NYC

Chicken Plus Ham! A consummate smart-aleck couple on the street

Low Brow?  Below the Belt?

This posting has been re-written three times, with varying degrees of delight and disgust.  You try to go for the double-entendre, but you are talking about the animal kingdom, and that just sounds too close to bestiality for comfort.

Which is one of the icky points about this recent call and response on the street – and what makes it so HIGH-LARIOUS to 12 year olds and degenerates and, truth be told, me.

First it was DickChicken, a simple stencil of a phallus-like shape extended from the top of a featherless chicken corpse, like the ones people buy on styrofoam rectangles wrapped in cello.  It started popping up everywhere recently. Then last week I saw the answer to Dick-Chicken and nearly collapsed in front of a delivery truck.

Yes, that's right (photo Steven P. Harrington)
Yes, that’s right (photo Steven P. Harrington)

Honeyed we presume (photo Steven P. Harrington)
Honeyed we presume (photo Steven P. Harrington)

Will this spawn more clever responses?  Already we spotted a script that said “Phallus Poultry” Saturday night, but that didn’t have the same sauce as it’s common cousin. (sorry!)

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“Brooklyn Bailout Burlesque” at Factory Fresh

Brooklyn Bailout Burlesque

Featuring

Jon Burgerman (UK)


Jim Avignon (Germany)


Roman de Milk & Wodka (Switzerland)


Ema (France)


Asuka Ohsawa (Japan)


Daniel Dueck (Brooklyn)


Christine Young
(Brooklyn)

Friday, August 14th 7-10pm
Show runs till August 30th, 2009

The art world, global companies, complex societies and every
small individual all have one problem in common: how to deal with
the crisis. When money goes wrong nothing goes right.
Many in
the high society of art dreamt the dream of instant
success and
big overnight money, but the awakening was rough and
most of
the ambitious collectors had gone with the wind.
So how can one
stay in a market that barely exists in
this time, where money
displays a rather strange behaviour.

Jim Avignon, Brooklyn-Berlin based artist, musician and
hopeless
bohemian curated a show with 7 young artists
from Brooklyn and
Europe,which might have some answers for
you. They throw their
skills together and create a
panorama, where strange and funny
characters inhabit a
peculiar zone somewhere between realist
figuration.
cartoons, messageboard-doodling and pure fantasy.
Expect everything from unsentimental portraits, vibrant
colors,
playful items
contemporary weirdness with a good old
anti-establishment
vibe.

Between high art and crumbling economy there is a common
ground for inexpensive works, keenly tailored for broad
appeal.

The show must go on.

Factory Fresh

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Dime Bag 3 at Giant Robot – Featuring Every Artist in New York City

Dime Bag 3

July 18 – August 12, 2009

Reception: Saturday, July 18, 2009 at 6:30 p.m.

Giant Robot Gallery
437 East 9th Street Between 1st Ave. & Ave. A, in the East Village
New York, New York 10009
(212) 674-GRNY (4769) | grny.net

Giant Robot is proud to host a tiny exhibition of colossal proportions curated by artists Jordin Isip and Rodger Stevens.

Dime Bag 3 is the ninth in an ongoing series of events by Isip and Stevens, bringing together over 200 artists from New York City and beyond representing an extraordinary variety of disciplines. Painters, illustrators, graphic designers, filmmakers, photographers, product designers, and others have been invited to create artworks specifically designed to be exhibited in 3-inch plastic bags: dime bags. Each artist was sent one of the symbolic baggies and asked to fill it in any way they wished.

Artists participating in Dime Bag 3 are:

Ian Adelman
Lindsey Adelman
Keira Alexandra
Selina Alko
Jashar Awan
Jordan Awan
Dan Aycock
Scott Bakal
Lindsey Balbierz
Karen Barbour
Michael Bartalos
George Bates
Melinda Beck
Charlie Becker
Polly Becker
Mike Bellamy
Laura Bellmont
Gregory Benton
Jud Bergeron
Hanne Berkaak
Annette Berry
Angela Boatwright
Max Bode
Kelsey Bohlinger
Juliette Borda
Kim Bost
Kelie Bowman
Claudia Brandenburg
Amanda Brown
Calef Brown
Chris Buzelli
SooJin Buzelli
Joseph Buzzell
William Buzzell
Noel Chanyungco
Mariano Ching
Yong Choe
Beryl Chung
Benjamin Clarke
Noel Claro
Dana Collins
Cynthia Connolly
Alika Cooper
Louie Cordero
Michael Coughlan
Brian Cronin
Tara Cullen
Daniel Davidson
Georganne Deen
Andrew Degraff
Edward del Rosario
Dave Delaney
Rachel Domm
Paul Donald
Dora Drimalas
Dima Drjuchin
Joel Dugan
Chris Duncan
Carl Dunn
Chad Dziewior
Charles Eckert
Emily Eibel
Morgan Elliot
Steve Ellis
Kiersten Essenpreis
Evah Fan
Ingo Fast
Ray Fenwick
Cat Ferraz
Brian Flynn
Patrick JB Flynn
Gary Fogelson
Bella Foster
James Benjamin Franklin
John Freeborn
David Fremont
Shannon Freshwater
Sam Friedman
Martina Fugazzotto
James Gallagher
Ryan Gallagher
Susie Ghahremani
Florence Gidez
Jason Glasser
Leah Goldensohn
Johanna Goodman
Keith Greiman
Matt Haber
Marcellus Hall
George Harbeson
Joseph Hart
Maya Hayuk
Matt Hollister
Charles Immer
Jordin Isip
Mara Isip
Minako Iwamura
Rich Jacobs
Oliver Jeffers
Frances Jetter
Chesiel John
Matt Johnson
Aya Kakeda
Leah Kalotay
Christina Kampson
Nina Katan
Amy S. Kauffman
Misaki Kawai
Caitlin Keegan
Patrick Keesey
Andy Kehoe
Tricia Keightley
Tim Kerr
Hiroshi Kimura
James Kirkpatrick
Viktor Koen
Hiro Kurata
Craig LaRotonda
Cat Lauigan
Hannah K. Lee
Liz Lee
Sae-am Lee
Rob Leecock
Matt Leines
Jodi Levine
Laura Levine
Phil Lubliner
Alex Lukas
Anthony Macbain
Ashley Macomber
Julie Manso
Sara Antoinette Martin
Eddie Martinez
Sophie Mathoulin
Margaret McCartney
Adam McCauley
Melissa McGill
Ted McGrath
Richard McGuire
Taylor McKimens
Elizabeth Meluch
Jeffrey Ashe Meyer
David Miller
Bronwyn Minton
Tezh Modarressi
Nicole Momaney
Brendan Monroe
Lilah Montgomery
James Moore
Pam Morris
Brad Mossman
Ana Mouyis
Ilse Murdock
James Austin Murray
Gregory Nemec
Ron Nemec
Phillip Fivel Nessen
Laura Normandin
Kate O’Connor
Shu Okada
Frank Olinsky
Soner Ön
Alex Ostroy
Jake Panian
Chang Park
Leif Parsons
Jason Polan
Jason Porter
Giselle Potter
Sean Qualls
Jeff Quinn
Cassie Ramone
John Rauchenberger
Kristina Reddy
Lauren Redniss
Liz Riccardi
Martha Rich
Geoff Rockwell
Edel Rodriguez
Les Rogers
Julia Rothman
Lea Rude
Stanley Ruiz
Anthony Russo
David Sandlin
Kim Scafuro
Kim Schifino
Nicole Schorr
Blake Scott
Anna Sea
Christina Sheppard
Christine Shields
Yasmin Sison
Paul Slifer
Andy Smenos
Ryan Jacob Smith
Jeff Soto
Becca Stadtlander
Rodger Stevens
Holly Stevenson
Sto
Georgie Stout
Scott Stowell
Katerine Streeter
Derek Stukuls
Gary Taxali
Gabriel Tick
Mark Todd
Lara Tomlin
Mark Turgeon
Katie Turner
Justin Valdes
Madeline Valentine
Nichole van Beek
Willian van Roden
Jonathan Viner
Dominique Vitali
Roxie Vizcarra
Karyn Vogel
Valeriya Volkova
Adam Wallacavage
Ryan Wallace
Jessica Ward
David Weeks
Kaeleen Wescoat-O’Neill
Eric White
Justin White
Beth Whitney
Jasmine Wigandt
C.K. Wilde
Nate Williams
Richard Wilson
Jeff Winterburg
Mike Wodkowski
Courtney Wotherspoon
James Yang
Tobin Yelland
Christine Young
Zachary Zezima
Bill Zindel

