All posts tagged: Meggs

MEGGS and Miya Welcome “Temple Children” to Hawai’i

MEGGS and Miya Welcome “Temple Children” to Hawai’i

New images and an interview today from Hawai’i with Melbourne native Street Artist David ‘MEGGS’ Hooke and his partner Miya Tsukazaki who together are envisioning the mural festival concept as something more holistic.

Sam Yong. Temple Children 2016. Hilo, Hawaii. (photo © Cory Martin )

The Temple Children project is partially a reaction to the devolved commercial model of mural festivals that use art and artists to imbue brands and cities with a vaguely “edgy” veneer – minus its counter-culture roots – and cynically factored as part of a marketing strategy to “target demographics” and ultimately “move product”.

It’s also a bold and ambitious re-imagining of a better world through art, creativity, community…and food.

Food Education. Temple Children 2016. Hilo, Hawaii. (photo © Cory Martin)

By framing the mural event as one element of a larger worldview, you can also expect to learn and participate through eco-tours, sustainability volunteering, and a group residency, among other activities and experiences.

“The name of our organization was inspired by Miya’s name, which translates to ‘Temple’ in Japanese,” MEGGS tells us. “Our efforts are to evolve a creative platform for the betterment of the planet and a humanity-led envisioning of the Earth as our ‘temple.’ ”

Keiki Outreach with Sam Yong, aka In The Wolf. Temple Children 2016. Hilo, Hawaii. (photo © Cory Martin)

So who are these ‘Temple Children’, you may ask? Are they actually children? Miya tells us “The name refers to our network of artists, creatives, and friends around the world who share in this vision. A Temple Child chooses to channel their skills and talents towards benefiting the greater good, ultimately increasing this universal consciousness.”

We had an opportunity to see MEGGS and Miya in Detroit in September when they did their pilot program installation in conjunction with “Murals in the Market” and the folks from 1xRun. Their they told us of a new vision they were developing in Hilo, the hometown of Miya that would hopefully add to the definition of mural festival – without calling it that specifically.

Yoskay Yamamoto. Temple Children 2016. Hilo, Hawaii. (photo © Cory Martin )

Today we share with BSA readers an interview with both MEGGS and Miya about their first immersive “Temple Children” event this fall, which featured works and workshops and kids programming and food harvesting and prep with artists including artists Jet MartinezYoskay YamamotoRick HaywardEmily DeversSam YongKai’ili KaulukukuiBrandy Serikaku, and filmmaker Cory Martin along with murals painted earlier in the year by MEGGS  Lauren YS  and Wooden Wave.

Yoskay Yamamoto. Detail. Temple Children 2016. Hilo, Hawaii. (photo © Cory Martin )

In their interview the two talked about their shared vision to merge visual arts and sustainable innovation at the community level.

Brooklyn Street Art: Let’s begin with something very wrong that we see a lot of: massive food waste almost everywhere we travel, including the US. Why do we waste so much food? From outsized portions and all-you-can-eat buffets, to supermarkets following a strict policy on expiration dates who throw out perfectly good food. Food waste includes our everyday habits and practices at home. What can be done?

MEGGs: Food waste is undoubtedly a serious challenge for our generation and we feel that it comes back to one of our core values – mindfulness. Taking a moment to think about where your food comes from, how much money you spend on food, where your food waste ends up and what that does to the environment are all very simple concepts that will minimize food waste. Being thoughtful about how much you consume, what foods you buy, and where these foods come from is one of the easiest ways to conserve energy and reduce one’s carbon footprint (and not to mention save money!).

Sam Yong. Temple Children 2016. Hilo, Hawaii. (photo © Cory Martin )

Miya: We are big advocates of the locavore movement. Through our projects, we encourage others to buy local and seasonal foods and teach people why this is critical, both socially and environmentally. It’s not only an easy way to prevent pollution that is associated with the transportation of food; eating local (and organic when possible) is healthier for the mind and body because the quality of the food is undoubtedly higher.

Through our recent project, we were able to put these ideas into action and served our artists and team near to 100% of Big Island-sourced foods. It was a challenge to say the least, but we prioritized it and made it happen through our own cooking and through donations from like-minded farms and businesses in the Hilo community.

Jet Martinez. Temple Children 2016. Hilo, Hawaii. (photo © Cory Martin )

MEGGS: We educated our visiting artists on the cultural values of food here in Hawai’i and why being mindful of food is vital for the future of our planet. They all seemed to absorb what we had to offer them and repeatedly commented on how they felt better every day and had more energy for painting. We’ve witnessed the positive impacts of incorporating these values into our projects firsthand and look forward to seeing how our food sustainability efforts unfold.

Brooklyn Street Art: What connection does an artist have in the community where they paint? Many new urban art festivals are criticized for what we have called a “cultural imperialism” that imposes art that is not in tune with the culture or even in context with its surroundings. Is there another way to conceive of an Urban Art mural festival?

