Secrets and Sins – A look back at Sickboy’s Heaven & Earth

Despite an afternoon of heavy rain last Thursday, a large crowd was on hand to watch security struggle (literally) to open the doors of the Sickboy’s 3 day London show – Heaven & Earth.  However that delay, plus the relatively slow name checking procedure, mattered for no one as they caught a glimpse of the collection of visual delights that lay beyond.

First up, upon peering into the large open room your eyes were drawn to a caravan standing proudly in the far corner.  Kitted out in the famous red and yellow Sickboy colours, it soon became apparent that this was actually the bar dishing out a variety of booze, and not surprisingly a large queue quickly formed.

But whilst your gaze initially descended upon the brightly coloured mobile holiday home come drinks dispenser, it was impossible to ignore the plethora of meticulously-detailed paintings, riddled with their religious undertones that covered the walls.  Appropriately titled with names such as “King of Undesire”, “Critically Zen”, “Forget” and “Forgiven” these colourful masterpieces encompassed Sickboy’s own notion of heaven and earth. Fantastically detailed with sickly looking characters, rockets, angels, tags, trains, and the odd temple, this body of work was exceptional and a perfect example of how a street artist can translate their work from street to gallery. In fact many other artists should take note!

Prior to the show Sickboy allowed his website visitors to confess all, and get any sins they may have committed off their chests.  Promising to display each and every one, these unedited misdemeanours were projected onto a big screen for all to read.  I rather enjoyed the West End drug dealers who admitted to lacing their wares with a bit of laxative to ensure a messy end for their clients.  And of course there were plenty of sexual references to teachers and their daughter’s, girlfriends and their mum’s.

For all those last minute sins, or for those that just couldn’t think of one before the show opened, a large confessional booth equipped with a priest was on hand.  Although to be honest I am not sure how many visited the booth to confess or to just explore and view more of Sickboy’s artwork which adorned both the outside and in.  Maybe if the priest was hidden behind a screen some may have been more forthcoming, I certainly found it a little weird to just be stood in a small room with another bloke, let alone go ahead explain any times I may have misbehaved.

Whilst the show was billed as one based around four major installations, I personally felt they seemed to blend into each other and consequently it was hard to see each as individual entities.  However I have to admit that that was not necessarily a bad thing and the fourth and final of these installations was perhaps the one I was most looking forward to – a collaboration with 12 of Sickboy’s fellow artists and friends. It came in the form of a series of wooden bricks, a medium Sickboy has visited before, which were then stacked to form a wall. Designs and editions varied but I was most taken by the Word to Mother and Paul Insect collabs and a couple of the Conor Harrington’s. From a sales perspective the installation certainly seemed popular, but it may have just been the due to the sheer size of the space that I felt it became a little lost, maybe it was the fact that the bricks were not over the top.  Nevertheless I really liked the concept and execution of the individual bricks.

In short this was Sickboy at his best and by far my favourite show of the year so far, and I am sure that many in the packed out venue will agree.  This was street art meets gallery, street artist becomes fine artist. It’s just a shame it only lasted 3 days.

For more information about Sickboy head over to his website, and make sure you check out the gallery section as Ian Cox has done a much better job, that I have, of taking photos of each of the pieces from the show.

Photos by Shower.

Sickboy’s Heaven & Earth

Best known for his iconic red and yellow ‘Temples’ sprayed onto walls and wheelie bins worldwide, Sickboy returns this Thursday (November 3rd) with only his second major London solo show. Personally I’m quite suprised it is only his second!

Inspired by semiotics and symbolism, Renaissance paintings and the surreal landscape workings of artists like Hieronymus Bosch, this new body of work promises to demonstrate “a deeper development of the artist’s visual vocabulary.”

A celebration of earthly sins and heavenly fantasies, the show is to be comprised of four major major installations, including a walk-in confessional booth and an additional exhibit of confessions from members of the public anonymously revealed before the show.

But for me I am most looking forward to seeing Sickboy collaborating with a who’s who of eminent artists on a third element; D*Face, Eine, Anthony Lister, Paul Insect, Vhils, Conor Harrington, Xenz, Word to Mother, Will Barras, Eelus, Mudwig and Hush.

With the final surprise installation to be unveiled on the opening night, this show sounds like one not to miss. But be quick as it only lasts 3 days, located at Dray Walk, 91 Brick Lane, and ends on Sunday 6th November!

For a bit more info about the show and for those of you who would like to know more about Sickboy then I recommend 3 interviews he has recently completed with Londonist, The Playground and Zeitgeist Magazine.

Video courtesy of Sickboy. Photos by Viktor Vauthier.

Weekend link-o-rama

BEST EVER X Deadleg in London

It’s been a crazy week in London. Moniker and all that. But here’s what has been going on with street art elsewhere:

Photo by unusualimage

Bristol Graffiti Show – Crimes of Passion

I probably won’t be able to make it to this, but if you live it Bristol it sounds fantastic.

Crimes Of Passion: Street Art in Bristol

This Spring Bristol’s oldest and grandest gallery, the Royal West Of England Academy is throwing open all 5 of it’s galleries to host a major show by 50 of the city’s best known and most successful graffiti and street artists. This is the first major show of its kind in the city since the Arnolfini’s groundbreaking 1985 show, Graffiti Art and is a full-blown celebration of the city’s rich and diverse contemporary scene.

Bristol has nurtured many of the UK’s most successful graffiti and street artists, including 3D, Inkie, Banksy, Nick Walker, Sickboy, Cyclops and TCF Crew, to name but a few. The city continues to be a breeding ground for a wealth of exceptional creative talent and continues to have one of the UK’s most diverse and thriving scenes.

Crimes Of Passion takes the love of (and heartfelt dedication to) the art form as its starting point, but is far from a typical gallery retrospective, all the artists will be showing completely new work, as well as installation pieces and working both directly onto (and into) the walls of the gallery.

Crimes of Passion will also include a city-wide programme of large-scale painting, a photographic exhibition,a film season at local arts cinema The Cube  (www.cubecinema.com) and a series of workshops and talks.

Exhibition venue:
Royal West of England Academy, Queen’s Rd, Bristol

Exhibition dates:
21st March – 2nd May

Artists involved in the show include Cyclops, Inkie, Mudwig, Nick Walker, Sickboy, Xenz and many many many more.

If anybody goes, please let me know how it is.