“Feral,” Swoon + Monica Canilao

In “Feral,” a new installation at the luggage store, the collaborative team of Canilao and Swoon, use their practice of portraiture and building immersive environments to stitch together a scene populated by wicked women and feral girls.

Using wood, paper, paint and found materials, Canilao and Swoon will create a map of a world that builds itself “just that side of the fringes.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

MONICA CANILAO works with found objects and materials such as paper and fabric to weave sewn together structures that explore space, community and life and figures, both animal and human. According to Canilao, she understands that
even the most fleeting moments can be the most poignant ones, and so, she is fearless in her use of disintegrating materials such as paper, fiber, love and hope. What presents in her work is a feeling of spontaneity and mysticism.

CANILAO received her BFA from CCA.(C). She has exhibited at Galeria de la Raza, White Walls, Needles and Pens, 111 Minna, in San Francisco; The Cinders Gallery in Brooklyn, Jen Beckman Gallery in NY, and recently at the Black Rat Press in London. Canilao will be participating in upcoming exhibitions at 29 Gillespi in London and at the Portland Art Center in Oregon.

SWOON’s art begins with photography, figurative drawing, portraiture and traditional print making techniques and extends to urban interventions and community based collective experiments.

Her worlds are often populated by realistically rendered-, life size, evocatively cut outs of street people, friends and family. Engaged in various activities, these figures traverse unique cityscapes of bridges, fire escapes, water towers, street signs, shadows and empty space. Inspired by both art historical and folk sources, ranging from German Expressionist wood block prints to Indonesian shadow puppets, SWOON is a master of using cut paper and other mediums to play with positive and negative space to derive a conceptually driven exploration, habitation and experience of the streets and created
environments.

Known by many for her work on the street, SWOON brings a deft feminine sensibility to the predominantly male world of
street art (Heap). In conjunction with TOYSHOP, Swoon executed projects ranging from billboard alterations and poster campaigns, to street parties and sculptural installations. Her dedication to making
work on and for the street remains high.

SWOON has been traveling extensively during the past several years and has exhibited widely in the US and in Europe. She has collaborated with a number of artist collectives including Toyshop, Glowlab, Black Label, Change Agent, The Madagascar Institute and the Barnstormers,. She has exhibited P.S. 1 Contemporary Art Center in New York, Deitch Projects, NY; Museum Het Domain/Netherlands, Space 1026 in Philadelphia, Roda Sten in Gothenberg,, The Vinyl Factory and Black Rat Press in London, The Pinchuk Art Center in Kievv, and New Image Art in Los Angeles. Her work is included in the permanent collections of The Museum of Modern Art and The Brooklyn Museum of Art.

NOTE: If you can make it down to the gallery, please do¦.. The photos/jpegs do not do this exhibition œjusice. (laurie)

Pick of the Week-SF Bay Guardian

Pick of the Week “ SF Weekly

Art Business

Fecal Face

Art Slant

IMAGES FROM SHOW

Monica Canilao

LA TIMES REVIEW SWOON™S SOLO EXHIBITION AT NEW IMAGE ART,LA

Swindle Magazine, Swoon