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If you keep your eyes peeled during Season 4 Episode 7 of HBO’s “The Righteous Gemstones,” you'll find a glimpse of local art. About halfway through, you’ll see Jesse Gemstone (played by Danny McBride) walk past a display of gummy bear sculptures on the hallway wall in his brother Kelvin (played by Adam DeVine)'s home. The line of juicy gummy bears are crafted by Charleston pop art sculptor Olivia Bonilla, whose colorful works have decorated Kelvin Gemstone’s home since Season 1 thanks to HBO’s art rental partnership with The Miller Gallery in downtown Charleston.
Charleston pop art sculptor Olivia Bonilla's gummy bears and kandy hearts are seen on-screen in Season 4 Episode 7 of "The Righteous Gemstones." Bonilla’s shiny wall-hanging hearts are also visible on-screen in Episode 7 when the camera cuts to a view of the dining room. “Kelvin has great art taste,” said Bonilla, whose iconic pop art creations include cupcakes, "kandy" hearts and ice cream cones in addition to her succulent gummy bears.
Working with mediums such as resin, marble, automotive paint and pigmented cement, Bonilla makes sculptures of “confectionary excess” with a delectable opaqueness that looks good enough to eat. “It's great exposure,” Bonilla said. “Since it's a national show, that small clip created a lot of exciting buzz between collectors, friends and supporters.
A huge thank you to HBO for supporting local artists. It does great things for our community.” Bonilla posted a few clips of her artwork’s on-screen moments in "The Righteous Gemstones" on Instagram last week.
A post shared by Olivia Bonilla (@livibon21) “The Righteous Gemstones,” a popular Charleston-filmed series revolving around the flamboyant Gemstones family and their televangelist empire, is drawing to a close this year with its fourth and final season. The penultimate episode was released April 27, and the final episode airs May 4. The show comes from its creator Danny McBride’s production company, Rough House Pictures, and the Gemstones family is portrayed by McBride, John Goodman, Adam DeVine, Edi Patterson and Cassidy Freeman.
The back story The Miller Gallery was first scouted by HBO during the filming of Season 1 of “The Righteous Gemstones," said Kayla Twomey Flamman, owner of The Millery Gallery. “With the show filming throughout Charleston, we began an art rental partnership to bring local, contemporary work into their set designs,” she said. “Over the course of the last four seasons, we’ve worked closely with their production and set design teams to place original artwork into the world of ‘The Righteous Gemstones.
’” Viewers will see other Miller Gallery artists in addition to Bonilla featured in the homes of Kelvin and Judy Gemstone, as well as in a number of public set scenes. “Kelvin’s home, in particular, has a more modern and pop-culture-inspired aesthetic, which made it an ideal fit for bolder, more avant-garde pieces,” Flamman said. Charleston pop art sculptor Olivia Bonilla's gummy bears and kandy hearts are seen on-screen in Season 4 Episode 7 of "The Righteous Gemstones.
" Other Miller artists featured over the seasons include Kate Hooray Osmond, Laura Dargan, Michael James Cisarik, Mione Plant, Suzy Lindow, Teresa Roche, Kiah Bellows, Scot Rittenbaum, Holly Graham, Charlotte Fraser and Rachael Nerney Reese. About a quarter of what's rented doesn't make it into the final cut, Flamman said. “Watching each season becomes a bit of a fun 'art-spotting' game for us,” she said.
Before each round of filming, HBO’s set team visits the gallery with photos and mood boards to talk through their visions for the on-screen spaces they’re styling. The Miller Gallery typically goes through four or five rounds of art rentals per season. “It’s been such a rewarding and fulfilling partnership — not just creatively, but also in the way HBO has supported local small businesses and working artists throughout the series,” she said.
“Their commitment to showcasing original work from Charleston’s creative community has had a real, meaningful impact.” This hometown collaboration between HBO and The Miller Gallery has uplifted not only the artists but the storytelling itself..
