NAT SWOPE INFLUENCE / INSPIRATION

A GROUP SHOW OF SILKSCREEN PRINTS AND OTHER THINGS CURATED WITH NAT SWOPE

JANUARY 24TH - MARCH 8TH

LOOK WEST IS PROUD TO PRESENT: INFLUENCE / INSPIRATION, A SELECTION OF SILKSCREEN PRINTS AND OTHER THINGS FROM THE ARCHIVES OF NAT SWOPE. NAT IS A BAY AREA NATIVE WHO’S INFLUENCE STRETCHES BACK TO HIS YOUTH SKATEBOARDING IN THE EAST BAY AND BEYOND. IN 2001, NAT FOUNDED BLOOM SCREEN PRINTING (AKA BLOOM PRESS) IN OAKLAND, WHICH HE OWNED AND OPERATED UNTIL HE JOINED MONOLITH PRESS IN 2023. WHILE AT BLOOM, NAT PRINTED FOR SOME OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL AND INSPIRING ARTISTS OF THE TIME.

“FOR TWENTY-TWO YEARS I PRINTED OUT OF THE SAME SMALL STUDIO ON A FUNKY BLOCK IN OAKLAND, SCREEN PRINTING SMALL EDITIONS BY HAND. I HAD THE GOOD FORTUNE OF WORKING WITH SOME OF MY FAVORITE ARTISTS, DESIGNERS AND ILLUSTRATORS ACTIVE THEN AND NOW. THIS EXHIBITION IS A CELEBRATION OF THOSE ARTISTS, THE ONES THAT KEPT ME MOTIVATED, ENGAGED AND INSPIRED FOR SO MANY YEARS. WHILE NOT COMPREHENSIVE IN SCOPE, I HOPE THIS SHOW CAPTURES THE NATURE AND ENERGY OF WHAT WE DID TOGETHER. THIS COLLECTION ALSO INCLUDES EPHEMERA AND ART I ACQUIRED ALONG THE WAY, OUTSIDE OF PRINTED MATTER, BUT STILL VERY MUCH RELATED” — NAT SWOPE

NAT LIVES AND WORKS IN OAKLAND, CA.

OPENING RECEPTION SATURDAY, JANUARY 24TH