A lot of action on the street right now – people are in organized events, on commissioned walls and doing their own personal thang too. Here’s our weekly interview with the street featuring Bast, Chris and Veng from Robots Will Kill, ECB, Faile, Jaye Moon, Jetsonorama, JM, Judith Supine, Meer Sau, Mr. Toll, ND’A, NoseGo, See One, and Stik.
Young Urban Professionals Evolved 4 Million Years Ago (a. urbanis yuppicus)
Barcelonian Street Artist Göla completed a new mural on the side of a modern housing building in Poznan, Poland recently, and he brought imagination and his sense of humor. It’s a somewhat sarcastic eight-story infographic on human evolution which you may enjoy while sitting at a café table while sipping a carbonated canned beverage and chomping on a Millenium Kabob, with suburban car traffic whizzing by.
Using the visual vernacular of many more serious science textbook illustrations, this is perhaps closer to the diagrams in an acupuncturists’ waiting room. Despite the pleasant and comical elements, Göla is bringing the human race in for a colorful and entertaining critique for being so thoughtless with the rest of the planet. Perfectly themed for a festival called “Outer Spaces”, the environmentally minded artist re-constructs the entire evolutionary timeline to include Yuppies at the very beginning. Since Yuppies first roamed the earth approximately around the time Göla was born, he undoubtedly thinks they have been here forever. In a way, he has a point.
“My idea of the wall was to read from bottom to top, passing through symbols, as a metaphor for evolution,” Göla told us this week ,“From Australopithecus and the Yuppie at the bottom of the Mayan pyramid up through the second element as the cell of the new human being and the third depicts humans as they are described nowadays as a tick of the world. The top image is meant to symbolize the return to the natural world, the concept that we are part of the biosphere and we have to cooperate with the rest of the forms of life.”
Happy Friday Peepuls. Now before we all set our sights on Friday art parties and dancing and getting crazy and writing on people’s foreheads with markers, it’s time for us to get Debatified so we are all ready to vote. Obama is ahead in New York by like a hundred and five percent but apparently there are some states in the imperfect union where it is still a toss-up and people are just not sure who’s better. Moderator Candy Crowley scoured all of New York’s Long Island Tuesday and came up with only 82 people who still don’t know who they’re voting for – 12 of them polled just before airtime were also not sure who is on the one dollar bill, so there’s a clue for ya right there. Here’s a capsulized version of what went down.
1. Becca and Philip Lumbang (LA)
2. “Purple”, a Female Group Show in Williamsburg (BKLN)
3. Fairey’s “Sound and Vision” (London)
4. Gregory Siff is “A Matter of Time” in LA
5. Shark Toof Takes a Bite out of LA
6. Meanwhile, Back in Haunted Brooklyn…Get Out Your Knife
7. “The Art of Basketball” at the Pop International Galleries (NYC)
8. Gallery For The People at Stonebook Court Estate (Los Altos)
9. “It’s Alive 2” at Urban Folk Art Gallery (BKLN)
10. “Art on the Seam” Documentary teaser (VIDEO)
11. Vermibus – The Sting (VIDEO)
12. ROA in the Boneyard (VIDEO)
Becca and Philip Lumbang (LA)
Becca and Philip Lumbang, two of LA’s Street Art scene, are teaming at Lab Art Gallery in Los Angeles, CA with their show titled “Babes & Bears” now open.
For further information regarding this show click here.
“Purple”, a Female Group Show in Williamsburg (BKLN)
“Purple” is the new color for this season as envisioned by a strong group of female Street Artists in a group exhibition in Brooklyn, NY at Causey Contemporary. This show opens tonight.
PURPLE includes Alice Mizrachi, Diana McClure, Gilf, Lady Pink, Lichiban, Miss Van, Olek, Priscila De Carvalho, Queen Andrea, Ritzy Periwinkle, and Sofia Maldonado
For further information regarding this show click here.
