Surreal Salon IV
Baton Rouge Gallery- Center for Contemporary Art, Jan. 3-26, 2012
"Symbiotic"- Best of Show Award Winner

Baton Rouge Gallery's Surreal Salon IV will run from Jan. 3-26, 2012 at Baton Rouge Gallery, located inside BREC's Historic City Park (1515 Dalrymple Drive, Baton Rouge, LA). This exciting exhibition will feature the work of over 50 contemporary artists from across the country, engaging audiences in a multi-sensory art experience and shedding light on the growing popularity and exceptional quality of the pop-surrealist movement.

Surreal Salon IV, which can only be seen at BRG, celebrates the many reasons why this irreverent and exciting movement has come to the forefront of contemporary art in recent years with over 60 works by 54 artists representing 21 different states. The work on display will run the gamut from video to sculpture, from photography to paintings.

More than 325 works were submitted from across the nation for consideration by the exhibition's juror. Baton Rouge Gallery is proud to announce the roster of artists selected to participate in Surreal Salon IV, as chosen by the exhibition's juror, Casey Weldon:

Robyn Alatorre (Redondo Beach, CA) Joshua Banks (Denton, TX) Jessica Beauvais (Baton Rouge, LA) Dana Buehler (New Orleans, LA) Alea Bone (Portland, OR) Megan Buccere (Zachary, LA) John Michael Byrd (Sunderland, MA) Rachel Caldwell (Spring City, PA) Victor Chalfant (Fayetteville, AR) Joshua Chambers (Ruston, LA) Nicholas Coroneos (Santa Barbara, CA) Andrew K. Currey (Ft. Worth, TX) Archer Dougherty (Albuquerque, NM) Pat Doyen (Baton Rouge, LA) Steven Eckert (Baton Rouge, LA) M.C. Farris (Edinburg, TX) Megan Frauenhoffer (Springfield, MO) Christopher Gideon (Royal Oak, MI) Amy Guidry (Lafayette, LA) Glenna Hartwell (North Wales, PA) Richard Alan Haugh (Gulfport, MS) Eric Hudgins (Shelbyville, IN) Mike Jacobs (Cincinnati, OH) Amanda James (Baton Rouge, LA) Ben Johnson (Cicero, IN) Susannah Kelly (Portland, OR) Ty Kelly (Livingston, MT)

Mindy Kober (Houston, TX) Audra Kohout (New Orleans, LA) Amy Kollar Anderson (Dayton, OH) Victor LeBlanc (Denham Springs, LA) Zane Mahanna (Hays, KS) Chase Markovich (New Orleans, LA) Johnathan Martel (Lake Charles, LA) Gina Martynova (New York City, NY) Dustin Myers (Fullerton, CA) Kyle Nugent (New Orleans, LA) Neil Perry (Portland, OR) Pat Phillips (Lafayette, LA) Angela Piehl (Stillwater, OK) Nathan Pietrykowski (Baton Rouge, LA) Arabella Proffer (Cleveland, OH) Frank Ramme (Ontario, CA) Beth Robinson (Lorane, OR) David Sinaguglia (Windsor, CT) Cuyler Smith (Irvine, CA) Sarah Stupak (Dillonvale, OH) Vickie Suplee (Baton Rouge, LA) Caroline Thomas (New Orleans, LA) Yuki Toy (Los Angeles, CA) Dawn Turner (Madison, WI) Terence Ulrich (Ventura, CA) Dustin Waltke (Hendersonville, TN)

Baton Rouge Gallery's Surreal Salon IV will once again be punctuated by a one-night celebration of the exhibition on Saturday, Jan. 21 from 7-11 p.m. Titled the Surreal Salon Soiree, this evening of art, exciting live music and costumed attendees will surely be unlike any the arts community in our area has seen since last year's affair. All are invited to wear their "most surreal" attire to view and celebrate the work included in Surreal Salon IV while enjoying live musical performances from two exciting bands: Mobley (Austin, TX) and Prom Date (Baton Rouge, LA). The evening will also include interactive surrealist games and much more. Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 at the door (though those in costume will pay just $15).

The work selected by the exhibition’s juror as “Best in Show” will be displayed in an upcoming issue of BOTH Juxtapoz Magazine and Hi-Fructose Magazine. Our Special Guest Juror for Surreal Salon IV, Casey Weldon, selected Amy Guidry's "Symbiotic" as "Best in Show" for the exhibition. You can see this work below:

The Special Guest Juror for Surreal Salon IV is artist Casey Weldon. Currently a Southern California resident, Weldon graduated with honors from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, CA. His unique works have been exhibited in galleries throughout the U.S. including Gallery1988 (Los Angeles, CA), Trifecta Gallery (Las Vegas, NV), C.A.V.E. Gallery (Venice, CA) and Distinction Gallery (Escondido, CA) among others. Weldon's work has also been published in such notable publications as Juxtapoz Magazine, Hi-Fructose Magazine and Vanity Fair (Italy). Weldon's time is divided between commercial illustration work and his own distinctive fine art. The line between Weldon's commercial illustration work and his fine art sometimes blurs when he draws on widely recognized figures—as in his work for the "Quentin Vs. Coen" show (Bold Hype in New York City) and his off-kilter portraits of actor Bill Murray, "Murray Time."

A variety of free refreshments will be provided during the Soirée.
The Surreal Salon festivities will not stop there. On Jan. 22, the day following the Surreal Salon Soirée, Weldon will speak at Baton Rouge Gallery as a special engagement of the gallery's popular ARTiculate series. During this engagement, Weldon will provide insight into his work, techniques, inspirations and unique artistic processes. Weldon's presentation is free and open to the public beginning at 4 p.m.

All images copyright© Amy Guidry, all rights reserved.