Project Description

Eric Zammitt
Phoenix Art Gallery

b. 1960, Los Angeles, CA

Eric Zammitt’s work alludes to the dynamics and interplay of dual elements: matter and energy, spirit and body, emotion and intellect. It is simultaneously about our Gestalt experience of the drama and beauty of creation, our intellectual fascination with its parts, and how they come together to create a whole.

One of the methods to express this interplay is by compounding complexes of patterned color into synergistic wholes. Color and pattern are primal to our history and survival. They touch parts of us that are archetypal, rooted in nature, and infinitely curious. Zammitt employs abstraction and minimalism as ways to bypass the literal and go directly to metaphor, emotion, and the ineffable. At the same time, like classical music, which integrates intellect and emotion, his works are based in structure, rhythm, and a form of logic.

These “paintings” are made from tens of thousands of solid bits of colored acrylic plastic. They are laminated into cohesive panels through an intensive process of layering, slicing, reassembly, wet-sanding and polishing. For Zammitt, colored acrylic plastics are simply solid forms of paint, and his “brushes” are the band saw, table saw, and glue.

EDUCATION
Pasadena City College, Associate in Arts Degree
California State University, Los Angeles
Three years independent study and travel in Japan and greater Asia
 
SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2022
Dissolve, at the UCI Claire Trevor School of the Arts, Los Angeles, CA
2016
Eric Zammitt – Radiation, Scott Richards Contemporary Art, San Francisco, CA
2013
Eric Zammitt, Peter Blake Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA
2013
Material Distillation, David Richard Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
2010
Eric Zammitt – Acrylic Plastic Constructions, Davis and Cline Gallery, Ashland, OR
2008
Acrylic Constructions, Scott Richards Contemporary Art, San Francisco, CA
2006
Cabin Fever, Newspace Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2003
Particles and Waves, Harris Gallery, University of La Verne, La Vernne, CA
1996
Eric Zammitt, David Lawrence Gallery, Beverly Hills, CA
1995
Eric Zammitt, Pasadena City College Art Gallery, Pasadena, CA
 
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2021
Annual Group Show II, Bentley Gallery, Phoenix, AZ
2021
Chromatic, Bentley Gallery, Phoenix, AZ
2019
Color Spectrum, Bentley Gallery, Phoenix, AZ
2018
Intersecting at the Edge, three person show with Karl Benjamin and Heather Gwen Martin, Claremont Museum of Art, Claremont, CA
2016
Intent Fortuity, Jamie Brooks Fine Art, Costa Mesa, CA
2015
Elemental – Seeing the Light, Curated by John David Obrien, Sturt Haaga Gallery, Descanso Gardens, Los Angeles, CA
2015
Ethereal, William Turner Gallery, Santa Monica, CA
2015
Without Dialogue, Garboushian Gallery, Beverly Hills, CA
2014
Beyond the Surface, Tandem show with Jennifer Faist. Launch Gallery, Los Angeles,CA
2014
A to Z, Brett Rubicco Gallery, Newport Beach, CA
2014
Brave New World, Scott Richards Contemporary Art, San Francisco, CA
2013
20 Year Anniversary Show, Peter Blake Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA
2012
Random Acts of Time, Curated by William Moreno, Orange County Center for Contemporary Art, Santa Ana, CA
2009
Locals Only, Curated by Mat Gleason, Look Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2009
Rolling and Ruling, Sabina Lee Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2007
Themes and Variations, Torrance Art Museum, Torrance, CA
2006
Good to Go, Newspace Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2006
All in the Family, Group show including Anne Thorhycroft with Laddie John and Ariel Dill, Ed and Eddie Ruscha, Ed and Andy Moses, and Norman Zammitt. Curated by Molllie Barnes. George Billis
2005
Good Clean Fun, The Brewery Project, Los Angeles, CA
2005
Connie Goldman / Eric Zammitt, Tangent Contemporary Art, San Francisco, CA
2004
Three Some, Three person exhibition with Tim Nolan and Gary Symanski, Newspace Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2003
Merge, Curated by Jennifer Faist, Andlab, Los Angeles, CA
2003
Gridlock, Curated by Kristina Newhouse, West L.A. College, CA
2003
Trans Fab (Transcendental Fabrication), Domestic Setting, Venice, CA
2003
Approaching Perfection, The Brewery Project, Los Angeles, CA
2002
Wall of Honor, permanent installation, donor wall, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX
2002
Kaleidoscope, Raid Projects, Los Angeles, CA
2002
Venice Art Walk Silent Auction, Venice, CA
2002
Korea International Art Fair, Pusan, Korea, Represented by Sabina Lee Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2001
Venice Art Walk Silent Auction, California Sculpture Garden, Venice, CA Curator: Noel Korten
1997
Skin and Bone, L.A. Municipal Art Gallery, Barnsdall Art Park, Los Angeles, CA Curator: Noel Korten
1996
On and Off the Wall, Riverside Art Museum, Riverside, CA
 
