December 2013

13 from 2013 : Spencer Elzey “A Once in a Lifetime Moment”

13 from 2013 : Spencer Elzey “A Once in a Lifetime Moment”

13shots-from-2013-v7

Happy Holidays to all you stupendous and talented and charming BSA readers! We thank you from the bottom of our socks for your support this year. The best way we can think of to celebrate and commemorate the year as we finish it is to bring you 13 FROM 2013 – Just one favorite image from a Street Art or graffiti photographer that brings a story, a remembrance, an insight or a bit of inspiration to the person who took it. For the last 13 days they will share a gem with all of us as we collectively say goodbye and thank you to ’13.

December-31

Brooklyn-Street-Art-Spencer-Elzey-December--2013-photogs-names

To close out our 13 FROM 2013 series we bring you photographer Spencer Elzey who has been a contributor to BSA periodically and who took a cool trip to Europe this year and who was featured for a full week on this site. The image he chose of eL Seed’s piece on the side of a soon to be demolished building captures the “La Tour 13” project and the ephemeral quality of Street Art. It is an apt metaphor for the passage of time itself that reminds us to celebrate and cherish what we have today.

Tomorrow? Tomorrow is 2014.

Spencer followed his passion, seized the opportunity to meet new people and to experience new street environments and he shared with us all his sense of wonder and celebration. As we say goodbye to 2013 we thank him and all our readers for keeping that spirit of discovery alive and for being an active participant in the creative spirit.

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el Seed. Paris, France 2013. (photo © Spencer Elzey)

A Once in a Lifetime Moment

~ Spencer Elzey

I selected this picture for a few different reasons. Firstly, I liked this picture from an aesthetic standpoint. The way that the orange building pops against the monochromatic Parisian landscape makes it hard to miss, especially to someone who is a fan of public art and has an eye peeled for these things.

The fact that this art – and even more so this building – was short lived made it almost a once in a lifetime moment. Usually a Street Artist goes into painting a mural with the awareness that his or her canvas is temporary and that within a few months it will be covered up.

Knowing that the whole building was going to be knocked down put this on a whole other level. Out of the 100 plus works of art that were painted and installed within the building there were lots that were better, however, I chose to submit the picture of the exterior almost as a symbolic tombstone for everything that it contained. This picture also represents a series of big accomplishments for myself from a personal level.

I couldn’t imagine a better way to memorialize my whirlwind trip around Europe then by having a weeklong feature on BSA. To top that off Steve and Jaime choose one of the articles for publication on their weekly column at The Huffington Post Arts & Culture and this photograph was the banner picture.

Thinking about these moments still puts a smile on my face.

Artist: el Seed

Location: Paris, France. 2013

 

 

 

#13from2013

Check out our Brooklyn Street Art 2013 Images of the Year by Jaime Rojo here.

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Please note: All content including images and text are © BrooklynStreetArt.com, unless otherwise noted. We like sharing BSA content for non-commercial purposes as long as you credit the photographer(s) and BSA, include a link to the original article URL and do not remove the photographer’s name from the .jpg file. Otherwise, please refrain from re-posting. Thanks!

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13 for 2013 : James Prigoff “Complexity of Apex in San Francisco”

13 for 2013 : James Prigoff “Complexity of Apex in San Francisco”

13shots-from-2013-v7

Happy Holidays to all you stupendous and talented and charming BSA readers! We thank you from the bottom of our socks for your support this year. The best way we can think of to celebrate and commemorate the year as we finish it is to bring you 13 FROM 2013 – Just one favorite image from a Street Art or graffiti photographer that brings a story, a remembrance, an insight or a bit of inspiration to the person who took it. For the last 13 days they will share a gem with all of us as we collectively say goodbye and thank you to ’13.

December-30 Brooklyn-Street-Art-James-Prigoff-December--2013-photogs-names

Few people can claim to have the actual historical knowledge of the modern day graffiti age that James Prigoff does. To put it another way, he wrote to us a few months ago to tell us about a celebration he attended this year celebrating the 40th anniversary of Hip-Hop, a cultural movement that began when Jim was 46. 

An internationally respected photographer, artist, author, and lecturer on the subject of worldwide urban murals, his seminal 1987 book “Spraycan Art” with co-author Henry Chalfant is considered one of the the earliest published books on aerosol art, graffiti practices and street culture.

