New Generation: James Verbicky, Robert Montgomery and Olivia Steele

La Jolla, California – After a decade of consistently presenting an internationally recognized program in La Jolla, Madison Gallery is expanding to a second location in the Cedros Design District of Solana Beach. The grand opening on Saturday, May 26th 2018 features its inaugural exhibition, New Generation, with artists James Verbicky and Robert Montgomery and is sponsored by KARMA Automotive, Modern Luxury Magazine, FIT Gym, GEM&BOLT Mezcal, Pacific Sotheby’s International Realty and beats by Josh Hartley. This exhibition reflects on the instinctual intercommunication between artist and viewer and how methods of conversation are constantly evolving; yet the message remains the same. Words are power and bring new light to newer generations.

The three dimensional surfaces of Canadian born artist, James Verbicky’s mixed-media works transcend traditional painting and venture into the realm of sculpture. By utilizing vintage media and graphics, advertisements, and obsolete branding materials, Verbicky presents us with the result of decades of attempts to persuade, manipulate, and coerce through subtle and suggestive imagery. His works are at once deeply conceptual and hauntingly beautiful and abstract, capturing both forgotten and persisting icons of media and reminding us that we are all constantly being influenced.

KARMA Automotive partners with artists like Verbicky, who share the company's trailblazing and innovative DNA. For his work on the Karma Revero, Verbicky used hand-painting and stencil techniques to apply meticulous layers of color and follow the sensuous lines of the car's body. Verbicky's color fields, evocative language, and symbolic imagery are used to accentuate and emphasize the soul of the Karma Revero. The result is a vehicle art piece that is modern yet timeless.

Light artist Olivia Steele personifies the contemporary storyteller and uses the traditional medium of neon
to form her striking expressions that address the vortex of modernity. Her neon works are short, punctuated
truths that mirror the ingenuity (or malaise) of the digital age. Her expansive career has seen her impart
fragments of wisdom and wit all over the globe, from Tulum to Berlin to Mumbai in the form of site-specific
land art and indoor installation.

Scottish artist and poet, Robert Montgomery follows the tradition of conceptual art while bringing a poetic voice to text-based art. In such, he occupies a delicate space between street art and academia, bringing his slyly political art to the public sphere. His aim is to address all- encompassing, universal themes such as power, love, and human kindness in electric light—or, dramatically, even fire. His simple, graphic poems have since been plastered, often illegally, over advertisements and billboards internationally.

Founded in 2001, Madison Gallery is committed to representing emerging, mid-career and established international artists whom work in a range of media. Inspired by an earnest dedication and passion for art, the gallery consistently exhibits a high standard of contemporary art. Madison Gallery works closely in building private, corporate and public collections thus placing it amongst the leading contemporary galleries in California. Blouin Modern Painters Magazine has recognized our program for the fifth year in a row as one of the Top 500 galleries worldwide.