In addition to completing a mural in Coney Island, OverUnder‘s been busy sticker bombing on Manhattan’s Lower East Side.
Photos by Lois Stavsky
Word To Mother among Featured Artists @ Mallick Williams & Co.
I discovered (and instantly fell in love with) Word To Mother when I was in London this past fall. I’m looking forward to Mallick Williams & Co.‘s upcoming Spectrum, a group show opening this Thursday, April 21, and continuing through June 3rd, 2011. Along with Word To Mother, featured artists include: Kiji McCafferty, Chor Boogie, Erik Otto, Kate Pane and Lu Gold. The gallery — that recently featured the amazing Hueless exhibit — is located at 150 11th Avenue in Chelsea.
Image courtesy of Mallick Williams & Co.
OverUnder, Veng and Ephameron Bring Their Talents to Coney Island
Organized by Keith Schweitzer for No Longer Empty, Sponsored by the Coney Island Development Corporation, a new mural by OverUnder, Veng and Belgian artist Ephameron is underway on Coney Island’s famed Surf Avenue.
Photos by Samantha Sabatino
Katsu: Buffed in LA, but Profuse in NYC
Although buffed in LA, Katsu has been making his mark in NYC. His stickers seem to be everywhere and a huge piece greets passersby in Chelsea.
Photos by Lois Stavsky
Kosbe on the Streets of NYC and the Walls of the Carmichael Gallery
I’ve always loved Kosbe’s zany characters and somewhat esoteric messages. Mostly on stickers, they occasionally make their way onto wheatpastes, as this recent addition to NYC’s East Village.
Yesterday, Kosbe shared with me — via his iPhone — a photo of his piece currently on exhibit in Martha Cooper’s “Remix” at the Carmichael Gallery in Culver City, CA. A recreation of Cooper’s iconic 1980 photo of Dondi sketching in his room with friends in East New York, Brooklyn, it uncovers another side of Kosbe’s flair.
Red Nose aka Tazz Gets Up in SoHo
Despite the prevalence of handmade stickers here in NYC, few depict characters. While the sticker heads in Philly continue to create a range of personalities and creatures, most here seem to prefer to make their statements with assorted handstyles and messages. Red Nose aka Tazz, a Bronx native who began getting up in the lay-ups in the 80’s, is an exception. I’ve come upon variations of his iconic pit-bull a few times this past week. This huge one is in SoHo.
Photo by Lois Stavsky
Dede Confidential in Tel Aviv
I met Dede Confidential this past fall in Tel Aviv. His whimsical stencils, drawings and stickers could be found throughout Tel Aviv’s edgier neighborhoods. He since tells me that the municipality has been buffing the walls in an all-out war against street artists. This has not stopped Dede from using his city’s walls as his principal canvas. He says he’s only more determined to engage the public. Luckily, he’s been documenting his pieces before they disappear.
Photos: Dede Confidential
Speaking with Alice Mizrachi
An artist, curator and educator, Alice Mizrachi is the co-founder of the YOUNITY Arts Collective, a word-wide group of female artists committed to sharing their talents with the community and educating the next generation. While visiting Alice’s studio in Sunnyside, Queens last week, we had the opportunity to pose some questions to her.
Your entire life – your own work and the work you do with others – seems to center on art. At what point did you realize that you wanted to be an artist?
I was always drawing, but I didn’t get serious about art until my junior year in high school. I reached out then to the art teacher at Benjamin Cordoza High School and told him that I wanted to be in his studio art program. He was skeptical at first, but I won him over. I never wanted to leave my assigned “studio” space. I decided that the only college I would attend was an art school. I applied to Parsons – behind my parents’ back – and was accepted.
How did your parents respond when they found out that you were determined to attend an art college?
They were not happy.
I guess you had bills to pay! What kind of work did you find once you graduated?
I worked for a bit in illustration, design and animation.
What about these days?
My days are filled with creating art and inspiring others to create art. I teach both in school settings, informal spaces and in my own studio. On weekends about ten girls come to my class here where we do everything from making collages to cutting stencils. I’m also working on a number of proposals that will allow the members of the YOUNITY Arts Collective to share their talents with folks in other parts of the world.