Asking Mr. Prigoff to chose just one image is like asking Paul McCartney to pick one song – the volume and depth of knowledge is hard to condense for today’s age of short-attention spans.  But he’s a champ and this one is his choice for 2013.

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Apexer. San Francisco, CA 2013 (photo © James Prigoff)

A complexity of styles in an Historic SF Location

~ James Prigoff

From a historical point of view, we must remember that modern day Graffiti started with the most rudimentary tags. Few, if any, of the writers had any sense of calligraphy. As more and more youth began to participate in street writing, style began to enter their thinking. Among the very early style masters, Daim from Germany and Ernie from Brooklyn began creating complex 3-D styles that made their hand writings as distinguishable as Impressionist artists like Monet and Matisse. 3-D styles have been adopted by many writers worldwide, but Apex has taken the creation to a new level of sophistication combined with an exceptional sense of color.

Also significant is the location of the painting, on the back of a large building, that is part of the Stephenson parking lots in San Francisco. This was the home of Psycho City for over ten years, before it was buffed and had been named for a great Dug One piece. Psycho City was a west coast “Hall of Fame” where writers would come from countries all over the world. It was also a non-permission venue. As times have changed, the two large pieces that are there now are part of a permission renaissance to upgrade the area through the use of Graffiti (Urban) Art … a la Wynwood in Miami and others.

Psycho City is a place of a thousand memories; The Zulu Nation event where the visiting policeman found his car completely tagged on returning to it, the celebration of “OAKLAND DREAM” one of the legendary names in west coast graff, Brett Cook’s “Dizney’s” political pieces, Nate and Omen’s (MPC) blockbuster walls, HEX (LA) and Omega’s piece that didn’t last eight hours before someone buffed it, ad infinitem.

I chose this photo because it is a fine example of the evolution from a very simple art form that has developed in many different ways to become a complexity of styles.

ARTIST: Ricardo Richey (Apex – Apexer) 2013

LOCATION: STEPHENSON PARKING LOT – COLUSA AT COLSON. – SAN FRANCISCO

#13from2013

Check out our Brooklyn Street Art 2013 Images of the Year by Jaime Rojo here.

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Please note: All content including images and text are © BrooklynStreetArt.com, unless otherwise noted. We like sharing BSA content for non-commercial purposes as long as you credit the photographer(s) and BSA, include a link to the original article URL and do not remove the photographer’s name from the .jpg file. Otherwise, please refrain from re-posting. Thanks!

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13 from 2013: Daniel Albanese “A Yawning Morning Cat from Dee Dee”

13 from 2013: Daniel Albanese “A Yawning Morning Cat from Dee Dee”

13shots-from-2013-v7

Happy Holidays to all you stupendous and talented and charming BSA readers! We thank you from the bottom of our socks for your support this year. The best way we can think of to celebrate and commemorate the year as we finish it is to bring you 13 FROM 2013 – Just one favorite image from a Street Art or graffiti photographer that brings a story, a remembrance, an insight or a bit of inspiration to the person who took it. For the last 13 days they will share a gem with all of us as we collectively say goodbye and thank you to ’13.

December-29

Brooklyn-Street-Art-Daniel-Albanese-December--2013-photogs-names

“Photographer of Street Art, Strangers, Protests, & Urbanity”, Daniel Albanese has been documenting New York street life for more than a decade with his blog The Dusty Rebel.  To Daniel Street Art is not a phenomena full of hype, it is an every day part of city life that he treasures and is regaled by as he passes through the city.

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Dee Dee. NYC 2013. (photo © Daniel Albanese)

A Yawning Morning Cat from Dee Dee

~ Daniel Albanese

Ever since works by the mysterious Dee Dee began to appear around NYC, I’ve loved finding them. This piece is a prime example of their aesthetic, which often consists of contrasting images coupled with curious text.

I took this photograph early one morning; I was running late, and as I came around a construction barrier and made my way through the crowd of commuters, I was greeted by this yawning cat. Kneeling down to take the photo, several people—who just moments before were rushing to work—stopped to see what caught my eye.

For me, it was was one of those moments when it becomes clear that we all walk around this city with very different perspectives, and how street art has the ability to slow us down and take notice of our environment.

Artist: Dee Dee

Location: New York City, 2013

 

 

 
#13from2013

Check out our Brooklyn Street Art 2013 Images of the Year by Jaime Rojo here.

