Andrew Myers Celebrates 20 Years in Laguna with a Major Exhibition

Famous for his “screw art” technique, blue-chip artist will host a showing of his works in his new Laguna Beach gallery on May 13.

LAGUNA BEACH, CA, USA, March 20, 2023 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The uniquely captivating work of renowned Laguna Beach artist Andrew Myers will be displayed in a major new exhibition that opens May 13 in Laguna Beach. This is the inaugural event for Andrew Myers Art, a gallery dedicated to showcasing work from his two-decade career as a visionary artist who calls Laguna home. The gallery will also offer high-end products from other artists and craftspeople whom Myers admires, and it will feature the work of artists who have never previously been seen in Orange County.

To celebrate his milestone, Myers is creating a special two-volume limited edition book series featuring more than 450 of his works. It will be unveiled and available for sale on the gallery’s opening day.

“I have spent the last 20 years of my life in the beautifully frustrating pursuit of art,” Myers said. “This exhibition is the culmination of my struggles, revelations and triumphs.”

Myers has developed an international reputation and passionate following with a bas-relief technique called “screw art.” Working with a template on plywood, Myers sinks thousands of screws to varying depths; the screw heads are then meticulously hand-painted. The result is a richly textured 3D effect that gives his representational portraits and often-whimsical scenes a richly textured, tactile presence and subtle sense of motion.

Myers is familiar to Laguna residents. His works can be seen in various public places around town. His art has been exhibited in galleries throughout the U.S. and internationally.

Myers visited Laguna for the first time at 19. “I absolutely loved Laguna,” Myers said. “I ended up moving here, not knowing what I was gonna do. I didn't have a job, I didn't have anything.”

A chance visit to the Art Institute of Southern California (now known as the Laguna College of Art and Design) changed Myers’ life. “I fell in love on that first tour.” Myers applied immediately, but he had a problem. “They told me, ‘Show us your portfolio.’ And I said, ‘Well, I don't have one. I don't even know what that is.’” The college gave him a week to create one. On the basis of that work, Myers was accepted with a scholarship.

Early in his career, Myers explored sculpture. But the recession of 2008 forced a change of focus. “I realized that suddenly no one's buying sculpture, but paintings were still selling. So I had to reinvent myself.”

Myers can’t remember where the inspiration came from for his “screw art” technique, but he soon realized its potential, learning about subtleties of color and perfecting the unusual processes of the medium. He now produces about 15 pieces a year. It’s painstaking work that takes weeks of intense labor — drilling thousands of holes for the screws, painting the background, sinking the 1- to 3-inch Philips head screws with a power drill, painting each screw head separately. “It’s a series of time-consuming processes that are layered on each other,” Myers said.

Myers’ technique relies on instinct and practice. “If I were doing a portrait of you, I assume the longest screw would be the tip of your nose. And then I would put a screw somewhere that would represent your brow. And then I'd do the line of the brow, then I would do the forehead, then the chin. Everything maps around those high points.”

Myers’ upcoming exhibition will mark an important milestone. “I’ve produced over 250 substantial original pieces. I realized how much I've been working my butt off! I wanted to get the community together to celebrate and say thanks. Laguna is my favorite place in the world. This town and Orange County really believed in my work. I’m very grateful for all the support.”

Marina Filatova
Andrew Myers
info@andrewmyersart.com
+1 (949) 516-3031
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