February 5 - March 8, 2014
Devon Tsuno: Watershed is an exhibition of new work by Devon Tsuno, a Los Angeles native who uses elements of the city’s urbanscape to create signature iconography. Watershed examines Tsuno’s deep relationship with regional waterways, especially the San Gabriel and Los Angeles Rivers and their tributaries. Through his research and experiences, the artist, a lifelong local fishing enthusiast, developed an interest in the non-native plant life that has grown up in the waterways and has become part of the ecosystem. Tsuno photographs the various watershed elements. He distills the images to form his highly layered system and creates paintings and prints that depict his perception of Los Angeles.
A series of paintings, prints and unique artist books comprise the exhibition. The paintings are created from a rich mix of media including acrylic and aerosol paints and handmade papers sourced from The Netherlands, India and Japan. Tsuno’s most recent experimentations have resulted in a series of prints created with a Risograph, a 1980s-era printing system using technology similar to fax machines and designed for high-volume photocopying and printing.
Additionally, Tsuno collaborated with Occidental’s Book Arts students to create a series of artist’s books using both risograph and letterpress techniques. The book project evolved over the span of the exhibition.