A reception featuring many of the artists will be held from 6:30 to 10:00 on Saturday, July 18. For more information about the show, the artists, GRNY, or Giant Robot magazine, please contact:

Eric Nakamura Giant Robot Owner/Publisher
eric@giantrobot.com
(310) 479-7311

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Images of Week 07.12.09

Images of Week 07.12.09

Our weekly interview with the streets

El Sol
The desire to regenerate Viking manhood through heroic struggle meets Dior. (El Sol 25) (photo Jaime Rojo)

El Sol
Interstitial musings on cranial sacral therapy (El Sol 25) (photo Jaime Rojo)

El Sol
Coming to terms with his own past as a weak and sickly boy. (El Sol 25) (photo Jaime Rojo)

I'm watching you
A futuristic and intense psycho drama playing out with xray vision enabling the clear view of Janet’s nether region. (photo Jaime Rojo)

Piggy Bank Tian
The national savings rate must increase, even if a few coins at a time. (Tian) (photo Jaime Rojo)

Trovadour
The noble hippie, bare-chested and defiant, sucks in his gut and clutches his ham and swiss hero. (Trovadour) (photo Jaime Rojo)

Apolo Torres MUNDANO Loro Verz

Apolo Torres, Mundano, & Loro Verz at Factory Fresh (photo Jaime Rojo)

Bast
I hate to seem aggressive but I really need you to use your bathroom. Please give me the key. (Bast) (photo Jaime Rojo)

Cepia Beauty
Sepia Beauty (photo Jaime Rojo)

El Sol 25
And which one would we call illegal? (El Sol 25) (photo Jaime Rojo)

El Sol 25
With manly legs pumping furiously, Ned, Accounting Super Hero, rushes to deposit the clients’ jewelry before the bank closes. (El Sol 25) (photo Jaime Rojo)

Gaia
Un aplauso por el Conejo! (Gaia) (photo Jaime Rojo)

Know Hope

Time to come out of the bushes! (Know Hope) (photo Jaime Rojo)

Know Hope

Know Hope behind the grating (photo Jaime Rojo)

Know Hope
Last night I really blew it.  Two packs of smokes, a tin of tuna, some lemonade soda, and a tub of watermelon.  I really gotta stop before I lose an arm or something. (Know Hope) (photo Jaime Rojo)

Lady Pink
Natural beauty in the garden of Eldridge (Lady Pink) (photo Jaime Rojo)

Os Gemeos (detail. More to come!)
I’m thinking of a small town I visited last night in a dream (Os Gemeos) (detail) (photo Jaime Rojo)

Os Gemeos (detail. More to come!)Yes, we’ll go in a minute, I’m just checking my messages (Os Gemeos) (detail) (photo Jaime Rojo)

Space Invader
And when he leans over the railing, I’ll pounce! (Space Invader) (photo Jaime Rojo)

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Alexandra Pacula & JMR at Dapper Dan’s Imperial Gallery

