All posts tagged: San Francisco

Images of the Week 09.16.12

September 16, 2012

 

Here is our weekly interview with the street, this week featuring Cern, Dain, El Sol 25, ETAM, Hef, Ka TVT, Kosbe, Lae, Lucx, Meks, Never, Nice-One, Phetus, Pilot, Reyes, Rez, RONE, Sebs, Skewville, Such, Vers, Victor Reyes, and Yes One.

Dain (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Dain (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Reyes. Click here for details on Reyes and Steel current show at Klughaus Gallery.  (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Nice One and Lucx Collaboration in Chicago (photo © Nice One)

HEF. Detail. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Yes One, Hef, Ka TVT, Never, Phetus. Detail.  (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Yes One, Hef, Ka TVT, Never, Phetus, Vers, Such, Lae, Rez, Cern, Pilot, Such, Meks, Sebs Summer wall collab. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Kosbe (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Etam painting in Vienna. (photo © Inoperable Gallery for BSA)

Etam in Vienna. (photo © Inoperable Gallery for BSA)

El Sol 25 new Ransom Letters Series. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

El Sol 25 new Ransom Letters Series. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

El Sol 25 new Ransom Letters Series. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Artists Unknown (photo © Jaime Rojo)

RONE in San Francisco. Click here for details on RONE current show at the White Walls Gallery (photo © White Walls Gallery for BSA)

RONE in San Francisco. (photo © White Walls Gallery for BSA)

RONE in San Francisco. (photo © White Walls Gallery for BSA)

Vintage Skewville in a bit of urban archeology in NYC. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Untitled. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

 

<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA

Please note: All content including images and text are © BrooklynStreetArt.com, unless otherwise noted. We like sharing BSA content for non-commercial purposes as long as you credit the photographer(s) and BSA, include a link to the original article URL and do not remove the photographer’s name from the .jpg file. Otherwise, please refrain from re-posting. Thanks!

<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA

 

Read more

941 Geary Gallery Presents: ROA “Dominant Species” (San Francisco, CA)

September 11, 2012 , , , , ,

ROA

ROA in Brooklyn Summer 2012 (photo © Jaime Rojo)

941 Geary is pleased to present “Dominant Species,” making San Francisco the latest home to ROA’s talent for the first time since his solo show at White Walls last year. “Dominant Species” will open Saturday, September 15th, from 6-9pm, with the exhibition free and open to the public for viewing through November 3rd, 2012.

Belgian-born artist, ROA, is known for his striking, and expressive depictions of animals, often stretching to multistoried heights. Even when not massive in scale, ROA’s animals are massive in impact, created with vivid details and the keen eye of a naturalist. Through a focus on local species, ROA reintroduces species that have been forced to the outskirts of urban areas back to the land they once inhabited freely. With this selection of creatures natural to the area, ROA is able to create a powerful sense of intimacy between the viewer and the animals represented. ROA’s paintings often show multiple anatomical layers of the same representation. The work is interactive and the depicted animals can be manipulated by the viewer.

ROA cemented his reputation as one of the world’s most prolific and recognizable street artists by painting members of the animal kingdom throughout major cities of the world, including Mexico City, New York City, Los Angeles, London, Paris, Sydney and many more. His work has now become a global affair, reaching between the Andes and the coast of Chile, the Australian Outback, the African Savanna, the Asian tropic, the American prairie and back to the abandoned factories in the backyard of his hometown in Belgium.

ROA’s “Dominant Species” is his latest body of work created directly after his road trip from the East to the West of America. Driving through the states he experienced and observed a diversity of habitats and species, including the American eagle, the historic symbol of imperialism. Even the icon of the American country is endangered by nature’s most combative intruder: humans. “Dominant Species” refers to humanity aside the history of the States, from the Spanish conquest that consequentially, and brutally, changed the native life up to the contemporary human invasion of the landscape. Travelling throughout the tragically magical landscape of Northern Arizona, ROA was fascinated by the illustrative examples of the Good, the Bad and the Ugly, seen in the paradox of the harmony of the Navajo with Mother Earth alongside the chaos of commercial feed lots, bear hunting, and landfills.

ROA’s site-specific process gives his art the ability to conform to the dimensions of a space and grow from within it, and 941 Geary will be entirely used by the artist to create his installation. “Dominant Species” will be constructed from found objects and salvaged materials, with the large-scale installation guided by a dystopian narrative and ideas of how civilization can run down the land it grew from. Aging wood, rusting metal and skeletal remains come together to remind us of the interrelated workings of our manmade cities and the natural world, with ROA’s mastery of anatomical form and beautiful renderings making these discarded objects something to value anew.

Event Information:

ROA: “Dominant Species”

Opening Reception September 15th, 2012, 6-9 pm

@ 941 Geary (www.941geary.com)

941 Geary St,

San Francisco, CA

Read more

Fun Friday 09.07.12

September 7, 2012

Happy Friday! Not much to do this weekend, sorry – Aside from these eighteen possibilities.

