can by Kevin Stadler

CAN

table of

SPRAY PAINT BEIJING

PUBLIC PROVO CATION III

HUSH HYMN TO BEAUTY

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10 B E S T CITIES AROUND T H E WORLD

TO SEE GRAFFITI A R T 4

B G M C SA BR ME AUS CAP SOU TEIPE TAIW KUALA MALAY EEL

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BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA QUEENS, NEW YORK BRISTOLS, UNITED KINGDOM BERLIN, GERMANY MONTREAL, CANADA AN PAULO, RAZIL ELBOURNE, STRAILIA PE TOWN, UTH AFRICA EI, WAN A LAMPUR, YSIA SUE LEE

I S P R AY PAINT BEI JING G R A F F I T I I N T H E C A P T I TA L O F C H I N A

From China to Occupy Wall Street “Liberty” is an expression of art, says Chinese artist-activist Ai Weiwei, who returned to make his home in China after thousands of students were killed at Tienanmen Square in Beijing in 1989. [ Please watch the full length BBC documentary below]

Occupy the Courts will be a one day occupation of Federal courthouses across the country, including the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on Friday January 20, 2012, which is the second anniversary of the “Corporate Personhood” decision that gave citizenship rights to corporations to donate I was at Occupy Wall Street in NYC in October to election funds and influence Congress. 2011, and when I traveled to Miami in December to enjoy Art Basel -- I was also greeted I just watched this fascinating BBC docuby “Occupy Art Basel” posters in shops along mentary about the great Chinese artist and Lincoln Road, and in an exhibit building near activist Ai Weiwei. the New World Center, where an outdoor film festival celebrated 10 years of Art Base This is a full length BBC Documentary with “Art is My Weapon” was stenciled onto the Chinese artist - activist Ai Weiwei, who defront walkway leading up to this year’s signed the bird’s nest stadium at the Beijing “American” themed Rubell Family Collec- Olympics, and brought together a village of tion Show in Miami and a large room at the 1,600 artists for more than two years to hand start of the exhibit was filled with Roman make 100 million porcelain sunflower seeds columns and military assault rifles and the as a tribute to the history of the Chinese debris of war, all covered over by thick gold people. He experienced the NYC art scene of paint. the 1980’s and was fascinated by social protests and the Iran Contra trials. He returned Guests were treated to “milk and honey” - to make his home in China after thouMilk that they received from a sterile incu- sands of students were killed at Tienanmen bator room and honey that dripped from Square. His modern art often pays homage somewhere above, which could be caught to the art that was destroyed during Mao’s in a spoon or spooned off of a white slab... “Cultural Revolution” and also serves to tell Art makes you think. the story of today’s China with honesty and without fear. ... He is a true inspiration to About where we have come from ... “Arab Spring” and #Occupy movement artist And where we are today ... - activists - and protesters.

spray paint beijing

PUBLIC PROVO CATION I I I 2 8

While some of the most established – and rich – including Adam Neate and Andrew McAttee have taken the ‘street’ out of their art and now work exclusively in the studio, for others it’s vital to keep it real. ‘Working on the street feeds into the work you do for a gallery,’ says Pure Evil.

While some artists feel they have to work on the street to stay authentic, Cassius Colman is more pragmatic: ‘The gossip when a so-called new Banksy appears feeds the whole street art scene. For galleries it’s free advertising; for the purchaser, it’s kudos.’

-SharonMizota

public provocation III

Weil am Rhein – «Public Provocations» opens on June 11th 2011 at Carhartt Gallery. Already in its third iteration, this year’s exhibition presents a unique cross-section of current works in Urban Art. New curator Stefan Winterle and the Carhartt Gallery Team are showing big name artists, fresh talents, an interdisciplinary cornucopia of styles and formal approaches. Parallel to Art Basel the gallery presents artists that have set benchmarks and artists poised to do so in the near future. The 12 artists will be highlighted within their individually designed spaces, creating an exciting and never before seen collective dynamic befitting their creative spirit. In December 2006 the Carhartt Gallery opened its doors and immediately welcomed art born and popularized in cityscapes around the globe. Public spaces have long since become the forum

