We made it over to Pandemic Gallery’s current exhibit ALL TALK! earlier in the week and loved the way it presented the works of some of our favorite artists whose work surface regularly in the public sphere. We also loved the incredible mix of aesthetic sensibilities. Here’s a sampling:
The exhibit continues through March 11th @ 37 Broadway (between Wythe and Kent) in Brooklyn.
Photos by Lois Stavsky & Tara Murray
Chris Stain (interviewed) has his new book, Long Short Story, will be launched at the Wooster St. Social Club, site of the television show NY Ink, on March 14th from 8-11pm. Long Short Story is being published by Drago. Drago describes the launch as a “book launch/art show/printmaking/music/food/lecture event extravaganza,” and the art exhibit accompanying the launch will stay up for two weeks.
It’s great to see Above doing text work. Definitely what I prefer over his stenciling. What Goes Up was painted at Origin Wines in Cape Town, South Africa.
Speaking of Above, Fecal Face have just posted a preview of the special edition of his book Passport. I’ve also got one of these giant books leaning on my wall. Hopefully that will be a good enough reminder that I need to bring my passport to the airport on Friday even though I’m not flying internationally. Hopefully.
Anyway, here’s a video of What Goes Up getting painted…
WHAT GOES UP from ABOVE on Vimeo.
Photo by Above
Write your name on a wall today! Every day. Every wall [with permission]. Build more walls. Write your name on them. Continue reading “Wild Style Wednesday!”
Few things in the L.A. art world generated interest and excitement like Os Gemeos‘ recent solo opening at Prism Gallery. I hadn’t heard or seen people this excited since MOCA’s “Art in Streets” last year, and that show undoubtedly served to bring more recognition to the Brazilian twins. It paid off on Saturday when, despite a piece of paper taped to the gallery door that the show would be starting at 7 p.m. (and not the previously advertised 6 p.m.), a line had already begun to form outside around 4. When the butcher paper came down off the glass gallery walls, a few gasps went up, and when the doors finally opened early, few could hardly wait to get in and experience it for themselves.
Now, I should say I often feel the term wonderland is overused–particularly in regard to art installations–but the remarkably immersive artworks on offer in “Miss You” makes this description nothing short of apt. In some cases, this immersiveness was literal, as viewers could enter a side room and play with a collection of touch-screens, or duck inside an enormous box painted with a face to find a blue-lit, completely mirrored space that felt acres bigger than it was. Yet, nowhere was that feeling more evident than on the faces of the visitors streaming in around me. Everywhere I looked, I saw gazes of wonder. Children squealed and wove their way through distended light bulbs anchored to the floor, which brings me to an important part on this show: it was both deeply fun, as well as family-friendly, and it showcased what truly game-changing artists (who just happen to have a significant amount of experience with scale on the street) can do when given total control in a gallery. Continue reading “Miss You: Os Gemeos at Prism”
Macs has this lighthearted illustrative, caricature style and yet still represents the urban edge of graffiti. His pieces tell a story. These are a few of my favorites, but check out more on his flickr. Continue reading “Macs from Italy”
Open Walls Baltimore is a project that I have been personally coordinating with the not for profit Station North and is supported by the PNC foundation and a generous Our Town grant from the NEA. The intention is of course to produce great art on the streets and put on for my city that I love so much. Yet, of course, as every public art project must be, the OWB initiative will hopefully produce more than just spectacular murals. This is about an investment in a neighborhood that is burdened by 150 vacant homes and bridging the gaps between the artist community that calls Station North home and the residents of Greenmount West. Inspired by my experience with both Wynwood Walls in Miami and Living Walls in Atlanta, this initial and very exciting start will hopefully result in a continued support for public art and experimental intervention that can become more holistic as time moves forward. The current line up is as follows: Interesni Kazki, Maya Hayuk, Swoon, Specter, Doodles, Jaz, Ever, Freddy Sam, Mata Ruda, Nanook, MOMO, Vhils, Sten and Lex, Chris Stain, Jetsonorama, Overunder, and others. The website is now live. More to come!!!
Photos by Martha Cooper
Da Mental Vaporz’ (Bom-K, Blo, Brusk, Dran, Gris1, ISO, Jaw, Kan, and Sowat) exhibition at RTIST Gallery in Melbourne in still open for a few more days, but if you can’t make it down, here’s a short video giving an idea of what’s going on (including a mural)…
DMV ~ Le Venin from Rtist Gallery on Vimeo.
Photo by S.Butterfly
Over 30 years ago, Crash’s visual rhythms were riding the subways of New York City. These early images have remained a consistent source of inspiration to the artist, as well as to the next generation of writers. Through Friday March 11th Crash’s new art paying homage to his time on the trains can be seen at TT Underground in Manhattan’s East Village. My favorites are the ones the legendary Crash – born John Matos — has fashioned on aluminum pieces constructed by his friend, Metal Man Ed. Here’s a sampling:
And here he is back in 1980:
And, more recently, on the streets of the South Bronx:
Gallery images by John Matos & Lois Stavsky; outdoor images, courtesy John Matos
Today we are relaunching The Vandalog Shop and kicking off a new series of product releases with two t-shirts designed by Labrona which are now available online. Starting with these shirts, The Vandalog Shop will be releasing a new product / artist collaboration every month. We will focus on releasing affordable products ranging from apparel to posters to whatever else we think would be fun. We can’t say yet just what else we’ve got up our sleeve, but these shirts by Labrona are only the beginning…
Labrona’s shirts are based on a new image called Lying in Wait. The shirts are unisex, come in two colorways of either purple and teal or blue and yellow, and each colorway has a print run of just 20 tees.
Why is Labrona the artist we chose to help us relaunch The Vandalog Shop? There are a lot of talented artists in the world, but Labrona stands out to me because he is one of the nicest and humblest guys around. The first time I met Labrona, he convinced me to buy a painting by one of his friends. It wasn’t until after he had left the room that someone showed me Labrona’s own artwork. We met again years later. That time, we slept on a floor with about a dozen other men and women at the Living Walls Conference in Atlanta. Some people might have complained about the accommodations, but Labrona was just ecstatic because he had the opportunity to paint a mural and put up posters in Atlanta. At Vandalog, I want to bring great art to as many people as possible, but that great art has to be made by artists who are great people too.
Both versions of Lying in Wait are available online now at The Vandalog Shop for $30 each plus shipping and handling.
The shirts were printed at Station16 in Montreal, and Labrona has also worked with Station16 to release a fine art screenprint of Lying in Wait. Each colorway of the prints is an edition of 16. The print is also for sale beginning today and can be at their online shop.
Photos by Dan Schaub
