Breakthrough, Art Exhibition Curated by Ginger Van Hook, Opens Saturday December 7th, 2024

You are personally invited to attend an art show In Duarte, California, Saturday December 7th, 2024 3pm-7pm Gallery 1828. LOCATION 1828 Evergreen Street Duarte, California 91010 Very best, Ginger Van Hook, Curator, Van Hook Foundation, gingervanhook@gmail.com, www.vanhookfoundation.org

Opulent_Orb copy.jpeg Opulent Orb by Leigh Salgado “BREAKTHROUGH” Curated by Ginger Van Hook, Sponsored by the Van Hook Foundation www.vanhookfoundation.org Opening Reception, Saturday, December 7, 2024 Time 3pm - 7pm Location: 1828 Evergreen Street Duarte, CA 91010 Artist talk and closing reception Saturday February 8th, 2025 Time 3pm - 7pm This art show explores A BREAKTHROUGH moment in the life of an artist. The sudden, dramatic or important discoveries, developments or advancements that an artist can have during their careers as an artist can be vast, yet specific and often changes the course of one’s artistic direction. This show explores the depth of revelation, the spiritual or physical breakthroughs one makes that break through a barrier, provides an abrupt solution or other life changing event. Selected artists discuss their views of each of their breakthrough moments in their art careers.

SELECTED ARTISTS Rouzanna Berberian Steven Fujimoto Flora Kao Linda Kunik Leigh Salgado Ginger and Luke Van Hook Luis Ingels, Posthumously

Ginger Van Hook, Curator, Photographer~Writer, Los Angeles, Ca. My Breakthrough Statement My Breakthrough moment was a crossroads between art and engineering. After my father passed away during the Pandemic, I inherited his machine shop, engineering firm and medical design business. However that had the consequence of focusing me solely on developing and thriving the engineering side of the shop. After a number of years of struggling with the pandemic supply chain issues and the changing landscape of customer orders, I had a revelation that I could also create artwork for my fellow artists with these specialized tools and machines my father had in his shop. I pivoted into separating the shop space into two sides. The warehouse continues to be for the fabrication of works in metal or plastics of all sizes and shapes, while the front office, which faces the lovely mountains of Duarte and the San Gabriels’ under tall pine-nut trees, I carved out an ART GALLERY space. This pivot impacted my photography displays by giving me a breakthrough moment in the framing of my photos. I was suddenly freed from the traditional square shape black or white frame and explored developing shapes and programming my frames and artwork to become 3D sculptures. I could explore making art with CNC machines or 3D printing. My first exhibition of this work was in 2023 at the Inglewood Open Studios Tour and since then, I have continued to explore my new options in 3D printing, while exploring custom made materials to make art and photographic sculptures at Ingels Engineering Services Inc. www.ingelsengineeringservices.com20241129_155532.jpeg

Rouzanna Berberian, Photographer, Painter, Sculptor ~ Monrovia, Ca. My Breakthrough Statement My current work explores the abstract shapes and patterns present in Armenian rugs and their visual connection to flexible circuit board designs, represented as geometric abstractions. My breakthrough occurred when I integrated elements of contemporary technological circuit designs with the patterns and symbols of traditional Armenian rugs in my paintings. I strongly believe that these meticulously crafted rugs are filled with encoded messages, passed down through generations by our female ancestors. I investigate the convergence of these seemingly unrelated yet conceptually connected ideas. Technology collects and transfers data in a manner similar to how Armenian rugs, with their intricate designs, collect and convey the stories of the Armenian people. By juxtaposing the abstract patterns found in rugs with flexible circuit board designs, I aim to recognize both as conduits of information. This fusion of traditional craftsmanship and innovative technology enables us to decode the hidden messages woven into these rugs, leading to a deeper understanding of the complex interplay between tradition and innovation, as well as memory and data. 20241129_155010.jpeg

