Category: Interview

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Weekend link-o-rama

Galo and Pixelpancho in Miami (click to view large)

Well, I was expecting to see my family today, but snow in London have half of them stuck there. Luckily, snow where I am in Colorado is keeping me busy. Too busy to post very much unfortunately. Here’s what I’ve been missing:

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Kid Zoom interviewed by Morgan Spurlock

Earlier this week, we posted about Kid Zoom’s upcoming solo show, This City Will Eat Me Alive, which opens on Saturday in NYC. We also promised an interview with Kid Zoom aka Ian Strange. Because I admittedly don’t know much about Kid Zoom, I asked him to find a friend who could interview him for Vandalog. He chose art collector and filmmaker Morgan Spurlock. While Spurlock might be best-known for directing and starring in the films Super Size Me and Where in the World Is Osama Bin Laden?, he is also an avid art collector. Here’s their interview:

Morgan Spurlock: When I first came to NY in 1991, I was overwhelmed but excited beyond words. I felt like I was meant to be here. What were your first thoughts when you arrived in NYC?

Kid Zoom: My first time in New York was only last year, but I had a very similar experience. It’s a massive, intimidating, overwhelming place, especially coming from a small city in Australia – But the great thing was exactly what you said, I felt like this was where I was meant to be. I went home to Australia, sold my stuff and 6 months later I moved here.

Morgan Spurlock: How is the art scene different here from your native Australia? What was it like back home and what drove you to come here?

Kid Zoom: The scene I was apart of in Australia is a small community of very talented artists and it seems similar here, I’ve had really positive experience as the new kid.
There’s just a lot more people around here if you want to paint walls.

Morgan Spurlock: This will be your first major art show in NY. That’s a huge accomplishment. How do feel? Any pressure? Nerves on end?

Kid Zoom: Thanks, I’m just very humbled by the caliber of people who have thrown their weight behind my career and let me basically do whatever I want with this show. There’s a lot of pressure and nerves, sleepless fumed out nights and i have taken to drinking with a lot more passion than usual. But it’s all things I love and it’s a great way to lose your mind.

Morgan Spurlock: How do you personally define success?

Kid Zoom: For me I think it’s a simple as getting to do the things you really want to do in life and being surrounded by like minded fools. I’ll feel successful if I can just keep creating bigger and stranger projects and continuing to do the dance involved in lining everything up to make them happen.

Morgan Spurlock: If it wasn’t for my parents giving me the freedom to be myself, I’d probably be working in a bank somewhere. Who are the greatest influences and inspirations in your life?

Kid Zoom: I came up in the Perth graffiti scene with some really great people and a lot of the older guys were a great inspiration and help.
My parents were also great, laid back people who always told me to do what I love – and I loved painting on walls, which when you’re 15 doesn’t really seem like anything with a future, especially when you start getting dropped home by the police. Before I could drive my mother used to drive me to walls I’d painted the night before to get photos – I can’t imagine where I’d be if I had more traditional parents.

Morgan Spurlock: What’s up with the bear?
 Kid Zoom: The piece is titled, ‘Tag on Bear [self portrait of the artist straight fronting]’ – So the short answer is its me, well, it’s kid zoom with the ego intact, so it’s a projected idea of myself.

———–

Kid Zoom‘s show This City Will Eat Me Alive opens this weekend in NYC. Here’s the flyer (with an image of Tag on Bear [self portrait of the artist straight fronting]):

Also, Fecal Face just did a studio visit with Kid Zoom.

Photos courtesy of Kid Zoom

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The Man Behind Crunchy…

With the launch of Ronzo‘s latest solo show, “Crackney’s Finest,” Vandalog thought it would be a good idea to get to know the mastermind behind the roach pizza man and Crunchy. Here are some pictures of the opening night as well. And if you haven’t gone to see it yet, get your arse down to Brick Lane ASAP.


How did you get into art in the first place, eventually evolving into your aesthetic today?

When I was little I just always wanted to draw and paint. Later on in school it seemed to be a good career choice as it was the only thing I was  really enjoying plus I wasn’t good in anything else but art class. I think the result of my aesthetics today is a mixture of all the stuff that influenced me on the way, my own ideas/ things I think would be cool to do and the ‘Ronzo Credo’ which is: innovate – don’t imitate. I like my work to look a bit different to the generic perception of ‘Street Art’. That’s how I ended up with the look and feel we see now.

