While the paste was still wet…
Posted by justin on 05 Jan 2008 at 12:31 am | Tagged as: adventure day, art + bikes, art paparazzi, graffiti, in yo face, possibilities, r.i.p.
(words: Aaron Forland, photos: Justin Parr)
Who would have thought the day would come when the mighty Emvergeoning machine would get scooped on its home turf by a little-known upstart lowbrow/street art magazine called Juxtapoz? Not only that, but with photos we took, documenting a one-of-a-kind, one-night-only (thanks to our crack City maintenance crews – good lookin’ out, fellas) extralegal public art installation coordinated and executed by a group calling itself Uniting Artists Through Crime. Word has it that Scotch! and co-conspirators utilized the awesome networking power of to pull off this small coup. The diverse international show was mounted (after a false start one week prior) during daytime hours Monday, December 17th on the defunct, boarded-up former haven for the transient on North Saint Marys at Convent, directly across from our beautiful Greyhound Bus Station. As the press release (which also contained the magic word emerging) stated, the show ran “until the buff,” which, as mentioned, went down the following day. Fortunately, Fl!ght World Headquarters received a telephone tip late Monday night and we were able to semi-thoroughly document it in the wee morning hours.
The show featured the work of artists from four continents, and may be the largest wheatpaste-based collaborative installation ever mounted in Texas. Standout works came from (Florida), New York City’s stencil-mad Bot, the sociopolitical stylings of (Malaysia), and San Antonio’s own fevered x-acto imagists and . Other contributing artists included (Califas), Aphro (SA), Bomit (Houston), Chis La Notte (Madrid, España), Dual (Houston), Dwell/Oneunit (NYC), Enosh (Califas), Enos One (SA), Genevieve (SA), (Queensland, Australia), Give Up (Houston), (SA), REPS/EPSR (SA), Washer (DC), Wes (SA) and probably a few others (apologies to anyone left out – I did my best to ID you all.) Media varied from traditional wheatpaste methods of xeroxed, screened or stenciled paper to hand-painted pieces and even stenciled metal plates.
Here you will find the entirety of Justin’s photos, and here are some supplementary celly snaps I took attempting to show a little more detail.
Nice job with the pics. Shame nobody got to see it in person. Might be time to start thinking about going legit, unless Scotch! likes putting a bunch of shit together only to see it torn down before anyone can see it.
S.A. ain’t NYC.
There’s plenty of space (Fl!ght, maybe?) to where street art appreciators such as myself can see shows like this and don’t have to be awake at 4 a.m.
is street art in a gallery still street art?
i don’t know.
Good point, but at least people can see it. I’m just saying put together a show for a gallery every now and then while still doing it on the street.
Since when does NYC get to keep all the cool street art for itself?
I don’t really think work like this lends itself much to a gallery setting. On the street, its taken in a totally different context. if I could somehow convince Union Pacific to stop a few boxcars behind the gallery and then bring artists in to cover them, and then call it a FL!GHT show you could view from the backdoor.. THAT would be fun.
Sometimes you’ve just got to go for it, Steve. I think every street artist knows the odds.
PS : Scotch! is represented by at least one out of state gallery that I know of, and hes participated in several big group shows around the country with some pretty big names in the streetart subculture. I’m fairly certain hes on his way to whatever “legit” means.
There’s plenty of space (Nightmare on Grayson? White Rabbit? Hot Topic?) where street art appreciators such as yourself can see shows like this and don’t have to be awake at 4 a.m.
why would you want to wander the streets at 4 am or go to a snooty gallery opening when you can see it all on emvergeoning?
I don’t go up Grayson way anymore since some fool shot Ram. I’m rarely up N. St. Mary’s anymore either. Being on that street makes drink too much. I’m old already. I need to see art in a more calm atmosphere without the beer fights and fashion shows.
i think that was some ‘legit’ street artist’s idea of a joke, steve. point being, perhaps, that context is everything when it comes to illegal street art. all three of those businesses feature commercialized (which might also be considered debased, particularly by dedicated street practitioners) forms of ’street art.’ take a moment also to consider that the motivations for street artists might not always be in line with the ‘legit’ art world paradigm/milieu you feel comfortable with/in. they may overlap at times, but art made for street display and art made for gallery display can be two entirely different animals.
