Thinkspace Projects Presents Brand New Work From Seven Artists For October Shows

Gallery I | PERSPECTIVES | Zeinab Diomande + Ayobola Kekere-Ekun + Chigozie Obi + Bianca Walker

Gallery II | Moku | Yumi Yamazaki

Gallery III | Matter of Survival | Kristy Moreno

Gallery IV | The Show Must Go On | Mr. B Baby

OCTOBER 1 - OCTOBER 22

Thinkspace Projects

4207 W. Jefferson Blvd. & 4217 W. Jefferson Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90016

T: 310.558.3375 | Tues. - Sat. Noon to 6PM

Thinkspaceprojects.com

Opening Reception

Saturday, Oct 1, 6-10pm

DJ, Refreshments, Live Painting, and More

Los Angeles, CA (September 15, 2022) - Thinkspace Projects continues to utilize their beautiful physical space as a growing hub for New Contemporary Art, emphasizing the possibilities with their October lineup of shows in West Adams.

In Gallery I, Thinkspace Projects is thrilled to present a group show titled PERSPECTIVES featuring the new work of Zeinab Diomande (aka Z the Rat), Ayobola Kekere-Ekun, Chigozie Obi, and Bianca Walker. Zeinab Diomande uses her vivid imagination to create pieces that encapsulate the emotional joys and discomforts of her life, as her strong color palette takes you in and the melancholic undertones reveal themselves. Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Ayobola Kekere-Ekun is a contemporary visual artist who attempts to unravel the connections between the self and identity and how they interface with individual and collective memory via her art, using seemingly random and benign scenes offer breadcrumbs of the artist's attempts to understand her own trauma and beyond. Multi-dimensional visual artist Chigozie Obi uses vibrant colors and figures to portray emotions and stories formed from personal/shared experiences and focuses on the representation of Black people in their diversity. 23-year-old, nonbinary, painter Bianca Walker has created four portraits that depict people who were forced to do enslaved labor and retained the label of “slave” as their photos were placed into archival history, drip-painting their portraits and removing the word slave from the titles to turn focus on the subject in a free state. The shift in perspective doesn’t remove the negative aspects of what happened to these people, but forces the narrative towards other aspects of black existence.

Japanese Artist Yumi Yamazaki fills Gallery II with the new show Moku. The title, like the work itself, has many layers to its meaning. Depending on the Japanese kanji, it can mean silence, to see, to cleanse, to rise, or even simple objects like trees and smoke. These definitions all apply to Yamazaki’s painting style which the artist describes as, “a deeply cleansing ritual that allows me to see and reveal my inner feelings.” This body of work was created out of necessity, providing Yamazaki with a safe and stable outlet in a time of turmoil.

In Gallery III, Kristy Moreno presents Matter of Survival, which focuses on the imagined personas of radicalized future ancestors. The handcrafted ceramic forms are of fictional characters often resembling feminine personalities paused in space and time. Moreno examines the essence of these future communities through the use of body languages and attitudes to further explore themes of rage, empathy and curiosity.

Gallery IV holds Mr. B Baby’s The Show Must Go On. A Latina born and raised in San Diego, California, Michelle Ruby, aka Mr. B Baby, uses elements of her heritage as an inspiration for her striking and lively art work. By combining vibrant colors with traditional imagery, Michelle is able to uplift her audience and intrigue her viewers. The artist's aims to bring happiness and joy to her collectors and community, while also having stronger messages intertwined, all of which are open to the viewer's interpretation.

With refreshments, DJ action from Venice Beats, open bar, free H2O from Liquid Death, video projections from Digital Debris, live painting from Nina Palomba, grub from The Roll N’ Bun, Timeless Vape Bar, and even more surprises the night of, the opening reception is the perfect opportunity to take in these incredible works alongside even more entertainment.

These shows open October 1st with a reception from 6PM to 10PM. They will remain on view until October 22nd at Thinkspace Projects.

About Thinkspace                                       

Thinkspace was founded in 2005; now in LA’s thriving West Adams District, the gallery has garnered an international reputation as one of the most active and productive exponents of the New Contemporary Art Movement. Maintaining its founding commitment to the promotion and support of its artists, Thinkspace has steadily expanded its roster and diversified its projects, creating collaborative and institutional opportunities all over the world. Founded in the spirit of forging recognition for young, emerging, and lesser-known talents, the gallery is now home to artists from all over the world, ranging from the emerging, mid-career, and established.

Though the New Contemporary Art Movement has remained largely unacknowledged by the vetted institutions of the fine art world and its arbiters of ‘high culture,’ the future promises a shift. The Movement’s formative aversion to the establishment is also waning in the wake of its increased visibility, institutional presence, and widespread popularity. Thinkspace has sought to champion and promote the unique breadth of the Movement, creating new opportunities for the presentation of its artists and work. An active advocate for what is now one of the longest extant organized art movements in history, Thinkspace is an established voice for its continued growth and evolution, proving their commitment by expanding its projects beyond Los Angeles, exhibiting with partner galleries and organizations in Berlin, Hong Kong, London, New York City, Detroit, Chicago, and Honolulu among many others, participating in International Art Fairs, and curating New Contemporary content for Museums. Committed to the vision, risk, and exceptional gifts of its artists, the gallery is first and foremost a family. From the streets to the museums, and from the “margins” to the white cube, Thinkspace is re-envisioning what it means to be “institutional.”   

Media Inquiries: Hijinx PR | Heidi Johnson | heidi@hijinxarts.com | 323.204.7246