All posts tagged: Lluis Olive Bulbena

El Raval In Barcelona: A Magnet Of Small Treasures

March 3, 2018 Artists

Las Ramblas is a good place for rambling foot tours on a Saturday afternoon before reaching the ocean at El Raval. This neighborhood of Barcelona champions the small one-off Street Art piece – the antithesis of the large splashy murals that popular in other cities.

Rice (photo Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

A barrio of narrow streets adorned with mysterious and grandly heavy wooden doors keeps the throngs of tourists at arms length. Windows and balconies with intricately and beautifully crafted iron work create an old world charm and invite smaller thoughtful portraits by Street Artists looking for a setting with character.

Turn the corner and there’s a genteel plaza buzzing with seniors in their golden years sitting on benches or at sidewalks cafes nursing a coffee or a brandy.

Rice (photo Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Here in these secret niches, doorways, sidewalk level windows, lampposts, and just about any other surface you’ll discover small pieces of Street Art installed illegally. Multi-layered or one color stencils, one-of-kind, hand-painted wheat pastes, sticker multiples, fully realized acrylic portraits and posters; all small works waiting for a small audience.

BSA contributor and Barcelona native Lluís Olivé Bulbena recently took a stroll through the winding streets and found this treasure trove of goodies. Thanks to him and enjoy!

Hopare (photo Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Guaté Mao (photo Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Ecloz (photo Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Raf Urban (photo Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Nenao (photo Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Pat Brazill (photo Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Ozzy (photo Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Ozzy . Fatal Fake (photo Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Fake Banksy (photo Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Bronik . Utah . Ether. (photo Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Bronik (photo Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Cane (photo Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

El Rughi (photo Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

BSA Images Of The Week:02.18.18

February 18, 2018 Artists, BSA Images Of The Week

Welcome to Images of the Week! Great stuff this week from Portugal, Spain and good old NYC to flip your Aunt Betty’s wig.

The big news this week of course was that the 5 Points graffiti compound case was awarded to the 21 plaintiffs. But its not just local: it may have national implications when building owners will be insisting on contracts with anyone who paints their property. It may also confuse and scare off many opportunities for artists, where building owners will simply say no to the proposal.

The settlement, which we covered in Tell It to The Judge ; Graffiti Artists Win in 5 Pointz Case, has infuriated many and thrilled others expressing their opinion on social media. One of our 5 Ptz postings on Facebook this week garnered 1,300 comments, a nest of misunderstanding mediated by the occasional level head, offset by congratulations and victory laps. Naturally, folks from other parts of the country insulted us New Yorkers. Welcome to the world of graffiti and Street Art!

The Black Panther movie has many New Yorkers enthralled as it premiered on Tuesday night at the Museum of Modern Art. Theaters drew entire families and school groups many standing in line in costume as they waited to see powerful and positive black super-heroes and heroines. The Times Magazine says it is a defining moment for black America .

Nationally we are all still trying to grapple with another school shooting, producing more Thoughts and Prayers, and another round of Mueller indictments that continue to encircle the White House.

Finally, Brooklyn’s Kehinde Wiley pulled the curtain down with Barack Obama at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery to reveal his official portrait – HERE. Just kidding, here are Barack and Michelle’s official portraits.

Here’s our weekly interview with the streets, this week featuring Atomik, Bigod, City Kitty, Daniel Eime, Desla, Exit.Enter.K, Fatal Fake, Free the Nipple, Gane, Gebraël, Kram, Little Ricky, Obey, Texas, We’kup, and Zest B.

Top Image: Daniel Eime in Lisbon. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Going out on a limb here to say you may see MOMO, Vhils, and James Bullough similarities merged here. Nonetheless, its a solid mural by Daniel Eime here in Bairro Padre Cruz, Lisbon. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Bigod. Bairro Padre Cruz. Lisbon. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Unidentified artist (we couldn’t decipher the signature) Lisbon. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

City Kitty (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Atomik. Lisbon. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Gane . Texas (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Free Boobies. Lisbon. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Triple Nipple. Lisbon. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Free The Nipple. Yeah! Lisbon. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Unidentified artist. Lisbon. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Little Ricky (photo © Jaime Rojo)

We’kup . Exit. Enter. K. Obey. Lisbon. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Unidentified artist. Lisbon. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Desla (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Zest B. Lisbon. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Gebraël. Lisbon. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Smile. Bairro Padre Cruz, Lisbon. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Fatal Fake . Kram. Barcelona, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Fatal Fake . Kram. Barcelona, Spain. (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Bill S. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Untitled. Yawn. Brooklyn, NYC. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Scenes From a Spanish Restaurant : The Culinary Delicacies of DavidL

February 15, 2018 Artists

Barcelona Street Art may have been booted from many streets a few years ago during a period of commercial fueled gentrification but that organic scene sparked a generation of talents who continue to transform abandoned spots nevertheless. We continue to see fully executed pieces from this area of Spain that are highly imaginative and technically tight, like these dark characters from graffiti writer DavidL.

