Juxtapoz

Juxtapoz
Title	Juxtapoz
Editor	Evan Pricco
Category	Art magazine
Company	High Speed Productions
Country	United States
Based	San Francisco, California
Language	English
Firstdate	1994
Issn	1073-1720

Juxtapoz Juxtapoz is a monthly art magazine founded in 1994 that highlights contemporary and underground visual art, countercultural aesthetics, and cross-genre practices. It blends coverage of painters, illustrators, street artists, and designers alongside profiles, studio visits, and interviews, attracting readers across San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York City, London, and international art scenes. The magazine has been associated with exhibitions, books, and collaborations involving galleries, museums, and commercial brands.

History

Founded in 1994 by a collective of artists, curators, and publishers, Juxtapoz emerged amid the 1990s West Coast art renaissance linked to scenes in San Francisco, Oakland, and Los Angeles. Early figures involved founders and contributors who intersected with galleries such as La Luz de Jesus Gallery and networks tied to Lowbrow art, Pop Surrealism, and alternatives to traditional institutions like the Museum of Modern Art and the Whitney Museum of American Art. The publication’s trajectory paralleled expansions in art fairs, independent galleries, and cultural festivals in cities including Miami and Paris, with circulation growth and editorial shifts during the 2000s and 2010s as digital platforms like Instagram and Facebook reshaped exposure for artists.

Editorial and Content Profile

The magazine’s editorial stance emphasizes art that operates outside dominant academic circuits, situating coverage alongside practitioners connected to street art scenes in New York City and Los Angeles, illustrative traditions from Tokyo and London, and designer networks in Milan. Regular features include profiles of studio practices, interviews with artists and curators associated with institutions such as the Tate Modern and the Guggenheim Museum, and critical essays responding to trends visible at events like Art Basel and the Venice Biennale. Contributors have ranged from critics and historians active in contexts like Cooper Union and California College of the Arts to writers engaged with collectors and dealers from galleries including Gagosian Gallery and David Zwirner.

Featured Artists and Movements

Juxtapoz has showcased a wide roster of artists connected to movements and figures such as KAWS, Shepard Fairey, Mark Ryden, Raymond Pettibon, Robert Williams, Barry McGee, Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Takashi Murakami, Yoshitomo Nara, James Jean, Alex Pardee, Ed Templeton, Chris Johanson, Ron English, Swoon, Ben Frost, Cleon Peterson, Mear One, Futura 2000, Os Gemeos, Sergio Mora, Gary Baseman, Todd Schorr, Hikari Shimoda, Hajime Sorayama, Greg “Craola” Simkins, Alfredo Rodriguez, Adrian Tomine, Julie Heffernan, Tristan Eaton, Whisbe, Michele Oka Doner, Ian Francis, Tim Biskup, Paul Insect, Daniel Johnston, Chris Ryniak, Glen E. Friedman, Herb Ritts). Movements frequently referenced include Pop Surrealism, Lowbrow art, Street art, Illustration, Contemporary Figurative painting, and transnational design currents connecting Tokyo and Los Angeles.

Publication and Distribution

Published by High Speed Productions, the magazine is produced in the United States with international distribution spanning galleries, bookstores, and specialty shops in London, Tokyo, Berlin, Paris, and Mexico City. Print issues have been accompanied by special edition books and monographs released through partnerships with publishers and galleries connected to events like Art Basel Miami Beach and dealer circuits including Sotheby’s and Christie’s when market-facing projects intersect. Digital presence expanded through social media platforms and online features that document studio visits and exhibition openings in locations such as Brooklyn and Venice, California.

Events, Exhibitions, and Collaborations

Juxtapoz has partnered with galleries and institutions for group shows, solo exhibitions, and promotional events with partners like La Luz de Jesus Gallery, Mighty Tanaka, Jonathan LeVine Projects, Copro Gallery, and international venues in Tokyo and London. Collaborations have involved festivals and fairs such as Pow! Wow!, ComplexCon, SCOPE Art Show, and Art Basel satellite programming, as well as brand partnerships engaging companies in design and fashion in New York City and Los Angeles. The magazine’s curatorial initiatives have sometimes been presented at offsite spaces during major art weeks and biennials including Frieze.

Reception and Influence

Critics and commentators have noted the magazine’s role in popularizing Lowbrow art and providing visibility to artists outside academy-centered networks like Yale School of Art and Rhode Island School of Design. Coverage in Juxtapoz has been credited with influencing collectors, gallery programming, and mainstream recognition for street and pop-surrealist artists, intersecting with museum acquisitions at institutions such as the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles and private collections appearing in auction houses like Phillips.

Controversies and Criticism

The magazine has faced critique over commercialism, marketplace entanglement with galleries and brands, and debates about aesthetic gatekeeping amid rising celebrity-driven street art linked to figures such as Shepard Fairey and Banksy. Critics associated with academic journals and museum curators have sometimes contested editorial decisions and artist selection, citing tensions between underground authenticity and institutional recognition at biennials like the Venice Biennale and commercial contexts such as Art Basel Miami Beach.

Category:Art magazines