Where do you come up with the concept of your characters? Most of them, although funny and light on appearance, embody a socio-cultural commentary. Would you agree?
Definitely! I’m trying to strike a balance of the work being humorous/entertaining with an element of more or less meaningful social commentary. I don’t want to be shallow but on the other hand I don’t want it to be to political and serious either  –  it would get boring. A good way to get to people is via humour. An excellent example for this is ‘Modern Times’  by ‘Charley Chaplin’. He is one of my heroes. I haven’t got real concepts for my characters. More ideas and things that I see in real life. When I draw I try to remember people or situations I’ve seen and add a bit of a Ronzo twist to it. I try to ‘keep it real’ this way and not overcomplicate things too much.

One of my favorite works of yours will always be the giant Crunchy on the Village Underground. It was one of the first pieces I saw when I lived in London a few years ago and I fell in love with the piece and the intent behind it. How did your notions of Crunchy begin?
Thank you – He’s my favourite too. I always try to melt non-fiction and fiction together. In case of Crunchy, I feel it couldn’t have worked out better. I lost my job then and so did many people I know. I felt it wouldn’t be much use to look for a new job as there weren’t any. Instead I wanted to spend my time on doing something in the public eye that is dealing with the subject. The result was ‘Crunchy’ – a mixture of a real life economy crises and a Godzilla fable creature. I had lot of help while doing it from my friends and Village Underground as well. I’m happy that we did it because I feel that people can relate to it. Everyone has their own experience with the recession and Crunchy reminds as a bit about it everyday.

Can you explain the use of unique materials in your work? I know I was surprised when i discovered what some of your works were made of?
I use spray paint, acrylics, pencil, paper, canvas, fiber glass, resin, wood, metal. clay etc. I’m interested in any materials really. But in the end of the day it’s just materials. They don’t mean anything. The Idea is the only important thing.


Congratulations on your solo exhibit, “Crackney’s Finest,” going on now at Stolenspace gallery. How did you decide what you wanted to do for the solo show?
Thank you – Glad you like it. ‘Crackney’s Finest’ came about as I realised I had too many characters with their individual stories to put under on roof. I just needed a good phrase to round them all up. And as they all live in the virtual borough of Crackney I thought to name them ‘Cracknety’s Finest’ fit’s just fine. Like if they were the ‘creme de la creme’ of the neighbourhood.

Your work is created in so many different mediums? Which outlet do you like to work in most?
That’s difficult to tell – I love everything really. And all of it starts with sketching and drawing.

What is your favorite piece from the show?
The Pizza Roach  (Giant spinning cockroach on Honda delivery bike)

What projects can we look forward to in the immediate future from you?
The good old stuff – Just bigger and better. I’m preparing a big street installation at the moment and a view other things. All top secret of course – but I will keep you posted…
Photos via Butterfly

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Weekend link-o-rama

Sticker by Hieronymus

Wow. It’s actually Friday night already? This week went by really fast. I think I’ve been sleeping too much. Well, while I was sleeping, these things nearly slipped me by:

The week’s not up yet though, and I’ve committed to doing at least one useful thing before it is: Tomorrow I’m going to try using my kitchen for the first time since going to university. Wish me luck…

Photo by LoisInWonderland

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Vandalog Interviews – PANIK ATG

Photo by delete08

Whilst we here at Vandalog strive to cover the latest and freshest street art creations and goings on, we’ve noticed that in our haste our coverage of graffiti, at least it the purest sense of the word, has for lack of a better word been slipping as of late. In a new series of interview we’ve decided to go back to basics or back to where it all began if you will and interview some of the pioneers of the underground art scene before street art became a house hold name. In this, our first interview, we spoke to graffiti artist Panik from North London. Panik is one of the co founders of ATG – one of the most prolific and notorious graffiti crews England has seen in the last decade. From their cross over into music, fashion and now main stream street art, Panik exclusively talks to Vandalog in the wake of his latest solo exhibition at Pure Evil Gallery.

Just for our readers, can you tell us who you are, what crew(s) you represent and where are you from?

I’m Panik aka Mr.P, I represent the ATG crew and I’m from the borough of Camden, North London.

Photo by delete08

How long have you been doing graffiti for and how did you first get into writing?

I’ve been doing graffiti since 1999. I first got into it through my school funnily enough. There was a hall of fame behind the sports hall and a train tunnel that runs underneath the school with pieces by all of the old school heads. I used to check all the graff when skating over round the Westway and the South Bank as well. When I started, it was quite a natural thing to do as everyone had a tag. There’s still people I paint with today that I was going on my first bombs with at age 12 in my school corridors! It started with trying to be the most up in my school, then the local area then the whole of London and nowadays I am painting wherever I find myself in the world.

Photo by ATGLDN

Do you see what you do as some thing of an addiction?

