War and remembrance

Angelique Flores

HUNTINGTON BEACH -- Aircraft and war bind two Southern California artists

together. For Michael Aschenbrenner, it is an experience with a

helicopter during the Vietnam War that inspires him. For Dean DeCocker,

art comes from a love of airplanes and the construction of World War II

aircraft.

Their bodies of work, which vastly diverge in their expressions, are on

display at the Huntington Beach Art Center.

Aschenbrenner’s Selected Survey exhibition includes a collection of glass

sculptures, mixed media installation, drawings and paintings that all

feature bones. Glass bones. Purple bones. Chicken bones.

For 22 years, this shape has occupied Aschenbrenner’s art. But it took

someone else to point out the recurring bone theme, which is an

underlying expression of his experience during the Vietnam War.

Fresh out of high school, Aschenbrenner served in the Army during the

war, until he injured his knee jumping from a helicopter.

“All of his work is about healing,” said Darlene DeAngelo, the Art

Center’s curator.

The 51-year-old artist’s most striking body of work may be the Damaged

Bones series. One installation in the series has 24 elements -- each a

bone of a different color, shape and size.

“I think of them as individual brush strokes,” Aschenbrenner said.

All of his bones have splints made of different combinations of gauze,

sticks, wire and paper.

Aschenbrenner’s newest pieces somewhat depart from his earlier bone

series. He uses brighter colors and weaves shapes into the glass bones.

“He has wonderful little things going on, like dogs, hearts, flowers and

teapots growing out of the bones,” DeAngelo said.

Aschenbrenner lives in Upland. His works have been exhibited

internationally, including displays at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and

the Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art at Pepperdine University.

Dean DeCocker’s Works from the Pacific Campaign exhibition also reflects

recurring shapes. The 39-year-old artist has long been fascinated by

planes, especially older ones. In his work, he reuses the basic shapes of

the propeller and of airplane fragments for his sculptures and

installations. The original shapes are illustrated in his lithoprints of

old airplanes.

“I never really got bored with the shapes,” DeCocker said of the figures

that he has been using for 11 years.

The wall constructions and sculptures are made of simple materials:

metal, wood, plastics, canvas, fiberglass and plexiglass.

“Nothing is high-tech. It’s all general materials that were available

during the 1940s, except for a few types of plastics,” he said.

Most of these minimalist pieces are white or beige, with the latest works

having more color. When he paints, DeCocker only uses colors that are

aviation approved.

Besides the aircraft shapes, DeCocker also uses the shape of the mailbox.

Whatever the shape is, the aircraft and war theme is apparent -- either

through the installations’ flight-like suspension or through the titles

which are taken from World War II battles.

Another strong feature of the art pieces are the shadows created by the

lighting from above.

“You just want to crawl in the shadows and get into them,” DeAngelo said.

This is particularly true in “Ring Around Rubal,” a work DeCocker feels

may be his best. This construction has connected black wood pieces in the

shape of a plane’s wing fragment outstretched like open arms, reaching

about 10 feet across.

“He makes you look at ordinary things differently,” DeAngelo said.

DeCocker lives in Montebello and as a boy spent summers in Huntington

Beach.

Also on display at the Art Center’s store is the first Art In Store show,

which gives emerging artists an opportunity to exhibit pieces.

Featured in this presentation is the work of Max Prothko. His show,

Dogmatic, features a collection of installations that reflect his

interest in surrealism. He combines familiar objects -- such as fruit,

body shapes and a television -- and boxes them in diorama-like display.

The exhibits run until May 14. Admission is $3, or $2 for students and

seniors, and free for members. The gallery is at 538 Main St., Huntington

Beach. For more information, call 374-1650.