Episode #206: This episode of ART21 "Exclusive" provides an in-depth look at the painting process of Eli Sudbrack, a principal member of the artist collective assume vivid astro focus. Painting on canvas for the first time in his career, Sudbrack and his assistants work with Krink K-60 paints (commonly used by graffiti taggers), though the fast-drying medium poses a challenge when it is applied to canvas. Sudbrack has devised a solution: he paints on layered transparency sheets and replicates the final image on stretched canvas. This two-part process allows him to experiment with different colors, shapes, and patterns—many of which reference the works of other artists such as Marcel Duchamp. Sudbrack's painting "Cyclops Bride" (2014) is shown throughout its evolution in his studio, and as a finished painting at The Suzanne Geiss Company in New York, NY.

The artist collective assume vivid astro focus (avaf) fuses drawing, sculpture, painting, video, and performance into carnavalesque installations in which gender, politics, and cultural codes float freely. A study in visual adaptation and modification, avaf's work recycles and transforms imagery from one project to the next—often in the form of densely patterned wallpapers and graphic signage. Personal expression and a lust for life feature prominently in projects simultaneously rooted in the politics of free speech, civil rights, and the dissolution of rigid classifications of identity.

Learn more about the artists at:
http://www.art21.org/artists/assume-vivid-astro-focus

CREDITS: Producer: Ian Forster. Consulting Producer: Wesley Miller & Nick Ravich. Interviewer: Ian Forster. Camera: John Marton. Sound: Ian Forster. Editor: Morgan Riles. Artwork Courtesy: assume vivid astro focus & The Suzanne Geiss Company. Special Thanks: Ulrika Andersson & Christine Wilcox Ackerman. Theme Music: Peter Foley.

ART21 "Exclusive" is supported, in part, by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council; 21c Museum Hotel, and by individual contributors.