To introduce readers to some of the Street Artists in the upcoming show “Street Art Saved My Life: 39 New York Stories”, BSA asked a number of the artists to take part in “Back Talk” with one of our most trusted and underground and sweet sources for modern art, Juxtapoz.
Today we hear from C215.
A few words that sum up your philosophy on life: “Trying to turn ugly sh*t into art when possible.”
A horrendously stunning car crash, windshield smashed in by a wooden stump, a shard of white light cutting sharply through a smoke cloud which rises to eerily announce the arrival of UK Street Artists Miss Bugs in Brooklyn. In “Parlour”, their first solo on view right now in Bed Stuy, the backyard diorama is a plastered paper perimeter of gnarled and murky indigo off road forest, a haunting backdrop to the cut-out distorted and riveting forms who break the 4th wall toward you with intent.
The curvaceous ladies are cousins of the street pieces Miss Bugs places with great care publicly, cut outs that fade into their surrounding and pop out from it, undulating and teasing and riveting, a perfectly charged counterweight of sex to the violent metal and glass carnage before you. Throughout the inside gallery and backyard installation, Miss Bugs plays with a scale slightly larger than life, giving imperious and distantly cool figures a personal, almost intimidating immediateness.
The front room of “Parlour” at Brooklynite Gallery with Miss Bugs (photo © Jaime Rojo)The distortion of the forms and come hither stand-offishness is softened and sweetened by saturated pop colors and cleverly patterned replications of art you have seen somewhere else. Always willing to take appropriation to new heights, Miss Bugs gladly incorporates signature elements of other artists works into their distorted and sensuous forms, weaving them into the hair, tattooing them across the skin, wrapping their ladies with a body conscious knitted brocade.
Speaking with the royal “we”, the very anonymous Miss Bugs talked with Brooklyn Street Art about “Parlour”:
Brooklyn Street Art: What was the genesis for “Parlour” in general and this outdoor installation in particular?
Miss Bugs: We wanted it to be a place that unsettles you… The concept of the ‘Parlour’ exploits the idea that the art establishment plays on people’s desires, whether for money, beauty, sex or ownership. We’ve always looked at these themes within our work, so here we continue to question them. However, this time, we wanted to extend the ideas beyond the work and have the pieces viewed in their own theatrical space making us see the works’ symbolism in a different, darker light. We place our own fictional characters in the middle of the space. ‘The Madam’ is here with her open eyes; to convey ourselves as part of this sometimes strange and seedy world.
The outside installation grew from the concept that the parlour is being protected by a few souls and that this can be a twisted place, full of contradiction… We suppose it’s a nightmare or maybe just a bad dream! Comparisons can be made throughout the show between our ‘Parlour’ and the real world of the art establishment. Just depends how deep you want to scratch!
Brooklyn Street Art: How was it to install your work in Brooklyn this time around?
Miss Bugs: It’s great to show in New York especially Brooklyn, we love it… Just to spend time walking around soaking it all up is brilliant. Since we were kids we saw and heard Brooklyn in music, film and art, so it feels great when we’re here and it always makes us feel at home!
Brooklyn Street Art: The imagery gives off sex, cars, alcohol… what are some of the messages you are working with?
Miss Bugs: All these elements we try and show in a warped way; For example, placing glamorous but distorted nudes next to a burnt-out car, which hopefully makes us question our desires and see them differently! When we got the car into the gallery and we realised just how horrific a smashed up car is, it had a sadness about it which we hope we were sensitive to with our cut out figures. The installation of the woodland clearing we wanted to be experienced at night to create a haunting and again unsettled atmosphere, but the smoke machine could have done this job by itself …
Brooklyn Street Art: You borrow from different artists and other cultural art forms (including Shakespeare in one instance) and incorporate many of those images into your work. How do you go about selecting the images? Are they your favorite artists or is it purely aesthetic?