DavidL (photo © LluÍs Olivé Bulbena)

In an abandoned restaurant 40 miles outside BCN artist DavidL has created a menagerie of wicked characters, all from his fantastical cogitations and frequently inspired by comics and cinema. A recent post with images by Fer Acala focused on the aerosol painters’ famous people and/or characters.

In these new images by LluÍs Olivé Bulbena we see another breed of characters from this versatile artist – perhaps taking inspiration from the spirits who are still inhabiting this former house and restaurant.

The dishes, however, are less than appetizing..

DavidL (photo © LluÍs Olivé Bulbena)

In Your Face With Sekone and Rexenera Fest in Carballo, Galicia

January 24, 2018 Artists

Dude! Turn the can around!

SekOne. Detail. Rexenera Festival. Third Edition. Carballo, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olivé Bulbena)

Sekone caught our eye in this Spanish Oceanside town of 36,000 recently with this mural that gets it all backwards – nevermind the handstyle.

Carballo in Galicia on the northwest tip of Spain is home to the Rexenera Fest, a mural festival that gathers local and international urban artists like Curiot (Mexico), Sekone (Galiza), Pixel Pancho (Valencia), Jorit (Italy), Aryz, Isaac Cordal (Galiza), Cinta Vida (Catalunya, and AnimitoLand (Argentina). Now planning for a fourth year, the town is blessed with some high quality works and photographer Lluis Olive Bulbena shares some of the loot with BSA readers here today.

SekOne. Rexenera Festival. Third Edition. Carballo, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olivé Bulbena)

Cinta Vidal. Detail. Rexenera Festival. Third Edition. Carballo, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olivé Bulbena)

Cinta Vidal. Rexenera Festival. Third Edition. Carballo, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olivé Bulbena)

Yoseba M.P. Detail. Rexenera Festival. Third Edition. Carballo, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olivé Bulbena)

Isaac Cordal. Rexenera Festival. Third Edition. Carballo, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olivé Bulbena)

Jorit Agoch. Rexenera Festival. Third Edition. Carballo, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olivé Bulbena)

Curiot. Rexenera Festival. Third Edition. Carballo, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olivé Bulbena)

Animalito Land. Detail. Rexenera Festival. Third Edition. Carballo, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olivé Bulbena)

Animalito Land. Rexenera Festival. Third Edition. Carballo, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olivé Bulbena)

Saturno. Detail. Rexenera Festival. Third Edition. Carballo, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olivé Bulbena)

“Desordes Creativas” and Creative Desserts in the North of Spain

January 11, 2018 Artists

What’s for dessert? You may think of public mural festivals as the final dish that is pleasing to the eye and sweet beyond belief.

DESORDES CREATIVAS (Creative Desserts) is a festival of urban art in a city called Ordenes, about 40 kilometers north of Santiago de Compostela in northwest Spain’s Galicia region, and it has specialized in art of the finished mural for about a decade.

Erica Ilcane. Detail. Desordes Creativas Festival 2017. Ordenes, Spain. (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Organizers of the urban/suburban/almost rural festival in this city of 160,00 are proud to tell you that nearly 80% of the original murals since the beginning are still running, a testament to the regard the community has for the formal works. Today we have excellent images by photographer Lluís Olivé Bulbena to give you an idea of the quality of the works.

Erica Ilcane. Detail. Desordes Creativas Festival 2017. Ordenes, Spain. (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

We appreciate the delicious and colorful murals of course, but for this years collection we also dig the installation of a nonsensical labyrinth in the middle of a public square by Madrid’s SpY – which isn’t as obvious when you are on the ground.

SpY. Desordes Creativas Festival 2017. Ordenes, Spain. (photo © Desorders Creativas)

Instead the installation recalls endless lines at sundrenched summer music festivals or the Lisbon airport passport control that seem to actually get longer as time goes by. These photos from Desorders Creativas show that the SpY piece is also a happy diversion for many.

