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Where the Art Is

Posted on March 21, 2011 by klvillav

Bunny Matthews is no ordinary artist, nor should his artwork be paralleled with traditional cartoons or comic strips. Bunny finds his inspiration from regional current events as well as stereotypes associated with the New Orleans lifestyle. On the one hand, Bunny takes the most prevalent news headliners and molds them into satirical yet communicative masterpieces. Other pieces poke fun at Big Easy themes from heavy drinking and “Fat Tuesday,” to exaggerated creole accents and NOLA’s decadent cuisine, each piece perfectly balanced between comedy and social commentary.

Both thought and symbolism lie between the relaxed strokes and silly one-liners. Bunny, when defending his artwork, explained how the most successful cartoon artists are not only naturally creative, but proficient writers—writers who can tell an entire story in just a few short words.

Therefore, when it comes to sharing the work of a distinctive artist like Bunny Matthews, it is no surprise he accepted the offer to display his work at the Arthur Roger Gallery of the New Orleans Warehouse District, occupying a 5,100 square foot space with three separate exhibition areas. The gallery can be found on the corner of Julia St. and Constance in New Orleans own “Gallery Row.” The surrounding area resembles a modest version of New York City’s art scene (where the owner of Arthur Roger Gallery actually briefly opened a second gallery). While the exterior of the gallery mostly blends in with it’s neighboring exhibits, the interior is constantly flooded with a unique variety of artwork. The gallery is dedicated to featuring artwork from both the most recognized New Orleans talent as well as artists from around the country. Notable artists which previously collaborated with Arthur Roger include Robert Gordy, Ida Kohlmeyer, Charles Arnoldi, Derek Boshier and Roger Brown. Other great work by Robert Colescott, R. M. Fisher, Peter Halley, Robert Hull, Leonard Koscianski, Clarence Laughlin, Peter Saul, James Surls, Bruce Weber, Joel-Peter Witkin and Philip Wofford has also skimmed the walls of this distinguished gallery. The displays are also not limited to traditional painting and drawing pieces but also feature digital, sculptural and photographic artwork.

In addition to finding the most unique artists for his gallery, Roger often develops individual relationships with many of the artists. In the case of Bunny Matthews, Arthur was actually responsible for the suggestion and inspiration of one of Bunny’s most famous pieces—besides that of his Vic n’ Nat’ly characters—known as “Nin’t Wardica,” an 8×15 foot mural reminiscent of Picasso’s “Guernica.”

Below you will find several photographs of the current on display at the Arthur Roger Gallery.

For more information on Bunny’s exhibition at the Gallery last year and the photographs above, visit arthurrogergallery.com. To learn more about Bunny’s past artwork as well as future exhibitions, visit bunnymatthews.com.

To get to know Bunny and hear about his life as an artist in new Orleans, come to The People Say Project on Tuesday, March 22, 2011 at 6pm at the Louisiana Humanities Center at 5:00. Find more information on our homepage.

Bunny Matthews’ New Orleans

Posted on March 16, 2011 by jmgriff1

Jonas Griffin; New Orleans; March 2011

Forget lilting Oak trees, St. Charles Avenue or Bourbon Street, and wrought-iron balconies. Bunny Matthews’ New Orleans is a step beyond any tourist’s conception or the Uptowner’s picturesque view. As presented in his “Vic and Nat’ly” cartoons, Matthews illustrates a culture of the city whose people are, according to Bunnymatthews.com, an “oft-neglected slice of New Orleans…parochial, salt-of-the-earth denizens.”

A combination of laughing-at and laughing-with cranky Vic and brazen Nat’ly gives this strip its special place in local humor. One almost has to read aloud his cartoons to make sense of the warped spellings that communicate his characters’ unique Yat accent. Example: “Mus’ be hawd woik— paintin’ nekkid goils all day!” And certainly much is lost if readers don’t voice the strips because Matthews’ effective and whimsical dialogue can transport you to the heart and soul of the city. Matthews describes the people of the Ninth Ward, who inspire him for the cartoon; “The people who never left…the real die-hard New Orleanians.” In the early 1980’s, Matthews spent much of his time in the Ninth Ward, delivering records and meeting the people who lived there.

With this eye into the Yat subculture of New Orleans, Matthews confronts tragedy in his Nint’Wardica (2010). This painting is an ekphrasistic response to Picasso’s Guernica. Matthews reinvents this classic work to represent the city’s recent pains.

Matthews uses shades of black and white to expose New Orleans’ ills to its people, an audience that has been historically divided along such color lines. The mural, painted on a tapestry of Tyvek, gives the people of New Orleans a chance to see the city’s tragedies contained in a work of art; Nint’Wardica is an elegy. Though New Orleans has proved a resilient spirit, the ability to rejoice and never loose pride in itself, Matthews’ painting offers an opportunity to reflect, mourn and ultimately inspire in spite of the seriousness.

Beyond the initial orientation of the cubist graphics, sadness and at times out-right horror rise into view: a murdered young black man, Louisiana’s regal state symbol of the pelican drenched in oil, dead fish. With the presence of Vic and Nat’ly, the first with a flashlight as in a storm and the second as curvaceous as ever, the work is tender, too. These beloved characters of the po-boy shop aren’t kept static in their comic strip, but they have been drawn into the tough realities we all share.

Bunny Matthews Presents:

Posted on March 16, 2011 by Chris Kehoe

New Orleans artist Bunny Matthews has contributed a series of illustrations to The Audubon Zoo’s Insectarium. The illustrations give a history of New Orleans from the point of view of an often over looked resident of the city: cockroaches. The series is called “A Roach’s History of New Orleans” and spans the city’s entire history–from its discovery by Bienville, to the invention of jazz, and of course hurricane Katrina. “A Roach’s History of New Orleans” is a funny and original look at some of the major events in the city’s history told in Bunny’s signature artistic style, check out the entire series in our gallery:

[Show as slideshow]