UNDR RPBLC MGZN #20 (Sasha Kurmaz Cover)

Martha! How goes it? It goes good! Resting up after some late nights in NYC this past weekend. What’s cracking in Philly? I’m not going to tell you because I don’t want people to know how cool Philly is. Would you describe yourself as a busy person?

Busy and lazy. Your paintings are vibrant, fun and colorful. Why? Because cities are mostly gray and beige and gritty—color is needed. Is your work an extension of who you are as an individual? Of course! Tell me about your first kiss… Unremarkable. The last kiss is the best one. Of all the artwork you’ve done, what’s been the most rewarding? My one painting a day for a year project was the most rewarding, because it led to my meeting some excellent people. I noticed that you went back to school after a bit, what were you up to in the meanwhile? I went to a good ol’ ivy covered liberal arts college right out of high school. Then, I did “normal American life” things—working cubicle jobs like debt collector, front desk supervisor, promotion manager and human resources coordinator.

Got married… Blah blah blah. What motivated you to go back to school?

Divorce caused me to go to art school to get my BFA and discontent caused me to get my MFA. So divorce and discontent. Now that you‘ve got your MFA in Painting, whatchu gonna do? I have absolutely no idea. Grad school screwed me up and messed with my head, but I think that’s a good thing. Teach, paint, draw, cry, experiment, laugh, drink, travel and eat. What’s up with 100for100?

I’m making a hundred paintings to sell for $100 each. When’d that start? This summer was slow for business, so I came up with a way to pay the bills and keep myself motivated. I am a project starter. How’s it been received? Pretty dang good. I’m in the process of replacing the art that’s already sold with new art. Then, I’ll change the art that hasn’t sold to make it more interesting.

So far, about eighty-one have sold. It’s also led to my selling prints and I will probably

do some t-shirts too. Pop-up galleries and you... Go! Do it yourself! How’d your lecture at Multifaceted go? I was nervous and didn’t get to say everything I wanted to say. Could you give us the gist of what you spoke about? I talked about how I was a naturally lazy person and how I come up with projects to keep me from stagnating and staying on the couch sipping wine while watching Long Island Medium, Honey Boo Boo and Real Housewives all day long. I am a highly-motivated lazy person. I’m getting hungry just scoping your work for this feature, what’s your favorite snack-a-velli? Oh jeez… I love all snacks. This isn’t really a snack, but I love the steak tartare at this great restaurant in Philly called Stateside. Dang—special snack. What do you do for fun? My friend and studio-mate Andrea Mecchi throws a pizza night almost every Friday. Free-flowing homemade pizza and wine! I also travel a lot. Heading to LA next—my old stomping grounds. When’s the last time you “really” laughed? I “really” laugh a lot, but I had some exceptional “laughing off of ass” this past Saturday with some very cool people in the wee hours of the night. Where can we go to purchase your work? http://100for100.bigcartel.com http://martharichartprojects.bigcartel.com http://20x200.com/artist/222-martha-rich Do you have any upcoming shows or exhibitions? I have a show with Keith Warren Greiman in April ‘13 at Space 1026 (http://space1026.com) in Philadelphia.

We’re gonna get weird! Where else can we find you online? http://martharich.com Any shout-outs? These are my peeps... Rob and Christian Clayton: http://claytonbrothers. com Mark Todd: http://marktoddillustration. com Esther Pearl Watson: http://cargocollective.com/ewatson Matt Curtius and Gina Triplett: http://ginaandmatt.com Andrea Mecchi Cipriani: http://ciprianiphoto.com Jason Holley: http://jasonholley.com Aaron Smith: http://aaronsmithart.com Frieda Gossett: http://friedagossett.com

Sasha! Hey! How goes it? Everything is ok.

What’s cracking in Kiev? Kiev is preparing for the apocalypse. Why photography?

When’d you start? I started shooting in the early 00s, when I began painting graffiti on the walls, trains and tunnels of my city.

