Tyler Los-Jones

Books

2011-11-30T01:42:00.001-07:00

I got my books back from the binders a couple weeks ago. I wasn't going to post pictures until closer to the opening in January but the building won't be ready until March now...

Five books total, each a different species. More info soon.

In the works

2011-11-30T00:54:00.001-07:00

Here are a couple ideas that I've got on the go right now.

Books

2011-11-14T00:36:00.001-07:00

I've been working on a series of five hand-cut books for the inaugural show at the new Esker Foundation. I'm excited to be in the show, which will have work from over forty Alberta based artists.

Here are some of the book pages and the hand cut letters that I keep finding all over my studio.

Olympic Plaza

2011-11-13T22:18:00.001-07:00

These are the banners that I made for Olympic Plaza in downtown Calgary. A total of six designs repeated six times. Each banner has the name of a migratory bird species that is currentlylisted as endangered in Alberta.

I was so glad that the text shows up clearly from across the plaza, and really dissolves as you get closer.

Species are:

-Eskimo Curlew,Numenius borealis

-Mountain Plover,Charadrius montanus

-Piping Plover,Charadrius melodus circumcinctus

-Red Knot, rufasubspecies, Calidris canutus rufa

-Sage Thrasher,Oreoscoptes montanus

-Whooping Crane, Grus americana

whoa, its been a while

2011-11-02T22:18:00.000-06:00

Time has been passing by at an alarming rate. Life is busy in all directions, especially the studio. I'll try and catch up on whats been going on starting from where I left off. Bellow are some images from the show that concluded my residency at the ledge gallery. the show was up early August through mid September.

All photos taken by my good friend Joe Kelly.

top to bottom:

-Banff Springs Snail detail 1

Acrylic on Polyester, 2011

-Banff Springs Snail detail 2

Acrylic on Polyester, 2011

-Tiny Cryptantha

Acrylic on Polyester, 2011

Dimensions variable

-Tiny Cryptantha detail 1

Acrylic on Polyester, 2011

-Greater Short-Horned Lizard rear view

Acrylic on Polyester, 2011

-Greater Short-Horned Lizard detail 1

Acrylic on Polyester, 2011

-Greater Short-Horned Lizard detail 2

Acrylic on Polyester, 2011

-Eskimo Curlew / 1962

Acrylic on Polyester, 2011

Dimensions variable

-Ord’s Kangaroo Rat

Acrylic on Polyester, 2011

Dimensions variable

-Ord’s Kangaroo Rat detail 1

Acrylic on Polyester, 2011

-Installation shot

left to right: Greater Short-Horned Lizard; Five-spotted Bogus Yucca Moth, Non-pollinating Yucca

Moth, Yucca Moth and Banff Springs Snail

In progress

2011-07-10T22:59:00.000-06:00

Here is another banner I'm working on for the EPCOR show.

Eskimo Curlew 1963, acrylic on nylon.

Work in progress

2011-07-09T17:50:00.000-06:00

Whooping Crane banners freshly painted and soon to be sewn.

Antler interview

2011-06-22T09:39:00.000-06:00

My good friend Angela Dione, (of Market Collective fame) was handed the reins to Antler Magazine for their last issue, and we did a short interview for it.
Find it here
Thanks Angela!

Ord's Kangaroo Rat

2011-06-21T15:07:00.000-06:00

Calgary Herald

2011-06-07T10:57:00.000-06:00

Yesterday, the Herald published an article on my EPCOR reseidency and some of the projects I've worked on in Calgary. Its always nice to talk to people about what you spend your time doing.

Check it out here

New banner fabric

2011-06-03T16:28:00.000-06:00

EPCOR CENTRE residency

2011-06-03T16:13:00.002-06:00

Today's the first day of a residency I am doing this summer at the EPCOR CENTRE for the Performing Arts in Calgary. I will use the gallery space as my studio for June - July and then show the work here in August. The plan is to make 24 banners, each based on a different endangered species in Alberta.

