I’ve recently been spending a lot of my recent free time with a paint roller getting the inside of a building to look very white, so to counterbalance that, I’ve been seeking out some more disruptive uses of paint rollers. Here are a few recent pieces that I came across.
Photos by Luna Park, Alex Ellison, mobstr, Damonabnormal and Becki Fuller
Burning Candy have a show, A Fist Full of Paint, on right now at Tony’s Gallery in London. There’s work by Rowdy, LL Brainwashed, Sweet Toof, Dscreet and Mighty Mo. For the most part, it’s the sort of show you’d expect from Burning Candy. I’m a fan of the crew, so I enjoyed it. But most of the work wasn’t going to convert any new fans. The possible exception to that are the pieces by Mighty Mo. He has continued to develop his style of making realistic models of his outdoor work. These pieces were what everyone at the show was talking about, and they were as fun as ever. In fact, I think Mighty Mo is getting even better.
While Steph can go on about Morley all day long, Mighty Mo an artist who is actually finding an interesting way to transition from the street to the gallery. Like pieces by Invader, many of Mo’s sculptures depict actual street pieces, so the work acts as a sort of nostalgia trigger and documentation/preservation of outdoor pieces. At the same time, there’s a high level of craftsmanship.
And Mighty Mo can paint well on more traditional canvas as well. Check out this collaboration with Rowdy. It’s a knock-out… (yep, had to say it)
S.Butterfly has more photos from the show on her flickr, and if you’re curious about all the paint splatter on the walls of the gallery, watch this video.
Photos by S.Butterfly and Alex Ellison
Parts 1-3 of DOTS, a series of films about London’s Burning Candy crew, have just been posted on Babelgum.com. The films follow members of Burning Candy as they travel around the world. So far, Luc Price aka Cyclops has visited India to work with signpainters, Rowdy has traveled to the Australian outback to see ancient wall-painting techniques and graffiti-history obsessed James Jessop saw New York City for the first time. Here are their stories…
(okay here’s a trailer first actually)
And now the actual films…
Bomb Chaser with James Jessop, which is without a doubt the highlight of DOTS so far and the one you should watch if you only watch one of these:
Beyond Cosmos with Rowdy:
Bollywood Clout with Luc Price aka Cyclops:
Also, James Jessop has a solo show opening tonight, also called Bomb Chaser, at Charlie Smith Gallery in London. Hooked has more info on that.
Photo by Lyfetime
As mentioned last month, Rowdy has recently lost nearly everything in a house fire and artists from around the world have come together to help him out. That help is coming in the form of The Rooftop Burner Fund, organized by Steal From Work. The Rooftop Burner Fund is an Ebay auction of work donated by dozens of artists to help out Rowdy. The auctions can be found here. Some of the artwork is already for sale, with the rest of the auctions starting between now and July 5th. For more about Rowdy, check out this recent interview he did with Arrested Motion.
Here’s some of the work that you can already bid on (and at this point it looks like there are some real deals to be had, in addition to helping Rowdy):
As you may have heard, Rowdy’s home burned down recently. Luckily, he was not hurt (I don’t think anyone else was either), but everything inside the house has been destroyed. Rowdy is a member of Burning Candy, a hard working artist, a friend that I’ve worked with on multiple projects in the last year and an awesome person. Rowdy’s reputation is known throughout Europe, so when his friends heard that his home and possessions had been completely destroyed, people came together to do something. That something is Steal From Work’s Rooftop Burner Fund. Steal From Work have brought artwork together from an international array of artists for a benefit auction to help out Rowdy. Here’s the press release:
So, there are plenty of charity events, plenty of causes worth fighting for, whole countries at war…. But sometimes it’s just about helping your friends, helping those you love. And here we’re taking the opportunity to help one of our best friends.
If you don’t know, here’s the introduction. Rowdy is one of the longest standing players in UK graffiti, supporting the scene and playing his part in what has now turned into a global phenomenon. He has painted with the best of them, in fact is one of the best of them, always sticking true to his vision, rocking his own style, never selling out his ideas. Recently he walked out of his house, which also served as his studio and when he returned a half hour later, everything had been burned to the ground. EVERYTHING! ID, money, clothes, personal possessions, art, the ability to make art, everything gone!
So, we’re taking this as an opportunity to support someone who has so readily supported us as a scene by auctioning some art to help him get back to a position where he can do what he does best, making art.
