Category: Books / Magazines

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A very street art Christmas: some holiday gift ideas

After procrastinating and procrastinating about writing this post, I missed Hanukkah and Eid, so I guess this is a gift guide for Christmas. Sorry for the delay.

Here are a few street art related products that have come out in the last year or so that I think are pretty cool. If you’re looking for a last-minute holiday gift for the street art obsessive in your life, hopefully this will help…

  • DB Burkeman’s book Stickers: Stuck Up Piece of Crap is one of the best art books I have ever read. I cannot recommend it highly enough if you have even a passing interest in stickers. If you buy one thing off this list, it should probably be this book. The photo at the top of this post is for the deluxe edition which comes with signed stickers, but that version doesn’t come cheap.

  • Now, the flip side of that anti-fashion comment, I want to remind everyone that Vandalog still has shirts available from Gaia, Troy Lovegates and Faro. These very limited edition shirts are $30 each and you can buy them online.
  • Martha Cooper’s latest book is Name Tagging, a book about the Hello My Name Is stickers and graffiti. Personally, I prefer Going Postal, her book about postal stickers, but Name Tagging is a good quick read too. It has brief interviews with Twist, Sure, Cost and others plus plenty of photos.
  • These Buff Monster plush toys are on sale for $12.00 right now. Very cute.
  • If you want a unique iPhone case, either Incase or Uncommon seem like good options. Incase has that Jose Parla iPhone case and Uncommon let’s you customize your own case with designs from a number of artists including David Ellis, Dennis McNett and MQ.
  • I’ve only just started to read Trespass, but I’ve heard from others that it is a great book.

Or, if you’re a street artist, you could go out on Christmas, brave the cold, and do some art. Give a gift to the rest of us. Not enough street art happens in the winter months.

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MOCA street art show book (and a small rant about the show)

Art In the Streets is an upcoming book by Jeffrey Deitch, Roger Gastman and Aaron Rose. The book, available April 12th, coincides with Deitch’s street art exhibition coming to MOCA next spring (Rose and Gastman are involved in putting the show together). While this will probably be just another nice exhibition catalog once it’s published, the official does provide further insight into what the MOCA show will be about (emphasis added):

The first large-scale American museum exhibition to survey the colorful history of graffiti and street art movements internationally. Graffiti has been a form of public communication and identification since ancient times. In its contemporary manifestation, it has redefined the urban landscape and influenced generations of artists. This landmark exhibition traces the birth and dissemination of styles through “writers” and street artists around the world—including Jean-Michel Basquiat, Blu, Martha Cooper, Shepard Fairey, Stelios Faitakis, Futura, Phil Frost, Os Gêmeos, Keith Haring, Todd James (REAS), Margaret Kilgallen, Lady Pink, Barry McGee (Twist), Steve Powers (ESPO), Lee Quinones, Retna, Kenny Scharf, Swoon, and Ed Templeton, among many others—focusing on New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, as well as international locations. Highlighting the connection between graffiti and street art and other vibrant subcultures, such as those that developed around Hip Hop in the Bronx and skateboarding in Southern California, Art in the Streets explores parallel movements in dance and music. A selection of new works created for the show is presented alongside the historical survey of approximately 30 of the most important artists seminal to the genre. The exhibition is curated by MoCA Director Jeffrey Deitch, working with a curatorial advisory committee that includes Charlie Ahearn, Roger Gastman, Carlo McCormick, and Aaron Rose.

It’s interesting to see the direction this exhibition is taking with the choice of artists, but a bit predictable as well:

  • Aaron Rose is best-known for Alleged Gallery and Beautiful Losers, the film about that gallery, and Deitch Projects picked up a number of artists who had been showing at Alleged Gallery (Steve Powers, Barry McGee and Margaret Kilgallen), and a number of the “Beautiful Losers” are included in Art In The Streets.
  • A number of the artists (Martha Cooper, Futura, Barry McGee, Shepard Fairey, Stelios Faitakis, Os Gêmeos, Kenny Scharf and Swoon if memory serves) were all involved in last year’s Deitch-curated Wynwood Walls mural project.
  • Blu painted a mural sponsored by Deitch Projects.
  • Deitch Projects also work with Basquiat, Fairey, Os Gêmeos, Haring, Todd James, Scharf and Swoon (or their estates).

