Monthly Archives: October 2013

What Are We Going To Do Now? Street Art Private Views Thursday 31 Oct

Only a couple of shows in the Shoreditch Street Art Tour diary this Thursday, which it being Halloween could be due to most artists being out trick-or-treating.  Several of Shoreditch Street Art Tour’s friends are in these shows, which is a tragedy as other engagements are likely to keep us out of the art galleries.  Nevermind, the big highlight is actually on Friday – Stanley Donwood, again!

Hush – Fatales

Buxom babes, bombs, geishas, abstract tag backgrounds..just guessing.

 Street art,London,Lazarides,hush,cept,pure evil,artists,gallery,openings

Hush – Fatales

The Outsiders London (Lazarides)

8 Greek St

Soho, London, W1D 4Dg

 

Group Show – Go Hard Or Go Home

Most of the publicity appears to inform us that this show is curated by Jon Patrick Boyle aka Motorboy.  This could explain the detectable Bristol slant to a cracking line up which includes our favourites  Cept, ACE, Sweet Toof, Pure Evil, Sickboy and Beejoir among others.

 Street art,London,Lazarides,hush,cept,pure evil,artists,gallery,openings

CEPT

The Rag Factory
16-18 Heneage Street (off Brick Lane),London, E1 5LJ

 

FRIDAY 1 NOV: Stanley Donwood – Apocalypse Boutique

Friends who have been to Shoreditch Street Art Tour’s hideaway know what huge fans we are of Mr Donwood so it is a real treat to have a second Donwood show in a month (the Lazarides Rathbone Place show was extended by 1 week and finishes this weekend).  In his words “THis is a strange kind of sample of what I’ve been doing for the past eight or nine years…Some of the work is painted, some printed, and some a combination of the two. Although there are other printing techniques employed here, a lot of the work was screen-printed at the Slowly Downward Manufactory”.

Special maps are available on the internet to show where Stoke Newington is.

Street art,London,Lazarides,Stanley donwood,artists,gallery,openings

Stanley Donwood – Apocalypse Boutique

Hang Up Gallery, 56 Stoke Newington High St,
London N16 7PB

images – all stolen from gallery PR puffery.


Shoreditch walls hosed with colour

Two weekends ago Moniker Art Fair took place in Shoreditch and a litter of participating street artists converged on the Shoreditch street art epicentre.  Alex Face, Mau Mau and Bon were exhibiting on the Souled Out Studio apocalypse now army tent but took a bit of time out to decorate some Shoreditch walls.

Shoreditch,London,Street Art,Tour,Mau Mau,Alex Face,Bon,Street artists, sould out studios,Moniker Art Fair

Souled Out Studio tent

They did a witty little subversion of the iconic ROA bird on Hanbury St, giving him a leg out of which they appear to be hacking lumps for Mau Mau’s fox to barbecue – see the feather still stuck to it!

Shoreditch,London,Street Art,Tour,Mau Mau,Alex Face,Bon,Street artists,Roa

Alex Face/Mau Mau/Bon interaction with iconic ROA bird

A couple of blocks away, Alex Face and Bon have been hosing the Shoreditch streets with colour.

Shoreditch,London,Street Art,Tour,Mau Mau,Alex Face,Bon,Street artists,

Alex Face and Bon

That piece has an interesting resonance with an installation by Blair Zaye on the wall around the other side of that property, Alex Face and Bon are raining colour on the walls, Blair Zaye’s drainpipe drains away the colours washing down off the Shoreditch walls.

Shoreditch,London,Street Art,Tour,Mau Mau,Alex Face,Bon,Blair Zaye,Street artists,

Blair Zaye drainpipe

That stub wall has been painted over since but this pic shows the colur draingin through the pipe more clearly!

All photos: nolionsinengland


Shoreditch Street Art Tours in The Journalist

Lovely and generous coverage of Shoreditch Street Art Tours in The Journalist, magazine of the National Union of Journalists. October / November 2013 edition.  Click on the image below and it might be possible to read what they have to say.

 

Shoreditch,London,Street Art,Tour,tourist attraction,NUJ,The Journalist

“Smart Art” – The Journalist

In a rare semi-lucid moment I must have mumbled this: “People are amazed at more diverse forms of street art such as the sculptural bronze castings of environmental artist Jonesy.  The art is available to be seen for free but visitors really benefit from accurate insights into artists’ identity, techniques and motivation which a tour with a specialised guide can give.”  Absolutely.