MEGGS: Sometimes the artist has a deep connection and other times no connection at all – which may pose a problem during this unpredictable time in history. While we 100% appreciate art for art’s sake, we created this platform for meaningful artworks that will have a lasting positive effect.

Miya: Yes, we do believe there is another way to conduct a mural festival and this concept is one of the main reasons we chose to take our projects back to the basics, and strip the idea of ‘mural festival’ altogether. We consider it a sustainability project, where the murals are a byproduct of a bigger scope – to encourage real connections between our artists, the community, and the environment.

Frank & Mimi. Temple Children 2016. Hilo, Hawaii. (photo © Cory Martin )

MEGGS: Both of us have been involved in many mural festivals in recent years and it is quite often that during these urban art festivals we experience a division between an artist and the community they paint in. Sometimes the community is left out of the process or completely ignored from thought when these artworks are conceived, leaving them feeling disconnected. We hope our resulting public art inspires and uplifts the public (especially the kids!), as we thoughtfully integrate our artists into the communities where we hold our projects.

Miya: By connecting them with the local culture, environment, people, and food, we encourage them to bring forth messages of sustainability and positivity for the community to enjoy. It is not an easy thing to do, and we feel very lucky that we are able to do it.

Kilauea Ecoguides take Temple Children on a “Lava Trek.” Temple Children 2016. Hilo, Hawaii. (photo © Cory Martin)

Brooklyn Street Art: You address themes of food sustainability, the environment and art education. What is art’s role and the artists’ role when it comes to addressing social causes? Should art be necessarily activist? Subversive? Antagonistic?

MEGGS: We don’t believe that art or public art should be anything other than the artist intends it to. We both tend to connect a bit deeper, however, to artworks that have underlying messages expressing thoughts or reactions to environmental and social issues.

Kai’ili Kaulukukui. Temple Children 2016. Hilo, Hawaii. (photo © Cory Martin )

Miya: Our Temple Children platform is a space for artists who want to explore these feelings and be a part of a larger common goal. There is a give and take involved, with an emphasis on the give. It’s not for everyone, and our projects are specific to those who are on the same wavelength or are moving towards it.

Lo’i restoration with Pohaha I Ka Lani. Temple Children 2016. Hilo, Hawaii. (photo © Cory Martin)

Brooklyn Street Art: We just saw the “Paint the Revolution: Mexican Modernism” exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and we were profoundly moved by the ferocity and fearlessness in which Diego Rivera, Orozco, Siqueiros, Tina Modotti, Alvarez Bravo and many other Mexican artists embraced the burning social issues of their time and used their work to call out the hypocrisies and corruption in society and government. Can art be impactful and inspire positive change in social/political matters in today’s world?

Miya: We’d like to think so! We believe that art can be a contributing factor to social change, especially in regards to the dialogue and awareness surrounding social and environmental issues. The challenge that an artist can face, however, is deciding how to best contribute their skills to inspire the actions necessary to make a change.

Kai’ili Kaulukukui. Detail. Temple Children 2016. Hilo, Hawaii. (photo © Cory Martin )

MEGGS: Whether it is through physical action, fundraising, aligning and supporting community and environmental organizations, etc… the possibilities really are endless if an artist decides to use his or her art to influence these matters. We see it happening more and more due to our planet’s current environmental, social, and political climate.

Brandi Serikaku. Temple Children 2016. Hilo, Hawaii. (photo © Cory Martin)

Brooklyn Street Art: What is your formula for giving the artists enough time to paint, explore, conduct workshops and even do a little reforestation?

Miya: We set out with an ambitious 10-day minimum requirement that everyone be on island. Given that this project is paid and includes accommodations and all meals, we felt it was a reasonable commitment of time. There were no objections because our roster of artists were very excited to come and experience what the Big Island has to offer.

MEGGS: They spent 3 days getting to know each other and immersing in adventure and volunteer work, 5 days painting the murals, and 2-3 days at a beach house where we could relax and hike to the lava flow. There isn’t a fool-proof formula in place because of unforeseen obstacles (weather in the tropics and lifts breaking for example), but we feel 10 days to two weeks is a good amount of time to achieve all of the goals we set for the project, including the mural painting.

Lo’i restoration with Pohaha I Ka Lani. Temple Children 2016. Hilo, Hawaii. (photo © Cory Martin)

Brooklyn Street Art: Who are you inspired by – or what’s inspiring to you to continue Temple Children?

MEGGS: This project is inspired by many factors. The first is our ‘global community’ of friends and artists who we consider our family. Although we are miles apart, it seems we are all fighting for a common cause and it is comforting to know that you aren’t alone on this sometimes discouraging and unpredictable journey. It’s not only a support network, it fuels us to continue to exchange ideas with other like-minded people for the betterment of our communities and environmental sustainability.

