All posts tagged: England

Wapon Of Choice Gallery Presents: Cheba Solo Show (Bristol, England)

Cheba
brooklyn-street-art-cheba-weapon-of-choice-galleryCheba solo show

Opening preview 17th September, 6-10pm, all welcome.

…In 2002, Thanks to a small record shop (Eat the Beat) Cheba took the step of putting on his first solo show. Following this Cheba has gone on to showcase his work at numerous group shows, including the recent ‘Crimes of Passion’ at the Royal West Academy, with many illustrious figures from the world of street art. In this show you can expect to see Cheba’s usual simple but striking characters, with a few added surprises and tips of his hat to some his influences and iconic artists.

Exhibition runs until the 17 October 2010.

Weapon of Choice Gallery
14 St Michael’s Hill
Bristol BS2 8DT

Sponsored by Puma and Havana Club

Facebook event: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=143397612351932&ref=ts
http://www.weaponofchoicegallery.co.uk/
http://weaponofchoicegallery.blogspot.com/

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Stolen Space Gallery Presents: Wilde Fantasies: A Decade of Don’t Panic Posters (London, England)

Stolen Space Gallery
brooklyn-street-art-stolen-space-gallery
Wild Fantasies: A Decade of Don’t Panic Posters

Opening preview night – 23rd September

Freshers Student Party with The University of the Arts – 29th September

Free giveaways and drinks provided on the opening nights!

RSVP for preview night to Grant@dontpaniconline.com

Add +1 for a extra person.

Keep your diaries free for one of the most important shows of the year!

Remember to sign up on our website or check us on facebook for all the latest news around Don’t Panic and this exhibition.

We proudly announce that are event is sponsored by Swan Papers.

StolenSpace, The Old Truman Brewery, 91 Brick Lane, London E1 6QL

In the meantime, take care.

Don’t Panic

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High Roller Society Presents: Glenn Anderson + Richard Coldicott “Warp + Woof” (London, England)

High Roller Society
brooklyn-street-art-glenn-anderson-richard-coldicott-high-roller-society-Warp-woof

warp and woof [wawrp uh nd woof] (see also warp and weft) noun.

1. The threads that run lengthwise (warp) and crosswise (woof) in a woven fabric
2. A distinctive, complex underlying pattern or structure on which something is built; a base or foundation

The first London exhibition by Glenn Anderson & Richard Coldicott sees a continuation of their ongoing project “Warp & Woof”, a phrase used by the artists to describe the fabric of their everyday surroundings and existence which continues to shape and inspire them. Gravitating toward the disregarded spaces and detritus common to the post industrial ‘playground’ of their hometown Birmingham, here the artists present an installation of work incorporating drawing, painting, sculpture, moving image and found objects, all of which resonates their shared celebration of discovering beauty and treasure amongst the overlooked and discarded. WARP + WOOF reveals a fascinating montage of the otherwise mundane, and is on view at High Roller Society from 11 September to 9 October.

Glenn Anderson and Richard Coldicott are expert scavengers of detritus and skilled voyeurs of imagery. Making something out of nothing is like an animalistic instinct to these artists, but that isn’t to mean they make just anything. Indeed, abandoned places, everyday faces, and all things forgotten have given way to a score of previous exhibitions across the UK and US, including Beat 13 at Lab 101 Gallery in Los Angeles, Keep A Breast at Stay Gold Gallery in New York, Mutate Britain in London, the Birmingham OPEN at the Gas Hall/Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery, and film screenings on BBC2 and video & film festivals worldwide.

Yet, despite the 15+ minutes of fame they’ve each received thus far, both artists remain as grounded and as close to their roots than ever. As the title WARP + WOOF suggests, Anderson and Coldicott have been busy laying down a solid foundation of discarded particles upon which their inspiration and integrity have been built. Whether in their native Birmingham or elsewhere in the world, they weave themselves within their surroundings in order to understand its existence and give its faded past a new life. Now, their own trail of existence marks the paths they’ve trespassed on, often in the form of giant matchsticks, masks made from rubbish, sketches, films, and inspired energy… all very much alive, all incorporated in life’s woven fabric, and all from nothing.

