Plus Gallery always has a selection of treasures for anytime of the year, our collection of contemporary works from our represented artists is easy to view both on our website and at the gallery proper. This year we've developed some new collectibles in the form of artist books, limited edition works on paper, t-shirts, and other small-scale artworks guaranteed to bring much cheer this holiday season. Here's out rundown of a few specific recommendations:
The Plus Gallery 2009 limited edition t-shirts, designed by gallery owner Ivar Zeile from visual materials relating to our current exhibition "The Big Idea" by Colin Livingston. Not only is the exhibition one of the most bold and unique of the decade, the works within lend themselves very well to our yearly t-shirt that we produce in limited quantities. This year we've produced two excellent t-shirts retailing for $35 each.
T-shirt No. 1
T-shirt No. 2
One of our most exclusive new developments this year has been our self-published books, many who have purchased works from the gallery have received our 300 page Plus Gallery monograph featuring our represented artists. Towards the end of 2009 we've put together our first individual artist book in celebration of Jenny Morgan and her extraordinary career. "New Territory" is an elegant, 240 page volume hard-cover book that features 100 paintings executed by the artist from the very beginning of her career up through the end of this year. It's a comprehensive view of one of the nations most talented artists under the age of 30, filling in the gaps for all who have followed and collected her work to see including the very early paintings from 2003 as well as the early NYC works that have led to her most recent breakthroughs as a collectors artist. We are taking orders now through the end of the year at a price of $120 (+ shipping when applicable) and otherwise will have the volume available online at http://www.blurb.com/books/1081631
A copy of the book is available for viewing at the gallery and you can get an advance preview on the blurb site as well.
How your coffee table might look with "New Territory"
Next up and certainly some of our most well priced items in our inventory, are this years limited edition etchings from Gabriel Liston. Liston branched out this year, creating more affordable, collectible items to complement the "blue book" tiles he's been producing over the last decade. The etchings are perfectly in tune with Liston's greater body of work and wonderfully strange for anyone with his heightened sense of childhood reality. They range in price from $40 to $125 and we have just a few editions left.
A Liston Etching worth its weight in gold
We also have a number of new blue book tiles in stock from Gabriel this year, including the first tile-triptych which can be acquired as a trio or certainly split up if someone were so bold as to do so:
Can you see the common link between the three Liston tiles?
Another new item in the spirit of "limited editions" this year is a silkscreen of Bill Amundson's proposal that secured him the commission for a major billboard to celebrate the Denver Performing Art Center this year to launch the Denver Theatre District and their wonderful, large-scale outdoor gallery of art (curated by yours truly, Ivar Zeile of Plus Gallery). Next year we'll be focusing on a major limited edition work from Bill to expand his notoriety around the globe, but for now we have a very limited quantity of this unique piece that will soon be a part of Denver's contemporary art history. You can score one for $450, elegantly framed in black.
The concept artwork for "It's Alive" by Bill Amundson
Also new this year are some small-scale resin works by Lauri Lynnxe Murphy, fashioned along the lines of her recent works in resin and mixed media, glistening and as attractive as anything on the market. We have three new works of variable scale ranging in price from $250 to $450.
A wondrous universe embedded in resin, courtesy of Lauri Lynnxe Murphy
One of our biggest recommendations for the holidays would have to be one of the 85 works in our current exhibition "The Big Idea" by Colin Livingston. These are extraordinarily collectible items that range in price from $995 to $2,995, complete with the memory of one of the most ambitious and intriguing exhibitions of the last decade. Art critic Michael Paglia reminded us last weekend that Warhol's soup cans never sold when they were first introduced in their gallery exhibition, but made their dealer phenomenally rich years later. We'd rather see them sell now, but it's undeniable that these are some of the smartest works to hit the market since, well, perhaps Warhol or even Hirst. You can download a pdf of the entire collection on our website at http://www.plusgallery.com
"Art Star" by Colin Livingston, from the Irony Department
"Don't be mean" by Colin Livingston, from the Sincere Department
A small Multi-slogan painting by Colin Livingston
A large Multi-slogan sculpture by Colin Livingston
Those looking for a great art-investment can select any number of the greater works from our collection, but the one we are recommending the most is the latest from the studio of William Betts. There's no denying that Betts is currently a solid investment in the contemporary art market. His latest works inject acrylic paint into the back of mirrored plexiglas, producing an effect that is both utterly unique and sublime. Priced at $2,500 now.
"Untitled #4" by William Betts
Another great book from one of our represented artists that's just been released is "Artwork 1994-2009" by Jean Arnold. One of the region's most sensational abstract painters, Arnold's book shows extraordinary career development through a deep view of this prolific artists past works. Accompanied by a thoughtful essay by recent Salt Lake City Art Center director Heather Ferrel, this book is well priced at $45.95 in hardback and a great gift for fans of Jean's work and abstract art.
Another book to grace the coffee table and stimulate the mind
If you feel like going all out this year and want to acquire one of the most beautiful paintings relating to Denver in the gallery inventory, then we would suggest considering Jean Arnold's 2007 canvas "South Broadway: Alameda" which is scaled at 6 feet tall by 10 feet wide. The painting was the focal point of Jean's April 2009 Plus Gallery exhibition "Onrush" and easily one of the most visually dynamic works on view this year. Priced at $19,000 it's also a virtual steal!
Do you recognize "South Broadway: Alameda"?
