A: illustration

Miss Van has finally reached China with a new series of works. Following her exhibitions in Los Angeles, Mexico, Paris, and New York, Miss Van is taking a short break from her travels to show off her works in Shanghai.Miss Van, true feminine figurehead of street art, started her artistic career in the streets of Toulouse. Since those early days, her style has greatly evolved, her latest series being an ode to classical painting. She has gone from painting the curvy, enticing pin-ups in the streets of Toulouse, to painting the melancholic and subtle works of this new exhibition. Her various travels and encounters have enriched her already complex world.

Thanks to her past year exhibitions in Barcelona, Los Angeles, San Diego, Mexico, London or Copenhagen, she has found many new sources of inspiration. Not only has she let herself be influenced by the contemporary artists with whom she has shared many privileged moments, but she has also borrowed the techniques and subtle lighting effects of past master artists, focusing her work more on the quality of her painting and less on self-asserting herself as is the tradition in street art. With this new series she has undergone a beautiful evolution towards a more mature and refined style of painting, but without ever losing touch with her street art origins.

Miss Van will once again exhibit a melancholic collection of paintings. As always women are the center of attention. By adding a generous dose of coquetry and mischief to the ingredients of her work, she manages to bring out all the glamour, sensuality and sparkle of the female characters she has created. This exhibit celebrates the femininity or should we say felinity of women in an almost erotic way. Her previous series were a mix of bright, warm colors, whereas here, she has chosen to play with black and white contrasts, with sophisticated white faces balanced delicately on dark almost shadowy bodies. The ensemble is therefore far darker, allowing Miss Van’s dolls to trouble us evermore.

From 16 December, 2010 to 16 January, 2011

Opening 16 December, 2010 from 11am to 11pm

18 Gallery Shanghai

Bund18, 18 Zhongshan East Road (E1), 4F

Shanghai

http://www.missvan.com/

Mydeadpony Belgium, Brussels

Mydeadpony is a self-taught artist whose illustration and watercolour techniques are influenced by fashion, street art and graffiti. Mixing digital media, painting and sketches and drawing on watercolours, splotches and textures, he creates immensely detailed images that are both meticulous and ethereal.