March 3rd, 2010
A few months ago, i blogged about the New Rochelle Arts Council of the Arts Juried Exhibition i was asked to judge titled “Utopioptix”. Last night, i met with the other two judges on the panel, Katrina Rhein and David Tobey, to evaluate the final collection. All of the artwork chosen for exhibition was hung in the Lumen Winter Gallery at the New Rochelle Public Library.
I can’t divulge the first and second prize winners from the competition, but i CAN urge you all to come and see the show. There is an opening reception this Saturday night, March 6th at 5:30pm. We’ll be announcing the winners that evening. Join me and my fellow jurors and all of the exhibitors and take in what has turned into a really fun, thought-provoking, and very interesting art exhibit based on “Visons of the Future.”
So, here’s the irony of all of this. My own very first one-man show was hosted by the Lumen Winter Gallery at the New Rochelle Public Library back in 1984! This entire experience has brought back some fun memories. Below, i have posted the invitation for the Utopioptix show coming up this weekend AND the invitation for the Charles Fazzino show from 1984-85. Boy how time flies!
Enjoy and I hope to see you on Saturday!
–Charles


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Tags: Fazzino, Lumen Winter Gallery, New Rochelle Council of the Arts, New Rochelle Public Library
Posted in 3D pop art, Arts Education, Charity Involvement |
January 15th, 2010
I just returned from my annual January jaunt to Japan. I go there every January to do shows and signings for my Japanese Agent, High Spirits & Yu. I find it interesting because being from New York, the big cities in Japan are the only place in the world i can travel to and actually be overhelmed by the congestion and architechture and sheer magnitude. Nagoya is incredible…with these tall skyscrapers and all the people!
I did three shows in three days….two at the Mitsugoshi Department Store in Nagoya and one at the Takashimaya in Tokyo. Most of the high end art shows happen in department stores in Japan – very high end places with an incredible clientele. They had to give out numbers to people so they didn’t have to wait on line for hours to get my signature. They were able to go shopping while they waited for their numbers to be called.
The highlight of my trip had to be meeting this one fan in Tokyo. His name was Shu-To. He spoke English and told me that he was also an artist and that he had created a present for me. From behind his back, he whipped out the coolest looking airbrushed T-shirt! I was impressed. Really neat! He and his buddies own an airbrush shop and you can see more of their work at www.clowns-entertainment.com.
I never return from my trips to Japan without an interesting story to tell. It’s always an adventure. I’m looking forward to my next trip in March.
Enjoy!
–Charles

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Tags: 3D pop art, Airbrush Art, Fazzino, Japan
Posted in 3D pop art |
December 30th, 2009
My daughter Heather gave me the coolest present for Christmas. There is a website called www.skins.com where you can custom make your own cell phone and ipod covers. She made me a set of cell phone covers from her art and mine. I love them! The first one i’m using was made from my Universal Studios Monsters artwork. I plan to put one of hers on next. Check it out the next time you’re looking for a really cool, really personal gift.
–Charles

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Tags: cell phone covers, Fazzino, skins.com
Posted in 3D pop art, My Art |
December 18th, 2009

The New Rochelle Council on the Arts was formed in 1975 and it’s just one of thousands of local arts councils throughout the country that are at the grassroots of supporting and promoting the arts in local communities. They recently asked me to be one of the judges for their upcoming Spring Exhibition. I accepted with honor. Those of you who read this blog know that i am a big proponent of Arts Education and i see my involvement in events like this one as an extension of that. I’m really looking forward to it.
Of course, this means that the New Rochelle Council is also accepting entries for this contest NOW. The deadline for entries is January 1sst and the subject is “Utopioptix: Visions of the Future Then and Now.” You can visit the New Rochelle Council Website for the whole prospectus and information about how to enter. The First Prize will be $500 and the Second Prize will be $250. I encourage all the local artists out there to enter…you never know!
Good Luck!
–Charles
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Tags: Charles Fazzino, Fazzino, New Rochelle Council on the Arts
Posted in Arts Education, Charity Involvement |
December 16th, 2009
Charles Fazzino has been commissioned as one of 17 international artists to create an artwork featured in the 2010 FIFA World Cup Soccer Official Poster Edition. This is the second time that Fazzino has worked with FIFA, as he was asked to create a limited edition, 3-D work to celebrate the 2006 World Cup in Germany. As the only American artist in the group, Fazzino is part of a world-class group including seven South African artists and artists from Japan, China, Brazil, Senagal, Ethiopia, and beyond.
The series is available for purchase individually or as a complete 2010 FIFA World Cup Collection. Fazzino stated from his New York Studio: “I am honored to be working with FIFA for the second time. Soccer has become, in a sense, the global language for the sports world. Everyone plays it….everywhere. The World Cup brings the nations together every four years, similar to the way The Olympic Games do. It’s a passionate tournament that has so much significance for so many. I’m glad that through my artistry, I can help people capture those moments forever.”
Project coordinator, Renate Bauer, was recently asked about the connection between soccer and art. She replied that ”art is as much a global phenomenon that speaks a universal language as football. Both also somehow originate from enthusiasm: both can be pursued only with uncompromising passion, talent and effort.”
The entire collection can be seen and purchased at www.2010ArtEdition.de