Graffiti is an addiction and if your in it for the long haul then it is all about how to tame that addiction in a way that allows you to get on with the rest of your life. When you are fully immersed in it, you become a junkie for it and you start to neglect other things in your life, but if everything in your life is going bad, then it is that thing that will always be there for you and reminds you who you are and helps you move through changes in your life. Going out painting graffiti on my own has helped me sort my head out during hard times but when you know you’re probably going to be doing it for a long time, it’s important not to abuse it. In other words don’t go getting shitfaced on cheap cider all week if you want to be able to enjoy a cold pint on the weekend.

Photo by delete08

How did your involvement with ATG come about?

My involvement with ATG started in 2001. It came about through friends that were loosely connected through a scene in North-west London that was more or less orientated around selling weed. Basically there was a few of us at that time that were beginning to stand out and were pushing the graff scene forward north of the river so we joined forces under the name ATG
(Antagonizers) which was a name Aset had thought up. The original line up was me, Rest, Aset, Snore, Rayds and shortly after, Harm. ATG was and always will be a lot about partying as well as painting which is how we spread so quickly. We would go to random parties all over the city and then after when we were all charged up we would climb all over shit, bombing our way
home. We also wanted to raise the bar with illegal graffiti in London and try to step on stage with the people doing big things internationally.

Photo by mikeion

Who were/are you inspirations?

Artistically my inspiration has come from all over from old school London Graffiti to Street Art in South America and Europe and various typography and illustration from the past, but my energy is always found through my friends and London Town.

Photo by nolionsinengland

How do you feel the internet has affected Graffiti?

The internet has changed graffiti a lot, everyone knows this, but then it has changed everything in life. The one thing I’ve noticed about the internet and graffiti is that it has almost killed off regional styles. Before the internet really took off you could tell the difference between South London and North London graffiti not to mention the different styles in cities across the world. This was because people would be inspired by the graffiti they see in their area when growing up so the style of local heads would rub off on them. Because of the internet, now no matter where you are from you are probably looking at graffiti from around the world online more than local stuff on walls and so the styles these days all start to look the same like some international Euro/NYC mesh. The internet has made the graffiti subculture ridiculously easy to access. Info on almost anything about it is available online. People these days find spots to paint by checking photos on flickr, order all there specially designed graffiti paint online and track down and message their favorite writers on Facebook or MySpace.

Before the net you had to go out and search for your spots, spend a while stealing shit paint from hardware shops until you finally worked out the good paint to use and if you ever managed to cross paths with one of your favourite writers, it was a special moment. The internet has changed all that, but I’m not bitter. Graffiti has been adapting from it’s birth and this is just another era.

Photo by Pure Evil

This month you’re opening your second major solo show at Pure Evil Gallery. Can you tell us a little bit more about the show and how it differs from your first?

My first show at Pure Evil was my introduction to the gallery world so although I was at a stage with my work that I felt was ready to put out there, I was still only dipping my toes in the water. Since I started making artwork outside of graffiti, it’s sort of been centered around trying to capture moments of energy in my life, which can be hard as it’s not particularly slow paced and often a juggling act of highs and lows. For this next show my work feels like it is moving closer to channeling that energy through my style and visual communication of my thoughts. I’m sure it will feel a lot more like you are stepping inside my world. The work that will feature has been done over the last year in London and Amsterdam.

Photo by Pure Evil

What is the key to keeping your ideas fresh and not becoming mentally/physically burnt out by what you do?

I think there are different ways to keep yourself buzzing off your work, but variation in approach is always going to be the most important. Sometimes you just have to live and go and get yourself in to all sorts of situations in order to then go back and enjoy creating work. It definitely helps when I see someone doing things in a way that I have completely slept on. Seeing other people really going for it in a way I relate to always reminds me of why I do what I do. At the end of the day, I’ve grown up in a graffiti world so although I enjoy creating work for myself, I also love to come and make noise, let people know where I’m at and then move on to the next one. And there is always a next one, so that keeps the ball rolling in my world.

Photo by delete08

And finally, what does the future hold for yourself? In regards to your work, new projects and any other personal aspirations you have in life. Is there anyone you’d like to give a shout out to?

Who knows what the future holds for me? My life isn’t slowing down at all so probably just more of the same carry on, more often. At the moment I’m liking the idea of getting into a new studio at the beginning of 2011, spend at least a year getting really lost in my work until I feel I’m creating something that is completely on point to how I see the world and what I want to convey and then do my next show in 2012 sometime. But who knows? I want to do a lot of things so could very easily be pulled in a different direction altogether. There’s always a lot of ATG projects to get busy with and walls that need paint on them. Generally at the beginning of the year I have a long list of stuff I want to complete or get underway by the end of the year, and then I just get stuck in and see how much of it I can do while while dealing with all the other stuff life throws at you. It’s nice to not know what’s around the corner.