People are going to give MOCA shit for this, but you know what… It’s probably gonna be a good exhibition. Obviously it’s not exactly the show that myself or anyone else would have put together, but Deitch and his curatorial committee have good taste. Of course there’s going to have been some financial ties to the artists they select. If that weren’t the case, the show would have been woefully incomplete. Deitch Projects and Alleged Gallery both worked with some of the best artists associated with street art and graffiti. I can hardly imagine a stronger team putting together Art In The Streets, and I hope that, when this opens, people can look past potential conflicts of interests and just appreciate the show on its own merits.

Photo courtesy of Rizzoli

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The Vhils book – Selected Works 2005-2010

Vhils aka Alexandre Farto had a book full of his best artwork published this fall. I was sent a copy a couple of weeks ago and have been thoroughly enjoying it since. I remember the first time I saw Vhils’ art. Probably the same as most of his fans, I was blown away by what he did at Cans Festival back in 2008. At the time, I knew almost nothing about street art, but I could tell that Vhils was doing something very different and powerful. I’ve been a fan ever since, even if I’ve occasionally been critical of him. When I heard that Vhils was putting together a book, I knew I’d have to add it to my collection.

Vhils hasn’t disappointed. At over 150 pages, Selected Works 2005-2010 includes almost all of my favorite pieces indoors and outdoors from Vhils, and many that I didn’t know existed. Vhils’ art is definitely best experienced outdoors, but to see all of his walls in the flesh would mean traveling around the globe from Moscow to Italy to California and other spots in between, so a book will have to do. Thankfully, this book is really well printed. While Selected Works 2005-2010 isn’t likely to be of interest to people who aren’t already fans of Vhils, for fans like me, it’s a great overview and reminder of why we follow Vhils’ work.

You can buy Vhils’ Selected Works 2005-2010 online for €19.90 or €29.90 for a signed version.

Photo by Ian Cox

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VNA13 – Eine, Steve Powers, Dan Witz and a girl with her shirt off

I’ve got a drawer full of books and magazines to read and review right now, but Very Nearly Almost number 13 jumped to the front of the queue this weekend when I took a bus to and from Washington, DC. Why? Because it’s light and small and fits in my backpack way better than Trespass.

Regular Vandalog readers will know that I’m a fan of Very Nearly Almost, and issue 13 is no exception. Interviews with Elbow-toe, Dan Witz and Miso are great because I think they (particularly Miso) are overlooked talents. And then there’s Steve Powers who never responded to Vandalog’s recent interview request (kind of expected that to be honest). There’s even an essay by Dave The Chimp, who never ceases to entertain me, about the need to experience art in real life (as in not on blogs or in magazines). Oh and on page 74 there’s a photo of a topless girl.

Sorry if I’m sounding a bit glib. I really just want to write this post and get to sleep. Just got my flu shot and the symptoms are kicking in a bit. In all seriousness though, VNA is probably my favorite magazine and art lover should pick up a copy of their latest issue. You can get it online for £4.

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VNA 13 launches on Friday at Moniker

Yes I know, another thing about Moniker. But this needs to be mentioned. Very Nearly Almost issue 13 is launching on Friday night at the Moniker Art Fair from 7-9pm. As always, this issue sounds awesome: Eine, Elbow-toe, Miso, ESPO, Dan Witz…

There’s a reason that VNA are my favorite art magazine. Besides great content, they always try to do something a bit special with their launches. This time around, the special edition of the magazine comes with an Eine screenprinted cover, a VNA/Eine fridge magnet and stickers from a bunch of the artists in the magazine. This special edition is limited to 100 copies and they will be available on Friday night, so RSVP to rsvp@verynearlyalmost.com and get there early.

And here’s a video teaser for the issue:

VNA issue 13 from Make Some Tea on Vimeo.

Photos courtesy of Very Nearly Almost

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Weekend link-o-rama

Recent mural by Eine. Photo by Unusualimage

Well it was the first week of midterms for me, so lots of time was spent locking myself in my room, turning off the wifi and just studying. On the plus side, had a great meeting today trying to get some grant money from my college to bring street artists to campus and I took a nap on what might just be the world’s comfiest couch. So here’s what I haven’t had the chance to blog with all that school stuff going on:

  • I’ll be running a modified version of my street art tours next Friday at the Moniker Art Fair. The tour will be free and we’ll being checking out the fair as well as some of the street art in Shoreditch nearby. That will be from 1-2:30 11:30-1pm and 1:30-3:00pm next Friday afternoon at Moniker.
  • Unurth has photos of Escif’s latest murals.
  • Kaws blogged some teaser shots of his upcoming book.
  • Feral has been posting a lot of photos on his flickr over the past month of the interesting work he’s been making.
  • Mike put together a nice overview of FAME Festival for Arrested Motion
  • The latest in the line of shows Yosi Sergant (previously involved with Manifest Hope and Manifest Equality) has worked on, Re:Form School looks to be another massive group show advocating a good cause. It is open in New York this weekend only.
  • Kofie has a solo show opening this weekend at White Walls in San Fransisco. The opening reception is on Saturday evening. Check out The Citrus Report for more info.
  • LAB (Little Art Book) has a pop-up shop in London starting today through October 23rd. There will be prints for sale priced as low as £30. Their blog has more info.