1. Maya Hayuk at Cooper Cole (Toronto)
2. NohJColey “In the Midst of Living” Friday (BKLN)
3. Judith Supine at Jonathan Levine Saturday (Manhattan)
4. Swoon Opens Pearly’s Beauty Shop Sat (Long Island City, Queens)
5. Brooklyn Busts Open Studio Doors for “GO” Courtesy Brooklyn Museum
6. “Epilogue” at Hold Up (LA)
7. “Disamiguation” at Carmichael (LA)
8. Mind Trip with ETAM at Inoperable (Vienna)
9. Bien Urbain Festival (Besancon, France)
10. Graffitimundo “Walls of Buenos Aires” at Newcastle Project Space
11. ESPO “A Word is Worth a Thousand Pictures” at Joshua Liner (NYC)
12. TRXTR “Lucked Up” at Get Up Gallery (Vegas)
13. Group show “This Art is So Street” (Philadelphia)
14. “Public Display” at Agnes b. (NYC)
15. “100 Story House” with Leon Reid IV at JJ Byrne Park
16. RERO Image Not Available at Fabien Castanier in Studio City, CA
17. RONE at White Walls (SF)
18. Ben Frost at Shooting Gallery (SF)

Maya Hayuk at Cooper Cole (Toronto)

Street Artist, Fine Artist and Brooklyn resident Maya Hayuk has a solo show at the Cooper Cole Gallery in Toronto, Canada is now open to the general public. Ms. Hayuk paintings are saturated with color, catching the prism from the crystal and permuting it into a multitude of geometrically inspired patterns and shapes, realize on canvas and walls across the land. Crisply precise, or improvised and free wheeling, Hayuk let’s her mind and her palette run with enthusiasm for the raw creative spirit.

Maya Hayuk on the streets of Brooklyn. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

For further information regarding this show click here.

Maya Hayuk will also be featured in GEOMETRICKS September 22nd in Brooklyn, curated by Hellbent and presented by BSA.

NohJColey “In the Midst of Living” Friday (BKLN)

NohJColey first solo show “In The Midst of Living” opens tonight at Weldon Arts Gallery in Brooklyn. Come and see in person NohJ characters and stare at their eyes. See who blinks first.

NohJColey. Detail (photo © Jaime Rojo)

For further information regarding this show click here.

To read our preview and for more images click here.

Judith Supine at Jonathan Levine Saturday (Manhattan)

Judith takes over the project room at the Jonathan Levine Gallery in Manhattan for a triple header with Audrey Kawasaki and Jeff Soto sharing the bill. Get there early because the line will be long so you can see them all and appreciate this opportunity to see why Judith Supine is “Too Much for One Man”.

Judith Supine. Detail. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

For further information regarding this show click here.

To read our interview and studio visit with JS as he prepared for this show click here.

Swoon Opens Pearly’s Beauty Shop Sat (Long Island City, Queens)

Nails done by a painter? Hair diorama by a sculptor? Makeup by a conceptual artist? When was the last time that at the SPA you got pampered by a bevy of talented, happy, fun, funny and not shy fine artists? Never?

A fundraiser for the Braddock project, Street Artist and fine artist Swoon has dreamed a perfect SPA party for you, inviting and recruiting many of her close artists friends to make you feel special and to look glorious. “DJ’s Roofeeo, Dirtyfinger, Manhate, and 3 Kings International Sound will make your body move and your fresh coat of glam shine while you explore indoor and outdoor dance parties, music, installations and performances by Lady Circus’ Anya Sapozhnikova, Marshall LaCount, Shenandoah Davis, Audra Pace, and Yea, Well, Whatever all situated in a stunning visual landscape.” This Saturday pick your outfit and be prepared to have the experience of a lifetime.

For further information regarding this event click here.

Brooklyn Busts Open Studio Doors for “GO” Courtesy Brooklyn Museum

The Brooklyn Museum continues to plug into community and show love for the blossomed artists neighborhoods that are transforming Brooklyn into the true creative powerhouse rivaling Manhattan, which is looking so “last century” across the river. BAM is a loved museum that regularly gets “it” by bringing community in, thanks to the efforts of many, including the talented curatorial team headed by Sharon Matt Atkins who opens the conversation and knows how to listen to the beat on the street and make a huge institution relevant to a new generation.

This time Ms. Atkins and the museum’s Chief of Technology, Shelley Bernstein are taking  inspiration from the thousands of artists who work and live in Brooklyn, creating the largest open studios event we’ve heard of in DUMBO, Williamsburg, Bushwick, Greenpoint, Gowanus, and Red Hook this weekend. You can vote for your favorites by nominating three artists for inclusion in an exhibition at the museum. The museum’s curators then will visit the ten artists who received the most nominations and they will select two or more artists to have their work shown at the Brooklyn Museum for and Exhibition opening on December 1.

1735 artists have responded to this call. How many can you visit? You have this Saturday and Sunday to GO AND SEE ART.

For further information regarding this project click here.

“Epilogue” at Hold Up (LA)

“Epilogue” is a trio exhibition opening this Saturday in Los Angeles at Hold Up Art Gallery with Street Artists Eddie Colla, Hugh Leeman and V Young D have combining talents to explore themes of their vision of a coming collapse of society. Fun times!

