Matt Straub: Badlands is a solo exhibition of new paintings by Matt Straub. Born in Cheyenne, Wyoming, Matt Straub reveals his deep nostalgia for the American West in his work. Featured in Straub’s painting are the classic Western iconography images of cowboys, cowgirls, guns and horses.

Revert to Type is a group exhibition exploring the place of text in the work of six leading international artists – Tracey Emin, Jamie Reid, Stuart Semple, Nathan James and Hayden Kays.

Highlights include a signed autobiographical poem by Tracey Emin titled Fighting for Love, and artwork by Jamie Reid that was originally created as promotional material for Punk band The Sex Pistols.

Matt Straub: Badlands and Revert To Type will open 7 November – 7 December 2009. For more information see www.opus-art.com, or email enquiries@opus-art.com

Winconek is an interesting proposition; a classically trained graffiti artist who is equally at home creating work for a gallery as he is creating pieces on the street.

When asked about his work Oliver stated “My artwork is heavily focused on the use of colour and getting back to the aesthetics of art without getting too bogged down with hidden messages, and politics.”

For more information or to buy visit www.opusunderground.com

NewcastleGateshead Art Fair is the largest commercial Art Fair in North East. Now in its third year, the Art Fair has an exciting range of Northern, National and International Galleries, selling unique artworks.

Artists we’ll be exhibiting include Karl de Vroomen, Oliver Winconek, Carolina Ambida, Chris Acheson, Pamela Raith, SheOne, Chris Kettle, CRASH and Peter Blake.

There are a limited number of invites for the Art Fair, if you’re interested in attending please email your name, telephone number and postal address to enquiries@opus-art.com

Choose from a huge range of prints across Opus Art and Opus Underground, by artists including Sir Peter Blake, Henrik Simonsen, Peter Davies, William Klein, Antony Micallef, Nathan James, Chris Kettle, Prefab, Jenn Porreca, Martin Wittfooth and many more.

Buy three prints by the same artist, or mix and match photography, contemporary and urban art – the offer applies to all prints listed on our website! Email enquiries@opus-art.com or call us on +44 (0) 191 213 0295 to place your order.

Click here to browse >>>

* Lowest priced print free, not to be used in conjunction with any other offer.

Static are a design collective that draw on their combined exposure to all forms of art and design, media influences, everyday life and social and environmental influences. Bringing a very graphic style to the table, they continually come back with fresh ideas and imagery.

Static specialise in limited edition prints and originals, all of which are created by hand.

For more information on Statis and other urban artists, see www.opusunderground.com

Dark Surrealism is a collection of paintings and prints by Dan Baldwin, Claudia Drake, Marie Blanco Hendrickx, Laurie Hogin, Laurie Lipton and Kirsty Whiten. Visually these artists may be working in very different styles, but they have in common a love of the surreal, macabre and fairy tale. Subjects include strange, hybrid creatures, skeletons, predatory femme fatales, top-hatted rabbits, clowns and beautifully strange dolls.

Like Alice falling down a rabbit hole, enter our fantasy world populated by peculiar and anthropomorphic creatures at the private view of Dark Surrealism, from 6pm on Friday 2 October 2009. The show runs from 3-31 October.

For more information see www.opus-art.com

For more information about Kirsty Whiten and to view more of her work see www.opusunderground.com

The exhibition incorporates affordable painting, print, photography and sculpture, by the art stars of the future – affordable today, priceless tomorrow?

Artists showing in Fresh Cream are Hector de Gregorio, Claas Gutsche, Sarah Lederman, Jonathan Lynch, Pamela Raith and Jonathan Ridge.

One of our new artists is contemporary photographer, Pamela Raith.  Raith explores the creation of contemplative space: photographs as a site of reflection on the landscape and the undisclosed stories and ideas.

‘Untitled‘ 2009
Giclee print, edition of 3

For more information visit www.opus-art.com or www.opusunderground.com

Take a look at HUSH & Melody’s collaboration:

Hush is an urban artist who worked in Hong Kong for a number of years as a graphic designer/Illustrator before recently returning to the UK. His popularity is soaring, with a sell out London show, alongside high profile street pieces, sold out print runs and collaborations.

With shows coming up in London and LA, Hush draws his influence from a wide variety of modern culture to create his work.  His main interests being graphic-novels, animation, graphic-design, graffiti art, urban art and contemporary painting.

To read the article in full and see the other artists taking part in the Style & Design project, visit Complex Magazine’s Blog.

For more information about HUSH and other urban artists at Opus Underground visit www.opusunderground.com

And we caught the whole thing on camera…

James Choules, who adopts the alter-ego of SHEONE, is a London based artist with a unique brand of abstract painting that is rooted deep in the new wave graffiti era of early eighties New York.  His trademark strokes and bold expressive approach to image making put him firmly in the present. ReFill Magazine to refer to him as ‘a leading cultural artist’.

SHEONE has built a reputation for making complex installation paintings, being able to contend comfortably with very large and often unruly spaces.

The mini will later be auctioned for charity.

SHEONE’s work features alongside fellow graffiti artist – CRASH as part of the exhibition ‘POP CRIME‘ at Opus Art until August 31st 2009.