This weekend, on January 15th from 8-11, I will have the opening of my first solo photo exhibition at the beautiful Known Gallery on Fairfax in Los Angeles.

I have been working tirelessly on this collection of images and installations, and my friends Brendan Lynch and Sage Vaughn will also be showing work in the Project room. I got a good look at the final prints the other day before they were sent off to the framer and I can’t begin to say how excited I was to see the body of work all together in its final stages. It was a mix of pure joy and excitement as tears almost filled my eyes as we rolled open the images, one by one, my face grinning ear to ear as each passed by. The gallery is beautiful and the installation is going to be amazing. Please come out and hang, have a drink, find me, say hi, and enjoy the night with a bunch of us.

Thanks to EVERYONE for all the support, including everyone who checks this site out. Below are some words describing the motivation for this collection of images.

“The ocean is and always has been the epicenter of my existence on this planet. I am an aquanaut on a thruster in this ever amazing and boundless liquid energy. I have optimized and streamlined my life to ensure maximum time gliding across water. Every choice and relationship, all decisions and waking thoughts (and most dreams) are influenced and infused by the pull of the tides, the whiff of an offshore breeze, and the lucid corduroy lines gracefully stampeding
towards the coast.

I go to the sea to surf, to bond with friends or to be alone, to let out aggression or to find inner peace. The moving ocean is my solid ground. The moment one stands up on a board, propelled by a wave racing across the sea, one is only aware of the present – nothing else. I have never found any other way to achieve that absolutely pure and meditative mindstate.

Open Space is my expression of the state one falls into while floating weightless off shore, looking out to sea, hoping and waiting for the next set. Troubles are isolated far away on the unreality of land, while you are free in the truest reality of water. It is a timeless unspoilable state that cannot be ruined, not even by the angry local that may be slashing your tires and waxing your windows simply because he doesn’t want to share some waves. To a surfer it’s an understandable
act of necessary evil to keep an ungoverned subculture in form, and from it breaking into full bore beachblanket-bingo havoc.

Open Space is a collection of images, collages, and installations that evoke the balance in my life.”
Cheers,Keegan

Click for full invite and Press Release. MEDIA ALERT – For Immediate Release
FOR MORE INFORMATION/MEDIA CREDENTIALS/SHOW CATALOG PDF:
Casey Zoltan, Curatorial Director / KNOWN GALLERY info@knowngallery.com

KEEGAN GIBBS: OPEN SPACE
with INSTALLATIONS by SAGE VAUGHN and BRENDAN LYNCH
Opens to public: January 15, 2011
Runs: January 15 – February 5, 2011
Opening Reception: Saturday, January 15, 8-11pm

Known Gallery
441 North Fairfax Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90036
310-860-6263 info@knowngallery.com

KNOWN GALLERY PRESENTS “OPEN SPACE” PHOTOGRAPHER KEEGAN GIBBS’ FIRST SOLO SHOW

Keegan Gibbs has traveled all over the world in his role as one of the principal photographers for the Seventh Letter graffiti crew, so it is only natural that the Known Gallery chose to host his debut photography exhibit. Known Gallery director Casey Zoltan comments “I really respect his work ethic and his dedication to capturing the moment at any cost.” Fear has no place when shooting images of the renowned Seventh Letter artists in action fifty feet above ground at 2 AM whilst dodging headlights and billy clubs. Likewise fear has no place while shooting film in the treacherous and sometimes deceptively peaceful oceans of the world, the featured subject of this exhibit called OPEN SPACE.

Keegan, an avid lifelong surfer, explains his attraction to the water and the concept behind the large format prints in OPEN SPACE: “The ocean is the epicenter of my existence on this planet. I am an aquanaut on a thruster in this ever amazing and boundless source of liquid energy. For me every choice and relationship, all decisions and waking thoughts (and most dreams) are influenced and infused by the pull of the tides, the whiff of an offshore breeze, and the lucid corduroy lines gracefully stampeding towards the coast. Open Space is a collection of images, collages, and installations that evoke that balance in my life.”