Here's the new set up

Should be a productive summer.

Untitled show

2011-05-07T13:08:00.000-06:00

I had some work in a group show at Untitled Art Society just over a week ago. The premise was kinda like the "telephone game" where each artist would make a solo work, then use that piece as a starting point for two collaborations with two different artists. The nearest flag is the piece I made with Nate McLeod.
The show looked great and you could really see ideas moving around the gallery for one collabo to the next. Ill post up more images when I get better documentation. Thanks to the Bakery folks for asking me to participate.

New Studio

2011-04-23T22:12:00.000-06:00

I've just set up in a new studio and am starting to get things going again.

This piece is for a fundraiser show at Haight gallery on Friday to raise bucks for a scholarship in Jasmine Valentina's name.

Squeegee

2011-03-22T22:34:00.000-06:00

Been doing a lot of tests with a squeegee over the past week. Gouache on Stonehenge for the first two, gouache on yupo on the last one.

Canadian Art article

2011-03-03T23:16:00.002-07:00

Nancy Tousley, recent Governor General award winner, just wrote an article about Calgarian DIY galleries for Canadian Art. Its a huge boost to have some one like Nancy introduce these spaces to a broader Canadian audience and it was a really enjoyable interview. Local Library has a couple of great pictures in the article check it out here

Thanks Nancy!

Propeller show in Toronto

2011-03-03T22:59:00.002-07:00

I have a piece in Here & There, a show at Propeller Centre for the Visual Arts in Toronto. The show was curated by the people behind the Toronto based magazine One Hour Empire.

Here are some more pictures of my contribution, I can't wait to see the shots from install.

Sculpture for Leo

2011-03-03T22:48:00.000-07:00

In-progress commissioned work for the fine folks at Leo boutique.

Workin'

2011-01-15T18:41:00.001-07:00

I just finished painting a new flag based on an extinct species of fish in Ontario, still needs to be sewn. I've been exploring pattern with a lot more focus in these flag works, this one uses a form found in the provinces coat of arms.

Better photo and details to come.

5 x 54

2011-01-05T22:46:00.000-07:00

Here is the most recent iteration of the flags that I've been working on. This is the only one so far that has arrived at a technical level that Im happy with. This is for a show in Calgary a couple months down the line, a project I'll say more about soon.

Studio scraps

2011-01-05T22:36:00.000-07:00

Other shots from the past couple weeks working on flags.

Flags

2011-01-05T22:12:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted any work for ages, but that dosn't mean that I havn't been making things. I've been trying to brush up on my sewing skills for flag making (more on that later) as well as devise some pattern / repetition work.

Here are some studio shots, almost-finished first, before paint second.

Acrylic on sewn canvas 17" x 58"

Small work

2010-11-17T00:38:00.000-07:00

The start of a new series of small works, about 8" x 10" that I have been working on lately.

Found images and graphite.

Ministry of Casual Living show

2010-10-29T13:08:00.000-06:00

Last week Jacque and I made the trip to Victoria for the closing of the Ministry of Casual Living show. My friends Brit & Andrew from Seizure Salad (definitely one of my favorite Calgary bands) played a killer set and we met a lot of really nice people. Thanks so much to Minister Mikhail and everyone who came out, it made for a really great night.

The Ministry

Inside the window space

This is the first in a series of flags that I have been thinking about as another parallel to the In Passing series. The flag depicts the slogan of the province in which the drawings are being shown. I'm always thinking of the role that implication (or the lack their of) and guilt distort the way we respond to extinctions. Taking it all the way back to the province seemed like a good place to start.

The boys of Seizure Salad

close up

2010-10-21T11:42:00.000-06:00

Here's a close up of the texture used for the entropy drawing.