Miss Bugs: The list of artists that we ‘stole’ from and remixed for this show is massive…Hannah Hoch and Kurt Schwitters, Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Vera Lehndorff, Gustav Klimt, Picasso, Mc Escher, Man Ray, David Lynch, Mel Ramous, Takashi Murakami, Leonardo De Vinci, Banksy, Warhol, Stanley Kubrick
We’ll stop now but the list goes on! You have to look harder for some of them and others can be staring you in the face but sometimes still go unnoticed as they’re seen out of context. Playing with ideas of how we view artwork and how much of its reasoning we understand.
We look at links between the artists and their working methods throughout history. Artists that would not normally be considered to sit alongside each other are then remixed together showing just how the working style of (for example) Keith Haring can gel together with Picasso, and how artists from very different periods in time and culture are using very similar approaches, often where you wouldn’t expect to see it.
Here we’ve selected elements of artists whose work goes someway in helping us tell our own story within ‘Parlour’… Suppose we’re like some sort twisted museum curator cramming the world’s greatest artists together into a small room for an orgy, then throwing some classical writers and iconic film directors in for good measure!
Miss Bugs “Parlour” is currently on view at Brooklynite Gallery. Click below for more information.
To introduce readers to some of the Street Artists in the upcoming show “Street Art Saved My Life: 39 New York Stories”, BSA asked a number of the artists to take part in “Back Talk” with one of our most trusted and underground and sweet sources for modern art, Juxtapoz.
Today we hear from How & Nosm.
One reason you make art: “When we started out as Graffiti writers in 1988 it kept us busy and productive instead of just getting into trouble and being street kids. Then eventually we did it for the fame and to become one of the best in our little city in Düsseldorf, Germany. Over the years this has changed and now it is an everyday thing that is part of our lives. We make art because it gives us an inner calmness and relaxes us when we paint and see the outcome of each created piece of art, yet another reason might be the urge to have to do it. At the same time it is the habit after so many years that gives us the constant drive to evolve our art work.”
To introduce readers to some of the Street Artists in the upcoming show “Street Art Saved My Life: 39 New York Stories”, BSA asked a number of the artists to take part in “Back Talk” with one of our most trusted and underground and sweet sources for modern art, Juxtapoz.
Today we hear from Anthony Lister.
Artists you admire: “The ones that do it for love and discovery.”
Read “Back Talk: A conversation with Anthony Lister” on Juxtapoz: http://www.juxtapoz.com/Features/back-talk-a-conversation-with-anthony-lister
AdHoc Arts returns to Queens this year to Welling Court where Street Artists and the locals mix it up with music, local and homemade food and artists painting live. Bring your camera and bring a plate of cookies too. Sharing is caring.
The project transforms several city blocks into a 24/7 street-level gallery, bringing art from around the world directly to the heart of this community. Renowned artists with deep roots in the street movement have created site-specific works for this project and many will showcase various creative sundries for your perusal. This new array of visual experiences provides fresh contexts for how people working, visiting, and living in this diverse cultural gem of Queens think about and interact with their environment.
Artists include: Alice Mizrachi, Alison Buxton, Beau Stanton, Bunnie Reiss, Caleb Neelon, Chris Mendoza, Chris Stain, Celso, Cern, Cey Adams, Chor Boogie, CR, Cycle, Dan Witz, Darkclouds, Don Leicht, Ellis Gallagher, Ezra Li Eismont, Free5, Garrison Buxton, Greg Lamarche, Jesse Jones, JMR, Joe Iurato, John Ahearn, John Fekner, Jordan Seiler, Katie Yamasaki, Lady Pink, Leon Reid, Matt Siren, Michael De Feo, Michael Fumero, MIMEO, Mr. Kiji, Neko, Nuria, OverUnder, Pablo Power, R. Nicholas Kuszyk, ROA, Ron English, Royce Bannon, Sinned, Sofia Maldonado, TooFly, Tristan Eaton, Veng RWK, Zam.
Click on the link below for more information regarding this event:
http://www.brooklynstreetart.com/theblog/?p=21916
Right across the street where they’ll be debuting a new piece with BSA in August for “Street Art Saved My Life: 39 New York Stories”, the Brooklyn Street Art Collective Faile is presenting this pop up print show this weekend in Venice, Los Angeles. Tonight at the opening they’ll release a new print too.
