Month: April 2012

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Real talk with LNYLNYLNY

Have you ever seen a street piece that, for whatever reason, made you really wonder “What kind of person does this?” Not everything I walk by captures me like that, but on rare occasions, something will be so provocative, unusual, outstanding, or even awkward, that I’m lured deeper than just what I’m looking at, toward piecing together the person behind it and what they’re all about. It’s pretty rare that I actually get to ask.

LNY is one of these artists where the back-story is as enticing as the art. While I cannot promise that this interview makes him any less of a curiosity, I can say that this is one guy worth checking out.

1. Describe one of your first experiences with street art.

I fondly remember getting buffed for the first time because It made the whole experience of working in public space come to life. Having someone buff your work is like a pat in the back begging you to keep going, like “try again man, try again”… that buff is still running to this day in Weehawken, New Jersey.

2. One reason you do it.

Easy; because I believe art is a powerful vehicle for change and a practice that can positively impact the world, myself, and those I work with. There is nothing else I would rather do with my life than this, there were never other options just random distractions. In the end I don’t really define what I do as street art or inside art or what not because the work sometimes doesn’t fit those categories so I don’t bother, and defining something does more to constrict than expand. Anyway, I’m just doing me.

3. Current muse.

Coffee. Continue reading “Real talk with LNYLNYLNY”

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Kickstart the Shepard Fairey biopic – OBEY THE GIANT

Remember that film about Shepard Fairey that was on Kickstarter last year for about a day before the project disappeared? It didn’t actually disappear. Actually, a crew went and filmed the damn thing. Now they are back on Kickstarter looking for some funding to finish post-production. The film, OBEY THE GIANT, is directed by Julian Marshall, a 21-year old student at Shepard’s alma mater RISD. OBEY THE GIANT tells the true story of Shepard’s first major billboard takeover. It was an assignment for a class at RISD where he had to illustrate the words from a fortune cookie. His fortune read “TO AFFECT THE QUALITY OF THE DAY IS NO SMALL ACHIEVEMENT.” So he took that and ran with it. I could say more, but the trailer is one of the best things I’ve seen all year and so I don’t want to spoil it anything.

Julian is looking for another $30,000 to finish OBEY THE GIANT. The entire thing has already been shot. It would be a shame if the project never left the editing room. Can you help? As usual with Kickstarter projects, there are some great prizes in it for you if  do. Click here to visit the Kickstarter project page to learn more about the film and pledge your support.

Here’s the trailer along with some words from Julian and the film’s producer:

Looks awesome. Doesn’t it? I cannot wait to see the finished product. Go here if you’d like to support these young filmmakers and help make OBEY THE GIANT a reality.

Photo courtesy of OBEY THE GIANT

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Very Nearly Almost 18

Screw Conor Harrington. Screw Ronzo. Screw Remi/Rough. Not because all of those people aren’t great. Not because I dislike their work. Not because their interviews in Very Nearly Almost issue 18 are uninteresting. I don’t know Ronzo personally, but Conor and Remi have been nothing but nice to me. All three of them have made cool art. Their interviews in VNA are worth reading. But screw them because all of Very Nearly Almost issue 18 pales in comparison to their spectacular interview with the legendary Mode2. I’ll certainly admit that I don’t like everything Mode2 has ever done, but he has been an innovator in Europe for decades and when he gets it right, he gets it very very right. He is also very clearly a smart man. VNA’s interview with Mode2 is detailed, insightful and worth every moment you’ll spend reading it.

If you still haven’t picked up a copy of VNA18, I highly encourage you to do so now. You won’t regret it. Plus, after you’re done reading the Mode2 interview, Ronzo, Conor, Remi and the rest of the artists in this issue honestly do have some interesting bits to say as well, and there are some rare pics of How&Nosm’s work in Brazil.

Very Nearly Almost is available online.

Photos courtesy of Very Nearly Almost

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Completed G40 murals in Richmond, Virginia – Part 2

Pixel Pancho. Photo by sammiches18

Our coverage of all the murals for Art Whino‘s G40 Art Summit continues with work by Pixel Pancho, La Pandilla, Angry Woebots, 2501, Roa, Jaz, Lelo and Scribe. Check out part 1 here, and expect the final installment in this series later in the week.

Angry Woebots. Photo by sammiches18

More after the jump… Continue reading “Completed G40 murals in Richmond, Virginia – Part 2”

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Counter-productive street art

Update: This post is factually inaccurate. As it turns out, Jeice2 did not wheatpaste this poster to the shutters. Instead, as I suggest in the article might be a kinder alternative, he actually taped it to the wall temporarily, took a photo and then removed the poster. If you look very closely at the edges of poster in the above photograph, you can see the tape. I am keeping this post up because the concern that street artists often do not respect graffiti is still generally valid, even if it is not valid in this example.

Sometimes I wonder why so many graffiti writers have such a negative view of street art. And then I see pieces like this by Jeice2 and remember at least one of their reasons: The lack of respect that young street artists often have for graffiti. This poster by Jeice2 is not bad. Clearly he’s spent some time on it. Okay, it’s not amazing or particularly unique, but it will probably look pretty cool in person while it is fresh.

