A Tribute to Some of Our Favorite Rolemodels- Our Ladies from Fact + Fiction

This month we have been celebrating all types of heroes and heroines in light of the Rolemodels Exhibition. Rolemodels features our real-life art colleagues and champions as portrayed in their fantasy alter-ego self portraits. It is a show about legends, personality, and special abilities, as each character comes together to battle in the Rolemodels: Battle for Vyk'Tornaahl.



As this show has got us thinking about some of our own heroes and mentors, we are also reflecting back to a collaborative artist book from last December, Girls: Fact + Fiction. This incredible project is all about the ladies that have shaped the way of history, captivated our hearts in books, and achieved unbelievable feats. They are the ladies we look up to, dream of becoming, and the ones who motivate us to create.





Girls: Fact + Fiction has gorgeous full spread illustrations of Beatrix Potter, Joan of Arc, Julia Child, Lana Del Rey, and Cleopatra as some of our favorite factual women. The fiction side, displays some of the most lovable and inspiring characters such as Mother Nature, Barberella, Amélie, Xena, Hermione Granger, Nancy Drew, and Nausicaa. It is a diverse and epic collection that represents the heroines as well as the 100+ artists that illustrated them.



We are still very proud of this project and thrilled to announce that we will be sharing the book this weekend at the Craft'za Convention! You can check out the limited edition book in person and page through the beautiful pieces.



You can check out more information about the Girls: Fact + Fiction Exhibition and Limited Edition Book here, as well as see information about the Rolemodels: Battle for Vyk'Tornaahl here on our Light Grey Art Lab website.

Podcast: Talking with Victor Mosquera

Download the MP3 or Subscribe via iTunes!

Talking With Victor Mosquera
Length: 01:07:33
Synopsis: This week we talk to Victor Mosquera, an incredibly talented video game concept artist who has shown work in the Macro + Micro and In Place exhibits. But first, Jenny, Chris, Francesca and Lindsay share their thoughts about last week's Create, Concept and Collaborate workshop hosted by Mike Yamada and Victoria Ying. In the second half of the podcast, we talk to Victor about his experience as a concept artist, his roots in traditional media, how he got started in the industry, the importance of reference and life drawing and lots, lots more.


NOTES:
You can find out more about Victor and see his work:
Website - Tumblr - CGHub - Blog - Twitter

You can also find Victor's work in the following publications -
CFSL.net Artbook 07
Last Man Standing: Killbook of a Bounty Hunter
Prime: The Definitive Digital Art Collection
And of course, In Place: Wish You Were Here.

Light Grey Fundraiser: Print + Project Sale

July 12th- 14th 10am-7pm

It's that time of year again! It is time to clean out the back closet, the flat files, and all of the drawers- making room for new projects!



This summer, we are having a Light Grey Fundraiser, selling archival gallery prints, printed book projects, the Light Grey Tarot, paper toys, temporary tattoos and more!



Since opening our doors in March of 2012, we have hosted more than 15 large group shows, and exhibited over 1000 artists from all over the world!! We are extremely grateful for all of the artists who participate in our shows and classes, as well as the local arts community, and of course, our online community!



This fundraiser is intended to both celebrate and revive these beautiful prints, as well as give visitors to the gallery a chance to directly assist Light Grey is making future projects come to life. All proceeds from the fundraiser will go towards new workshops and classroom materials, published projects, and supporting our large and collaborative exhibitions.

 

The fundraiser will be July 12-14th from 10am-7pm. We will have tons of discounted prints to choose from, books, and works from all of our shows.

Are you out of town and would like to participate? No problem, we will be setting up an option on our Light Grey shop to purchase combinations of projects and prints. More details to come!

Thanks for your support and we hope to see you here!

You can check out the event on our facebook page: Light Grey Fundraiser

Girls: Fact & Fiction Opening Recap

The Girls Show was a ton of fun and a great success, despite the winter weather! We know a few of you had to miss out due to the snow or distance, so here's a little photographic recap.

 







Aside from perusing many beautiful portraits of ladies, or flipping through the companion art book, guests participated in a girl-related trivia contest throughout the show. Three lucky (and knowledgable) people won a free Girls: Fact & Fiction art book.

 




As always, it was a pleasure seeing the talented people behind the illustrations. It's also always always a pleasure to see everybody enjoying the artwork we enjoy so much. At the risk of sounding a little bit cheesy, all of you artists out there should be proud of bringing so much beauty into the world. It makes all of the organization and work completely worth it.



