Kara walker

Kara Walker is a contemporary African-American artist born in Stockton, California in the USA in 1969. She is best known for her panoramic friezes of cut-paper silhouettes, using black figures against a white wall which mainly represents slavery and violence. Her art consists on themes such as race, gender, sexuality, violence and identity. She likes to explore these conflicted themes because she believes that they are still standing strong in the world.

Kara Walker’s father used to be an artist himself and she states this; “one of my earliest memories involves sitting on my dad’s lap in his studio in the garage of our house and watching him draw. I remember thinking: ‘I want to do that too,’ and I pretty much decided then and there at the age of 2 or 3 that I was an artist just like Dad”. There is no doubt that her father was the biggest influence on her art career and the reason she decided to draw and bring her ideas to life. But Kara Walker also became really interested in Andy Warhol’s Pop art in the 1960s and Robert Colescott who inserted cartoonish Dixie sharecroppers into his version of Vincent van Gogh’s Dutch peasant cottages.

Kara Walker first became known in 1994 with her mural ‘Gone’, presenting an art filled with sex and slavery and it was then an instant hit in the art world. She has done a lot of exhibitions all around the world and her work always attracts people of all gender and race with different views and opinions.

Kara Walker gets her ideas and inspiration from images from historical textbooks that show how African American slaves were depicted during Antebellum South. Other than her talent to draw and create such beautiful works of art she has also taken part in ochre gouaches, video animation, shadow puppets, and "magic-lantern" projections.

Kara Walker says this about her work ‘Gone’ in an interview to the website Art21: “Gone, a historical romance of civil war as it occurred between the dusky thighs of one young negress and her heart”. I really like the spooky mysterious atmosphere that Kara Walker created in this piece. The guy holding a sword on his back hand and the women almost hiding someone under her dress confuses people’s thoughts and makes them wonder. In my opinion I think Kara Walker was trying to show that everybody has secrets but at some point or another they will end up being unmasked/shown.

In my opinion Kara Walker’s work is really intriguing and it instantly catches my attention to discover what she was trying to represent with her piece. Her art is the kind of art that makes you stop and think about what she was trying to achieve by doing it. Some of her art is so bizarre and shocking that it becomes so interesting to look at and explore the feelings and emotions behind it. I believe her art is inspirational and challenging. I really like her art and how she keeps her audience guessing.

Useful websites: all visited on 30/09/14.

http://learn.walkerart.org/karawalker?n=Main.HomePage

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kara_Walker

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/12/arts/design/12walk.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

Banksy - Exit Through the Gift Shop

This movie is about people that call themselves artists but do not take time to perfect their art and to discover their style, they only think about the money and the publicity that they are going to get. I thought the film was funny at some points and Thierry Guetta aka: ‘Mr Brainwash’ was a really funny guy, I thought the film in general was really interesting for street artists but also for artists in general, because it talks about how artists need to take time to discover who they are and their style of art and also states that people should be careful with the people they consider “artists”.

Although the movie was made by Banksy, the movie is not all about him but a guy called Thierry Guetta and how he failed to create a movie that he was making to show street art and street artists so Banksy took advantage of that and created a movie about Thierry himself.

In my opinion, I think the movie/film is a hoax from Banksy because it’s all too coincidental, it all fits too perfectly but I don’t think it really matters if it is legit or just a hoax because I believe the message Banksy is trying to deliver to artist/people that buy art work and people in general is really important and interesting. I believe that the message Banksy was trying to sell was that a lot of people consider themselves artists but all they really care about is if they will be known and how much publicity they are going to get. The title of the movie says it all “Exit Through the Gift Shop” meaning that ‘Mr. Brainwash’ was a lot more interested in the money than in street art, like him a lot of artists are more concerned with money than creating art and getting a message across.

I believe Thierry Guetta (Mr. Brainwash) is not a real street artist because his work is really repetitive and he copies a lot of other artist’s work, I believe that a true artist comes up with his own ideas and takes time to create his work/art. This movie totally changed my view on street art and street artists, it made me realise that not all street artists are genuine artists and that not all art is created with intelligence and time, actually a lot of gallery art is copied from other artists to sell.

I think it is possible to draw a line between street art and vandalism; I like to think that when the art is original, interesting and it sends a message to people it should be appreciated and considered to be ART but if the art is unoriginal or just people trying to mess with others peoples properties than it should be considered vandalism and some sort of action should be taken.

