All posts tagged: Muebon

BSA Images Of The Week: 03.10.24

BSA Images Of The Week: 03.10.24

Welcome to BSA Images of the Week! Set your clocks forward an hour!

Guess you can’t bite a graffiti artist and expect to make bank – without getting bitten. This new Nekst campaign on the Manhattan streets appears to have Claudia Schiffer and Anna Nicole Smith putting their best face forward, aside from the streams of wrinkles caused by the wet wheat paste. Time is a cruel mistress, even as our nostalgic memories of the 90s are suddenly aflame when seeing these large-scale posters and images on the catwalk named New York.

This takes the fashion labels’ accused theft of Nekst’s tag to a new level – and back to the street, where the best fashion houses traditionally find creative inspiration. The deceased graffiti writer was bold in his command of high-profile spots, and his output was profligate, giving him a reputation that current writers still pay homage to a decade after his passing. With the fashion label Guess, Inc. publicly traded, one wonders if this restyling of their brand in a fashion capital will hit them in the ticker, especially when it appears they directly ripped their style from a self-made artist/vandal and took it to the cash register.

This act highlights the ongoing debate about the street’s raw, authentic creativity and the fashion industry’s appropriation tactics. The situation questions the consequences for a major brand like Guess, primarily when the originality in question stems from the underground art world.

As Daniel Cassady from ARTNEWS and Deborah Belgum from WWD illuminate, the recent uproar in the street art/graffiti community is not merely about the misuse of street credibility but a deeper infringement on street artists’ intellectual and cultural property. Cassady discusses the blatant replication of Nekst’s signature by Guess, bringing to the forefront the fashion industry’s recurrent pilferage from street art’s raw, unfiltered energy without due homage or consent. Meanwhile, Belgum adds a familial and emotional layer, highlighting the distress caused to Nekst’s family by the unauthorized commercialization of his legacy, an act they describe as “horrifying.”

In a city where the lines of art, fashion, and identity blur, these incidents prompt us to question the ethics of inspiration versus theft. As we showcase these charged visuals, we invite our readers to ponder the fine line between tribute and exploitation in the ever-evolving narrative of street art. This is not merely about images on a wall or polished cotton; it’s a testament to the indelible impact of artists like Nekst on the fabric of urban culture and the complexities of their posthumous relationships with the commercial world.

Read more about this fight by clicking these links:
ArtNews, WWD, Hyperallergic

And please enjoy images from our ongoing conversation with the street, this week featuring Stikman, Captain Eyeliner, Bunny M, Homesick, Solus, Nekst, Muebon, Dirt Cobain, Jappy Agoncillo, Outer Source, Samo©, Isabelle Ewing, Lady JDay, John Draw Volta, Toy, Girls Just Wanna Have Funds, Butterfly Mush, and Ash Saint.

NEKST (photo © Jaime Rojo)
NEKST (photo © Jaime Rojo)
NEKST (photo © Jaime Rojo)
A Guess t-shirt featuring what appear to be tags by graffiti writer Nekst for sale on www.iqueens.com (©iqueens)
Ash Saint (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Ash Saint (photo © Jaime Rojo)
JhonDrawVolta rocks the street with boundless imagination. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stikman (photo © Jaime Rojo)
bunny M (photo © Jaime Rojo)
bunny M (photo © Jaime Rojo)
bunny M (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Solus (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Isabelle Ewing. Girls Just Wanna Have Funds. Butterfly Mush. Lady Jday. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
HOMESICK (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Jappy Agoncillo (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Samo© (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Captain Eyeliner (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Captain Eyeliner (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Dirt Cobain. Outer Source. Muebon. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
TOY (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Untitled. SOHO, NYC. March 2024. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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BSA Images Of The Week: 01.21.24

BSA Images Of The Week: 01.21.24

“Art is not a mirror held up to reality, but a hammer with which to shape it.”

– Bertolt Brecht


Welcome to BSA Images of the Week!

Our current reality appears quite bent, and maybe art has the power to straighten it out, but you won’t see a lot of political stuff on the streets right now ironically. Here and there, yes, but as the US stirs the embers of resentment into a third world war in the Middle East that will possibly metastasize with other warring regions, it appears that we collectively look again at our belly buttons.

Brooklyn is booming with some fresh work this week, with a winter snowstorm that left us with a white blanket to augment the freshest street art and graffiti. This week, Barcelona’s KRAM shows up in BK with their eclectic styles interplaying. Sice is nice, QUAZAR climbs up, and Toney crosses, and Parisian/Londoner/Brooklyn-based Oscar Nett is hyperrealistic and geometrically dramatic, giving us some Li-Hill vibes, no?

