Our weekly interview with the street, this week including DodieBoy, Dust Lust, Freddy Sam, Jaz, Lia Smaka, MSK, N’DA, Risk, Samson, Seh Palito, Sever, Swoon, Tian, Trustocorp, Various & Gould, and Wane.
Congratulations to the hundreds of newlywed couples in New York’s streets today!
Our preferred punk rock lopsided Anti-Fair, Fountain, is in full effect right now and this year is showing Street Artists like none of the stuffy one’s could bear; Just one step removed from the street. Some of New York’s current players hit up a 100 foot long wall with whatever they wanted. The eclectic result is a bit more “finished” than raw, but it’s a cross-section of chaotic influences that feels authentic. Here are a few shots of the art from the wall, followed by pieces inside the main exhibition. Fountain is running right now and has a musical show planned tonight with Ninjasonik and NSR and a Lomography Picture Party featuring thousands of blinding flashbulbs.
As we start a new year, we say thank you for the last one.
And Thank You to the artists who shared their 11 Wishes for 2011 with Brooklyn Street Art; Conor Harrington, Eli Cook, Indigo, Gilf, Todd Mazer, Vasco Mucci, Kimberly Brooks, Rusty Rehl, Tip Toe, Samson, and Ludo. You each contributed a very cool gift to the BSA family, and we’re grateful.
We looked over the last year to take in all the great projects we were in and fascinating people we had the pleasure to work with. It was a helluva year, and please take a look at the highlights to get an idea what a rich cultural explosion we are all a part of at this moment.
The new year already has some amazing new opportunities to celebrate Street Art and artists. We are looking forward to meeting you and playing with you and working with you in 2011.
For 11 days we’re presenting 11 artists and BSA readers and their wishes for the new year, 2011, in no particular order. Together, they are a tiny snapshot of the people who are creators and fans of street art. Individually, each has added their expression of the creative spirit to the year now ending.
Today’s wish comes from BSA reader and Street Artist Samson from Albany, New York, who won in the BSA Holiday Giveaway, with this photo of his best friends and with this wish:
I wish to change the world around me for the better, to brighten people’s worlds and to sharpen their minds. I wish for oneness.
We’re very grateful for a wildly prolific year of Street Art as it continued to explode all over New York (and a lot of other places too). For one full year we’ve been granted the gift of seeing art on the streets and countless moments of inspiration. Whether you are rich or poor in your pocket, the creative spirit on the street in New York makes you rich in your heart and mind.
To the New York City artists that make this city a lot more alive every day we say thank you.
To the artists from all over world that passed through we say thank you.
To our colleagues and peers for their support and enthusiasm we say thank you.
To the gallery owners and curators for providing the artists a place to show their stuff and for providing all of us a safe place to gather, talk, share art, laugh, enjoy great music and free booze we say thank you.
To our project collaborators for sharing your talents and insights and opinions and for keeping the flame alive we say thank you.
And finally to our friends, readers and fans; Our hearts go out to you for lighting the way and for cheering us on. Thank you.
Each Sunday we featured Images of the Week, and we painfully narrowed that field to about 100 pieces in this quick video. It’s not an encyclopedia, it’s collage of our own. We remember the moment of discovery, the mood, the light and the day when we photographed them. For us it’s inspiration in this whacked out city that is always on the move.
The following artists are featured in the video and are listed here in alphabetical order:
Aakash Nihalani,Bansky, Barry McGee, Bask ,Bast, Beau, MBW, Bishop ,Boxi, Cake, The Dude Company, Chris RWK, Chris Stain, Dain, Dan Witz ,Dolk ,El Mac, El Sol 25, Elbow Toe, Faile, Feral, Overunder, Gaia, General Howe, Hellbent, Hush, Imminent Disaster, Jeff Aerosol, Jeff Soto, JMR ,Judith Supine ,K-Guy ,Labrona, Lister, Lucy McLauchlan, Ludo, Armsrock, MCity, Miso, Momo, Nick Walker, Nina Pandolfo, NohjColey, Nosm, Ariz, How, Tats Cru, Os Gemeos, Futura, Pisa 73, Poster Boy, QRST, Remi Rough, Stormie Mills, Retna, Roa, Ron English, Sever, She 155, Shepard Fairey ,Specter, Sten & Lex, Samson, Surge I, Sweet Toof, Swoon, Tes One, Tip Toe, Tristan Eaton, Trusto Corp, Typo, Various and Gould, Veng RWK, ECB, White Cocoa, Wing, WK Interact, Yote.
The block party in Bushwick provided by Factory Fresh Gallery and the app called All City turned out a number of new Brooklyn Street Art pieces on a block long installation, complete with friends, fans, and a taco stand. Included in the offering was this surprise collab with Faile and Bast, auspiciously appearing the morning of the event like a pre-Christmas gift wrapped in razor wire. The news of the piece travelled fast and while Ad Deville couldn’t find his red carpet, he did post a velvet rope to hold back the crowd. That didn’t stop Futura from climbing on top of his car to get the perfect shot.
And here we move to a British invasion of sorts with Geishas and Primates from Hush and K-Guy respectively. XAM has been installing some pretty cool looking bird houses around town equipped with LED lights on their porches that illuminate when the sun sets. Infinity and VUDU’s pieces for the Showpaper box project adds to the conversation on the street with a beaming signal tower atop the box.
K-Guy’s recent “Primates” piece, including this one that appears to be pretty fresh, have been appearing around Brooklyn suddenly. Apparently its meaning is reference to the growing perception of hypocrisy in the Catholic church, particularly as pertains to pedophilia coverups, its position on contraception, gay rights, among other issues.
And finally the 800 pound pink gorilla in the group, Samson from Albany, began his audacious cityscape project directly beside his hero/shero Sten & Lex. The neighbor next door liked it so much Samson will be back to continue the piece – which is part of a much grander scale piece on urban decay, development, and renewal that he hopes to stage in the future.