Menotti’s Coffee Shop, Venice Beach

March 5, 2014 by kwakualston

Venice is making way for a new coffee shop with a lot of history.  Although Menotti’s has just opened at 56 Windward, its Venice roots are strong-as is the head Barista’s, Christopher “nicely” Abel Alameda.  Alameda was a force working in Intelligentsia followed by Handsome Roasters, and has won the title Coffee Fest World Latte Art Champion three times.  His passion and love of coffee is apparent through not just his intense decisive pours, but also through his 4 tattoos […]

Categories: Venice • Tags: abbot kinney, coffee shop, kwaku alston, leica, leica m9, menottis, photography, venice, venice beach

Art of Studio featured by PDN

March 1, 2014 by kwakualston

Almost every photographer dreams of their own studio–a special private space to freely create and brainstorm, where inspiration and its precise execution is the only thing that matters.  A place where you walk in, and are warmly greeted by light as it splays across decorated walls, books new and old, and your unique tools of the trade.  At least, this was one of my many dreams: to own and operate my very own studio.  An artist’s studio is a reflection […]

Categories: Behind the Scenes, Features, Inspiration, Uncategorized, Venice • Tags: abbot kinney, american photo, art of studio, art of studio space, CA, kwaku alston, pdn, pdn february 2014, pdn magazine, pdn studio, venice, venice art gallery

Art of Studio open Today 11-6!

October 12, 2013 by kwakualston

Off the presses, fresh from Japan Art of Studio is open Saturdays 11-6, so stop by and check out our current exhibit on view, In Between & Outside,  fine art books on view, including special work by Japanese photographer Shingo Wakagi, Venice: A Village by the Sea, and #handadventures prints and books!  Find us at 1346 Abbot Kinney Blvd, Venice, CA 90291 Phone us 310 392 9957 ext 4

Categories: Venice • Tags: abbot kinney, art gallery, art of studio, fine art, fine art prints, gender, gender bender, handadventures, kwaku alston, Los Angeles, los angeles art opening, los angeles events, sara swaty, venice, venice art, venice art gallery, venice beach, venice california

Explore, Shoot, Critique: Venice Beach Street Photography Workshop – August 31st

August 19, 2013 by kwakualston

To end the summer with a bang, we are offering a 1-day Venice Beach Street Photography Workshop for $295 for all of you adventurous photographers– amateur, professional, and anything in between.  Register on Kwakushop to reserve your place today. The Venice Beach Street Photography Workshop is a fun and intensive 1-day workshop held in Venice Beach, California. I will personally guide you through the streets of Venice, where I have called home for over 10 years, and share my street […]

Categories: Events, Venice • Tags: abbot kinney, abbot kinney street photography, abbot kinney workshop, california, iphone, kwaku alston, Los Angeles, los angeles photo workshop, los angeles street photography, los angeles street photography workshop, photography, photography workshop, street photography, street photography workshop, venice, venice beach, venice beach photography workshop, venice beach street, venice beach street photography, venice beach workshop, Venice Los Angeles, workshop

Sungazing in The Sunset Room

August 15, 2013 by kwakualston

  If you stare into the sun for too long, you can go blind–but nothing is more addictive than sungazing or getting lost in the great golden globe.  I’ve always been drawn to water and sunsets, especially during the golden hour.  It’s easy to get lost watching the passage of time as the water softly and slowly rolls back and forth into the horizon.  Although sunsets are quiet and peaceful moments for me, I still feel invigorated by the electric […]

Categories: Behind the Scenes, Events, Venice • Tags: a village by the sea, abbot kinney, art of studio, art show, beautiful, Dan Flavin, golden hour, hawaii, iphone, kwaku alston, kwakushop, photography, sotheby's, Sungazing, sunsets, venice

Upcoming Venice Art Walk!

May 10, 2013 by kwakualston

Please join me for the Venice Art Walk in conjunction with the opening of my new gallery workspace on Sunday, May 19th. Fellow artist and friend Glen Wilson and I are exhibiting recent work from our #VENICE(UN)ENTITLED project at 1346 Abbot Kinney with a variety of multimedia pieces on view inspired by Venice. “From two distinct neighborhood vantages, artists Glen Wilson and Kwaku Alston have witnessed and documented the dramatic transformation of Venice Beach, where each has called home for […]

Categories: Venice • Tags: art show, glen wilson, photography, venice art walk, venice beach, venice beach street photography, Venice Family Clinic, Venice Los Angeles