It’s a testament to his popularity and reputation that so many artists have donated work to this auction. All work has been personally donated by the artists and the galleries that represent them: Banksy, Paul Insect, Swoon, Sickboy, Hush, Espo, the whole Burning Candy crew and a whole bunch more… So, it’s your chance to buy something beautiful and at the same time help out someone who has helped in his way to make graffiti and street art what it is today.
THE ART
A massive thanks to the following artists who have donated work:
Banksy
Case
Cept
Cyclops
Dscreet
Gold Peg
Guy Denning
Herakut
Hush
LL Brainwashed
Mighty Monkey
Motorboy
Mr Jago
Mudwig
Paris
Paul Insect
Rene Gagnon
Sickboy
Static
Sweet Toof
Swoon
Tek33
Tom Hine
45rpm
Plus more still to be announcedAnd also huge thanks to the following galleries for donating:
Black Rat Projects
Campbarbossa
Pictures On WallsTHE AUCTION
The Auction will be via e-bay at: http://myworld.ebay.co.uk/stealfromworkIt will commence Thursday 17th June, and we will stagger the items over the next few days so they don’t all end together. The first items will end Sunday 27th June.
Other than Paypal fees & postage costs EVERY singe penny raised will go to Rowdy.
We will only be accepting bids via e-bay.
Recently, I’ve been working with Burning Candy (Cept, Cyclops, Dscreet, Gold Peg, LL Brainwashed, Mighty Mo, Rowdy, Sweet Toof and Tek33) on a project that’s really got me excited. For me, Burning Candy are some of the most interesting and talented street artists living in the UK right now. In the UK, there isn’t a street artist who gets up harder, a graffiti writer who hits better spots or a crew that pushes the boundaries of their art further than the members of BC. So about this project…
A man called The Barron is directing a film about the rest of Burning Candy called Dots. This isn’t your ordinary graff film though. Since The Barron is a friend of the crew, he’s got more access than the standard documentary filmmaker would ever get. So far, he’s filmed and edited the first 20 minutes or so of the film. The next 70 minutes? It’s on its way, but Burning Candy needs the help of their fans to make it happen. To fund the making of the Dots, BC have made a box set of prints. All nine members of the crew have contributed an image to this print release. Since I’m working with BC on this print release, I’m obviously biased, but I don’t think there’s a bad image in the bunch.
So here’s the press release with all that vital info:
To help raise funds and make Dots a reality, Burning Candy has put together a limited edition set of 9 screenprints, one print from each member of the crew. The set will come in a hand-screenprinted bespoke box. The prints are 2-colors and A5 sized and the edition size is just 150. These prints aren’t only artwork; anyone who buys a set of prints will also own the rights to 0.05% of the films revenues for the next 10 years. 100% of the profits from these prints will go to funding the making of Dots.
The prints will be released online imminently for just £500. In the mean time, you can email sales(at)dotsfilm.com for more information.
And for those curious about my personal involvement in the film and print release, I’m helping out friends and artists that I believe in, but I’m also getting paid for my work.
This Wednesday, Dreweatts hosts their latest urban art auction in London. This time around it’s called “Urban Contemporary.” Honestly, I’ve avoided posting about this auction until now because while there are some highlights, the lowlights are awkward and disappointing to write about.
Lets start with the positives. Some of works that I’m really liking (in no particular order):
Lot 89: Point Blank by Martin Lea Brown. 67cm x 167cm. Estimated £3,000-5,000. This painting looks okay online, but is just so nice in person.
Lot 72: Musas by Sam3. 91.5cm x 61cm. Estimated £700-900. An interesting painting for the price. It amazes me how cheap a Sam3 original can be. Though I suppose his work is best experienced outside.
Lot 64: African Fence by Rowdy. 91.5cm x 61cm. Estimated £900-1,100.
Lot 47: Studio Critics by Sweet Toof. 91.5cm x 61cm. Estimated £2,000-4,000. Sweet Toof is a painter. He’s a graffiti writer. He’s a street artist. He’s a print-maker. What is he? He’s talented.
Lot 49: Cruncy – Pity of London by Ronzo. 40cm x 40cm Plinth. 106cm x 40cm. Estimated £1,000-1,5000. Apparently this is the only Pity of London sculpture that didn’t go on the streets. So it’s something kind of special.
And now the things about this auction that epically disappoint me. The things that made me not want to write about this auction at all. In no particular order. And there are others lots in this sale that were very disappointing to see at auction, but I’m not going to list them all. Hopefully this gives you a taste.
