The Pomonan
Published November 16, 2023 6:30am PST

If you haven't already, you should visit Speedy Gallery. Action! is currently on display at Santa Monica's Speedy Gallery until Saturday, November 26. The exhibition is brimming with vitality! Paintings, mixed media, and sculpture are accompanied by a brilliant abundance of sculptural material that contextualizes them. Visitors are encouraged to interact with the award-winning actor's works. The title, ‘Action!’ alludes to the connection between his action painting and his cinematic roots.

Concept

ACTION!
Paintings by Billy Zane

Concept by Billy Zane
– Since the now-legendary Hollywood verb was barked on a film set 100 years ago, ACTION! became the starter pistol for the collective, creative process used in cinema to this day.
A concert of diverse elements, talents and toolsets are primed, and at its utterance, unleashed before the lens, in a shining moment, to be captured forever.
Regardless of all the preparation, once off the starter blocks, what follows is controlled chaos, an improvisation, a sequence of events that effect the following ones uniquely with every TAKE.

In art, ACTION painting, is not dissimilar. Just as the artist informs the canvas with a gesture, the canvas informs artist as to what their next act, or stroke may be as a result.
It’s a conversation in as much like the term for the very words spoken by characters in a film script or improvised by actors on set, “It’s dialogue Jake.”

I am a grateful child of both parents.
31 years an actor, 25 so far as a painter… I happily inhabit both the film and art worlds and each informs the other, so much so, that most of my paintings are made on location; sometimes on set, in the long waits between shots.

I only use materials I can source in field. The more remote and exotic the location the better, as it reduces the number of variables and, for me at least, increases my creative hunger and desire for expression, as access to colors, canvas and brushes become limited. The search for materials, in fact, has become part of my “process”.

This pressing need to create excellence with “what ya got“, be it on film, memory card or on canvas, adds to this addictive urgency, and air of danger. It demands commitment and bold choices, while being responsive and in the moment. Like an Army medic or EMT, I feel like I’m
doing triage; anointing, wrapping, and bandaging a deep blue cut, tending to a fresh crimson gash. And crazy part is I’m the guy that causes the happy accidents!

Annnnnd…Action! -BZ

Curated by Yiwei Lu

ARTIST BIO
Billy Zane is an American artist most often associated with his celebrated work in cinema as an actor, starring in some of the highest-grossing films and tv shows of all time, such as Titanic and Twin Peaks. However, the raw authenticity of his paintings, drawings, and photography has garnered him nearly as much recognition and critical praise. Most of his artwork is created outdoors while working on film sets and with mostly found and recycled materials in remote locations.

Speedy Gallery
2525 Michigan Ave. B5B. Santa Monica, CA, 90404

Hours of Operation
Saturdays : 12 – 7 pm
Tuesday to Friday : 12 – 5pm
Please Call for Appointment (213)248-4712

Holiday Closing:
From December 19, 2021 to January 5, 2022

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