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Please note: All content including images and text are © BrooklynStreetArt.com, unless otherwise noted. We like sharing BSA content for non-commercial purposes as long as you credit the photographer(s) and BSA, include a link to the original article URL and do not remove the photographer’s name from the .jpg file. Otherwise, please refrain from re-posting. Thanks!

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13 from 2013 : Ryan Oakes “Shooting a Banksy in Brooklyn”

13 from 2013 : Ryan Oakes “Shooting a Banksy in Brooklyn”

13shots-from-2013-v7

Happy Holidays to all you stupendous and talented and charming BSA readers! We thank you from the bottom of our socks for your support this year. The best way we can think of to celebrate and commemorate the year as we finish it is to bring you 13 FROM 2013 – Just one favorite image from a Street Art or graffiti photographer that brings a story, a remembrance, an insight or a bit of inspiration to the person who took it. For the last 13 days they will share a gem with all of us as we collectively say goodbye and thank you to ’13.

December-22

Brooklyn-Street-Art-Ryan-Oakes-December--2013-photogs-names

2013 brought the level of enthusiastic participatory fandom to new heights for the Street Art scene and the October New York “residency” by international man of mystery Banksy revealed both the full integration of social media with the street and the avid following that some Street Art can engage. We invited sincere New York Street Art fan Ryan Oakes to share with BSA readers one of his favorite Banksy shots and to tell us why it appeals to him.

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Banksy in Red Hook, Brooklyn, NYC 2013. (photo © Ryan Oakes)

Shooting a Banksy in Brooklyn

~ Ryan Oakes

This was my favorite piece from the Banksy month-long exhibition, but not only because I was actually able to catch it in the wild before it was defaced – a mere two hours after getting posted to Banksy’s Instagram.

I was determined to find one of the pieces during the month, and waited eagerly each day for the posts. When this one went up on his site, I seemed to recognize the area stores in background of the photo. Combining some online chatter and Google Maps Street View I was able to locate the building in Red Hook.

My wife and I happened to be home that morning, as we were expecting the birth of our first child any day that week. Realizing we would soon be losing the ability to be quite as spontaneous once the little guy arrived, we instantly jumped in the car.

It was a lovely moment for us to find the Banksy heart balloon sitting there in Red Hook…. my wife and I had gotten married just a few blocks down the street on the Red Hook waterfront.

 

Banksy

Red Hook, Brooklyn. 2013

 

“The day we find out the true identity of Banksy, you might as well pull the beard off of Santa Claus too.” Read Banksy’s Final Trick on the Huffington Post 

Check out our Brooklyn Street Art 2013 Images of the Year by Jaime Rojo here.

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Please note: All content including images and text are © BrooklynStreetArt.com, unless otherwise noted. We like sharing BSA content for non-commercial purposes as long as you credit the photographer(s) and BSA, include a link to the original article URL and do not remove the photographer’s name from the .jpg file. Otherwise, please refrain from re-posting. Thanks!

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13 from 2013 : Bob Anderson “Watching the Process Unfold with Phlegm”

13 from 2013 : Bob Anderson “Watching the Process Unfold with Phlegm”

13shots-from-2013-v7

Happy Holidays to all you stupendous and talented and charming BSA readers! We thank you from the bottom of our socks for your support this year. The best way we can think of to celebrate and commemorate the year as we finish it is to bring you 13 FROM 2013 – Just one favorite image from a Street Art or graffiti photographer that brings a story, a remembrance, an insight or a bit of inspiration to the person who took it. For the last 13 days they will share a gem with all of us as we collectively say goodbye and thank you to ’13.

December-27

Brooklyn-Street-Art-Bob-Anderson-December--2013-photogs-names

Today we go to New York State’s capital Albany to hear from photographer and occasional BSA contributor Bob Anderson whose intense love for photography is usually expressed through natural beauty and  domestic scenes but occasionally he can indulge in a true passion; street art photography. In 2013 Bob had the opportunity to meet the illustrator and street artist Phlegm who was visiting from Sheffield, a city in South Yorkshire, England. While he caught some excellent shots for BSA readers during that marathon of painting, this one stood out as his favorite of 2013.

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Phlegm. Albany, NY 2013. (photo © Bob Anderson)

Watching the Process Unfold with Phlegm

~ Bob Anderson

Whether it’s a sticker, a tag, or a mural, the streets are the judge of what will stand the test of time. Sometimes it is the aesthetic or the message, or simply the placement that weighs in an efforts favor. The end result will garner a cover, a buff, or appreciation.