Entropy

2010-10-20T16:04:00.000-06:00

Lately I've been thinking about Thermodynamics and entropy as symbols for problematizing the "end", as understood in endpoints. I've started a couple drawings and am still figuring things out, this one is a bit overt maybe, we'll see where it goes.

29" x 20" gouache on paper.

New show at a new Gallery

2010-10-20T14:49:00.000-06:00

Haight Gallery is a new space opening here in Calgary and I will have some work in the first show. The physical space is so nice and I am really looking forward to the project. It will be a commercial gallery in a residential setting which is an artist-run format rarely seen in Calgary.

Check out the website here http://haightgallery.com/ and come out to the show on the 19th if you can.

New piece for Victoria

2010-09-22T17:43:00.000-06:00

This is the second piece that I am shipping down to Victoria for the Ministry of Casual Living show in October.

I used a light grey on white instead of the dark grey on black for this one. The result is a far more delicate drawing that is significantly more difficult to read than the Alberta component of the endangered series that was at Pith.

Lupinus densiflorus, 29" x 20", gouache on paper

And a detail

Memory Screen Poster

2010-09-17T23:18:00.003-06:00

I remember being completely captivated the first time I saw Mark Webber perform two summers ago at the old Imaginary Ordinary space in calgary. I've been lucky to have had time to hang out with him since and was super excited when he asked if I would work on some images for his upcoming release. The project developed into a tracing-paper-poster that will be wrapped around his new tapes.

The tape release is on September 30th at the Marquee Room with Azeda Booth. Come if you can, it'll be magic.

Marks myspace http://www.myspace.com/memoryscreen

And the poster

I'll post some pictures of the wrapped ones when we have a few done.

In Passing

2010-09-11T15:35:00.007-06:00

It's been a while since the last post, but that's not to say that I haven't been working. I've been doing a ton of design stuff for some different people that has been taking a while, but (I think) is looking interesting. Once it all gets ok'd (Connor I'm looking at you!) Ill post some up here.

I've

As far as my own work goes, I've been getting drawings ready for a solo show at the Ministry of Casual Living in Victoria. It is going to be the BC component of the project that I am now calling In Passing. The drawings are a continuation of the series that I started at Pith, but based on species from British Columbia.

The image bellow is titled Gasterosteus sp. d. 1999. Gouache on paper, 29" x 22"

Here is a detail

This is a test piece that I did recently by adding some white gouache into the mix. It may lead to some more white, grey, black work, maybe...

Bird House project

2010-08-03T15:28:00.004-06:00

Bird Dog Video is an independent video spot owned by my friend Jolie Bird. Every summer for a couple of years now, she invites artists to modify a specific object for a silent art auction benefiting a non-profit of her choice. This year she's chosen the Local Library, a project that I have been helping with, to receive the auction bucks. The theme this year is bird houses, and I hustled to have mine done early because I have a bunch of projects lined up right now. The auction is on August 19th, you can get more details at the Facebook event page.

I have made a couple Icosahedrons in my days and I like the idea of making one habitable.

Last Witness

2010-07-06T23:22:00.003-06:00

Last Witness a UK hardcore band recently printed some shirts using one of my drawings as the image. Theo, the lead singer, just sent me some photos and I'm pretty happy with the way they turned out. There is something kind of satisfying about a bunch of hardcore kids in the UK wearing a giant version of my drawings on their chest.

Theo and the gang seem like super hardworking guys and I'm really glad that we were able to do this together.

Pamela Book

2010-07-04T23:17:00.007-06:00

I was too caught up in the chaos known as Sled Island to post pictures of the book that Sean Sader and I finished in late June. Sean has a project called Pamela Press and makes crazy nice printed stuff. Working with Sean was a great opportunity to make a book that I've been thinking about for a while, dealing with narrative cliche vs. eco-system narratives.

We made an edition of twenty, with fourteen staple bound and six stitch bound, all printed with a Risograph on Seans special paper. Its a 8 page continuous narrative with repeating images, I won't post the entire sequence here, but you get the idea.