Panik’s solo show at Pure Evil Gallery opens on November 11th.

Photos by nolionsinengland, delete08, Pure Evil, mikeion and ATGLDN

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More from set up at Moniker

Photo by unusualimage

As promised in Tuesday’s post, here’s more from the set up process at Moniker Art Fair. Unfortunately I had to stay home on Wednesday, but I was out taking photos on Tuesday and of course plenty of other people like Hooked Blog were out taking photos.

Eine's installation
Polly Morgan's installation
Herakut's installation
A piece by Swoon. Photo by Hooked
Before the galleries moved in...
Faith47 painting

Speaking of Faith47, check out her new mural in South Africa on Wooster Collective.

Steve Powers and Faith47 have finished their spots, 3 to go. Photo by nolionsinengland

And there are some Moniker videos to mention as well. The folks from Babelgum have been working non-stop doing editing at the fair. Here’s their time-lapse of Eine’s mural:

Calculate isn’t really for me and I’ve heard more than one person suggest that Eine should have repainted his Vandalism image which was on this same wall, but Eine fans seem to be liking this new piece as well.

S.Butterfly made this video interview with Steve Powers:

All in all, Moniker is shaping up to be everything that I and it seems everybody else have been hoping for. The fair opens on Thursday night from 7-9 and I’ll be running tours of the fair on Friday at 11:30 and 1:30, so I hope to see as many people there as possible.

Photos by RJ, unusualimage, nolionsinengland and Hooked

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Vandalog interviews – Faith47

A couple of years ago, I mentioned to one of my high school teachers that I liked street art. She got really excited. Turns out, she a. a huge tattoo by Mike Giant on her back and b. once interviewed South African street artist Faith47. At the time, I’d either not seen or not taken much notice of Faith47’s artwork, but that quickly changed. Now, Faith47 is one of the artists that I think of when I think of street art. There are a lot of talented street artists, but Faith47 really gets what street art is about: Faith47 can take an old wall and give it new life, and she helps to raise awareness of serious social issues at the same time. While they are stylistically very different, I see a similar intent behind Faith47’s art as I see with Swoon. Before this interview, I’d only been in touch with Faith47 once or twice before. Now, all my suspicions about her being as amazing and genuine a person as she is an artist seem to have been confirmed.

But it’s not coincidence that Vandalog is doing an interview with Faith47 now. Next week, Faith47 will be taking part in Moniker, the London art fair for street artists. Faith47 will have some art in Campbarbossa‘s booth at the fair. Moniker opens next Thursday evening. Most of Vandalog will be there; it’s definitely something worth seeing (hell, I’m traveling all the way from Philadelphia). So that’s my reminder about Moniker, here’s the interview with Faith47:

RJ: How did you start painting walls? Do you do graffiti, street art, a bit of both, something else or does it even matter what we call it?

Faith47: Wealz130 from the YMB crew was my catalyst in the formation of this love affair with graffiti, he taught me the do’s and don’ts and has been my adviser ever since.
I understand and appreciate graffiti culture immensely…
One of the things I liked most about graffiti was its anti social nature and its ability to exist outside of society…
And with this in mind I didn’t want to feel stuck within the mode of graffiti thinking where I am not free to experiment and do exactly what I want to do.
So you could label the different things I do into different categories, but at the end of the day it’s all just labels.
I paint the streets, and in a gallery space, I basically just do the work that I want to do and don’t worry so much about any of this, ‘what do we define this as?’ thinking… as life is bigger and more complex and intricate then that…

Where is your favorite place to paint?

My studio… at nighttime… with deep dark music on…
Or in the inner city littered streets, on a broken abandoned building which is still echoing of times past…

Most of your photos of your work outdoors show the wider context of where the work was painted, and many of those photos show members of the public passing by the art. Why do you paint where you do, and how do people react to it? It’s one thing for sites like Vandalog or Wooster Collective to post a photo and say “wow that’s cool,” but I’m not sure that’s your intended audience…

I’ve always loved the actual process of painting on the streets. It’s the experience itself that is half the beauty of it.
In South Africa people rarely explore life outside of their particular class category. This is partially due to the legacy of the apartheid group areas act.
So, to move around the country and in and out of the various communities through my painting has opened up this life to me in ways that I don’t think I could ever actually explain in words… This spills over to traveling in other cities and countries, the way you experience the city changes 100% when you are painting its streets… I’ve managed to experience the world and its alleyways and stolen lost roads with sheer excitement and wonder for the last few years, and for this I feel truly blessed.
I much prefer to paint in gritty, neglected areas and countries… Where one can see the life stories of the people ached into their faces…
The hand painted shop signs, the chaos of the streets, the freedom in this chaos to find your own space and work within it, to become part of the environment in this way… It’s organic and breathing and I like to feel that silent screaming breath of the city.