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Tags: 2010 South Africa World Cup, Fazzino, FIFA, Soccer Pop Art
Posted in Contemporary Art News, Sports Pop Art |
October 1st, 2009
I came across this article in The Independent earlier this week …http://bit.ly/12lIaT….i absolutely love it! It’s one of the best summaries i’ve ever seen about the history and significance of pop art. It was written to coincide with a new exhibition at the Tate Modern in London – Pop Life: Art in a Material World. Like most of the important pop art exhibitions today, this show features the “fathers” of the pop art movement….Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein…and the next generation of pop art legends such as Damien Hurst and Jeff Koons.
My art and that of several of my contemporaries, is often classified as pop art. I refer to myself as a three-dimensional pop artist. I have watched the careers and reputations of the likes of Hirst, Koons, and Takashi Murakami grow and blossom…museum-quality artists all. The best of the breed. I am hoping to follow in their footsteps and the next time someone goes through the ABC’s of pop art…i can only hope that “F” will stand for FAZZINO!
However, i think that the definition of pop art has changed somewhat. Like everything else, it has morphed and evolved. Andy Warhol DID say “Good business is the best art.” American pop art was born of the intention of artists like Warhol and Lichtenstein to exploit what was popular in their day…to imortalize everyday elements and turn them into icons….and they did. Today, however, pop art is more than that…it’s become a way for artists to, quite literally, celebrate everything about popular culture…to tell the story of how people live…what they do…how they spend their time….what their world looks and feels and sounds like. That’s what MY pop art is….when looked at in it’s entirety someday, i hope that people will be able to see that i am, in a sense, a historian…capturing current events, both newsworthy and otherwise, for eternity. My art tells the story….I thank everyone who stops to read it!
–Charles
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Tags: Andy Warhol, Fazzino, History of Pop Art, Pop Life, Tate Modern
Posted in 3D pop art, History of Pop Art, Pop Art Artists |
September 21st, 2009
On the heels of the annual Jerry Lewis Labor Day Telethon, we wanted to keep the fundraising efforts going for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. So, we asked Charles to give us one of his sketches from the sketchbook he travels with to auction off. We’ve posted drawings from the sketchbook before on this blog, so you might already know that he keeps it with him all the time….drawing new ideas…doodling…experiment, etc. We asked him if we could auction one of the sketches and he gave us the one below.
It’s pictured below and is created with acid-free pigmented ink from Japanese Zig Markers. Some of the highlights were done with regular ballpoint pen. The piece measures 8.5″ x 11″ and will come fully framed with a personal dedication on the back from Charles Fazzino.
Here’s the way the auction will work. We will accept bids until 12:00 noon on Sunday, October 4th. The minimum bid is $2,000 and the sketch will be awarded to the highest bidder. It’s a blind auction so you will not know what others have bid until the auction has ended. In the event that more than one person places the winning bid, a random drawing will be held to determine the buyer who has the right to purchase the sketch. In that case, runners-up will be given second chance offers to purchase other available Fazzino original sketches.
50% of the proceeds from the sale of this sketch will benefit the Muscular Dystophy Association.
Please email all bids and questions to us at info@fazzinocollectors.com
Thank you and happy bidding!
–Julie
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Tags: Charles Fazzino, Fazzino, MDA, Muscular Dystrophy Association
Posted in 3D pop art, Charity Involvement |