All posts tagged: JMR

Hot days of Summer in Brooklyn

July 18, 2009 , , , ,

Shout out to all the ladies!

Especially the people who hit the streets now that the weather is warm and easy, and they don’t feel all cooped up in their apartments.  Stop by and sit with these ladies on Bedford Avenue in the heart of hipster Williamsburg, and you will get a sharp suspicious stare.  Offer to chat about something like, oh I don’t know, the weather, and their faces brighten to offer opinions and eventually, a couple of stories.

Hot fun in the summer time (photo Steven P. Harrington)

Summertime Brooklyn street scene (photo Steven P. Harrington)

And to followup on last nights’ opening

at Dapper Dan’s Imperial Gallery of street artist JMR and streetscape artist Alexandra Pacula, here’s a pic of the artist with her Times Square painting that we didn’t get to see the other night because the symphony was practicing.  By the way, a they got a lot of traffic for the opening, and the air conditioning was a welcome surprise that one doesn’t usually expect in these pop-up affairs.

Alexandra with her Times Square impressionism (photo Steven P. Harrington)

Alexandra with her Times Square impressionism (photo Steven P. Harrington)

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JMR and Alexandra Pacula POP-UP on 14th Street

JMR and Alexandra Pacula POP-UP on 14th Street

July 17, 2009 , , , ,

You gotta roll with the punches just to make art happen in New York.

BSA headed by bicycle across the Williamsburg Bridge Wednesday night to to take a look at the newly installed Mighty Tanaka pop-up show on 14th Street, home of 99-cent stores, baseball cap/T-shirt vendors and the Salvation Army.

14th Street is the dividing line of Manhattan for people to decide where Downtown begins. It used to be more rough and sketchy and home to good deals on dish sponges and 5 packs of underwear, but like every other part of Manhattan the little discount stores are now uneasily squeezed by newer neighbors like Starbucks and Whole Foods and 14th street West is terminated by the platinum-plated Meat-Packing District.  Tough luck.

Mighty Tanaka, who’s curating this show, found this raw space in a recently gutted low-rent retail space that hasn’t been re-rented out yet but still retains the old clothing store sign at the entrance that says “Dapper Dan’s Imperial”.  Tonight (7/17) it will be Dapper Dan’s Imperial Gallery.

Hold it now, hit it! The symphony warms up while other members are still arriving, and painters wait outside please.(photo Steven P. Harrington)

Hold it now, hit it! The symphony starts to practice while the painters wait for their turn. (photo Steven P. Harrington)

We rolled up to the curb to find a clump of people outside on the sidewalk and a symphony!  Literally.  All manner of stringed instruments.  Alex explained hurriedly that the landlord forgot to tell him that there is a symphony that also practices in the space on Wednesday nights, so, ooops, no drilling or hammering or anything that could interrupt the overture – until 10 p.m. Roll with it.

No matter, we were allowed a few quick preview pics, had a quick talk with the artists, and even heard some Mahler.  Hopefully, this mixup is not a PRELUDE.

Brooklyn native JMR has been building his mural skills on the streets of Brooklyn for a couple years now, as well as in lobbies, hallways, and hotel bedrooms and backyards.  His abstract style is clean and curvilinear, with pockets of color and pattern in a loosely rolled coil, the empty spaces as important as the filled.

JMR in Williamsburg future Condo site (photo Jaime Rojo)

JMR in Williamsburg (photo Jaime Rojo)

Polish born Alexandra Pacula, not a street artist, focuses her topics frequently on the streetscapes of New York – the blurred glare of lights that dance before you and confuse you as you navigate drunkenly through late-night Gotham. Visual intoxification, she calls it.

Two streetscapes by Alexandra Pacula waiting to be unwrapped (photo Steven P. Harrington)

Two streetscapes by Alexandra Pacula waiting to be unwrapped (photo Steven P. Harrington)

"My giant Times Square piece is in here" Alexandra waits for the musicians to leave so she can hang this behemoth. (photo Steven P. Harrington)

“My giant Times Square piece is in here” Alexandra waits for the musicians to leave so she can hang this behemoth.  (photo Steven P. Harrington)

The pairing of the two artists, billed as a dual solo show (good one, Alex) is complimentary – his clarity of line and her blur of impressionism, his turbulent understructure and her shimmering cosmopolitan skin.  Painters both, and lovers of New York.

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JMR took a minute today to talk about himself and the show with Brooklyn Street Art.

Brooklyn Street Art: Did you get to talk to any of the practicing musicians about your work?

JMR: They finished up at 10 o’clock and I was all about getting the show hung. So I just started arranging pieces while they were breaking down and stayed focused. Next thing I knew they were all gone. I like classical, but it’s not something I search out.