At first, it was documentary shooting—just taking photos of my work and the things around me. Who are these people? My friends, or just the unknown guest. Where’s this all happening? It occurs here in Kiev and it is always fun. If each picture is a word and each your collections a sentence, then what sentence do we have here? I not sure about a sentence… These are just my stories that I want to tell you. Sex, Graffiti, Rock ‘n’ Roll—what about the drugs? Drugs are for wimps! We have fun without doping.

But it does not matter, we enjoy every

moment! What have you found out about yourself through your work in photography? My work is a way to examine myself. It is a way to answer the questions “Who are you?” and “What are you doing here?” What about photography has kept you shooting? This is a story that I create— an archive of our time. Nude Sensitivity was fucking awesome! When are you dropping another book? I think it will be very soon. I don’t want to say anymore. Just follow me on the web! Why is graffiti so much fun? Graffiti is a way to everyone’s heart. It is very interesting to use the street, it talks to people. Where can we go to purchase your work? Just send me an e-mail! Where else can we find you online?

I have a lot of networks, check my site: http://www.sashakurmaz.com

Young Sixx! How goes it? It’s all good.

Yadoh!! What’s cracking in Nuremberg?

NBG is quiet at the moment, but I’m trying to change that drastically. When’d you make the move? I came to NBG in late ’08. Culture shock much? Yeah, Germany’s nothing like the fast life of California. What was your motivation for the move?

I needed to get out, change my surroundings and gain a different outlook on the world. I’d visited Germany while on active duty, so I had a good idea of how to make it work. Where are you headed next?

Looking to check out Asia and find out what I can make happen there. I’m pretty much open... I love to travel!! Yadoh, your new free mixtape is fire! How much of yourself did you pour into it? Yadoh was hard to finish because I put so much of myself into it. This time around, I really wanted to outdo myself. Not to mention, it was right after an R&B release I’d done, so I had to snap back into that straight rap mindset. Where does Yadoh differ from your previous work? Yadoh has excitement, energy and really demonstrates my versatility as a rapper.

Whereas with my other mixtapes, I’d just concentrated on rapping over whatever was hot at the time. Having coined the term “Yadoh”, what exactly does it mean?

Yadoh means it’s all good, it’s a go or it’s time to turn up. You can use it many different ways, but it’s always positive.

Yadoh!! How has Europe influenced your style? Europe has made me open to all kinds of genres of music... I’ve now released pop/electro/house singles through various record labels. What’s the scene like? Europe is wide open—anything can happen here. There are so many opportunities for independent artists. What do you do for fun? Europe has a major, major club-scene from Thursday to Sunday in every city. There are so many different cultures—it definitely gets crazy

at times. Yadoh!! Do you still call California still home? California will forever be my home. Cali made me who I am and gave me my base as an artist. Is there one particular thing that you miss most about the States? Shopping—the fashion and the shoes. It’s hard to stay fly in Europe with up to date fashion, but I manage, as I am “2Fresh YS”. Did your service in the military help your discipline with making music?

Definitely. It’s helped mold me mentally and prepared me for the stress that comes along with business. Overall, how was your experience in the military? Well, I’m thankful for the discipline it instilled in me, but as time went on, I had to get out.

There were a lot of politics and rules that I couldn’t abide by. Is there anything you haven’t gotten around to in your young life? Hmm… I can’t think of anything specific. I’ve done it all!! [laughs] What’s your main source of motivation? The response from my fans!! I’m all about entertaining those who genuinely love the music. How’d you link up with Chris Ford and Starr Scream Entertainment? I released a track in ‘08 that caught the attention of Chris... Ever since then, Chris has helped me out with releasing and making moves to build out my brand.

What’s next? I just finished an EP for digital release and I’m planning on dropping another mixtape soon. My plan’s to take ‘em the states and work with a major DJ to build a buzz and develop a cult-like following. Where can we go to purchase your work? iTunes, Amazon, Spotify and DatPiff—almost every digital retail spot really. Where else can we find you online? http://youngsixx.com Twitter: @youngsixx Instagram: @youngsixx Cinemegram: @youngsixx and http://facebook.com/young6ixx Any shout-outs? Shout-out to Chris, the whole Star Scream team and to all my “Euro Life” followers and fans. Yadoh!!