“The show will feature a variety of works on paper over the last 12 years. A broad range of new and old prints and original works on paper. There are a variety of new pieces and a few surprises made for the show, including a new collection of works entitled Vintage Book Covers highlighting classic pieces from over the years” – Faile
Worth Something Gold
Edition of 50
Acrylic and Hand Pressed Gold Foil on Coventry Rag 335 gsm
35.75in. x 29in. (90 x 73cm)
Signed, Stamped & Numbered
Faile 2011
Opening Reception: June 24, 2011 (7 – 10pm)
Exhibition Runs: June 24 – July 24, 2011
POST NO BILLS
1103 Abbot Kinney Blvd.
Venice Beach, CA 90291
310.399.2928
Click below for more information regarding this show:
http://www.brooklynstreetart.com/theblog/?p=21965
One of the new clowns out there today is having a solo show of his fine art and some new interpretations of his Street Art funboys as well. With wit and a method to his absurdity, these new works give insight to the solid study he’s actually been doing for years.
Chicago at Pawn Works Gallery, Clown Soldier is “The Human Cannonball”
Pawn Works
1050 N. Damen Ave.
Chicago, Illinois 60622
www.pawnworkschicago.com
Click on the link below for more information about this show:
http://www.brooklynstreetart.com/theblog/?p=21777
If you are in LA in August you can also see Clown Soldier at BSA’s show “Street Art Saved My Life: 39 New York Stories”.
His new show in Paris at the Since-Upian Gallery is accompanied by some new work on the street – much of it inspired by Brooklyn streets. See brand new photos tomorrow on BSA.
211 rue Saint-Maur 75010 Paris
T: 00 33 (0) 1 53 19 70 03 / T: 00 33 (0) 1 53 19 75 29
Opening Hours: Tuesday to Saturday from 14h to 19h
Click on the link below for more information about this show:
http://www.brooklynstreetart.com/theblog/?p=21808
If you are in LA in August you can also see Specter at BSA’s show “Street Art Saved My Life: 39 New York Stories”.
Brooklynite Gallery welcomes the start of the summer with “Parlour” a sexy show Saturday Night. Also DJ Mayonaise Hands will be there with a camera and mike for insightful interviews and scintillating observations. Dress your rockinist cause you know the Bedstuy peeps are always in top form at this gem.
“PARLOUR”
MISS BUGS
June 25 – JULY 16
Opening Night: Saturday, June 25, 7-10pm
MUSICAL GUEST: Hank Shocklee [Bomb Squad]
BROOKLYNTE 334 Malcom X BLVD
Brooklyn, NY 11233
Click on the link below for more information about this show:
http://www.brooklynstreetart.com/theblog/?p=21691
If you are in LA in August you can also see Miss Bugs at BSA’s show “Street Art Saved My Life: 39 New York Stories”.
Last weekend for the CresFest and NorthSide Open Studios artist Jon Burgerman was invited by Brooklyn Street Art to paint on a car. We forgot to tell him to get dressed first. Little details like that escape him.
Video by µ-Ziq Theme by µ-Ziq.
London based artist K-Guy will be releasing a print on July 1st of his “Primate Pontificate” commentary on the state of affairs of the Catholic Church and their perceived hypocrisy on some relevant topics. He introduced this piece on the occasion of Pope Benedict XVI most recent visit to England last year and we found some of these same primates on the streets of NYC in the fall. Funny to see them get released as prints.
K-Guy (photo © Jaime Rojo)
“Primate Pontificate’ comes in 4 different colorways – Deep Red, Royal Blue, Black and Regal Purple.Miss Bugs
On a summers night in the heart of Brooklyn, Miss Bugs will open the
doors to her new establishment, the “Parlour”. Miss Bugs alias ‘The Madame’
welcomes you to her boudoir, fit for gods and monsters; a place where
delights and nightmares can be played out. You’ll be introduced to the
still-standing ghosts in the woodland clearing who guard the entrance to the
“Parlour” that lies beyond… Here, the Madames’ presence can be felt in
every corner; you can look directly into her eyes and view the story of her
dark desires… Madame advises all who attend the opening to dress
appropriately to honor the spirits and hide their face by donning a
masquerade mask.