This movie is a great example of people/artists just wanting to commercialise art and it really does succeed in criticising the art world because it talks a lot about how anybody can become an ‘artist’ and sell their art for thousands because that’s all that a lot of people care about these days.

I personally love street art because I think it’s really interesting how artists like Banksy for example can send such a great message through art. I don’t think that street artists go too far because isn’t that whole point of street art: getting to the highest point, getting as far as they can get. That being said I’m not against street art, because the people own the streets so they decide what they want to see every day in the public spaces ‘our own spaces’, but I think that the people who can make art and get a message across are the ones who should be doing street art. I think street art is dangerous and exhilarating. Sometimes it’s good to experience the adrenaline of creating new art.

Jimmy C

James Cochran aka Jimmy C is an English street artist. He has lived most of his life in Australian and now considers himself more Australian than English. Jimmy C is best known for his urban narrative paintings and for his drip painting style which he also likes to call 'scribble paintings'. Jimmy C lost his mother when he was just twelve years of age and later went to live in the streets. Jimmy C was searching for his identity; he just couldn’t find it at home, he just wanted a bit of love and attention. He found everything he was searching for in the streets. He feels that everything he went through is relevant to whom he is now as an artist; the experiences in the streets, the death of his mother. It all adds up to his style and who he is today.

Jimmy C completed an arts degree in 1997 and then a Master in Visual Arts at the University of South Australia in 2002. He was at the stage of discovering who he was as an artist when he came across a project in Australia in the Aboriginal communities. The Aboriginal artists worked with dots. He thought it was an interesting technique that he could develop and transform into his own style. In his studio, he started to explore with different dot techniques and he called it the ‘Aerosol Pointillism’. He then developed the dots into drips and it almost felt like he could finally express himself through art; “when I was working with those drips I felt that I had something unique. It felt very natural like a part of my personality. It just flowed”.

He loves to paint homeless people because they have a truth within them that nobody else has, a story that should be told in the right way. Jimmy C also gets inspired a lot by exploring the relationship between individuals and the urban landscape, which has led to paintings of buildings sprouting from head portraits.

Jimmy C now lives in London. His art can be viewed on walls all around the world. These places include Paris, Berlin, New York and many more. He loves to paint in the streets as he feels home. Jimmy C also likes the feeling that anything could happen and the rawness that street art has.

In my opinion Jimmy C is a great unique artist that took time in developing his style and finding his identity in the art world. I think he can really show what the people in his paintings are feeling and I think that’s just amazing. I also love the fact that he can create such beautiful and realistic work of art using just the dot technique. Overall I really like Jimmy C and the overcoming story he can tell and inspire people.

Useful websites: all visited on 04/10/2014.

http://www.akajimmyc.com/Street_Art

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Cochran_(artist)

http://www.edition.cnn.com/2012/08/03/world/europe/cochran-usain-bolt-portrait/index.html?hpt=hp_c1

http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2011/jul/19/streetart-australia

Banksy

Banksy is a graffiti artist based in the United Kingdom. His identity is unknown and he likes to keep it that way. The closest we could ever get to him was in 2010 when he produced and started in his own movie called ‘Exit through the Gift Shop’ which was nominated for an Oscar for Best Documentary Feature.

Banksy’s technique is based on stencils. He first started stencilling the public streets in the early 1990s and hasn’t stopped until then. Banksy says this about his unique technique: “I use whatever it takes. Sometimes that just means drawing a moustache on a girl's face on some billboard, sometimes that means sweating for days over an intricate drawing. Efficiency is the key”. He tells stories and sends warning messages using his stencil art. He got a lot of criticism from other street artists for using stencils because they consider it ‘cheating’ but Banksy does did not listen to anything they said because he stands by what he truly believes.

His art is about political views and social conflict. It has been featured on streets, walls, and bridges of cities throughout the world. Banksy doesn’t like to do interviews or speak in public because he is really cautioned of his identity and he likes to keep it private. But sources say that Banksy was really inspired by Richard Hambleton. Banksy stands by the truth within art and doesn’t believe it should be sold but told. For this reason he does not sell his work through commercial art galleries.

In my opinion Banksy is an extraordinary artist that not only produces great works of art but also has valuable point of views. His art is great with lots of meaning. Even though he stays anonymous, it’s amazing that it still gets so much attention. I love the fact that he proved everybody wrong with his stencil technique and kept doing what he loves the most. I also admire his courage and the fact that he doesn’t really care about money or how much his art is going to sell for. He keeps producing his art because he loves it not because of the profit his going to make. Overall I think Banksy is amazing, I really like his work and the message he sends across.