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The Herbert Art Gallery And Museum Presents: Street Art: Contemporaty Prints From The V&A (Coventry, England)

The Herbert Gallery and Museum

Image Courtesy of the Gallery

Image Courtesy of the Gallery

MEDIA RELEASE

Banksy comes to the Herbert …

Herbert Art Gallery & Museum will host the UK public premiere of

Street Art: Contemporary Prints from the V&A a new touring exhibition

including works by celebrated street artist Banksy…

The Herbert Art Gallery & Museum, Coventry will be taking inspiration from the street this autumn as it showcases work from some of the best, freshest and most controversial street artists around.  The UK premiere of the new temporary exhibition Street Art: Contemporary Prints from the V&A opens on 9 October, 2010 and is completely FREE to see.

This brand new touring exhibition explores the ways street art has moved away from the painted wall into the medium of printmaking, creating distinctive, exciting visuals along the way. Drawn from the Victoria and Albert Museum’s internationally renowned collection of prints, Street Art: Contemporary Prints from the V&A showcases established and emerging street artists, both British and international, including names such as Banksy, D*Face, Eine, Miss Tic, Swoon and Shepard Fairey.  A piece of Eine’s work was recently gifted to Barack Obama from David Cameron.

The Herbert has commissioned six emerging artists on the UK street scene to create new works of art that will be displayed in a second complementary exhibition Fresh Paint.  Pahnl, SPQR, Lucy McLauchlan, Ben Slow, AsOne and Newso have all created pieces that have not been seen before, and will not be seen together again.

Contextual images showing street art in its original settings have been provided by Very Nearly Almost magazine.

Dominic Bubb, Exhibitions Officer at the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum said “Being the first venue to show the V&A’s exhibition is amazing for us especially with the Banksy pieces.  We wanted to add an extra element to make this exhibition unique to Coventry so we’ve commissioned six works from up and coming Fresh Paint artists.  Add to this the street images supplied from the VNA Magazine and you’ll see that this is a wholly exclusive exhibition that will never be seen anywhere else again.”

Street artists produce work in a variety of media, including the works on paper seen in this exhibition. Street art prints offer the opportunity to collect and preserve this otherwise ephemeral art form, which now moves between the street and the gallery. Street art prints are an interesting development, both within the medium of printmaking and within urban art. Although street artists produce work for exhibitions and galleries, most still continue to work outside the gallery system, or in some cases, creating galleries of their own. This exhibition explores the recurring themes within the genre, such as historic and current subjects, traditional methods of image-making and styles familiar from art history.

The art will also be heading out of the gallery and spilling over onto the street through a range of special events, activities and unique artworks hidden around Coventry.  Shoppers in the city centre and the bus station should keep their eyes open and look out for miniature scenes and artworks which can then be photographed and shared on the Herbert’s Flickr site.

Between 11:00am and 4:00pm, on Saturday 11 September visitors can meet some of the artists taking part in the exhibition and see demonstrations of live spraying, painting, pasting and stencilling at Street Art Saturday, they will then have the opportunity to  walk away with a FREE new and unique artwork in Take it, it’s yours.

Street art is a growing world-wide phenomenon where artists have taken their art outside of the traditional galleries and exhibitions and created a new platform with which to showcase their work.  Walls, doors, derelict buildings, pavements, rivers and railings have all been used creatively to display an artist’s work.

Whilst most street art is produced illegally and without permission, it is a movement which has developed into recognised art form with street artists becoming well-known and respected among their peers and within the art world.

For further information on these and other FREE family events, exhibitions, talks and activities visit www.theherbert.org or join our family mailing list at www.theherbert.org/mailing-list.

Exhibition Extras

Street Art Saturday – FREE

Saturday 11 September

11.00am – 4.00pm

Meet some of the artists taking part in our Street Art exhibition.  For one day only we will have live spraying, painting, pasting and stencilling taking place in the University Square, just outside the Herbert

It’s Yours, Take It – FREE

Saturday 11 September

12.30pm

The Herbert is giving visitors the chance to take part in a worldwide phenomenon.  It’s Yours, Take It is a great way for people who wouldn’t generally think about owning art to get a piece for FREE, from the artists taking part in Street Art!