Does! Where are you these days? Just got back from a short trip to London and I am currently in the Netherlands. Where are you going next? My next stop is Australia. Has the jet-set graffiti lifestyle affected your sleep patterns? It is not a jet-set lifestyle just yet, but it is great to be able to travel a lot.

The travelling hasn’t really affected my sleep patterns. My sleep patterns did change when I stopped playing soccer. Back in those days, I trained every day and I needed much more sleep then I do now. Nowadays, the number of hours I sleep depends on the projects that I am working on. When working on a canvas or drawing, I often work late nights and catch up with some much needed sleep when the job is done.

When’d you start? I did my first piece when I was fourteen-years-old. It was a black and silver piece that said Does. My best mates were on the lookout for me. A few weeks earlier we had founded our own crew, unofficially known as the “Pancake Rebels South” crew. We were four typical adolescents acting like little vandals and looking for some excitement. Why’d you start? I always loved to sketch—it was my favourite thing to do when I was not paying attention in the classroom. When I was fourteen, I started taking my sketches to the wall and playing around with graffiti a little bit. I mainly did tags and throw-ups back then. Did you squeeze a lil’ school in at some point, or is this just all you? It is years of practicing at home, or in the classroom and feedback from Nash, Tumki and Chas.

They all painted in my neighbourhood and I looked up to them. We soon became friends and that friendship later led to the founding of the “LoveLetters” crew. How has working with Ironlak helped push your graffiti to new levels? Being sponsored by Ironlak has broadened my reach. More people know about my work through Ironlak. The new friendships are the most valuable part though. I really admire the Ironlak team for being so dedicated to the writer scene. It

hasn’t been easy for them—the competition can get pretty nasty. The guys behind Ironlak try to stay away from all of that negativity and focus on their own goal: to make good paint available at a low cost for writers all over. Where do you see graffiti and street art headed in the future? I’d like to think that graffiti will remain a movement that inspires the young generation to develop their creative talents and bring colour to the world. What crews are you reppin’? In ‘06, Nash and I initiated “LoveLetters”. The name, quite obviously, refers to our love for letters.

The crew is a creative collective of ten European writers from Germany, Switzerland, France and the Netherlands. We started out with four members—Tumki, Chas, Nash and myself. We then expanded by inviting individual writers to join the crew—Dare, Dater, Ozer, Sean2, Rusl, Biser and Puaks.

Puaks recently joined the crew and we are very happy to have him on board. Dare’s passing is a great loss—his work will continue to be a great inspiration to us all.

All the crew members have evolved from graffiti writers to creative artists. Their current activities include, amongst others: graphic design, web design, tattoo design, clothing design, photography and gallery exhibitions. Each writer has his own expertise and talents, which makes for a truly unique and diverse crew. Being involved in this crew and seeing people around me grow inspires me. It keeps me motivated to work harder and to improve my personal style. What’s next? I am looking forward to the surprises that life has in store for me. Where can we go to purchase your work? You can find most of my work on http://digitaldoes.com or you can contact me directly via does@digitaldoes.com Do you have any upcoming shows or exhibitions? I am currently preparing for solo exhibitions in Melbourne, Australia and Athens, Greece. Where else can we find you online? http://facebook.com/digitaldoes and http://twitter.com/digitaldoes

Steve! Hi! How goes it? Good and bad.

