Clayton Schiff's Surreal Urban Visions at Sebastian Gladstone

Clayton Schiff presents his most arresting paintings to date at Sebastian Gladstone Gallery in Los Angeles, transforming daily walks into surreal, terrifying scenes. The canvases feature dream-skewed figures in ochres and violets, inspired by strolls in Forest Hills, Queens, and Yonkers, where birds fight over berries and tree roots envelop sleeping men. Works like 'Good Spot' depict a man urinating in public, referencing Kippenberger, Breugel, and Steven Shearer, while 'Location' scrambles a worldview for a naked protagonist. 'Free-For-All' stages a bird battle against pavement, and 'Lot' shows overgrown urban territory with a man yearning for wildness. Schiff's cartooning Disney-fies abject terror, making it benign yet haunting.