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Mighty Tanaka Presents:
Alexandra Pacula & JMR
Opening July 17, 6PM-10PM
Dapper Dan’s Imperial Gallery
139 West 14th St between 6th and 7th Ave, Manhattan.
Runs July 17-July 31
Motion, flow and scale are common influences that conjoin the art of Alexandra Pacula and JMR.  Individually, they are daring to explore uncharted terrain within their own unique style and progression of form.  Opening July 17, Mighty Tanaka is proud to present Alexandra Pacula and JMR, in a double-solo show.  Bringing forth a rehashed idea to Dapper Dan’s Imperial Gallery, the two artists both juxtapose and complement one another in such a way that exemplifies the range and breadth of a style all their own.
In their own words-
Alexandra Pacula: My work investigates a world of visual intoxication. It captures moments of enchantment associated with urban nightlife. I am fascinated by the ambiance of the city at night and its seductive qualities. The colorful lights become a magical landscape with enticing opportunities and promises of fulfillment.  In our seemingly content society there is a struggle to achieve greater levels of enjoyment. We explore various environments and activities in search of pleasure. Extravagant lights of night environments seduce us to participate in curious events, enticing us to experience new forms of satisfaction.  In my oil paintings I aim to capture various atmospheres that occur in such environments. Through observation and documentation I assemble images, which become visual tools for my paintings. I concentrate on how the mind perceives and evaluates surroundings while under the influence of a social climate.  I recreate the feeling of dizziness and confusion by letting the paint blur and allowing shapes to dissolve. I suggest motion in order to slow down the scene and capture the fleeting moments, which tend to be forgotten. By interpreting lights in graphic or painterly ways, I create a sense of space, alluding to a hallucinogenic experience. Color is the main factor for setting the mood. By using mostly warm browns and reds I create an inviting, candle-lit atmosphere and by introducing cool blues, and contrasting colors the environment becomes energetic and noisy. I want the viewers to experience my paintings as if they were in a place of nighttime entertainment where the mood changes as the night goes on.

JMR: As a Brooklyn native, I am inspired by the flux of the city: memories and photographs of painted elevated trains, illuminated windows in nocturnal cityscapes, broken glass shimmering in dull sidewalks, and the panoply of cultural pluralism, increasing by the day, even in a city already as diverse as New York. In the public space of the city, street artists appropriate the urban environment by layering ideas on top of one another. Wheat pasted posters, aerosol designs, white rolled lettering, advertisements, stickers, peeling and decaying paper, brick. The process I use in my work is an attempt to mimic this. I collage the initial surface or leave it clean, and then paint projected drawings over it.  This layering technique results in an interplay of tangled, swooping, and jutting lines, which coalesce into unexpected shapes, emerging as vivid fields of color. Ultimately these images are informed by urban iconography, but they also contain a more personal narrative.  Much time is spent filling pages with autonomous ink drawings, rendered and defined, before projection. The viewer is presented with a dichotomy, as, despite its condensed and chaotic appearance, the work strikes the eye as both simple and open. The projections abstract the original surface image; the process creates a nocturnal environment, leading me beyond the physicality of the urban landscape.

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N9th & Driggs
Creative Commons License photo credit: hragv

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Welcome to Greenpoint! India Street Mural Project is Progressing….

Welcome to Greenpoint! India Street Mural Project is Progressing….

Ad DeVille from Skewville collaborates with Chris Stain and Logan Hicks

The India Street Mural Project is the inaugural project by a new public art group called North Brooklyn Public Art Coalition (NbPac), a loosely knit group of volunteers whose mission it is to join with local artists, community members, arts organizations and businesses to put up as much public art and street art as possible and re-connect community in the public sphere.

A lot of words all at once there, I’ll pause here while you digest.

Yes, someone else is taking Street Art and Street Artists seriously and is making a point to work with the artists and the community to bring more of it.

For the sceptical and jaded among you, I’ll translate: “GOOD NEWS”.

We’ll be talking to NbPac in more detail in an upcoming post but in the mean time, take a look at this cool new piece for the India Street Mural Project below. You’ll recognize the collabo is from three of your favorite street artists!  Mos Def some freshness in Greenpoint, even though Alphabeta has left.

"Welcome to Greenpoint" by Skewville, Chris Stain, and Logan Hicks

Welcome to Greenpoint by Ad Deville, Chris Stain and Logan Hicks (images Jaime Rojo and Steven P. Harrington)

Brooklyn Street Art: How did you guys get involved with this project?

Logan Hicks: The good ol boys over at Skewville asked me to get involved, and I gladly obliged.
Chris Stain:
It was a dark night in early spring. I was contacted by a liaison who said they worked for someone at a factory in Bushwick…. oh wait that’s classified information.
Adam DeVille: I heard about NbPac and the mural project competition they had going on in Greenpoint on India Street.  Originally I contacted them about trying to get help funding a mural idea I had in Bushwick. I know the owner of the building next to the Factory Fresh (gallery); It’s a 300’ wall down a back alley that everyone dumps trash on. My idea was to spell out “Bushwick” in the Skewville font and have 8 different artists fill in the letters, kinda like an old school postcard.  Ciara, from NbPac was down with the idea but also asked me to submit to the India Street mural project.  Being a die-hard “Bushwickian”, at first I said no, but at the last minute I decided to give it a shot.

