“Bring your laundry money!”
Sure, these words are not often part of your typical art-exhibit invite, but if you don't bring your quarters to the Coin-Op Gallery's first exhibit this weekend, you won't see any art.
Stuart Breidenstein and many veterans of the Co-Op Kiosk gallery in Costa Mesa have banded together to challenge the very notion of art as we know it. By combining art with mass consumerism—sort of like Thomas Kinkade but without the crappy landscapes—we get the Coin-Op Gallery. Insert a quarter, see the art. It's as simple as that! Best of all, each artist gets to keep the quarters earned by his or her works—wait, artists keeping the money their art brings in? What a concept!
The show this Saturday night at the 7 Muses gallery in Fullerton marks the first of three shows for the Coin-Op. The next will take place at Orange County's hipster hotspot the LAB, followed by the main event at the Hurley Warehouse. So start looking for a hammer now. You're going to need something to bust open those piggy banks.
Coin-Op Gallery at 7 Muses, 445 W. Wilshire, Fullerton; www.coinopgallery.com; www.7muses.org. Opening reception Sat., 6-9 p.m. Bring your laundry money. All ages. After the opening, the gallery hours are every Sat., 11 a.m.-4 p.m. and by appointment. Show continues through June 30.