Brooklyn Street Art: How long have you been in Brooklyn?

JMR: I was originally born in Brooklyn. My family moved to Staten Island when I was 5. I moved back myself in 1999.

Brooklyn Street Art: Do you remember growing up seeing subway trains covered in graffiti?

JMR: Yes. What influenced me more was graffiti that covered the BQE. Also, in SI there were great abandoned factories that writers would spend weeks painting pieces. I spent time in those understanding color. I always felt it was my shortcoming.

 

A dyptich by JMR (photo Steven P. Harrington)

A dyptich by JMR (photo Steven P. Harrington)

Brooklyn Street Art: Sometimes it takes a minute to discern that your work has a portrait buried inside. Usually it is a female. Anyone you know, or are they from your imagination?

JMR: I’d say its 50/50. there’s definitely some ambiguity there and I like that. My art is very composed and balance is important. The same goes for the subject matter. For the most part they’re total strangers.

JMR

JMR (photo Jaime Rojo)

 

Brooklyn Street Art: You spend a lot of time drawing?

JMR: I spend more time drawing than painting.


JMR will be showing some canvasses with a more layered, collaged effect. (photo Steven P. Harrington)

JMR will be showing some canvasses with a more layered, collaged effect. (photo Steven P. Harrington)

Brooklyn Street Art: Is collage part of your process before painting?

JMR: I started collaging because I wanted to remove the pressure of the white canvas. It adds a great element for me. It’s not accidental, but it’s less controlled than the precise lines I use to express my ideas.

Detail of JMR (photo Steven P. Harrington)

Detail of JMR (photo Steven P. Harrington)

 

Brooklyn Street Art: How does the city affect you now?

JMR: I maintain a very romantic feeling for the city, but the everyday hustle and reality makes me dream of living in the country. It’s hard to get headspace here. Sometimes that’s good. But so is nature. Especially for an artist.

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JMR is jamming for Friday Show

July 15, 2009 , ,

Brooklyn native JMR is hotter than July

His abstract line portraits are a larger than you expect when you walk by one on a sunny hot day, and now you know how it’s done.   This stop-action video (finished last night) shows JMR in action on a large piece.  Dude moves fast!

Stay tooned! Read about the upcoming show here.

And this time of year I always want to hear this song at a block party:

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Alexandra Pacula & JMR at Dapper Dan’s Imperial Gallery

July 11, 2009 , , ,
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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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Images of Week 06.14.09

Images of Week 06.14.09

June 15, 2009 , , ,

Bishop 203

Black Heart in the Sun (Bishop 203)  (photo Steven P. Harrington)

JMR
Yo, check out the color! (JMR) (photo Jaime Rojo)

Judith Supine
Department of Parks Pool Rules: No. 4: Please check that there is water before you dive into the pool. (Judith Supine) (photo Jaime Rojo)

Noah Spark and?
Portrait of a barmaid. (Noah Sparkes and?)  (photo Jaime Rojo)

Shark Toof

Department of Parks Pool Rules: No. 7: Inspect pool for sharks (Shark Toof) (photo Jaime Rojo)

Sol 25
“Why you haven’t changed a BIT.  You look just as good as when we graduated.  How do you do it?” (Sol 25) (photo Jaime Rojo)

Specter Bishop203

It's an upside down world we are living in. (Spector & Bishop203) (photo Jaime Rojo)

Tian
Waiting for something to fall out of your burrito (Tian) (photo Jaime Rojo)

Veng RWK
Cracking a smile? (Veng RWK) (photo Jaime Rojo)

Gaia
Hunny, there’s a bear on the roof! (Gaia)  (photo Jaime Rojo)

Leif Mcllwaine
A tribute, to say the least (Leif Mcllwaine) (photo Jaime Rojo)

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Mighty Tanaka “As Is” Show in Clinton Hill

March 4, 2009 , ,

Mighty Tanaka is proud to present As Is, the artwork of JMR and In the Raw, a group show featuring Alexandra Pacula, Will Anderson and David Cook. This combined event seeks to bring communities together through a pop-up gallery located in the popular upcoming Clinton Hill area of Brooklyn. Through the usage of this alternative space to display fine art, these two art shows look to expand the interpretation of art in Brooklyn, mirroring the beauty of fine art with the seemingly raw environment of Brooklyn life.