Keiki Outreach with Brandy Serikaku. Temple Children 2016. Hilo, Hawaii. (photo © Cory Martin)

Miya: Which leads to another inspiration – the keiki, or kids. We’ve experienced first-hand the pure joy that the kids feel when they see or help with a mural, and it is a goal of ours to do what we can to uplift future generations in smaller communities with less resources. Many of them are not exposed to what the world has to offer them, and we bring global ideas and artists from faraway places to teach them that they can pursue their art and creativity as a legitimate career path.

MEGGS: Most importantly, we are inspired by Mother Earth and her natural wonders. The threatened state of our planet is the ultimate motivation to do whatever we can to help protect our resources for every living being that shares this special place.

Kilauea Ecoguides. Lava Trek. Temple Children 2016. Hilo, Hawaii. (photo © Cory Martin)

To learn more about Temple Children click HERE


Temple Children is currently raising funds for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in support of their efforts against the Dakota Access Pipeline. 100% of the proceeds from this limited run of 40 pieces goes to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe.

Find out more by clicking HERE

@templechildren  @houseofmeggs

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A Selection of Murals from “MURAL” in Montreal 2016

A Selection of Murals from “MURAL” in Montreal 2016

Have a look at some of the murals from this months MURAL festival in Montreal, which began in 2013.

There is no discernible theme among the collection here aside from many of them being technically outstanding. MURAL itself has become a very commercial gathering of food and lifestyle vendors, VIP events, a small art fair, hella-brands and djs and, you know, beards.

Klone Yourself and Phillipe Pantone are a couple of the artists pushing boundaries here, with the latter skillfully reproducing a 90’s computer art that is nostalgic and smartly updated in its 3-D rendering.

Our great thanks to photographer Daniel Esteban Rojas who did an outstanding job capturing these to share with BSA readers.

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Meggs for Mural Festival 2016. Montreal, Canada. (photo © Daniel Esteban Rojas)

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D*Face for Mural Festival 2016. Montreal, Canada. (photo © Daniel Esteban Rojas)

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Fonki for Mural Festival 2016. Montreal, Canada. (photo © Daniel Esteban Rojas)

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Natalia Rak for Mural Festival 2016. Montreal, Canada. (photo © Daniel Esteban Rojas)

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Mateo for Mural Festival 2016. Montreal, Canada. (photo © Daniel Esteban Rojas)

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Buff Monster for Mural Festival 2016. Montreal, Canada. (photo © Daniel Esteban Rojas)

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Jonathan Bergeron for Mural Festival 2016. Montreal, Canada. (photo © Daniel Esteban Rojas)

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Jonathan Bergeron for Mural Festival 2016. Montreal, Canada. (photo © Daniel Esteban Rojas)

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HSix for Mural Festival 2016. Montreal, Canada. (photo © Daniel Esteban Rojas)

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Five Eight for Mural Festival 2016. Montreal, Canada. (photo © Daniel Esteban Rojas)

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Acidum for Mural Festival 2016. Montreal, Canada. (photo © Daniel Esteban Rojas)

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Klone Yourself for Mural Festival 2016. Montreal, Canada. (photo © Daniel Esteban Rojas)

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Felipe Pantone for Mural Festival 2016. Montreal, Canada. (photo © Daniel Esteban Rojas)

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Roadsworth for Mural Festival 2016. Montreal, Canada. (photo © Daniel Esteban Rojas)

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Roadsworth for Mural Festival 2016. Montreal, Canada. (photo © Daniel Esteban Rojas)

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Miss Teri for Mural Festival 2016. Montreal, Canada. (photo © Daniel Esteban Rojas)

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XRay for Mural Festival 2016. Montreal, Canada. (photo © Daniel Esteban Rojas)

 

With our out most gratitude to Daniel Esteban Rojas for his exclusive documentation of the completed murals in Montreal.

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“The Art Of The Mural: Volume 01” Captures a Moment

“The Art Of The Mural: Volume 01” Captures a Moment

Murals hold their own place onstage in public space today for a variety of reasons that we discuss regularly on BSA. From grassroots and public, to private and corporate, we have watched the genre professionalize as Street Art festivals and other initiatives are often coupling artists with brands and are selling canvasses through the organizers galleries. Today we have the first of a promised four-part book series by Art Whino gallerist and organizer of the Richmond Mural Project in Virginia, Shane Pomajambo, that features many artists he has worked with in the brand new “The Art of the Mural”.

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Shane Pomajambo The Art of The Mural Volume 01 Foreword by Carlo McCormick. Schiffer Publishing. 2016

Featuring more than fifty current graffiti/Street Artists, the survey pays special attention to the show-stopping eye candy that commands attention for these nomadic painters who are developing their craft before an ever larger and more appreciative international audience.