Photo by unusualimage

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POW’s launch of Tristan Manco’s new book

Drawing from Street Sketchbook: Journeys by Neuzz

Tomorrow, October 1st, is the opening of the Street Sketchbook: Journeys show that Tristan Manco as put together at Pictures on Walls in London for the launch of his new book. Street Sketchbook: Journeys is the second book in Tristan’s Street Sketchbook series. Honestly, I don’t think I read the first book, but I respect Tristan as one of the more knowledgeable people out there making street art books, and I’ve begun to be sold on the concept of this series. But more on that in a review that I hope to do soon.

The show at POW is definitely going to be worth checking out. Tristan will be showing art from all 30 artists in the new book. That includes Roa, Vhils, Neuzz, Sam3, Titifreak, Dran, Stinkfish and obviously many more. And if you’re thinking “okay so besides Vhils, those aren’t exactly the biggest names in street art…” don’t be too quick to judge. Tristan Manco curated Cans Festival, and when Vhils showed up at Cans Festival, it seemed like nobody knew who he was, but then he amazed everyone. Tristan knows his stuff and I’m sure he’s found some brilliant artists for this show and his book.

Presumably, it will also be one of the first places to buy the book Street Sketchbook: Journeys, as it just came out this week.

The Street Sketchbook: Journeys show runs from October 1st (from 6pm) through October 15th.

Photo courtesy of Thames & Hudson and art by Neuzz

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Now available on the Faile webstore…

The Faile webstore was updated this week with a number of new items.

The latest version of their Bronze Bunny sculpture is a “deep cherry patina.” It’s the third in a series of 5 different colorways for this sculpture in bronze, each editions of 10. The sculptures are available online for $4,000 each.

The special “artist editions” of their new book have already sold out at $250 each for a few different screenprinted covers (editions of 50 each), but there’s always eBay. A signed version of the standard printing of the book is also still available for $69.

The Brave and Strong print is available in two colorways. The above version is an edition of 24 and is available for $2,000. There is also a one-off orange and blue print available for $7,500.

Sorry if this reads like an infomercial. I know a lot of people have said that Faile’s pricing is out of whack, but hey, the work sells and that’s a sign of something. Maybe it’s a just a bit unnerving for some people to see something available on an artist’s website for $7,500 like it’s a one-click purchase from Amazon. Personally, I think it shows some balls from Faile that they are trying to break out of the gallery system (both from the angle of artists doing the work of galleries and the way that they have eliminated the politics of “waiting lists” and the rest of the weirdness that comes with galleries). Anyways, I think Faile are making some nice pictures.

Photos courtesy of Faile

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Faile Book Launch

Last week, RJ  posted about the new Faile book, Faile: Prints and Originals 1999-2009. This past Thursday, The Outsiders at Lazarides Shop hosted the book’s launch at London. Within the first fifteen minutes, each of the 100 signed books sold, and by the end of the night, the book sold out to the que of art lovers that stood waiting to buy or pick up their pre-ordered copy. The Shop turned into a Faile world as the walls showcased pieces on sale from the collective early years to the present. I still think the best was the Sailor Jerry cocktails. Any opening with a decent mix drink is fine by me.

All Photos by Steph Keller



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War Of Words Zine September 2010

War Of Words from War Of Words on Vimeo.

WOW is a graffiti crew founded in Utrecht in 1989 who started spray-painting Dutch trains with their work. Their colorful, large and detailed pieces, the likes of which had never been seen before in The Netherlands, made an incredible visual impact. Having only ever previously been published in black and white  the latest issue of WOW is now printed in full color.

War Of Words collects 20 years of urban graffiti from this ground-breaking group in a full-color limited-edition book to celebrate their 21st anniversary. Just 1500 copies of War of Words have been printed. 325 copies will be available for sale at The American Book Center and a handful of other exclusive points around the world. After reserving a few copies for themselves, the group burned every single remaining copy of War of Words from their print run. You can see them go up in flames in the video above.

Check out some sneak peek photos below!

WOW can be purchased here

Photos courtesy of Hurt You Bad