Justin Aversano Reimagines Silkscreen Portraits as a Tarot Deck for His Latest Exhibition
The latest iteration of his acclaimed Smoke and Mirrors series at Gabba Gallery, Los Angeles.
Celebrated photographer Justin Aversano is debuting the latest edition of his “Smoke and Mirrors” series at Gabba Gallery in Los Angeles. As a Web3 advocate, CEO of Quantum Art and Creative Director of SaveArtSpace, the exhibition sees NFTs attached to his limited edition silkscreen prints, which reimagine a tarot deck through photography.
Aversano produced a total of 78 handmade analog portraits printed on papyrus. Deemed as “Hybrid photographic neo-hieroglyphs,” 22 represent the Tarot’s Major Arcana (gold) and 56 the Minor Arcana (silver). “Smoke and Mirrors” nods to contemporary technopaganism and spirituality by offering “a timely exploration of the artist’s memory, history and psychogeography.”
This honest introspective of Aversano’s life entwines the public with the private and marries the world of occult and crypto, such as by aligning an evocative portrait of his father standing by the grave of his late mother for a card titled “Death” or capturing Pussy Riot for “Queen of Cups.” The artist shared, “We’ve been creating these works here for over two years. I had the concept, and I’ve been working on this since 2016. And since March of 2021, we’ve been silk-screening this project to be minted and sold on the blockchain.”
Justin Aversano’s Smoke and Mirrors is available to view from March 25 until April 8, 2023 at Gabba Gallery.
In other art and design news, Pussy Riot’s Nadya Tolokonnikova sets the patriarchy on fire for CIRCA 20:23.