Fairey’s “Sound and Vision” (London)
Shepard Fairey’s solo exhibition “Sound & Vision” opens tonight in London at the Stolen Space Gallery. His first London exhibition in 5 years, Fairey brings along friend and collaborator Z-Trip to supply the soundtrack to the artwork.
For further information regarding this show click here.
Gregory Siff is “A Matter of Time” in LA
A “Matter of Time” is the title of Street Artist Gregory Siff’s new show at Gallery Brown in Los Angeles, CA opening tomorrow night.
For further information regarding this show click here.
Shark Toof Takes a Bite out of LA
If you have never seen a shark playing ping pong you’ll have your chance at C.A.V.E. Gallery in Venice Beach, CA where Shark Toof’s new show “Ping Pong Show” opens tomorrow.
For further information regarding this show click here.
Meanwhile, Back in Haunted Brooklyn…Get Out Your Knife
Fall is here, leaves are turning, the sweet smell of burning fires permeates many residential neighborhoods of the city, ACs are off and windows are open and you can hear the sounds of the streets are night. And now you get to stab a pumpkin and carve a face out of it at Crest Hardware. MWAH HAH HAH HAWWWW. Joe invites you and the whole family to come out and enjoy the 3rd Annual Pumpkin Carving Contest, Saturday.
For entry rules, times and more details on this event click here.
Also happening this week:
“The Art of Basketball” is a group exhibition curated by Billi Kid at the Pop International Galleries in Manhattan featuring Mr. Brainwash, URNY, The Dude Company, Skewville, Shiro, Rene Gagnon, Joe Iurato, Ewok, One 5MH, Jack Aguire, David Cooper, Cope2, Chris Stain, Cern and Billi Kid. This show is now open to the general public and you can click here for more details.
Gallery For The People Fall Pop-Up show with Sage Vaughn, Deedee Cheriel, and Curtis Kulig is now open for the general public at The Stonebook Court Estate in Los Altos Hill, CA. Click here for more details on this show.
“It’s Alive 2” showcasing the art of Mark Bode, Dr.Revolt, and Stan 153 opens tonight at the Urban Folk Art Gallery in Brooklyn. Click here for more details on this show.
“Art on the Seam” Documentary teaser (VIDEO)
An upcoming documentary by David Freid about the art work on the wall in the West Bank.
Vermibus – The Sting (VIDEO)
ROA in the Boneyard (VIDEO)
A new video from Jason Wawro for the Boneyard Project features ROA.
Right now you can get a good look at one sculpture that is usually six stories over your head with honking, speeding cars and trucks swirling around it 24 hours a day. The famous guy at the center of Columbus Circle is inviting you to hang out in his living room, and you won’t believe the views, bro.
Part of a limited engagement, this project called “Discovering Columbus” by Japanese artist Tatzu Nishi enlivens a public art piece first erected in 1892 by Gaetano Russo. BSA guest contributor Cassandra Brinen stopped by Columbus’s penthouse and tells us what it’s like to get up close with a 13-foot-high marble sculpture. Photos are by James Boo.
After ascending the six short flights (really it did seem short!) to reach the front door of what I will call Chris’ living room, we’re greeted by a volunteer who tells us that our time inside is allotted to 15 minutes. And please do not sit on the window seals.
We enter a short clean and modern hallway with hardwood floors and a large medium mirror on the right wall. The exit is in full view directly across from the entrance. As we walk to the center of the hall, it opens into the living room and the first glimpse of Columbus is from behind, in the middle of the room, surrounded by visitors. Oddly enough, he looks like he belongs there. This sculpture is what you could call a fitting “statement piece” for the modern New York apartment.
Almost as common as a column or a house plant, upon closer inspection and a front-facing view, this simple perspective is shattered. This piece of art was not meant for one apartment–it was meant for the vast New York public and was made to survive the years.