SpY. Desordes Creativas Festival 2017. Ordenes, Spain. (photo © Desorders Creativas)

The 2017 edition of Desorders Creativas featured Xoana Almar (Galiza), SpY urbanart (Madrid), Ericailcane (Italia), Bastardilla (Colombia), Saturnoart (Cataluña), and Carlos Goma (Almería)

Xoana Almar. Detail. Desordes Creativas Festival 2017. Ordenes, Spain. (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Xoana Almar. Desordes Creativas Festival 2017. Ordenes, Spain. (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Bastardilla. Desordes Creativas Festival 2017. Ordenes, Spain. (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Bastardilla. Detail. Desordes Creativas Festival 2017. Ordenes, Spain. (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Saturno. Desordes Creativas Festival 2017. Ordenes, Spain. (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Saturno. Detail. Desordes Creativas Festival 2017. Ordenes, Spain. (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Carlos Góma. Detail. Desordes Creativas Festival 2017. Ordenes, Spain. (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Arnau Gallery In Barcelona. A Wall with a mission

November 8, 2017 Artists

The celebrated but now ruinous Arnau Theater in Barcelona sits patiently awaiting to be revived. Once an effervescent center of spectacle and entertainment the theater opened its doors in 1894 and through various mutations including a place to go to the “talkies” and a variety program hosted by the then famous actress Sara Montiel closed its doors in 2004. The theater is now the property of the municipality and with that it has a very good chance to see the light of day again.

Mohamed Lghacham AKA Moha and Emilio Cerezo collaboration at Arnau Gallery in Barcelona. October 2017. (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

As it’s often the case the revitalization of our city centers or downtown falls on the hands of the artists and the creative sort. Once an artist has set his or her eyes on a crumbling piece of real state or on a neglected part of town it’s almost unavoidable for these artists to ignore what they see. That’s precisely what Arnau Gallery is. Not a gallery in the traditional white walls cube but and open door wall, Arnau Gallery is a canvas, an opportunity for artists to paint commissioned work under the guidance of Street Art Barcelona and Difusor.

The wall sits at street level close to the pedestrians and is part of the edifice that bears the theater’s name. The curators have a rotating schedule of local, national and international artists who are invited to experiment, paint and create on the wall. The project has as its main supporter Platform to Save The Arnau Theater the organization leading the fight to keep Arnau Theater alive with the hopes that in the not so distant future the theater will re-open its doors.

In October the Moroccan born Spanish artist Mohamed Lghacham AKA Moha, joined Barcelona native artist Emilio Cerezo to collaborate on this wall. Below are the results of their efforts.

Mohamed Lghacham AKA Moha and Emilio Cerezo collaboration at Arnau Gallery in Barcelona. October 2017. (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

“Nau Bostik” Invigorates La Sagrera District in Barcelona

August 28, 2017 Artists

Portraits, characters, surrealistic scenes and a range of illustration styles all reigned at the Nau Bostik festival in the La Sagrera neighborhood of Barcelona this summer. Organizing the painted component of the festival were folks from the Open Walls Conference and Difusor in a collaborative program to bring a new cultural infusion of life to this former industrial center.

Ralf Urban (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

These walls are what stand long after the film festival, craft beer festival, conference discussions, food trucks, children’s dance program, photography exhibition and musical performances leave. Contrary to the image of Street Art and graffiti in the margins of society, in the case of these twenty or so muralists from a variety of backgrounds, painting in the public sphere is an integral part of the programming of a communities future, rather than a sign of its degradation.

We’re pleased that photographer Lluis Olive Bulbena shares some of the images he captured at Bostik Murals this summer with BSA readers.

BToy (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

El Rughy (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Simon Vazquez (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Twee Muizen (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Ox Alien (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

SheOne (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Manu Manu (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Fau Art (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

David Petroni (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Sixe Paredes (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Syrup (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Selections from Farm Country: GarGar2 Festival in Penelles, Spain.

June 13, 2017 Artists

A well branded cultural initiative brings for the second edition a festival of art, music, craft beer, food trucks, workshops to the village of Penelles in Spain, including 900 square meters of murals in this town with farmer roots and low one story buildings.

It has become almost a formula for cities and municipalities to inject a youthful culture and energy into an area – as you may expect, it is about striking a balance and treating all of your artists well and creating a mixture of events and opportunities for the people to engage with the scene. Even when the population of your Catalonian town is a little less than 500 people.

Fonoll Mas. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

GarGar2 just happened in May with about 30 artists displaying public art in disciplines that touch on almost all of the currently used styles on the street; aerosol, wild style, figurative, illustration, neo-realism, photorealist, commercially slick, folk heroism, calligraphy, text based, pop art, abstract optics, political commentary, brush paint, stencil, craft, crochet, primitive sculpture… Organizers have studied the websites and social postings and surveyed closely what is happening in the mural/Street Art scene and are presenting a cross-section of at least one example of every category.

