Book Review: The Art of Luke Chueh - Bearing The Unbearable

From the minute Luke Chueh first teased his new art book The Art of Luke Chueh: Bearing The Unbearable on Twitter a number of months ago, I knew I had to have it. So of course I jumped at the chance to review a promo copy of the book when the opportunity arose. The book is a retrospective of Luke’s carrier focusing on his first seven years of painting form 2003-2009, and I was blown away by how early into his career his vision seemed to fall into place. I seriously lost track of time as I flipped through all 160 pages, with each painting taking me back to the place where I first saw so many of these iconic images.

I have been a huge fan of Luke’s since well before I started blogging, and he’s quite possibly the only artist I’ve been too intimidated to talk to. I chalk that up to how impactful I find his art and the messages behind each piece. I can still remember heading over to Munky King’s San Diego Comic-Con booth back in 2009 (my only trip to SDCC so far) so I could meet him. Luke was there for the release of his Decapitated Bunny Head and all I could do was stand by and watch as he sketched and signed for fellow fans. Looking back on it now I guess you could say I was a little star struck.

Now I may be a bit biased, but this is one beautiful book. Luke teamed with Gallery 1988 and Titan Books to produce Bearing the Unbearable, and it’s really everything you’d want in a coffee table style art book. The cover is great, the binding is impeccable and each piece of Luke’s artwork pops off the page. I also really love that it's an oversized book (9.3"x12.5"), so that the paintings can be reproduced in a larger format. And fans will definitely want to read all of the quotes and interesting stories included throughout. Everyone involved did a fantastic job capturing the essence of Luke’s work.

I for one have never been able to understand some of the criticism that Luke is “just that emo bear guy.” Yes there are similar themes and images running throughout his art, but to focus solely on that seems to devalue Luke’s body of work. His ability to evoke emotion with such minimalistic imagery is amazing, and I love his use of empty space and thick black lines. If you’ve never taken the time to really study Luke’s art, here is the perfect opportunity. Pick up a copy of The Art of Luke Chueh: Bearing The Unbearable when it goes on sale next Tuesday, June 12th, in bookstores everywhere for $34.95 (or pre-order yourself a copy from Amazon for $22.83 here).

To celebrate this release of Luke’s new art book, he’ll be holding signings throughout Southern California over the next three weeks. The first is Saturday, June 9th, at Gallery 1988 (Melrose) from 1-4pm PST. For this signing, Gallery 1988 has put together a show featuring the original sketches for many of the paintings seen in the book from Luke’s first seven years of full time painting. Luke will also be at Nucleus Gallery (Alhambra) on Saturday, June 16th; Gallery 1988 (Venice) on Sunday, June 17th; and Giant Robot (West Los Angeles) on June 24th.

SDCC 2011 Exclusive White In Black Vinyl Figure by Luke Chueh

The San Diego Comic-Con 2011 Exclusives just keep on coming! For Luke Chueh’s third colorway of his iconic Black in White rabbit, Munky King has produced White In Black. This version features an all white vinyl body covered in a black furry suit. White In Black also comes with an extra fur head that you can swap out with the bare white bunny head, and a really sharp knife accessory.

Based on the negative of Luke’s original painting and sculpted by Dave Pressler, White In Black by Luke Chueh stands 8” tall and has a limited edition run size of 750 pieces. Don't worry if you won’t be able to make it to SDCC this year, there will be a signing party at Munky King afterwards and it will also be available at select retailers worldwide. Might there be a White In Black (And Red All Over) colorway released sometime soon!?!

Munky King Exclusive Black In White (And Red All Over) Vinyl Figure by Luke Chueh

The Black In White (and Red All Over) vinyl figure is the Munky King exclusive colorway of Luke Chueh’s latest toy, Black in White. Based on the original painting "Black in White (and Red All Over),” this hand-painted version features a bloody fur suit, blood deco on the vinyl head, a bloody knife, and comes packaged in a box featuring bloody box art! That should be enough blood to even satisfy Dexter’s bloodlust!

The Munky King Exclusive Black In White (and Red All Over) vinyl figure by Luke Chueh has a limited edition run size of 250 pieces and will go on sale this Saturday, October 2nd, at the figure’s official toy release party at Munky King Melrose (Party 4-10pm). Luke Chueh will also be on hand from 4-7pm to sign this super limited edition vinyl figure. Plus you can also pose and snap pics of the mysterious Red All Over Bunny girl who will be making her first ever appearance to celebrate the release!

Munky King presents the Black in White Vinyl Figure by Luke Chueh

After years of prototypes and teases, Munky King is finally brining Luke Chueh’s highly anticipated Black in White vinyl figure to San Diego Comic-Con 2010! Based on the original painting of the same name, Black in White is an 8” vinyl figure sculpted by Dave Pressler dressed in a furry bunny suit.


2 years in the making, Luke Chueh’s Black in White figure comes with an extra fur head that you can swap out with the bare one and a really sharp knife. This awesome looking figure will make its debut at SDCC 2010, with any remaining Black in White figures made available online after the Con.