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ONE
SOLE JOURNEY
A Self-Examination of a Refugee's Identity by Chantala Kommanivanh
All RiSE Gallery 1370 W. Grand Ave. Chicago, IL 60622 Opening : Friday July 11 2008 6 - 10 PM
Exhibiting through Saturday August 23rd 2008
Mother and Child acrylic and yarn on denim 6 ft x 6 ft 2008 All RiSE Gallery is pleased to present One Sole Journey, by painter Chantala Kommanivanh. One Sole Journey is a transcendental portrayal of Kommanivanh’s attempt at tracing his place in the world through his immediate family and his past and present. As a cause of The Cold War, his Laotian parents migrated from a refugee camp in Thailand to Chicago when the artist was only two years old. Chantala is the youngest of 5 sons, trailing behind his older brother Von, who is also a painter.
The youngest Kommanivanh integrates traditional
elements of his Laotian roots with those of his influential urban
upbringing. He combines a street sense with a poised saturation
of attention and detail with definitive colors and mixed media.
For example, in ‘Dancing With Mother’ sophisticated
renderings of luminous Buddha figures are off set by a graffiti
stencil of his mother’s face. Yarn relief is placed onto the
canvas before he paints, enhancing details such as a crease in a
dress or a wrinkle in the face. Each work averages 5ft x 4ft.
detail of Dancing With Mother
Chantala Kommanivanh was born in Thailand in 1982, currently finishing
his B.F.A. at North Eastern Illinois University and scheduled to graduate
at the end of the Fall 2008 semester. One Sole Journey opens Friday,
July 11th 2008, 6-10 P.M. at All RiSE Gallery’s new storefront
location at 1370 W. Grand Ave. Chicago, Il. 60622. Exhibit runs through
Saturday, August 23rd 2008.
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