Street Art Launch – FREE

Thursday 7 October

7.00pm – 10.00pm

Be the first to see this exhibition from the V&A alongside new works from amazing regional artists , DJing, live animation projection and a serious live art battle, where locals will take on outsiders, and the audience help decide the winner.

10 Minute Tour – FREE

Every Tuesday from 12 October – 11 January

12.30pm

An informal, drop-in tour with a member of our exhibitions team bringing history, context and a little insider information to the exhibition.

Exit Through The Gift Shop – £5

Thursday 21 October

7.00pm – 8.30pm

Exit Through The Gift Shop is the groundbreaking film from Banksy – the world’s most famous graffiti artist; a global phenomenon with a fiercely guarded anonymity.  An eccentric Frenchman tries to film and befriend Banksy, only for the artist to turn the camera back on its owner with spectacular results.

Our Street – FREE

Monday 25 October – Friday 29 October

10.30am – 12.30pm and 1.30pm – 3.30pm

Hands on drop-in workshops inspired by the area that we live and some of the fantastic techniques used in the Street Art Exhibition.

Suitable for all ages but particularly 5+ and their adults.

Contemporary Arts Conversation – FREE

Thursday 28 October

6.30pm – 7.30pm

Love it or loathe it most people have an opinion on Street Art, and it often comes down to the contentious issue of graffiti.  Councils spend thousands of pounds a year removing graffiti, stickers and paste-ups but they are fast becoming one of the greatest forms of modern art.  Join us to tackle the thorny issue of art v vandalism.

Arrive at 6.00pm for tea and coffee.

Against the Wall – FREE

Wednesday 3 November

12.30pm – 1.30pm

A talk by acclaimed journalist and photographer William Parry about his stunning book of photos which captures the graffiti and art that has transformed Israel’s wall into a living canvas of resistance and solidarity.

Featuring the work of other artists including Banksy, Ron English, Blu and others, as well as Palestinian artists and activists, the photos express outrage, compassion touching humour, and illustrate the wall’s toll on lives and livelihoods.

Our Street Workshop and Mural Day – FREE

Saturday 6 November

12.00pm – 4.00pm

Using the creations made at today’s and Friday 29 October’s Our Street workshops, families can contribute to a fabulous 3D street scene in a workshop led by local artist Ben Sanderson.

Herbert Illuminations: Street Art – FREE

Tuesday 16 November

12.30pm – 1.30pm

British street artists Eelus and Lucy McLauchlan offer an insight into a project they are involved in to transform a rural village in The Gambia through art workshops and street painting.  They aim to bring art to a community the survives through farming, and ultimately encourage tourism and development.

Whole Train – FREE

Thursday 9 December

7.00pm – 9.30pm

Whole train’s edgy editing, pulsating soundtrack and exploration of the secret universe of the graffiti scene make it a film experience not to be missed. The four protagonists observe the hierarchies, values, rules and codes of this rarely documented scene. But as another crew appears on the scene, and the four feel challenged and a creative battle ensues. The Director will be available after the performance in person or via Skype to answer questions about how he made the film and its content!

If you want any further information, images or interviews please contact Sally Johnson on 024 7629 4735 or email sally.johnson@theherbert.org

NOTES TO EDITORS

  1. V&A collects new forms of printmaking, and the museum’s Print Collection continues to add to its existing collection of contemporary street art on paper.
  2. This touring exhibition has been organised by the V&A and all the works are drawn from the museum’s collection.
  3. The exhibition tours various venues in the UK from autumn 2010 until the end of 2012.
  4. The exhibition is accompanied by a book, Street Art: Contemporary Prints (V&A Publishing, 2010).
  5. The Herbert Art Gallery and Museum redevelopment project has been jointly funded by Coventry City Council, the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), Renaissance West Midlands, the Department of Culture Media and Sport (DCMS) Wolfson Foundation Fund, Advantage West Midlands and English Heritage.
  6. The Herbert Art Gallery and Museum is managed by The Coventry Heritage & Arts Trust. The trust also manages the Lunt Roman Fort and Priory Visitor Centre
  7. The Herbert Art Gallery & Museum has been nominated for the Guardian Family Friendly Award.
  8. The gallery has welcomed over 300,000 visitors through its door in the past year.
  9. The Herbert Art Gallery & Museum’s mission is to bring history and the arts to life for the people of Coventry; this is done through the many projects and initiatives run by the Learning, Social Inclusion and Media departments.  For more information please visit www.theherbert.org.

