‘George Condo: A Collection of Etchings’ at the Rutberg gallery, June 18 to Sept. 3

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Works by contemporary American artist George Condo will be part of an exhibition at the Jack Rutberg Fine Arts gallery on La Brea Avenue from June 18 to Sept. 3.

Unless you can wear one of the works, of what interest is this information to readers of All The Rage?

I thought you’d never ask.

Back during the February New York Fashion Week shows, I briefly mentioned the pop-culture Condo-mania that seemed to be taking Manhattan by storm -- his artwork served as the inspiration for a recent collection by menswear designer Adam Kimmel, appeared on the cover of a Kanye West album, and was, at the time, on display at the New Museum.

Although a modified version of the ‘George Condo: Mental States’ exhibition headed east (it opens at the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, in Rotterdam, Netherlands, on June 25) included some mammoth wall-size paintings, the 13 works at the Rutberg gallery are etchings from 1991 that gallery owner Jack Rutberg describes as more intimate works that display ‘a more distilled aesthetic, rooted through great draftsmanship and line.’ including a series of works that pay homage to both the Spanish Masters and Miles Davis entitled “More Sketches of Spain -- for Miles Davis.”

When I spoke to Rutberg about the upcoming exhibition today, he told me he’d just acquired a significant George Condo painting that would also be on display. ‘It’s an untitled painting from 1983 that was part of Condo’s first solo exhibition -- which was here in Los Angeles.’

That L.A. show -- at the now-defunct Ulrike Kantor Gallery -- was followed in quick succession by two shows in New York City, and Rutberg called it a ‘catapult to Condo’s career.’

Before I left New York I did manage to fit in a visit to the New Museum (where West’s album ‘My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy’ was for sale in the gift shop along with posters and catalogs of the exhibition) and felt like gazing upon the twisted visages and gonzo portraiture afforded a peek behind the curtain at what seemed to resonate so deeply with artists in the fashion and music world.

Perhaps a visit to the Rutberg gallery will afford others a similar glimpse.

‘George Condo: a collection of etchings’ at Jack Rutberg Fine Arts, 357 N. La Brea Ave., Los Angeles, June 18 to Sept. 3, Tuesday to Friday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., aSaturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

-- Adam Tschorn

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