“Parlour” is the setting for Miss Bugs’ new body of work; its atmosphere will
unsettle. By placing the prints and large scale collages within a fictional
space, the context of the original sources of found art is changed, making us
view its symbolism in a different, darker light. This distorted world of
installations indoors and out, is an extension of their ‘Cut Out and Fade Out’
street project and the concept of the ‘Parlour’ exploits the idea that the art
establishment plays on people’s desires, whether for money, beauty, sex or
ownership. It’s a twisted environment with poetically warped female forms that
beckon you in and carry you off to the underbelly of Miss Bugs’ soul.
The opening of ‘Parlour’ marks Miss Bugs’ second solo gallery appearance since
their debut outing over three years ago and is their first solo show outside
the UK. Miss Bugs have come together again for their most ambitious project
to-date…
They continue to explore the themes which have been prevalent in their work,
such as the nature of the art establishment. Miss Bugs continues to question
the ownership of ideas, working methods, and the relationship and knock-on
effect that artists have with one another. And while their work often sees the
appropriation of hundreds of contemporary artists; they are all referenced and
recomposed within their collages and silk-screens to make their own newly
reconstructed iconic pieces. Miss Bugs steals from many, but in doing so they
leave their own unique indelible mark; a Miss Bugs calling card at the scene of
the crime!
BROOKLYNITE is located at 334 Malcolm X Blvd., Brooklyn, NY 11233
We are open Thursday thru Saturday from 1pm – 7pm or by appointment.
We are located 2 blocks from the A or C subway to Utica Ave. stop.
May 15, 2011
Brooklyn Street Art Presents Street Art Saved My Life : 39 New York Stories in collaboration with ThinkSpace Gallery, an art show to exhibit at C.A.V.E. Gallery in Venice (LA), California on Friday, August 12, 2011.
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Street Art Saved My Life : 39 New York Stories heralds the new highly individual character of stories being told on the streets of New York by brand new and established Street Artists from all over the world. Steven P. Harrington and Jaime Rojo, founders of BrooklynStreetArt.com focus on this flashpoint in modern Street Art evolution by curating a strongly eclectic story-driven gallery show with 39 of the best storytellers hitting the streets of New York.
Street Art Saved My Life : 39 New York Stories, the gallery show, accompanied by an LA street wall series by selected artists and a public panel lecture and discussion, intends to stake out the New Guard in street art while recognizing some powerful near-legendary forerunners.
The mainly New York lineup exhibits talent from other parts of the US and internationally (Australia, France, UK, Canada, Israel, Germany) and it is as steely, idiosyncratic and storied as the New York scene itself, including Anthony Lister, Adam Void, Broken Crow, C215, Cake, Chris Stain, Clown Soldier, Creepy, Dan Witz, El Sol 25, Ema, Faile, Futura, Gaia, Gilf!, Hargo, Hellbent, How & Nosm, Imminent Disaster, Indigo, Judith Supine, Kid Acne, Know Hope, Ludo, Mark Carvalho, Miss Bugs, Nick Walker, NohJColey, Over Under, Radical!, Rene Gagnon, Skewville, Specter, Sweet Toof, Swoon, Tip Toe, Troy Lovegates AKA Other, Various & Gould, and White Cocoa.
The staunch individualists in Street Art Saved My Life : 39 New York Stories give voice to the evolution of the Graffiti, Mash-Up, and D.I.Y. movements that birthed them; creating an eccentric, highly individual, and raucous visual experience on the street. With widely varied backgrounds, techniques, and materials at play, “The Story” is the story. With truths as diverse and difficult as the city itself, each one of these artists is a part of a fierce, raw, new storytelling tradition that is evolving daily before our eyes.
