JOHNNY OTTO
SQUATTER'S RITES
What would you do if the landlord stopped collecting rent and allowed squatters to take over an abandoned Fairfax-district apartment right next to yours? Why, commandeer the empty site, run extension cords from your pad into the space and create an art collective, of course. Tha's exactly what host/artist - not to mention beautiful - ANDY SCHEER did when he brought together artists HOLLAND, DAVID FRUDIS, MICHAEL MORRISON, JOHNNY OTTO, and just plain old OTTO for ARTSQUAT recently. Judging by the refreshments (beer and a boozy pink punch - what squatter can afford champagne?), this was no fancy-shmancy party. Among the smart art tarts milling and swilling while reviewing the hand-painted photographs, illustrations, and paintings were actor ALEXIS ARQUETTE, superstar CANDYASS, hairchopper FRANKIE PAYNE, PETRA HAYDEN (formerly of THAT DOG), Aussie transplants BELINDA GAVIN and her hot boyfriend MULLY, saucy SELENA, who got into the spirit of the evening by painting "ARTSQUAT" across her breasts (now that's what we call titillating), club king JOSH WELLS, photographer ANDY DEVINE, cocksucker to the stars HAGATHA, the long-lost but not missed SHELVELVA KENNEDY-SINATRA, and brassy babe MISS ANDRA.
- LA WEEKLY
J.V. McAuley
COLLECTIONS
MICHELLE LOLLI LOS ANGELES,CA
SHIRLEY LEVI LOS ANGELES,CA
GREG OTTO LOS ANGELES,CA
LOUIS HAGNEY LOS ANGELES,CA
PATTY HEALY LOS ANGELES,CA
NATALIE MILLER LOS ANGELES,CA
ISABEL DESANTI LOS ANGELES,CA
RUBEN FENWICK LOS ANGELES,CA
IAN SMITH TORONTO,CANADA
MARC JOFFE WINDSOR,CANADA
ANTHONY GRAY WINDSOR,CANADA
DON SCOTTI LOS ANGELES,CA
DAN HELKA DETROIT,MI
MARK SIMMONS LOS ANGELS,CA
DEBBIE DIAMOND LOS ANGELES,CA
GILROY ARIJON TOKYO,JAPAN
KIM SU TOKYO,JAPAN
STACY CASE LOS ANGELES,CA
ELDON DAITWEILER LOS ANGELES,CA
KATY GARAS SANTA MONICA,CA
DANIEL FRANCO NEW YORK,NY
SHIHO AMANO NEW YORK,NY
MICHAEL HALE LOS ANGELES,CA
ELDON DAETWEILER FRESNO,CA
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TRIBAL.SEXUAL
TEACH YOURSELF. VALUE YOUR GENES. MAKE ART.
After his ungraceful, terrifying birth in 1966, the fourth of what would become a tribe of six kids, Johnny Otto went on to lead a life of extreme dolor. Otto received little notice while attending Catholic school, but did manage to walk away with his faith in humanity severly destroyed. Otto stopped attending church at the age of seventeen choosing instead to become friends with the neighborhood thieves, swindlers, and cretins whom he was certain were better people that the bible swinging jocks and cheerleaders.
Realizing from an early age, the cruel, barbaric nature of the world, Otto isolated himself as much as possible from his fellow man and created an alternative, chimerical reality manifest through his poetry, art, music, and film. Otto's work often reflects a hedonistic world occupied by disfigured savages that, despite their chaotic arrangement, seem to be in a state of permanent bliss, seeking and finding unity in masses.
He struggles to find his place amongst the myriad of other misfits and crackpots that populate the urban landscape that we affectionately refer to as "civilization". In the future one should expect to see Johnny Otto living off the land in the south of France, painting grotesque epitomes of the human form, with Crumb on one side, and the plebeians tending the grape vines on the other other side. Until then please help restore his dwindling spirit by being kind to strangers, avoiding hate, greed and ignorance. And buy his damn art.
