Bruno David Gallery opens its 12th season with "In Pono" a one-person exhibition of paintings and prints by Los Angeles-based artist Alex Couwenberg. In his fourth solo show with the gallery, painter Alex Couwenberg creates images that are inspired by the elements from his surroundings. In Pono, is a Hawaiian term suggesting a state of harmony and balance. Not only does this reference the two different bodies of work in the exhibition (paintings and prints) and how they relate to one another, but also his outlook on life, family and studio practice. Couwenberg spends part of the year working and teaching on the Big Island of Hawaii and the rest of the year in Los Angeles. It's all about the pursuit of balance, he says, keeping yourself healthy both physically and mentally and constantly moving forward in your vision.
The core of Couwenberg's work and process references his Los Angeles roots. It suggests an aesthetic associated with custom cars, music, surf culture, and modernist design, all aesthetically indicative of the region. Historically, his work pays a visual homage to the art-making styles connected with Los Angeles and Southern California dating back to the 1950's. His work nods towards the Hard Edge and Geometric Abstractionists, the Finish Fetish, and the Light and Space artists. All of whom have contributed over the years to the visual landscape of LA's art making community. Through a series of additive and reductive moves and passes, Couwenberg creates multilayered and multidimensional works that chase the ideas of harmony and balance, In Pono.
A graduate of the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena and The Claremont Graduate School, Alex Couwenberg has shown in several solo and group exhibitions throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, and Asia. His work can be found in numerous public, private, corporate, and museum collections around the world. Recent museum acquisitions include the Lancaster Museum of Art and History, Laguna Art Museum, Crocker Museum of Art, Long Beach Museum of Art, and the Daum Museum in Missouri. In 2007, Couwenberg was awarded the Joan Mitchell Foundation Award for his achievements in painting, and was recently featured as the subject of Los Angeles based filmmaker Eric Minh Swenson's documentary, "Mana", which focuses on the artist's life and studio practices. Couwenberg recently exhibited a body of paintings in a two-person show along with his mentor Karl Benjamin in Los Angeles. The show was part of the Getty Museum's ongoing "Pacific Standard Time" project highlighting Southern California artists and their contributions towards art making. He is currently working on a monograph of his work in collaboration with Griffith Moon Publishing and lives and works in both Los Angeles, and the Big Island of Hawaii.

OPENING RECEPTION : Saturday, September 2, 2017, from 6 to 9 pm

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