How does your art change between working on walls or “gallery art?”

I fell in love with painting on wood and I think this will be an endless exploration into how I can play with this medium, it is so natural and such a base element. It takes me closer to nature. I’ve been exploring thoughts that are intensely personal; it’s been good for me.
I think it’s freeing me up a lot, allowing me to work in ways that are also in turn affecting my street painting.
So the relationship is symbiotic.
Also I can’t do one of them too much with out getting tired, so it’s nice to change from street to the studio from time to time, keeps things sharper…

What are you goals as an artist?

I really want to get to the point where I can comfortably support my son and myself without doing any work or commissions that I don’t want to do.
I really want to be able to use all my time to explore whatever ideas I have in my mind.
My biggest challenge in this life has been the financial pressures that interrupt my artistic process… It’s gotten a lot better, but it’s been such a long process and taken up a lot of extra time. I think this is a challenge for many artists… Especially in countries where there are no support structures or where you’ve had no formal art training etc.

This issue may have completely blown over by now, but I remember something like a year and a half ago that you tried to get the word out about an absurd anti-graffiti law that was being proposed in Cape Town. Were you successful in preventing that law from being passed?

It was passed a month ago.
I am feeling very depressed about it. It’s a blanket law that totally alienates us. I feel completely deflated about this. There is no option but to carry on as per usual and hope for the best. I want to move away from this city because of this negative energy from the city, but my son is here and he is very close with his father and we have a strong extended family structure. So I have to wait it out until he is at least 18…
Cape Town is a beautiful city, but it has a sickness that can affect you if you are not vigilant about it.
This is why I love / need to travel, to make sure I am breathing and thinking and alive and not subscribing to the bullshit that one subscribes to when you are in a small town for too long. A few days ago my unsuspecting heart sunk into the ground when I saw that they had buffed over the old “free Mandela” slogan which is on the off ramp near the Pick and Pay in Observatory… I’ve driven past that for years, we used to joke about stealing that iconic vibracrete and selling it to a museum – it’s so precious of course where it is that we would never had done such a thing, but our city council doesn’t care about these things and with grey bland death cement paint they erased a symbol of the painful struggle, perhaps because they knew that it never really ended and that the tires are still burning.

You’re probably the only well-known street artist that I can think of who is also a mom. How does being a mother influence your art?

Well it’s been super challenging, especially in the beginning.
But his dad and the family play a big part.
I’ve always thought that the best way to teach is through example, so when I had him, I was really young, and everyone expected me to get some lame ass job and do ‘what needed to be done,’ but I thought, “no, if I want him to do with his life something that he loves, then I need to do the same…”
I’ve been pretty uncompromising about this and it’s working out now after all this persistence.
He hangs out at his dad’s tattoo studio or at my studio a lot so he is always around great artists and people.
We’re really lucky, he loves drawing and in fact he burns a lot of artists hands down…
From the start we incorporated him into our lifestyles, so as he’s gotten older hes become an amazing friend and it’s actually a pretty easy dynamic.

How will you be involved in the Moniker Art Fair?

Well I’m going to be showing and painting at the Stroke.03 fair in Berlin.
So I thought I would hop over to see Moniker. I’ll paint a wall somewhere I think, and I’ll have some work up with campbarbossa.
But really I just wanted to hang out with Frankie a bit who is organizing the fair, and meet some of the galleries who are involved.

What have you got planned for the future?
I’m going to fall in love.
Again.

Photos courtesy of Faith47

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Vandalog Interviews – Retna

Photo by DoubleKf

One of the best examples of the grey area that I love between street art and graffiti is Retna. The artist that I most wanted to watch paint last year at Primary Flight was Retna. I remember seeing one of Retna’s faux-marble sculptures at Primary Flight’s Blue Print For Space show and thinking “Damn, he needs to do that in real marble and I’d want one in every room of my house.” One of the first pieces of graffiti that I saw upon arriving in Philadelphia last month was an piece by Retna. For the last year or so, Retna has secretly been climbing toward the top of my list of favorite artists. His art works equally well indoors or outdoors, alone or in collaborations. He deals with subject matter ranging from politics and spirituality to fashion and street culture, but he doesn’t feel all over the place because it’s all part of a continuing push to bring things to a new level.

