October 2008

STIKMAN and LA II “Amaze” at Factory Fresh


A MAZE

CELSO AND INFINITY PRESENT
STIKMAN AND LA II
&
introducing: Cbeauty

Opening Reception: Friday, November 14, 6-10pm
November 14 – December 2, 2008
New York City street artists Celso & infinity present A Maze, an exhibition and installation of work based on networks and passages. A gallery-sized, 7-foot-tall maze, constructed entirely out of original art, will immerse participants in a multidimensional environment designed to overwhelm the senses.

The work invites viewers to choose their path to a destination that, ultimately, is unknown. Random decisions have to be made at each artistic obstruction: Continue right or left? Go back and chose another route? The end result could offer great reward. Likewise, it could be a dead end. You choose.

The New York Times described their most recent collaboration, Post No Bills, a street art gallery in Long Island City as “Audacious.” The new show also features work by mysterious street art shaman Stikman, graffiti artist LA II (Little Angel Ortiz, a protégé and collaborator with street art legend Keith Haring) and also introduces the graceful and intricate art of Cbeauty.

A Maze is a site specific installation made for Factory Fresh that is curated and conceived by Celso and infinity in an attempt to better understand the challenges presented by working in an ever changing artistic landscape.


For more info on Factory Fresh and it’s upcoming shows go to www.factoryfresh.net or email info@factoryfresh.net Factory Fresh is located at 1053 Flushing Avenue between Morgan and Knickerbocker, off the L train Morgan Stop

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The Week in Images 10.26.08

The Week in Images 10.26.08

French Fab Four (Gouny, FKDL, Mimi the Clown, Jef Aerosol)  (photo Jaime Rojo)

French Fab Four (Gouny, FKDL, Mimi the Clown, Jef Aerosol) (photo Jaime Rojo)

Resh is here joined by a dance troupe of a street-art Botero beauty by David Gouny, a fluid collaged FKDL figure, the disembodied head of Mimi the Clown (but no butt), and the good natured accompaniment of accordian boy Jef Aerosol.

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The Week in Images 10.19.08

Uh-Oh, You Caught Me: Banksy in Manhattan  (photo Jaime Rojo)

Uh-Oh, You Caught Me: Banksy in Manhattan (photo Jaime Rojo)

Banksy Rat in Manhattan  (photo Jaime Rojo)

WAIT! Put those Scissors Down! I'm totally serious. (photo Jaime Rojo)

Ahh, the ever clever, ever witty and talented Banksy stopped by to bring cheer to New Yorkers who are watching Wall Street go down the toilet.  Thanks Banksy!

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The Week in Images 10.13.08

Depends on Your Perspective (Taped, Dain, AnaPeru)  (photo Jaime Rojo)

Depends on Your Perspective (Taped, Dain, AnaPeru) (photo Jaime Rojo)

These colorful 3 dimensional boxes by Taped have been re-framing parts of our urban environment, causing you to imagine spaces in ways that you hadn’t considered.  …Maybe he/she is a sibling of Ellis G.

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Doze Green at Jonathan Levine Gallery

Doze Green

N.O.O.N.

Boriken Detail by Doze Green (courtesy Jonathan Levine Gallery)

Boriken Detail by Doze Green (courtesy Jonathan Levine Gallery)

Opening reception – Saturday, October 18th 7pm-9pm

Jonathan Levine Gallery

October 18, 2008 through November 15, 2008

NEW YORK, NY (September 30, 2008) — Jonathan LeVine Gallery is pleased to announce N.O.O.N., a solo exhibition of new works by Doze Green. The artist returns for his second solo show at the gallery, having created a new series of original charcoal drawings and mixed media paintings on canvas and wood panel. Using a variety of materials such as ink, gouache, metallic pigments, and collage, Doze Green speaks in a creative voice from the collective consciousness, applying a symbolist approach to metaphysical concepts. Often compared to Basquiat, his urban background and involvement in the early hip-hop graffiti movement of NYC in the late 70’s, early 80’s, led him to transition from creating art in the streets and subways into the gallery setting.

In N.O.O.N., Doze Green’s signature style of figurative abstraction and use of letterforms remain prominent, yet the organic cubist quality of his images has evolved. The high-contrast fluid line work characteristic of earlier paintings is now rendered in a fuller, more tonal palette, complemented by the introduction of an element not seen in his work previously—layers of collaged imagery. The artist’s genealogy inspires many of the themes he explores, his aesthetic influences include a mixture of ancient civilizations and indigenous cultures, including his own Afro-Caribbean roots. His totem-like human and animal figures are conceptually based on various polytheistic deities. These divinities represent sentinels, the guardians of universal truths. Immortal warriors warning mankind of dangers society has manifested, looming on the horizon and threatening to destroy us.

The show title, N.O.O.N., stands for No One Observes Nibiru. This references the planet X prophecy of a cataclysmic cosmic shift occurring in the year 2012, causing dramatic effects to life on earth. Also a prominent year in the Mayan and Hopi calendars, 2012 marks the end of our current solar cycle, signifying transition into a new age. Inspired by these theories, there is a transitional quality to the artwork. Movement, migration and transformation of form combine to form enigmatically kinetic narratives. Portals and beams of energy, layered over collaged media clippings, surround Green’s figures which echo social diaspora of the past, yet also seem to be preparing for a futuristic voyage of sorts—a survivalist evacuation plan for the great escape from doomsday.

ABOUT THE ARTIST
A New York City native, Doze Green began painting the streets and bombing subways in 1974. He joined the infamous Rock Steady Crew in 1977, as one of the original members during the birth of hip-hop, b-boy break dancing and graffiti writing culture. The Crew danced at galleries and art exhibitions in Soho and the Lower East Side throughout the early 80s. They were an integral part of New York City’s developing underground scene. Graffiti and later forms of street art have since spread into what has become very much a global movement, and Doze Green has evolved into a well-respected fine artist, whose work can be found in public and private collections, worldwide.

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