Show Name: Street Art Saved My Life : 39 New York Stories
Location: C.A.V.E. Gallery, 1108 Abbot Kinney Blvd, Venice, California 90291
Date: Opening reception Friday August 12, 2011
Duration: August 12 – September 4, 2011.
Online Press Release: http://mim.io/692a11
Contact: Info@BrooklynStreetArt.com
Presented by Brooklyn Street Art in collaboration with ThinkSpace and C.A.V.E
Curated by Steven P. Harrington and Jaime Rojo of BrooklynStreetArt.com
Brooklyn Street Art is proud to collaborate with ThinkSpace Gallery and C.A.V.E. Gallery. Please note that the show will be at C.A.V.E. Gallery. Thank you.
Thinkspace Art Gallery www.thinkspacegallery.com
6009 Washington Boulevard, Culver City, CA 90232 (310) 558-3375
Wed – Fri 1PM-6PM Sat 1PM-8PM contact@thinkspacegallery.com
C.A.V.E. Gallery (location of the show) www.cavegallery.net
1108 Abbot Kinney Boulevard, Venice CA 90291, (310) 450-6560
Wed – Sun 12PM-6PM or by appointment info@cavegallery.net
Steven P. Harrington and Jaime Rojo are founders of BrooklynStreetArt.com and co-authors of Brooklyn Street Art and Street Art New York, both by Prestel Publishing (Random House). Harrington and Rojo are also contributing writers on street art for The Huffington Post.
The Lost Ones
"The Lost Ones"
New Image Art Gallery
Miss Bugs. Image Courtesy of the Gallery
7908 Santa Monica Blvd.
West Hollywood
CA 90046
Phone / Fax 323 654 2192
Thanks to everybody for the shout-outs about Fun Friday. We love you too.
I saw her at the party/auction/fundraiser on April 24th at Factory Fresh but I didn’t know she was shooting a video! So cool because she captured the fun crowd and the funnier DJ mixologists Sifunk and Garmunkle, who really rocked our already over stimulated brains with a rhythmic cut-copy-paste blend of funkiness. (get Paul’s New Mix FREE here) Anyway, thanks Natalie!
And on that note, thank you to all of the street artists who generously donated their time and work and creativity to the auction, which raised $16,000 for the programs at Free Arts NYC. Thank you also to the staff and many volunteers who helped make that show work – BSA recommends these people and these programs that provide valuable services to our neighbors and to NYC kids. A number of Street Artist already know about their programs and have volunteered as Big Brother/Sister mentors and worked with kids and families in the programs. Here, Cynthia and Alexis talk about their experience:
This year again, Free Arts NYC has committed to serving an additional 1,000 children to meet the high demand in New York for their programs. We hope you will consider donating today by clicking here to help them reach this important milestone and close the remaining $25,000 gap needed to expand their programs.
UR New York, true born and raised New Yorkers, not transplants like most of us, are taking their street art game another step forward in a positive way. You see their cool canvasses, but do you have any idea how many steps are involved in making a print?
Here’s a studio stop-action video that shows how the New York Duo 2Easae and Ski just churned out their first print called “Arsenic” with Art Asylum Boston. They only made 10, but it looks like a lot of effort. Using cans and brushes, these brothers are combining the best of their experience into their work.
UR New York, Street Artist Ron English has put up a bunch of new wheat paste posters on the Welling Court Mural Project in Queens, NY. The festival starts tomorrow and already the stuff that is up is worth the trip for this community event. English is taking the opportunity to lambaste Consumerism, Greed, Militarism, Religious Hypocrisy, Romanticizing Guns, and Advertising Hammerlocks on your Head — you know, all the lite topics – with a variety of graphic lampoons a la Mad Magazine in the 70’s.ee
Ron English's new work at Welling Court Mural Project this weekend (image courtesy Ron English)
See more pictures from Ron English’s online journal at Juxtapose HERE.
You may have missed this, and I’m so happy with it – so that’s two really good reasons to post this new NEW YORKY video we made with ROA this week. Have a great weekend!