I need to see art in a more calm atmosphere without the beer fights and fashion shows.
the irony here being that i have never experienced a more calm, less socially fraught atmosphere to view art in than n. st. marys and convent between 3 and 4am on a cold tuesday morning.
except, of course, for emvergeoning ;)
Like I said, I don’t go up St. Mary’s anymore so I wasn’t sure if there was something different up there besides the bulbous Boyz in Da Hood shit I’ve seen in the past.
Speaking to your motivations point: From what I’ve seen of Scotch’s work and works of other street artists, I think they deserve more attention and respect than they sometimes get. I understand it’s part of the process, but what if Justin hadn’t been there to take those pics of that building? All that work only for some city fools to come and tear it all down?
The world would be a little less had Haring or Basquiat not gotten the huge exposure that they got and actually made the effort to get that exposure. There are no accidental tourists in the art world.
:)
The LoneStar Studios has a “street art” gallery show this weekend for January’s Second Saturday. Well, street art influence and infused gallery art. Just next door to Judson’s Fl!ght show.
It is not uncommon for hunters to be shot by their dogs.
props! emvergeoning seems to always embrace healthy conversation regarding difference in opinion… one of the reasons i’m reading constantly…
so let’s stir it up a little…
i have nothing but reverence and respect for the concept… but something about regurgitating xerox images is not only a turn off due to lack of originality but also encourages the viewer to dismiss any statement by the artist because, frankly, it all looks the same… not just in this instance but in most wheatpaste applications…
furthermore… the byproduct ends up being somewhat elitist in that it is only REALLY then reaching the masses of people who are into the medium. the goal, i think, was intended by the originators to be a statement to be seen and understood by all viewers… whether they are sympathetic to the cause or not… a symbol of nonconformity that simply cannot be ignored…
and though the limelight remains on hugely visible and successful figures like fairey… the commercial aspect of street art is constantly shoved down our throats until I can’t even find the motivation to really see what is being stated…
the next phase, i presume, of this type art means changing up the look of the medium to be more in touch with the purpose… and not to simply participate in a growing phenomenon of what’s hot… bring to this outsider’s attention an example of any one artist within this type art that is truly pushing the boundaries…not because i’m trying to prove a point … but because i would love to be turned on to thier art…
o, heartily agreed.
i looked at this as more a report on an experience than as any kind of critical look at it as a body of work. the most interesting things about it were a) the fact that it took place in san antonio, which while harboring some real street talent, has not really made a distinctive mark of its own; b) the national and international scope of the participants; and c) the scale and audacity of the feat of simply installing it. in my opinion, the overall quality of the work was middling, though with several standout pieces.
my biggest criticism of what is being called street art is the mindless recycling of pop culture imagery with little or no alteration or signs of artistic intent beyond the decorative or attention-grabbing aspects. it is definitely still sort of nascent, with a few signs of really bright and interesting work that might stand a serious critical consideration as “high art.”
i’m glad to see someone else bring these points up and also very pleased to hear you enjoy the healthy discourse from differing viewpoints that we are seeing here. next: “shepard fairey has ruined graffiti.” discuss!
[...] An interesting story out of LA, a bit like this tale from San Antonio, but with a happy ending: Luckily, REVOK carried his camera that day, and L.A. Weekly received the photo; we were wowed. So, it turns out, was Murakami, whose Kaikai Kiki studio found the evidence via the Internet and had the billboard surreptitiously removed. Murakami buffing billboards all the way from Japan? On the contrary, according to his representatives, he found it “so wonderful, he had to have it for his collection.” Our billboard is now on its way to Tokyo. [...]
all the way from Japan
all the way from Japan
all the way from Japan