As Is: The Artwork of JMR— JM Rizzi, or better known as JMR, has adapted a unique mixture of neo-abstract expressionism w hints of contemporary pop to create a style all is own. Having worked in both the street art world as well as the gallery world, JMR brings his iconic imagery to Clinton Hill . As he looks to demonstrate the scale and motion set forth by early abstract expressionists, he reinterprets the ideas within his own personal adaptation. Originally hailing from Brooklyn, New York, JMR has grown up with the influences of street art and the established art world constantly around him. Through his own individual, hybrid street style, he has dedicated himself to helping art fit into the public arena. Having participated in the highly successful 11 Spring St show in 2006, he has gone on to produce art for hotels and restaurants, as well as completing building sized murals in Manhattan. Having just completed the design for a line of clothes, which were featured at a recent fashion show during NYC’s fashion week, JMR looks to expand the idea and integrity of his art to the next level.

In the Raw: Alexandra Pacula, Will Anderson & David Cook—A group show consisting of three talented artists demonstrates an array of different mediums and approaches. Highlighting the unique artistic interpretation of each artist, In the Raw looks to offer insight into some of the exciting art currently being produced in Brooklyn. Alexandra Pacula has been showing art both regionally and internationally for the past six years. With a healthy resume consisting of both museum and gallery shows, she most recently won the Saatchi Gallery Showdown Competition in 2008, having her art displayed in the esteemed institution. Originally from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England, Will Anderson began his artistic venture as a graphic designer. After moving to New York in 1997, he began pursuing photography. Currently working for Nylon Magazine, his award winning work has been published and exhibited both nationally and internationally. Born in Louisville, Kentucky, David Cook moved to NYC after being featured in New American Paintings. Working primarily on t-shirt and record design, he most recently received attention for his work in the Young Widows album Old Wounds.

Opening Saturday March 7th, 6-8pm. 105 Lexington Ave, Clinton Hill, Brooklyn.

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Alex Emmart
Owner/Curator
Mighty Tanaka LLC

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Year in Images 2008

Year in Images 2008

January 1, 2009 , , ,

Paradigm Shifting and Cave Writings

Looking back at the powerful changes in ’08,

it’s not hard to see their reflection on the Brooklyn streets, which may serve as tea leaves revealing the messages swirling around us and in us. Each individual act of creating is of significance, yet it is the cumulative effect of the groundswell of new participants that seems so powerful, so hopeful in it’s desire.

Naturally, at the beginning of this selection of images from 2008, we are featuring the most visible street art piece of the year by Shepard Fairey, which appeared here on the streets of Brooklyn and transcended mediums to reach millions of people. Shepard’s graphic design style and his images of the man who would be president helped many to quickly glimpse the character and message of Barack Obama.

A Winning Campaign (Shepard Fairey) (photo Jaime Rojo)

A Winning Campaign (Shepard Fairey) (photo Jaime Rojo)

The image was replicated, adopted, adapted, transformed, re-formed, lampooned even. It became an icon that belonged to everyone who cared to own it, and a symbol of the change the man on the street was looking for. Like street art, Obama’s message was taken directly to the people, and they responded powerfully in a way that brought a historic shift; one that continues to unfold.

Elsewhere on the street we saw themes from topical to fantastical; crazy disjointed cultural mash-ups, celebrity worship or destruction, Big Brother, icons, symbols, death, war, economic stress, protest, dancing, robots and monsters and clowns and angels, and an incredible pathos for humanity and it’s sorry state… with many reminders of those marginalized and disaffected. We never forget the incredible power of the artist to speak to our deepest needs and fears.

The movement of young and middle-aged artists off the isle of pricey mall-ish Manhattan and into Brooklyn is not quite an exodus, but boy, sometimes it feels that way. The air sometimes is thick with it; the creative spirit. The visual dialogue on the street tells you that there is vibrant life behind doors – studios, galleries, practice rooms, loft parties, rooftops.

Even as a debate about street art’s appropriate placement on public/private walls continues, it continues. From pop art to fine art, painterly to projected, one-offs to mass repetition, Brooklyn street art continues to grow beyond our expectations, and our daily lives are largely enriched by it.

This collection is not an exhaustive survey – the archival approach isn’t particularly stimulating and we’re not academics, Madge. The street museum is always by chance, and is always about your two eyes. Here’s a smattering, a highly personal trip through favorites that were caught during the year.

[svgallery name=”Images of Year 2008″]

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The Week in Images 08.17.08

August 17, 2008 , , ,
JMR in Williamsburg future Condo site (photo Jaime Rojo)

JMR in Williamsburg future Condo site (photo Jaime Rojo)

This two panel installation on the corner of North 8th and Driggs appeared, mysteriously disappeared, and re-appeared within one week!  Stories abound – but our favorite one is that construction dudes took it down to access the work-site and kind of damaged it, so they reinstalled the panels stronger and more solidly than before.  That’s teamwork!

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