Not to distract from the work itself, but I find more appreciation in both the process and the artist. Yes, I want to see new work, but viewed from a computer or in real life after it’s completed, it does not carry the intensity as watching it unfold. Maybe in a completely selfish way, it’s to learn the process. Everyone has their own technique. It’s not something one is willing to share in an email or to a passer by. But if you’re willing to lug paint & ladders, stay out all night, hop fences, or sit in a dirt lot all day – you will learn something.

As for the photos. It’s easy to walk up to a finished wall and frame a nice photo – but it can still feel empty. Photos of the actual process show the evolution and effort behind the work. Creativity comes by working with whatever gear you may be able to pack in, the time and lighting given (which will never be ideal) and shooting around faces that can not be shown.

Lastly, the most important part is the people.

Well known names with no associated faces come together with random strangers.

During those countless hours late at night or under the sun in a dirty parking lot, drinks are shared, hilarious stories are told, and friendships are made.

And a wall is left standing.

Photos document the party that only a few were privileged to attend.

Get out, and get up!

Thanks to all!

 

Artist: Phlegm

Location: Albany, NY. 2013

 
#13from2013

Check out our Brooklyn Street Art 2013 Images of the Year by Jaime Rojo here.

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Please note: All content including images and text are © BrooklynStreetArt.com, unless otherwise noted. We like sharing BSA content for non-commercial purposes as long as you credit the photographer(s) and BSA, include a link to the original article URL and do not remove the photographer’s name from the .jpg file. Otherwise, please refrain from re-posting. Thanks!

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13 from 2013 : Jim Kiernan “Snowden – Eyes Are Watching”

13 from 2013 : Jim Kiernan “Snowden – Eyes Are Watching”

13shots-from-2013-v7

Happy Holidays to all you stupendous and talented and charming BSA readers! We thank you from the bottom of our socks for your support this year. The best way we can think of to celebrate and commemorate the year as we finish it is to bring you 13 FROM 2013 – Just one favorite image from a Street Art or graffiti photographer that brings a story, a remembrance, an insight or a bit of inspiration to the person who took it. For the last 13 days they will share a gem with all of us as we collectively say goodbye and thank you to ’13.

December-26

Brooklyn-Street-Art-Jim-Kiernam-December--2013-photogs-names

The intersection with culture and politics and the street is not always evident in Street Art in an explicit way, but photographer Jim Kiernan will be glad to show you more than just a pretty mural or happy face if it means there is a dialogue to be had. 2013 was the year that some of the veil regarding domestic spying by our leaders fell from American eyes, and of course that theme was visited by art on the street. In his choice for image of the year Jim shares one he shot in ’13 that he values because it raises awareness, takes a position, and transcends aesthetics in the service of a larger message.

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BAMN. Queens, NYC 2013 (Photo © Jim Kiernan)

Snowden – Eyes Are Watching

~ Jim Kiernan

“Being called a traitor by Dick Cheney is the highest honor you can give an American… If they had taught a class on how to be the kind of citizen Dick Cheney worries about, I would have finished high school.” – Edward Snowden

There are a number of reasons why I like this image. The composition is straight forward and self-explanatory which is something I typically like. I enjoy simple things that appear clear on the surface.

Beyond that there are several levels to this image for me. The first and most obvious is the political message. I am personally appalled by the surveillance state which has been exposed that are we are living under and even more so by the nearly complete apathy from the American public and the lack of outrage.

Another level for me is that this piece was part of the inspiring Welling Court project that Garrison & Alison Buxton put on every year. They’re friends of mine and I love what they’ve been doing, dating back to the Ad Hoc days.

Finally, the coolest thing was seeing the beginning of this mural. The artist showed up towards the end of one of the final days to begin working on it. When I first saw this work, the pulldown was just being whitewashed/prepped for the piece. I had no idea what was going up here but when I returned the next day to see the finished piece I loved it.

A huge motivation for me & my photography is to highlight social justice issues and to shine a light on places, people, ideas and events that otherwise might go unnoticed. This pieces hits all of these marks for me.

Artist: Bamn

Location: New York City, 2013.

 

 

 
#13from2013

Check out our Brooklyn Street Art 2013 Images of the Year by Jaime Rojo here.

