Always good to see KAWS getting this sort of press…
Via Guillotine and many other places
Cake’s Black Book
Cake was recently featured on a Black Book Blogger, a blog I’ve just discovered which features pages from artists sketchbooks. Seems like a cool idea.
See more of Cake’s sketches at Black Book Blogger
8-Bit Reality
I’m always happy to see my love of street art combining with my love of geekdom, so I had to share this pipe spout shooting out pixelated water.
Photo from nickgraywfu
Via Modern Design: Are You Modest
Imminent Disaster Piece in Condo Ad
Sounds like a New York City condo development has been using Imminent Disaster’s work without permission. Luckily, after multiple emails, they’ve taken the image off their website. Check out her flickr for the full story.
Via Hrag Vartanian and Curbed
A Good Cop
Check out this video of a police officer who seems to have a surprisingly reasonable opinion of graffiti/street art.
Via I Love Graffiti
Was Poster Boy Arrested, or Just A Poster Boy?
The New York Times and Public Ad Campaign have some news abut Poster Boy that, in hindsight, is not so shocking. The Poster Boy arrested on Friday might not actually be Poster Boy, or he might be one of many Poster Boys, or the guy who got arrested (Henry Matyjewicz) may have just been a willing stand-in for that night.
The New York Times has the more “news-y” story, and Public Ad Campaign has an interview with Poster Boy about what happened. Fans of Poster Boy should give them both a read.
Photo from Posterboy
Swoon Sails Adriatic in May
Looks about time for a weekend trip to Venice.
From The Art Collectors Blog:
Swoon is in the planning and fundraising stages for her next ambitious aquatic art project. Building upon Miss Rockaway Armad and Swimming Cities of Switchback Sea, the next installment of the artist’s floating armada is taking shape and is set to launch in May of 2009. Comprised of a fleet of three new handmade vessels, The Swimming Cities of Serenissima will hit European waters and navigate the Adriatic Sea, Beginning in the Karst region of Slovenia, the ships will make their way to the final destination of Venice, Italy, stopping along the way to entertain audiences. Once again, Swoon will be joined by a crew of collaborators, including playwright Lisa D’Amour, puppeteer Robin Frohart and the band Dark Dark Dark.
If you’re not familiar with Swoon’s boat projects, this video, teaser footage from a film shot during her last trip, may help you understand the project, or it may confuse you even more. Either way, FLOOD looks like it is going to be a pretty cool film.
For more information on the trip and the upcoming fundraisers in New York and New Orleans, check out the project website.
Is Shepard Fairey a Plagiarizing Half-Wit?
UPDATE – 11:48pm February 4th: The Huffington Post has an article which says the AP is accusing Shepard Fairey of stealing one of their photographs for his Obama posters. Shepard Fairey admits he used their image and is claiming fair use. Even though I may wish Shepard Fairey would properly credit sources, I’m also a big fan of fair use. It will be interesting to see what happens.
Shepard Fairey Obama poster fame is a plagiarist and unimaginative artist. At least that’s what Dan Wasserman of The Boston Globe considers and artist Mark Vallen seems to believe.
From the Boston Globe:
Vallen makes a strong case that Fairey appropriates, without attribution, the images and designs of other artists. He posts multiple examples, including art from the Czechoslvakian Prague Spring, art from the Industrial Workers of the World, Cuban poster art of the 60s and this example (left) directly copying the art nouveau drawing of Koloman Moser (1868-1918) (right).
Fairey seems at ease with his borrowing. In the 450-page catalog for the ICA show, he responds: “This guy Mark Vallen found every reference in every poster and every t-shirt that I’ve ever used. Out of hundreds of images, there’s a dozen or so that were based on things from historical posters. First of all, I’m always assuming that these posters are known by people, so my referencing is not a big secret. These aren’t obscure images… Usually I’m using an image as an intentional reference.” But his art itself makes no mention of its sources or derivative nature, and, contrary to Fairley’s assertions, much of the art he copies (like Moser’s) is not famous enough to be well-known to most of his audience.
Continue reading “Is Shepard Fairey a Plagiarizing Half-Wit?”
Brad Downey: An Honest Thief @ StolenSpace
On Sunday Graffoto posted their review of Brad Downey‘s current solo show at StolenSpace Gallery entitled “An Honest Thief”. Although I usually love and agree with NoLionsInEngland’s reviews, I have to go a slightly different direction this time.
Here’s an excerpt from thier review:
Ever been jealous of someone’s lateral vision, been envious of the gift of conceiving and executing simple, subverted variations to the street scenery around us? If you’re an ordinary guy and have come across Brad Downey’s street art – then the answer is probably yes and yes again.
However, have you ever been let down by your heroes or disappointed by the mediocre achievement of a show hyped up by your own expectation that the street work is somehow going to transpose to a white box gallery space? If you go to Brad Downey’s first solo UK show in Stolen Space, London, then again you may find yourself ticking yes several times.
I went into the show with absolutely no expectations. I had no idea what I was going to see. Of course Downey’s street work would be very hard to move into a gallery space, but I had seen him speak this summer at the Tate Modern, and he had shown some videos there which I’d liked.
When I arrived, the first thing that struck me was the large sculpture “The B in the Brad” which looks like a giant jack made of street signs. This piece is the centerpiece of the show, and although I could never imagine it in a house, it is an interesting project and a bit of a twist on Downey’s usual street sign work.
There were a few photographic prints of Downey’s outdoor work which show the before and after scenes. Most of these can also be found on his website, but it was nice to provide a context for the work. After all, Downey is best on the street, so why not show some of that.
There were a few pieces of more gallery-suitable work as well.
The “Night Dick in Love” and “Night Dick on Limp” pieces are well crafted and made it smile. These sculptures also come with a dvd of a police violence.
“Animals That Crossed” were probably my favorite physical works in the show. Normally I’m not a fan of fur, but I’ll make an exception here.
The real reason to visit “An Honest Thief” though are the videos. There are 4 videos of Downey’s work playing in the gallery, and these are what, in Vandalog’s Great in ’08 series, Asbestos said were so fantastic. My personal favorite has to be the video of Downey cutting out a giant heart shape from a red screen covering a building under construction. Brad ended up getting arrested and fined for that, but I suppose that’s part of street art.
Go down to StolenSpace Gallery before this show closes on the 8th, because while much of Brad’s work is online, who knows when you’ll be able to see his videos again. Plus, it’s always better to see work in person.
Keep an eye out on Vandalog later this week for my profile/interview with Brad Downey (right now I’ve got a physics exam to study for).
Thoughts on Bonhams February Auction
Spent some time today checking out the catolog for the February 24th urban art auction at Bonhams in London. A few people have noted the extremely high number of Banksy lots (22 of 78) and dismissed this auction, but I’ve found a few potential deals to be had. If you’ve got the money to spend and you can weed through the crap, people are looking to sell some really nice work. Here’s what I’ve found:
1. Banksy – Kate Moss (series of 6)
Estimate: £100,000 – 150,000
There was a time when just one of these 6 could go for £100,000. Perhaps Banksy’s most sought after print. The winner of this auction will be a very lucky man/woman in a decade. Continue reading “Thoughts on Bonhams February Auction”