Culture critic and curator Carlo McCormick, who writes the introduction to the Schiffer published hardcover, notes that this mural renaissance is quite unlike the US government funded New Deal era mural programs that produced “hundreds of thousands of murals for schools, hospitals, post offices, housing projects, and various government facilities”. And he’s right, these are emanating from a different place entirely.

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Antony Lister. Shane Pomajambo The Art of The Mural Volume 01 Foreword by Carlo McCormick. Schiffer Publishing. 2016

The world-traveling media-soaked artists, of which this collection is subset, have had vastly more exposure to corporations and branding perhaps than, say, arts institutions, and a sophisticated self-handling is often on display with artists ever more savvy in their choices of style and content.

A greater percentage are now entering into private collections, galleries, and museums thanks to unprecedented platforms for huge exposure on the Internet, and their public works are adding rich character and dialogue to our neighborhoods and public spaces.

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Curiot. Shane Pomajambo The Art of The Mural Volume 01 Foreword by Carlo McCormick. Schiffer Publishing. 2016

With academia, art critics, and auction houses all grappling with the rightful place of these artists in contemporary art and society at large it will be instructive to know the history and their lineage, content, context, and patronage. One has to agree when McCormick says that all of these “are helpful for us to consider in looking at and understanding the artists’ walls of today.”

This collection of talent is strong, with many of the mid-large names that are at play in this generation of painters whom are primarily born in the 1970s and 80s. In their work is a cultural appreciation for modern graffiti history as they now channel it along with formal training, art history, advertising, and a multitude of media. With few exceptions, it’s a tight list of artists, the images are riveting (though uncredited to their photographers), and the brief introductions by Pomajambo contain just enough biographical information and artist’ quotes to ground the story and give it context.

“As with everything I do,” says the Queens, New York native Pomajambo, “I always question and observe, and as we reach critical mass with murals I felt compelled to create this project and capture a moment in time.”

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Evoca 1. Shane Pomajambo The Art of The Mural Volume 01 Foreword by Carlo McCormick. Schiffer Publishing. 2016

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Fintan Magee. Shane Pomajambo The Art of The Mural Volume 01 Foreword by Carlo McCormick. Schiffer Publishing. 2016

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Miss Van. Shane Pomajambo The Art of The Mural Volume 01 Foreword by Carlo McCormick. Schiffer Publishing. 2016

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MOMO. Shane Pomajambo The Art of The Mural Volume 01 Foreword by Carlo McCormick. Schiffer Publishing. 2016

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Onur & Wes 21. Shane Pomajambo The Art of The Mural Volume 01 Foreword by Carlo McCormick. Schiffer Publishing. 2016

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Telmo & Miel. Shane Pomajambo The Art of The Mural Volume 01 Foreword by Carlo McCormick. Schiffer Publishing. 2016

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Tone (Robert Proch). Shane Pomajambo The Art of The Mural Volume 01 Foreword by Carlo McCormick. Schiffer Publishing. 2016

 

All photos of the spreads by Jaime Rojo

 

The Art of The Mural: Contemporary International Urban Art. Volume 01 by Shaen Pomajambo. Schiffer Publishing. Atglen, PA. USA.

Participating Artists
Amose, Arraiano, Augustine Kofie, Axel Void, Bezt (Etam Crew), Chazme 718, Chor boogie, Clog Two, Curiot, Cyrcle, DALeast, Decertor, Dface, ETNIK, Faith47, Fintan Magee, Hense, INTI, Jade, Jaz, JR, Kenor, Lister, Logan Hicks, Low Bros, Meggs, Miss Van, Momo, Mr Thoms, Muro, Natalia Rak, Nosego, Onur, Pener, Reka, Robert “Tone” Proch,Ron English, Rone, Sainer (Etam Crew), SATONE, SEACREATIVE, Sepe, Smithone, Sten Lex, Stormie Mills, Telmo Miel, Tristan Eaton, TWOONE HIROYASU, Vhils, Wes21 and Zed 1

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Oakland Murals from Zio Ziegler, Meggs, Ryan Montana and Ernest Doty

Oakland Murals from Zio Ziegler, Meggs, Ryan Montana and Ernest Doty

Athens seems like its on the brink of disaster but Athen B is having amazing success. With apologies for the lame name comparison today we bring you shots of new grand scale murals in Oakland done as part of the grand opening of Athen B Gallery with Zio Ziegler, Meggs, Ryan Montana and Ernest Doty.

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Zio Ziegler (photo © Brock Brake)

Ziegler’s 13 story mural actually was part of ceremonies marking the UN’s 70th Anniversary and a ribbon cutting with Mayor Libby Schaaff the President and CEO of the United Nations Foundation Kathy Calvin. This mural and the others are part of an initiative with VSCO Artist Initiative that Athen B. Gallery is curating in Oakland and upcoming artists will include Cannon Dill and Brett Flanigan.