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Please note: All content including images and text are © BrooklynStreetArt.com, unless otherwise noted. We like sharing BSA content for non-commercial purposes as long as you credit the photographer(s) and BSA, include a link to the original article URL and do not remove the photographer’s name from the .jpg file. Otherwise, please refrain from re-posting. Thanks!

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13 from 2013 : Jessica Stewart “The Roman Nun and the Spray Can”

13 from 2013 : Jessica Stewart “The Roman Nun and the Spray Can”

13shots-from-2013-v7

Happy Holidays to all you stupendous and talented and charming BSA readers! We thank you from the bottom of our socks for your support this year. The best way we can think of to celebrate and commemorate the year as we finish it is to bring you 13 FROM 2013 – Just one favorite image from a Street Art or graffiti photographer that brings a story, a remembrance, an insight or a bit of inspiration to the person who took it. For the last 13 days they will share a gem with all of us as we collectively say goodbye and thank you to ’13.
December-25Brooklyn-Street-Art-Jessica-Stewart-December--2013-photogs-names

If anyone knows Rome’s Street Art scene, it is photographer Jessica Stewart, who has been capturing a side of the city not typically seen since 2008, publishing Street Art, urban decay and more from the Eternal City on her RomePhotoBlog.

With a love of Renaissance and Baroque art as a baseline her eye is trained to see lighting and angles like a painter, and in this heart of Roman Catholicism, she is familiar with the iconic. In 2013, Jessica says she knew the exact moment when she had captured just such an image with her camera.

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Skeme. Rome, Italy 2013. (photo © Jessica Stewart)

The Roman Nun and the Spraycan

~Jessica Stewart

So it’s of course incredibly difficult to think of just one photo, but when it really comes down to it, this image is the one that for me was a stand out moment of 2013.  It’s one of those times that as it’s happening, you are internally jumping for joy at the fact that you’re on hand to capture it.

Plus, I really think to myself “in no place but Rome could this happen.”

I think with the whole street art and graffiti movement becoming more commercialized and organized, you can almost forget some of the original joy behind what made you get involved in the first place.  In this case, GraffDream, one of two graffiti shops in the city, was holding it’s 6th anniversary jam in May.  Skeme was in town from NYC for the occasion and already they day was special seeing him get swarmed by young Roman kids dying for an autograph.

As is the norm here, many of the wall spaces are owned by the church and in this case, the wall used for the jam was the side of a Catholic school who agreed for the usage in exchange for a lesson in graffiti for its young students.  We were getting toward the end of the day when two of the sisters came out to collect the ladders and lock up items in the school.

I’m not sure if they were just swept up in the congenial atmosphere of the day or what, but before I know it one of the sisters takes a can and starts to pretend to work on Skeme’s piece!  The look on everyone’s faces was priceless and Skeme lit up like a Christmas tree at the sight of it all.

To capture that moment was priceless and I love this shot for how happy the sister looks with her spray paint.  Only in Rome! You don’t know how many people have asked me, “Is this photo for real?”

Yes, it is, and it is a time like this that makes you fall in love with photographing all over again.

 

Artist: Skeme

Location: Rome, Italy. 2013

 

 

#13from2013

Check out our Brooklyn Street Art 2013 Images of the Year by Jaime Rojo here.

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Please note: All content including images and text are © BrooklynStreetArt.com, unless otherwise noted. We like sharing BSA content for non-commercial purposes as long as you credit the photographer(s) and BSA, include a link to the original article URL and do not remove the photographer’s name from the .jpg file. Otherwise, please refrain from re-posting. Thanks!

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13 from 2013 : Geoff Hargadon “Girl on a Skateboard”

13 from 2013 : Geoff Hargadon “Girl on a Skateboard”

13shots-from-2013-v7

Happy Holidays to all you stupendous and talented and charming BSA readers! We thank you from the bottom of our socks for your support this year. The best way we can think of to celebrate and commemorate the year as we finish it is to bring you 13 FROM 2013 – Just one favorite image from a Street Art or graffiti photographer that brings a story, a remembrance, an insight or a bit of inspiration to the person who took it. For the last 13 days they will share a gem with all of us as we collectively say goodbye and thank you to ’13.