What’s cracking in LA? Actually, I wouldn’t know. I rarely leave the house—I like to be around as few people as possible. Are you who you thought you’d be when you were a child growing up? Largely, no. Like everyone, I had certain ideas of success, but I never imagined being the person I am becoming right now. I don’t have the success, but I don’t mind too much as long as I have this other thing that’s happening and making life more or less bearable. I never imagined I would be systematically moving toward the things that make me nervous and afraid, but it’s what I’m doing and it pleases me. How’d art school change your life? Art school sucked. Art school sucks. School sucks. I’m incredibly critical of art schools, even though snagging a job at a “good school” would be sweet for my wallet, my resume and my ego. Obviously, if you’re quick witted (I was not), you can make it work exceptionally well, have some admixture of the school and the government and anonymous benefactors pay for your ride and graduate, or sort of graduate and exploit everything and be awesome. But, the thing is, the kind of person that would do that—why would s/he be in school in the first place? School is not for people capable of that. School is for people like me, who had an interest in something, but too much anxiety to take it by the throat. When’d you decide that art was for you—this is what I’m gonna do? I think thrice. Once when I was very young and taught myself to draw. Once in high school when I saw the Art Center catalog and thought it was the coolest thing ever (no Internet back then). And then, finally, two years after grad school when I had no prospects, no experience, no network and no foreseeable future. What I had were things I wanted to do. Things that were always there and would always be there no matter the circumstances. I didn’t really have a choice. I don’t think we have that

many choices in life. When are you at your most creative? When I feel like I have nothing to do, nothing to prove. When it’s quiet. Are their any specific rituals or behaviors to help keep you in that place?

Ideally, I like to coffee and email and Tumblr and Twitter in the morning, work until I don’t feel like it, eat and do nothing in particular in the evening. It doesn’t always work that way, but it’s the gold standard I’m working towards. A lot of women in your work, what’s up with that? I like women, a lot. I like and am interested in everything about them. I’m even sure I prefer female writers and poets over male ones. Right now I have the hugest crush on Anäis Nin—something I’ve never felt for a dude writer, despite all the dude writers I had to read for school, or to not look too stupid. It’s something that’s still developing and something I’m trying to understand.

But it’s real, that’s for sure. Sometimes I will draw a portrait of a guy and it’s like torture—I avoid it as much as possible. I have to make clear that being interested in women and wanting to possess them are two separate things. I can feel it in my sanity level. When I am sloppy and careless and take things too far and start to get all graspy like and want to possess someone or someones for myself, I lose something fundamentally precious. I turn into a toad and it’s not a good feeling. I work to avoid it. Skulls too… I have a deep interest in anatomy. I have so much anatomy from so many different, odd sources it would weird most people out. I understand skulls are very hip and cool and I’m fine with hip and cool, but I did not set out drawing skulls thinking I needed to be hip and cool. Prior to the skulls, I had spent nearly six months drawing pelvises. Skulls were a nice break from that. The anatomy is related to the question about women. I got into anatomy because it can be a pain to find models. It’s scary to approach real people. But, there are limits to knowledge, to the things you

can memorize. Nothing beats a real, live, articulating, vital body. I’m committed to learning anatomy, but nothing will ever supplant my need to work with real people.

And so, I have to develop relationships and rapport often with complete strangers. The surprising thing is how much I enjoy the process. I’m left wanting to know more of what you’re thinking from your work. What, if anything, is the reoccurring underlying statement? I don’t know. I’m looking for something that looks good and feels good to me—that way it will assuredly feel good for another person, because we’re all so similar you know, we can all make babies with each other. It’s almost an ethical imperative. The moment there are ideas or marks on the surface it presents itself as either something right or something wrong. It needs to be right, beautiful, sacred, strange and holy— seriously. Something bigger and better than me. Despite how it must look, I don’t really care that much about myself. How do you describe your style? Anal.

Especially the drawings. I tend to loosen up with painting because it’s hard to be anal with butter. You know what I mean. Dood, your Tumblr just flipped formatting on me (or am I trippin’)! What’s up with that?

Maybe you saw it when I accidentally and tragically overwrote my slaved-over custom Tumblr theme. This guy (http://andreiograda.com) helped me fix it though. I almost died. With the separation and connection computer screens both provide, where do you see society headed as a whole? I think in a positive direction.