Conratulations to Athen B’s three co-owners Brock Brake, Sorell Raino-Tsui, and Kriselle.

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Zio Ziegler (photo © Brock Brake)

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Zio Ziegler (photo © Brock Brake)

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Zio Ziegler (photo © Brock Brake)

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Meggs (photo © Brock Brake)

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Meggs (photo © Brock Brake)

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Meggs (photo © Brock Brake)

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Meggs (photo © Brock Brake)

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Meggs (photo © Brock Brake)

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Ryan Montoya . Ernest Doty (photo © Brock Brake)

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Ryan Montoya . Ernest Doty (photo © Brock Brake)

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Ryan Montoya . Ernest Doty (photo © Brock Brake)

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Ryan Montoya . Ernest Doty (photo © Brock Brake)

 

Click HERE for more details, hours of operations and exhibitions regarding Athen B Gallery

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Art Basel Special – Miami 2014 Murals

Art Basel Special – Miami 2014 Murals

Art Basel has wound up another successful year in Miami and artists, dealers, buyers and sun seekers have departed. In their wake the streets of Wynwood have sustained yet one more onslaught of murals from an international mix of graffiti writers, street artists, and large format illustrators as the Street Art scene’s thick syrup of spontaneity hardens into a slick shell of commercial opportunity. The average working person with two jobs (or no job) may not have noticed that there is a fabulous boom in this economy for some, and the bubbly is flowing all around fairs like this, out into the streets, into the galleries, receptions, cocktails, and celebrity DJ appearances. While it lasts Brock Brake takes BSA readers through the brand sponsored cloud of opportunity and keeps the focus on what made Street Art interesting to begin with; the artists and their work. We think you’ll dig his photos and for the first time here, an essay in his words:
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Swoon (photo © Brock Brake)

By Brock Brake

Miami’s Art Basel might be the world’s largest summer camp for artists. Every year, artists, galleries and enthusiasts from around the world come together in one place to paint, party and socialize. With a never ending list of desired activities and events during the week, it’s impossible to see and do it all.  And many of the artists whose work towers on the walls of Miami’s Wynwood neighborhood have been there a week or so longer than anyone.

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Evoca1 (photo © Brock Brake)

You know you’ve made it to the right neighborhood coming from the airport when all you see from the highway are large murals and roadside graffiti…and you’re most likely stuck in traffic.

Every single street in Wynwood was filled with artists from various parts of the world who all share one goal: to create.  Artist like Meggs, Word To Mother, Hush, Spencer Keeton Cunningham, Lauren Napolitano, Aaron Glasson, Pose, Cleon Peterson, Ron English, Rone, Swoon and many others were all present and active.

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Evoca1 (photo © Brock Brake)

It was hard not to get distracted by all of their process while walking from event to event.  I spent a total of three full days in Wynwood documenting, visiting some walls more than once.  It’s impossible to see it all.

When the fairs close around 7pm, the streets of Wynwood and South Beach explode.  There are live painting events like Basel Castle and Secret Walls, pop up galleries, live concerts by hotel pools and, of course, The Deuce; South Beach’s best dive bar beehive of visiting artists.

I’m grateful for my annual “camp” reunion trips to Miami.  Reconnecting with old friends you haven’t seen in years while making plenty of new ones.  It’s fun to see that as the years go by, everyone is just as much a kid as you remember them. You see the same friend throughout the week wearing the same shirt for four days covered in paint, with no shower or sleep. All of these artists work very hard to do what they do and that’s why I do what I do.

Until next year – BB

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Shout (photo © Brock Brake)

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Cleon Peterson in collaboration with Shepard Fairey. (photo © Brock Brake)

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Rone in action. (photo © Brock Brake)

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Rone (photo © Brock Brake)

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Bicicleta Sem Freio (photo © Brock Brake)

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Aaron Glasson (photo © Brock Brake)

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Lauren YS in action. (photo © Brock Brake)

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Lauren YS (photo © Brock Brake)

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Tatiana Suarez (photo © Brock Brake)

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D*Face in action. (photo © Brock Brake)

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D*Face (photo © Brock Brake)

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Nychos (photo © Brock Brake)

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Nychos (photo © Brock Brake)

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Nychos (photo © Brock Brake)

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Hush in action. (photo © Brock Brake)

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Hush (photo © Brock Brake)

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Space Invader (photo © Brock Brake)

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Ckue and Soduh (photo © Brock Brake)

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Aaron Kai in action. (photo © Brock Brake)

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Aaron Kai (photo © Brock Brake)

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Meggs in action. (photo © Brock Brake)

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Meggs (photo © Brock Brake)

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Soduh (photo © Brock Brake)

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Word To Mother. Detail of a wall in progress. (photo © Brock Brake)

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Word To Mother (photo © Brock Brake)

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Pose and Revok (photo © Brock Brake)

 

 

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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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BSA Film Friday 03.28.14

BSA Film Friday 03.28.14

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Our weekly focus on the moving image and art in the streets. And other oddities.