December-24

Brooklyn-Street-Art-Geoff-Hargadon-December--2013-photogs-names

Geoff Hargadon is a photographer and periodic contributor to BSA who takes his shots from the perspective of an artist, collector, and unabashed fan of the Street Art scene.  Affable and engaged with his surroundings, Hargadon’s wizened perspective is often looking for something that says more than what it appears to and in the process can be revelatory.

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Wynwood Arts District/Art Basel. Miami 2013. (photo © Geoff Hargadon)

Girl on a Skateboard, An Avatar in Wynwood 2013

~Geoff Hargadon

 

With 400 million photos a day being uploaded to Facebook and Instagram alone, it gets harder and harder to shoot photos that stand above the crowd. I think this is no different in the street art world – maybe it’s even harder. This year I shot fewer street art photos than in years past because I don’t see much sense in capturing work that’s already been captured well by others. There is little to add. Instead I’ve been patiently waiting to document moments that come to me – it could be a random person entering the frame, a shift in the light, a changing composition. In this digital world, where others rush to be the first to capture and post something new, and where time is their enemy, I try to put time on my side.

Let me start with what I think is wrong about this photograph, shot in Miami on December 6, 2013, at 1:20am on NW 2nd Ave, between 24th and 25th: it’s dark, out of focus, the subject is not facing the camera, and, perhaps to the great disappointment of BSA readers, there is no art in the frame.

This is what I think is right about this photograph: it’s dark, out of focus, the subject is not facing the camera, and there is art happening all around the frame, very much responsible for creating the scene itself.

There are only a few of nights out of the year when Wynwood is this chaotic, and at this time of the year it’s because of the massive art scene happening around the art fairs. All of this helped to create the moment when I spotted this girl weaving her skateboard freely between taxis that were hopelessly motionless. She seems carefree, risky, happy, ethereal – many of the things that have drawn me to street art in the first place. She is an Art Basel Miami avatar.

(Further, taxis are so scarce in Miami that I challenge anyone to come up with a photo of four of them in a single frame.)

 

 

Location: Wynwood District, Miami. 2013

 

 

#13from2013

Check out our Brooklyn Street Art 2013 Images of the Year by Jaime Rojo here.

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Please note: All content including images and text are © BrooklynStreetArt.com, unless otherwise noted. We like sharing BSA content for non-commercial purposes as long as you credit the photographer(s) and BSA, include a link to the original article URL and do not remove the photographer’s name from the .jpg file. Otherwise, please refrain from re-posting. Thanks!

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13 from 2013 : Luna Park “A Closet Rail Nerd in New Orleans”

13 from 2013 : Luna Park “A Closet Rail Nerd in New Orleans”

13shots-from-2013-v7

Happy Holidays to all you stupendous and talented and charming BSA readers! We thank you from the bottom of our socks for your support this year. The best way we can think of to celebrate and commemorate the year as we finish it is to bring you 13 FROM 2013 – Just one favorite image from a Street Art or graffiti photographer that brings a story, a remembrance, an insight or a bit of inspiration to the person who took it. For the last 13 days they will share a gem with all of us as we collectively say goodbye and thank you to ’13.

December-23

Brooklyn-Street-Art-Luna-Park-December--2013-photogs-names

Well known and regarded photographer and documentarian of the graffiti and Street Art scene, Luna Park has a voracious appetite for combing the bushy overgrown abandoned areas in the margins of our urban landscape in search of a perfect tag, throwie, burner. An enthusiastic and knowledgeable expert on the graffiti scene, her thousands of images made her a lot of Internet friends and fans when Flickr blew up and she now authors The Street Spot with Becki Fuller. Today Luna tells us about a spring ’13 adventure she had that included a trip to the rail yards in New Orleans.

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Read. New Orleans 2013. (photo © Luna Park)

READ in New Orleans

~Luna Park
 

In early spring of 2013, I made a pilgrimage to New Orleans. The trip marked the end of a year of personal hardship and it was important to celebrate this milestone by escaping from New York. New Orleans had been on my mind since my last visit in 1993.

I was eager to reconnect with this special place in American history, to finally meet in person kindred spirits I’d previously only known online, and to hunt down as much graffiti as possible within a short timeframe. New Orleans was eye opening, a contradiction in terms, at once deeply ravaged and depressed, yet at the same time vibrant and full of life.

