Triumphant Return of Street Artist GALO

Amsterdam welcomes back familiar faces and new characters from talented painter.

Amsterdam (I-Newswire) August 23, 2011 - Andrea GALO Galvagno is the man behind the curious faces and figures found around Amsterdam during the last decade. Peeking around corners, peering out from walls and windows, their huge eyes bulged inquisitively at tourists and locals alike. Sometimes a profusion of heads, sometimes a crowd of contorting intertwined bodies, GALO’s distinctive style gave his creations life and emotion that made them a vibrant part of contemporary Amsterdam street culture.

Therefore the success of GALO’s return to Amsterdam with an exhibition at ArTicks Art Gallery comes as no surprise. Around 100 people attended the lively exhibition opening last week, pushing the capacity of the recently opened gallery to its limits. Happily the sun shone and visitors mingled beside the Singel canal. Many well-known Amsterdam artists were among the crowd, including Daniel RECAL Oosterman, with whom GALO has collaborated to create new canvases specifically for this show.

Vivid colours and bold lines describe the ‘Galo-verse’ (a nickname from Modart Magazine). Blond women slant their eyes and bald men bare their teeth in an extremis of emotion decided by the viewer. A prevalent characteristic in GALO’s work is that his subjects are looking at something, but whatever sight provokes their expressions is hidden from our view (perhaps it is ourselves). Exceptions to this are the collaborative canvases, where GALO’s figures confront RECAL’s giant robots in a dynamic showdown.

When GALO returned to his native Italy in 2009 to open the GALO Art Gallery in Turin, his characters slowly disappeared from the streets of Amsterdam – though they were appearing all over the world as he exhibited everywhere from Moscow to Miami. After a while, seeing a GALO piece in Amsterdam was like unexpectedly meeting old friends. The GALO RETURNS exhibition is a great opportunity to experience the unique allure of the Galo-verse, whether for the first time or as a wide-eyed reunion.

GALO RETURNS runs from August 14th to August 31st.

Exhibition Information:
http://www.articksgallery.com/exhibitions/galo-returns

Exhibition Video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yzo4cDXYqns

Exhibition Photos:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/articksgallery/sets/72157627249090982/

Art Exhibition Catalogue:
http://www.slideshare.net/articks/galo-return-art-exhibition