 There are a ton more pictures of the show, the artwork, and the artists on our Flickr page!

Today! In a couple hours! All the girls!

Francesca (left) and Jenny (right) working on putting up all of the didactics for the show at the last minute!

Well, it's the official count-down to the year end show at Light Grey! We're putting the finishing touches on the space and getting ready to welcome everyone to step in from out of the cold and be surrounded by ladies.

Jenny finished installing the pieces late last night and today we're all nerves!
Make sure that if you come by to remember to look around you! We're really lucky that a lot of the artists that are participating in the exhibition will be here tonight, so definitely say hello if you see the maker of one of your favorite pieces!


Here's a little preview of how the space is looking, pre-party!

The show starts at 7, so stop by if you're in town!
We'll make sure to post a fun recap of all of the nightly events so you can see how it went! Exciting! See you soon!


And another peek, just for fun!

Girls: Fact + Fiction Opens Tomorrow!

Just a reminder that Girls: Fact + Fiction opens tomorrow, Friday, December 7th! We're busy putting the final touches on the show, and preparing for an awesome night!

The opening reception runs from 7-10 pm! See tons of amazing art! Win free copies of the Girls: Fact + Fiction book! Bring a few home for Holiday gifts!

If you'd like, share the event or RSVP via Facebook! Hope to see you there!





Remember, the Opening Reception is Friday, December 7th from 7- 10pm! We're located on the corner of Stevens Ave and 26th Street - right across from the Minneapolis College of Art & Design. Street parking is available on Stevens, 26th and 1st Ave.

See you tomorrow!

The Girls Books Have Arrived!

Right now, I'm sitting in front of a shelf recently stocked with our shipment of Girls: Fact & Fiction art books. They're beautiful! Once again, we're floored by the illustrations the artists have created of their chosen ladies–perhaps you've seen some of the sneak previews they've been sharing around the internet. But I'd like to take a moment to talk about the physical books themselves. They're really nice! Every once and awhile I just want to pick one up and flip through it!

The book itself is completely filled with imagery and is a fun read. Here are a couple quick pictures of some of the spreads inside. It's double-sided, so on one side of the book you'll see the Factual Ladies, and on the other side the Fictional Ladies.

The books will be available for purchase during the Girls show, or you can order online.

It's an 80 page, soft-cover art book and we're super proud of how amazing the show is. We can't wait to reveal all 109 pieces next Friday!

If you're in the Minneapolis area you can pick one up at the gallery on the night of the opening for the GIRLS: Fact + Fiction show anytime after December 7th!



We'll be shipping any orders placed through December 7th in time for the holidays, so if you know someone that is interested in grabbing one, or getting one for a friend, now is the time!



The book itself can be found here on our shop!

Also! All of the pieces from the show are available as prints HERE!

If you spend over $100 in the Light Grey Shop between now and December 7th, we'll give you a GIRLS: Fact + Fiction book for free! Think of all of the prints you can get!
Just type in this code at checkout: 100GETSABOOK

Now is a great time since we'll have the prints available for just a couple more days from the Tarot, Mystics and the Occult Show! Those will be available through the weekend, so you have a lot to choose from. It's a great time to get a bunch of Holiday shopping done! And we'll give you a book for being so generous!

And the exhibition opens next Friday, December 7th from 7 - 10pm at Light Grey Art Lab! Here is the official facebook invite with the address and details!
We'll be doing a book giveaway at the show, so please stop by if you can!

See you soon!

Girls: Fact + Fiction Opening Reception!

Awesome artwork above by Peony Yip

Our upcoming show, Girls: Fact + Fiction, is shaping up to be an amazing treat! Curated by Light Grey Art Lab's own Lindsay Nohl, Francesca Buchko, Chris Hajny and Jenny Bookler, Girls: Fact + Fiction is a spectacular new exhibition that celebrates women from history, literature, film, music, culture, politics... and everything else!

The opening reception is December 7th from 7-10 PM. The gallery will be divided into two collections, Fact and Fiction! We've asked artists to write short statements about what inspired them to choose who they chose, so come in, see your some of your favorite characters, pop-culture icons, and historic figures (and more) and learn about some you've never heard of!

This will also be your first chance to get your hands on the Girls: Fact + Fiction book! The book is on it's way from the printer as we speak, and it's beautiful to behold, if I may say so myself! Easiest Christmas shopping you'll ever do!