“Epilogue” (photo © Taylor Morgan)

For further information regarding this show click here.

To read our preview for this show and to see a video click here.

Also happening this weekend:

  • The Carmichael Gallery in Culver City, CA is hosting Carlos Mare, Rae Martini, Remi/Rough, Sixeart in a group show titled “Disambiguation” opening tomorrow. Click here for more details on this show.
  • ETAM, the Polish duo open a new show, “Mind Trip” at Inoperable Gallery in Vienna, Austria is now open to the general public. Click here for more details on this show.
  • BIEN URBAIN the Art Festival being held in Besançon, France has begun and it will continue until early October. With a great inclusion of Street Art in its abundant program this year they invited Mark jENKINs et sandra FERNANDEz (USA), hYURO (Argentine), MOMO (USA), ElTONO (France), EsCIF (Espagne), sAM3 (Espagne), Agostino IACURCI (Italie), Guillaume BERTRAND (France), pascal RUEFF (France), Graffiti Research lab (France), pascal RUEFF (France), jIEM (France), Caroline AMOROs & Co (France) to paint murals. Click here for more details on this festival.
  • The walls of Buenos Aires have moved to London with Graffitimundo show “The Talking Walls of Buenos Aires”. Interested to hear what they have to say? Head over to the Newcastle Project Space and put your ear to the walls and your eyes on the art. This show is now open. Click here for more details.
  • “A Word is Worth a Thousand Pictures” is the title of the new show by Stephen Powers AKA ESPO now open at the Joshua Liner Gallery in Manhattan. Click here for more details on this show.
  • TRXTR is in Vegas, with a new show titled “Lucked Up” at the Get Up Gallery. Now open, click here for more details on this show.
  • Curly’s curatorial debut takes place in Philadelphia with a group show titled “This Art is So Street” opening tonight at the Stupid Easy Gallery. With the inclusion of a certain Mr. Brainwash is in the line up of artists with talent and skills, Curly might be sending a secret message. Let us know if you decode it. The artists are: LNY, NoseGo, Don Pablo Pedro, Darkclouds, The Yok and Sheryo. Click here for more details .
  • The fashion label and store(s) Agnès b is on “Public Display” with a group show curated by ASVP opening Saturday at their store on Howard Street in Manhattan. The participating artists include: D*Face (London, UK), Faile (Brooklyn), Gaia (Baltimore), Hellbent (Brooklyn), Invader (Paris, FR), Miss Bugs (Bristol, UK), ND’A (Brooklyn), QRST (Brooklyn), and ASVP (New York). Click here for more details on this show.
  • Artists Leon Reid IV and Julia Marchesi‘s new public art project “100 Story House” will be open to the public on Saturday at the JJ Byrne Park, 5th Avenue btwn 3rd & 4th St. Park Slope, Brooklyn. Bring Books if you go! Click here for more details on this exhibition.
  • French artists RERO is a wordsmith with an extensive experience as a graffiti artist. His new solo show titled “RERO: Image Not Available” opens on Saturday at the Fabien Castanier Gallery in Studio City, CA. Click here for more details on this show.
  • Australian Street Artist RONE new show “Darkest Before The Dawn” at the White Walls Gallery in San Francisco opens on Saturday. Click here for more details on this show.
  • Ben Frost is in San Francisco at the Shooting Gallery with his new show “See Inside the Box for Details“. Click here for more details on this show.

 

Read more

Shooting Gallery Presents: Ben Frost “See Inside Box For Details” (San Francisco, CA)

September 7, 2012 , , , , , ,

Ben Frost

 

Shooting Gallery is pleased to present Australian artist Ben Frost’s solo show “See Inside Box for Details,” opening Saturday, September 8th, from 7-11 pm. The exhibition will feature approximately

The exhibition is free and will be open to the public for viewing through September 29th, 2012.

12 paintings on canvas as well as paintings on found

packaging, such as pharmaceutical boxes, candy and cereal packaging.

The controversial painter and street artist will be showcasing a unique body of work,

critiquing our media-obsessed society and our loss of innocence through advertising.

Ben’s work subverts logos, icons and characters from popular culture and re-presents

them in startling and often confronting new ways.

“See Inside Box for Details,” aims to re-evaluate our understanding of product

advertising by juxtaposing unlikely and confronting elements into some of our most

loved and well known consumer icons.

Ben Frost confronts the conjoined twins of

capitalism and consumerism with striking compositions that present a chaotic look at a seedy nature underlining pop culture, presenting sex and violence in a glamorous role. Most unnerving of all is that that on first glance the work of Ben Frost may seem innocuous, filled with the bright palette and playful characters of childhood cartoons and sugary cereals.

With a series of paintings placed on found pharmaceutical and food packaging, Frost highlights the disingenuous

optimism of advertising. The innocence of familiar cartoon forms overlain on stark boxes of prescriptions pills like Morphine and Botox opens a discourse on the proliferation of prescriptions in modern culture and the morally-ambiguous stake pharmacology has in society’s welfare.

