Images courtesy of 4th Street Vine.

Buttstock & Blunder, a solo art exhibit featuring the “sweetie booshed disarray” of local artist Emily Maddigan, will take 4th Street Vine by storm with an opening reception on Friday, August 21 from 7:00PM to 11:00PM. You can see Maddigan’s collection, being shown for the first time, through Friday, October 24.

The show spans multiple creative styles and examines perspectives of minimalism, social philosophies and the natural and unnatural beauty that surrounds us, according to the announcement. So basically, anything goes.

Maddigan dabbles in several mediums, from sculpture to chandelier art, from sequins to perm rods. Using found objects to create both small and large scale figures and digging through the recesses of misbegotten taxidermy links on Craigslist allow the artist to create makeshift armies of encrusted and bedazzled creatures wearing “blinged-out armor.” If you’re not intrigued, or slightly frightened at this point, you may just be a bit dead inside.

Frequenters of 4th Street Vine may recognize several of her mighty mounted deer that adorned the local watering hole to the bemusement, wonder and awe of those who noticed. The artist enjoys repairing things, gluing things, saving things and rescuing things and is clearly, very intrigued by cast off materials. Beach trash, found wood scraps and all manner of detritus can be found clinging to her creatures, who endure, according to the announcement, an enchantment and redemption process.

Maddigan was born in Metro Detroit Michigan, according to her bio, and studied at Michigan State University. She traveled through various study abroad programs to Mexico and several countries in Africa. She completed a Masters of Fine Arts degree at California State University Long Beach in 2005. Maddigan has shown her work in many states including California, Oregon, Michigan, Massachusetts and New York. She has completed a residency at the Armory Center for the Arts and currently works and lives in Long Beach, California.