MEDIA RELEASE

WANTED: ART

Herbert Art Gallery & Museum seeks artist donations for

Coventry’s First It’s Yours, Take It event

Donations of art works are being sort by the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum for a one-off event taking place on Saturday 11 September at 12:30pm.  It’s Yours, Take It gives visitors to the museum the opportunity to leave with a piece of artwork for FREE.

The Herbert is asking for artists to take part in the worldwide phenomenon of It’s Yours, Take It by donating a piece of their work to the event.  Works can be produced on any material including canvas, reclaimed wood and cardboard, they can be of any style, shape or inspiration but need to be of a quality standard.

Work has already been donated by up and coming street artists Pahnl, Newso and AsOne, and has been sent in from as far as St Louis, Missouri and Tehran in Iran.

Donated items will be included either during this one-off day, or, it may be hidden somewhere in Coventry during the Street Art exhibition for passers by to pick up and take home.  By submitting pieces of work, artists will be given the opportunity to have their work and name seen by everyone visiting the Herbert on that day.

Work needs to be sent to Dominic Bubb, Herbert Art Gallery & Museum, Jordan Well, Coventry, CV1 5QP by Friday 10 September.

It’s Yours, Take It is a great way for people who wouldn’t generally think about owning art to get a piece for FREE.

Jamie Perry Head of Marketing and Communications at the Herbert commented ‘This is a great opportunity for local people to get involved with the Herbert, see some ground breaking art and have the chance of walking away with a piece to hang on their walls. The kind and generous donations of artists worldwide ensures that everyone has the chance to become a collector, appreciator and owner of truly inspirational art. I would urge everyone to take advantage of this unique opportunity’.

It’s Yours, Take It has been organised to complement the Herbert’s new exhibition Street Art: Contemporary Prints from the V&A which opens on 9 October.  Street Art: Contemporary Prints from the V&A explores the ways street art has moved away from the painted wall into the medium of printmaking, creating distinctive, exciting visuals along the way. Drawn from the Victoria and Albert Museum’s internationally renowned collection of prints, this exhibition showcases established and emerging street artists, both British and international, including names such as Banksy, D*Face, Eine, Miss Tic, Shepard Fairey and Swoon.

As an addition to the V&A exhibition, the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum has commissioned six emerging artists on the UK street scene to create new works of art that will be displayed in Fresh Paint.  Pahnl, SPQR, Lucy McLauchlan, Ben Slow, AsOne and Newso have all created pieces that have not been seen before, and will not be seen together again.

Contextual images showing street art in its original settings have been provided by Very Nearly Almost magazine.

For further information other FREE family events, exhibitions, talks and activities visit www.theherbert.org or join our family mailing list at www.theherbert.org/mailing-list.

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Ben Aine: Street Art and The White House

Ben Aine (Photo © PA)
Ben Aine  “Twenty First Century City” (Photo © PA)

Street Art continues to keep its vertiginous trip towards total recognition and full popularity among the masses. This trend was solidified with the recent news that upon this week’s visit to the White House, David Cameron, the newly minted British Prime Minister, presented The Obamas a painting by Ben Aine. Mr. Aine is one of the most visible street artists working today in England. The painter was chosen by Mr. Cameron’s wife, Samantha, to give to the Obamas. Mr. Aine is said to be one of Mrs. Cameron’s favorite artists.

To read more about this story go here:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1296453/Samantha-Cameron-gives-Ben-Eine-street-art-Barak-Obama.html

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Miss Bugs Mugs the Masters (and the Flickr-ites) for Fun

Street Artist Dives Shallowly for Inspiration

Nothing will stir up the ire of artists and their fans than another artist’s appropriation of style or technique. It’s considered “lame”.

And nothing will produce audible cries from artists, art historians, collectors, publishers, fans, and armchair lawyers about copyright infringement and utter lack of creativity than when wholesale appropriation is at hand.  Of course sometimes it doesn’t hurt your market value to roil them all at once. Miss Bugs has “the touch” right now.