There’s no escaping Chris when you sit on the comfortable couches that flank him from three sides. Attempting to look at the furniture or people taking pictures requires a head (or full body) tilt. This is his house. He has lived here since before you were born and he will be here long after you leave. And he has good taste! The faded pink Americana wallpaper designed by the installations artist Tatzu Nishi, with illustrations of the Empire state building, Elvis, and hotdogs, creates a beautiful backdrop for the modern apartment furnishings and serves as a playful contrast to Columbus’ weathered exterior.
A detailed examination of that exterior shows wear and tear on the granite that calls out his daily existence. Questions arise; How did he get the tiny heart-shaped hole on his lower left cloak? How long did it take for whole chunks to fall off his leg? How is it possible that these are his only imperfections after he has lived here since the early 20th century? Only he knows and even though we are invited into his house, I don’t think he’s giving up his secrets anytime soon.
Street Artist Gaia regularly highlights people from whichever community that he’s painting or wheatpasting in. Passersby commonly stop to talk while he’s working, often adding layers of history, knowledge, opinion, and nuance to his piece while he works. With his newest wall in Sandtown, a neighborhood of Baltimore, Gaia draws attention to a dying local profession that is hanging on, but barely.
Arabbers, pronounced locally with a long A (“A-rab”) were salespeople who had as many as 400 commercial carts offering fresh produce and other items rolling daily through the streets of Baltimore at one time, according to some accounts. Horse-drawn carts were a normal part of the early 20th century street life and amazingly B-Town still supports a few of these small business people on the streets in the 21st.
Because of new zoning and bylaws enacted during a period of urban renewal, the city restricted where horse stables existed, and many were put out of business. But during our travels through Baltimore with photographer Martha Cooper, who grew up there, we have had occasion to meet a number of the people who still carry this trade forward, some for many generations. Their small fenced off plots of land and stables appear suddenly like an oasis of farm life from another era in the middle of otherwise urban blocks. Once able to provide a good living to a family, Arabbers still brings fresh food to under served communities at reasonable prices. Unfortunately the proud profession is now endangered by the economic pressures of rising fees, the costs of animal care, and stable upkeep.
“The Arabbers are a dying Baltimore tradition,” says Gaia, “that have long been a staple of this remarkable city.” The NYC Street Artist, who has been living in Baltimore for a handful of years while attending university as an art student, feels a kinship to the families who are still enduring to keep this kind of livelihood sustainable. “These men and women define the word ‘hustle’,” he remarks, “trotting along both desolate and vibrant landscapes selling their goods and making ends meet. This mural depicts four generations; starting with the great grandfather Manboy in the middle and up to Fruit’s son on the top right.”
As the many expressions of Street Art freely bleed into all of art’s disciplines, many of Gaia’s more recent work clearly overlaps the traditions of community murals, where local residents are called out and celebrated, deified, congratulated, and mourned. In this case, the tradition also extends to being a little bit educational as Gaia points to some of the contributing factors that endanger a profession here, “ The Arabber portraits are mixed with the logos on the containers in which their produce comes: a global economy meets a fading, tough tradition.”
“Motivated by the idea of inspiring people I perhaps will never meet, I hope to breathe hope into many of the issues we face as a global society. My goal is to create art that provokes thoughtfulness and motivates a change of the zeitgeist.” gilf!
Featured in this year’s SCOPE Art Show at Art Basel Miami Beach and New York Comedy Festival — produced by Carolines on Broadway — in association with Comedy Central. ArtScout® at
Galerie Swanström is pleased to announce a solo exhibition by (GILF!) on October 24th at the gallery from 5 to 8 PM. The private reception will include a brief Q&A with this Brooklyn-based, female street artist to discuss her inspiration, technique and new work addressing “Citizens United, and our disintegrating constitution”… explains the artist.
The artist depicts herself as The Statue of Liberty in the painting titled Oh Yeah? which discusses Americans ‘drinking the Kool-Aid’ (so to speak) as our government, corporations, and police forces may take advantage of a complacent society. The hand written text quoted in the background is taken from a speech given by Aldous Huxley in 1962.