BSA…………BSA…………BSA…………BSA…………BSA…………BSA…………BSA…………BSA…………
Artists that were part of the “Street Art New York” Auction Benefit for Free Arts NYC were Abe Lincoln Jr., Alex Diamond, Anera, Avoid Pi, Billi Kid, Bishop 203, Blanco, BortusK Leer, Broken Crow, C Damage, C215, Cake, Celso, Chris RWK, Chris Stain, Creepy, Dain, Damon Ginandes, Dan Witz, Dark Clouds, Dennis McNett, Elbow Toe, EllisG, FKDL, Gaia, General Howe, GoreB, Hargo, Hellbent, Imminent Disaster, Infinity, Jef Aerosol, Jim Avignon, JMR, Joe Iurato, Jon Burgerman, Keely, Know Hope, Logan Hicks, Mark Carvalho, Matt Siren, Mint and Serf, Miss Bugs, NohJColey, Nomadé, Peru Ana Ana Peru, PMP/Peripheral Media Projects, Poster Boy, Pufferella, Rene Gagnon, Roa, Royce Bannon, Skewville, Specter, Stikman, Swoon, The Dude Company, Tristan Eaton, UR New York (2esae & Ski), Veng RWK
With 60 artists, 73 artworks, over 500 guests, and a happy vibe created by the mad-scientists Sifunk & Garmunkle at music mission control, the Street Art New York Silent Auction Benefit for Free Arts NYC was a huge success. At the end of the night most of the walls were bare, and most of the pieces remaining had been purchased by absentee bidders. With animated conversations, excited bidding, and occasionally rambunctious dancing (Andrew), the night was really an excellent example of how the street art community is alive and well, and how the work of street artists is in demand.
Thank you to Ali and Ad at Factory Fresh for co-hosting the event, thank you to all the volunteers from Free Arts NYC who helped to hang it, pack it, and execute the auction, and special thanks to all the artists who so generously donated their pieces to the event. Also special thanks to all the blog friends (so many!) who wrote about this event and all the people who Tweeted it continuously, as well as the print publications who helped get the word out. We hope to thank you all personally some time, if not via email. Because of your help, the gallery and back yard were jammed with more people than anyone could remember.
Thank you to Reid Harris Cooper for sending us these pictures he took at the crowded party (we threw in a couple crowd shots from the cellphone). Reid actually scored the Blanco piece in the auction. If anyone else has pics from that night we would love to see them.
[flagallery gid=2 name=”Gallery”]
For more images by Reid Harris Cooper see his Flickr page HERE
See images and details of the pieces at our Flickr – which will be updated by the end of the day
Participating artists were: Abe Lincoln Jr., Alex Diamond, Anera, Avoid Pi, Billi Kid, Bishop 203, Blanco, BortusK Leer, Broken Crow, C Damage, C215, Cake, Celso, Chris RWK, Chris Stain, Creepy, Dain, Damon Ginandes, Dan Witz, Dark Clouds, Dennis McNett, Elbow Toe, EllisG, FKDL, Gaia, General Howe, GoreB, Hargo, Hellbent, Imminent Disaster, Infinity, Jef Aerosol, Jim Avignon, JMR, Joe Iurato, Jon Burgerman, Keely, Know Hope, Logan Hicks, Mark Carvalho, Matt Siren, Mint and Serf, Miss Bugs, NohJColey, Nomadé, Peru Ana Ana Peru, PMP/Peripheral Media Projects, Poster Boy, Pufferella, Rene Gagnon, Roa, Royce Bannon, Skewville, Specter, Stikman, Swoon, The Dude Company, Tristan Eaton, UR New York (2esae & Ski), Veng RWK
Well, Miss Bugs just arrived, and we were afraid it wouldn’t make it to the auction on time — and jumpin’ jumbo jets, it’s a high flying winner! Nothing but BLUE SKIES do I see…
See more of Miss Bugs HERE
See more pieces from the auction at http://www.flickr.com/photos/streetartnewyork/.
Learn more about the Street Art New York Silent Auction Benefit
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BROOKLYN STREET ART LOVES YOU MORE EVERY DAY
