Gallery Sculpture: Immaculate Conception by Artist James Perez.

Immaculate Conception. Sculpture.
Artist: James Perez
$3,500

Opposite side view.

For more information about the sculpture, please contact the Curator, Amber Crain, at cuetojames.gallery@yahoo.com or (409)330-2027.

Gallery Artist James Perez Unveils First Painting in New "Relics" Series.

As you probably know, the Gallery Grand Opening on May 7th featured the "Seven Deadly Sins" series by Houston artist James Perez as our very first exhibition (and will remain in the gallery until June 22nd). But if you missed the opening night, you missed out on the premiere sneak peek of the very first painting (in a planned series of 12) of James Perez' next series, entitled "Relics". Most of the details of the new series are remaining under wraps for now, but what I can tell you is this - each piece will feature the use of REAL human skulls and bones. Yes, you heard me. Real ones. (And don't worry, these human skulls/bones were obtained legally while James was traveling in a foreign country. He doesn't have any grave robbing minions working for him secretly in the dark of night. That I know of.)

Even the best of cameras (and mine is not the best) can't capture the true impact of a piece of art properly, but the following images will give you at least an idea of how awesome this is. I should also note that this particular piece has a multi-colored track lighting illuminating the painting at all times in a fairly dark room, so it morphs into red, green, blue, natural, pink lighting, and so on, adding an even more interesting spin on the piece. The work is still hanging in the gallery, so if you come by, you can see it in person. Or should I say, you can see THEM in person? Scroll on and you'll catch my drift.

RELICS SERIES.

Artist: James Perez.

The Necromancer.

Mixed Media. $18,000.

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Very close up shot of the adult skull.  

*Contact us if you'd like more info on this series*
[contact info on right sidebar]

Artworks of Iconography: Understanding the Seven Deadly Sins series by James Perez.

"My art is designed to move you.  Whether it moves you to the right or to the left, if it moved you I did my job."

- James Perez

As a child, James Perez was exposed to an extremist religious cult known as The Children of God (C.O.G.) where he experienced radical expression of organized Christianity in its most bohemian form.  Documented in the book Heaven’s Harlots: My Fifteen Years in a Sex Cult, C.O.G. encouraged prostitution of its female members to raise money for the cult and as a means of finding lost souls with which to share the Word of God.  Like some modern Christian cults today, C.O.G. also believed in alien foundations for humanity.  Under intense scrutiny in the 1980s for its leadership under Moses David, the group was reformed and became known as The Family, which still exists today.  Child survivors of the cult have established forums for expression and communal outcry against the psychological and sexual abuses they sustained under the watchful eye of this Christian sect, often sadly ending in murder and suicide.  Exposure to this communal religious group from an early age predisposed James to a hardened view of the dangers and psychological damage that organized religion can inflict.  James’ art is for him, personally, a way of reminding himself that the messages we receive through organized religion are the design of man, and that they are set apart from belief or disbelief in God.

James' recent work focuses on contradictions in spiritual existence, how our relationship with organized religion fits with human sexuality, social drug abuse, the evil acts of man, and our place as a life form in the universe.  Handled separately, these subjects have benign and factual qualities that we compartmentalize.  When handled together on one canvas, these subjects become increasingly uncomfortable, creating a confusing mixture of emotion more closely imitating the way we feel in the experience of human life.  His paintings ask what we can accept about how our need for an organized explanation of existence clashes with the way we experience life, and ultimately whether we are able to accept the existence of each other.  He uses surrealism and fantasy to create images that are widely interpreted, but which always are ultimately deeply personal to the patrons they speak to.

Gluttony (oil on 5’x7’ canvas) depicts a seven-armed Kali-Ma Virgin Mary eating a plate of babies with a knife and fork. This work reminds us that religion gobbles us up when we are children, and that humans are the meal ticket of the church.

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Lust (oil on 5'x7' canvas) shows an uglier view of the church, depicting reigning Pope Benedict seated at his throne and coddling an Altar Boy in his lap.  This forces the patron to confront the truth about the atrocities of clergy abuse, and the sometimes ugly nature of the sin of Lust.

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Envy (oil on 5'x7' canvas) depicts child beauty queen Jean Benet Ramsey, exposed and stalked by a horde of ghouls (look for famous faces) who drool green glitter over the child's body as they stare at her.  The child pageant industry has long attracted a following of child predators, envious of youth and beauty.

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Greed (oil on 5'x5' canvas) shows an almost comical depiction of Christian Televangelist Tammy Faye Baker having a famous melt down.  Her bus-driver fingernails clutch a handful of jewels and her face is framed by $100 bills.

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Pride (oil on 5'x7' canvas) shows a portrait of our proud President martyred in a crucifixion.  Even in the clutches of his darkest enemies, he appears blindly proud before his adversaries.

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Wrath (oil 5'x7' canvas) is a depiction of the Prophet Mohammed with the face of 911 Terrorist Mohammad Atta.  The spirit of the Koran gushes from its binding and the Afghan hills glitter with gold.

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Sloth (oil on 5'x7' canvas) depicts porn star Jenna Jameson laying on her back with her legs over her head in a bed of cocaine.  This work reminds us that the now common practices of sex workers are best examples of what it means to be slothful.

The Gallery's Grand Opening, Featuring the Art of James Perez.

May 7th, 2011 marked the official Grand Opening of the Heights' newest art space, Cueto James Art Gallery. Yes, yes, our doors have been open to the public since early April, but every gallery deserves a Grand Opening celebration, right? But this party had an added bonus (aside from the delicious fine wine and excellent company) - it was also the opening night of our very first exhibition, featuring Houston artist James Perez's "Seven Deadly Sins" series.

This series will stop you in your tracks. Whether in awe, confusion, agreement, anger, or just plain curiosity, every single day numerous people walk into the gallery, some completely at random, wanting to know about these paintings. Perez uses surrealism and fantasy to create images that are widely interpreted, often controversially, but they are always ultimately deeply personal to the viewer. Here are just a few public opinions that were either stated to me or published by the local news (Channel 2) about the controversial painting (of Obama - see the image, above right) hanging in our front window on April 22:

"That's very insulting and disrespectful."
"I really don't know what to think about it. It's art, isn't it?"
"At first I was shocked by the image, but after taking time to understand it, I love this painting."
"This artist has some serious balls, doing this. I'm impressed."
"A nice change from the proper and stale paintings hanging in many galleries."

The vast array of reactions I've witnessed to this series in the past month has been one of the most interesting things I've ever observed (and I have some VERY interesting reaction stories - I'll have to write a post about those another time). In the end, human reaction may be the crowning jewel of the series: the pieces never fail to get one thinking. Getting people thinking = good.

Click HERE to watch a video clip of the Channel 2 news segment regarding the painting (features a brief interview with the artist himself, and even yours truly for about 1.5 seconds). 

 And Cueto James Gallery has no plans of letting up! Perez's "Seven Deadly Sins" series will grace our walls until June 22, and following him we have an exhibition by Jason Ransom, who is an absolutely outstanding local painter (more details on that later).

My next post will actually be about the "Seven Deadly Sins" series - I'll be discussing each piece in brief, as well as including the bio of the artist, Perez, which may help some understand his psyche and thoughts behind the paintings.