By Chris Jalufka | 03.19.13
In his new show ‘Sights Unseen’ illustrator Kevin Tong has put on display the sketches that he used to build his body of work as a creator of film and music posters. It’s an impressive showing of works in pencil and ink that he’s drawn over the last five years of his career.
The show opened on March 9th and runs through April 3rd at the Phone Booth Gallery in Long Beach California.
Here’s the press release from the Phone Booth Gallery website –
KEVIN TONG: SIGHTS UNSEEN
Phone Booth Gallery is proud to present “Sights Unseen” a new selection of never before seen work by Los Angeles based artist Kevin Tong. Spanning more than 5 years, this ambitious exhibition pulls out all the stops to present hundreds of pieces of varying size, shape, and color. The exhibition opens with a reception on Saturday, March 9, from 7-10pm. This all-ages event will be held at Phone Booth Gallery’s exhibition space, 2533 East Broadway, Long Beach, CA 90803. Artist in attendance. “Sights Unseen” remains on view through April 3rd, at both at the gallery and at www.phoneboothgallery.com.
Kevin Tong is primarily known for his screen printed art editions, though his prolific career stretches a wide range of commercial illustration from the toy industry to Playboy magazine. He has created band posters for some of his favorite music, including The Black Keys, Beck, and Bon Iver and created licensed imagery for movies and television like Star Wars, Jurassic Park, Lost, and Transformers.
“Sights Unseen” will be Kevin Tong’s second solo exhibition with Phone Booth Gallery, and will be his most ambitious fine art venture to date. The space will be transformed to house Tong’s enormous concept, which will best showcase his personal and professional career. Opening night of the exhibition will be a thrilling surprise to attendees, as they will experience a first-hand look into the mind of the artist, as well as a few additional surprises.
Kevin Tong’s ‘Bride of Frankenstein’ created for the Mondo Gallery
And just for the heck of it here’s one of my all time favorite posters from Kevin Tong.
Kevin Tong’s companion book to his show ‘Sights Unseen’
If you can’t make it to the show, Phone Booth has a vast amount of Kevin Tong’s original sketches on their site for viewing and for purchase. Go ahead and check that out HERE.
Even if you don’t have the hundreds of dollars for a drawing of a robot, Kevin has created a companion art book to go along with the show for a mere $35. Pretty excellent deal and will most likely sell out soon.
For more on the show follow these handy links —
‘Sights Unseen’ online gallery at Phone Booth Gallery
A look at ‘Sights Unseen’ on /Film
Nice! Did you get a chance to check it out? Would love to see it in person.
Nope, won’t be making it down to Long Beach, but Phone Booth Gallery has a pretty great online display of the show.