GILF!’s paintings boldly confront challenges facing contemporary societies.
In the poignant painting titled Who’s in Control?, the letters around the dial of the birth control package — usually indicating the days of the week for each pill — have been replaced to spell: “WHY ARE CROTCHETY OLD MEN DECIDING WHAT IS RIGHT FOR WOMEN’S BODIES?” The artist uses the birth control package as a visual metaphor to call attention to the bias apparent at a Capitol Hill hearing on women’s health; an all-male panel led the hearing and no women were called to testify.
GILF!’s paintings are accessible to the new collector and directly benefit the causes she calls attention to; the artist donates a portion of each sale to not-for- profit organizations relevant to each painting’s social commentary. In doing this GILF! includes her collectors in taking actions that will facilitate change.
October 18th, 2012 | Stonebrook Court Estate, Los Altos Hills, CA
Gallery for the People is pleased to announce that its Fall 2012 pop-up exhibition, featuring exclusive new works by artists Sage Vaughn, Deedee Cheriel and Curtis Kulig, will take place Thursday, October 18th at the Stonebook Court Estate, in Los Altos Hills, CA. Hosted by Juxtapoz Magazine Editor-In-Chief, Evan Pricco, and actress, Marisa Tomei, the Fall exhibition is the first Bay Area pop-up for the migrating gallery, founded by Eva Maria Daniels and Ally Canosa.
“We are thrilled to show new works for the first time in the Bay Area and of course to partner with the PAIFF,” says gallerist and co-founder, film-producer, Eva Maria Daniels, who is located part-time in Palo Alto. “Our mission is to celebrate the cultures of film and art, and we are privileged to bring our vision to Silicon Valley, where these platforms can thrive amidst the foreground of technology.
Devyani Kamdar, Executive Director of the Palo Alto International Film Festival states: “Moving or still, every stunning image distills a narrative. We’re honored to be included in this inspirational gallery pop-up bringing together the art, film and tech communities.”
“With a commitment to distinctive, enlightened, and pioneering artists, we are incredibly grateful to showcase three of the top contemporary artists in the country,” says Ally Canosa, co-founder of GFTP. “Their unique and influential ties to pop-culture radiate through their deeply innovative works.”
As a painter and illustrator, Sage Vaughn is best recognized for his ‘Wildlife’ series depicting vibrant butterflies, owls and sparrows, in otherwise melancholic, city scenes. Vaughn is interested in the interface between man’s wild side and animals’ civilized qualities, proposing a heavy dichotomy of beauty, violence and urban melancholy, packaged in a technicolor, sugary surface. His work includes illustrations for multiple music videos including N.A.S.A’s “Way Down,”and an exhibit at MOCA, curated by Mike D of the Beastie Boys. His art has been shown and collected internationally for over a decade.
With influences derived from such opposites as East Indian temple imagery and punk rock,Deedee Cheriel‘s images are indications of how we try to link ourselves to others and how these satirical and heroic efforts are episodes of both compassion and discomfort. Bold elements drawn from urban and natural landscapes as well as pop culture suggest the ability to find commonalities and relationships between ourselves and our surroundings that inevitably confirm our greater humanity and quest towards love
Curtis Kulig is presenting a new collection from his acclaimed series Love Me, a mixed-media message that can not only be found on his canvases, but also amongst street corners and rooftops of New York, Los Angeles, Paris, and Tokyo. His iconic style has been featured in branding campaigns with Vans and Smashbox to the walls of Paris’ paragon of fashion, Colette.
Work will be showcased in the Ballroom of the Stonebrook Court Estate for one night only before becoming available to collectors via the gallery website on October 19th, 2012. A percentage of the proceeds from the opening will directly benefit The Palo Alto International Film Festival. For more information, please visit www.paiff.net.