Here is our weekly interview with the street: this week featuring Obey, Cost, Jason Naylor, Degrupo, Optimo NYC, Kram, Hek Tad, Muebon, Slomo, Oscar Lett, Konozco, Toney, Mishka Bobisha, Rack, Klash, QUAZAR, Trip, Sice.

Muebon (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Slomo. Kram. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Slomo. Kram. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Slomo. Kram. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Optimo NYC (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Sice (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Konozco (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Jason Naylor (photo © Jaime Rojo)
TRIP (photo © Jaime Rojo)
QUAZAR. DARE2. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Hek Tad. Cost. Obey. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Degrupo. Rack. Klash. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentifed artist. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Mishka Bobishka (photo © Jaime Rojo)
TONEY (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Oscar Lett (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Oscar Lett (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Oscar Lett (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Oscar Lett (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Untitled. Winter 2024. Brooklyn, NY. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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BSA Images Of The Week: 12.03.23

BSA Images Of The Week: 12.03.23

Welcome to BSA Images of the Week!

The war rages again in Gaza, and the street art in New York reflects the cultural response with more pieces every week. New York’s Fifth Avenue will be closed on three Sundays this month to allow more foot traffic to enjoy the holidays and avert car deaths now that the tree and skating rink are open at Rockefeller Center. Our esteemed New York politicians keep doing us proud this week, with George Santos getting expelled from Congress, and Trump being forced to face criminal charges like everyone else. We say goodbye to the first female Supreme Court Judge Sandra O’Connor, and to a person whom most of the world’s press contend was one of the biggest international war criminals responsible for millions of deaths, Henry Kissinger. Remarkable for some that Jimmy Carter outlived him.

Here is our weekly interview with the street: this week featuring Optimo NYC, Kram, Gats, Eternal Possessions, Muebon, El Hase, Stay Busy, Words on the Street, Alex Itin, Madison Storm, Jocelyn Tsajh, Homer, Siomo, Clams, Celeb, and Under Control.

Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Gats (photo © Jaime Rojo)
CLAMS, CELEB, OPTIMO NYC, and a vintage GATS. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Madison Storm (photo © Jaime Rojo)
KRAM – SLOMO (photo © Jaime Rojo)
KRAM – SLOMO (photo © Jaime Rojo)
KRAM – SLOMO (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Under Control? (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Words on The Street – Alex Itin (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Words on The Street – Alex Itin (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Jocelyn Tsaih with East Village Walls. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
El Hase (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stay Busy (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Texting death mouse. Muebon (photo © Jaime Rojo)
HOMER (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Eternal Possessions channels an Elizabethan Cher as she (lip)sang her new single at this weeks Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting “DJ Play a Christmas Song.” (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Yasss Queen. Eternal Possessions (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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BSA Images Of The Week: 11.26.23

BSA Images Of The Week: 11.26.23

Welcome to BSA Images of the Week!

How are feeling? Did you have a good Thanksgiving day, and did you see the crowds and balloons and marching bands along the parade route and the still intact orange and yellow leaves on the trees on Central Park West? Did you see Dolly Parton dressed as a Dallas Cowboy cheerleader singing at the halftime game, and did you see your girl Ava from up the block with her vintage vest and platform boots when grandma sent you out for a can of whipped cream for the pumpkin pies?

“Have you kept pace with the latest revelation in the art world? A remarkable BBC interview with Banksy, dating back two decades, has recently surfaced, sparking renewed excitement. These are indeed vibrant times for art enthusiasts and creators alike. Take, for instance, the Brooklyn Museum’s current showcase. It features an engaging Spike Lee exhibition alongside the innovative ‘Copy Machine Manifesto.’ This zine exhibition is a deep dive into five or six decades of subcultural and counter-cultural movements. It highlights a diverse range of self-published works, including gossip magazines, graffiti newspapers (a nod to David Schmidlapp and Phase 2), and expressions from queercore to hardcore. The exhibit is an eclectic mix of self-aware conceptual art, original fashion, explorations of sexual desire and confusion, comix, handmade collage, and expressions of nihilism, ennui, satire, humor, and lamentation. It’s a vivid reflection of art and expression – and inspirational to any artist who wants to have a voice.

We’re going back for a second helping.

