April 8 - May 21, 2017 In John Hiltunen’s anthropomorphic paper collages, the conventional dynamic between man and beast is rearranged with spellbinding results. The affected posturing of fashion models is combined with the purely instinctual behavior of animals in unpredictable, amusing and provocative ways:
A smug-looking cat struts in designer jeans; a tiny bespectacled rabbit head disappears into the body of a rail-thin model wearing a luxurious coat; a muscular dog-headed tennis player gazes lovingly into the human-featured shaggy dog that lies cradled in his arms, against the setting of an ocean sunset. Like most of the idyllic nature scenes that serve as the backdrops of Hiltunen’s collages, it is turned sideways, adding to the beguilingly off-kilter charm.
Direct and intense, the stunning reversals and inversions of these images reflect the care dedicated to their creation. Taken from fashion catalogs and travel magazines, Hiltunen invests substantial time arranging the components, laying them out on a table and considering the various options before achieving exactly the right effect.
A Kentuckian by birth, John Hiltunen currently resides in Fremont, California and attends the Creative Growth Art Center in Oakland - a world-renowned art studio that serves artists with mental and developmental disabilities. He has exhibited at White Columns and the Rachel Uffner Gallery in New York and his work has been shown at a number of contemporary art fairs. The Good Luck Gallery is delighted to be presenting his first solo show in Los Angeles.