Thanks to Hunter & Cook # 4 for the colorful background.

Sneak Peak

2010-06-14T00:10:00.002-06:00

I recently finished the drawing for the upcoming Sled Island poster show http://blog.sledisland.com/ . Goes to the printers soon to tun into a small run of silkscreen prints available at the WHY? shows on July 1st and 2nd. Check WHY? out here http://www.myspace.com/whyanticon

Pith Gallery

2010-06-13T09:04:00.001-06:00

So although I haven't posted for a while, I've been crazy with some new drawing projects.

On May 29th, Pith Gallery hosted the Alberta Biennale of Conshmpomporary Art. They don't have the info up on their website, but they have a great thing going and its worth checking out the site anyways http://pithgallery.com/home

After the show was hung, I was finally able to get some documentation of the black on black series I have been playing with. The drawing bellow, titled Tripterocalyx micranthus is gouache and pigment on stonehenge paper 28" x 20".

The image bellow is a studio shot of Tripterocalyx micranthus before I rubbed the pigment into it.

Bellow is the instal at Pith, the drawing on the right is the showing the Rhinichthys cataractae smithi d. 1986 piece that I posted previously.

New series

2010-04-30T11:50:00.006-06:00

I am still working on using text in my drawings and have been trying to problematize the words through drawing, as opposed to just depicting words with dystopic associations. And I’ve started a new series with that in mind.

The series will depict the common names of flora and fauna that have become extinct since 1985 in the province that the work is being shown. I am participating in a show at Pith gallery in late May and will start exhibiting the series there. Hopefully I can show the work throughout Canada, making new drawings for each province that Im showing in and perhaps build a cross-Canada collection that can result in a publication or larger show.

I have also started tests for a parallel series based on near-extinct flora and fauna but the drawings are really dark and hard to photograph, I’ll post images when I figure out how to not make them look like solid black rectangles.

The drawing bellow is the first in the extinction series and is titled

Rhinichthys cataractae smithi d. 1986

This is the largest of the drawings that I have done, weighing in at a healthy 30" x 20"

Here is a detail, you can see the text a bit more clearly close up.

Bellow is the first test I did to see if I could make the text a bit more legible than some of the recent drawings I had posted previously.

More text

2010-04-07T14:30:00.004-06:00

Toying around with text in these drawings will likely be my focus for a while, I've been really challenged in trying to make the text operate the way I want it to, which is a bit stressful because these are pretty time intensive and are a one shot deal.

This piece is titled

END

and is larger than most at 20" x 14" . Gouache on stonehenge like all the rest.

Drawing

2010-04-02T19:34:00.002-06:00

I have been working on a lot of drawings recently and am thinking about a couple new directions for these works to go.

The image bellow, titled FLOOD, is the newest piece (finished this morning) and my first text based work since drawing in this way. Working with text is certainly something I will explore further and I plan to do a series based on similar words.

These are in a newest-to-oldest kind of order and the image bellow was the most successful of the "all over" lower peaked patterns mixed with the Island shapes. After this drawing, I have taken a break from the island motif, I just don't have a clear notion of where they are going to next.

This piece is going to be shown in a a new magazine that my friend Sean Sader is publishing called Pamela Paper. Sean has been publishing books and zines under the name Pamela Press http://pamelapress.com/ since 2009 and has super sharp design sense. The launch of his new large format arts publication is on April 8th at Truck in Calgary. I'm really looking forward to seeing how it all comes together.

The drawing bellow was the first that had the island/mountain peaks mixed with the lower peaked shapes. I was thinking of calling these the Sublimation series.

Back on Track

2010-04-02T19:02:00.003-06:00

After a far-to-long hiatus from this blog, I am back and ready to post up some new and in progress work. Not posting is due to having way to many things on the go right now, and one of those things is a project called Local Library.

