Visual O: Works by a Collection of Artists

Haleh Mashian, MASH Gallery founder, has curated the highlight of the Los Angeles summer exhibitions, VISUAL O. VISUAL O stands for “Visual Orgasm,” a state of being Mashian defines as the moment “the artist becomes one with the piece and stops the process of creating and lets the painting take over.” Mashian connects the release of orgasms as the space between thought and physicality. “There is no ‘mind’ in an orgasm. That is one of the reasons it’s pleasurable,” Mashian enlightens. “It starts with the physical and becomes an expression of the divine.”

VISUAL O features the works of ANDY MOSES, CHASE LANGFORD, KENNY
NGUYEN, LISA BETH OLDER, LISA SCHULTE, ROBERT STANDISH, MICHELLE
BENOIT, JOHN MONN, and HALEH MASHIAN. Shown together in juxtaposition,
VISUAL O is an orgasmic attack on the visual sense. Each artist works with the vibrancy
of acrylics with startling results. Venice artist, Andy Moses, harnesses the viscosity of
the acrylic paint itself as a way of painting. His circular works represent abstract
landscapes in globe form: a world in a marble. Los Angeles-based artist, Chase
Langford, invented Geographic Expressionism, the next iteration of abstract
expressionism, which uses a cartographic language of the natural world as inspiration.
Mixed media sculptor, Kenny Nguyen hand weaves silk and other materials creating
rippling surfaces and textures. Lisa Beth Older’s perspective of dense abstraction
reveals a controlled abandonment. Well-known neon artist, Lisa Schulte’s newest work
plays with geometric dimension and fluid rigidity. Mashian’s work from the Rose Series,
re-interprets the singular beauty of the rose to the point of abstraction. What is at first a
familiar flora is depicted as a strange landscape—both new and alluring.

With an interest in metaphysics, Robert Standish uses basic elements like line, color
and texture, to represent the dynamism, constancy and transcendent flow of the
universe. When asked about his inspiration behind his pieces he replied, “Spirituality,
beauty, and the enjoyment I get from doing what feels authentic, unrestrained, uplifting
and well executed.

“In each work, we see that the artist uses their mind, their craft, their experiences and
technique to create. Within the process, there is a letting go—a surrender that
happens—that is similar to the orgasmic experience,” explores Mashian. “Perhaps that
is the joy of painting after all—to get lost in the process while staying fully conscious,
which is the basis for Tantric sex.”

“Each work has a charm, an individuality. The work is not a product of training, it is a
harmonious expression of the originality of the person, the artist. It is the essential truth
and beauty of form, color and texture.” For Mashian, the resulting works are a fusion of

their mastership and the material the artists use based on knowledge, intelligence and
insight that is fueled by their imagination. “These artists consistently create from the
constructive quality with force and sincerity where the world of ideas and the world of
matter merge artistically.”