DTLA ARTISTS IN RESIDENCE - JUSTIN BUA BY KERI FREEMAN
A U B N I T S JU TALITY
R O M M I F O T R THE A BUA jokes about how the school housed him in a dorm with the only other Puerto Rican student who hadn’t yet mastered English; citing the obvious ignorance of the times. BUA turns to a more serious page of his college education - a time that pit student against student in a rigorous, overly competitive program taught at one of the most renowned art schools in the world by some of the most brilliant art professors that valued draftsmanship over creativity. BUA sharpened iron with iron. “It [Art Center] was good because it developed my killer instinct - some people have it and some people don’t. I did and I definitely refined it at Art Center.”
However, with such a massive list of lifetime achievements BUA brings up the limited time we all have here on earth. Yet, at the same time he’s speaking of his own mortality he seems to miss the obvious - That he himself will, undoubtedly, when the time comes be listed and revered as one of the world’s greats. No different in legendary status then the artists who came before him, together, because of their works, living on for generations to come.
The Art of Immortality
To pinpoint an understanding of the work of BUA in the time space continuum one may wish to distinguish between the points upon which it exist.
In one space some may want to pin BUA as a graffiti artist who works with BUA shares that his first paying gigs oils and acrylics on canvas instead of the began with artwork on skateboards, CD obvious - spray paint on concrete. What album covers, and on apparel. Growing in other style would dare showcase a world popularity, he was pulled into the vorso drenched in urban culture? Right? tex of mainstream-commercial art by an Wrong. A-List of who’s who in advertising. Eventually BUA was able to make his art into At another point. Because of his many posters of work that were reflective of his paintings of iconic figures, some may life experiences. even try to reduce him to a caricature artist with a signature style. Right? Wrong. “I could be me. I started painting people from the hood - people I grew BUA’s pieces find their place inside up around. My culture. People of the distorted realty of a culture that color - and at that time, no one was didn’t always have value or intelligence. doing that.” Yet, this realm did exist and very much reflected the realities of an unfamiliar urThose looking for visual concepts best ban America. The initiated musician, the suited for major brands and celebrities in Breakdancer, the innovative jazz player, the entertainment world sought BUA to the solitary baller; those playing without capture the attention of an ever growing boundaries or outside the confinements urban market. of what was considered normal are perhaps the reason why they have been porBUA’s list included the likes of MTV, trayed in such a way by the artist. EA Sports, Microsoft, Comedy Central, Oxygen, Toyota, and so on, and conLook twice and think again. BUA’s tinued into the here and now, with his paintings may just embody all that is unupcoming album cover with singer-song- familiar, yet that which is forced upon his writer Ne-Yo and a full list of newly com- subjects by the effects of their existence. missioned works for major VIP clients.
The Art of an Age.
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