Now screening :

1. RONE. MADSTEEZ . MEGGS From Tost Films
2. Faith 47 “You Hold no Blame for my Proud Heart”.
3. Borondo “Looking For”
4. Papelero Lamolisha
5. This is a Generic Brand Video

BSA Special Feature: RONE . MADSTEEZ . MEGGS

RONE . MADSTEEZ . MEGGS From Tost Films

Faith 47 “You Hold no Blame for my Proud Heart”.

Cape Town, South Africa. 2014

 

Borondo “Looking For”

Megasingi in Luxembourg

 

Papelero . Lamolisha

This is a Generic Brand Video

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Martha Picks Some Hits from Pow! Wow! Hawaii (Part I)

Martha Picks Some Hits from Pow! Wow! Hawaii (Part I)

Photographer Martha Cooper just returned to New York from Hawaiian paradise and the 5th Pow! Wow! Festival, which this year featured an unprecedented number of artist that some estimate at 100.

Naturally with a herd that big, you’d have to be a regular cattle hand with a camera to capture all of the action, but the fast moving Cooper collected a number of images that we can share here with BSA readers over the next couple of days, along with her notes on the experience.

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Gaia’s portraits of Queen Lili’uokalini and King Kalakaua. Solomon Enos and Prime collaborated on the rest of the wall. (photo © Martha Cooper)

Kaka’ako is the name of the neighborhood where most of the murals are located and Ms. Cooper compares it to the Miami site that also has hosted a large number of legal walls for the last few years. “It’s a Wynwood-type neighborhood but with a longer, more esteemed history,” she says, and “Like Wynwood it’s slated for development.” For example a library that many of the local Hawaiian artists painted will soon be torn down to make space for condos. Good thing Street Artist Gaia and Vhils were  there to bring some of the local historical and mythological elements, including portraits of Hawaiian royalty.

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VHILS portrait of King Lunalilo. (photo © Martha Cooper)

An interesting aspect of this event, and there were many, was the pairing of many artists on walls to combine and merge  their styles to create new works. “There were a surprising number of unusual collaborations at Pow! Wow!,” says Martha. “Some were odd mashups like Tatiana Suarez and Woes, and Buff Monster and Nychos seemed like a good match. I think it must have been challenging for the artists. Cope & Indie also asked Buff Monster and 123Klan to collaborate on their wall.”

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Tatiana (photo © Martha Cooper)

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Tatiana and Woes collaboration. (photo © Martha Cooper)

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Cope2 and Indi184 with Buff Monster and 123Klan. (photo © Martha Cooper)

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Cope2 and Indi184 getting a few pointers from daughters Samara and Samira (photo © Martha Cooper)

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Cope2 and Indi184 (photo © Martha Cooper)

Another trend this year: Elvis. “Elvis is big in Hawaii,” Martha remarks, and she says it is because of his celluloid records in addition to his vinyl ones. “He made three movies in Hawaii,” and she mentions the Elvis mask that Wayne White made as a good example of Presley magic on the tropical island of Honolulu. “I especially liked the way Madsteez incorporated existing graffiti into his wall because he made good use of the corrugated iron surface which was difficult to paint on but it had a nice patina when finished.” Interestingly, Madsteez gave his blue Elvis an eye patch that mimics the artist’s own worldview.

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Madsteez (photo © Martha Cooper)

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INSA and Roid (photo © Martha Cooper)

Insa is one of the first GIFFITTI artists – and his wall with ROID for Pow! Wow” recalls the typography and graphic style of commercial 1980s TV shows like Miami Vice and the New Wave as interpreted by MTV. The resulting GIF is a funny simple animation that somehow brings the nostalgia alive.  Looks like paradise from here!

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INSA and Roid (photo © Martha Cooper)

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Seth working on his wall on the left.  ZesMSK, Askew and Reyes wall on the right. (photo © Martha Cooper)

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Katch (photo © Martha Cooper)

Katch did a lil’ animation to go with his wall also, which you can see HERE.

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Katch (photo © Martha Cooper)

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Meggs and Bask collaboration. (photo © Martha Cooper)

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Yoshi and Estria collaboration. (photo © Martha Cooper)

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Buff Monster and Nychos collaboration. (photo © Martha Cooper)

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Andrew Shoultz (photo © Martha Cooper)

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Kawaisan and Maozhidong collaboration and commentary on the Honolulu traffic. (photo © Martha Cooper)

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Meanshaka (photo © Martha Cooper)

 

 

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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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BSA Film Friday: 12.06.13

BSA Film Friday: 12.06.13

Broken-Fingaz-BSA-Screen-Shot-2013-12-05-at-11.18

 

Our weekly focus on the moving image and art in the streets. And other oddities.

