Blaine Fontana

Blaine Fontana is a Bainbridge Island, Washington-based artist and designer.

Biography

Fontana was born in Seattle, Washington and raised on Bainbridge Island. He began his interest in art at a young age. During his teens he commuted to two High Schools in order to study graphic design, photography, sculpture and life drawing. After graduating in 1994, he pursued his education of life in the streets of Seattle and Portland as a Graffiti Artist. After about 4 years of being in and out of towns and community colleges, Fontana chose to attend Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles in 1998. Four years later Fontana left with a BFA in Communication Art/Design at the top of his class with the “Best in Show” award that is presented upon Graduation in 2002. During School he worked as an Art Director at a design firm, Abound LLC, and also as an Art Director at a Fashion/Lifestyle Magazine, Metro Pop. Recently Fontana had worked as an Art Director at a young men’s apparel company, Drifter. In January of 2003 he became self-employed as a fine artist and designer. [http://www.blainefontana.com/home.html/ website] He spent the next 5 years developing his unique style and becoming well known aound the So Cal gallery scene and companies as a rising artist and designiner. After pursuing his career and vision in LA for 9 years he has recently returned to his roots on Bainbridge Island, Washington. He is now expanding his studio to more design services like furniture, home furnishings, sculpture and others.

Work

Blaine Fontana has varied styles, including abstract, cartoonesque, and figurative. He has also been classified as a lowbrow artist. [http://www.ocweekly.com/culture/arts/not-so-starving-artist/24680/] [http://lowbrowart.tribe.net/thread/7fee3903-05a2-4dfc-900d-9681ce2c9354] Many of his paintings are branded with his unique trademark of twisted and highly stylized figures. Often passive, and somber with a grin, Fontana has labeled these characters “Templings”, a fusion of two words, temple and being. Whether these beings are interpreted as people, gods, demigods, myths, shamans or your own reflection is up for interpretation. Neither male nor female they function as the face of a spiritual currency and ambiguity that heavily relates to the therapeutic intent of Fontana’s paintings. The Templing's also serve as the conduit of people’s emotions and memories around him and the studies he reads. Often these beings are similar, though it’s the richly textured and unique backgrounds that make literal information and colors intriguing juxtapositions free from linear storytelling different in each piece. [http://www.totembookmedia.com/home.html]

Many of the smaller tertiary images and renderings fill in the gaps for the theme and or concept of the work. They are usually graphic landscapes, generic people, numerical coding for actual dates, and dictation of streaming thought during the process of the art. It’s difficult to encapsulate the meaning of Fontana’s work since it is different each time. Each work possesses a microcosm of stories, myths, and beliefs intended only for that piece. [http://www.totembookmedia.com/home.html]

Fontana’s techniques have roots form an array of places. Some of the most pertinent ones are graffiti, photography and graphic design. His work is influenced by having grown up amongst acres of forests, as well as the urban jungles of Seattle, WA. These environments are the polar opposites that create a harmonious balance of partnership, the inorganic and organic, the physical and metaphysical, order and chaos. [http://www.totembookmedia.com/home.html]

Influences

Robert Rauschenberg, Ralph Steadman, Hayao Miyazaki, Basquiat, Grant Barnhart, Scott Hansen, Andy Goldsworthy, Zaha Hadid, and Joe Sorren. [http://www.ocweekly.com/culture/arts/not-so-starving-artist/24680/]

Represented galleries

*Distinction Gallery, Escondido, CA
*Limited Addiction Gallery, Denver, CO
*Lineage Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
*Scribble Theory Gallery, Santa Ana, CA

Published work and press

[http://www.eightfivemag.com/ 8.5] , Issue 8
Cm, Consumption Manual, Issue 01
[http://www.cmykmag.com/site.cfm?sect_id=1&page_id=1 CMYK]
[http://www.happymag.com/happy/ Happy Magazine] , cover
[http://www.ismcommunity.org/ ISM Quarterly] , cover Winter 2006

Juxtapoz [http://www.juxtapoz.com] , cover Issue #67, August 2006 [http://www.juxtapoz.com/jux/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=364&Itemid=85]
[http://www.lineupthemag.com/ Line Up the Magazine]
[http://www.metrodotpop.com/ Metro Pop]
[http://www.methodmag.com/modart/ Modart Magazine]
[http://www.ocweekly.com/ OC Weekly]
[http://prequelmag.com Prequel] , Issue 0, pg 28 (2006) [http://www.prequelmag.com/prequel_issue0.pdf]
[http://www.squeezeoc.com/ SqueezeOC]
[http://www.synthesis.net/site/ Synthesis]

The Industry Standard Anthology, 2005
[http://www.visionmagazine.com Vision Magazine] , May 2005, cover [http://www.visionmagazine.com/5_05/may05_homepage.htm]
[http://www.myspace.com/casemagazine Case Magazine] , Issue One, cover

References

*Celest Kidd, “Not-So-Starving Artist” "OC Weekly" March 9, 2006 [http://www.ocweekly.com/culture/arts/not-so-starving-artist/24680/]
*“Retail Therapy, What Influences You?”, "Prequel." Issue 0, pg 28, 2006 [http://www.prequelmag.com/prequel_issue0.pdf]
*Jit Fong Chin, “Jack of All Shades”, "SqueezeOC" February 27, 2006 [http://www.squeezeoc.com/squeezeoc/goingout/arttheater/article_1019748.php]

External links

* [http://www.blainefontana.com/ Blaine Fontana's Official Website]