WORK FROM THE SHOW IS AVAILABLE TO PURCHASE ONLINE HERE

Stolen Space Gallery www.stolenspace.com
Charles Krafft & Mike Leavitt’s “Pitchfork Pals” bombard London with the best of Seattle’s post-grunge visual art culture. A variety of handcrafted items transform Stolen Space Gallery into a sinister souvenir shop with dictator teapots, life-size human bone china shovels, cardboard shoes and action figures. A sampling of individual projects frames the debut of this dynamic duo’s “Pitchfork Pals” ceramic collaborations.

“Pitchfork Pals” spawn from an ongoing dialogue between two artists separated by 30 years of age who share a mission for art alternatives. Since 2005 the two Seattle natives have formed a series of media icons, politicians and celebrities such as Kim Jong Il, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Aleister Crowley, Nick Griffin and Amy Winehouse. Leavitt sculpts these busts 20 to 30 cm tall, then each edition is slip-cast and hand-painted by Krafft in his basement. Some become classic busts, teapots or the British “Toby mug” knick-knack. Taking pride in their handiwork, these two iconoclastic craftsmen are not armchair critics. The artists’ politics range widely, so their meditation on manufactured evil is not easily digestible. Looking into the deeply carved pupils of a “Pitchfork Pal” conjures biographical depths underneath easy editorializing. Totemic power and sculptural nuance make these tainted characters undeniably mesmerizing.

Charles Krafft utilizes traditional Delft techniques for clever juxtapositions and dark satire. His oeuvre includes an arsenal of porcelain weaponry, Spone™ (human bone china) reliquaries, Disasterware™ plates, and his “Forgiveness” line of copper swastika-capped perfume. His history of collaborations includes long friendships with Kustom Kulture hero Von Dutch and the internationally respected American master painter Morris Graves. With a career survey published by Last Gasp in 2005 entitled “Villa Delerium”, Krafft has been the beneficiary of grants, residencies and exhibitions in some of world’s more adventurous museums and galleries.

Mike Leavitt is responsible for a variety of projects that exploit contemporary icons for a cultural purpose. His hand-made Art Army® action figures depict an everlasting series of artists, musicians and celebrities. Leavitt’s “Hip Hopjects” are razor sharp replications of nostalgic ephemera in recycled cardboard and wood, replete with do-it-yourself kits to assemble cardboard shoes. He also produces suicidal celebrity bath towels, artist proofs of a “Real Life” board game, and his wedding cake toppers now include famous gay couples. Leavitt is represented by galleries in New York, Los Angeles and London.