Sebastien Waknine. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

The somewhat arid agricultural community is spread out over many small roads and fields of wheat, rye, and corn. Old buildings are used for small art exhibitions and music venues – with many of the performing solo artists and ensembles playing a familiar mix of folk, jazz, afrocarribean, and electronic genres that merge local with international tastes.

It is a polished presentation meant to draw attention to the town, and we are thankful to photographer Lluis Olive Bulbena for capturing some of the images from this year’s festival. Following it is a video from last years’ GarGar.

Sebastien Waknine. Detail. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Sebastien Waknine. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

BYG. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Draw . Contra. Detail. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Asu Calligraphy. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Miquel Wert. Detail. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Miquel Wert. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Draw . Contra. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Ryan Smeeton. Detail. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Ryan Smeeton. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Paella. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Zeso WS. Detail. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Zeso WS. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Jofre Works. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

TV Boy. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

GarGar 2016

Festival GarGar 2016 from lacreativa.com on Vimeo.

Website for GarGar

Facebook Page

Marina Capdevila Brings Her Seniors to the Winery

April 24, 2017 Artists

When muralist Marina Capdevila is in Miami her senior ladies are in a convertible heading to the beach and when in Brooklyn they buy a hamburger and fries on the sidewalk.

Now visiting a winery cooperative just south of her native Barcelona, the illustrator chooses men and donkeys.

“The mural commemorates the 100 years of the Gratallops Winery Cooperative,” says photographer Lluis Olive Bulbena, who shares some images of the new mural.

“Gratallops is a small municipality of 250 inhabitants about 180 km south of Barcelona, part of the famous wine region of Priorat.” Absent Capdevila’s typical on-point observations of seniors encountering the modern world with irony, the characters and action here are more typical and straightforward, but still with a sense of humor.

To learn more about the winery cooperative in Gratallops, click HERE.

BSA Images Of The Week: 03.19.17

March 19, 2017 Artists, BSA Images Of The Week

Here’s our weekly interview with the streets, this week featuring: Baron Von Fancy, City Kitty, Claudio Dre, Consumer Art, Ethan Armen, Humenbote, Jerk Face, Mr. Sis, Pantonio, Paola Delfin, Paris Sketch Culture, Peter Tunney, Sac Six, Thomas Allen, Tictail, and Zor.

Sixe Paredes: Future-Folk Geometry In Barcelona

February 25, 2017 Artists

The Future-Folk Geometrist named Sixe Paredes is in Madrid at Palacio Neptuno this weekend for the Urvanity commercial art fair but today we have a look at a recent large scale pared he painted for the Open Walls Conference in Barcelona recently.

Even at this massive scale there is a handmade warmth recalling traditional craft and the people of perhaps Central and South America; dissembling and abstracting its patterns and elements and re-stitching them in an open, inviting way.

Here we give BSA readers a peak at the process of making the mural with documentation by BSA collaborator Lluis Olive Bulbena:

BSA Images Of The Week: 02.12.17

February 12, 2017 Artists, BSA Images Of The Week

“It’s surreal to be on the south side of the US border,” we said last week about being in Mexico. Sorry to report that it may be even more surreal on this side.

Trump and Co. suffered a setback on their Muslim travel ban via the courts but are reportedly breaking out the ICE and going after undocumented people inside US cities suddenly. Politicians are reportedly being flooded with phone calls, letters, postcards, and overflowing town halls from people riled by extreme actions of the new president, and protests pop up sort of everywhere right now about DAPL, Planned Parenthood, immigration….

Meanwhile he’s raging against the judiciary in ALL CAPS, still saying the murder rate is high when its actually low, bankers and corporate captains are sailing into positions in his cabinet, his manic spokes-spinners are attacking/being attacked rhetorically and/or selling his daughters’ fashion wares on live news, his National Security Advisor may have tipped off Russians about easing sanctions before the inauguration, and his top advisor appears to have a large Armageddon roast slathered with terror sauce for breakfast… frankly there is too much fresh horror every day to re-count and we all have a giant pile of laundry to get caught up on. Jeez!

Meanwhile New York had an impressive snowstorm this week, BAST had his first show of new work in something like 4 years at Allouche Gallery, and Jilly Ballistic is cutting and slicing her way through subway billboard satire in a way that’s pretty funny!

Here’s our weekly interview with the streets, this week featuring: 1Up, Icy & Sot, Jilly Ballistic, Josef Foos, Karm, Michelle Angela Ortiz, Pichi & Avo, Sam Durant, Street-People, and Sebastien Waknine.

“If my parents are deported, I will have to raise my sister.” Erick 13 years old

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