World-Renowned Surrealist Vincent Castiglia in Los Angeles Exhibition “Demons” at Lethal Amounts Gallery, Opening April 26th @ 8:00pm

Vincent Castiglia

New York City’s resident blood-wielding surrealist Vincent Castiglia will head across the country this month to take part in the special LA-area exhibition “Demons,” taking place at Lethal Amounts Gallery (1226 W. 7th St) and opening on April 26, 2014 at 8:00pm. Vincent will have two different paintings at the exhibition, both created exclusively in his own blood.

Lethal Amounts Gallery focuses on underground movements and outsider culture ~ past and present. They admire and pay homage to those who came before them and showcase those who make their mark today. Their exhibits embody the punk ethos and its “against the stream” ideas that did and continue to cultivate a large following of open minded, alternative thinkers and provocateurs.

Lethal Amounts Gallery co-owner and curator Erick De La Vega shared that “This show is about man’s personal demons. I thought that it would be interesting to bring together a diverse group of artists from different backgrounds and upbringings to tell the world about their demons.”

For more information on the “Demons” exhibition, please visit lethalamounts.com.

Vincent & H.R Giger ~ Zurich, Switzerland

Vincent Castiglia is the first American artist to receive a solo exhibition invitation from Oscar Award-winning artist H.R. Giger in the history of the H. R. Giger Museum Gallery. Vincent’s art has been praised by fellow visual artists, musicians, and notables in the art and “darker” social circles throughout his career.

“With such precise technique, his depiction of human musculature is nothing short of outstanding.”   ~  Paul Booth / World-renowned Tattooist, Artist, Gallery Owner, Fanatical Nihilist

“If the body is the temple, then the heart is the altar and the blood is the sacred flame that enlightens the shrine. Vincent is painting with holy light.” ~ Martin Eric Ain / Musician, Celtic Frost

“The ominous truth that his art confronts, along with the exquisiteness in which it is portrayed, provides a timeless revelation into human existence.” ~ Joe Sopkowics, Forensic Photographer

In the privacy of his studio, Vincent Castiglia  practices a kind of modern-day phlebotomy, siphoning the life force which contains his own psychic energy and channeling it into a new, tangible form. In doing so, he dissolves the barrier between artist and art in a most literal and immediate sense. Vincent’s figures, their musculature and skin, are painted with what could be thought of as “liquid flesh,” actual tissue that is rendered on each piece to create the final, often visceral experience.  In this way, the subject’s realism is not merely an optical illusion due to its level of detail, but also an actual transference of flesh and blood to each work.

“Exile,” 24″ x 48″, 2006, human blood on paper

There is no medium to which Vincent’s can be compared.

Vincent Castiglia’s impressive work has seen many sides of the entertainment world, not just the inside of galleries. MTV New Media’s Horror-Slasher Film Savage County featured his art as its official movie poster, depicting the three murderers in the film. Prior to the film, Vincent painted album art for heavy metal band Triptykon’s 2010 debut release, Eparistera Daimones. Triptykon was founded by former Hellhammer / Celtic Frost singer and guitarist Tom Gabriel Fischer, a devoted fan of Vincent’s artistic sensibilities.  Vincent also painted the DVD cover for the Fangoria Presents film Corpsing.

His work has been featured on The National Geographic Channel (NatGeo), FOX News, CNBC, BBC, New York 1 News, Spike TV, The Discovery Channel, and The Science Channel. Castiglia was also recently a guest on the “Jay Thomas Show on Sirius XM Radio.” His work has been explored by countless art and culture publications ~ in the US and abroad ~ including the New York Post, New York Daily News, The Huffington Post, Art Business News, International Business Times, Bizarre Magazine, as well as Lexikon Der Phantastischen Künstler, the “… international encyclopaedia of fantastic, surrealistic, symbolist, & visionary artists.” He was also awarded “Tattoo Artist of the Year” in ThisisHorror.uk‘s “This Is Horror Awards 2012.”

Vincent’s paintings have been exhibited at museums and galleries in the US and internationally, including CoproGallery, (Santa Monica, California), Last Rites Gallery (New York) The Museum of Sex (New York), The Museum Of Porn In Art, (Switzerland), The HR Giger Museum Gallery, (Switzerland), , The Mall Gallery (London, England) Canvas Los Angeles (Los Angeles California), Fuse Gallery (New York), Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center (Ft. Myers, Florida), Art @ Large Gallery (New York) Gallery Lombardi (Austin Texas), L’imagerie Gallery (Hollywood, California), Museo De La Cuidad De Mexico, (Mexico), C-Pop Gallery (Detroit, Michigan), Shooting Gallery (San Francisco, CA), Seed Gallery (Newark, New Jersey), The 7th Annual Dirty Show (Detroit, Michigan),  as well as The Congregation Gallery (Hollywood, California).  His work also hangs in many distinguished personal collections, including that of rock legend Gregg Allman.

Vincent and Margaret Cho

Most recently, Castiglia was honoured to be commissioned by comedienne/actor Margaret Cho to create her portrait in her own blood.  Cho arrived at his studio to donate her blood for the project, which was ciphered with the help of a phlebotomist.

“Margaret had interviewed me for a hardcover art anthology called TOME 2, then again for her talk show ‘Monsters of Talk,’” said Castiglia in an interview with Examiner.com. “Initially we had talked about doing it in her menstrual blood ~ she asked if it was possible and I let her know that I could incorporate menstrual blood into the painting but there would be no way that there would be enough of it to paint a full-scale painting. I told her that if she wanted it entirely in her blood, then it would have to be collected intravenously.”

Read the full interview here.

For more information on Vincent Castiglia, please visit www.vincentcastigliaart.com.