Shake well.
Photos by ExcuseMySarcasm, Graphis, John19701970, Olson-ONOFF, Photofil, Saner HVA KGB, Startape Photographe and Zomb7.
Wild Style Wednesday!
An update from Jade
I am a big fan of South American street art, maybe it’s because it is so different to what I tend to see in London, or perhaps it’s just because it tends to be pretty bloody good.
Peruvian artist Jade has been rather prolific over the last couple of months and here are a few of his walls, accompanied by a nice little video filmed in Ecuador.
Continue reading “An update from Jade”
All-star street art cast featured at small Belgian gallery
The small town of La Louvière, in Belgium is host to a brilliant Urban Art exhibition being held at “Centre de la Gravure et de’limage imprimée” (The Center for Engraving and the Printed Image). Showing through September 2, 2012, “Vues sur Murs” (Wallscapes: Prints in Street Art) features an impressive list of international artists, many making new work specifically for this exhibit and also hitting the town with huge pieces.
Invader, C215, Jef Aérosol, EVOL, Ludo, Denis Meyers, Obêtre, Muga, Doctor-H, Sten & Lex, Swoon and OBEY (Shepard Fairey) are all featured in this show which spans three floors of the gallery. The show’s curator, Marie Van Bosterhaut, had the seed of the idea in 2009 after seeing an OBEY print at the home of a collector. She contacted Fairey’s people for what was initially planned to be an OBEY retrospective…
“But then it appeared it might be more interesting to invite more artists using printing techniques in street art,” said Bosterhaut of the project’s evolution. “It was really great to have all these artists working inside the museum, and also outside. There was like a great energy.”
While some of the artists knew each other, others met for the first time. “This created some small surprises,” said Bosterhaut. Evidence of this is seen in one of the exhibition’s highlights located on the top floor. There, Berlin-based EVOL has transformed several structural columns, which protrude at various levels into the exhibition space. They now appear as EVOL’s signature-style buildings and “artists like Denis (Meyers) & Ludo made some tiny stencils or billboards, creating a kind of interaction between the artists,” Bosterhaut said.
Another highlight of the show is Brussels-based artist Denis Meyers. Mostly known for the large faces he paints, he also prints unique stickers and uses hand-made woodcuts and rubber stamps to produce a wide variety of work which all screams out with his signature style. Many of his sketchbooks are also on display as well as other elements which offer a peek into the artist’s process.
(see more in the photo gallery)
Long-time French favorite Jef Aérosol‘s large iconic work greets you at the entrance of the exhibit but some of his smaller, printed images are framed on the sides and offer a more intimate experience with the artist. Jef also hit the town, painting a three-story-tall face of rocker Jimi Hendrix.
In addition to his brilliant mini-billboard, the Paris-based paste-up master Ludo and his unmistakable green paint occupy a notable section of the top floor, including a full-scale bus shelter (crappy tags included.) For the real experience though, pick up the map supplied at the front desk and follow it to the various “treasures” left by artists around the city. Ludo has posted three large pieces out on the town.
A favorite of mine is “C215” (Christian Guémy.) The Parisian stencil artist painted a large mural for the show. There are also many photographs of his stencil works, and several other painted “objects,” including three mailboxes, a shoeshine box, and a metal sign among other things.
The pioneering Italian artistic duo of Sten & Lex display some of their strong, black & white portrait posters, but the real treat from them requires a 10 minute walk to a parking lot down the road a bit. There, a dramatic and elaborate composition of black & white zig-zagging lines reveal a face that fills the wall and towers over the cars and shopping carts.
Of course the anchor of the exhibition is an extensive collection of OBEY works by American artist Shepard Fairey. In addition to a short documentary video, the display spans his career from his quirky beginnings making “Andre the Giant has a posse” stickers, to the slick, celebrity and political-themed posters pumped out by the Obey Giant Worldwide Propaganda factory today. There are dozens of his limited-edition prints with their graphically-pleasing imagery, and even a trio of OBEY skateboard decks. A definite treat for any Fairey fan.
The show concentrates on the printing aspects of urban art but there’s a ton of other multi-media work to see there as well. Too much art to mention in this article, including great stuff by Invader, Obêtre, Muga, Doctor-H & Swoon.
This is a severely edited version of a much longer story from my newly started blog, LABEAURATOIRE where you can read the whole story & see a slideshow with more than 50 photos.
IF YOU GO: Smack-dab in-between Paris & Cologne, La Louviere is about a two and-a-half hour drive from each, and just 45 minutes south of Brussels. Definitely worth the trip. But remember, it’s only showing through September 2, 2012 – so get going!
Photos by Lance Aram Rothstein (many of these photographs were shot with Film Cameras. Long Live Film!)
The Painted Desert Project – round 1, post 3
This is post #3 and in our series about The Painted Desert Project. You can see posts 1 and 2 here and here. The first round of The Painted Desert Project took place last month in the Navajo Nation and was an effort by Jetsonorama and Yote to use art to help improve the local economy. Gaia, Overunder, Doodles, Labrona, Jetsonorama, Tom Greyeyes and Breeze put up art as part of this round of the project, and there will be at least one more group of artists visiting in the future. After the jump, we have photos of work by Jetsonorama, Breeze, Gaia, Labrona and Doodles, as well as a couple of shots of Jetsonorama of the artists at work and play… Continue reading “The Painted Desert Project – round 1, post 3”
How and Nosm in Philly – finished mural
How and Nosm have finished their mural in Philadelphia, titled Personal Melody. The mural, by former graffiti writers and depicting falling bombs, is a bit of a change from what the Philadelphia Mural Arts Program usually commissions, but Tony Goldman’s Goldman Properties was also behind the project. Goldman Projects owns the Bowery and Houston mural site as well as the Wynwood Walls site in Miami.
