Yellena’s Blog

Tied Together

Had a fun night last night at the Together Gallery on Alberta. Went to the opening of my latest group show, Idle Ties. Got to meet Timothy and the rest of the awesome people of Together along with guest curator, Gabe Scott of 111 Minna, who brought in some of his favorite artists from San Francisco. It was a really cool show and I love Together’s new space. There were so many creative people around, bands in the middle of the street, girls on stilts, great art and good vibes.. I’m probably not the first one to say it but I love Portland. I enjoyed a veggie quesadilla, a rainbow-sprinkled donut, and finished the night off with a local brew, chips & hummus platter, and laughter with friends while listening to low-key acoustic Brazilian music in a neighborhood pub. I should leave my studio more often.

IDLE TIES
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June 25th - July 20th 2009
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together Gallery is proud to present:
“IDLE TIES”
june 25th - july 20th 2009
new work and installations by all San Francisco based artists:
Chris Duncan, Matt Furie, Jessica Trippe, Yellena James, Paul Urich
Porous Walker, Rogelio Martinez, Derek Snodgrass, Tahiti Pehrson, Aiyana Udesen, Jay Howell.

Sale!

BUY 2 GET 1 FREE, for a limited time in my Etsy shop. =)

Happy Anniversary Giant Robot!

Giant Robot is celebrating 15 years!  Join them tonight in San Francisco for the anniversary party & show openning.  Congrats GR, wish I could attend!  Here are the details.

Grassy Knoll Multitouch show - Portland, July 2nd!

Dear Portland friends, join me on July 2nd (6-9p) for the First-Thursday opening of my new show, Aquarium, at the Grassy Knoll Gallery on NW 2nd & Davis.

Aquarium is a collaborative drawing application and one-of-a-kind multitouch table that gives life to my artwork. Gallery viewers can create their own creatures with hand gestures, and watch as they take on a life of their own. The Aquarium exhibit is a collaboration featuring artwork by (me), animation and programming by Fashionbuddha Studio, and atmospheric sound design by Radium Ltd.

I will have new artwork and limited edition prints on display.  There will also be sounds from DJ CATALOG and prints by Dr. Woohoo, as well as snacks, drinks and a hands-on first look at the new Aquarium project.  For more, visit www.grassyknollgallery.com

The show is free and open to the public. Hope to see you there!

Illustration for Huck Magazine

Just did an illo for a 4-page foldout in Huck Magazine #15
It’s an awareness piece on coral reefs, with lots of coral facts.

Did you know:
- Coral reefs are home to more than 25% of all known marine fish species.
- Corals are both plant and animal at the same time!
- The economic value of the world’s reefs has been estimated at over $30bn.
- 500 million people depend on coral reefs for their livelihood.

Sadly, man’s influence, through coastal development, pollution, over-fishing, etc. is destroying these beautiful reefs at an alarming rate. Time to get educated and involved. Click here to get your copy of Huck and check out the full article.

images from www.huckmagazine.com

New Kokeshi Doll for 2009 show at JANM in L.A.

My new Kokeshi is off to Las Angeles to be a part of the JANM Kokeshi exhibit.

Sneak Peek -
“Eva” - ink & acrylic on wood

(The painting will be included in my next originals post on Etsy.. Coming Soon!)

“JANM in collaboration with LATDA and Christina Conway present:
The Kokeshi Show – From Folk Toy to Art Toy
July 11th - October 4th, 2009

LATDA and guest curator, Christina Conway are carefully selecting over 100 artists to customize creative style wooden Japanese Kokeshi dolls to be part of a comprehensive Kokeshi exhibition at the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles, California.”

You can view works from the 2007 Kokeshi exhibit HERE

Made the Cover of ROJO® Mag!

I’ve just seen the mockup for the June issue of ROJO Magazine and wanted to share it:

=)

ROJO is a world-class collection of creative talent and this issue promises to be 240 pages of pure art, including 3 or 4 two-page spreads of my work. Plus, the first 200 people to Pre-order a copy will receive a free “Allusion” poster courtesy of ROJO and myself. For more information on this amazing text-free publication, visit them at www.rojo-magazine.com.

I am so thrilled and overwhelmed by the caliber of the other artists involved in this collection! Be sure to check them all out, I’m sure you will find some new favorites:

Jeff Soto, Alison Brady, Natalie Westbrook, Oliver Vernon, Marco De Gregorio, Chloe Early, Herr Mueller, Urh Sobocan, Sarah Maple, Theo Gennitsakis, Emanuele Kabu, Lena Szczesna, Levi Van Veluw, Joey Piziali, Jim Mcbeath, Pascale Mira Tschäni, Michael Husmann Tschäni, Esa Peltonen, Drew Beckmeyer, Andrew Mcattee, Ryohei Hase, José Parlá, Daquar, Anna Thereza De Menezes, Alexander Sterzel, Julien Kedryna, Alex Diamond, Boklet, Chamarelli, James Gauvreau, Anna Pantchev, Jason Redwood, Harry Seifert, Kerstin zu Pan, Maxwell Holyoke-Hirsch, Virginia Echeverria, Natalie Huth, Paper Monster, William Crump, Tate Foley

CLICK HERE TO PRE-ORDER YOUR COPY.

One for the trees

The Giant Robot in San Francisco is hosting it’s annual Tree Show, a gallery exhibit and fundraiser for Friends of the Urban Forest, a non-profit organization that plants over 1,500 trees each year and keeps San Francisco communities green. For more info on the show, the organization and the artists involved, visit www.GR-SF.com.

This one is called “Amble”. =)

“Amble” 8×10 pen & ink on panel (detail)

New Resin Coated Prints

I just listed my first batch of resin prints in my Etsy shop. They are 5″x7″ and 6″x6″ giclee prints, mounted on 1/2″ birch panels, and they’re coated with a thick & glossy epoxy resin. The resin gives them a glassy finish and really makes the colors jump. Plus, with the saw-tooth hangers mounted on the backs, they don’t need to be framed. It’s taken some experimenting and the resin aplication is a bit tricky, but I’m so happy with the results and can’t wait to do more!

Big Apple, GIANT Robot - Tonight!!

Two of my favorite things in the world, Giant Robot and NYC, together at last! Tonight is the reception for my latest GR group show endeavor, Devil’s in the Details. I’ve been working on the pieces for this show for several weeks, and I’m excited to have them on display for the first time at GRNY.

Including myself, there are 10 artists participating in the exhibit. Many of them will be attending the reception tonight at 6:30pm, and the artwork will remain up for a month. It promises to be an amazing show by some of the Giant Robot staff’s hand-picked favorites, of which I’m so proud to be included!

For a list of the artists and more about the show and GR, visit their website - HERE.

“Path” - 12×12 pen & ink on panel

“Path” - devilish detail shot