If you can’t see the article in the picture above, check out page 22 here and the magazine is an interesting read anyway

http://issuu.com/nujupload/docs/journalistsoctnov2013?e=1837854/5339371


Clet Abraham, Shoreditch,London,Street Art,artist,stencil,subverted,road signs,no entry, traffic signs

Street Art Subversions In Shoreditch

On the Shoreditch Street Art Tour we come across many artists whose work is guided and inspired by the street canvas they are decorating.

 Clet Abraham, Shoreditch,London,Street Art,artist,stencil,subverted,road signs,no entry, traffic signs

Clet Abraham, 2013

Clet Abraham is a Florence based French artist whose trademark artistic intervention is modification of no entry signs.  Clet’s previous London visits left us very familiar with stop sign’s white bars turned into a heavy load being hefted by a silhouetted figure across the street.   Having found photographic evidence of the range of Clet’s other street sign subversions across Europe, it seemed slightly puzzling that in London he had focussed so heavily on that one image.

Clet Abraham, Shoreditch,London,Street Art,artist,stencil,subverted,road signs,no entry, traffic signs

Clet Abraham, 2013

Thankfully Clet has returned to London and unleashed a huge variety of sign modifications across our junctions.  The London one way labyrinth must be a dream come true for this Italian resident and Clet-spotting has become a great delight for the guests on several street art tours since Friday.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.


And great street art goes…..

Following on from the recent post about great new street art appearing in Shoreditch in which we hailed the return of illegal art to an old stencil hall of fame, at the other end of the cycle we celebrate the life of a top quality illegal piece of street art which passed on a couple of days ago.

Above created this breakdancer back in the Summer, yup – we did have one this year and someone, presumably the building owner, had covered it in Perspex within a couple of days.  This is what it looked like at night when the perfection of its placement was apparent.

Shoredtich,London,Street Art,TOurs,Alternative

Above (NY) – Night TIme Break Dancer

Perspex on a piece of street art suggests either that a piece is being preserved for sale or that it is being “conserved”, protected from the rough and tumble of a normal healthy outdoor life.  Usually we infer the former.  Persons unknown expressed their distaste for this kind of curation, or profit preservation – take your pick – and tore most of the perspex off.  Then someone disfigured the piece by chrome spraying an X across the dancer’s body.  Someone else opposed this action by attempting a vigorous cleaning of the chrome off the bricks, looking like an attempt at restoration.  Still with me?

A few days after the clean up started, yesterday in fact, the morning Shoreditch Street Art Tour found that the artwork have been brushed over with a foamy chemical wash.

Above, Shoreditch,London,Street Art,artist,stencil,New York

Above – Chemical wash
Above, Shoreditch,London,Street Art,artist,stencil,New York

Above – foam paint remover

In the afternoon a vigorous buff had been carried out to the point the art was a feint smudge and today there was just a discoloured damp patch where the Above Breakdancer had been.

Above, Shoreditch,London,Street Art,artist,stencil,New York

Above buffed

So there you have it, an excellent piece of work lived its life to the full and to a natural conclusion.  Thankfully most street artists are pretty resilient types and aren’t deterred by a bit of buffing.  Where one piece is buffed, five new pieces will rise up to take its place and Mobstr’s High Five remains undisturbed!

all photos: NoLionsInEngland


Street Art Private Views Thursday 24 October

After the hurly burly of London’s International Art Fair week last week it is quite quiet this week though the one event in the Shoreditch Street Art TOurs diary is quite intriguing.

Expanded Eye are infrequent street art creators but their work has been very sculptural and focussed on some complex issues.

Street art,Shoreditch,London,sculpture,installation,Expanded Eye, art show, private view

Expanded Eye, Shoreditch

Street art,Shoreditch,London,sculpture,installation,Expanded Eye, art show, private view

Expanded Eye 2013

Among other things, we look forward to finding out what the heck this bit in the gallery blurb means:     “Pieces of contemporary tattoo art, now immortalised through the use of antique assemblage, evoking nostalgia from memories and moments passed and further blurring the lines between their disciplines.

 

Expanded Eye

Hoxton Arches
Arch 402
Cremer Street
London, E2 8HD

Great New Street Art Created In Shoreditch

Street artists swarmed all over Shoreditch last weekend as Moniker Art Fair took place and the Shoreditch Street Art Tour has been catching up with the results of their productivity this week.