 Useful websites: All visited on 05/10/2014.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2450674/Banksy-speaks-Famously-anonymous-graffiti-artist-gives-rare-interview.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banksy

http://banksy.co.uk/out.asp

Endless the Artist

David White is a British artist based in London; he also goes by the name ‘Endless’ which represents his positivity and never give up attitude towards his creativity. Endless has studied for 6 years in printmaking, graphics and fine art. This has helped him develop his unique style and technique, taking time in perfecting his work has definitely paid off his hard work. He also works on canvas, prints, producing diverse exhibitions and street installations.

Endless likes to work both in the studio and on the streets, he comes up with his unique style of art by using elements such as spray paint, acrylic, house paints and pens. His most recent work focuses on high powered brands and their effect on our lives. Endless artwork is a true representation of today’s ever changing chaotic culture. He sure creates hidden meanings in his work overlapped with humour and iconic imagery. Endless says this about his own work: "A response on how I see the world around me, bringing my thoughts and ideas at that moment in time together into a visual release is how I would describe my work."

In my opinion Endless has a touch of creativeness to his work that I really like. There isn’t much about him but from what I found I believe that he loves what he does. I think his art is engaging and I feel that everyone can bring different views on the meaning of his work.

Useful websites: All visited on 04/10/2014.

http://endlesstheartist.com/

http://www.kaltblut-magazine.com/david-white/#.UuFGMeuZb8M.facebook

Stik

Stik is a British graffiti artist currently living in London. His work is mainly based on simple black and white stickmen on the side of buildings. Stik believes that there is more to his art than a simple stickmen, he states this in an interview: “They’re not just stickmen, they’re people. People became stickmen. They’re shorthand for emotions. They reflect how I feel. The curve of the back, how tucked in the chest is, if the arse is sticking out, whether they are knock-kneed. There’s a lot in the bend of a knee or the shrug of a shoulder.”

Ten years ago he would have never thought of being in the position that he is today. Stik was homeless and does not like to talk about it because it was a horrible experience that he does not want to live again. Art was his life saviour, it kept him focused and on the right track.

Stik has never taken education in art. He learned to do it from other street artist like Doze, Zomby, Run and Roa. He says this about working with other artists in an interview with Londonist: “It’s important to spend time with other street artists because there is a mutual understanding between them. They understand how it’s like to put their work out to the public”.

He started doing his large pieces in the streets of London, since then Stik has discovered himself as an artist and developed his style. He now paints murals all over the world, in places like Europe, Asia and America. He particularly loves the peaceful relaxed approach of street art in Berlin. Stik admires Thierry Noir’s work and takes it as inspiration to his own art.

In 2011 Stik had his own solo show in a gallery in London; his work got a lot of attention then. Some people compare him to Banksy and say that he could even be the next Banksy because of the simplicity and effectiveness of his work. Stik likes the effect of his art on people; he likes to think of his art as friendly because it can bring people together.

Stik is recently working with major organizations. These include Amnesty International, British Waterways, the Mutoid Waste Company, Queeruption and Reclaim the Streets. He also worked for NHS to create murals to make people aware of the effects of drugs. He used his own experience in the streets to create those pieces. Stik still paints unauthorised art because he likes to remember where he came from and how he got to where he is now. This is also one of the main reasons why he stays anonymous.

In my opinion I think that Stik has a really interesting story that he knows exactly how to show through art. His art is simple but so effective at the same time. I like the fact that his style is completely different from everybody else and also because he wasn’t afraid to put it out there at first. This is because criticism can be really harsh and aggressive sometimes. I think his art is more about the story behind it than the actual art itself. I really like Stik’s work and how he portrays life using simple stickmen.

Helpful websites: all visited on 04/10/2014.

http://londonist.com/2012/05/interview-street-artist-stik.php

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stik

http://stik.org/

http://imitatemodern.com/artists/stik/

Roa

Roa is a well-known street artist from Ghent in Belgium. Although his street art gets a lot of attention Roa is really mysterious and not much is known about him or his life. He has visited many countries to print his mark on murals around the world. These include London, New York, Berlin, Warsaw, Madrid, Moscow, Los Angeles, Mexico City and Paris. Roa has his own opinion about graffiti he says this in an interview with Street Art London: “graffiti is one of the most free art expressions of the world; you don’t do it for money nor for an institution, its free expression and it liberates yourself creatively from a lot of restrictions”.