Lot 13: Self Portrait by Adam Neate. 167cm x 123cm. Estimated £15,000-20,000. Almost everyone I know believes that Adam Neate’s pieces like these should be kept out of auction at all costs. Even if this reaches the high estimate for the piece, it will only serve to further damage the market for his paintings. And in my opinion, Adam is one of the most talented British painters working today, so I’d like to see the market for his paintings recover.
Lot 9: Morons by Banksy. 76.5cm x 56cm. Estimated £3,000-5,000. Every “urban art” auction seems to have at least one Morons print.
Lot 17: Untitled by Seen. 60cm x 70cm. Estimated £600-800. I don’t take issue with this painting. I definitely take issue with how Dreweatts has handled the artwork in their sale. In the catalog, this painting is upside down. Luckily, that’s been fixed online. But when I went to see this piece in the flesh at the auction house last Thursday, it was hung sideways. That, or it’s now sideways online (but given that the central icon of the piece is a Seen tag, I’m guessing that the tag is meant to be read left to right, so the online image is correct and it was hung sideways). Either way, that’s more than a little bit upsetting.
Lot 63: Number 5 by Herakut. 80cm x 100cm. Estimated £2,000-3,000. Another great painting that Dreweatts has just handled poorly. Again, it’s online and in the catalog sideways (and possibly hung that way in the auction-house as well, I can’t remember)! Now, given the content of the painting, I can see how somebody might not be sure which way is up. In fact, you’d have to look at the painting for more than half a second to realize that it might be sideways. How did I figure out that the piece is sideways? There’s an image of the piece online. And it was originally part of a tetraptych, so you know that the image I found online has the painting hanging the right way. Could Dreweatts have missed this? Sure. Except that lot 62 is a painting from the same tetraptych. It amazes me that nobody at Dreweatts took the 30 seconds of research that it took me to figure out which way this painting is meant to hang. Epic fail.
So that’s the Dreweatts “Urban Contemporary” auction. It takes place on Wednesday April 21st in London, and you can bid online.
I touched on this issue the other day, but I thought there was more to be said and some examples to be given.
There are a few graffiti writers who are blurring the line between graffiti and street art by painting trademark characters or symbols instead of, or in addition to, their names. Of course, painting characters has been around since the earliest days of graffiti, but in recent years, certain crews and writers have taken that a step further.
Here are a few examples of writers who I think are really pioneering a new form of character based graffiti. I think it could, and should, be one important direction for graffiti and street art in the coming years.
More after the jump… Continue reading “From letters to logos”
Rowdy has a solo show coming up at Sartorial Contemporary Art on June 4th. I’m curious, but aprehensive. I’ve enjoyed his canvases and his street work, which are completely different, but I’m not sure what I’ve seen could fill a solo show.
Here’s the press release:
In his first major London solo show the King of Crocs showcases his diverse talent at Sartorial Contemporary Art. Expect to see Rowdy’s unique take on urban living and landscape in the form of his legendary boulders, abstract cityscapes and of course the ubiquitous crocs.
Bricks and mortar may mean money and mortgages to some but Rowdy prefers his building blocks in their raw state. ‘The local quarry provides the bedrock for our roads and cities’ says the artist. ‘I hit the rocks before they reach their destiny of becoming our new urban spaces’. Simultaneously caveman-esque and contemporary, the cartoon monoliths have been described as ‘Ren & Stimpy meets Goldsworthy’. Their arrival in the urban landscape provides jarring juxtaposition.
His Cityscape paintings show Skyscrapers constructed out of the tiniest marks a spray can can make, reminiscent of T.S Lowry’s ‘matchstick men’, combined with 1980’s graffiti fades. Some are hectic, others more meditative. Highly sought after, this accomplished series offers nuances and subtleties both in style and substance, often somewhat lacking in today’s saturated street art market.
Continuing the narrative of City versus The Ancient; Rowdy’s trademark crocodiles are often huge in scale and are indicative of the playful nature of the imagery in his work, and long may we continue to see these King-sized crocs attacking our walls and lurking in the concrete swamps. The last few years have seen him collaborate with cohorts Cyclops & Sweet Toof resulting in one of the most widespread bombing campaigns seen in the UK’s capital in the last decade.
‘Don’t be taken in by his welcome grin, he’s imagining how well you’d fit within his skin…’