ABOUT KEEGAN GIBBS: Born in a family of artists, Keegan Gibbs was literally skateboarding and bicycling while still in diapers (his parents have video to prove it). Raised by the ocean, this aquatic biped found the best way to express his love of all things salt water, was through photography. When not shooting, his main goal is to surf as much as he possibly can and to find the hollowest tube, the longest wave, and the most crackable lip.
ABOUT SAGE VAUGHN:
b 1976 in Jackson, Oregon – Lives and works in Los Angeles – Goofyfoot
Solo show at Lazarides opening May 5, 2011
(sagevaughn.com)

ABOUT BRENDAN LYNCH:
Education
School of Visual Arts, BFA 2009
Selected shows
2010, Press Release, Martos gallery, New York, NY
2010, While it Lasts, Still House studio, New york, NY
2010, Volume, AT1 projects, Los Angeles, CA Curated by Andrea Neustein
2010, Worth, 211 Elizabeth St. , New York, Ny
2010, Objects that love you back, 211 Elizabeth St. , New york, NY
2009, Still House, Rental Gallery, New York, NY
2009, The Open, Deitch Projects, Long Island City, NY
2009, MIXTAPE, Visual Arts Gallery, New York, NY
2009, New Deal, Art Production Fund, New York, NY Curated by Matthew Moreveck and Kyle Thurman
2008, Here Goes Nothing, The National Arts Club, New York, NY
(www.groodstuff.tumblr.com)

ABOUT KNOWN GALLERY:
Founded in 2003 by Casey Zoltan, instigator of the world renown art collective,
The Seventh Letter. After curating major traveling art tours in Italy, France, Japan, Taiwan, Korea, Spain and the US,
Zoltan decided to settle in his native Los Angeles. Known is a 5500 sq ft space with gleaming white floors in the heart
of the Fairfax District. (knowngallery.com)

TheSeventhLetter.com | RVCA.com | LAWeekly.com

Known Gallery
441 North Fairfax Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90036
310-860-6263

Hours during shows:
Wednesday thru Saturday: 12 – 7pm
Sunday: 12 – 6pm

I really like textures and empty spaces. The combination of the two is even better.

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Then add some over processing…

Just got back home from a photo job in Indianapolis to pleasantly find a package from some rad guys in Australia.

A few months back I got an email from a guy named Jeff in Australia about using an image of mine for an upcoming magazine’s debut issue. This is the first offering from “Here to Fame” and I was really stoked to open the package and see my image on the cover of a magazine so well put together. Stoked to be a part of the first issue, and hopefully more to come.

Click HERE to download the issue for free!

The cover image was shot at my apartment while I was living in New York last year. My friend Dylan Kawahara stuck her legs out the window on a hot spring day.

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Gallerista #11. Chelsea, New York 2009.

In the spring of last year, my friend Brendan Lynch (who you should check out his work site and rad image collection blog) and I had several discussions about the gallery viewing experience. When you enter, you often see this 20-something peering over a tall counter, giving you her attention only for a fraction of a second before returning to whatever important task she must be doing behind that counter.

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At the core essence of most galleries lies the intention to present the artwork unbiasedly and unobtrusively. Hence white walls, tall simplistic modern architecture, and clean even lighting.
However, the experience of the interaction with the receptionist, is an intentional, often separate, experience the gallery creates.
When you walk into many galleries, one of the closest objects to the front entrance is the reception desk where it holds information about the art, the gallery, upcoming and past shows etc… However, behind this counter, lies the gallerista.
Often a young 20 something, she serves a purpose outside of just offering you information and price lists. She is the cover to the book that you are not supposed to judge by its cover. She is intimidating and often gives you the stiff arm. She will make you feel like you are in a place you are not supposed to be, or worse, in a place you cant understand or comprehend the deeper meaning of.
This one aspect of so many galleries is the blurry transition point between white walled gallery and store front retail space.

