Tag: Joe Boruchow

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Ad Takeovers: Learn from the best

Public Ad Campaign

Ever wondered how people like Abe Lincoln Jr., Joe Boruchow, or Icy & Sot install their artwork in bus shelters and phone booths? Next week, New Yorkers will have a chance to learn from the best. Public Ad Campaign is leading “a practical introduction” to ad takeovers at Mayday in Bushwick.

Led by Jordan Seiler and Thomas Dekeyser, the workshop will cover the history and philosophy of ad takeovers (the topic of Dekeyser’s PhD research), as well as the tools and techniques that Seiler has spent the last 15 years perfecting and sharing.

I’ve attended one of Jordan’s workshops before, and I cannot recommend them highly enough. It will be fun, and you’ll see just how easy ad takeovers can be. The more people who know how easy it is to open up ad kiosks, and have access to the tools to do it, the better.

The workshop is free to attend, but you have to register in advance.

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Philadelphia kicks off spring with new ad busts

Joe Boruchow. Photo by Conrad Benner.
Joe Boruchow. Photo by Conrad Benner.

Spring has sprung in Philadelphia, and the local street art community seem to be celebrating with new ad takeovers in the city’s bus shelters. Thanks to Jordan Seiler / Public Ad Campaign’s Public Access initiative, opening the advertising kiosks in the vast majority of Philly’s bus shelters is a breeze. Just this week, Joe Boruchow and NDA, both of whom we’ve recently shown at LMNL Gallery, replaced a few ads with their own artwork. NDA’s pieces were both collaborations with Hellbent, who promises similar work in New York City soon.

NDA and Hellbent. Photo courtesy of Hellbent.
NDA and Hellbent. Photo courtesy of Hellbent.

Jordan Seiler was the first artist in recent memory to bring ad takeovers to Philadelphia, back in 2010. And until last summer, that’s about all there was, until Seiler made the Philadelphia infinitely easier to open up by producing a “key” that matched their custom security screws. Vandalog contributor Caroline Caldwell was probably the first to test out a Philadelphia key. Since then, the tools have reached a handful of artists in the city.

Public Access "keys" by Jordan Seiler. Photo by Jordan Seiler.
Public Access “keys” for various cities by Jordan Seiler. Photo by Jordan Seiler.
Joe Burochow. Photo by Thomas Buildmore.
Joe Burochow. Photo by Thomas Buildmore.
NDA and Hellbent. Photo courtesy of NDA
NDA and Hellbent. Photo courtesy of NDA

Unfortunately, it looks like this new-found street art surface may be short lived in Philadelphia. Hundreds of the city’s bus shelters are being replaced with an upgraded model featuring electronic billboards. With that in mind, for those with keys, here’s to making good use of them while you still have a chance.

Photos by Conrad Benner, Jordan Seiler, and Thomas Buildmore, and courtesy of NDA and Hellbent

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NDA’s “Minor Anniversary” at LMNL Gallery

NDA wheatpaste in Philadelphia
NDA wheatpaste in Philadelphia

Around this time last year, Philadelphia got great news with NDA moved to town. He very quickly became one of the most noticeable street artists on Philly’s walls. Now, we’re celebrating NDA’s first year in the city with a show at LMNL Gallery. Minor Anniversary opens February 5th. The show is NDA’s diary of the friendly faces, characters, and environments he has come across since coming to Philadelphia.

It’s particularly exciting for me to be working on this show. I’ve worked with NDA before through The L.I.S.A. Project NYC, and been a fan of his work for years. However, until recently I was mostly observing from afar through Instagram or blogs. When NDA moved to Philly, I was finally able to catch his work in person. Maybe I’m a bit biased, but I think the energy of Philly’s street art community shifted when NDA arrived. Over the last year, I’ve seen more wheatpastes than ever, often by NDA or people he gets up with.

And if you really can’t wait for Minor Anniversary to see new work from NDA, he’s also a part of the upcoming #StreetsDeptTurns5 show at Paradigm Gallery + Studio, one of my favorite Philly galleries. #StreetsDeptTurns5 is curated by Conrad Benner of the blog StreetsDept, a stellar blog of Philadelphia street art, and also features Joe Boruchow, NoseGo, and others.

Minor Anniversary opens February 5th at LMNL Gallery in Philadelphia.

lmnl_flyer_NDA

Photo by RJ Rushmore

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Philadelphia’s Joe Boruchow

Photo by Joe Boruchow

Philadelphia is known, perhaps too well, for character-based sticker art. Even some of this city’s best street artists, like NoseGo, have roots in characters on stickers. But Joe Boruchow is one artist who is onto something completely different. I’ve seen a few of Joe’s pieces in person and they always make me stop to have a closer look. His placement is so spot-on that the work looks legal even when it is not, although his fine-art vibe probably helps a bit too.

Photo by RJ Rushmore
Photo by Joe Boruchow
Photo by Joe Boruchow

Photos by Joe Boruchow and RJ Rushmore