Every once in a while, it's our pleasure to introduce you to local artists who live in our midst. Today, meet local artist Ben Venom.
Venom, the subject of a 10-page feature and interview in the July issue of Juxtapoz magazine, lives and works in his apartment/studio in the Upper Haight. He's also an adjunct professor at the San Francisco Art Institute with a recent gallery show at Ever Gold Gallery, and a couple of weeks ago he wrapped up an artist residency at the de Young Museum.
Venom describes his work as "serious, yet attempting to take on a B movie horror film style where ridiculousness becomes genius."
"Fly like an Eagle," quilt, 2015.
"I'm interested in juxtaposing traditional handmade crafts with extreme elements found on the fringes of society," he notes in his artist statement. "Imagery found in vintage tattoos, the occult, and motorcycle gangs are stitched together with recycled materials using techniques usually relegated to your Grandmother's sewing circle." The motifs in Venom's work, like that above, also echo Native American patterns and iconography.
Venom works mostly in recycled fabrics, denims and old clothing; most of his current work is either in the form of patches or quilted panels. His textile works have been drawing attention for years, including from NPR, which featured a piece on him in 2011.
"Fly by Night," quilt, 2013
A San Francisco resident of 11 years, Venom has spent the last three-and-a-half years in the Upper Haight with his wife, Megan Gorham, who is also an artist.
"Living in the middle of ground zero for the counter culture revolution of the '60s has definitely influenced some of my work," Venom told us, when asked how living in the Haight has influenced his art. "We are located between the Grateful Dead house and the apartment where Charles Manson lived back in 1967. The Hell's Angels do an annual ride down our street and through the neighborhood."
"My wife and I are by no means peace-loving hippies," he said. "We're more associated with the punk/metal/fine art scene. However, the Upper Haight still has a very open and free vibe where anything is possible at any time. Live fast ... Die last!"
Photo by Aubrie Pick/Aubrie Pick Photography
Venom has upcoming exhibitions at the San Jose Quilt Museum (July 11-November 1) and the Levi Strauss Museum in Germany. Currently, he says, he's finishing a seven-by-thirteen-foot quilt and starting some new smaller pieces for upcoming exhibitions in Tokyo, Los Angeles, and New Orleans, as well as creating four board designs for Creature Skateboards to be released next spring.
To see more of Venom's work and aesthetic, check out his Instagram account for more.