What inspired you to launch the YOUNITY Arts Collective? It is the force behind one of my favorite murals in Williamsburg.
Toofly and I were seeking an organized forum for women artists to share their ideas and to showcase their artwork to the public. We were also interested in teaching the next generation how to organize art events, while providing them with the opportunity to work with professional artists. We wanted a solid group in which each member could maintain her individuality, yet be part of a collective. And in 2007, YOUNITY was launched. We view YOUNITY as a world-wide catalyst for change.
What kinds of projects has YOUNITY generated?
Many! We’ve created murals in public spaces, curated exhibits, set up crafts markets, organized panel discussions and arranged youth workshops.
I first discovered your artwork a number of years back at Fuse Gallery in the East Village. But since I’ve since seen it on city walls. I’ve also noticed your stickers around town. What initially inspired you to get up?
My brother’s a b-boy and while we were growing up in Queens, he turned me on to the whole hip-hop scene. When I was in junior high school, I started catching tags in the streets. But my first official wall was at a Meeting of Styles event in 2003.
Who are some of your influences? Artists who’ve inspired you?
Many, many…I feel a strong connection to Basquiat and Frida Kahlo. I love Swoon, both her art and her sense of social responsibility. I’m also inspired by Trystan Bates who runs Honeycomb Arts. And my friends and members of the YOUNITY Arts Collective are a constant source of inspiration.
Your art seems to reflect a strong Middle Eastern sensibility. Where does that come from?
My parents were born in Israel and I visit the country once a year. I’m intrigued by Hebrew and Arabic calligraphy which I’ve begun to incorporate into my artwork.
That explains it! If you could collaborate with anyone, whom would you choose to work with?
Among the artists I’d love to paint with are: Know Hope, Gaia, Os Gemeos and the Peruvian collective, Pussy Crew. And I would LOVE to work with the Guerilla Girls.
If you could paint anywhere, what spot would you choose?
My desire is to get up in a large policed area like Times Square.
What’s next?
I just had an interview that aired last week on GritTV.com. I am part of a group show that opens on March 24th at NYU’s Bronfman Center Gallery. In April I may be traveling to China with some of the YOUNITY ladies to paint in a jam. In July I will be exhibiting at Causey Contemporary Gallery with Honeycomb, an arts collective based out of Argentina. In 2012 there will be a YOUNITY exhibit at Causey Contemporary. I’m also currently applying for grants for upcoming projects – so we’ll see where that goes.
‘sounds great! What do you see yourself doing in the years ahead?
Art, art and more art. I’d also like to travel more. Last summer, I participated in a residency in Paris, where I had the opportunity to paint murals and work on a commissioned series of prints of jazz musicians. I would love more opportunities to create artwork abroad.
The following image, courtesy of Alice Mizrachi, is a collaboration between the artist and Trystan Bates:
Interview by Lois Stavsky
Royce Bannon presents “The Unusual Suspects”
Opening tomorrow, Saturday evening, from 6 – 10pm at the 17 Frost Art and Performance Space at 17 Frost Street in Williamsburg, The Unusual Suspects features new and collaborative pieces by Abe Lincoln, Jr., Celso, Chris RWK, Darkclouds, Deeker, Infinity, Keely, Matt Siren, Moody, Nose Go, Royce Bannon and Sno Monster. Curated by Royce Bannon of the famed Endless Love Crew, the artwork ranges from minimal iconic characters to splashy expressionistic compositions. There are some surprises, too, like this collaboration between Abe Lincoln, Jr. and Nose Go:
Photo by Lois Stavsky
NYC’s Baser: The “Incredible Style Animal”
While most of NYC’s first-rate stencils, wheatpastes and pieces have left Manhattan for Brooklyn and parts of Queens, my borough still boasts an incredible range of stickers. Faust, Sure (RIP), Ader and Baser are among those whose handstyles delight me daily. Yesterday while walking along Hudson Street in SoHo to 14th Street in the West Village, I came upon dozens of Baser stickers. He’s beginning to rule certain neighborhoods! Here is a recent sticker by NYC’s self-proclaimed “Incredible Style Animal.”
Photos by Lois Stavsky