1941 Counter Attack

Product Description

1941 Counter Attack by J. David Carlson

15.5″ x 25.5″, Mixed Media

Exhibition at Flower Pepper Gallery: Minuscule from May 3rd to June 6th, 2014

Artist Statement:
My childhood was the birth of my artistic process. Spending hours alone in my room believing I was an architect of great room tents, block buildings and forts. I was the great inventor of new objects. I built raceways and miles of train track. I lead great armies into battle and won. I was the head archaeologist on digs in the back yard and when I wasn’t busy with these tasks, I was an visual artist creating great works.

It is from those early experiences that I found my passion as an artist. Play has become essential to my artistic journey. Words I have come to associate with play are: rapture, enthusiasm, sacred and festive. Typically, my ideas form during sessions of “free play” in my studio; periods where the intuitive process is free from the constraints of making precious or profound artistic statements. Working with the materials I have, the process is generated. Ideas go through phases of editing and refining. Working in this serious-play fashion keeps me enthused to push the work further.

My love affair with toys dates back to early child as does for many. The majestic powers we give these objects still fascinates me today. Their identities help inform us about the world we live in as well as worlds beyond. These attributes carry my curiosity as I engage with my cannibalistic construction methods to make the toys that I never dreamed of as a child. The creation of these one-of-a-kind objects helps keep my childhood imagination stirring inside.

Artist Statement:
I find inspiration in the history and narrative that toys have played in our culture. Toys have the opportunity to reflect culture through escapism and fantasy, while also representing values and beliefs. The works presented here are a fusion of toys from my past and a mythological story that brings new narrative to an old story.

J. David Carlson
Current curriculum vitae (C.V.)

Education
2004 MFA Visual Art, Vermont College of Fine Art, Montpelier VT
2000 MA Ceramics, CSU Fullerton, Fullerton CA
1998 B.A. Art, Azusa Pacific University, Azusa CA

Professional
2004 – present, Full Professor of Art, Azusa Pacific University, Azusa CA
Courses taught: 3D Design, Sculpture 1-4, History of Sculpture
Senior Seminar- Art Ethics, Graduate Studies: Art Theory, and
Graduate Studies: Interdisciplinary Arts.
2012-present, Circustank: Designer Art Toy Company
-Founder & lead designer
2000- 2004, Adjunct Professor of Art, Biola University, La Mirada CA

Owner:
Est. 2012- present Circustank: Designer Art Toy Company

Solo Exhibitions
2010 “Playscapes” Lawrence Asher Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2010 “5 Year Survey” Azusa Pacific University, Azusa, CA
2007 “September Exhibition” Bluebird Art Gallery, Whittier, CA

Group Exhibitions
2013 Orllegro, Mak Museum, Vienna Austria
2012 Whimsical Art, National Museum of Play, Rochester, NY
2011 “5×5 Invitational, Westmont Museum, Santa Barbara, CA
2011 “Chain Letter Exhibition” Shoshana Wayne Gallery, Los Angeles
2008 “Menos Du Precari” Azusa Pacific University, Azusa, CA
2007 “Way Too Over Hung” Concrete Walls Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2007 “Art & Music Soiree” 2nd Street Space, Los Angeles, CA
2007 “Group Show: Sculpture” Bluebird Art Gallery, Whittier, CA
2007 “Kiln Opening” AMOCA, Pomona, CA
2007 “September Exhibition” Bluebird Art Gallery, Whittier, CA
2006 “Member Exhibition” Riverside Museum, Riverside, CA
2005 “CODA: A Concluding Passage” SCA Gallery, Pomona, CA
2004 “Make Believe” Vermont College, Montpelier, VT
2004 “Kiln Opening” AMOCA, Pomona, CA
2004 “Judy Chicago: Envisioning the Future” Collaborative Arts Colony, Pomona, CA
2003 “Collaborative Language” Biola University, La Mirada, CA
2002 “Time and Chance” Azusa Pacific University, Azusa, CA
2001 “Vertical Landscapes” Kinnear Studio, Pomona, CA
2000 “Mythologies” Irvine Valley City College, Irvine, CA
2000 “Formation II” Gallery W, Sacramento, CA
2000 “Formation” Azusa Pacific University, Azusa, CA
1999 “Opacity” First Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
1998 “Daud” Azusa Pacific University, Azusa, CA

Collections
2013 Mak Museum, Vienna Austria
Artwork: Chess set from Orllegro Exhibit, enters permanent collection
2012 The National Museum of Play
Artwork: Extreme Put-Put, enters permanent collection

Speaking Engagements
2010 New England Consortium of Art Professionals (NECAP) Conference.
Guest Presenter, “Play Is the Thing: The Serious Work of Play”

Publications
2011 Artist Scholar, Book Cover, Detail of Personal Studio
2010 World Savvy Inc. National Publication,
Selected Images of Artwork published in Media and Arts Exhibit (MAP)

Commissions
2006 “Education Mural” LA County Children’s Court House, Los Angels, CA
2005 “Historic Mural” Downtown Glendora, Glendora, CA
2005 “Themed Welcome Mural” LA County Children’s Court House, Los Angels, CA
2004 “Vivian Felix Memorial” Azusa Pacific University Azusa, CA
2004 “Ceramic Mural” Millspaugh Collection, Chino Hills, CA
1999 “Mural of Hope” LA County Children’s Court House, Los Angels, CA

Artist Website: http://www.circustank.com

Additional Information