So Brendan and I decided to walk around Chelsea, an area filled with door to door galleries, and take a few unplanned portraits of the awaiting galleristas. Some might not fit the profile, or even be present at all, but almost all of them when asked for their photo, shot us a look of disgust.

A couple dudes…

My friend Jack.

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Check out Jack Greer’s new photo blog.

All the following photos were from a trip I took to NY in October/November of 2008. I also shot a series of photos of him giving tattoo’s. Click on the category “tattoo journal” for more photos of him handing out ink to friends for practice.

One of my favorite things about New York is the ability to get around the city on a skateboard just as fast, sometimes faster, on a skateboard than in a cab or subway. One night cruising across town, I shot some footage of my friend Mike Gigliotti on his flip cam. Mike edited the footage and here is the product. Music is called is “Sugar Hill” by the Crockett Family Mountaineers

While you are at it, check out some of his other videos on his vimeo page, including one of my favorites, ‘you got tre?’

I finally got around to getting a few rolls of film developed. Here are a few in New York. I forgot how much I like shooting black and white film.

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Jack giving Carlos a Tattoo.

Pigeon bird gang.

Architectural photo?

Jack giving out another.

Skate tourist in Tompkins with a map of the city.

My brother and his fiance who live in brooklyn.

This is probably my favorite shot from the rolls I got developed. Pryce Holmes at the strip club ledge. West side.

DJ Roktagon Andrew Brown.

Too bad I didn’t bring a surfboard and wetsuit.

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In typical fashion, the week I get to New York, the waves get about as good as they can get IN NEW YORK. ALways wanted to surf here, but things have never really come together to make it happen. Maybe next time…

Been crashing at my friend Jack Greer’s and Mike Gigliotti’s places while out here for a couple weeks for work and play. Check out both their sites.

There has kinda been a lot of graffiti orientated content on my site lately, but oh well, here’s some more. The west coast crew has been kinda crushing it lately out here. EE, AL, MSK, D30, IRAK etc…

A benefit to NY during the winter is you can skate at night at a lot of places. Staying up all night ’till 4 or 5 in the morning means not waking up until noon. Add on a really late breakfast, lagging to wait for all your homies to meet up, and after you finally get your day going it is almost 4pm. Its dark at 4:45. So night skating, as long as its not too brick cold out, is an often occurrence. I can’t skate for shit really, so I just roll along and shoot random photos and cget the cool-by-association thing going. It’s chill, dont worry about it.

Miles

Mike. 1/10th of a second with a flash on a Canon G9 point and shoot. Looks like an early 90′s photo.

Miles same camera settings.

Kosta, Thando, Mike G, Miles. QuarterSnacks. Peep For the real shit.

And now, more graff around the city. Paste EE

Haeler, MQ, Soup, Chew AL

There are a lot of Sacer RIP’s around. One of the small ones.

Pretty much the beast of NY right now, along with Nekst, is Adek. Seriously cannot stand on any street corner in downtown and BK and not see at least a handfull of Adek around.

Chomp Paste EE wet cement.

Part 2 with some other random stuff coming as soon as I get more rolls of film developed.

Well, this is my 100th post. Not that it is of any real significance, but I figured it a time to look back at some of my old posts and try to find a collection of my favorite images from this journal. I havent updated my portfolio site in some time, ever since starting this blog, so it was an exercise to see if I can put some of them into my portfolio which I am updating right now.

101st post will be coming up tomorrow. Guess I just didnt think I would keep up with it. Thanks for checking it out. All the comments and feedback and views are what motivate me to keep posting.

Here are 100 somewhat random images. Click to enlarge.

My last day in NY in the bottom of Manhattan. Click for

Some of these are shot on film on Mike’s contax, hence the reason for taking a little while to post these, waiting to get scans back from Mike.  The rest are shot on my Canon 5d with a 24mm prime. Really annoying to put the two together. Makes me want to only shoot film ever.

World Trade Center