There are two problems though:

  1. It’s a wheatpaste on a shutter. If that shutter opens regularly, the paper may rip and and look a lot worse very quickly while still taking up lots of space on the spot.
  2. Jeice2 seems to have gone over as many tags (and possibly throw-ups) as he possibly could.

What Jeice2 seems to have done is put up a piece over a bunch of other work without any consideration for those writers, and it’s a piece that will quickly look terrible. Since the primary audience for the pristine piece seems to be the internet, maybe Jeice2 should have just taped his poster to the shutter, taken a photo and then removed it, leaving the graffiti undamaged and visible.

It’s difficult to do a piece that large that isn’t going to cover at least one tag, but surely there was at least one more appropriate spot in all of Seville for this poster.

It’s mistakes like this one by Jeice2 that give street artists a bad name among graffiti writers.

I hope that next time Jeice2 will pick a more respectful spot for his work.

PS, Some people may wonder why I am pointing this out while I have (mostly) defending Banksy’s initial piece in the Banksy versus Robbo feud. The difference that I see between Jeice2 and Banksy versus Robbo is that Banksy actually brought way more attention to Robbo’s piece, Banksy’s piece interacted with the graffiti already on site and Robbo’s piece was tagged over a lot already. But I imagine a lot of people don’t see that same distinction. That’s fair enough and only furthers my point that graffiti writers see street artists as often being disrespectful to graffiti.

Photo by Jeice2

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Upcoming: L.A. Freewalls Inside

A note from the editor: Yes, the Daniel Lahoda in this post is the same Daniel Lahoda who was investigated by the LAPD and complained about online on numerous occasions. While, to my knowledge, Lahoda has never been arrested and none of the past complaints have resulted in civil litigation, there were a lot of complaints about Lahoda being brought up consistently for a number of years. It’s impossible for me to say for sure what happened in Lahoda’s past. What I can say is that he does seem to be making an honest go of things with his current projects. I’ve had personal issues with Lahoda myself, but as far as I am concerned, this new gallery of his is a time for second chances. Since the last of the complaints against him surfaced, Lahoda has gone above and beyond with his noncommercial ventures like the LA Freewalls Project and involvement in changing LA’s mural regulations. If you asked me today, “Would you do business with Daniel Lahoda?”, my answer would be a cautious yes. If Lahoda did make mistakes in the past, I do not think he will make those mistakes again. Consider this aside as my way of publicly putting rumors and allegations from Lahoda’s past in the past and instead deciding to focus on the here and now. – RJ Rushmore

Daniel Lahoda’s L.A. Freewalls project has changed the face of the Arts District in Los Angeles. That much is inarguable. In fact, it’s getting harder and harder to imagine what the old warehouse district looked like without the rotating gallery at 7th & Mateo, ROA’s outdoor exhibition spanning Jesse and Imperial, HOW & NOSM, DABS & MYLA, Shepherd Fairey, and perhaps most indelibly, JR’s L.A. Wrinkles. Trust me, this is a good thing.

So what happens when these muralists that have transformed a neighborhood bring their work inside to the brand new LALA gallery? Can it maintain the same level of energy? The verdict will have to wait for the opening, but at first glance, you simply cannot argue with that lineup.

Up-and-coming artists like Anthony Lister, ASKEW, and ZES, all of whom have recently had some of the hottest shows anywhere, are in it. ZES’s mural partners in Little Tokyo and in L.A. Freewalls (alongside the incomparable PUSH, who is also in the show) UGLAR, are represented in the forms of Evan Skrederstu and Christopher D. Brand and possibly some special guests. On top of that, there’s HOW & NOSM. There’s Dan Witz. That alone is a killer group.

But throw in someone like, oh, I don’t know, Ron English–not to mention MOCA “Art in the Streets” vets like Shepherd Fairey, SABER, RISK, and SWOON? Well, let’s say that things just got serious. And they might get crazy too. In a good way. Here’s hoping, anyway.

Quite honestly, I haven’t seen this kind of excitement around in a while. Ever since Art Walk wrecked Gallery Row with its costly series of missteps, Downtown Los Angeles has been bleeding galleries. Upper Playground is gone. Mr. Cartoon’s shop is gone. Worst of all, Bert Green Fine Art, the originator himself, is gone too. The truth is, Downtown L.A. needs an innovative gallery–one willing to take risks, one unafraid to offend or prompt dialogue–more than people think.

Can LALA Gallery be one of those? Come April 21, we’ll find out. But on the evidence of the incredible show roster, it’s off to a very promising start.

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Completed G40 murals in Richmond, Virginia – Part 1

Pixel Pancho. Photo by Bill Dickinson

Art Whino‘s G40 Art Summit resulted in almost two dozen new murals for Richmond, Virginia this month. Congrats to Art Whino. It looks like they have put together a really amazing festival and transformed at least a part of the city. Starting with this post and continuing for one or two more, I’ll be trying to show all of these new murals. First up, we have work by Pixel Pancho, Roa, Gaia, Aryz, Jaz, Lelo and Scribe.

Aryz. Photo by Marc Schmidt

See more after the jump… Continue reading “Completed G40 murals in Richmond, Virginia – Part 1”