You’ll remember the Joe Black and Miss Bugs show at Brooklynite this spring, where Ms. Bugs opened the eyes of many with wide swipes of fairly newly minted pop imagery into the poppy pieces.

Obama Fairey sliced across Kate's breast (Miss Bugs) (photo Steven P. Harrington)
Obama by Fairey sliced across Kate’s breast (Miss Bugs) (photo Steven P. Harrington)

In promoting the show the term “2 Many Artists” was bandied about as a reference to the snip and clip musical mashup/bootleg pioneers of 2 Many DJ’s, who would be analogous to another hairy white guy named GirlTalk today.

A Mondrianic grid of transparency (Miss Bugs) (photo Steven P. Harrington)
A Mondrianic grid of transparency (Miss Bugs) (photo Steven P. Harrington)

This month a very large street art piece in Brighton, England by Miss Bugs has enlivened the debate about any number of things, including copyright issues, right down to the amount of imagination of the artist may possess.

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Miss Bugs in Brighton

What seems to have gotten street art fans in a froth is that Miss Bugs is not using old campy print advertisements or bits of classic paintings as reference; rather, it is that the work is using very recent and pretty well-known pieces of STREET ART in the STREET ART.

In fact, barring Mr. Brainwash (MBW), Miss Bugs may be the first to appropriate images so historically quickly, so frequently, and so enormously.

xx
Miss Bugs in a big way.

But then, that’s exactly what entertains others, “to me Miss Bugs is not so much appropriating, but b**ching up modern art, Hirst, Daffy Duck, Fairey, King Kong, Munch, Koons, DFace, Banksy whatever – it’s graffitin’ graffiti, vandalising vandalism…,” says a poster on a well regarded online forum.

Hometown heros Faile may have lifted their
Brooklyn hometown heroes Faile may have lifted their images from lesser-known sources, and thus the images quickly became associated with them and “owned” by Faile in the minds of fans (photo Jaime Rojo)

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Miss Bugs doesn’t so much adapt the original Faile image as adopt it wholesale.

This calls into question the creativity of the artist in the minds of some. In fact, you may hear cries of “Emperor’s New Clothes” more often than during an Orange Alert in the “War-On-Terror” Bush years.

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A dab o’ O’ for your mural? (Miss Bugs)

And then there’s the Holy Grail of Modern Street Art Imagery.  Shep Fairey takes his hits, most of them because of his public stature, but chopping up an Obama “Hope” image and splaying it across the wall as a collaging effect makes the Fairey Faithful pale and weak from disbelief.

In the heart of Brooklyn street art (photo Jaime Rojo)

In the heart of Brooklyn street art circa 2008 (photo Jaime Rojo)

On this side of the pond we have some troubles this summer with what street parlance calls “Haterz” – those folks who are looking to shred the first year president at every turn, most likely because of our sad history of racism.  To the supporters of Obama, seeing this iconic street art image so quickly mutilated only adds to the sting of the horrible epithets that are hurled from the neanderthals.

Miss Bugs (photo Jaime Rojo)
Oh, let’s see. There’s Picasso, Warhol, and Haring and I haven’t left her chest.  What about the Munchy Mickey Mouse ears? Now those could get you in trouble. And the Rakkoon eyes? (Miss Bugs) (photo Jaime Rojo)

But let’s not all get our wheat-pastes in a wad.

Either you support free expression or you don’t, and frankly, this mixing of High with Low, Touchstones with The Banal, has been a fabulous feature of “the modern” now since Pop became Popular. Perhaps this willful free-association appropriation is simply a harbinger of what’s to come – or what is already happening elsewhere. Every piece of recorded history is now reduced to 1’s and 0’s and used as easily as paint from the tube.

Rae McGrath, owner of Brooklynite, speaking in reference to Miss Bug’s techniques, says, “I think they are remixing things to make them their own, but because the images they are using are current they get more scrutiny. (It’s an) Interesting debate that you can obvious take the side you feel strongly about.”

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Miss Bugs continues to work.

Or maybe it’s not about the art at all.  As one collector remarked to another on a forum online recently, “People do get testy once the (Miss Bugs) prints are market price, don’t they, Bob?”

Take a look at the GirlTalk video below and tell us about all the cultural “Sacred Cows” you’re going to defend and preserve.

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