From the Artist:

Whether it takes the form of medicine to keep sickness at bay or highly-

-processed treats to keep you content in front of the television, our pre-packaged

lifestyles are sold to us in colorful and dynamic boxes.

I’ve been using the logos and design elements of product packaging for many years,

and it seemed a natural evolution to begin painting directly onto the packaging – to

introduce

subversive elements within what already exists as an object.

Double entendre and satirical word play is brought out in new readings of our favorite

and well known products i.e. the breakfast cereal Special K features a drug dazed rabbit

introduced to the packaging, Viagra and Cialis boxes juxtaposed with Mr. Burns, Pop

Tarts featuring Britney Spears and Whitney Houston and a series of confronting

paintings onto McDonalds fries boxes.

Since I began painting onto packages in 2011,

the branding and product titles seem to be more obvious in their possible double

meanings. Twinkies, Hamburger Helper, Vanilla Cupcakes, Dirty Rice, Cheese Nips

and Hot Tamales have all suggested new and twisted re-imaginings.

I source the objects from different sources, either directly off the shelves of

supermarkets, friends who are in the medical industry, trash cans and from people who

actually use the various medicines that are inside the boxes.

 

Read more

White Walls Gallery Presents: RONE “Darkest Before the Dawn” (San Francisco, CA)

September 7, 2012 , , , , , ,

RONE

 

White Walls is pleased to present “Darkest Before the Dawn,” the first SF solo show of Melbourne-based artist Rone to follow his successful San Francisco debut in the “Young and Free” showcase of Australian street artists at 941 Geary in 2011. “Darkest Before the Dawn,” will feature works on canvas, brick, and paper, varying in size from 3’x2’ to large-scale works measuring over 6’x6’. The opening reception will be Saturday, September 8th, from 7-11pm, and the exhibition is free and open to the public for viewing through September 29th, 2012.

With the face of the same wide-eyed and sharp-featured woman starring in each portrait, Rone creates a modern legend. Separately, each piece is an autonomous work, existing through its own beauty, but when viewed together a narrative is opened, leaving us to wonder what led to the birth of this icon. In “Darkest Before the Dawn,” Rone tells us that his feature character stands as a symbol for the possibility of assimilating our worst moments into a new strength.

By incorporating a variety of techniques, Rone deliberately infuses each piece with the textures he readily encounters when working out in the streets. The build-up and deconstruction of multiple layers is a fluid, free flowing way of revealing a composition by letting it come about itself. The medley of patterns and textures embody the continuity of time passing, while the woman in the midst of it all personifies grace overcoming deterioration.

From the Artist:

“We all have moments in our lives that make us who we are. These may be both tragedies and great moments that change the way we see the world. ‘Darkest Before the Dawn’ explores the concept of our darkest moments will eventually become our strengths, told through stylized portraits of a modern heroine.

I am trying to tell this story with the textures I see on the street, hand painted signage, torn bill posters and the deteriorating walls that look like they could tell their own stories. Using a palette of muted colours inspired by the fading colours I saw in Miami & Cuba, I am trying to create a sense of 80’s when style was all that mattered.”

 

Read more

Fun Friday 08.24.12

August 24, 2012

DUUUUUUUDE, it’s Fun Friday! We changed the sign today. Looks fresh right?

1. ICY & SOT “Made in Iran” (NYC)
2. Barry McGee at Berkeley (CA)
3. BORF Solo in Newcastle (UK)
4. “Klimpt Illustrated” at Lazarides (London)
5. Lush Does “Shitty Drawings in New York City”
6. Shepard Fairey Does “Americana” (LA)
7. Dabs & Myla: Artists Driven (VIDEO)
8. CYRCLE “Beautiful Disaster” (VIDEO)
9. ALL STYLES Dance Battle at Postmasters Gallery in NYC (VIDEO)

ICY & SOT “Made in Iran” (NYC)

Two Street Art brothers, Icy & Sot, born in Iran and encouraged by their parents to pursue their dreams and aspirations have ventured outside their country and landed in New York, their first foreign trip, their first international city, their first art show in which they were able to attend. “Made in Iran” is now open to the everybody at the Open House Gallery in Manhattan.

Icy & Sot (photo © Jaime Rojo)

For further information regarding this show click here.

Barry McGee at Berkeley (CA)

The University of California, Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAM/PFA) mid-career survey of San Francisco based artist Barry McGee.  From the press release: “Using a visual vocabulary that borrows elements from comics, hobo art, sign painting, and other sources, McGee’s work addresses a range of issues, from individual survival and social malaise to alternative forms of community”. This exhibition is now open to the general public.

Junior, what up with the car? Barry McGee in Miami for Primary Flight 2009 (photo © Jaime Rojo)

For further information regarding this exhibition click here.

