ICY & Sot and Berlin’s People – “Persons of Interest”

Brooklyn-Street-Art-Icy-Sot-2-Persons-of-Interest-740

BSA is in Berlin this month to present a new show of 12 important Brooklyn Street Artists at the Urban Nation haus as part of Project M/7. PERSONS OF INTEREST brings to our sister city a diverse collection of artists who use many mediums and styles in the street art scene of Brooklyn. By way of tribute to the special relationship that artist communities in both cities have shared for decades, each artist has chosen to create a portrait of a Germany-based cultural influencer from the past or present, highlighting someone who has played a role in inspiring the artist in a meaningful way.
 
Today we talk to ICY & SOT and ask them why they chose their persons of interest, The People of Berlin.

The façade of the UN building is being painted right now by Street Artists Icy & Sot, who have lived in Brooklyn for not quite three years since arriving from Iran but have quickly made an impression on the street and in the discourse that follows it. The brothers’ work on the streets and on rooftops has been an ongoing exploration and discovery of their own style and voice. Their work on the streets has addressed homelessness, war, violence, peace, hope, despair, and human rights.

Influenced by Brooklyn’s D.I.Y. culture on the street and in studios, a new freedom of speech, and their deep admiration for stencil artists who came before them, their style and message continues to define and refine as they also have been gathering an international following.

Ask to choose a PERSON OF INTEREST to create as a portrait, Icy & Sot have selected the people of Berlin who celebrated the fall of the Berlin wall, as reflected in the face of a new generation. Twenty five years later, this symbol of celebration and liberty atop the Berlin Wall is a powerful one they bring to the present with a 2015 image of a young woman from Brooklyn.

“It’s a portrait of freedom, Berlin’s peoples freedom,” they say. “The image inside the portrait was a very important moment for Berlin when the wall came down and we wanted to celebrate it.”

brooklyn-street-art-icy-sot-jaime-rojo-06-02-13-web-1

Icy & Sot in Brooklyn, New York (photo © Jaime Rojo)

brooklyn-street-art-icy-and-sot-jaime-rojo-08-03-14-web-1

Icy & Sot in Bushwick, Brooklyn (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Check out the Facebook page for PERSONS OF INTEREST

See Full Press Release HERE

Persons of Interest Banner 740

238
138
45