Artist Reception and Gallery Preview will begin promptly at 6:00p . RSVP for this event is required
Gallery Brown is thrilled to announce Matter of Time, an exhibition of new paintings, works on paper and sculpture from artist Gregory Siff. Born and raised in Brooklyn, Gregory officially made Los Angeles home in 2009 where he has since established himself as a recognizable cultural influence.
Gregory’s distinct handmade style merges unique elements of abstraction, street, and fine art; his technique coalesces the voice of a fearless child with the wisdom of a seasoned warrior. His influences include Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol, RETNA, Ray Johnson, RISK, David Shillinglaw, Louis XXX and his father.
Matter of Time is an examination of fame, idolatry, memory, determination, kingship and heart. Gregory’s half-whispered thoughts are painted out in full roars on found material, handmade panel and canvas.
Gregory’s first solo show in 2011, G, at La Fonderie in Los Angeles was quickly followed by There & Back at Siren Studio’s Rooftop Sessions to much acclaim. Commissions include The Standard Hotel and De La Barracuda Wall. In New York, his work was featured in The Deitch Projects Art Parades. His work has also been exhibited in London, Dublin, Italy and Vancouver, and has appeared in Andy Warhol’s Interview Magazine, Paper Mag, The LA Times, Complex and Glamour. Most recently, Gregory won the 2012 Los Angeles Red Bull Curates: The Road to Art Basel, Miami where his work will be featured.
“I make paintings to hang on your wall, I play characters you meet in your dreams, and I write stories you heard when you were falling asleep as a kid.” – Gregory Siff
Please join us for the opening reception
Saturday, October 20, 7 – 10pm
On view thru November 10
SHARK TOOF’s new book will also be available at the reception.
Artist will be in attendance to sign copies.
Ping Pong Show is the spectacle of romance and nature. Nature and romance are adversaries in a constant battle akin to the idea of predator versus prey. Core belief systems are challenged. These uncomfortable proximities provoke questions and leave the viewer reflecting about the complexity of social interaction.
Shark Toof has taken an ambitious parallel path to his iconic street work and created a spectacular new series of paintings that express a bold conceptual vision and the technical merit of his multi media skills. The exhibition will showcase original paintings in which the artist skillfully juxtaposes textures, employs precise lines and traditional rendering, in dynamic and complex compositions saturated with of color – and with meaning.
About Shark Toof
Shark Toof currently lives and works in Los Angeles. He graduated from Pasadena Art Center College of Design with a BFA in Illustration in 1998. Solo and group shows include Dreams Deferred, Chinese American Museum of Los Angeles; Duality, CB Gallery; Marxist Glue, Hold Up Art; Small Gift Sanrio 50th Anniversary, Barker Hanger; Sugi Pop, Portsmouth Museum of Art, New Hampshire; Unfaithful Forever, Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery; Dead Letter Playground, Leo Kesting Gallery, New York; Viva Lost Wages, Joseph Watson Collection, Las Vegas;Crazy 4 Cult, Gallery 1988; MAYDAY, Barracuda and Baker’s Dozen, Fountain Art Fair, Miami.
Conceptual Street Artist General Howe will be sticking a pointy eared mask onto Obama’s photo after the presidential debate tonight – as he writes his next report for the Super Election News website.
A screengrab from the art parody blog by conceptual street artist General Howe called “Super Election News 2012”
One part HuffPost Politics, one part The Onion, and one part Halloween super hero role-playing – The site is the onscreen version of parodies General Howe started in his street work a few years ago. By subverting the election “news” that’s continually blared from the polycephalic cluster of political blogs and trustworthy news websites, Howe equates the candidates staged personas as spun by PR machines with the simplified good and evil story that is told in the Batman sagas.
Obama as Batman, Romney as Bane, Gingrich as Penguin, Sheldon Adelson as the Joker… “Presidential elections and summer blockbuster movies have become the same thing,” explains General Howe, “There is an epic battle of good vs. evil and the fate of the world is up for grabs. If we pay a little extra for the larger soda, the experience will be that much better.”
