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161: Katie Merz Apr 22, 2025

Show notes

“No hierarchies are implied.” If you need to know anything about Katie Merz, start with that. The Brooklyn-born and bred artist has been playing on the streets both metaphorically and recently literally, for most of her life. Hierarchies would have got in the way if she let them. Art was all around, or perhaps better stated, it could be all around. For Merz, improvising was the goal, and the ever-evolving canvas that is her home borough gave her the imagination and the thoughtfulness to read and react to the world around her that has now blossomed into a public art career that is also extended into fine art and commercial projects. And this is where we found her.

It was serendipity that at the time we were meeting up with Katie in her Brooklyn studio, she was finalizing her long-awaited collaboration with Simplehuman. The Southern California-brand is famous for their, well, beautifully simple trash can designs and home goods, but there was something rather ideal about pairing an artist to create a design for cans. Ideas come and go in the studio, projects can get thrown away but the function of an artist is to take the everyday object and turn it into art. For Katie, this is in her DNA.

On this episode of The Unibrow's Radio Juxtapoz podcast, we speak with Katie about the collaboration with Simplehuman but also how she involves spontaneous play into her work, how much growing up with the romantic history of NYC plays into who she is and the process of storytelling with lines.

The Unibrow's Radio Juxtapoz podcast⁠ is hosted by Juxtapoz editor, ⁠⁠⁠Evan Pricco⁠⁠⁠. Episode 161 was recorded in Los Angeles and Brooklyn on April 21, 2025. This episode was made possible by Simplehuman and their upcoming capsule collection with Katie Merz.

160: David Altmejd Apr 08, 2025

Show notes

The serpent has been around for a quite some time. It's biblical stature as the representation of the temptation of the devil to Eve in the Garden of Eden has often been part of Western thought, but the asp was a powerful symbol in ancient Egyptian culture, representing "divine authority of the pharaohs." The serpent has been a protector and mischievous creature, chaotic and a form of order. And this is where we find Montreal-born, LA-based sculpture artist David Altmejd, on the border of chaos and order, restraint and rawness, realism and fantasy. We are in the underworld but also inverting the hierarchy of the world above it all in one.

I spoke with David on the occasion of his solo show, The Serpent, at White Cube Gallery in NYC, a show exploring a theme he had wanted to challenge himself for years and one that brought out a whole new direction and subconscious expression that he plans to explore in future shows and works. On a sunny April morning, I visited David's now almost-empty-but-in-the-process-of-new-ideas studio in Echo Park and found that this was just the time to get the story of where he is at in 2025. David digs himself into quite a personal world when he is making a show, and he told me he is often unprepared or able to speak of his work until it leaves his studio. So here we are.
On this episode of The Uniborw's Radio Juxtapoz podcast, we speak with David Altmejd about feline energy, biology, physical space, the beauty of a sculpture that is almost always in motion, and what The Serpent means to him.
⁠Subscribe to the Radio Juxtapoz podcast!

The Unibrow's Radio Juxtapoz podcast⁠ is hosted by Juxtapoz editor, ⁠⁠⁠Evan Pricco⁠⁠⁠. Episode 160 was recorded in Los Angeles on April 7, 2025.

This episode of Radio Juxtapoz is brought to you by the generous support of the ⁠⁠⁠Artemizia Foundation⁠⁠,⁠ a world class museum of contemporary, graffiti and street art in Bisbee, Arizona.

159: Noelia Towers Mar 30, 2025

Show notes

Barcelona-born Noelia Towers has been painting a form deconstructing power structures for years now, but it seems like over the last few years her subject matter has received a heightened attention. And importance. Not like a typical activist painter, Noelia is placing herself right in the center of both a personal biography and a universal appeal for action against patriarchy and a prevailing mood across the world of a new form of masculine power structures. I wrote a few months back, "She plays with ideas of myth, both personal and universal, using imagery that creates a feeling of familiarity but abstracted to make you rethink your expectation of memory," and this holds up even more after our conversation.

