A frigid Brooklyn late night studio visit with Australian street artist Kid Zoom includes an impressive roaring taxidermied brown bear on his hind legs, a cache of finished canvasses spread all around, and a tiger-striped kitten named Trouble rambunctiously attacking anything that moves, including your foot. In this large industrial hideout infused with spray fumes, Kid Zoom is madly joyfully preparing for his first solo show in New York City.
A big bear hug from Kid Zoom. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Kid Zoom’s only tools are aerosol cans, a free hand and his imagination. For the Opera Gallery pop up in the Meat Packing District this Saturday he’s completed 25 pieces since summer. Looking at the varied lot of canvasses, painted swords, and the bear, he feels well prepared.
Kid Zoom photo © Jaime Rojo
A relatively new kid on this block, Kid Zoom began as a graffiti artist back home seven years ago, eventually mastering a vocabulary of realism with amazing speed and branching out into a mock horror genre of beasts and phantasma in street art that took over walls and even sides of suburban houses. The young buck brings a love of dark film to the game; the human body parts, hands, eyes, skulls and even some of his portraits resemble stills from movies. His Hitchcockian black and white paintings are detailed and precise – with a sudden shard of crimson slicing through them. Dredging the fearful underground sewers of the subconscious, his subject matter often appeals to our current fascination with vampires and zombies.
Kid Zoom photo © Jaime Rojo
This new show will also reveal his natural talent for rendering portraits of the living with a realism hard to get from the aerosol can – which is probably why his street art has brought him into the gallery. For his colorful portraits he “sketches” his subjects in black and white paint until the full portrait emerges. Afterward he builds the portrait with color until the black and white paint is not visible anymore. Two canvasses of giant gesturing hands are intimidating and boldly lyrical.
Kid Zoom photo (© Jaime Rojo)
At BSA we always say that everyone drinks from the same river of ideas and creativity that passes by – it’s a river full of possibilities. What differentiates one artist’s work from the others is their personal imprint, and the level of their craftsmanship. Kid Zoom’s development of both qualities in a relatively short period is remarkable and we’re looking forward to seeing the currents of his own distinctive style fully merging into a body of work that is sure to come. We also encourage him to wear a mask when spraying!
The spoils. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Kid Zoom (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Kid Zoom (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Kid Zoom portrait (photo © Jaime Rojo)
To learn more details about his show click here
To see more of Kid Zoom’s work click here
Other Articles You May Like from BSA:
"Beyond The Streets" In A New York Minute - By Chop 'Em Down Films (Video)
It's a unique talent to capture the fervor of an opening like "Beyond the Streets" in one minute. The show spreads over two floors and fifty years - the reunions alone were enough for an hour mov...
It's a unique talent to capture the fervor of an opening like "Beyond the Streets" in one minute. The show spreads over two floors and fifty years - the reunions alone were enough for an hour mov...
"Shoe" is His Middle Name: New Book by Niels Shoe Meulman
“They both see words as images,” says Shoe about graffiti writers and Medieval scribes in a 2013 interview with the BBC. His latest tome extrapolates this reverence for the letterform, an obsessive re...
“They both see words as images,” says Shoe about graffiti writers and Medieval scribes in a 2013 interview with the BBC. His latest tome extrapolates this reverence for the letterform, an obsessive re...
SpY Electrifies Audience in Barcelona With "Monolith"
Street artist and public artist SpY took his opportunity to rock the crowd in February at the 12th annual Llum BCN Festival this year with his interpretation of Stanley Kubrick’s classic film “20...
Street artist and public artist SpY took his opportunity to rock the crowd in February at the 12th annual Llum BCN Festival this year with his interpretation of Stanley Kubrick’s classic film “20...
Boston's "Underground Mural Project" Opens With 11 Artists
"I love transforming a raw space for everyone to discover. It's the best feeling to see people enjoying themselves in front of my art," says artist Cey Adams in Boston as he finishes his “LOVE” mural ...
"I love transforming a raw space for everyone to discover. It's the best feeling to see people enjoying themselves in front of my art," says artist Cey Adams in Boston as he finishes his “LOVE” mural ...
BSA Film Friday: 03.07.14
Our weekly focus on the moving image and art in the streets. And other oddities. Now screening : 1. Icy & Sot "Art Pollution" 2. Stikki Peaches and Fashionable Storm Troopers 3. Shift &...
Our weekly focus on the moving image and art in the streets. And other oddities. Now screening : 1. Icy & Sot "Art Pollution" 2. Stikki Peaches and Fashionable Storm Troopers 3. Shift &...