COLLECTIONS
Adams/Central Mixed Use Development, Permanent Public Art Installation, Los Angeles, CA
Arnold and Homeira Goldstien Joni Gordon Estate
Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX
Bibi Space Gallery, Daejon, South Korea
Borusan Foundation Collection, Istanbul, Turkey; New York, NY
Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Palo Alto, CA
Cordish Family Foundation, Baltimore, MD Samawi Collection, Dubai, United Arab Emirate
David Loomstein
Delaware Art Museum, Wilmington, DE
DeWain Valentine
Dr. Kumiko Saito, Hayama, Japan
Dr. Richard Lasarow Estate
Dr. Todd Hutton
Gerald E. Buck Collection Lori Bush, Plug Lighting Inc.
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, Los Angeles, CA
Gina Posalski
Harvey Universal Inc., Los Angeles, CA
The Hearst Foundation Collection, New York, NY
The Held Collection, Held Properties, Los Angeles, CA
Ian Schrager Company, London, UK
Jarrow Formulas Inc., Los Angeles, CA
Jarrow Rogovin
Ken Kaplan
Joannie Stern Sue Tsao
John and Elsie Sadler
Jordan D. Schnitzer Family Foundation, Portland, OR
Los Angeles County Museum of Art – Betty Asher Collection, Los Angeles, CA
Lynda Cumming, Sketchers Corp.
The Margulies Collection at the Warehouse, Martin Z. Margulies Foundation Inc., Miami, FL
Marianne Kim, Daejon, Korea
Marilyn Lasarow and Judge William Lasarow
The Marvin and Elayne Mordes Collection, West Palm Beach, FL
McDonald’s Corporation (McDonald’s Baltimore, Washington Regional Office)
MGM National Harbor Heritage Collection, Washington, D.C.
Mr. & Mrs. Eric Moscahlaidis, New York, NY
Museum of Art and History, Permanent collection, Lancaster, CA
Neil and Pamela Kramer
Palm Springs Art Museum, Palm Springs, CA
Pomona College Museum of Art, Permanent collection, Pomona, CA
Ralph Perl and Rhoda Shapiro
Ron and Una Brasch Collection Movado Group, Inc., New York,
Sammlung Schroth, Soest, Germany
Samuel P. Harn Museum of Art, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
Shuji Kato and Kazumi Kua, Tokyo, Japan
Tony and Cindy Canzoneri
Tsuge Cafe, Tokyo, Japan
United States Federal Courthouse, Los Angeles, CA
University of La Verne, Permanent Collection, La Verne, CA
Wallach Glass Studio, Santa Rosa, CA
 
PUBLIC AND PRIVATE COMMISSIONS
2011
Four story permanent window installation. Community Redevelopment Agency with Meta Housing Corporation Adams/Central Mixed-Use Development, Los Angeles, CA
 
PUBLICATIONS
2013
McLister, Iris. Review of Material Distillation, Art Source, Jan. 2013
2009
Frank, Peter. On the Radar, Seventeen Artists You Should Know About, THE magazine, Sept. 2009
2009
Gleason, Matt. Interview, Coagula Art Journal, Feb. 2009
2005
Miles, Christopher. Do these small bits add to a whole?, Los Angeles Times, Nov. 11, 2005
2004
Gleason, Matt. Review, Artscene, June 22, 2004
2004
Frank, Peter. Art Pick of the Week, L.A. Weekly, July 16 – 22, 2004
2004
Pagel, David. Delight is in the Details, Los Angeles Times, July 2, 2004
2003
Knapp, Michele. Review, Coagula Art Journal, Nov. 2003
2000
Webb, Michael. High Tide, Los Angeles Times Magazine, Dec. 2000
1991
Nilson, Lisbet. Queen of Cups, Los Angeles Magazine, May 1991
1990
Clark, Garth. The Book of Cups, Abbeville Press 1990, cover and p. 21
 

art ltd: Eric Zammitt: “Material Distillation” at David Richard Gallery
Invisible, unfathomable patterns are mysteriously interwoven through empirical existence. The best art, like our favorite experiences, teases unseen worlds into view. In Material Distillation, Eric Zammitt presented a series of large works formed from cut and laminated acrylic plastics, bringing the ethereal down to earth.

Visual Art Source: Editorial Recommendations
LA-based Eric Zammitt’s aesthetic contains slickly abstract sculpture and assemblage works that are constructed from tiny bits of Plexiglas. They often adhere to precisely geometric layouts, but their palette of vibrant colors makes them feel unexpectedly spontaneous and fresh.

THE magazine: On The Radar – Seventeen Artists You Should Know About
Eric Zammitt continues the stylistic arc set in motion by his father, the late finish/fetish painter-sculptor Norman Zammitt.

Los Angeles Times: Do these small bits add to a whole?
Assorted legacies find fresh interpretation and expansion in Eric Zammitt’s works at New-Space.

Los Angeles Times: Delight is in the details
Not so long ago, no artist in his right mind would make a painting based on a grid. The regularity , regimentation and rigor of such restrictively rational structures represented everything art wasn’t – fluid, freewheeling and unpredictable.