Steven Fujimoto, Artist, Sculptor, Photographer, Redondo Beach, Ca. My Breakthrough Statement Most artworks capture a moment in time, be it an artist’s creative state while painting an abstract work, the cacophony of traffic during rush hour through the photographer’s lens, or Madam Lisa Giocondo posing for da Vinci. But what about the artist’s physical tools themselves? Is there a continuum associated with their existence, be it time or otherwise? And how much of a factor does or should the physical tool play in the quality of the artwork. For the past 18 years, I have been exploring intaglio and relief printmaking in its wide variety of forms; from etching and aquatint to engraving, drypoint, photogravure, and lino- and wood-cut techniques. During those years, I have lived with, tolerated, and grown accustomed to the idiosyncrasies of my 'baby' etching press. With one-inch diameter upper and lower rollers, one-to-one gearing, and 11" width bed, it represented the most basic of design. Fussy even on good days, a typical yield would be one good pull for every 3 to 4 prints deemed unacceptable--smeared or stuttered image, creased paper, under-pressed image, etc. With intaglio printing, no two prints are ever identical--but my press redefined the breadth of that spectrum. In April of 2023, my breakthrough moment occurred when I had the good fortune of stumbling upon artist Steve Hull's Craigslist post for his used Blick model 906 etching press. With a four-inch diameter upper roller, 3.35-to-one gearing reduction, 36" long phenolic bed, and calibrated pressure adjustment design, it was and continues to be a dream come true to me. All of the shortcomings of my baby press are absent with the Blick unit. Also absent are the emotional concerns and apprehensions that surfaced without fail when considering the prospect of using my baby press—particularly for projects when a completion timeline is required. For the Breakthrough exhibit, I plan to submit an etching/aquatint print that was created on my Blick press. Entitled “Kiki Delivers the Out,” it is the first using my new press. pastedGraphic.png

20241129_154839.jpeg“Kiki Delivers the Out” by Steven Fujimoto. Flora Kao, Installation Artist, Photographer, Sculptor My Breakthrough Statement Two years ago, I began making large-scale topographic rubbings of White Point Beach and Preserve in San Pedro, Ca. In researching White Point’s history, I learned of the beach’s significance as a center for Japanese American community in the early twentieth century. These cyanotypes are breakthrough creations for a new body of work overlaying historic photographs with Japanese embroidery patterns. This series highlights the Japanese Americans that once flocked to White Point for cultural celebrations and recreation before their immigrant community was decimated by internment and coastal defense policies. I am excited to further experiment with cyanotype and archival research in the new work I am producing for upcoming shows at Angels Gate Cultural Center and the Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery. Flora Kao White Point 1920s V.jpeg

Linda Kunik, Photographer, Curator, Installation Artist My Breakthrough Artist Statement My breakthrough moment came in two parts. Both came about when I decided that I just had to “go for it.” The first breakthrough was combining photography and painting in the same image—a long-time dream of mine. I would actually cut out parts of the photograph and fill the empty space with a photorealistic painting of what was there before. At the same time, I was given the opportunity to play around with an emulsion technique, and discovered my own version of it, where I hand-separate an ink emulsion image from its original support and float it in a liquid bath. The free floating translucent picture is at once ghostly and textural. Allowing the diaphanous image to take on a life of its own, I gently push the skin onto its new support which solidifies its distortions and ripples. This second body of work, which is part of this exhibition, explores the intersection of what is planned and what happens accidentally in human experience—the nature of causality. It’s about what is calculated and what is created by accident, turning a photograph, which can be copied over and over again into a unique art piece that cannot be duplicated. Choosing as the subject matter the history and culture of Naples, Italy, I have combined images telling a story of past to present. Eyes over the City. Kunik_Up Up & Away.jpeg

Leigh Salgado, Collage Artist, Visual Artist My Breakthrough Statement This work is part of my series "As The World Turns.” This was the first time that I made use of a tondo, or circular shape. I had been reflecting on issues that concerned me and that angered me. While I often use my state of mind and feelings to begin working in the studio, I ultimately aspire to make images that work well visually. Orbs have many metaphorical possibilities which were well-suited to what I wanted to convey. I was interested in continuing my use of a feminine visual language and expanding it to reside in a more universal context. This series also has visual layers in the way each piece was constructed, offering hints of metaphysical depth and complexity. Sweet_Spot copy.jpeg

Luke Van Hook, Painter, Visual Artist, Sculptor. My Breakthrough Statement. I have been working in oil painting at the beginning of my career, when I was given the opportunity to work with my father-in-law in his machine shop. He started teaching me the CNC machining process and allowed me to explore my art direction. I started to learn that I could use the CNC machine to create circles and thus I made a series of works that involved circles. Meanwhile, my own father had given me a burl piece of wood from an old tree in the Pine Nut mountains and thus I experimented with machining circles across both aluminum and wood. I wound up with a breakthrough piece I titled “My Two Dads”. Since that time, both my father, Noah Van Hook and my Father-in-law Luis Ingels, have passed away. I now have a new appreciation for this art piece, and recognize it as the point at which I had achieved a unique breakthrough. 20241129_171613.jpeg