Roa’s art is based on large animal paintings mainly using black and white. Roa says that since he was a kid he used to love to draw animals and also wanted to become an archaeologist. He remembers bringing home little bird skulls to draw. He loved to feel the excitement and adventure. With his street art career he started off by spray painting his animals under bridges and abandoned warehouses to experiment with different lines and elements.

His main inspiration to creating such highly detailed animal art is at natural history museums where his ideas and thoughts are conflicted with the history of animal species. His love for music, more in particular hip-hop got his attention to the graffiti world and he was curious to give it a try.

You would think that drawing huge scale animals on walls would get boring in time but Roa confirms that this statement is untrue because every wall, environment and surroundings are different and the challenge to create something new and exciting is always there. Roa wants his art to be remembered and to inspire people to be creative. He wants people to get involved with planet earth and the species in it.

I personally love Roa’s work; I think his ideas with the animals are just fantastic. The detail he puts into it is just amazing. The time he took to discover himself as an artist and the time he put into perfecting his work has led him to this great result. He really is a great artist and his style is unique and different from all other artists in the world. He has his own technique to creating these great works of art. He starts it with black lines and in time the animal starts to get shape. I particularly love the way his animals painting end up looking like. They are so realistic and cool but still kept with a hint of modernism. In my opinion he is one of the best street artists out there right now.

       

Useful websites: All visited on 29/09/2014.

http://www.streetartbio.com/#!roa/c1kgk

http://hifructose.com/2012/09/07/exclusive-interview-with-roa/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ROA_(artist)

http://streetartlondon.co.uk/artists/roa/

Michael Craig Martin

Michael Craig Martin is a contemporary conceptual artist; he draws and paints ordinary objects. He was born in Dublin-Ireland in 1941 and later went to live in the United States. He also studied Fine Arts at Yale University.

He has done exhibitions all around the world. These include Austria, Germany and many others. In 1974 he exhibited his most famous work ‘the oak tree’ which is a cup of glass filled with water on top of a shelf. His ‘oak tree’ work has gotten a lot criticism from a lot of people. Also in the 70’s he was amazed to discover that nobody was doing drawings of ready-made objects. He thought the ready-made drawings of ordinary things already existed but that was not the case so he felt he had to be the one to draw them and put them as much in character as the objects themselves. He started to create line drawings of ordinary objects using bend tape to construct his work and make it stand out.

Michael Craig Martin is fascinated with the reality of art. He says this in an interview with BBC “art has nothing to do with the nature of the object, nor with how it was made. It is to do with how you think about the thing you’re looking at. If you look at something and put it into the context of art that is essential for it to be art”. He likes to create tension using colour, different objects and exploring the relationship between them.

His most famous ordinary object piece of art is the ‘Eye of the Storm’ which is an open safety pin that floats above a bucket and a long-handled garden fork which is propped against a light bulb. The outlined pictures of objects later acquired brilliant/vibrant colours. He states this in an interview about his ‘Eye of the Storm’ piece: “over and over again as a way of trying to construct situations, to construct images and pictures, places ... to use very simple things to describe very complex ideas ... Because they’re so familiar, they’re like a universal language, anybody can see them”.

Michael Craig Martin wants people to feel like they are stepping inside his art and experiencing it fully instead of just looking at it as a painting.

In my opinion Michael Craig Martin is an intelligent person who knows how to explain his art and draw people into it. He knows exactly what his talking about. I don’t like the way he necessarily thinks about art and artists. He believes that anything in a gallery is considered art and I disagree with that point because I wouldn’t consider for example a glass full of water on top of a shelf art but that’s just my opinion. I also don’t agree that everybody who says they do art is necessarily an artist either. I think Michael Craig Martin’s work is cleverly done and constructed. The way he uses colour combination and detailed lines with not much detail in the object itself is really amazing. He makes his work really colourful and vibrant to make it stand out and bring emotions to the viewers. I’m biased about his work because I think it’s quite ordinary to draw everyday objects but then again nobody except him taught of doing it before. Also because he does it in a different way for example the proportions of his objects are not to scale and the objects feel like it’s almost flowing with no gravity on the paper is really amazing to think about.

Helpful Websites: All visited on 01/10/2014

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01zd15n

http://www.michaelcraigmartin.co.uk/

http://www.gagosian.com/artists/michael-craig-martin