Arts News

ArcLight Sherman Oaks 27 Club Los Angeles artist Rachel Schmeidler Rock & Roll Exhibit

By April MacIntyre Oct 29, 2012, 5:43 GMT

Los Angeles artist Rachel Schmeidler will be debuting her mugshot art series titled the “27 Club” this week at the ArcLight Sherman Oaks.

Los Angeles artist Rachel Schmeidler will be debuting her mugshot art series titled the “27 Club” this week at the ArcLight Sherman Oaks.

The “27 Club” features mugshots of famous “rock and roll” musicians who coincidentally died at the age of 27.  

The exhibit will run through December 4, 2012.

 
From the release:

Mugshots once a simple record of documenting criminals have now been transformed as a permanent reminder of the highs and lows of our society.    Amy Winehouse, Kurt Cobain, Jim Morrison, Janis Joplin, and Jimi Hendrix will be on view in blunt and bold colors; transcending their original purpose as police photographs to glamorous artifacts of popular culture.  Other mugshots such as Michael Jackson and Sid Vicious will also be on display.

The “27 Club” is a continuation of Schmeidler’s smash “Hollywood Most Wanted” series that was a buzz in Los Angeles and was featured on MTV, Access Hollywood, NBC, and CNN. While “Hollywood Most Wanted” was a series of celebrity mugshots, the “27 Club” intends to explore the infamous “rock and roll” history of “27 Club” members.

Throughout history many art forms have led historians to the now.  Schmeidler believes that art is one of the most reliable and encompassing ways of recording the present to create a past. “In prehistoric times, rudimentary methods of recording history ranged from markings on cave walls to carving simple sculptures.  As civilizations developed, so did art forms.  I feel my work is part of this continuum,” says Schmeidler.

More information about the series including a complete list of subjects and purchasing information is available at www.hollywoodmostwanted.com.

Raised in Germany, Schmeidler considers this show as an expression of her fascination with pop culture and exploration of American society. Schmeidler came to the US in her teens and still retains something of the objectivity and fascination of an outsider as she combines the discernment of a cultural critic with the artists’ expressive palette.   As of this date, Schmeidler obsessively converted hundreds of mugshots into art.  She studies each of her subjects’ histories who she chooses based on historical relevance.