“John K. Lawson (artist)”的意思、由来-开放百科全书

John K. Lawson aka JKL (born 1962 in Birmingham, England) is an American Contemporary visual artist and poet, also known as the "Hieronymus Bosch of Beads," and is known for using salvaged Mardi Gras beads and items reclaimed from the destruction left by Hurricane Katrina in his art.

Early life and career

John K. Lawson was born in Birmingham, England, and grew up in the English countryside. His family moved to South London when he was in his early teens. He first came to America as part of a student exchange program in engineering at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. At the program, his artistic abilities were encouraged, and two years later he returned to England to concentrate on landscape painting. His work was successfully exhibited at the White Lane Gallery, Plymouth, England. Later, Lawson returned to the United States, and soon became part of an underground art culture in New Orleans that included working in tattoo, T-shirt and mural designs.^[1] Lawson also became known for his unique drawing style^[2] and creations using discarded Mardi Gras beads. The items he has covered with intricate bead work include mannequins, pianos, and drums, as well as a fifty-three-foot-long bar top at the Audubon Hotel.^[3] Some of the pieces focus on jazz musicians and historical figures from New Orleans' history.^[4]

Hurricane Katrina

Lawson's collection of beads were among the few possessions that survived the destruction of Hurricane Katrina (August 2005). He and his wife, Aimee (who is the cousin of author Andre Dubus III), lost their home and his adjacent art studio to the storm.^[5]

Before Hurricane Katrina, Lawson’s primary medium were his trade mark Mardi Gras beads, picked up from the streets on mornings after the parades and parties New Orleans is famous for.^[6] After Hurricane Katrina, he began creating series of palimpsests, using drawings, sketches, photographs and personal documents collected over 25 years, which he had salvaged from his flood damaged New Orleans home and studio, and began recycling them combining xerox, ink and the encaustic process. Buildings damaged by flood waters post-Hurricane Katrina became the subject of a series of architectural photographs, including the Western Union Building and the Maritime Building in New Orleans.

Mardi Gras Made in China

In 2004 John K. Lawson was featured in the documentary film,^[7] which follows the story of Mardi Gras beads from their manufacture in factories in China, to their use at Mardi Gras parades, and their transition in the hands of John K. Lawson into fine art pieces hanging in New York galleries. The LA Times wrote of the movie: "Cleverly juxtaposes the apex of American bacchanalian excess with the sweatshop-like conditions that facilitate the fun." The film earned 21 national and international awards, including a nomination for the Grand Jury Award at the Sundance Film Festival, and was a New York Times{{'}} "Critics Pick" by Stephen Holden.

Works

Exhibitions

External links

References

1. ^John K. Lawson, Hurricane Hotel: A Novel, 2008.
2. ^"The New Orleans Times Picayune: The color's the thing for bead artist" November 9, 2001
3. ^"The Baltimore Sun", October 16, 2002, "AVAM Just Says Yes to the Art of Addiction"
4. ^NBC News "Mardi Gras Beads Make Fine Art"
5. ^"The Daily News" of Newburyport, Massachusetts. Sonya Vartabedian, March 3, 2006
6. ^NBC News "Mardi Gras Beads Make Fine Art"
7. ^Mardi Gras Made in China {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120102203702/http://www.carnivalesquefilms.com/Mardi_Gras.html |date=2012-01-02 }}. Directed by David Redmon.
8. ^John K. Lawson, Hurricane Hotel: A Novel, 2008.
9. ^"The Daily News" of Newburyport, Massachusetts. Sonya Vartabedian, March 3, 2006
10. ^"The New Orleans Times Picayune: The color's the thing for bead artist" November 9, 2001
11. ^NBC News "Mardi Gras Beads Make Fine Art"
12. ^"The Baltimore Sun", October 16, 2002, "AVAM Just Says Yes to the Art of Addiction"
13. ^John K. Lawson, Hurricane Hotel: A Novel, 2008.
14. ^Mardi Gras Made in China {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120102203702/http://www.carnivalesquefilms.com/Mardi_Gras.html |date=2012-01-02 }}. Directed by David Redmon.