Almost every wall in the Seven Stars Car Park saw a new lick of paint including work by Ser from Greece and  Vinz Feel Free who is based in Spain.

Ser, Vinz, Amanda Marie, Shoreditch,London,Street Art,artists,stencil

Ser (Greece)

Ser, Vinz, Amanda Marie, Shoreditch,London,Street Art,artists,stencil

Vinz Feel Free

Elsewhere, Moniker artists who stamped their mark included Colorado based stencil artist Amanda Marie with this new mural in an off street location.

Ser, Vinz, Amanda Marie, Shoreditch,London,Street Art,artists,stencil

Amanda Marie, off Brick Lane

One of our tours chanced upon Amanda Marie with a pile of paper at her feet and some spraycans in a bag and a mischievous gleam in her eye.

Ser, Vinz, Amanda Marie, Shoreditch,London,Street Art,artists,stencil

Amanda Marie

Within moments the first stencil layer was taped to the wall and sprayed.

Ser, Vinz, Amanda Marie, Shoreditch,London,Street Art,artists,stencil

Amanda Marie, 1st layer

Returning to inspect the result later in the afternoon revealed an impressive bit piece of combined stencil and freehand spraying.

 

Ser, Vinz, Amanda Marie, Shoreditch,London,Street Art,artists,stencil

Amanda Marie

Years ago this wall was one of the best and most frequently painted stencil “halls of fame” in Shoreditch so it is nice to see the return of work being created without a permission slip.


London, Shoreditch,street art,Nathan Bowen,Skeleton Cardboard,collaboration

Nathan Bowen and Skeleton Cardboard Street Art collaboration, Shoreditch London

Two things about Shoreditch street art that always interest us, artist collaborations and new work by Nathan Bowen.  A couple of days ago, as mist turned to drizzle, the Shoreditch Street Art Tour chanced upon Nathan Bowen furiously scratching on a door with his marker pens working around an existing piece by Skeleton Cardboard.  The surface became too wet for the markers to work and Nathan declared “game over”.  In between that soft rain and yesterday’s monsoon, Nathan found time to return and complete two stunning works.

London, Shoreditch,street art,Nathan Bowen,Skeleton Cardboard,collaboration

Nathan Bowen, Skeleton Cardboard
London, Shoreditch,street art,Nathan Bowen,Skeleton Cardboard,collaboration

Nathan Bowen, Skeleton Cardboard

Working with the boney skeletons of Skeleton Cardboard, Nathan’s trademark scratchy feisty noisy snarling creatures  are present as always, the larger skeletons of skeleton Cardboard are surrounded by skeletal faces by Nathan Bowen while is snapping helmeted soldiers appear to be fighting a battle with skeleton.  It’s war and death together, see.

London, Shoreditch,street art,Nathan Bowen,Skeleton Cardboard,collaboration

Nathan Bowen, Skeleton Cardboard


Street Art Private Views 17 October 2013

It’s London’s international art fair this week and street art related events ought to be everybody’s highlight!

Moniker Art Fair and The Other Art Fair

tn_DSC_1170-001

In a new location in Old Truman Brewery, Moniker Art Fair celebrates it’s 4th edition buddying up with The Other Art Fair.  Expect galleries celebrating the finest urban art, Moniker’s own flagship project spaces and other highlights such as Jealous Galleary and Print Studio live screen printing with a stunning line up of artists this year.  One of the great PVs of the year and definitely invite only.  Runs till Sunday, more details HERE

Moniker Art Fair/The Other Art Fair

Old Truman Brewery

15 Hanbury St E1 6QR

 

White Canvas Project

Street Art,Private Views,London,International,Art Fair Week,Moniker,The Other Art Fair,Jo Peel,White Canvas Project

White Canvas Project, Oct 2012

The only way is up for this group of artists known for painting just about anything other than canvas.  Jim Vision, Wil Barras, Tizer, Zadok, Elfin, Andea Riot, Best Ever, Ed Hicks and many more,  take the White Canvas Project up on to the roof at Rockwell House, expect fantastic unconventional beauty and tremendous atmosphere.  RSVP only for the PV.  Food, drink and art  till Sunday, see flyer below.

Street Art,Private Views,London,International,Art Fair Week,Moniker,The Other Art Fair,Jo Peel,White Canvas Project

Rockwell House

Hewitt St

London EC2A 3NN