Known primarily for her eye-catching street pastings of the iconic Champion spark plug, Kerry Hyatt, aka KHno7, opens her first solo exhibition CODA with an expansion of work that the artist herself describes as ‘an airing of some dirty-ass laundry.’
CODA juxtaposes archetypal and pedestrian images with hue-saturated graphics in large-scale digital collage and small scale detailings. The show pays homage to Hyatt’s street art yet expands on the vernacular of her vast archive of vintage books and magazines she draws upon in her creative process.
Hyatt, who has described art-making as ‘often painful and even physically taxing on her psyche and body,’ has put her full force into this exhibition. The pieces unveil her demons; the forces and vices that have been her struggle, but also her impetus for creation. There is a visible tension of opposite forces, darkness and light each vying for center stage. A story of struggle unfolds, yet a conclusion of triumph is present, not only in the works, but in the existence of the exhibit itself.
Co-curator JB Jones expounds: “Hyatt realizes humanity in her work – all of it – she always has and that is why it is so enticing to experience. Jes, of Gold Haus Gallery, described the show ‘as a beautiful gift of vulnerability.’ It is an apt description because CODA is simply the visual execution of the place Hyatt is at in her life now. It is the relation of a story that is hers, that is yours, that is all of ours. It is a simple and beautiful concept executed with an elegance that somehow encompasses all of our struggles. My co-curator, Wil Atkinson, has continually said Kerry would do great things, from the first moment he saw her work on the street. And this show is, as he puts it “the defining moment that tells the world great things are about to happen.”
Kerry Hyatt is a Los Angeles native trained classically in fine art and illustration. Her fine art is comprised of a unique blend of graphic design, illustration and collage. Kerry has designed for the W Hotel, Malibu Inn, Rolling Stone Restaurant and Club, and the Disneyland Parks. Hyatt’s fine art has been shown, among others, at Lab Art Los Angeles, The Mondrian, Flower Pepper Gallery and Gold Haus Gallery.
CODA is co-curated by JB Jones & Will Atkinson of the i-i and Jess Navarro, owner and operator of Gold Haus Gallery.
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