BORF Solo in Newcastle (UK)

Detroit native BORF has traveled to England for his solo show “Walls Are Two-Sided” at The Outsiders Newcastle. With this new body of work, Borf illustrates the derelict aspect of Detroit and elevates the decay to art by zeroing in on a detail of the building’s peeling and corroding facade and transporting that vision on to the canvas. The result in the words of the press release is: “Rothko talked about wrestling with opposing and competing elements to eventually discover an equilibrium, what he called a pocket of silence” says BORF. “For this show I was fighting through layers of ambivalence and opposites: graffiti as youth expression and Rothko as adult expression; the art market and property rights; education and improvisation, youth and adulthood.” This show is now open.

Borf on the streets of Brooklyn C. 2007 (photo © Jaime Rojo)

For further information regarding this show click here.

“Klimpt Illustrated” at Lazarides (London)

Gustav Klimt the famous Austrian painter is turning 150 years old and The Vienna Tourist Board has teamed with The Lazarides Gallery in London to give Klimt street creed in the hopes that younger audiences will start following him on Twitter to gain knowledge on the secrets of his longevity and hopefully on his craft as well. To this effect curator Sydney Ogidan tapped nine international artists to take inspiration from some of the master’s most iconic masterpieces and create their own paintings. The opening reception for this show “Klimt Illustrated” is tonight at Lazarides Gallery in SOHO.

For further information regarding this show click here.

Lush Does “Shitty Drawings in New York City”

We thought we noticed a change in the air when the Australian storm called LUSH landed on these shores. Well here he is, likely to offend a few uptight prone-to-nose-bleeds stiffs and even more likely to amuse a lot more of us loose New Yorkers. LUSH has been madly working on a series of drawings/illustrations for his show “Shitty Drawings In New York City” opening Saturday night at the Klughaus Gallery in Manhattan. Half political cartoons/ half comic book with a blunt appreciation of the mechanics of the male and female reproductive organs, LUSH’s commentary on social, political and popular culture can be right on the spot. Dimwits need not apply.

LUSH (photo © Jaime Rojo)

For further information regarding this show click here.

Shepard Fairey Does “Americana” (LA)

Shepard Fairey needs no introductions at this point in his career or this point in our dang blog. One can always be certain to find him busy at work and getting involved in as many projects as he can humanly fit in his schedule. Mr. Fairey is constantly looking for inspiration and finding it often in popular culture that is around and accessible to all of us. For his new show “Americana” opening tomorrow at the Perry Rubestein Gallery in Los Angeles the artist has created a new body of work inspired by the songs of the great artist-musician Neil Young.  Shepard has found material for his canvases in the songs of Mr. Young new album “Crazy Horse”.

Shepard Fairey in Miami for Wynwood Walls 2009. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

For further information regarding this show click here.

Dabs & Myla: Artists Driven (VIDEO)

CYRCLE “Beautiful Disaster” (VIDEO)

ALL STYLES Dance Battle at Postmasters Gallery in NYC (VIDEO)

You gotta give it up peoples! These are some of the best kids doing their thing right now. BSA Love to all of y’all.

Read more

Mike Giant Inks a Wall in Chinatown

August 1, 2012 , , ,

New York has seen its share of giants. For most people, Mike is just another one.

But for fans of cholo-style graffiti and tattoo inspired art, he is a giant among men. That’s why it was cause for a celebration to see this skate boarding, fixie tricking, graffiti painting, grandpa hipster in suspenders hitting up a fresh white wall with some juicy markers last week under the Manhattan Bridge.

Mike Giant (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Thermometer-wise, it was one of our worst July days. For a fleeting moment the bespectacled grey buzzcut artist looked like he wasn’t going to take the New York heat while working outside in crushing hot humidity that felt like the inside of a rice cooker here in Chinatown. But the visitor from San Francisco’s Tenderloin rallied, calmed himself, found his personal zen, and focused on his wall with a positive mindset. While a cluster of hosts and fans stood by Giant methodically laid out the kind of precise, sharp lined calligraphic illustration that has distinguished his work and indelibly marked his reputation among the skater-punk-tattooed-graffiti-lowbro West Coast heroes of the last two-plus decades.

Mike Giant (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Very covered in full color ink himself, except for black and grey sleeves, the sometimes tattooist routinely updates his personal skin art collection with work by the likes of Greg Rojas and Chris Conn, like the recent additions of the Apple logo and the bars from Black Flag among the skulls and snakes and sassy vixens. Also routinely, his exacting and precise drawings sell out at shops and packed gallery shows across the world as his work is compared to that of such Mexican/cholo art pioneers like Mr. Cartoon, Chaz Bojorquez, and Jack Rudy. The symbols and metaphors popping boldly, they frame each other even as their meanings and origins conflict; reptiles, tigers, garden roses and The Grim Reaper sit comfortably alongside ornately carved crosses, the Virgin of Guadalupe and hot tattooed girls in fishnets giving you the finger.

Mike Giant (photo © Jaime Rojo)

For this street installation, Giant’s act of inking the wall affected the assembled fans and observers like the chanting of Spanish monks in those remote and silent monasteries: a slowly creeping utter peace. He approached the task with serenity, at a pace that seemed to conserve time rather than spend it. In complete control of his craft, he can aptly break away when approached for a chat or to sign a deck or black book.