The rail lines which make up the backbone of the city are visually and also very much audibly omnipresent. Standing on an overpass overlooking this massive freight yard was a strangely euphoric experience. There were unfettered sight lines to several (!) entirely new-to-me Read pieces. And as a student of graffiti history and a closet rail nerd, the proximity to so many freight trains – the modern day successors to the painted NYC subways – filled me with tremendous awe and respect. Watching these steel behemoths come and go was a beautiful and for me very necessary reminder that life carries on – cherish it and embrace the beauty around you.

A very heartfelt thank you to Steve and Jaime for their ongoing friendship and support!

Artist: Read

Location: New Orleans, 2013.

 

 

#13from2013

Check out our Brooklyn Street Art 2013 Images of the Year by Jaime Rojo here.

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Please note: All content including images and text are © BrooklynStreetArt.com, unless otherwise noted. We like sharing BSA content for non-commercial purposes as long as you credit the photographer(s) and BSA, include a link to the original article URL and do not remove the photographer’s name from the .jpg file. Otherwise, please refrain from re-posting. Thanks!

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13 from 2013 : Martha Cooper “A Train Runs Through Mandela’s Kliptown”

13 from 2013 : Martha Cooper “A Train Runs Through Mandela’s Kliptown”

13shots-from-2013-v7

Happy Holidays to all you stupendous and talented and charming BSA readers! We thank you from the bottom of our socks for your support this year. The best way we can think of to celebrate and commemorate the year as we finish it is to bring you 13 FROM 2013 – Just one favorite image from a Street Art or graffiti photographer that brings a story, a remembrance, an insight or a bit of inspiration to the person who took it. For the last 13 days they will share a gem with all of us as we collectively say goodbye and thank you to ’13.

December-22

Brooklyn-Street-Art-Martha-Cooper-December--2013-photogs-names

No matter how far she strays in the world photographer Martha Cooper is never far from the work that made her famous in the graffiti and Street Art world. An avid globetrotter, Ms. Cooper is always observing and shooting in new cities.  In recent years she has been pursuing a project entirely unrelated to her “Subway Art” days, an ethnographic study and cultural photographic comparison of two similarly named spots half a world away from one another: Sowebo (in Baltimore, MD) and Soweto in South Africa. This fall while shooting for her Sowebo/Soweto project, Cooper’s past suddenly came rumbling across the tracks above her, and she new she had one of her favorite shots of 2013.

brooklyn-street-art-martha-cooper-kliptown-soweto-south-africa-2013-web

Kliptown. Soweto, South Africa 2013. (photo © Martha Cooper)

A Train Runs Through Mandela’s Kliptown

I took this photo in September in Kliptown, an historic district in Soweto, South Africa. Although pursuing a project that had nothing to do with street art, I couldn’t take my eyes off the commuter trains with graffiti passing through. One evening I waited in the heart of Kliptown hoping to catch a shot of a painted train. This was exactly how I had photographed subway graffiti in the early ’80s in the Bronx. Back then I could never have imagined that 30 years later I would be attempting a similar shot on the other side of the globe.

By great good fortune a train passed by with graffiti in colors complimentary to my pre-selected foreground. The tiny child at the door of the typical corrugated iron Soweto shack was a poignant touch I could not have anticipated.

Kliptown is famous for its Freedom Charter signed in 1955 in an early protest against apartheid. Graffiti represents a different kind of freedom. Here’s to freedoms of all kinds, to the memory of Nelson Mandela who lived in Soweto and to a better life for the children of Kliptown and beyond.

~ Martha Cooper

Location: Kliptown, Soweto, South Africa, 2013.

 

 

#13from2013

Check out our Brooklyn Street Art 2013 Images of the Year by Jaime Rojo here.

<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA

Please note: All content including images and text are © BrooklynStreetArt.com, unless otherwise noted. We like sharing BSA content for non-commercial purposes as long as you credit the photographer(s) and BSA, include a link to the original article URL and do not remove the photographer’s name from the .jpg file. Otherwise, please refrain from re-posting. Thanks!

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13 from 2013 : Brock Brake “Being In the Middle of Creativity”

13 from 2013 : Brock Brake “Being In the Middle of Creativity”

13shots-from-2013-v7

Happy Holidays to all you stupendous and talented and charming BSA readers! We thank you from the bottom of our socks for your support this year. The best way we can think of to celebrate and commemorate the year as we finish it is to bring you 13 FROM 2013 – Just one favorite image from a Street Art or graffiti photographer that brings a story, a remembrance, an insight or a bit of inspiration to the person who took it. For the last 13 days they will share a gem with all of us as we collectively say goodbye and thank you to ’13.