How and Nosm have more pics of the mural on their blog.
Photos courtesy of How and Nosm and by Steve Weinik
Brandalism: Mass-takeover of British billboards
Brandalism is a large-scale billboard hijacking project up right now throughout England. The organizers have put artwork over ads in Leeds, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol and London over the past few days, and they’ve worked with dozens of artists from 8 countries to do it. So far, about 35 billboards have been taken over and replaced with art, but there may be as many as 50 when the project is finished. The project calls itself the “the world’s first international, collaborative subvertising project,” which is not true, but it is still very exciting and a high-impact way to show what could be in our public spaces instead of advertising. Some fantastic artists have contributed to the project including Jordan Seiler, OX, Ron English, Cleon Peterson, Paul Insect and Know Hope.
You can read more about Brandalism in The Independent or on the project website.
Check a bunch more disruptions from the Brandalism project after the jump… Continue reading “Brandalism: Mass-takeover of British billboards”
Interview with Risk
In the last week of Corey Helford‘s “Letters from America,” taking place right now Black Rat Projects in London, Vandalog caught up with another one of the participating artists, graffiti legend Risk. Grilling him on the nature of graffiti in the gallery and the place of collectives in the present day, Risk gave us an insight into his mediums, thoughts on working in the streets and showing alongside street artists.
Stephanie: How do you think the perception of graffiti has changed with the explosion of street art?
Risk: I think it is easier to relate to street art, therefore the perception of Graffiti is better as a whole.
S: Are they still separate movements?
R: Yes completely separate, yet cousins, so to speak…. Street art comes from the evolution of graffiti, the act of getting up and forcing society to look and think. It is an easier way, and more blatant. It’s only natural that we figure out quicker easier ways….
S: How do you think graffiti translates to canvas indoors? Does it have the same impact?
R: I think it’s the responsibility of the artists to make the canvas translate. Every artists should consider where they are showing and to whom. They have a unique opportunity to set the stage and convey what they want to convey to whom… As far as impact, I like to take advantage of the gallery setting and do things I can’t necessarily do on the streets, I.E. add neon, or create an environment etc.
S: Do you try to accomplish the same meaning with indoor work as your outdoor pieces?
R: It depends on what work you are referring to. My graffiti is still for me and my peers, however my mural work is for everyone, and it is meant to evoke stimulation and feelings thru color. My gallery work is meant to be visually timeless, yet here and now. It is all representations of things I have done on the streets but with added refined elements. So to answer your question they all overlap, yet they are all very different.
S: How did you get involved with the Corey Helford in the show in the first place?
R: I had a simultaneous opening with Crash at Corey Helford a few years back and I have been with them ever since.
S: Have you shown in London before? Why do you think there is such a draw for street art and graffiti in London?
R: I have never shown in London prior to this show however I attended a semester of school in London over twenty years ago, and I returned in the late 80’s to compete in a world graffiti championship held in Bridlington. A lot has changed since then….I think as a whole the draw to London and street art was helped along by the popularity and success of Banksy. Although many graffiti artists and hardcore enthusiasts including Banksy himself may attribute it to others before him you can not deny what he has accomplished. Simple facts are 99% of people are followers. The world is a big place the followers gain momentum….
S: With graffiti such a mainstream movement do you see the need for graffiti collectives now?
R: I understand the concept of increasing lobbying power for an arts infrastructure, and rallying behind a cause or belief. It also develops a higher group profile that benefits the individuals by association. But most importantly creates a hub for curators and commissioners to more easily locate potential talent. etc. however I also strongly believe that as a whole we need to be independent and not grouped together as one.
S: How have collectives changed over the years?
R: Collectives are way better now because you pick and choose who you want to be shown with. We are recognized and celebrated as individuals. I believe these types of shows are very positive. In the past I used to be offended when they had a show or event and all the graffiti got lumped into one. I remember being young and participating in events where each artist was allocated a specific space and the organizer or curator would say and “all the graffiti guys can paint this space together….” I think we’ve come a long way…
S: What pieces do you have in this show?
R: I have a sort of retrospective array of work in the show. I have traditional graffiti type canvas, a mixed media panel with neon and license plates, some new sculpture stuff I’ve been working on and a few of my more fine art color field type pieces.
S: What are your future plans?
R: My plan for the future is to never know the future. when you know the future it seems as if you know the end. I never want the ride to end….
Photo by No Lions in England
New-school/old-school with Remi/Rough
Remi/Rough has been bringing lettering back into his outdoor work this year with some traditional graffiti pieces, but he’s still got his abstract style going as well. Here are some of his recent pieces from both sides of the spectrum.
Photos by Remi/Rough
The Centre-Fuge Public Art Project – Cycle 4 : BEAU, Deps1, The Muffin Man, Never, Sheryo, the Yok & more
Conceived by First Street residents Pebbles Russell and Jonathan Neville in memory of their friend, Mike Hamm, The Centre-Fuge Art Project has transformed an abandoned trailer into a vibrant canvas. This weekend marked its fourth cycle engaging an eclectic range of artists to share their visions with passersby on First Street off First Avenue in Manhattan’s East Village. Here are some photos captured over the weekend:
Photos by Tara Murray & Lois Stavsky
Introducing Blaqk
Greek artists Simek and Greg Papagrigoriou have both individually managed successful art careers and have been longtime collaborators. With styles so complementary of one another’s, the duo have finally established their joined efforts under the name Blaqk. To see more by Blaqk, check out the official Flickr or Tumblr.
Photos by Blaqk