DEBORAH AYERST artists’ agent (415) 567-3570 ︎ ︎ ︎ ︎ ︎
animation design experiential fabrication illustration motion music photography
sideshow is a personal project of mine that started out in the bricks & mortar space & has now morphed here in to the digital space. The concept behind sideshow is that I have met & continue to meet many amazing individuals at their day jobs in our business of advertising & design, only to discover in getting to know them, that they have amazing creative interests they pursue on the side that are well worth bringing to light. At first, whether it was the receptionist at a clothing company or an Executive CD at an ad agency, I wanted to give these individuals a space to show their personal photography work. Now, the mandate of sideshow is to give that receptionist or that ECD a place to showcase their art, no matter what the form it takes.
Long ago, I started out on the fine art side of art, well before I became an agent for advertising, working at a gallery in Los Angeles that brilliantly ran shows of contemporary painting, art films, video art, poetry readings (how I got to meet Bukowski!), conceptual & performance work & beyond. It was a stimulating and freely open format and the curator I worked under was a true Beat spirit from New York. Andy Warhol will always be one of my heroes & I believe that my own interest in curating the important, the funny, the pop, the beautiful or the disruptive is going to be well served by sideshow.
featured artist: Robert Stone
day job: Graphic Designer/Creative Director; Currently Co-Founder/Chief Creative Officer at a new financial services start-up
sideshow: Visual Arts / Mixed Media
artist statement: After admiring and collecting abstract art for many years, I decided a few years ago that it was time to create some of my own. I've never been compelled to paint situations from life, to interpret humanity or nature, or make pictures of objects or things. What excites me is trying to create an emotional and visceral reaction to the subtle interaction of basic visual elements: line, shape, color (or lack of color), mass, scale, texture, and light.
I often feel that what drives me is a never-ending search for a perfect composition. But as it turn out, my pieces actually do tell unintended stories for different viewers. Some people see human figures, others see landscapes and still lifes, while others see geological formations. I hear comments about the contrast of complexity and simplicity. That the paintings are dark and mysterious while also being open and inviting. That they appear random and violent, but also logical and peaceful. Creating those juxtapositions is what I find most intriguing and gratifying.
purchase: All original pieces in the sideshow gallery are exclusively found here & are on loan from the artist.
Price list available upon request to deb@debayerst.com.
Florida #1
42” x 94”
Acrylic and mixed media on linen
Florida #2
42” x 94”
Acrylic and mixed media on linen
Florida #3
42” x 94”
Acrylic and mixed media on linen
Florida #4
42” x 94”
Acrylic and mixed media on linen
Florida #5
42” x 94”
Acrylic and mixed media on linen