Here is our weekly interview with the street: this week featuring Stikman, Cosbe, Below Key, No Sleep, Huetek, Optimo NYC, Jay Shells, Tatyana Fazlalizadeh, OH!, Muebon, Humble, Jappy Agoncillo, Jeff Roseking, Hu, Manual Alejando, Deter, Jason Shelowitz, and KIR.

Jappy Agoncillo (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Optimo NYC (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stikman. Detail from the exhibition at Skewville Presents. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Cosbe (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Muebon (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Below Key and Muebon (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Below Key and Muebon (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Below Key and Muebon. Detail. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Below Key (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Jeff Roseking (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Any job is possible if you have the right kicks. KIR (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Old dogs like those old stogies. Manuel Alejandro (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Humble (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Poems (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Deter (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Huetek (photo © Jaime Rojo)
OH! (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Jason Shelowitz AKA Jay Shells at “Spike Lee: Creative Sources” exhibition currently on view at the Brooklyn Museum. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
A painting of his father, Bill Lee, by Tatyana Fazlalizadeh at “Spike Lee: Creative Sources” exhibition is currently on view at the Brooklyn Museum. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Tatyana Fazlalizadeh. Detail. At “Spike Lee: Creative Sources” exhibition currently on view at the Brooklyn Museum. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Untitled. Street Color on the sidewalks of NYC. Fall 2023. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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BSA Images Of The Week: 10.15.23

BSA Images Of The Week: 10.15.23

Welcome to BSA Images of the Week!

With 700 languages spoken in these five boroughs, New York is a nerve center with a vast network of connections to the rest of the world. So, if you are feeling it, we’re probably feeling it too. This week, the Middle East conflict, more radioactive than ever, it would seem, is sending people into the streets in Manhattan and Brooklyn – with heightened emotions stoked by a media machine that loves to see us fight. Now, as we see continued bombings by Isreal outside of their country, as surrounding countries begin banging their war drums, and as the US sits in the sea nearby, more than one commentator on the news and in your local deli, laundromat, bookstore or bar are wondering aloud if a hot war can spread across the region, or further.

Closer to home, we see that street art has not reflected the events directly, but somehow, the anxiety that has been raised will be invariably internalized and aerosolized. We’ll keep an eye out for the messages and sentiments, which are far from unanimous.

Here is our weekly interview with the street: this week featuring Shepard Fairey, Mike Makatron, A Lucky Rabbit, Phetus88, Muebon, Ideal, Jurse, Skitl, Thobekk, Go4art, Polar Bear, Mr. ENT, ICU463, and Where’s the Water.

Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Skitl (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Thobekk (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Shepard Fairey. Detail. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
A brand new one from Shepard Fairey and his team pays tribute to the Beastie Boys. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Go4tart (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Phetus88 (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Ideal (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentied artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Captain Eyeliner (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Polar Bear (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Muebon (photo © Jaime Rojo)
MR ENT (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Mike Makatron (photo © Jaime Rojo)
A Lucky Rabbit. Detail. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
A Lucky Rabbit (photo © Jaime Rojo)
ICU463 (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Wheres The Water (photo © Jaime Rojo)
KURSE (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Untitled. Flekkefjord, Norway. August 2023. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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BSA Images Of The Week: 11.03.19

BSA Images Of The Week: 11.03.19

Happy New York Marathon! Turn your clocks back an hour! Also, protest against police brutality against black and brown youth on the subway! The latter is really disheartening for us all to see – and young people of all colors were fighting back this weekend in protest.

Here’s our weekly interview with the street, this time featuring Abe Lincoln Jr., Adam Fujita, Alexcia Panay, Anthony Lister, Below Key, BK Foxx, Bobby Hundreds, Downer Jones, Dragon Art, Hops Art, Maia Lorian, Mastro NYC, Muebon, Pricey Alex, Shiro, Sinclair the Vandal, VKrone, and Want.

Top banner Maia Lorian and Abe Lincoln Jr. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

BK Foxx portrait of Nipsey Hussle, the American Rapper, artist, activist assassinated in March 2019 in Los Angeles, CA. Ms. Foxx used a photo by Bobby Hundreds as a reference for her painting. For JMZ Walls. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Adam Fu (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Abe Lincoln Jr. & Maia Lorian A Presidential Parody Project. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Abe Lincoln Jr. & Maia Lorian A Presidential Parody Project. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist portrait of the real Abe Lincoln and the model for what a real leader AND real president should be. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Lister (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Want . Hound . Pear (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Imidiana Garcia & Alexcia Panay (photo © Jaime Rojo)
VKRone (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Shiro for JMZ Walls. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Hops Art (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Below Key for JMZ Walls. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Sinclair The Vandal (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Pricey Alex . Downer Jones . Mastro NYC (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Pricey Alex . Downer Jones . Mastro NYC (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Muebon for JMZ Walls. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
CNO PCU SBP ROC ARI16 JADA (photo © Jaime Rojo)
DRAGON (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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BSA Images Of The Week: 10.06.19