Brooklyn Street Art: So how big is this piece? 20′ x 25′ ?
Chris Stain: I’m not sure.
Adam DeVille: It’s 30’ wide by 20’ high, when they told me there was 40 feet between each mural I stretched ours 5 feet… 40 feet of space was a waste…

Originally I submitted an idea to do the whole wall at India Street by spelling out “Greenpoint” and having the artist of their choice fill in the letters. The main idea was to unify the whole wall instead of having separate murals with no connection to each other.  As a back-up I submitted a 20’x 25’ version, which they ultimately chose.

I remember the day Ciara called to congratulate me on winning the contest.  I was excited and asked if I got to do the whole wall. When she said they liked the idea but chose the smaller version, I was kind of a little…bummed they didn’t choose the big one.  I’ll save that for Bushwick.

Brooklyn Street Art: What is the inspiration behind the lettering and style of the piece?  With its bold greeting and poppy colors, it looks kind of like a giant Postcard you might get from Niagara Falls.
Adam DeVille: You called it. It’s like a postcard but instead of a beauty shot inside it would have a lil ghetto flavor.  The main idea was to include other artists but to still have an overall Skewville feel.

Gimme a Beeeeeee! (image courtesy Chris Stain)

Gimme a Beeeeeee! (image courtesy Chris Stain)

Brooklyn Street Art: Chris and Logan, how did you choose the images you used to fill in the B and K?

Logan Hicks: I took Chris’s lead on this. I had asked him what he was thinking and he said he was leaning towards something nautical because Greenpoint was a working class ship building area back in the day.  I tried to mirror his thinking.Chris and I are both from Baltimore, which is a working class town, so we both come from that blue collar mindset. For me it was about the work force that was behind this. I have been doing these pieces that have tons of people in them, and I had this image that I loved so I used that as the jump-off point for my side of the piece (the “K”).  I used the same color scheme (grey, black, red) that I normally use but tried to mix it up by using brush this time.  In the end I think the execution parallels what Chris’s does, so it holds together nicely.
Chris Stain: Yeah, I did a little research on the area and found that Greenpoint was a shipbuilding town. I had some images I cut some time ago and decided they would work well for the piece.

Brooklyn Street Art: The images look like they are working class or poor people.
Chris Stain: The image I used is of a dockworker actually from the South Street Seaport back when it was functioning.

Gimmee a Kaaaaaaaayyy! (image courtesy Chris Stain)

Gimmee a Kaaaaaaaayyy! Logan’s piece in progress (image courtesy Chris Stain)

Brooklyn Street Art: What role does a public art project play in the community? Does it impact people’s perceptions of a neighborhood?
Chris Stain: Ultimately its subjective but I feel it does affect how people view the area, especially outsiders.
Adam DeVille: It’s weird because I don’t think anyone goes down this street anyway except to get high. Maybe now more people will come down this block and or have something to look at when they get high.

Brooklyn Street Art: Do you see yourself as an artist only, or also as a communicator?
Logan Hicks: I try not to define what I do, but I’d say that any good artist is a communicator, so in that sense, I am both.
Chris Stain: I think an artist is a communicator. Each painting tells a story about the person who created it. Some stories are easier to figure out than others.

Brooklyn Street Art: Is there an overall message or meaning to this piece?
Chris Stain: The meaning to me is one of history of the area and (it’s a) a show of admiration for the hard work of the people who built the community.
Adam DeVille: The meaning is “Welcome to Greenpoint”, but you should really check out Bushwick.

Logan Hick’s Site

Chris Stain’s Site

Skewville Site

NbPac

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Michael Gone Too Soon

We don’t have anything profound to say about Michael Jackson, and certainly nothing that hasn’t already been said better by others.

