Intercultural love flowed through the air at Karan Koron, the phenomenal show of traditional Japanese wooden sandals that had been painted, warped, modified, and more by over 60 artists both East and West, and a couple spots in between. Curated and organized seamlessly by Los Angeles legend Galo "MAKE" Canote, the vibe was killer, with live painting, hot bartendresses, and plenty of surprises imported from Japan, from a metal-to-the-core performance artist with a giant welded iron Cujo that spit fire with him to a noisy-in-a-good-way punk band fronted by a badass singer in old-school curlers.
But yo, it's gotta be the shoes!! Yeah, best of all was the art, with smooth acrylics in designs that were inspired by the cultural exchange (ninja, koi fish, onis) with our Pacific brethren to some crazy innovation like complex woodburned figures to incorporating hardware or rat traps as in one political piece. In fact the artists managed to say a lot despite the possible restraints of a theme, a refreshingly dope surprise considering the number of gimmicky group shows filled with nothing less than everyone's cartoons. Killer art, positive vibes, sake, music, and lots to experience, Galo throws a tight party along with an inspiring show! ~ Had
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