You'll definitely want to attend the opening reception, as in addition to food, drink, music and art, we'll be giving away some some artwork form the show as well copies of the Girls: Fact + Fiction book!

And stay-tuned for more events relating to the Girls: Fact + Fiction show! We'll have workshops, interesting lectures and an artist meet-and-greet event! More information to come!

RSVP via the Facebook Event Page!

Remember, the Opening Reception is Friday, December 7th from 7- 10pm! We're located on the corner of Stevens Ave and 26th Street - right across from the Minneapolis College of Art & Design. Street parking is available on Stevens, 26th and 1st Ave.

See you there!

Sneak Peek: GIRLS: Fact + Fiction book!

Amazing FACT cover art by Luisa Uribe (Beatrix Potter)

WOO!

Ooooooo guess what! We got the printer's proof in the mail this last week and we practically fell over and rolled around on the floor with excitement!

Okay, we DID roll around on the floor. Well. I rolled around on the floor.

I wanted to share a sneak peek of what's in store for everyone!
The book is in production right now and we're waiting patiently for it to arrive to accompany the 100+ pieces of amazing art that will grace our walls for the
GIRLS: Fact + Fiction Exhibition reception on Friday, December 7th, from 7 - 10pm.


You can see a sliver of Rebecca Green's 'Millicent' peeking out from the pages.

Let me tell you, it's crazy hard to sit tight as we go back and forth with the printer.
I can't believe that the show is almost here.


Just a small clip of Kyle Fewell's 'Noriko' and Sam Wolfe Connely's "Candy"

You guys are in store for an insanely exciting show. Both rooms will be packed with art and we've got enough ladies featured to make your head spin. Who knows. You might even come out of there with a couple dozen more ladies (and artists) to crush on.


A little bit of Manuel Kilger's 'Samus Aran'

That, and we'll make it easy for you guys to keep up with what these artists are doing. The book itself is reversible -- so one side is the Fact side, and when you flip it over, you're looking at the Fiction side! So, when you meet in the middle, you get to see the long and exciting list of everyone involved, as well as their sites so you can check out the rest of their work!


A full and comprehensive artist list featuring everyone's sites so you can go take a look at these great artists's other projects

The whole thing has so much content in it -- stories about the artists, the subjects, some history, facts and really fun art. It's definitely a great read as well as a nice book to look at.



So! If you didn't know about it - we're still taking pre-orders of the book up until the show itself. If you'd like to order one for the holidays, now's the time!
We promise to ship it out before December 10th for anyone that claims one before the reception.


Amazing FICTION cover art by Peony Yip

Thanks again for the support, you guys. We're in love with this project and are so excited for everything to come together on December 7th!

Here's the official facebook invite!

Please help us spread the word!

GIRLS: Fact + Fiction Exhibition Book. Headed to press!

The artwork is all in and the book is off to press! Awesome cover artwork by Peony Yip (Wednesday Addams / FICTION) and Luisa Uribe (Beatrix Potter / FACT).

The GIRLS: Fact + Fiction exhibition artwork is all in and we are getting ready for the upcoming show and reception on December 7th!
Getting all of the artwork in was no small feat. Everyone came through with flying colors and now we are impatiently waiting for the show to begin!

We are super excited about the group of artists involved and we are just electric with the thought that the gallery will soon be filled with factual ladies (in one room) and fictional lades (in the other!).

We are printing a limited edition book that contains all 100+ pieces to accompany the exhibition that will be available for pre-order up through the day of the reception. The books themselves have two 'front' covers and are fully reversible! The books are 21cm x 28.5cm and they're designed to be split in half with one side featuring the factual ladies, and the other the fictional ladies!

In addition to the awesome artwork, the artists have all supplied some really interesting, enlightening and fun to read statements about the women they've chosen. Plus, the center spread contains a comprehensive listing of everyone involved and where you can find more of each artist's work! The whole collection is a great read, and super fun to look through.

If you think you might be interested in picking up a book, we have a pre-order up on the site right now that will ship before the holidays. We want to make sure that interested people can get their books before things get crazy with the season. (We'll also make sure to hold a group of books for the exhibition opening on December 7th for anyone that is local and looking to pick one up.)

Individual giclee prints of each piece in the show will also be listed a week before the opening reception on the site for anyone interested in getting prints for the holidays.

Finally, if you would like one, we're also going to throw in a $5 discount for this week (through OCT 26) for anyone that wants to grab one early. Just type in LOVELYLADIES at checkout. After the 26th they'll be offered for $25.