Recently, Retna took some time to talk to us here at Vandalog for this exclusive interview. And if you enjoy this interview (and even if you don’t for some reason), I highly suggest that you check out the September issue of Juxtapoz where Jeffrey Deitch shares his thought on Retna (excerpted here) and Retna is interviewed in-depth.

This is the first in Vandalog’s series of interviews in anticipation of the Moniker International Art Fair. Retna’s work will be shown at the fair in New Image Art Gallery‘s booth. Over the next couple of weeks, we’ll be posting more interviews with a number of artists involved in Moniker.

How did you become interested in graffiti art?

My first encounter with graffiti was when I was a kid—I remember going out in my backyard and seeing a group of older guys hanging out on the roof a couple houses away writing gang blocks. At the age of 8, I was fascinated and already trying to imitate what they were doing. I was immediately attracted to the art form of graffiti and wanted to know how it was done, so I started practicing writing letters and eventually developing my own style.

How did your affiliation with MSK and AWR come about?

It begins and ends with my oldest group of friends.

Something that has always intrigued me about your work is its unique use of the Latin alphabet. Where did the idea to incorporate this technique in to your work originate? Was this style something you were already familiar with or did you have to learn it from scratch and adapt it?

The incorporation of text in my work is a direct result of my graffiti background. It’s become my way of bridging the gap between graffiti art and fine art. My style of writing is something that I have created and refined over the years by taking inspiration from various sources including Egyptian hieroglyphics, Old English calligraphy and traditional graffiti writing.

Photo by Lord Jim

When you’re creating a piece that incorporates this type of lettering how often are you actually creating an encoded message, rather then just using the font purely for aesthetics?

Although some may see the text as aesthetically pleasing and merely as symbols, I never write random letters. All my pieces can be decoded into full messages and words that translate into English or Spanish.

Photo by Revok
Photo by Revok

Creating murals by yourself or with others seems to play a very big part in what you do. One thing I’ve noticed is your consistency in collaborating with EL MAC. How did you guys meet and what is it that keeps bringing you back together for these awesome collabs?

Mac and I first met about ten years ago when we were painting side by side at an art event in Mexico and then we were reintroduced about five years ago—that’s when we completed our first collaborative mural. Our work garnered such a positive response that we realized that we had a strong synergy and we’ve been working together ever since.

Retna and El Mac. Photo by anarchosyn
Retna and El Mac. Photo by Hargo

How has L.A. Influenced your style since you were first introduced to the mural culture at an early age?

I was born and raised in Los Angeles so I grew up watching all the other great graffiti artists and muralists, and aspiring to be like them. I want to do the same for others—I want to create work that’s so awe-inspiring that it motivates others to get into art. I would love to be a footnote in someone else’s career and hear that they were inspired by something I created.

Lets talk a little about the latest installation you did over at the Rivera & Rivera Gallery, where you created a floor-to-ceiling installation piece. What was it like working on such a large scale?

I have worked on some large-scale murals before, so that was not a challenge for me. However what I did find challenging was, visualizing the piece on a three dimensional scale. The piece at Rivera & Rivera was the first time where I incorporated additional elements, like fabric, to my painting to create a truly interactive installation that fully engaged viewers.

Photo by Unurth

What was the inspiration behind the Desaturated exhibition? It seemed quite fashion orientated. Is this something you’ve become interested in as urban art and fashion seem to have merged together rather quickly.

I don’t think I’m into fashion all of a sudden because it has merged with urban art; I’ve always admired people who have dope style. That includes people from all over the world and their style, whether is unique to them or traditional according to their heritage—if it looks good, I’m going to like it. The same goes for the images of the Desaturated exhibition, I wasn’t as concerned with what they were wearing as much as I was about what the overall image looked like.

Photo courtesy of New Image Art Gallery

And finally, what does the future hold for RETNA? In regards to your work, new projects and any other personal aspirations you have in life. Is there anyone you’d like to give a shout out to?

I can’t say I know what the future holds. The only thing I am focused on right now is making new work and continuing to do what I do.

Be sure to check out more from Retna by visiting his official website here

Photos by Unurth, Hargo, anarchosyn, Revok, Lord Jim, DoubleKf and New Image Art Gallery

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Vandalog Interviews – Ripo

One of the things that I find most interesting in street art and graffiti is that grey area between the two art forms. Ripo has put himself right in the middle of that grey area. Some days, his work appears on Hurt You Bad, the graffiti blog claiming to have coined the term “art fag” in referring to street artists, but he’s also done interviews for the Fecal Face blog while described as a street artist at the same time he has a solo show in a gallery. There’s not doubt that Ripo cares about lettering and his style is something any writer would respect, but he’s taken that graffiti background and flipped it on its head in order to also make things that the general public wants to look at and can connect with, as opposed to just painting a name.

