While La Jolla\u2019s new art exhibition is officially titled, “The Quest for Rhythm,” San Diego native Michael Carini unofficially calls this show his “quest for balance,” or “my rhythm of stability.” Carini\u2019s artistic journey may not have been as smooth as his paintbrushes\u2014suffering loss, addiction and assault and battery, but the triumphs have been works of art, literally. On Oct. 12, guests will have the chance to get to know Carini\u2019s avant-garde heart, as well as explore the rhythmic relationship between metal, paint and music.
\n“The Quest for Rhythm” will open at La Playa Gallery, located at 2226 Avenida De La Playa, on Friday, Oct. 12 with a wine and cheese reception from 5 to 8 p.m. where guests can connect with each artist, ask questions and even purchase some of the works. The exhibition will run through Nov. 23.
\n“Group shows are fun because they offer a wide variety in terms of how the artist might perceive the concept in a different way,” said Carini. “My work is very much about construction and deconstruction and, as an artist and individual, what I\u2019m often trying to find in life is some sort of stability, some kind of balance.”
\nThe idea for the exhibit sprouted when La Playa Art Gallery\u2019s owner visited the Liberty Station showcase of Molly Larson Cook, a painter who draws her inspiration from jazz music. Originally, the exhibit was based around Larson Cook, but curator Erica Putis eventually found two more artists who were also compatible with the theme\u2014metalworks sculptor Becky Guttin and acrylic painter Carini. “I thought it was interesting to find that connection between the three artists,” said Putis. “Everybody has their own rhythm when it comes to how they make their art. I thought it would be interesting to connect all these different genres and personalities, underlying rhythm in everything anyone creates.”
\nGuttin\u2019s rhythm stems from the family dynamic that\u2019s at the core of each sculpture she creates. But for Carini, his paints pulse to the beat of a healing body, mind and spirit.
\nHis first collection of work, The Upside of Down, was the result of Carini suffering an assault and battery in 2009 that put him in the hospital with multiple facial fractures, a concussion, and severe eye trauma. Years later, the assailant reached out to Carini to apologize and the artist even gave the man\u2019s daughter one of the first-inspired paintings from his collection. The two still keep in touch and Carini says that this incident was a blessing in disguise, as it got him back into the studio. “In a way, it\u2019s sort of a happy-ever-after-type story,” said Carini.
\nWith glowing colors, dripping backgrounds and geometric shapes that seem to float to the front of the viewer\u2019s vision, there\u2019s an evident tug-of-war between whimsical chaos and a desire for structure. This also explains the artist\u2019s choice in title.
\n“I like to play with words the same way I play with imagery and visual elements,” said Carini. “I figure, as an artist and someone who creates, you can also create through the playfulness and utilization of reconstructing language.”
\nCarini\u2019s collections\u2014”The Upside of Down,” the more organic and free-flowing “Boy in the Box,” “Regenaissance” and “Faces of the Parabox”\u2014all focus on the struggles and difficulties of life, using them as “sacrifices” to create something positive and beautiful. This is why Carini calls himself “The Acrylic Alchemist.”
\n“I cycle back and forth between projects, depending on the balance I feel I need,” said Carini. “It\u2019s all part of that quest for rhythm. I may feel I\u2019ve been a little \u2018too\u2019 free-flowing and need to get back to working with a little bit of structure again. I cycle back when I\u2019m trying to rediscover my place.”
\nThe last time Carini worked on “The Upside of Down” was in 2012, before he took a five-year absence to do a tribute project for his father, who had committed suicide. Carini even spent part of the project painting his father\u2019s suicide note, which was never actually left. But now, Carini has revisited “The Upside of Down,” and will showcase five new works from the collection, including “King Nothing and the Discovery of the Lost Venus (For SAMO)” inspired by the graffiti artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, and “I Am Who Am I” tying in some of Carini\u2019s Catholic upbringing.
\n“Sometimes going back to revisit a place of struggle helps you find yourself,” said Carini.
\n“I want to encourage people to be observant with an open mind at this show,” he adds. “You can look at my work from far away and have one perspective of it, but I hide a lot of little treasures in my pieces so that, if you get closer, there\u2019s something more there that you didn\u2019t catch at first glance.”
\n“My hope is that everyone can find something in the art that speaks to them,” said Putis. “That\u2019s what every artist wants, to make a connection.”<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
While La Jolla\u2019s new art exhibition is officially titled, “The Quest for Rhythm,” San Diego native Michael Carini unofficially calls this show his “quest for balance,” or “my rhythm of stability.” Carini\u2019s artistic journey may not have been as smooth as his paintbrushes\u2014suffering loss, addiction and assault and battery, but the triumphs have been works […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":726,"featured_media":277064,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"11561","_seopress_titles_title":"La Playa Art Gallery\u2019s October Show to feature \u2018Art Alchemist\u2019","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[12360,11551,11561],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-277067","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-duplicate","category-news","category-peninsula-beacon"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/277067","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/726"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=277067"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/277067\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/277064"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=277067"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=277067"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=277067"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}