December-21

Brooklyn-Street-Art-Brock-Brake-December--2013-photogs-names

Photographer and periodic contributor to BSA, Brock Brake moved from Chicago to San Francisco to discover a new world a couple of years ago and he has been working with gallerists, art, and Street Artists of many kinds since then.

Brock looks at his photography as one part of a greater holistic practice that includes interacting with people and art and the scene itself. The image he captures is as much about the situation as it is the subject.

brooklyn-street-art-spencer-keeton-cunningham-brock-brake-miami-2013-web

Spencer Keeton Cunningham at work. Miami 2013. (photo © Brock Brake)

Being In the Middle of Creativity

~Brock Brake

Doing what I do as a photographer living in San Francisco and as an art handler at White Walls Gallery, I build a relationship with artists while documenting and helping with the development of their exhibitions.  It’s always a great feeling to start a new relationship and to revisit old ones with some of the most creative people in the world. It’s kind of a crazy thing to think about; I’ve placed myself right in the middle of the creative process and I enjoy sharing it with BSA.

My pictures are usually focused around the process of work being created.  Sometimes I find the process more interesting than the final piece itself.  I’m a photojournalist by experience so I take a large amount of images and try to select the best ones as if they were going out for print.  I enjoy all of the minor details, the problem solving that occurs, and the long conversations that are made in such a creative situation.  It’s therapeutic in a way.

There is more to it, more involvement, than just showing up with a camera and pressing the button.  I try to develop a sense of comfort between myself and the artist. Once you have the awkward first impressions out of the way and you start conversing, then everything becomes golden.  Sometimes I help paint walls or hang work.  The best is closely assisting in the creation of installations for their show, a lot of times working late into the night and taking photos along the way.

I have a unique perspective on how things are done and wanted to share these moments with you.  So thanks to everyone at Brooklyn Street Art and all the artist out there that have let me lend a hand and take some pictures.

 

Artist: Spencer Keeton Cunningham
Location: San Francisco, CA. 2013

 

 

#13from2013

Check out our Brooklyn Street Art 2013 Images of the Year by Jaime Rojo here.

<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA

Please note: All content including images and text are © BrooklynStreetArt.com, unless otherwise noted. We like sharing BSA content for non-commercial purposes as long as you credit the photographer(s) and BSA, include a link to the original article URL and do not remove the photographer’s name from the .jpg file. Otherwise, please refrain from re-posting. Thanks!

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13 from 2013 : Ray Mock “Kuma by the Water”

13 from 2013 : Ray Mock “Kuma by the Water”

13shots-from-2013-v7

Happy Holidays to all you stupendous and talented and charming BSA readers! We thank you from the bottom of our socks for your support this year. The best way we can think of to celebrate and commemorate the year as we finish it is to bring you 13 FROM 2013 – Just one favorite image from a Street Art or graffiti photographer that brings a story, a remembrance, an insight or a bit of inspiration to the person who took it. For the last 13 days they will share a gem with all of us as we collectively say goodbye and thank you to ’13.

December-20

Brooklyn-Street-Art-Ray-Mock-December--2013-photogs-names

Today Ray Mock, photographer, writer and publisher of the Carnage graffiti zine, shares an image he shot in 2013 of Kuma, whose piece is stylized to reflect the movement of the water it is near.

brooklyn-street-art-kuma-ray-mock-nyc-2013-web

Kuma. New York City 2013 (Photo © Ray Mock)

Kuma is one of Mock’s favorite subjects to shoot as he travels continuously through New York catching shots of graffiti that he loves.

“I am obviously a little biased,” he says, “but to me this piece in particular represents the best of what graffiti can be. It’s inventive and original, yet respectful of graffiti tradition, contextually relevant, cleanly executed, and done entirely without permission.”

 

 

Artist: Kuma
Location: New York. 2013

 

 

#13from2013

Check out our Brooklyn Street Art 2013 Images of the Year by Jaime Rojo here.

<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA

Please note: All content including images and text are © BrooklynStreetArt.com, unless otherwise noted. We like sharing BSA content for non-commercial purposes as long as you credit the photographer(s) and BSA, include a link to the original article URL and do not remove the photographer’s name from the .jpg file. Otherwise, please refrain from re-posting. Thanks!

<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA

 

 
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