III» presented by new curator Stefan Winterle, Francesca Fresta and Bianca Porcelli brings together an eclectic group of artists, both known and up-and-coming. Urban Art lives through colors and its interpreters. «PUBLIC PROVOCATIONS III» shows works by living legends and young artists hailing from Russia, Europe, the United States and Latin America whose art styles range from stencils, acrylics, oil, writing and characters to architectural creations. The 12 individual artspaces of Carhartt Gallery offer ample room for all of them. El Mac (USA), Loomit (DE), Won ABC (DE), Aryz (ES) Scheme (RU), to name but a few, define styles

for experimentation with colors, shapes and varied materials, a forum not only for provocation but communication. During the planning stages of the Carhartt Outlet in Weil am Rhein, Edwin Faeh, CEO Carhartt Europe, had the idea of integrating an art gallery into the space. With Faeh’s longstanding, avid interest in urban art as its basis, the mere idea quickly became a reality. Sigi von Koeding, DARE, whose work as the gallery’s curator from its inception until 2010 proved both groundbreaking and defining, presented over 60 different artists, among them godfathers such as Seen, Blek Le Rat, Mode2 and Delta within this unique context. «PUBLIC PROVOCATIONS

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that inspire others. The works on display suggest how a provocation can evolve – a means of expression and an art style with urban roots, both creative and authentic, that has found its way into museums. A lively and unique exhibition that can be experienced from June until October 2011 at the Carhartt Gallery -

See more at: http://graffart.eu/blog/2011/05/ carhartt-gallery-public-provocations-iii-june-11th-2011/#sthash.CeviXwy8.dpuf

public provocation III

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Carhartt Gallery – Public Provocations III – June 11TH 2011 -

H U S H H Y M N T O 3 B E A U T Y 12

hush hymn to beauty

NH: Tell us a bit about your studio practice and your method of distressing your canvases, in effect aging them or subjecting them to decay… H: I play with lots of ideas in the paintings I make and like to reference a lot of movements, past and present. I have always loved that old graf rule about a throw can go over a tag, a dub over a throw, a piece over a dub and so on. Also I love the transient way in which work on the street evolves and usually looks more at home the longer it settles, gets going over, degrades and fades. I try to create all these actions and mistakes in the studio.

fact that I will take more risks on one so my work progresses. There does come a point where I will only finish one as it becomes obvious which one is working. I also do this so when I make a new painting I can go over the discarded painting and leave remains of it visible to the viewer. I kind of take pleasure in known that there was a good piece and lots of work underneath a painting. It always feels uncomfortable working on a clean canvas; I like the feel and textures of a worked-on canvas. It gives it some life straight away.

NH: Forgive my ignorance, but I know “throw” and “tag” obviously, but what’s a I always work on 2 of the same paintings “dub”--is that a UK thing? Oh wait I think I every time I create a piece, partly for the know--is it a two-color throw?

hush hymn to beauty

Also making people look at art--you have to comment whether you’re interested or not. I see graffiti, especially tagging, as a form of expressionism, a political action; and when lots of them are seen in one place and on the street, that creates a visual image like nothing else I can compare it to. It's beautiful.

NH: You use the phrases “action painting” and “pure expressionism” to describe your practice. Especially the phrase “action painting” has only really been used to describe certain Abstract Expressionists, like Jackson Pollock, so it’s quite interesting to see you resurrect these terms. I find it’s an apt comparison with graffiti, with its emphasis on handstyles, as an art form that is very focused on the gesture, often the repetitive gesture. Do you feel a connection, then, between some aspects of the Abstract Expressionist movement and graffiti? Does the street, public space, become Harold Rosenberg’s proverbial “arena” for the performance of painting, rather than the canvas?

H: That’s exactly my view, I see graffiti, especially tagging, as a form of expresNH: Do you draw a distinction between sionism, a political action; and when lots works you create specifically for a gallery of them are seen in one place and on the context and work that is made for the street, that creates a visual image like nothing else I can compare it to. It’s beautiful. street? H: Yes, dub is two colour.

H: Yes definitely. I’ve never been a prolific street artist--to be honest I’m more inspired by it, especially the action of tagging and the mentality. It is and always has been a buzz though; doing something you’re not supposed to always is, especially when you get away with it. :) Both of these practices influence and constantly reference each other; the work would not move forward without that relationship. I also like the idea of people passing by and commenting either out loud or to themselves.

Taking that from the street and applying it to work you make in the gallery setting is difficult. That’s why I approach it as action painting; it could easily be determined as abstract expessionism also. You need to capture that instantaneous decision to make the mark. That’s why I have canvases continously around the studio. I throw everything at them, tag them, throws, the lot. It feels like it carries a bit of that excitement. It also places this movement into a category that is continuing to build on past art movements which every new movement does.

hush hymn to beauty

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