Mike Giant (photo © Jaime Rojo)

This gig at Klughaus Gallery was to help promote a group show and launch the 8th issue of Kingbrown magazine and Giant said he was happy to visit the town he once lived in for a year before seeking the quieter pace of San Francisco. Right across from the spot is one of the city’s busiest skateparks and for most of the afternoon his work was accompanied by the unmistakeable sound of some exhibition boards hitting the concrete for friendly competitive trickery. He probably felt at home like this since he’s known to hang at the occasional skatepark or empty swimming pool back on the west coast. And for one day in this unbearable NYC heat, a number of fans were happy to see him knocking out this black and white wall, meditating on the good things that a fine line brings.

Mike Giant (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Mike Giant (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Mike Giant (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Mike Giant (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Mike Giant (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Mike Giant (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Mike Giant (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Mike Giant (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Mike Giant (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Mike Giant (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Mike Giant (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Mike Giant (photo © Jaime Rojo)

The L.E.S. Coleman Skate Park  (photo © Jaime Rojo)

A custom designed and painted ramp by Kevin Lyons was used in the competition. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Mike Giant (photo © Jaime Rojo)

For details to visit the gallery to see Mike Giant’s completed panels in person and to see the rest of the exhibition now open to the general public click here.

Klughaus and Kingbrown produced this event in partnership with Fountain Art fair.

Artists included in the show are Morning Breath, Andy Jenkins, Chris Cycle, Dave Kinsey, “Grotesk” aka Kimou Meyer, Stefan Marx, Kevin Lyons, Mike Giant, Raza Uno aka MAx Vogel, Greg Lamarche, Zach Malfa-Kowalski, Steve Gourlay, Jay Howell, and Ben Horton, Beastman, Phibs, Hiro, Reka, Kyle “Creepy” Hughes-Odgers, Meggs, Sean Morris, Yok, Sheryo, Ross Clugston, Daek, Lister, Numskull, Ian Mutch, Rone/ aka Tyrone Wright.

 

<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA

Please note: All content including images and text are © BrooklynStreetArt.com, unless otherwise noted. We like sharing BSA content for non-commercial purposes as long as you credit the photographer(s) and BSA, include a link to the original article URL and do not remove the photographer’s name from the .jpg file. Otherwise, please refrain from re-posting. Thanks!

<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA

 

Read more

Fifty24SF Gallery Presents: Jeremy Fish “Where Hearts Get Left” (San Francisco, CA)

July 12, 2012 , , , , ,

Jeremy Fish

Jeremy Fish “Where Hearts Get Left” at FIFTY24SF Gallery

FIFTY24SF Gallery, in association with Upper Playground, is pleased to announce a new exhibition by San Francisco-based fine artist, Jeremy Fish. Where Hearts Get Left is Fish’s first gallery show with Upper Playground in 5 years, featuring 60 new works inspired by and created as a visual love letter to the city of San Francisco. The exhibition will open on July 14, 2012 with a special afterparty at Milk Bar in Haight Ashbury, featuring a set by hip-hop artist, Edison. The exhibition runs through September 14, 2012.

For Where Hearts Get Left, Fish has prepared six paintings, four statues, fifty drawings, six screen prints, and an installation specifically created for FIFTY24SF Gallery. As well as the original artwork presented in Where Hearts Get Left, Fish has created 6 screen prints for the show, each in edition of 100 only available through FIFTY24SF Gallery. There will also be a limited edition, hand bound book featuring 50 black and white drawings, printed in an edition of 100 in a wood and leather cover, printed by Edition One Books in Berkeley, California.

FIFTY24SF Gallery
218 Fillmore Street
San Francisco, California 94117

Read more

White Walls Gallery Presents: Meggs “Truth in Myth” (San Francisco, CA)

July 1, 2012 , , , , ,

MEGGS

Meggs at work in San Francisco (photo courtesy of the gallery © Colin M. Day)

White Walls Presents: “Truth in Myth,” New Work by Meggs
White Walls is pleased to present “Truth in Myth,” a solo exhibition from Australian artist Meggs. The opening reception will be Saturday, July 14th, from 7-11pm, and the exhibition is free and open to the public for viewing through August 4th, 2012. Mythology tells the stories of gods, heroes, humans and supernatural beings as the personification of natural phenomena and more importantly the human condition. In traditional folklore, a myth tells a story that is designed to explain certain ideals, practices and behaviors within society. Following from his interest in superheroes and
comic book narratives, Meggs delves deeper into the subject of fantasy to explore characters and stories from older mythological tales through the morals, dualities and emotions that these superhuman characters represent. Fusing elements of contemporary superheroes to ancient mythological beings, “Truth in Myth” is a collection of new paintings, collage, sculpture and mixed media artworks that expressively reference classic renaissance composition and contemporary pop culture. The layered and detailed works of “Truth in Myth” serve as a continuation of the artist’s search for balance in the understanding of physical and ideological duality of self. “We live in the stories we tell ourselves. In a secular, scientific rational culture lacking in any convincing spiritual leadership, superhero stories speak loudly and boldly to our greatest fears, deepest longings and highest aspirations… the best superhero stories deal directly with mythic elements of the human condition… they help us confront and resolve even the deepest existential crisis. We should listen to what they have to tell us.” – Grant Morrison, Supergods, 2011
Event Information: “Truth in Myth” by Meggs Opening Reception – July 14th, 2012, 7-11 pm On View Through August 4th, 2012 @ White Walls (www.whitewallssf.com) 835 Larkin St, San Francisco, CA
Read more