On this episode of the Unibrow's Radio Juxtapoz podcast, Noelia talks to me about her move to Chicago, the traumas she carries with her in her practice today and how her recent show, An Account of Preceding Events at de boer, Los Angeles came quickly and was one of her best experiences in the studio in years.

The Unibrow's Radio Juxtapoz podcast⁠ is hosted by Juxtapoz editor, ⁠⁠⁠Evan Pricco⁠⁠⁠. Episode 159 was recorded in New York and Chicago on March 26, 2025.

This episode of Radio Juxtapoz is brought to you by the generous support of the ⁠⁠Artemizia Foundation⁠,⁠ a world class museum of contemporary, graffiti and street art in Bisbee, Arizona.

158: Mark Whalen Mar 23, 2025

Show notes

Mark Whalen has been with us for almost 20 years, from the streets of Sydney, Australia to a new life of a sculpture studio in Los Angeles. Now it is time we are with him: after losing his home in the Altadena fire of January 2025, I got in touch with Mark about a visit to The Unibrow's Radio Juxtapoz, but also to catch up on an immersive, darkly humorous series of works he was creating. It felt like the right time.

In this conversation on the podcast, we find the inspiration behind the world Whalen has created, the stream of consciousness and deeply investigative construction of the sculptures, the materials, the fun, the pain, and how losing his home will inevitably transform the power of the work.

Subscribe to the Radio Juxtapoz podcast!

The Unibrow's Radio Juxtapoz podcast⁠ is hosted by Juxtapoz editor, ⁠⁠⁠Evan Pricco⁠⁠⁠. Episode 158 was recorded in Los Angeles on March 14, 2025.

This episode of Radio Juxtapoz is brought to you by the generous support of the ⁠Artemizia Foundation,⁠ a world class museum of contemporary, graffiti and street art in Bisbee, Arizona.

157: Daniel Gibson Mar 16, 2025

Show notes

Daniel Gibson is a painter of the California landscape, a visualizer of a certain kind of desert oasis dreamt of in a surreal dream as opposed to a place you have been. But to be honest, I wasn't aware of this fantastical world of desert sun, flora and fauna in Gibson's work; I just wanted it all to be real. I don't think that is important; what is important is that Gibson is capturing an essence of fantasy and freedom, a rural and desert basins, the Imperial Valley of Southeast California.

This is where Daniel grew up, and though he has lived in San Diego and now Los Angeles for years, he takes this childhood daydream of his surroundings with him in some of the most beautifully phantasmagorical paintings being made today.

Gibson's path to a fine art career took many twists and turns, from ArtCenter to graphic design, street posters to working at Levi's. He found himself in the studio of Mary Weatherford, another artist of color bursts and abstractions, where he learned the details of a career artists and the blueprint for dedication. The pandemic allowed him more time in the studio, and when the world was shut away, Gibson developed a body of work that has seen the galleries of Almine Rech, Nazarian / Curcio and new show just about to open at Marquez Art Projects (MAP) in Miami.

In this conversation on The Unibrow's Radio Juxtapoz podcast, Gibson speaks to Juxtapoz editor Evan Pricco about a semi-retirement set for 2025 (aka, a break from shows to develop new work), growing up near the California-Mexico border, being self-taught at painting, the emotional parts of paintings and what he learned from Weatherford's practice.

The Unibrow's Radio Juxtapoz podcast is hosted by Juxtapoz editor, ⁠⁠⁠Evan Pricco⁠⁠⁠. Episode 157 was recorded in Los Angeles on March 11, 2025. This episode of Radio Juxtapoz is brought to you by the generous support of the Artemizia Foundation, a world class museum of contemporary, graffiti and street art in Bisbee, Arizona.