It’s already doing positive things in the art world. Without the Internet, I wouldn’t know what the fuck to do. Life would suck—I’m sure I’d be dead. What’s your connection to The Verge? I’ve done some illustrations for them. I’m a big tech geek and I’d been following the founders of it since their Engadget days. From the outset, The Verge struck me as something

different, something that embraced culture as much as it did technology. I had a hunch it could benefit from some custom art and my hunch proved correct.

I love them and owe them a lot. I think in a few years it will be a household name.

They got dat hustle. When’s your work actually work? It rarely doesn’t work. It always works because I keep working on a work until it works. Most work fails because people ejaculate prematurely. Has teaching changed your perception of your own work? I’ve only taught 4th to 8th graders, so not really. I look at a lot of student art though, because I have a lot of art student followers. It generally leaves me feeling good about myself. …Of others? I’m pretty sensitive to the needs of students. I like to think of myself as fighting for their cause, because their situation is so fucked up. It’s an impossible situation. What’s next?

More of everything, including painting, photography, printing and some 3D stuff.

Where can we go to purchase your work? http://beautifuldecay.com/shop/37-original-art http://supersonicart.bigcartel.com http://spoke-art.myshopify.com/productssteve-kim-1-1-rachel-zelda Do you have any upcoming shows or exhibitions?

A poster show in Korea called Post Text at Samwon Paper Gallery with some cool designers like Ji Lee (http://pleaseenjoy. com) for this month. An amazing show curated by Supersonic Electronic (http:// supersonicelectronic.com) at Spoke Art in San Francisco for January ‘13. I also have my first solo show at Design Matters (http://designmattersla.com) coming up soon. Where else can we find you online? http://stevekim.com http://twitter. com/stevekimarts http://facebook.com/ stevekimarts http://followgram.me/ stevekimarts Any shout-outs? I have a fondness for my silent, mysterious, Internet dwelling followers. I’m also indebted to the people I correspond with regularly, they know who they are.

Michael! How goes it? Not bad. What’s cracking in El Paso? Beautiful weather lately. Your Flux collection is amazing— care to share a bit on your creative process there? Thank you! For that series I rubbed ink between scratched up pieces of clear plastic to create unique liquid textures that appeared to break apart. The process was quick and only took me about an hour to photograph and a couple days to edit. The series was a reflection of the frustration I was feeling at the time. Where were you emotionally during that period of time? I was going through some really rough relationship problems—it was difficult.

Where are you now? Things are much better. Has anything changed? Yes, I’ve had to make a lot of important decisions lately.

Where has photography taken you? To new horizons of creativity and self-expression.

I’ve also had the pleasure of meeting many other people who share a similar passion for art. When do you do what you do? Any time I feel inspired to create, which is often. Sometimes, when I’m just about to fall asleep, I’ll get an idea and jump out of bed and work on it for hours. How would you describe you work? I use color, composition and texture to highlight decay. What are the benefits of being self-taught? I have the freedom to explore and experiment on my own. …Drawbacks?

Nothing comes to mind. What would you like to do with your photography/work through the implementation of new technology in cameras? I’m really excited to see what new technological advances there will be with both cameras and editing software in the future. I expect more automation and less technical know-how to create good images. I’m very interested in the details of texture, so I’m especially interested in new macro lenses and high-megapixel sensors. …Existing

technology? I would love to get my hands on a microscope. How’d you get linked up with Jacob Von Loon? We originally met on Tumblr. After some back and forth, he sent me some details for a collaborative project and asked me if I would be interested in working with him. We’ve been working together ever since. How does working with other artists help complement your photography? Jacob is a phenomenally talented artist, it’s been insightful and inspiring to work with him.

Working with other artists is important to me, because it challenges me to do my best. How would you categorize yourself as an artist? A modern abstract expressionist. How often do new ideas and concepts come about organically through your work? Very often. I constantly experiment with new techniques and play around with new ideas. I’m not happy with each piece until I’ve come up with something that I’ve never seen before.