We just know that this city was affected strongly; from the sounds of his music pumping from cars and windows and rooftops over the last 12 days, to the spontaneous conversations in offices and bars and delis in many different accents, to the small written tributes on the streets, to T-shirt vendors seemingly instantly selling his image, to 24-hour a day MJ on the radio with call-in memories from listeners, to the gatherings on the pavement in front of jumbo-trons, to crowds jamming into theaters to watch the memorial on screen together, and our impromptu communal memorials at places like the Apollo Theater in Harlem.

Times Square (photo Steven P. Harrington)
Times Square (photo Steven P. Harrington)

His music accompanied most of us for a large percentage of our entire lives, and we know it will continue to; that’s the good part.  We’ll hear it at house parties, block parties, clubs, bars, discos, in teenage bedrooms, in steamy backseats, at wedding receptions, high school proms, church barbecues, and, of course, blasting from stereos out on the streets of this city — this summer and probably every summer for a long time.

Hands in the air at the Apollo, where the Jackson 5 performed, where Motown 25 gave Michael the chance to show us the moonwalk (photo Steven P. Harrington
Hands in the air at the Apollo, where the Jackson 5 performed, and where Motown 25 gave Michael the chance to show us the moonwalk (photo Steven P. Harrington)

Almost everyone who mourns him says Michael was more like a brother than simply a pop star and agrees that this was a candle that went out too soon.

A personal tribute (photo Steven P. Harrington)
A personal tribute (photo Steven P. Harrington)

Click here to see the street art tribute we posted the day he passed.

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W.K. Interact: Artist Talk

BOOK SIGNING and ARTIST TALK with Q&A

W.K. Interact will be in attendance for this special speaking engagement with an exclusive presentation about his new exhibition of work. WK will be available for Q&A and will also sign copies of his newly released book, published by DRAGO.

The publishing house and trend bureau known as Drago is a portal into the international mindset that is fueled by the ideas and values of the current generation. The worldwide creative evolution that Drago has sparked is based on the thoughts and actions of these avant-garde thinkers. It acts as the gatekeeper of a new youth movement that Drago has coined, “S.I.C: System of Independent Culture” in contrast to the “System of Official Culture.” As a cultural symposium, Drago creates and presents forums for exchange by remixing pop culture and undiscovered trends. It is from these creative platforms the that the lifestyle revolution that began on the street and over the internet will continue to expand and evolve. Drago represents the mainstream of minorities, where under is over and over is under.

Drago’s current project is the 36 Chambers Series. Within the next three years Drago is to produce thirty-six books that are dedicated to the work of thirty-six artists. The title of the project is inspired by the martial arts classic Enter the 36 Chambers of Shaolin. Like the 36 Chambers of Shaolin’s monastery, each of the thirty-six books represents a room for each artist to exhibit his or her artistic strength. The artists are confined to the use of only black, white, and a single color of their choice, yet this limited palette also serves as tool for creative liberation. The images that result are a pure impression, a powerful image without distraction, that mixes tradition and innovation.

The first twelve books have already been published and together they are known as the Bronze Series, including artists like Ivory Serra, Mike Giant, Pax Paloscia, and TV Boy. The thirteenth book 2.5 New York Street Life is the first of the Silver Series and is dedicated to the work of WK Interact. Other artists from the second collection include Logan Hicks and Nick Walker and an upcoming edition for the New York and Paris based artists JonOne and his wife and photographer Mai Lucas.

Drago is working in association with the Jonathan LeVine Gallery in New York who will inaugurate an exhibition of WK Interact in June 2009. Jonathan LeVine opened his gallery in Chelsea in 2005 after four years of operating as the Tin Man Alley Gallery in Philadelphia and New Hope, Pennsylvania. Jonathan LeVine acts as proprietor and curator of the gallery and focuses on a genre of work that is influenced by illustration, graffiti art, and pop culture images and exhibits a variety of celebrated, controversial, and unknown artists.

WK Interact is a French born artist who now lives and works in New York City. He made his first trip to the United States when he was eighteen and was instantly struck with an affinity for New York. Within only a few short years WK made the decision to leave his Provencal village and return to the City at the age of twenty-one. From there he began to grace New York’s urban landscape with his ferociously innovative, hand-painted, black and white figures.

