First there was Labor Day, then the Jewish New Year, so it was easy to get a seat on the subway, and sometimes next to a model who’s here for Fashion Week and who got a room in Brooklyn on Air BnB (thinking BK is just steps away from Manhattan). Now everybody’s getting ready to vote in the mayoral primary on Tuesday and all the students are gearing up to start the new school year, and most people you meet on the street and on stoops are talking distrustfully/quizzically about O taking us to war in Syria. Meanwhile no humidity and lots of sunshine means every day seems nice for painting, pasting, or dissing somebody else’s work – depending on your frame of mind.
The big Calligraffiti show in Chelsea was packed Thursday night, where you could see some of your favorite artists in person like El Seed, Niels Shoe Meulman, Rostarr, and Olek, and you could catch work from Haring, Basquiat, and a room full of LAII. Out in Bushwick you could even catch Blek Le Rat, one of the originators of this kind of work, putting up some new pieces as he prepared for his opening last night at Jonathan Levine. And yesterday Faile started a monstrous new wall in Hells Kitchen that will create a swarm of fans and cameras on the street (more on that later). New York is spoiled, yo.
So here’s our weekly interview with the street, this week including Bast, Bishop203, Blek le Rat, Dede, DZIA, El Kamino, Faile, GIJ Van Hee, Icy & Sot, Pastel, Palladino, QRST, Skuzz, Wonky Monky, and You Go Girl!.
Top image is by Blek le Rat (photo © Jaime Rojo).
Blek le Rat at The Bushwick Collective. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Blek le Rat at The Bushwick Collective. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
FAILE . SKUZZ (photo © Jaime Rojo)
A surprise to find this new small sculpture, and even more surprised to find that it was made by QRST, a Street Artist we have been bringing you since he first hit the streets a few years ago. Gonna keep our eyes open for more of these… (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Andreco for Dolomiti Contemporanee. Belluno, Italy. (photo © Andreco)
Andreco for Dolomiti Contemporanee. Belluno, Italy. (photo © Andreco)
Andreco for Dolomiti Contemporanee. Belluno, Italy. (photo © Andreco)
Chin up darling, you know it’s a bright future. Artist who wishes to remain unknown. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
El Kamino on the side of a semi. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
You Go Girl (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Pastel is back in Buenos Aires, Argentina after a trip to Atlanta and NYC. (photo © Pastel)
Bast got a visit from Israel’s DEDE (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Bishop203 & Icy & Sot can be seen from a distant Bushwick Rooftop. Also, Wang Globalnet. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Wonky Monky (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Palladino (photo © Jaime Rojo)
DZIA . GIJ VAN HEE. Detail. Harmoniepark. Antwerp, Belgium. Summer 2013. (photo © Dzia)
DZIA . GIJ VAN HEE. Detail. Harmoniepark. Antwerp, Belgium. Summer 2013. (photo © Dzia)
DZIA . GIJ VAN HEE. Detail. Harmoniepark. Antwerp, Belgium. Summer 2013. (photo © Dzia)
DZIA . GIJ VAN HEE. Harmoniepark. Antwerp, Belgium. Summer 2013. (photo © Dzia)
Untitled. Brooklyn, NY. September 2013. (photo © Jaime Rojo)