BSA Images Of The Week: 10.06.19

Welcome to BSA Images of the Week! Welcome to October – the time when the leaves turn yellow and orange and when your local pharmacy is selling Halloween candy and Christmas decorations because why the hell not? We’ve got The Actual Joker in the White House ready to shred all pretense of civility and rule of law before a terrified nation, not that he was holding that down at all.

Makes us think of the sentiment of this new Street Art piece below by Sara Lynne-Leo. “Why are you still holding on?”

But we know the answer — Because the grand finale of this burning dumpster fire will be huge! – friggin’ ratings will be off the charts for this one, dawg. Plus the Demopublicans have already lined up the Warren White House so we know what’s coming on TV next on DNC.

** chomps popcorn, smacks lips

Here’s our weekly interview with the street, this time featuring DAK, Dede Bandaid, Dee Dee, Demure, Dirk, Don Rimx, Insurgo, Invader, Jeff Henriquez, Jona, Muebon, Neckface, Nite Owl, Nitzan Mintz, No Sleep, Panda Bear, Salami Doggy, Sara Lynne Leo, Seemerch, Unify Art, and WK Interact.

Sara Lynne-Leo for East Village Walls. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
No Sleep (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Jeff Henriquez (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Dee Dee (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Sinclair (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Demure…speaking about The Joker…this one is even more frightening than the one currently spooking audiences at the cineplex… (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Demure (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Demure (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Dak Was Here…look closer… (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unify Art for East Village Walls. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Neckface (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Invader (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Nite Owl (photo © Jaime Rojo) (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Don Rimx (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Insurgo . Dirk (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Muebon for East Village Walls. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Panda Bear (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Salami Doggy (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Jona. There’s so much to decipher here. The cosmonaut with all the symbols and the shout outs… (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Matzu’s piece has been tagged…this one didn’t ride long unperturbed… (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Seemerch for The Bushwick Collective. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Dede Bandaid with Nitzan Mintz (photo © Jaime Rojo)
WK Interact for (RED). (photo © Jaime Rojo)
WK Interact for (RED). (photo © Jaime Rojo)
WK Interact for (RED). (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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BSA Images Of The Week: 08.25.19

BSA Images Of The Week: 08.25.19

The Amazon Forest – which furnishes 6% of our oxygen is being burned – an unthinkable event in human history. Evidence points to arson – incidences are up 80% over last year. Darkness now falls hours before the sun sets in São Paulo, and G7 leaders are set to hold emergency talks over the wildfires crisis. Events like these threaten to push us into a domino effect of environmental disaster.

In related news, New Yorker David Koch died, a billionaire by inheritance, a key funder of climate change denial who used millions to sway the laws and to set the world on fire while usurping your voice. The Kochs were just on Hasan Minaj 5 days ago! – go to 10:20 on this video

Thankfully, NYC is still gorgeous and hot and steamy and sticky this week – and so is a lot of the Street Art.

Here’s our weekly interview with the street, this time featuring Adrian Wilson, Antennae, ASVP, Dee Dee, Giulio Vesprini, Jazz Guetta, Kyro, Maria Qamar, Muebon, NDA, Never Satisfied, Nevs, Nitzan Mintz, OverUnder, Sonny Sundancer, Subway Doodle, UFO 907, and Vexx

Sonny Sundancer (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Vexx for The Bushwick Collective (photo © Jaime Rojo)
V Ballentine for JMZ Walls (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Dee Dee (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Giulio Vesprini (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Giulio Vesprini (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Adrian Wilson. This was originally painted last Thanksgiving to protest Black Friday consumerism and Amazon’s draconian labor practices. Still resonates today. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Antennae (photo © Jaime Rojo)
“The dream fills the room and there isn’t enough oxygen for both of us. I try not to move and not to breath.” Dude, get out. Nitzan Mintz (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Never Satified (photo © Jaime Rojo)
A tribute to writer Kyro by DG and NOA (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Maria Qamar (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Muebon (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Subway Doodle (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Vintage Overunder and ND’A in NYC (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Jazz Guetta (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
ASVP (photo © Jaime Rojo)
UFO 907 (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Untitled. Summer 2019. NYC (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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