Thanks so much, everyone, for supporting our shows and for all of your kind words and enthusiasm! We'll keep you posted with pictures and some previews as we go!

For more information on the artists and subjects involved, check out our previous blog post here!

GIRLS : Fact or Fiction / Exhibiting Artist & Subject List!

Congratulations to all of the amazing people that made it into the list for the Nov - Jan Show! And, as always, thanks to every single artist who put their name in the hat for this one. It's always a (crazy) hard process narrowing down the group, and this one was no exception. After much deliberation and a lot of late nights (and even more coffee)...

Okay! So, here we go! This is the final list for the upcoming exhibition, GIRLS: Fact or Fiction!


FACT:
Rafa Alvarez - Cleopatra
Luisa Uribe - Beatrix Potter
Susan Meyer - Lyudmila Pavlichenko
Ania Tomicka - Galá
Aurélie Neyret - Calamity Jane
Hajin Bae - Giza Lagrace
Matt Edwards - Marie Antoinette
Guillaume Ospital - Emily Haines
Tara Abbamondi - Audrey Hepburn
Angela Rizza - Joan Of Arc
Erik Krenz - Mary Blair
Genevieve FT - St. Vincent
Lydia F. Ferron - Edith Piaff
Jesse Lindhorst - Elena Tonra
Mélanie Daigle - Frida Kahlo
Brianna Angelakis - Annie Oakley
Celine Loup - Murasaki Shikibu
Kat Friday - Meg White
Janna Morton - Virgin Mary
Julianna Brion - Josephine Baker
Rebecca Green - Millicent
Olympia Maxenchs - Tomoe Gozen
Nan Lawson - Debbie Harry
Brittany Burton - Etta James
Linda Tran - Tilda Swinton
Nicole Chartrand - Granuaile
Carissa Potter - Hellen Keller
Rachael Adams-Bliss - Yolandi Visser
Amanda Hagemann - Amelia Earhart
Jen Mundy - Katy Perry
Jasmine Barmore - Maya Angelou
W. Scott Forbes - Daphne Guinness
Kyle Cahill - Marina Diamandis (Marina and the Diamonds)
Jimmy Malone - Ru Paul
Emma Trithart - Marina Abramovic
Caroline Hadilaksono - Julia Child
Kaysha Siemens - Bessie Coleman
Sarah Marino - Lady Gaga
Alice Leoni - Karen O
Mildred Louis - Marie Curie
Ragilia Rach - Lana del Rey
Madeleine Flores - Nicki Minaj
Irena Freitas - Jane Austen
Sophie Blackhall-Cain - Boudica
Aliyah (Aliyahgator) - Penelope Cruz
Nicoló Pellizzon - Barbara Steele
Zoe Keller - Judy Bonds
Naomi Elliott - Mabel Stark
Colleen McKeown - Emmylou Harris
Freddy Carrasco - Erykah Badu
Elizabeth Beals - Twiggy
Olly Jones - Elizabeth Báthory
Brad McGinty - Zelda Fitzgerald
Patt Kelley - Myrtle Corbin
Claire Hummel - Hatshepsut

FICTION:
Kyle Stecker - San (Princess Mononoke)
Sam Wolfe Connelly - Candy (Blood Bros Song)
Marguerite Sauvage - Barbarella
Gloria Pizzilli - Nu Wa
Peony Yip - Wednesday Addams
Rory Phillips - Santanico Pandemonium
Manuel Kilger - Samus Aran
Maike Plenzke - Ofelia (Pans Labyrinth)
Ashley Mackenzie - Eli (Let the Right One In)
Evan Palmer - Ellen Ripley (Alien)
Sabrina Parolin - Carrie (Stephen King's)
Marty Harris - Lady Orlando
Kali Ciesemier - Lady of the Lake
Stacey Lee - Nausicaa
Sarah Hudkins - Oscar Francois de Jarjayes
Lindsay Nohl - Mother Nature
Francesca Buchko - Matilda
Frank Macchia - Maude Lebowski
Cheyenne Curtis - Barbie
Richie Pope - Asuka Langley Soryu
Joshua Zenter - Lorelei
Joanna Barnum - Titania
Ellen T. Crenshaw - Carmen Sandiego
Tyler Parker - Lucy (Narnia)
Katie Wilson - Felicity Porter
Jez Tuya - Emma Peel
Nichole ter Horst - Jessica Rabbit
Sebastian Koenig - Amy Farrah Fowler
Mika J Nakano - Dana Scully
Leah Zobott - Scylla
Michelle Schwartzbauer - Lisa Simpson
Erin McGuire - Jo March (Little Women)
Olivia Mew - Rosemary Woodhouse
Nic Skrade - Persephone
Laumiline - Goldilocks
Sayada Ramdial - April Ludgate (Parks and Recreation)
Jessica Roux - Ophelia
Kathleen Marcotte - Lucy (I love Lucy)
Sandra Brandstätter - Ronja the Robbers Daughter
Melissa Ling - Little Red Riding Hood
Taryn Gee- Nancy Drew
Allegra Lockstadt - Morton's Salt Girl
Isuri Merenchi Hewage - Kali Goddess of Distruction
Caitlin Clarkson - Ozma of Oz
Ricardo Bessa - Hermione Granger
Natalie Andrewson - Amelie
Britt Hammerberg - A Valkyrie
Kyle Fewell - Noriko
Michael Perez - Athena
Jared Tuttle - Medusa
Lars Kommienezuspadt - Tank Girl
Lillian Joan Duermeier - Xena
Marisa Seguin - Pippi Longstocking
Romain Mennetrier - Rapunzel