With regular postings on his online art/politics website, the General has been mulling over the implications of simplification of complex issues, the corrupting influence of blind money donations, the surreal spinning of real news, as well as parodying the more obvious manipulations he sees in his daily review of what has essentially has become a hyper-charged money-fueled media industry that commoditizes candidates for profit and ignores/deludes the citizenry.
What may frighten you more are the similarities between fact and fiction.
General Howe’s new series of characters are called “The Supers” and he has made a print comic book for the 2012 election, as well as installed some parody election signage in the perfectly mowed autumn lawns of sterile suburbia, where the effect of seeing a pro-Bane or pro-Batman and Robin sign is startlingly normal appearing in all their patriotic colors and crisp graphics. Antecedents to this campaign can be found in General Howe’s reworking of actual advertising signage during the 2008 campaign where John McCain was 2Face, Hilary Clinton had the bloody clown lips of the Joker, and Obama was again depicted as Batman.
While his art on the streets has always had a political element that is informed by American culture and history, General Howe has been having a blast with this new online art project, “This work has strong roots in street art but is completely digitally based. I’ve been thinking a lot about making accessible work and communicating a message to the masses and as much as street art does that and I think there is unexplored territory in how much of peoples lives exist in the digital world. It would be a great evolution to see digital content and websites subverted the same way our physical environment is being subverted by street art. I don’t have the skills or knowledge of a hacker so this is my attempt at transforming the digital experience.”
Exhibition Dates: November 1st – November 28th, 2012
Hours: Wednesday – Friday, 11:30am – 5:30pm, Saturday – Sunday, noon – 6:00pm, Monday -Tuesday by
appointment.
Address: Krause Gallery, 149 Orchard Street, New York, NY 10002
Reception: Thursday, November 1st, 2012, 6:00pm – 9:00pm
KRAUSE GALLERY is proud to present Young Puns 2 – Now With
More Pun, HANKSY’s second solo exhibition at Krause Gallery in New York. After the success of his
debut gallery exhibition in January of 2012, Hanksy has emerged on the art scene as one of the most wellknown
and beloved street artists in America. To celebrate his new wordplay series, the first 35 people in
attendance will receive a complimentary limited edition signed t-shirt. In addition to original pieces, limited
edition prints will also be available for purchase. Young Puns 2 – Now With More Pun will run concurrently
with the NYC Comedy Festival where Hanksy will be adorning several New York building facades with
puns featuring the performing comedians. With three solo shows coming in 2013 (LA, Melbourne, and
Chicago), be sure to attend the New York kickoff to see what it all really memes.
New York City based artist HANKSY uses the streets as his canvas, employing clever puns and turns of
phrases to delight fans and observant passersby.
Shortly after moving to New York in 2010, HANKSY began noticing the city’s vibrant street art scene, in
which hand painted works of art, elaborate stencils, and detailed screen prints enrich blighted spots and
capture the attention of urban dwellers. Wanting to contribute to the ever-growing movement, but
determined to maintain a light-hearted approach, HANKSY began satirizing British street art legend
Banksy by mashing up his most famous works with references from Tom Hanks films. His clever remixes
delighted New Yorkers, turning HANKSY into a social media phenomenon and quickly earning him a
place in the competitive New York street art world.
HANKSY’s new work broadens his satirical scope, lampooning pop culture icons like Bruce Willis and
Ryan Gosling, while staying true to his punny origins. With HANKSY on the streets, no celebrity is safe.
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LISTING INFORMATION:
What: Hanksy – Young Puns 2 – Now With More Pun
Where: Krause Gallery, 149 Orchard Street, New York, NY 10002
When: November 1st – November 28th, 2012
BROOKLYN STREET ART LOVES YOU MORE EVERY DAY