But Ripo isn’t just a talented artist and designer. He lives the life of a true artist. I think I’ve said it on Vandalog before that Ripo could probably move back to NYC (where he grew up) and quickly become a big name in scene there. He’s already a big name in street art, but he would undoubtedly be even better known if he lived in New York. Except Ripo lives and works in Barcelona because that’s what makes him happy right now, and I have a lot of respect for Ripo for just doing what makes him happy instead of playing art-world games. There are so many “street artists” out there moving to Williamsburg, putting up a few posters and “playing the game,” but Ripo embodies everything good about street art.

How did you first get in to doing graffiti?

I grew up in NYC in the 80’s and 90’s, on top of that I was was always interested in making art and skateboarding. How could I not get into graffiti?

You constantly appear to be experimenting with all kinds of elaborate styles and exciting fonts in your work. When did you first take a serious interest and approach to typography?

I grew up drawing comics so combining words and images was always a big part of making the art that I loved. Especially on the covers of comic books the font is so central and important to the whole experience of it. As I grew up and continued to get interested in graffiti and graphic design, font and lettering remained an important part of making images for me even when I was doing more figurative or other types of work.

In some cases rather than putting up your name you’ve instead taken to painting small messages and slogans around the place. There’s certainly something a lot more verbal about this approach. What was your reason for doing this?

After awhile traditional graffiti started to bore me. It’s hard for someone who’s not interested in graffiti to get a lot out of just reading someone’s name over and over again. Although I have returned to painting my name a lot, and just exploring styles of lettering, some of the most fulfilling pieces are the ones I’ve done that say something more to people who come across them. Communicating to the public via an image or message on a wall is a really powerful medium. If it wasn’t I doubt that the major corporations, city campaigns, political candidates and so on would put so much effort and money into taking over our visual outdoor space. Why shouldn’t we have a say in that and actually say something?

The work you’ve created for your Reflect On and Your Name series all come across as being very thought provoking pieces of art work. How are you influenced to come up with such ideas?

Those were just a natural selection of many more ideas that are still brewing and yet to come. Sometimes you’ll come up with something by accident, like the Reflect On project. I found a broken mirror once and painted on it, and naturally decided to stick it up in the street. The effect of photographing it and seeing the image change, interact with the space, and take on new meaning depending on what’s being reflected just sparked something and I had to push it further.

Collaboration with Swanski

Photography also appears to be something that you’ve decided to dedicate your time toward doing. Is this something you’ve always had an interest in or did you just pick it up by accident?

Photography just comes naturally now that most of us have digital cameras. Traveling, and photographing the works and experiences I’ve had is almost a natural instinct. Certain things catch your eye and if you’ve got a camera you just want to shoot it and capture that moment. I can’t remember who first said this quote but I love it: “The best camera in the world is the one that’s with you.”

You’ve traveled near and far with your art, from Berlin to Brazil. Where else in the world you would like to be able to paint?

I’ve painted in places I never dreamed of, Albania for example. So I can dream of places I’d like to go, but maybe the ones I can’t imagine could be the best. That being said Africa really intrigues me.

Are there any graffiti stories from the road that you would care to tell us?

There are plenty. There are the near-death ones that are probably entertaining (easy to laugh about them later), like the time I fell about 10m down the side of a cliff next to a highway in Chile trying to paint some ridiculous spot, or the 11 story rooftop I painted in Bucharest with all but a meter of floor to stand on between me and a big spill. Or the time my friends got robbed at gunpoint watching out for me and a friend while we were painting a rooftop up above. We had to just watch it happen from 3 stories up, nothing to do. Luckily no one got hurt.

Then there’s the other side of things, like when I was painting in Colombia and torrential rain began dumping down on me. I had a huge ladder plus buckets of paint, rollers, and I myself was a complete mess. The woman from the little restaurant next door motioned me to come inside and have something to drink, but not wanting to leave my stuff in the street to be taken I thankfully declined. She ended up bringing me out something in the rain, and then let me drag the whole ladder and the rest of the mess into the middle of the restaurant and cooked me a hot meal even though the kitchen was closed. I happened to be painting Okupame (Squat Me) in huge letters on the facade of the abandoned building next to her restaurant, she didn’t seem to mind one bit. Being out and about you get the good and the bad.

You’ve made your mark on some of the biggest man made canvases imaginable. Inevitably the bigger the mission, the bigger the pay off. Do you still get a buzz from doing your more gigantic pieces, regardless of the danger factor?

