Art Silicon Valley San Francisco /  by kimcogan

11742778_481350432030237_4589577892789940655_n Art Silicon Valley San Francisco Hespe Gallery, Booth #SV2 San Mateo County Event Center Expo Hall 1346 Saratoga Drive San Mateo, CA 94403

Please visit Hespe Gallery in booth #SV2. For tickets or more information regarding purchasing, please contact the Hespe Gallery at 415.776.5918 or info@hespe.com

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Homecoming 52" X 84" oil on canvas

 

 

Solo Exhibition /  by kimcogan

The_other_side The Other Side

September 17 - October 4, 2015.

Opening Reception Thursday September 17th, 6  - 8pm.

Arcadia Contemporary 51 Greene Street New York, NY 1001 tel:212.965.1387 email:info@arcadiacontemporary.com www.arcadiacontemporary.com

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The Other Side by Kim Cogan Acadia Contemporary, September 2015

In his debut solo exhibition at Arcadia Contemporary, San Francisco-based artist Kim Cogan pushes the boundaries of realism to travel to the realm of memory.

The Other Side, the artist’s first solo exhibition in two years, is Cogan’s attempt to reconstruct how the mind remembers. Through paintings that piece together abstract memories with a palpable nostalgia of a distinct time and place, the artist creates a new, dream-like reality.

Cogan is a keen observer of his surroundings, capturing the passage of time and vanishing landscapes that hold so much memory. Haunted by the things that no longer exist, Cogan was interested in more than merely reproducing a literal translation of a place, a time or person. He wanted to create a story and evoke a longing for the past. “By combining old photographs with new ones, I wanted to make a complete image, very similar to how you might construct a memory in your head,” he says.

The challenge was in the process. Cogan composed the paintings in a way he had never done before. He used his own childhood photos and combined them with fragments of objects, people and environments to manipulate a new narrative, at once familiar and alien. Figures were not necessarily designed as the focal point, but sometimes drawn and redrawn around the surroundings. The brush strokes compliment the story by focusing on shapes, not likeness. Cogan says, “The picture is a starting point for provoking a deeper thought or memory. The paint is pushed to be more expressive.”

The story that unravels from these paintings is not about a singular subject or an exact reality. As Cogan puts it, “It is more truthful. There is honesty in how I experienced it, how I remember it.”

To acquire artworks, please contact tel:212.965.1387 email: michael@arcadiacontemporary.com IMG_1523

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Works on Paper /  by kimcogan

Works on Paper exhibitionmoleskin2 "Morning Delivery" will be included in the "Works on Paper", exhibition which opens Friday, Aug. 14th, 2015 6 - 8pm. This exhibition will be on view from August 14th - 31st.

Arcadia Contemporary 51 Greene Street New York, NY 10013 tel:212.965.1387 info@arcadiacontemporary.com www.arcadiacontemporary.com

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Morning Delivery 8" X 10" Acrylic on paper

ART MARKET San Francisco 2015 /  by kimcogan

Screen Shot 2015-04-14 at 8.34.18 PMIMG_3898 Please come visit Hespe Gallery Booth 113, at the ART MARKET San Francisco 2015, April 29th – May 3rd. Hespe Gallery will be exhibiting a few of my artworks. For information regarding the paintings please contact info@hespegallery.com. 

ART MARKET San Francisco 2015 April 29th – May 3rd, 2015

Hespe Gallery, Booth 113 Fort Mason Center 2 Marina Blvd. San Francisco, CA 94123

Cure For Forgetting /  by kimcogan

ndm Good news, the painting of my mother-in-law, "Cure for forgetting" will be traveling to the National Portrait Gallery in London for 2nd round of judging for the BP Portrait Award.

The portrait of my mother-in-law was based on a sitting I had started last year. Since she has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and is unable to live on her own, we moved her from the Philippines to the U.S. Single mother who raised 5 children, she was a shrewd business woman that provided for her family and gave generously to those in need.  Although we have been faced with many challenges, caring for her comes without hesitation. Many of you who know our situation and have asked how to help out, you could do so by making a donation to an Alzheimer's Association.

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Studio, April 2014.

I wasn't happy with the initial painting having run out of  space for the hands, so I planned to do the portrait again on a larger surface. We joke with her and tell her she is being painted just like the Mona Lisa. Being from the Philippines and not accustomed to the chilly weather in San Francisco, we keep her comfortable by keeping the heater on all the time and is why she is depicted wearing a puffy jacket.

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Study of  NDM Hands, November 2014.

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Work in progress, November - December 2014.

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Work in progress, December 2014.

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Finished and approved! January 2015.

Actually, I wasn't planning on showing this painting, ever. The painting was done for us alone, and entered on a whim. Win or lose it doesn't change our situation, so to show this painting and walk away with a good experience will be extra special. Needless to say, we are all very excited, thank you everyone for your support!