Semor and KKade at 5Pointz

German graffiti master Semor – who had painted at 5Pointz last year — returned to NYC earlier this month with three amazingly talented Swiss artists: Onur, Wes21 and Kkade. A standout is the mural — fusing elements of surrealism, photorealism and graffiti — that the four fashioned together.

Wes 21 and Onur at work

Posing with Meres (second to left), 5Pointz founder and curator

The completed mural

 Photos by Lois Stavsky

Toofly in Meeting of Styles in Quito, Ecuador

Based these days for most of the year in her native town of Quito, Ecuador, Maria Castillo aka Toofly recently hit NYC and Miami. Here are some images:

At Art Basel in Miami

Close-up

On Lower East Side rooftop

Photos courtesy of Toofly

A note from RJ: Luke left the show before this stuff happened. If anyone knows more about what went on, let us know in the comments.

Lush a renowned “so called” graffiti artist from Melbourne, Australia, opened his show tonight at Klughaus Gallery in NYC.

As usual his work is controversial and rather obscene … Lush’s graffiti pieces combine his trademark lettering with often x-rated images of pornography and naked women posing alongside (and incorporated into) his pieces. I really like his work.

His illustrations (the feature of this show) provide a very apt commentary on the graffiti scene and all the associated traditions and beliefs.

Lush wasn’t at the show (maybe because he’s probably a wanted man haha), but, in what I thought was an innovative addition to the show, he appeared live on Skype from Melbourne (donning a bandana to cover his face) from his bathtub. This was an excellent addition to the exhibit as it allowed people at the show to interact with the artist. He was also live in twitter and @lushsux and the #lushsux hash tag were getting lots of attention. Both positive and negative.

The good thing about Lush is that he does not at all take himself seriously and his work completely “takes the piss” (an Australian saying meaning makes fun of) the whole graffiti and street art scene. A much needed viewpoint in my opinion.

The show opened tonight and runs until the 7th of September. Worth having a look at if you are in New York.

All photos by Lukey

This is a joint post by Luke McManus and Lois Stavsky

Icy and Sot have been doing lots of fresh pieces on NYC streets, so we were excited to check out Made in Iran, the first exhibit outside of their native country that they could attend. With influences ranging from Banksy to C215, they have created a distinct body of work including many pieces that reflect their unique political and social realities.

A particular favorite in the exhibit is an installation of old 12-inch vinyls that pay homage to deceased icons. We loved how the cuts in the vinyl mirror the hair of those portrayed.

Also impressive are a number of finely detailed stencils, including this one on an old Iranian packing box.

The exhibit continues through the 25^th at 379 Broome Street in Manhattan’s Little Italy.

Photos by Tara Murray and Lois Stavsky

From playful paste-ups to stylish graffiti murals, new pieces are surfacing daily in Brooklyn’s Bushwick. Here’s a sampling:

Keely

Radical and ND'A

Owns & Ewok

Shank aka Demote

Sen2

 Photos by Tara Murray