Images of the Week 06.17.12

June 17, 2012 , , ,

Welling Court, in Queens, NYC is a city block where three-family homes intermingle with small family owned business — a nice old-fashioned model with today’s 1st and 2nd generation immigrants taking a crack at an American dream. The art-minded Buxtons, Allison and Garrison, never seem to tire of providing a safe, roomy space to artists to create within and for the third year they have hosted “Welling Court” here in this neighborhood. But it’s more than a bunch of mismatched weirdo art kids getting up on walls with their own vision and isolated from their surroundings. Allison and Garrison want all the kids to play together nicely and that’s why yesterday there were also bicycle races down the main block with a chalk finish line, a section of wall reserved for all ages to try their can skillz, and that’s why moms and dads  brought out food in metal trays and set up barbecues and used a truck as a mobile dj booth to blast cumbias and reggae inflected dance/hip-hop/two-step/classic rock all up and down the block.

As we celebrate Father’s Day today we gotta hand it to the ones who stay involved and engaged in their kids lives, and to the stand-in Dads who give guidance and encouragement to all of us when the real ones aren’t to be found. We also salute the Buxtons’ experiment in building art and community here, where aerosol fumes mix with barbecue smoke and an international bevy of Street Artists come to let their guard down and get their game on. It’s not commercial, often exceeds expectations, and always engenders feelings and behaviors of “family”.  And doesn’t everybody benefit from that?

We begin this Sunday’s Images of the Week with a small selection of some of the completed murals from yesterday. We’ll bring you the full account later in the week. The second part of today’s images show BSA readers some exclusive images of new Street Art sent to us from around the world. Artists include, Brett Armory, Cekis, Dan Witz, Hellbent, Michael Aaron Williams, Olek, R. Robots, Rene Gagnon, Skewville, Skount, Stormie Mills, and Yote.

Let’s start off with this little bundle of joy from New York Street Artist and fine artist Dan Witz, who may have based this portrait on someone he knows quite well.

Dan Witz. Welling Court 2012 (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Hellbent. Welling Court 2012 (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Rene Gagnon. Welling Court 2012 (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Stormie Mills. Welling Court 2012 (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Stormie Mills. Welling Court 2012 (photo © Jaime Rojo)

OLEK. Welling Court 2012 (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Dan Witz. Welling Court 2012 (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Cekis. Welling Court 2012 (photo © Jaime Rojo)

“Whoops, dropped one!” Rene Gagnon at Welling Court 2012 (photo © Jaime Rojo)

RRobots presents a departure from his usual street fare. Welling Court 2012 (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Skewville. Welling Court 2012 (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Brett Amory doing a miniature portrait series on the street in San Francisco for Spoke Art Gallery. (photo © Berlin Tomas)

Brett Amory in San Francisco for Spoke Art Gallery. (photo © Brett Amory)

Getting ready for take-off! Michael Aaron Williams. Chai. Thailand (photo © Michael Aaron Williams)

Michael Aaron Williams. Chai. Thailand. (photo © Michael Aaron Williams)

Skount shares a lot of “Fisherman Color” in Tel-Aviv at the Old Seaport. (photo © Skount)

Skount. A collaged photo of “Fisherman Color” Tel-Aviv, Old Seaport. (photo © Skount)

Olek in Montreal inspired by Street Artist Stikki Peaches. (photo © Olek)

Olek in Montreal inspired by Street Artist Stikki Peaches. (photo © Olek)

Yote “Flowers for Frederick” A mural dedicated to artist Frederick Brown. (photo © Yote)

Street Artist Yote sends this tribute to an artist and teacher. “Frederick Brown recently passed away and I wanted to dedicate this mural to him. It is entitled “Flowers for Frederick.”  He was best known for his portraits of jazz singers and musicians.  I talked to him on the phone this spring in hopes to get advice on how to loosen up my style and not be such a perfectionist from a real expressionist.  He was too sick to talk for long but I do know he used to instruct students to complete two dozen paintings in a week and things like that to get them out of their head and into painting”~  Yote

Yote “Flowers for Frederick” A mural dedicated to artist Frederick Brown. (photo © Yote)

 

<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA

Please note: All content including images and text are © BrooklynStreetArt.com, unless otherwise noted. We like sharing BSA content for non-commercial purposes as long as you credit the photographer(s) and BSA, include a link to the original article URL and do not remove the photographer’s name from the .jpg file. Otherwise, please refrain from re-posting. Thanks!

