‘Young Adult’ art show turns teen literature into pop art

It’s not every day you find an old ventriloquist’s dummy, only to realize later that it’s demonically possessed and wants to make you its slave for all eternity. But for the subjects of the pop culture obsessed Gallery 1988’s newest art show, situations like that are pretty commonplace.

The show is called “Young Adult,” and it features more than 60 artists depicting some of their favorite young adult literature. Having opened in early February at Gallery 1988’s Melrose location, the free exhibition celebrates teen literature icons, like Slappy, the evil dummy from the “Goosebumps” series; the teen sleuth Nancy Drew; Harriet the Spy; and many other instantly recognizable and beloved characters.

“It’s not pompous. You don’t have to know a lot about art to come in and celebrate what you love,” said Jensen Karp, who used to go under the moniker Hot Karl and frequented freestyle rap battles in Southern California, before he settled down to open Gallery 1988.

Founded almost a decade ago by Karp and his friends, the gallery is meant to make artwork accessible to a younger crowd by focusing on popular culture and inexpensive art.

“My business partner was working in this stuffy gallery, and we just hated the vibe,” said Karp, referring to some of the high end galleries that dominate the art scene.

Karp and his crew looked for young up-and-coming artists that were selling affordable art. From there, the concept took off, Gallery 1988 became a staple in Los Angeles, and over the years, the space has hosted many prominent artists and shows, including a popular annual cult movie favorites exhibit put on by director Kevin Smith.

But what makes pop culture art so popular among the younger crowd? Karp pointed to what he calls the “Tumblr generation.”

“The Tumblr generation seems to appreciate art more than my generation did,” said Karp, referring to the multitude of social networking sites that cater to lovers of art.

Karp said he believes that the younger generation has grown up around art their whole lives, seeing it in on the Internet on various social networking sites. And this translates into younger people wanting to be involved in the art scene, something that Gallery 1988’s pop art can accommodate.

Misha, one of the artists participating in the “Young Adult” show, said she was ecstatic to be involved in the offbeat collection of art depicting teen literature. She contributed two works: one, a take-off on trucker mud flaps, silhouetting Nancy Drew like a traditional mud flap girl; the other is a stylized, Japanese version of the character.

She said she was drawn to the fearlessness of Nancy Drew, and took inspiration from the teen sleuth as she was growing up.

“It doesn’t matter how old it gets, Nancy Drew is still relevant,” Misha said.

She said she also believes there is a kind of communal bonding people can experience over favorite books and characters.

As an artist Misha said she is proud to be included in the “Young Adult” show, and as a fan of literature she said she can’t wait to see what the other artists did.

“Part of the fun of the Gallery 1988 group shows that center on a certain theme is seeing how different artists interpret the focus,” Misha said. “It’s a really great range of people with varying points of view on whatever their subject is.”