156: Nehemiah Cisneros Mar 08, 2025

Show notes

There have been many iterations of the man we know as Nehemiah Cisneros, but right now, in the most moment, he is most himself. If you know Nehemiah, he is a thoughtful, insightful and evolving figure in art who is a filmmaker in a painters' body. We met him as AUGOR, the graffiti writer who took over Los Angles in the late aughts with billboards and walls that were just as influenced by comics, video games and low brow art as it was the history of lettering and monikers. He was fresh air in a scene that was already full of major creative forces: SABER, REVOK, RETNA and the MSK crew members. Cisneros was the young buck making a name, with LA in his blood and something theatric in his vision.

Across a few art schools, going through addiction and his own "trouble" that we mention in this podcast, Cisneros found a new voice in the art departments of Santa Monica City College, Kansas City Art Institute and then an MFA at UCLA. What that voice does is create a vision of his youth in Los Angeles and the aesthetic of a city of narratives, literally in its DNA. Cisneros, even now with a body of work on its way to Josh Lilley in London, has taken a life of influence from film, arcades, city streets, low brow and fine art into a beautiful and often overwhelmingly dense series of paintings.

In this conversation on The Unibrow's Radio Juxtapoz podcast, Evan Pricco and Cisneros talk about life after an MFA, his time working in the arts and studying painting, how Mark Ryden influenced his early years and how now he is looking to Theodore Gericault, Max Ernst, gamer culture and Black Exploitation films for his new works. Off the the "goon cave"...

Radio Juxtapoz' Unibrow podcast is hosted by Juxtapoz editor, ⁠⁠⁠Evan Pricco⁠⁠⁠. Episode 156 was recorded in Los Angeles on March 5, 2025 Follow us on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@radiojuxtapoz⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠

155: Hannah Lupton Reinhard Feb 16, 2025

Show notes

Hannah Lupton Reinhard's paintings always have a consistency in intent, and yet an interpretation of intention seems to be flexible for some, perhaps even malleable. The theme of moving goal posts to secure your own meaning is rife in modern society, perhaps more so than ever as we all have the unique ability to erase our own history so easily. We all, at the touch of a button, can share and manipulate our opinions, often in an instant. I don't know if we, as a collective, were ready for this, and we are struggling. We are angry. We are confused.

Reinhard has been making paintings about being Jewish since her time at RISD, has explored Jewish "displacement, diaspora, and the weight of inherited identity." In her celebratory work, she speaks of something quite universal: the complex idea of home and, as she notes from the philosopher Judith Butler, "that cohabitation—living among and alongside others—is central to Jewishness itself." As war in the Middle East began to explore, her work was being re-evauluated, her inclusive opinions causing her anger from her community and re-reading of her artwork that was never her intention. It brought out broader conversations about coexistence, and how a proudly Jewish artist can criticize Zionism while remaining as proud of her heritage as ever?
In this conversation on the Radio Juxtapoz podcast, Evan Pricco speaks with Reinhard at Rusha & Co just as her solo show, Are We Here Yet? was opening. They spoke about how the fires in Los Angeles gave her work an extra dimension, finding identity in art school and how she painted through a major shift in her public life and how it caused a uncertainty in her private life.
(Editor's note: Click here to see imagery that connects with the conversation, a gives context for some of Reinhard's older works)

Radio Juxtapoz' Unibrow podcast is hosted by Juxtapoz editor, ⁠⁠⁠Evan Pricco⁠⁠⁠. Episode 155 was recorded in Los Angeles on February 12, 2025 Follow us on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@radiojuxtapoz⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠

154: Jeremy Geddes Jan 11, 2025

Show notes

It took Melbourne's Jeremy Geddes over 5 years to make his newest solo show, Periphery, for Thinkspace Projects, and it's been over a decade since he last had a show all together. He is a patient man, a man who loves the details, making personal and universal works that are about the human condition in relation to explorations of space, our soul and our relationship the technology all around us. He is an explorer of the smallest details, a painter who doesn't just have the technical skill of past masters from centuries before, but a problem of solver of the self.