<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA

 

 

 

 

 

 

Read more

New Image Art Gallery @ ArtPadSF (San Francisco, CA)

May 14, 2012 , , ,

Art Pad San Francisco

NEW IMAGE ART, ROOM 43
ArtPadSF @ THE PHOENIX HOTEL, 

601 EDDY ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109
We are pleased to announce that we will be among the 40+ featured exhibitors at ArtPadSF. We are looking forward to this spectacular annual event, and we hope you can join us this year!
From May 17 to May 20, over 10,000 art enthusiasts and collectors will return to the iconic Phoenix Hotel for the second edition of ArtPadSF, San Francisco’s only hotel-based art fair. Referred to by art community insiders as “a touch of Art Basel Miami in San Francisco,” ArtPadSF convenes exhibitors from across the United States, with an eye toward the San Francisco collector. True to form, ArtPadSF promises a break from the traditional booth fair, featuring full immersion arts programming and notable exhibitors in distinct spaces.Organized by a team based in the Bay Area year-round, ArtPadSF is the only local art fair with San Francisco roots. With a keen understanding of the Bay Area market, the ArtPadSF Advisory Board has thoughtfully curated over 40 notable contemporary and emerging galleries.

OPENING NIGHT PREVIEW TO BENEFIT SFMOMA’s 2012/13 SECA ART AWARD

On May 17, ArtPadSF will launch with an exclusive preview show benefiting the 2012/13 SECA Art Award. Since 1967, SFMOMA’s SECA (Society for the Encouragement of Contemporary Art) has honored more than 70 Bay Area artists of exceptional promise with this biennial award. ArtPadSF co-founders, Chip Conley (also founder of Joie de Vivre Hotels) and Maria Jenson, have partnered with SECA to shine a light on this important award program that has drawn recognition to many Bay Area artists, including D-L Alvarez, Tauba Auerbach, Rosana Castrillo Díaz, Kota Ezawa, Colter Jacobsen, Chris Johanson, Ruth Laskey, Barry McGee, and Laurie Reid, among many others.For more information about ArtPadSF’s special exhibitions, panels and performances, please visit http://artpadsf.com. You can also stay current on updates via Facebook and Twitter.

We look forward to seeing you at the fair.

THE DETAILS

Thursday, May 17
4:00PM – 6:00PM     Press Preview
6:00PM – 8:00PM     VIP Preview
8:00PM – 10:00PM   Opening Night Preview benefiting SFMOMA’s 2012/13 SECA Art Award
Friday, May 18
12:00PM – 8:00PM   General Admission
6:00PM – 10:00PM   Black Rock Arts Foundation Benefit Party*
*Separate ticket required for entry
Saturday, May 19
12:00PM – 8:00PM   General Admission
Sunday, May 20
12:00PM – 5:00PM   General Admission
Read more

White Walls Gallery Present: Word To Mother “Can’t Afford to be Broke” (San Francisco, CA)

May 10, 2012 , , , , ,

Word To Mother

White Walls is pleased to present Can’t Afford to be Broke, a solo exhibition from Word To Mother, featuring new works on wood along with a small run of exclusive ‘zines with hand-pulled screen printed cover. The opening reception will be Saturday, May 12th, from 7-11 pm, and the exhibition is free and open to the public for viewing through June 2nd, 2012.

London-based artist Word To Mother’s newest collection of works features his distinctive visual assemblages of figures, patterns and typography painted in mixed media on wooden panels. Drawing from his own experiences in recent years, the state of the economy, and riots on his doorstep Can’t Afford To Be Broke sees Word To Mother showing a sense of desperate yet hopeful pieces, using familiar references of both current and vintage popular culture icons, which evoke a sense of humor amongst more melancholic figures. Delving deeper into his exploration of color, Word to Mother expands into more primary tones alongside his usual favored natural palette. Gestural marks are layered and ‘buffed’ to create textured expanses of muted tones with injections of fluorescent reds and oranges appearing like small explosions of optimism amongst an overcast sky.

With wooden assemblages featuring smaller studies, text pieces and collections of salvaged items next to large scale paintings, there is a balance of subtlety contrasted with Word To Mother’s sense of humor and directness that can be summed-
up perfectly in the “Fuck You Pay Me” Baseball bat pieces.

Can’t Afford to be Broke sees a maturity in painting and a hand-crafted feel that is ever- present in Word To Mother’s pieces, resulting in what we believe is his strongest collection of works to date.

From the Artist:

“Everyone’s perception of ‘Broke’ is different. It’s all relative to our situation. In situations where celebrity riches and materialistic lifestyles are portrayed by the media, we have been conditioned to feel more valued as an individual based upon what we own, rather than our actions.

People are emotionally broke, financially broke, and physically broke, from the structure of the society we live in. Unless we educate ourselves, work hard, and take the right risks, we won’t get anywhere. We won’t get out. We will continue to be broke.

I can’t afford to be broke.”

Event Information:

Can’t Afford to be Broke by Word To Mother

Opening Reception – May 12th, 2012, 7-11 pm On View Through June 2nd, 2012
@ White Walls (www.whitewallssf.com)
835 Larkin St, San Francisco, CA

Read more

Featured Video | Martin Wong’s “Houston Street”

Recent Articles on BSA