artist wayne white plays the banjo while strapped to a truck in NYC

new york production company dress code has filmed a new promotional video to celebrate the opening of artist wayne white’s second major solo art exhibition at joshua liner gallery.

this is white’s second major solo exhibition at the joshua liner

in the video, dress code strap LA-based artist wayne white into a wooden chair fixed to the back of a flatbed truck, slowly driving him up avenue A whilst he plays a little number on the banjo. it’s a suitably charismatic video for a famously charismatic artist, who croons liltingly about his current predicament, and the more or less complete lack of reaction from the new york populace.

white’s playful, dry wit carries an often poignant message

white’s iconic word art makes an appearance of course, as viewers are given a tender insight into the process behind opening the exhibition. white — whose body of work includes illustration, sculpture, puppetry, design and art direction – is probably most well known for his infinitely re-bloggable typographic paintings, where colorful block lettering invades kitsch ‘thrift-store’ lithographs of romantic american landscapes. white’s pastoral scenes are hilariously disrupted with droll, often provocative phrases like ‘all that fake laughin for nothin’ or ‘art is supposed to hypnotize you or something’, that probe the relationship between artist and gallery goer, and challenge the ego of the art world.

the artist has worked as an illustrator, puppeteer, design and art director

white’s words are brought to life beautifully by dress code’s animation, staying true to the humour of the artwork as they slide, float and pop into place. ‘I’m drawn to the humor of vanity’, says white. ‘the title of the show is an artist’s private, nasty thoughts about how he or she is superior to the public and is so worthy of praise and attention. it’s my way of popping bubbles and kicking pedestals.’

the exhibition, entitled ‘I’M HAVING A DIALOGUE WITH THE UNIVERSE AND YOU’RE JUST SITTING THERE’, will run at joshua liner gallery until october 8th, 2016 and features an assortment of the artist’s paintings, murals, installations and kinetic sculptures.

white eschews the white walls of the gallery in favor of huge cardboard hands

colorful lettering invades peaceful, bucolic scenes of american life

white uses wit and color to probe societal structures, and challenge the ego of the art world

based in LA, white is originally from chattanooga, tennessee

his romantic landscapes are reminiscent of thrift store paintings

white is closely connected to the music industry and has been the art director for a number of videos

 
the studio drives white up avenue A as he strums his banjo

the exhibition runs until october 8th, 2016

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: peter corboy | designboom