We'll be posting more information as we get closer! Keep an eye out for future calls for art and thanks again to everyone that took an interest in the show!

CALL FOR ART : GIRLS: FACT OR FICTION

Image by Lindsay Nohl

EDIT: THANK YOU TO EVERYONE THAT SUBMITTED YOUR PORTFOLIO FOR OUR CALL FOR ART! THE CALL IS NOW CLOSED FOR SUBMISSIONS. We'll be going over all of the entries tonight and will be announcing the list of artists on Sept 5! Be on the look-out! And thanks again for all of the enthusiasm and for introducing us to all of your awesome artwork! This will be a tough one to narrow down, that's for sure...



Our next show is a big one! It's lovingly called GIRLS: Fact or Fiction

As you've probably guessed, we're looking for artists that are big fans of girls. Two kinds of girls, in fact : Real girls, and fictional girls.

The show will open at the end November at Light Grey Art Lab and run through the first week in January. This will be our big end-of-the-year show, and we're really excited about it! All pieces will be shown as 8" x 10" archival prints in the gallery and online. (The final number of participants is yet to be determined, but it is definitely slotted to be a big group show!)

Here's what you need to do if you'd like to be considered for the group!
Link to your portfolio / blog below in the comments section along with a list of 4 girls you'd like to draw. Two of them should be "fact" and two of them should be "fiction".

In order to make sure we have a balance of real girls and characters (and to make sure we don't have 45 Hermiones), the Light Grey team will be reaching out to each selected artist with ONE of their suggested girls. Please do us a favor and write something like:

Lindsay Nohl
www.blogblogartblog.com
1. Anne Frank (fact)
2. Anne Hathaway (fact)
3. Orphan Annie (fiction)
4. Annie Hall (fiction)

And rank them in order you'd like to draw them.
Of course, we'll always try to be fair and we'll try to give everyone involved their first choice when we can, but make sure you like all 4 of your choices!

Don't worry if someone has already listed some of the girls you'd like to pick, too -- Just put 'em on there and make sure you have at least one or two original ideas JUST incase we need to pull from those. We'll try our best.


FINALLY.
Here are some of the categories that make something fact or fiction in our gallery:

FACT:
• Any woman, alive or dead, of any age or era. Including:
  
• Celebrities, Musicians, Writers
  
• Religious figures of any type including gods/goddesses, saints, or anything like
  
• that. (ALL religious figures will be included in the fact section.)
  
• Politicians
  
• Friends, Family Members, Yourself.
  
• Scientists, Actresses, Historical Figures, And any other category you can think of where they've actually LIVED at some point, in the realm of reality.

FICTION:
• Myths and Fairytales
  
• Characters from books, TV, Games of any era.
  
• Movie Characters
  
• Folkloric Characters, fables, tall tales
  
• Ghosts
  
• Ladies of Legend

(You get the point.)

This call for art is open til September 3, so feel free to spread the news to anyone you think might be interested. We're looking forward to seeing your thoughts and can't wait to see your sites! Past participants are totally welcome to submit. Each show takes on it's own life once we see who might be involved, so if you haven't been selected in the past, don't let that stop you!

Thanks again and we're looking forward to the show!

p.s. there has been some talk about getting a book published with the work included in this show... we're looking into it.