So it took him 5 years to make this show, and, while on the plane to Los Angeles in the first week of January, 2025, it took Los Anglees a few hours to be changed forever. Time is fascinating that way; an artist and mother nature have different schedules.

Speaking of schedules, we schedules this conversation with Jeremy a few weeks ago, just before he made his trip to Los Angeles for the solo show at Thinkspace Projects, his first solo show in over a decade and a culmination of work made since 2019. Before the pandemic, to now. Quite a significant moment for him, and for us, a moment to connect with a past cover artist, a vital artist in our history.

As fires were ravaging LA's hills and communities, Jeremy and I had this conversation with heavy hearts. With heavy minds. Past guest of Radio Juxtapoz, featured artists in the magazine, friends, family, colleagues, all lost homes in these fires. Friends, family and colleagues have homes threatened right now, as I recond this. It’s a tragedy, it’s unthinkable, it’s been quite unimaginable.

In this conversation, Jeremy and I speak about that attention to detail, about how he sees the scope of his life finally seeing this show all together and how much of his work isn't informed by science fiction but our need to explore what it is that moves us, no matter how small or how significant. —Evan Pricco

Radio Juxtapoz' Unibrow podcast is hosted by Juxtapoz editor, ⁠⁠⁠Evan Pricco⁠⁠⁠. Episode 154 was recorded in Los Angeles on January 10, 2025 Follow us on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@radiojuxtapoz⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠

153: Umar Rashid Nov 12, 2024

Show notes

It isn't often we invite a guest to come onto Radio Juxtapoz for a second time, but Umar Rashid is beyond an exception. He's a friend with something to talk about, a new show, yes, The Kingdom of the Two Californias. La Época del Totalitarismo Part 2 at BLUM in Los Angeles... but we are also talking two days after the American election and an artist dedicated to history has something to say. A lot to say.

"This epoch is exhausting," Rashid says, as we explore his own explorations of history and the cacophony of noise of the contemporary. In our wide-ranging conversation, we talk about making art in the midst of history happening around you, how you can tell stories from the past that explain our current and future selves and how much it takes to prepare a body of work that is about a narrative that demands a deeper read. Umar never shies away from telling us how our history is often over-looked, and although that seems simple, it's a plague of humanity to not look back in order to move forward. And art is his language...

Radio Juxtapoz' Unibrow podcast is hosted by Juxtapoz editor, ⁠⁠Evan Pricco⁠⁠. Episode 153 was recorded in Los Angeles on November 7, 2024. Follow us on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@radiojuxtapoz⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠

152: Danielle Mckinney Nov 05, 2024

Show notes

Something that will always exist, regardless of political landscapes and the changing of societal norms, is the need to honor space. ⁠Danielle Mckinney⁠ knows something about space, and waiting, and watching, and observing. As a photographer she practices these disciplines, and when she began to explore her desire to paint, she found something remarkably powerful: the space for the body to rest. Whether it was a fantasy or a dream, Mckinney's work is a powerful reminder that the art of protest can come in unexpected ways, that sound can reverberate from the quietest of moments and just how much rest and the act of being seen resonates so deeply.

In this episode of the ⁠Radio Juxtapoz's Unibrow podcast⁠, Jux editor ⁠Evan Pricco⁠ speaks to Mckinney the day before the American election of 2024, which envelops the conversation with a bit of realistic uncertainty. Mckinney speaks of her shows in Europe in 2024, listening to Thom Yorke and the Cocteau Twins, her youth in Alabama and Georgia and giving woman of color the space and place to be seen.

⁠Subscribe to the Radio Juxtapoz podcast⁠⁠.

Radio Juxtapoz' Unibrow podcast is hosted by Juxtapoz editor, ⁠Evan Pricco⁠. Episode 152was recorded in Los Angeles and New York on November 4, 2024. Follow us on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@radiojuxtapoz⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Photo of Danielle Mckinney by Pierre Le Hors, provided by Kunsthal n in Copenhagen

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