Local Library is a gallery, workshop and all-ages music venue that some friends and I have initiated. The project opened its doors on March 20th with artwork in the gallery by local art hero Bree Zorel and her show "Path of the Beaver." The night also showcased 5 bands and a make your own "shrinky-dink" pin station in the workshop ( http://www.shrinkydinks.com/ ). To cap the night off the last band, the Throwaways played their set during a giant game of dodge ball.

Photos from the opening can be found on our flicker page http://www.flickr.com/photos/locallibrary/

We our working on our website still, but one day it will be

http://locallibrary.ca/

Right now we are using the facebook group to send out most of the info for shows at

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=339184381174&ref=ts

New work

2010-02-08T17:09:00.004-07:00

The logic of ecosystems has been a component of my work for a while now, and I seem to be really focusing on theme lately. I'm interested in what role nothingness might play in ecosystems and if a true ecosystem allows for the notion of nothingness to exist. I am using many of my previous symbols like black holes and apocalypse, and have been reworking my recent Black Hole sculpture to play with some of these ideas. The photos bellow are the beginnings of what I hope to be a series of floor sculptures.

Book works

2009-12-08T17:30:00.003-07:00

Recently I have been thinking a lot about with how to best display some of my newer gouache drawings. I have always loved books and Zines, and have started thinking about what kind of role narrative might be able to play in my work.

I had some older drawings that I didn't really know what to do with, which made them good candidates for a three page test run. I was really thinking about the birth and death of starts and black holes when I made the drawings.

The cover (above) is a test drawing I used for the Island series.

New Islands

2009-11-17T01:12:00.003-07:00

Over the past few weeks I have been working steadily on more island / landscape drawings. I have bee toying with a variety of source imagery for them but haven't yet settled on the themes that I will develop further into a series.

All of my drawings are Gouache on Stonehenge paper and in the ballpark of 12" x 14".

The above drawing is the result of equal parts Tony Smith and Lawren Harris.

The image bellow is a close up.

Here is a recent Skull Island piece, Im at a bit of a stale-mate with this particular series right now and am focusing more attention on my other themes for the time being.

New drawings

2009-11-02T23:49:00.005-07:00

Now that my sculpture for Homologous Fields is finished and installed, I have been able to commit some time to drawing. After spending so much time on one sculpture it is such a release \ relief, to finish a work in just a couple of days.

The images bellow are all gauche on paper, and are most likely studies for larger versions.

The above drawing is a study for a series that uses silhouettes of Alexander Calder sculptures as the exterior form.

Bellow is a study for another series focusing on depictions of Skull Islands.

A close up of the above Skull Island drawing.

Installing work for Homologous Fields

2009-10-15T17:02:00.004-06:00

Last Friday was the opening of Homologous Fields, a two person show with Montreal based painter Dil Hildebrand at TRUCK. You can see lots of Dil's painting at http://www.dilhildebrand.com/.

Here are a couple shots I took during the installation.

All the colored triangles attach to the interior of the black form with magnets. I spent most of the install days tinkering around with their placement and trying to get light moving through the sculpture.

Here is what the inside looked like when

everything was set up and lit.

I did make sure to dust before the opening though...

Building up the surface

2009-10-04T19:41:00.011-06:00

Here are a couple of images showing the process of getting the surface for the piece to be shown at TRUCK.

The piece is in three large sections, primed and ready to be flocked.

Two completely flocked sections. The flocking was really delicate and I later tried to toughen it up with spray-on truck bed liner.

The flocking / truck liner combo, really didn't turn out

the way I was hoping it would.

So I sanded it to a low "prickly" texture and covered what was left with a ceiling spray. Its been painted black now and is ready for next weeks instal.

Studio & in-progress photos

2009-10-02T22:25:00.000-06:00

These are some photos of a work in progress that will be shown at TRUCK Contemporary Art in Calgary for the month of October.

These little guys will make up the interior of the work.

The above shapes were painted with automotive retouch spray paint.