsters and even killer vegetables, Dehara transforms these often absurd archetypes, into observations of Japanese and American society and pop culture. His clay sculptures are raw but detailed, painted with a precise and glossy aesthetic. They impart the subject’s state of being, whether it’s a subservient rice cooker, or a tortured Yakuza boss.

For each exhibition Dehara sculpts a unique cast of characters. Previous series have included killer produce in “Oyasi: Vegetable Warsâ€, villagers and farmers for the “Jibasan†collection, and Japanese ghosts for “Pop Yokai: Japanese Old Ghostâ€. In “The Jingi†Dehara will depict the Japanese gangster icon. Dehara has created 100 original sculptures that will expose every possible incarnation of the Jingi. Giant Robot San Francisco will have Dehara’s hard to find products in stock, including books, toys and other selected merchandise that catalog Dehara’s prolific body of work. Yukinori Dehara will be in attendance for the opening of the show.

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Giant Robot New York

437 East 9th Street

Between 1st Ave. & Ave. A

New York, New York 10009

(212) 674-GRNY (4769) | www.grny.net

Giant Robot New York announces Too Many Planets, Not Enough People - an exhibition by Leif Goldberg opening on Saturday, February 25th with a reception from 6:30 -10PM. Leif Goldberg will be showcasing original paintings, drawings, screen prints and sculpture of his most recent work. The artist will be in attendance for the opening reception.

Originally from Maryland, Leif Goldberg has made his name synonymous with the underground art scene of Providence, Rhode Island. Graduating from The Rhode Island School of Design for film animation, Leif is recognized for his trademark vibrantly colored, psychedelic drawings and printmaking based on philosophical humor and nature. Given his affinity for comics, Leif Goldberg is the co-founder, editor and contributor to Paper Rodeo, an eponymous comic tabloid. From this project sprouted his book Free Radicals, featuring contributions from readers which include pieces through prison book programs. Goldberg also produces the comic zine National Waste, and has contributed to The Ganzfeld, Kramer's Ergot, and McSweeny'