As I was reading the press release, I got excited about WOW NOW. The venue looks awesome – shoreditch underground, the line up international and eclectic and the theme very interesting: ‘An International exhibition articulating the friction between Outside, Street & Fine Art via subversive portraiture’
Featured artists
ALEX DAW (UK) | ZTY 82 (Germany) | BEN WELLER (UK) | STEPHEN TOMPKINS (USA) | PERFEKT WORLD (Austria) | SID ONE (UK) | PAUL BUSK (Austria) | GETS (Germany) | NOMAD (Germany) | TED RIEDERER (USA) | JAMES JESSOP (UK)
At first, I misread what Dunn, aka Dan Ericson was all about. I indeed confused “signtologist” with “scientologist” and was about to move on when painted road signs caught my eyes and made me read twice. “Signtologist” it was. Not surprising to get mixed up here, who has ever heard of this term?
Roots MC, Black Thought would have apparently dubbed him back in 2005, the Signtologist, which Dan Ericson would eventually keep as its “artist” name. But what does it mean?
You may have guessed by now that it has to do with signs, and especially roads signs that he recycles into unique homages to the musicians, actors, public figures and athletes that inspire him.
Examples of this original art (photos: Terrence Duncan) are shown below. See more on the Signtologist website
Introducing a brand new series of paintings, Children of a Lesser God furthers the artist’s exploration into notions of control and release as well as the fundamental need for survival, love and liberty. Vaughn’s new works manifest these concepts through bleak, dystopian cityscapes that he juxtaposes with child-like imagery and untouched scenes of nature.
Gradations of oil paint are slowly built up layer by layer with brilliantly hued subjects taking centre stage within a muted urban backdrop of dreamy pastels. Wild animals run freely through the urban setting and masked children void of inhibitions heroically feature within downtrodden neighborhoods. Such imagery embodies the limits of humankind’s ability to outright conquer the exterior world as well as completely repress inner desires. Vaughn says, “These compulsory wild impulses propel both the feral and the tame throughout our lives, causing beautiful and sometimes savage moments.”
Children of a Lesser God invites the audience to project their own thoughts about personal existence irrespective of location. Through the contrast of minutely detailed wildlife and child superheroes against diaphanous cityscapes, Vaughn’s body of work in provides a eerily familiar setting which somehow both comforts and inspires his audience with visionary designs of freedom.
Video installation by the creative Brooklyn duo Sweatshoppe. The principle is simple: a LED roller paints video onto a wall. The effect is guaranteed.
Thanks to the programming language called Max/MSP, Blake Shaw wrote a software that makes possible the projection of video visible when it comes in contact with the LED lights on the roller.
The video below is Sweatshoppe at it on top of Cordy House, Shoredith, London towards the end of last year.
Another day, another pair at it, another sexy piece from Remi Rough who was invited to collaborate with Nawer on a new mural which announces the upcoming Traffic Design Festival
For those familiar with Remi Rough’s stuff, this piece is immediately recognisable and true to the artist’s style in terms of the color palette and elements used – a series of intricate lines cleverly coloured and composed to give a very interesting depth to the piece. The black and white background gives emphasis to the bright colours in use here.
Worth noting the very delicate and skilful details within the larger lines and going through in some cases (see picture below) which gives even more depth to the whole thing. And have you noticed that the front wall have also been painted to make sure the piece look good from every angle.
It is already early evening but you just have enough time to jump on that bus and get your favourite spray cans from your local art supplies shop.
Should the shop be closed by the time you get there, Bombing Science online shop will be there to the rescue, you happily reassure yourself.
You like painting on trains, very much so. But the Genbi Shinkansen train is not or should not be one of them since artists have already been there and have made it beautiful.
The world’s fastest art appreciation
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“The world’s fastest art appreciation” is what East Japan Railways, the train operator running the service, calls it.
The high-speed Genbi Shinkansen opened last year on the Jōetsu Shinkansen railway line but we only learned about it recently.
The train carried out three round trips daily on most Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, and while speeding through Japan (up to 210km/h), it gives its commuters displays of prominent contemporary artworks throughout its carriages.
Seven of the carriages in fact are used as “rolling art spaces”. All seven show a different artist and which gives passengers a vast choice of material to enjoy.
Even better, not only the indoors are used to display art. Indeed the windowless carriages of the Genbi Shinkansen’s are wallpapered with striking photographs of Niigata’s Nagaoka Fireworks Festival by photographer Mika Ninagawa
Art on display in each carriage
You can enjoy art throughout the entire train. Lose yourself from one end to the other and enjoy modern art created by prominent artists.
Kids have not been forgotten and should find joy in the specifically designed playroom where they can interact with modern art first hand.
We have included below photographs of our favourites carriages
Car #11
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The artwork on display was conceived by incorporating the unique space, light and speed of the Shinkansen, and built around the themes of bountiful harvests, festivals and light. Take a seat and experience an amazing moment of change in which you discover the immensity of the light that surrounds us in the world.
Car #13
Click to enlarge
We selected this carriage because the art is mainly about landscapes and here at Art-Pie, we appreciate very much the subject. Sip on a coffee while looking at artworks inspired from the GENBI SHINKANSEN route, a traditional thoroughfare in use for centuries around the city of Joetsu with Mikuni Kaido being the name of an ancient highway in Japan.