To request more info, get pricing, inquire about medium, to find out about any other details or to exhibit Johnny Otto's paintings, please EMAIL
BRIEF BIOGRAPHY
1966 BORN IN BAYVILLE, OHIO
1971 MOVED TO CANADA WITH FAMILY
1974-1985 ATTENDED PRIVATE CATHOLIC SCHOOLS
1986-1999 ATTENDED THE UNIVERSITY OF WINDSOR
1989 WON "BEST SCRIPT" AT C.O.S.T. FESTIVAL IN CANADA
1990 MOVED TO LOS ANGELES
1993 HIS FATHER DIES AT AGE 63
1996 MARRIES ARTIST SHIHO AMANO
1999 CO-FOUNDER OF ARTSQUAT
1999 BEGINS TRIBAL.SEXUAL SERIES
2000 DIVORCES ARTIST SHIHO AMANO
2001 BROTHER ERIC DIES AT AGE 39
2001 OTTOSFILMS: WROTE, DIRECTED AND PRODUCED DV FEATURE FILM "BRUISED"
2002 FOUNDED OPC APPAREL
2003 SOLO EXHIBIT AT HEADQUARTERS FOR TRIBAL.SEXUAL SERIES
2006 JOINS RE-BEL RECORDS AS PARTNER
2006 SLIMDUNCE - 7 FILMS IN 7 WEEKS - DIRECTS/SHOOTS/EDITS 7 SHORT FILMS
2007-2008 CONTINUES TO SHOW WORK PRIVATELY
EDUCATION
Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) University of Windsor, Ontario. Canada
PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES
Member of The American Film Institute
Co-Founder of the art collective ARTSQUAT
CEO of Ottosfilms
Designer/Founder for OPC APPAREL
Co-Founder of Celblock Animation with Michael Morrison
SOME EXHIBITIONS (from 1988 - Present)
1988 GROUP SHOW/SUBWAY EXHIBITIONS - ABSTARCT PAINTINGS - UNIVERSITY OF WINDSOR, ONTARIO. CANADA
1989 SOLO EXHIBIT/RIVERFRONT GALLERY- FIGURATIVE PAINTINGS AND SKETCHES - WINDSOR, ONTARIO. CANADA
1989-1990 WRITER/DIRECTOR FOR THE AWARD WINNING SHORT "THE ECSTACY BARBER SHOP" - UNIVERSITY OF WINDSOR FILM PROGRAM
1990-1991 CURATOR/PARTICIPANT FOR GROUP SHOW "MEGABOYS" - FEATURING 20 EMERGING ARTISTS SPONSORED MY FARHAD NOVIAN AND SIMON MILLER - LOS ANGELES,CA
1991-1993 CREATED SEVERAL ABSTRACT PIECES FOR ANGEL ART PROJECT ANGEL FOOD ART AUCTION PACIFIC DESIGN CENTER - LOS ANGELES, CA
1993 ART IN THE ALLEY - EXPERIMENTAL DRIVE-THRU ART EXHIBIT- FEATURING ABSTRACT AND FIGURATIVE PAINTINGS - LOS ANGELES,CA
1994 PRIVATE SOLO SHOW- ABSTRACT AND FIGURATIVE PAINTINGS - LOS ANGELES,CA
1996 SOLO EXHIBIT AT MINISTRY GALLERY - ABSTRACT AND FIGURATIVE PAINTINGS - LOS ANGELES,CA
1999 ZERO ONE GALLERY - GROUP AUCTION - ABSTRACT AND FIGURATIVE PAINTINGS - LOS ANGELES,CA
1999 CO-FOUNDER OF ARTSQUAT 1ST GROUP SHOW - EXPERIMENTAL, CONCEPTUAL ART - LOS ANGELES,CA
2000 ARTSQUAT 2ND GROUP SHOW - EXPERIMENTAL, CONCEPTUAL ART - LOS ANGELES,CA
2004 HEADQUARTERS: SOLO EXHIBIT - TRIBAL.SEXUAL TRIBAL, MINIMALISM. SKECTHES AND PAINTINGS - LOS ANGELES,CA
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