Now screening :

1. BROKEN FINGAZ “La Fabrica”
2. Half Way To Nowhere with Risk, Insa, Meggs, Echo and Steve Martinez
3. RONE Paints a Baby Grand in Miami for Basel 2013

BSA Special Feature: BROKEN FINGAZ “La Fabrica”

Just released, this is a stop animation by Broken Fingaz and a small crew in Mexico – that drips with green goo that overflows and slimes down the sides of barrels, walls, pipes, and out of holes. A well done adventure in a former factory, some have compared it to a famous aerosol stop action by the Italian Blu a few years ago, but this has its own distinctive personality and a stunner of an ending.

Half Way To Nowhere with Risk, Insa, Meggs, Echo and Steve Martinez

Birdman continues to shoot photos and has this week entered storytelling with this video of a handful of artists on a hike through modern ruins, spending the day in an abandoned water park outside Los Angeles. Dry heat like this has turned many a town into a dustbowl in the west, and when you add 100 degree farenheit and scantily clad painters to a day of aerosol fumes you experience a certain delirium.

RONE Paints a Baby Grand in Miami for Basel 2013

Hop on the SPRAY CAM to watch RONE paint one of his signature beauties for an event called Pop-Up Piano Miami.

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Street Art in Honolulu as Pow! Wow! Hawaii Enters Fifth Year

Street Art in Honolulu as Pow! Wow! Hawaii Enters Fifth Year

Before the year wraps we wanted to take a look at images from Pow! Wow! Hawaii as it enters its fifth year with a collection of images recently captured in Honolulu where it happens.

Begun by founder Jasper Wong in Hong Kong, Pow! Wow! Hawaii is a non-profit gathering in his hometown that he co-produces with another artist named Kamea Hadar. In a promo video for the festival Wong says that the festival is about “beautifying a neighborhood, changing a neighborhood through art”.

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Rone and Wonder spell it out in their largest collaboration to date. (photo © Yoav Litvin)

A criticism of street art festivals often leveled has been that the stars of the international circuit overpower the local tastes or are somehow insensitive to them, and the hip doesn’t always respect the homegrown.

Pow! Wow! Hawaii steadily avoids that criticism by including local community throughout open participatory events and it makes sure to include artists who work with traditional motifs and values in their pieces, bringing indigenous cultures into the mix in a meaningful way.

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Woes, Meggs, Peap, Tarr, Mr. Jago and Will Barras (photo © Yoav Litvin)

Since the rich pop colors of the modern age are also the visual lengua materna for these Street Artists and graffiti artists, it is common to see figures and patterns from the past updated with punch. The waterside commercial neighborhood along the southern shores of the island of Oʻahu is called Kaka’ako and the name itself has inspired some of the artists to include it in their pieces.

Recently photographer Yoav Litvin took a trip to the neighborhood where Pow! Wow! takes place and we bring you some of the images from Honolulu to get a taste the work that has been left there by an estimated 100 artists since 2010.

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Faith 47 (photo © Yoav Litvin)

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Askew pays tribute to the Tuhoe Iwi and references the time of the Treaty of Waitangi (photo © Yoav Litvin)

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Nychos and Jeff Soto (photo © Yoav Litvin)

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Scribe (photo © Yoav Litvin)

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Roids and Madsteez punch up the color when paying tribute to King Kalakua. (photo © Yoav Litvin)

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Dal East (photo © Yoav Litvin)

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Ekundayo (photo © Yoav Litvin)

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Kamea Hadar and Rone (photo © Yoav Litvin)

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Eddie Colla (photo © Yoav Litvin)

From the website:

“Centered around a week-long event in Hawaii, POW! WOW! has grown into a global network of artists and organizes gallery shows, lecture series, schools for art and music, mural projects, a large creative space named Lana Lane Studios, concerts, and live art installations across the globe. The central event takes place during Valentine’s Day week in February in the Kaka’ako district of Honolulu, and brings over a hundred international and local artist together to create murals and other forms of art.”

For more about Pow! Wow! Hawaii click 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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Meggs “Beauty In Tragedy” in the Tenderloin in San Francisco

Meggs “Beauty In Tragedy” in the Tenderloin in San Francisco

Meggs was in San Francisco last month bringing his inner demons to a rolldown gait in the Haight – okay – actually it’s the Tenderloin but that didn’t rhyme.

The Australian Street Artist favors forms of duality, questioning our true nature, and sometimes arriving at a riotous indictment of it through a splashing fantasy superhero treatment in blood, sweat and myth. Saying that this one entitled “Beauty in Tragedy” is for his TL familia, Meggs  lines are a bit more distinct and defined as if influenced by West Coast tattoo culture; he even chooses a few iconic motifs which are inked across thousands of bodies across this great land – the skull and the rose.

