Giant Robot Store and GR2 News

It’s going to be a big show. Both floors… FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Giant Robot Biennale 2: 15 Years FACEBOOK PAGE October 24, 2009 – January 24, 2010Opening reception: Saturday, October 24, 2009, 6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. Japanese American National Museum369 East First StreetLos Angeles, CA 90012janm.org (213) 625-0414 In 1994, Giant Robot was born with the purpose of documenting and promoting new, up-and-coming, underdog, overlooked, and hybrid Asian and Asian-American popular culture. Fifteen years later, the self-published magazine has not only evolved from a stapled-and-folded zine into a full-color, glossy publication with an international following, but also opened trend-setting shops and influential art galleries in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York City. To celebrate the magazine’s longevity, energy, and loyal readership, the second Giant Robot Biennale is being hosted by the Japanese American National Museum in Downtown Los Angeles from October 24, 2009 to January 24, 2010. The event will feature several exhibits, including the following: To provide a visual overview of the Giant Robot aesthetic, publisher Eric Nakamura is curating artwork by individuals who have contributed to shows at Giant Robot’s galleries, been featured in the pages of the magazine, or even contributed cover art. The main hall will include installations by David Choe, James Jean, and Souther Salazar, in addition to Theo Ellsworth, Rob Sato, kozyndan, Stella Lai, Jack Long, Albert Reyes, Jeff Soto, and Deth P. Sun. A second hall will include the contributions of more than 50 others. (A complete list will be made available at http://www.janm.org/exhibits/gr15/home.) The photography of longtime magazine contributor Ben Clark will also be featured in a retrospective. Clark’s powerful images from past issues will be displayed in a larger, more vibrant print format, accompanied by recollections, explanations, and other ramblings by editor Martin Wong. The roots of Asian popular culture—the kaiju scene introduced by Godzilla, Gamera, other giant monsters, and the toy industry they spawned—will be paid tribute to by a run of collaborative works made by Japanese indie sculptor and artist Yukinori Dehara, UglyDolls co-creator David Horvath, and Portland, OR-based underground toy legend LeMerde. In addition, four custom videogames have been developed by the Attract Mode collective in conjunction with some of Giant Robot’s favorite artists. These games were made exclusively for the Game Over/Continue? show at GRSF (March-April, 2009) and will be available for play throughout the exhibition’s stint. The artist and developer pairings include Hellen Jo and Derek Yu, Saelee Oh and Anna Anthropy, Souther Salazar and Petri Purho, J Otto Seibold and Kyle Pulver, and Deth P. Sun and Jonathan “Cactus” Soderstrom. An opening reception will take place from 6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. on Saturday, October 24, featuring live music and attendance by many of the participating artists and key members of the Giant Robot family. The show will run from Saturday, October 24, 2009 to Sunday, January 24, 2010. For more information about Giant Robot magazine or The Giant Robot Biennale 2: 15 Years, please contact: Eric NakamuraGiant Robot Owner/Publishereric@giantrobot.com(310) 479-7311 ###
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It’s been a little since gr/eats got some press, and here’s one for the ages. Everyday with Rachael Ray! Here’s a link to a blow up of the article. Visit gr/eats if you get a chance. I grew up eating tofu burgers thanks to mom and these meatballs are an incarnation of that! Years later, it graces the pages of Rachael Ray.
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The paella at gr/eats… I haven’t had it in a while, and it’s a sure winner. Flavors busting out all over, the seafood is almost too much, with a squeeze of lemon, it brings out everything you need. Pretty good commercial… meanwhile, the below is the specials menu. Tons of things to get.
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That’s Mike Shinoda. I caught him early on checking out his show. He was wondering how everything would photograph, so this was a good first look. He’s a nice guy, with a pretty big show at the Japanese American National Museum. He looks proud here, and he should be. The kids had to wait. That’s a hefty line up. I hope we have such a line when the Biennale opens up in October 24, 2009. We’ll be sending out information soon. But we have James Jean, David Choe, Souther Salazar, kozyndan, Stella Lai, and many many more. James Dean, Cobain, Warhol… DC special edition Shinoda shoes for SURU. The coffin installation was a strange one. Parts of this remind me of Murakami. I’d check out his film, which puts this all into context. It’s just a few minutes long and I wish it looped outside of the tiny film room.
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