It looks like Roa’s first solo show in America, at Factory Fresh in NYC, is going to be as successful has his recent shows in London and Paris. The show opened on Friday night, and the people I’ve spoken to have loved it. This is definitely an event to check out if you haven’t seen Roa’s artwork in person before.
Photo by Jacob Heftmann
Photo by C-Monster
In addition to works similar to what Roa has been producing for his other shows this year, he made one piece in a crazy new style: A lenticular. Roa first made a lenticular painting on Curtain Road in London last year, and it’s probably been one of his most popular pieces to date, but this is (to my knowledge) the first time he’s made a similar painting indoors.
Last month, Roa spent some time in London for his solo show at Pure Evil Gallery in London where he put on a killer show and paintedoutdoorsalmost every day. Now he’s in New York City for a solo show at Factory Fresh and it looks like he’s going to try and do it all again for a new audience. Definitely not one to miss.
Brooklyn Street Art have already been out to photograph Roa as he paints, so they’ve got photos of that as well as a two-part interview with him on their blog.
The press release for the show:
ROA: A Solo Exhibition
Opening Reception May 14th, 7-10pm
This May, Factory Fresh goes wild as it opens its doors to the zoetic art of Belgium-born artist ROA. The artist’s organic animal forms, huge in both their reputation and impact, will grace the walls of the gallery, reminding spectators of the forgotten natural world beneath the city’s streets.
Through his large-scale installations of very wild wild-life on the industrial canvas of the city, ROA produces a juxtaposition of the overtly natural against the mechanic that is both feral and nostalgic, a reminiscence of what the world used to be before cement and concrete. ROA is famous for his large black and white works that depict both the outer and inner appearance of rodents, bulls, roaches et al, who slumber on garage doors and cement blocks, copulate in abandoned alleyways and decay on brick walls. His work is sprawling and uncontainable, and will be filling Factory Fresh as such, barely pinned down to found materials, clustering in our corners and escaping out into our surrounding streets.
ROA began pulling animals out of the depths of the industrial world in his hometown of Ghent, Belgium, where he explored the area around his home and was inspired by the life that lurked in its lonely smokestacks. His resulting work snarls at you from wherever it prowls, awaking a visceral reaction that comes from seeing something familiar yet unknown, an uncanny portrayal of the animals within and around ourselves that our contemporary lifestyles have made null.
Since his Belgium beginnings, ROA’s work has hit the ground running like the animals he depicts, scattering on four legs all over major cities, showing up on the walls of galleries and abandoned factories alike. His work has been shown in London, Berlin, Warsaw, and sold out in two days in Paris. He now returns to New York, arriving at a very different kind of factory than the industrial wastelands his animals are known to inhabit, ROA’s show at Factory Fresh promises to be untamed and animated as his pieces.
On view till May 30th.
Gallery hours Wednesday thru Sunday 1-7pm
On Friday, Pufferella’s solo show will open at Factory Fresh in New York. I didn’t know much about Pufferella’s art, but this video enlightened me a bit:
I wish I could see this show in person, but alas I’m still in London (though a New York trip is just around the corner). Factory Fresh’s latest show is A Hounding Obsession with Deeker, Armer, Darkcloud and Goreb. It opens on Friday November 13th at Factory Fresh, 7-10pm.
Armer. Photo by Heart of Oak
Factory Fresh says:
This November, Factory Fresh brings together four elusive artists who each work seamlessly in between the worlds of graffiti and streetart. These two art forms look identical to the untrained eye but in actuality are more like brawling brothers to those who are part of the movement. Artists Armer, Darkcloud, Goreb and Deeker are a few exceptions. Each of their work ranges on the street one day a large scale mural, another day carefully placed signs or paintings, sometimes even a junk sculpture is installed onto a crowded street. As a result these artists cannot be dismissed by any group of urban artists and have been validated by their acceptance from multiple ranges of critcs.
The photos are finally online from 2012 which is Avoid, Bloke, and Faro’s show at Factory Fresh. Their crew, the ADHD Kids, is doing some really great work in New York, so I’m excited to see them in a gallery as well. The work is very cool, and they seem to have completely transformed the gallery into a world of graffiti. And if you’re in the buying mood, I wouldn’t say these guys are an investment, but I love some of the work and the prices are super low on a lot of the smaller pieces.
Factory Fresh has an interesting show starting soon. It features Avoid, Bloke, and Faro; three guys who are really changing the face of New York graffiti. I completely agree with this press release in that the more graphic form of graffiti these artists represent is the next wave, and is poised to become even more important in the coming years.
Factory Fresh and Mighty Tanaka present:
2012
Featuring
AVOID, BLOKEandFARO
Friday, June 5th 7-10pm Opens during Bushwick Open Studio Weekend. If you haven’t checked out our new neighborhood this is the weekend to do it. It will also be Factory Fresh’s First Year Anniversary.
This June AVOID, BLOKE and FARO converge at Factory Fresh, bringing with them an assorted collection of unique styles that exemplify the next generation of NYC street art and graffiti. The three artists known on the streets for ridiculously massive tags, culturally inspired graffiti and paper airplanes and airships have caught many peoples eye in both Manhattan and Brooklyn. On June 5th they will present their artwork as a group in a gallery for the first time.
The show is based on the year 2012, which represents a notion of change and transition within the world, marking the end of the Mayan calendar. Many view this year with apprehension, prophesying apocalypse, climate meltdown or a spiritual awakening. Currently, through the economic crisis and constant warfare, an artistic shift has taken place on the streets of New York City. Artists AVOID, BLOKE and FARO signify a changing of the guard in graffiti and street art. Meshing these two individual cultures into one, these three artists represent the overall change of how individuals view street art and graffiti, bringing it together as one.
AVOID, BLOKE and FARO have been constant contributors to the painted interpretation of the urban environment for many years now. Each artist has developed a text-based style as well as iconic imagery that have become ubiquitous details within our daily lives. Through blending their ideals and styles, they have created a symbolized view of the streets that transcends one world and ushers in another.
As we approach this time of great change, the 2012 show places the viewer in the middle of the transformation, setting about on an adventure through a shifting paradigm of the world. It seeks to enlighten and project the change that is constantly around us with the progression of both society and art.
![Deeker. Photo by g[wiz]](http://blog.vandalog.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/539556044_a29066fab6_b.jpg)
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