For Art Walk tonight, Reverie & Rock Art Gallery will be featuring the hybrid art of Steve Luongo, world renowned drummer, producer, songwriter, visual artist and Director of the John Entwistle Foundation.
Luongo has been creating works of art since his early teens, Although he has worked with oil, acrylics, pen and ink and charcoal, he considers digital photography and his own unique hybrid art to be his main creative platform. His work consists of mixed-media digital pieces that feature liquid graphics and colours that can only be achieved with modern computers. They are then finished with painterly surface texture seen on traditional oil and acrylic paintings.
Since appearing on the local Fort Myers art scene (he enjoyed a solo show at HOWL Gallery/Tattoo in April of 2010), Steve’s hybrid art has received tremendous praise and has been purchased by collectors both locally and internationally. A number of Steve's works can be seen currently at Dunkin’s Diamonds at 11500 South Cleveland Ave Fort Myers, Dunkin’s Diamonds at Gulf Coast Town Center, and KJ Designs.
A drummer and recording artist since the age of 13, Luongo is perhaps best known for his collaborations with John Entwistle, the legendary bass guitarist for The Who. The two musicians became the best of friends and Steve produced, performed, co-wrote and toured with The John Entwistle Band until John’s death in 2002. It was Steve who wrote and delivered the eulogy at Entwistle’s memorial service in London, and Luongo later produced and directed the documentary film, An Ox’s Tale: The John Entwistle Story.
Besides Entwistle, Steve has also toured with Leslie West/Mountain, Alan Parsons, Todd Rundgren, Heart’s Ann Wilson and played in one-off recording sessions or performances with Richie Blackmore, Joe Walsh and Billy Squier.
Luongo also acted as producer, songwriter and drummer for a project involving Brian Johnson (vocals) and Cliff Williams (bass) of AC/DC fame. Along with guitarist Mark Hitt, the informal quartet co-wrote and recorded 10 tracks in the studio. The foursome also toured successfully in 2007 to raise funds for The John Entwistle Foundation. As a result, the foundation opened the Cliff Williams music therapy room in Ft. Myers and the Brian Johnson music therapy room in Sarasota.
More recently, Steve performed a set of classic material with Cream bassists/vocalist Jack Bruce to a sell out crowd at Koka Booth Amphitheatre in Raleigh, North Carolina. The trio featured Jack Bruce on vocals and bass, Mark Hitt on guitar with Steve on drums and back-up vocals.
Luongo will be on hand during the Art Walk reception from 6-10 p.m. Entertainment during the reception will be provided by acoustic guitarist Jonathan Warner.
The Luongo exhibition is a terrific fit for Reverie & Rock, which is home to the digital surrealism of Kathy Kuser and the rock and country concert photography of Jamie Kuser. “With my art, I want to bring a fresh and contemporary twist to a long established medium – surrealism,” says Kathy Kuser. “I find that through tragedy comes hurt and healing. At 50, I am at a point of re-evaluating life’s direction and I find myself invigorated by my new form of artistic expression. Using my skills as a graphic designer, I create 2D/3D digital surrealism. Through a mystical and fantasy driven vision, a story emerges from my canvas. I use stark details with transitional blending; thus my art takes flight.”
The new downtown Fort Myers art space also showcases the concert photography of Jamie Kuser. For more than 15 years, Jamie has been photographing national recording artists while they perform on stage. From AC/DC to ZZ Top, and from Alan Jackson to Sugarland, Jamie has photographed more than 150 national artists live in concert. His photos have appeared on national tour T-shirts, VH1’s Behind the Music, the Associated Press Photo Archives, published in daily newspapers and, of course, in Southwest Florida’s own Happenings Magazine.
Reverie & Rock Art Gallery is located at 1528 Jackson St. in the downtown Fort Myers River District.
Comments