WK’s creation of the figure in motion serves as a synonym to the haste and frenzied pace of the New Yorker lifestyle. His images are as forceful and energetic as a tornado and just like a force majeure these figures leave a lasting impression on anyone who have happened across their paths. The subjects are vigorous and unyielding in their action, yet despite their powerful motion and strength of presence there remains something eerie, an ephemeral quality, that is almost ghost-like.

WK demonstrates the ability to capture the most pertinent moment of the figures’ gesture and it is that specific aptitude which translates for the viewer what logically is a transient moment into an interminable memory.

WK  interact
Creative Commons License photo credit: unusualimage

WK Interact Graffiti on a wall in New York
Creative Commons License photo credit: Aaron_M

The “canvas” for each image is carefully chosen with the intention to optimize the synergy between the location, the artwork, and the passersby. Each figure is life size or larger, not only to interact with its viewers, but to engage the given location, generate a response, and make an impact. These flash moments in time are from the perspective of someone who sees life from 360 degrees at all time and now WK has given New Yorkers the opportunity to see more, from more angles, even if we can’t slow down.

WK’s figures have their own stories to tell, but nuances of the narratives are added, subtracted, and transformed by the tales told by the streets and walls on which they now live. Each space has been molded by those who have walked down those streets and touched those walls. Each location contributes another level of vitality to the subject and just as the space’s history redefines the image, the image in turn redefines the space.

WK Interact has shown extensively in galleries and his work can be seen on the streets of Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn. While he has received great public renown and worked with some of today’s greatest street artists, he continues to place public pieces that are socially provoking and visually magnificent.

Location:

Jonathan LeVine Gallery
Street:
529 West 20th street, 9th fl
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There is Know Hope in Chelsea

Cool dude Know Hope from Tel Aviv is in town and was was out last night at an approved spot by the Chelsea Hotel and the “Empty No Longer” gallery putting up a new piece. Thanks to Chris Stain for catching a couple pics for us.

The preliminary blocking
The preliminary blocking by Know Hope (photo Chris Stain)

His character, showing up in singles and multiples throughout his work is always going through different stages, stumbling around, observing, breaking, healing, peering inward.

Know Hope (photo Chris Stain)
Know Hope reaching into his heart as time goes by. (photo Chris Stain)

Tall, thin, and uncomfortable, the gangly character interacts with his world awkwardly, looking for answers we’re not sure he’s found yet. Sometimes a copy of him helps him to heal or props up and supports him as he stumbles and limps through scenes of sadness and even horror.

In almost every case, the character’s heart figures prominently as something to be referenced, to be taken care of.

Someone else fills in the empty space (Know Hope) (photo Steven P. Harrington)
Someone else fills in the empty space (Know Hope) (photo Steven P. Harrington)

3-Dimensional figure knitting a sweater of tears (photo Steven P. Harrington)
3-Dimensional figure knitting a sweater of tears at Ad Hoc Gallery (Know Hope) (photo Steven P. Harrington)

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Skewville and Plaztik Mag at Putting Lot

Skewville and Plaztik Mag at Putting Lot

PLAZTIK MAG & SKEWVILLE INVITE YOU TO A DAY OF FUN & GAMES IN THE SUN AT THE PUTTING LOT

Win a Pair of Skewville Sneakers!

Win a Pair of Skewville Sneakers!

ALL DAY DISCOUNT MINIATURE GOLF

ENTER TO WIN THE SKEWVILLE GOLF CLASSIC PUTTING CHAMPIONCHIP


OR COMPETE IN THE MORGAN SHEASBY NATIONAL SAIL CAR REGATTA.

BRING YOUR OWN SAIL CAR OR ASSEMBLE ONE ON SITE WITH RECYCLED MATERIALS.

LIVE PAINTING, CUSTOM SCREENPRINT TEES WHILE YOU WAIT, VISIT THE BAD ADVICE BOOTH AND STAY FOR THE WATER BALLOON FIGHT!!!

MUSIC, BROWNIES, LEMONADE, ART AND BAD ADVICE.

SATURDAY, AUGUST 1, 2009
2PM – 6PM

The Putting Lot
12 Wyckoff Avenue
Brooklyn, New York 11237
(Take the L train to Jefferson Street)

WWW.PLAZTIKMAG.COM

SEE THE BSA INTERVIEW WITH THE PUTTING LOT HERE

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