Our special thanks to Brock Brake for sharing these images of Meggs at work with la BSA familia.

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Meggs (photo © Brock Brake)

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Meggs (photo © Brock Brake)

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Meggs (photo © Brock Brake)

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Meggs (photo © Brock Brake)

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Meggs (photo © Brock Brake)

 

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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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BSA Film Friday: 09.20.13

BSA Film Friday: 09.20.13

Brooklyn-Street-Art-copyright-EC13-El-Niño-De-Las-Pinturas-Spidertag-Sept13

 

Our weekly focus on the moving image and art in the streets. And other oddities.

Now screening: La Catedral Futumétrica with EC13 + El Niño De Las Pinturas + SpidertagMeggs and FareShare in Australia, and Five More Minutes with C215.

BSA Special Feature: La Catedral Futumétrica
with EC13 + El Niño De Las Pinturas + Spidertag

This week you get to take part in the exploration and re-creation that will inspire you to take another look around the very environment you are sitting in right now. Graffiti/Street Art/fine artists EC13, El Niño de las Pinturas and Spidertag bring you with them, with Spidertag as director Maldito Dwarfi behind the camera, into a sacred space. The Spanish relic of a building is now christened a cathedral, and they backpack into the space to lay out their art materials onto the mottled concrete floor, arranging and rearranging before choosing their locations in this holy place, a gallery for modern abstraction and do it yourself set design.

With nails, tiles, caulking, aerosol, thick yarn, and tape, the two set about occupying space, defining space, tracing and framing and revealing invisible lines and physical relationships – even evoking spirits and memories, if not memorials. Breezes and sunlight wander by, as do flies, nesting birds, and a couple of goat kids. When they are finished, you are invited in for a drink and a melody and meditation. Loosely enclosed by these walls made by hands that resolutely stand while windows and doors and roof go missing, the work of the artists may cause you to re-see and re-define every line you observe as you return to your world.

 

Australian Artist Meggs teams up with FareShare

Five More Minutes with C215

A portrait of the street portraitist by Estelle Beauvais.

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Thinkspace Gallery and Gallery 309 Present: LAX/PHL A group Exhibition. (Philadelphia, PA)

‘LAX / PHL’
Thinkspace invades Philadelphia

Opening Reception(s):
Sat, May 11th 6-10PM and Fri, June 7th 6-10PM

Exhibit will run May 11th through June 21st

Taking place at:
Gallery 309
309 Cherry Street in the Olde City area
Philadelphia, PA
www.gallery309.com

Los Angeles based gallery Thinkspace has teamed up with Gallery 309 in Philadelphia, PA to present ‘LAX / PHL’. This special group exhibition has been curated by Thinkspace to further introduce our roster to the City of Brotherly Love. Featuring new works from over 40 artists from around the world and an installation from Philly’s very own NoseGo, the exhibition will run from May 11th through June 21st with opening receptions scheduled for Saturday, May 11th (6-10PM) and Friday, June 21st (6-10PM).

With this special exhibit we aim to shed light on the burgeoning New Contemporary Art Movement that was birthed in Los Angeles and continues to spread out the world over, gaining momentum and winning over new devotees at an astounding rate. With roots firmly planted in illustration, pop culture imagery, comics, street art and graffiti, put quite simply the New Contemporary Art Movement is art for the people. Come discover your new favorite artist and find out why Thinkspace is regarded as one of the torch bearers of the New Contemporary Art Movement.

Featuring an installation from NoseGo and new works from:
Aaron Nagel
Adam Caldwell
Allison Sommers
Ana Bagayan
Antony Clarkson
Brett Amory
Catherine Brooks
Craig ‘Skibs’ Barker
Curiot
Dabs Myla
David Cooley
Dave MacDowell
Derek Gores
Drew Young
Elliot Brown
Erica Rose Levine
Erik Siador
Esao Andrews
Gaia
Ghostpatrol
Hans Haveron
Jacub Gagnon
Jason Thielke
Jeremy Hush
Jonathan Wayshak
Joram Roukes
Karla Ortiz
Kelly Vivanco
Kevin Peterson
Kikyz 1313
La Pandilla
Linnea Strid
Liz Brizzi
Mari Inukai
Mary Iverson
Meggs
Michael Ramstead
NoseGo
Paul Romano
Pixel Pancho
Rod Luff
Sarah Joncas
Seamus Conley
Seth Armstrong
Shark Toof
Stella Im Hultberg
Stephanie Buer
Timothy Karpinski
Tony Philippou
Yosuke Ueno

http://thinkspacegallery.com/shows/2013-05-lax-phl/

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