Jeffrey VALLANCE
A SCATOLOGICAL ESCHATOLOGY
HOLY SHIT!’
† ‡

Jeffrey VALLANCE was born in 1955 in Redondo Beach, CA. In 1979, he received a B.A. from CSUN and in 1981 an M.F.A. from Otis. He lives and works in Los Angeles. His work blurs the lines between object making, installation, performance, curating and writing. Often his projects are site-specific such as burying a frozen chicken at a pet cemetery; traveling to Polynesia to research the myth of Tiki; having audiences with the king of Tonga, the queen and president of Palau and the presidents of Iceland; creating a Richard Nixon Museum; traveling to the Vatican to study Christian relics; installing an exhibit aboard a tugboat in Sweden; curating shows in the fabulous museums of Las Vegas, such as the Liberace and Clown Museum. In Lapland Vallance constructed a shamanic “magic drum,” In Orange County, Mr. Vallance curated the only art world exhibition of the Painter of Light entitled “Thomas Kinkade: Heaven on Earth.” In 1983, he was host of MTV’s The Cutting Edge and appeared on NBC’s Late Night with David Letterman. In 2004, Vallance received the prestigious John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation award. In addition to exhibiting his artwork, Mr. Vallance has written for such publications and journals as Art issues, Artforum, L.A. Weekly, Juxtapoz, Frieze and Fortean Times. He has published over 10 books including: Blinky the Friendly Hen, The World of Jeffrey Vallance: Collected Writings 1978-1994, Christian Dinosaur, Art on the Rocks, Preserving America’s Cultural Heritage, Thomas Kinkade: Heaven on Earth, My Life with Dick, Relics and Reliquaries, The Vallance Bible and Rudis Tractus (Rough Drawing).
† Vallance’s ‘HOLY SHIT!’ appears in full in Hotel #5.
‡ Vallance’s ‘HOLY SHIT!’ is an adapted iteration of an essay first published in the autumn issue of the periodical Art Issues (September/October, 2000), pp. 27-33.
© Jeffrey Valance, 2018.
Reproduced in (and on) Hotel by permission of the Author.
° The text is accompanied by original artworks by JV & assorted historical paraphenalia;
see below for details on the individual images:
Jeffrey Vallance
Las Vegas Martin Luther, 1997
Enamel on Paper—12” x 16”
Courtesy the artists and Edward Cella Art & Architecture
The author at his Lutheran Confirmation in Canoga Park, CA in 1967.
Courtesy the artists and Edward Cella Art & Architecture
Jeffrey Vallance
The Seat of the Reformation, 2018
Marker on Paper—11” x 8 ½“
Courtesy the artists and Edward Cella Art & Architecture
Jeffrey Vallance
An Old Lutheran Joke: Luther Nails His Ninety-five Feces to the Church Door, 2000
Marker on Paper 11” x 8 ½“
Courtesy the artists and Edward Cella Art & Architecture
Jeffrey Vallance
My Sacred Text: Ninety-five Theses, 2007
8 5/8 x 15 3/4 x 2 5/8 inches
Courtesy the artists and Edward Cella Art & Architecture
Jeffrey Vallance
Luther on the Privy, Seeing an Apparition of the Devil, 2000
Marker on Paper— 7 ½ “ x 9 “
‡ Vallance’s ‘HOLY SHIT!’ is an adapted iteration of an essay first published in the autumn issue of the periodical Art Issues (September/October, 2000), pp. 27-33.
© Jeffrey Valance, 2018.
Reproduced in (and on) Hotel by permission of the Author.
° The text is accompanied by original artworks by JV & assorted historical paraphenalia;
see below for details on the individual images:
Jeffrey Vallance
Las Vegas Martin Luther, 1997
Enamel on Paper—12” x 16”
Courtesy the artists and Edward Cella Art & Architecture
The author at his Lutheran Confirmation in Canoga Park, CA in 1967.
Courtesy the artists and Edward Cella Art & Architecture
Jeffrey Vallance
The Seat of the Reformation, 2018
Marker on Paper—11” x 8 ½“
Courtesy the artists and Edward Cella Art & Architecture
Jeffrey Vallance
An Old Lutheran Joke: Luther Nails His Ninety-five Feces to the Church Door, 2000
Marker on Paper 11” x 8 ½“
Courtesy the artists and Edward Cella Art & Architecture
Jeffrey Vallance
My Sacred Text: Ninety-five Theses, 2007
8 5/8 x 15 3/4 x 2 5/8 inches
Courtesy the artists and Edward Cella Art & Architecture
Jeffrey Vallance
Luther on the Privy, Seeing an Apparition of the Devil, 2000
Marker on Paper— 7 ½ “ x 9 “