Bigger doesn’t always mean more dangerous. But going on missions to paint, or really doing anything I’m told I shouldn’t do, and not knowing what might happen as a result is still exciting and motivating to me.

And finally, what does the future hold for RIPO? In regards to your work, new projects and any other personal aspirations you have in life. Is there anyone you’d like to give a shout out to?

I’ve been in the studio a lot recently and pushing some things I’ve never done before with canvas works. I’m also excited for the release of Tristan Manco’s new book, Street Sketchbook Journeys, which I just did the cover for. I also did another book cover for Penguin that should be out by next year as well. In November I’m in a group show here in Barcelona, organized by my friend Andrea from Btoy. I’ll also have a solo show in Barcelona in January. Besides that I have a big trip I’ve been planning for a few years now but had to put on the side. Maybe next year. Maybe later. Maybe never, but hopefully sooner. That and always keep in the streets.

Be sure to check out more from RIPO by visiting his official website here

Photos courtesy of RIPO

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Speaking with Specter

Photo by Nolionsinengland (Specter did the paste-up of a piece of fabric)

With Specter‘s recent solo show at Pure Evil Gallery, I thought it would be the perfect time to ask Specter a few questions.

RJ: You were just in London (or are you still there) for your solo show at Pure Evil. What do you think of the city?

Specter: London has a vibrant energy to it. I only got to see a small chunk of the city but have nothing but good things to say about it and the people. Pure Evil was a great host.

Photo courtesy of Pure Evil Gallery

RJ: The work at your solo show is part of a new series. Can you explain the series and how it came about?

Specter: The series is based on people who personally influenced me artistically. Instead of painting the subject’s face I decided to paint a garment that tells a story about them.

RJ: On the whole, your street art is more conceptual than that of most street artists. Have you found it challenging to execute and be appreciated for conceptual street art when so much popular street art is, at one level, very graphic and literal? How have people reacted to pieces like your ready-mades?

Specter: I don’t think about it often, but whenever you work outside the framework people have trouble grasping it. I transition between painting and sculpture often and rarely sign my pieces, so it’s sometimes hard for enthusiasts to recognize my work. With hand drawing, painting and constructing everything I put out and commonly taking weeks to find the right spot I get less coverage than your average poster or stencil artist.

A ready-made. Photo by Specter

RJ: Why do you work outside, and how does your street art connect to your gallery art?

Specter: I work outside because it is all I know and love. I was introduced to art through graffiti and have been working on the streets for over fifteen years. It is my strongest passion and I take it very seriously. I try to be very honest with the street because the street knows when you’re faking. Showing in galleries requires a new approach to one’s work, and it’s a choice I’m happy I made. Adapting concepts to an indoor and controlled environment can be a challenge and you’re also starting from a blank canvass. The transition from the street to the gallery doesn’t work for a lot of artists but for me I feel it is just another venue to express concepts.

From the Manage Workflow series. Photo by Specter

RJ: Earlier this year, you took on the issue of gentrification in Brooklyn, and you have consistently depicted homeless people in your art. On the one hand, you’re raising awareness of these issues, but on the other hand, street art is bringing about gentrification. How do you deal with this apparent contradiction? Do you think that your art has had a positive impact in the communities you’re working in?

Specter: I don’t believe those contradictions apply. I put up work where I want to. The neighborhoods are chosen because they are beautiful and the people appreciate and empathize with the subject matter.

From the Gentrification Billboards series. Photo by Specter

RJ: What do you hope to accomplish through your art?

Specter: To get people talking.

The controversial wheatpaste from the If I Saw You In Heaven Series. Photo by Specter

RJ: One particular street piece that you did in London has turned out to be pretty controversial. At first, people generally seemed to love it, but then it was pointed out that you had partially covered an old hand-painted sign. I guess I’d like to hear your thoughts on why you put the piece there and give you a chance to respond to the negative things that people have been saying about it.

Specter: At its essence graffiti and street art is both the work by the artist and the public space in which it is put up. As an artist every wall in the public sphere is fair game. I go to great lengths scouting locations for my work and often look for hand-painted signs and walls to revive in the collective eye with my hand-painted installations. I have absolutely no remorse for any placement of my work.

I choose that spot for a reason. I like to involve my pieces in a dialogue with their surroundings. The art is not just my painting it is the entire environment, the interaction of all parts.

I identify very strongly with these old signs and feel that my additions are just part of the evolving cycle of their lives. My incorporations are changes to their ephemeral existence, often highlighting their under appreciated being.

RJ: Where do you see yourself in five years?

Specter: Making art on a beach in Mexico.

Photos by Specter, Pure Evil and Nolionsinengland