How’s impermanence relevant in your life and work? I think about it all the time— nothing lasts and I think it’s important to reflect on that. When’s the last time you started an argument? A few days ago. Did you win? [laughs] How would you describe your general outlook on life? Pessimistic/ realistic, but I’m not miserable. What’s next?

I’m currently working on a new series that will be finished by the end of the month.

I really think it’s my best work yet. Where can we go to purchase your work? http:// areaofinterest.com/store Do you have any upcoming shows or exhibitions? Nothing at the moment. Where else can we find you online? http://www.facebook.com/areaofinterest Any shout-outs? Jacob van Loon, Rery, Sam Weinstein, Jack Hardwicke, David Chandler, Alejandro Campos, Rich Auxilio and the extraordinary community of Tumblr.

Express! How goes it? All is well man—just enjoying music and being a father. What’s cracking in LA? A lot of newcomers are coming to the forefront, new labels starting up and some really interesting collabs are happening. This is a great time for hip-hop and its fans here in Southern Cali, for sure. Now, you’re originally from Rockford, Illinois, what brought you out to LA? My mom needed a change. How has life changed since? For the most part, I’m just like everyone else... I’m a father and I enjoy fatherhood very much. I’ve connected with some and had to walk away from others. I keep a strong focus on music and stay up on all the new dope acts coming up. Do you consider yourself to be a “WestCoaster” now? Oh yeah man! I’ve spent most of my life in the West and I’ve paid my dues out here. How has your life influenced your work? My life changes constantly, which encourages growth. The same happens whenever I write. Whatever I’m going through, it comes out in my music—good or bad, it bleeds through. I hold on to the emotions I feel when things happen to me and channel those feelings to enhance my writing. Of all the raps you write, how realistic vs. metaphorical is your content?

I say most of it is real for the feel and the rest is metaphorical to teach and reach.

I really believe there are no rules when it comes to rhyming, emceeing, writing and reciting—just as long as you’re true to yourself. The crowd can sense if you are in touch with your work. Is music a form of self-therapy? Yes! It heals me and allows me to vent. My music isn’t just my art form, it’s my sacred place, like a sort of limbo where I can abide in strength and honesty. Hiphop is my familiar place where I recognize myself and always see who I really am. Does music allow you to portray yourself differently than you might in reality? Of course, any rapper who says they don’t is lying. I mostly stay in my original and true self, but at times I’ll take it up or down a

few notches. There are songs where I make myself look really good or bad depending on how I felt while writing it. The ability to rap is like being in control of the best dream you’ll ever have. The real talent is being able to let your audience see the dream through your words. Rapping takes technique that many take for granted—a person has to love hip-hop to get it. Silent Noise slaps! What led you to release that for free? Man, we’ve been sitting on that for two years and felt like giving our fans, fellow artists and supporters something fresh to listen to. When’s God Is Gracious gonna drop? Sometime next year, for sure. Spring or summer ‘13. Why the title? One of my sons names means God is gracious. How’s God Is Gracious going to stand out from you previous releases? It’ll be more forward, more aggressive and have more heart.

When’d you link up with Acid Lab Records?

I’ve been there from the beginning—we’ve all known each other since we were kids.

Are you still flexing on the arm wrestling tip?

Always! Express Fresh “the champ”, or what?

As long I have God, my kids, my family, my friends and hip-hop... Hell yeah killer! What makes it all worthwhile? Seeing my growth and improvement as an artist makes it all worthwhile, for sure. I love challenging my ability to get better. With every project I do, I try not to make the same mistakes and make a point to try out something new.

I push myself and that keeps the music exciting. What’s next? Working on my God Is Gracious album, more free releases and more shows! Where can we go to purchase your work? http://www.acidlabrecords. com and iTunes. Where else can we find you online? http://acidlabrecords.com http:// facebook.com/expressfresh http://twitter. com/expressionfresh http://myspace.com/ expressfresh Any shout-outs? God, my family, my label-mates, my friends, my fans and supporters—one love! And RIP to my friend and brother Zane Burton Hill, you will always be missed.