“WHERE’S WALDO OF THE MACABRE” GALLERY SHOW MESHES HUMOR AND DARKNESS DURING HALLOWEEN SEASON

Los Angeles, CA

On Saturday October 14th from 7:00PM to 10:00PM, Castelli Art Space will present Velcome to Transylville, the solo debut of Silver Lake illustrator and concept artist Matt Sharack (also known as Sharackula). Attendees are invited to explore Sharack’s incredibly detailed world with magnifying glasses as they search for famed characters like Dracula and his Wolf, The Old Man and his Marlin, along with writer Ernest Hemmingway and perhaps even Abraham Lincoln.

Inspired by the illustrations and writing of Edward Gorey, Sharack incorporates a whimsical-macabre style in which he, “hopes viewers can have a laugh even when the subject matter deals with darker times and events”. Velcome to Transylville is a world inhabited by strange ladies and dangerous gentlemen, vampyrs, historic figures, and many other weird and wonderful creatures all set in the backdrop of a turn of the century, prohibition era city.  Producer and director of Sausage Party, Conrad Vernon, praises, “Sharack's images evoke memories of Mad Magazine double page illustrations I used to stare at for hours as a kid. He seems to channel the beautiful, improvisational ink flow insanity of artists like Sergio Aragones and Mort Drucker and like them, has that perfect mix of talent and OCD where the more you study the page the more you find.”

Velcome to Transylville is produced in Sharack’s most common medium: line drawing with pen and ink, using marker to add gray tones and will incorporate new pieces that go beyond the turn of the century and into the future of Transylville.

A graduate of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, Sharack began his career at Nickelodeon in New York City. Moving to Los Angeles in 2003, he spent time working for DreamWorks and Rovio, and is currently a Production Manager at Sony Pictures Animation. Sharack has worked on such films as: Shrek, Monsters vs. Aliens, Puss in Boots, Trolls, and Angry Birds.

Admission is free. Wine will be offered and beer will be provided courtesy of Boomtown Brewery. Gallery will be open early for press event on Friday, October 13th from 6:00PM to 9:00PM. Castelli Art Space is located at 5428 W. Washington Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90016.

For press information please contact bates.ashley@gmail.com or call 203-449-7158.

For a preview of Matt Sharack’s work visit Instagram: @sharackula