Beyond the Streets

At the moment more than one hundred of the most celebrated graffiti and street artists are showing works at BEYOND THE STREETS in Los Angeles' Venice Pavillion.

Site-specific installations, photography, sculptures and paintings are shown in- and outdoors as a tribute to Los Angeles.

The exhibition includes artworks of Faile, Shepard Fairey, Lady Aiko, Dan Witz, Banksy, Martha Cooper, Invader, Keith Haring, Jenny Holzer, Swoon and VHILS.

Art collector Roger Gastman( Art in the Streets) curated the show. Gastman is also known as co- founder of Fairey's Swindle magazine and co- producer of Banksy's documentary Exit Through the Gift Shop. Other curators are Evan Pricco( editor of Juxtapoz magazine), David Villorente and author Caleb Neelon.

The must see installations include Faile's temple, a playful, interactive sacred structure, banners of the feminist collective Guerrilla Girls and a playable handball court with artwork by Lee Quiñones.

https://www.beyondthestreets.com

Master in Media Lady Aiko's soul stretches out into urban space

copyright Lady Aiko

Which aspects of urban art attracted you to hit the streets of NY after your successful studies in graphic design and filmmaking at Tokyo Zokei University and media studies at the New School?

At college I was into documentary filmmaking. Urban art is similar to documentary film in some characteristics: both are non-fiction, rough and real. Urban art is performing arts, it is a spontaneous happening on the street, a communicative art form that is meant for everyone, for random people in random situations .
When following media studies, Canadian philosopher Marshall McLuhan once said "the medium is the message, an extension of our body".  Urban art became my medium and my large-scale murals and installations became extensions of my body. My stencils beautify the cityscape, leave prints of my positive soul here and there. I enjoy the feeling that the city becomes an extension of myself, allowing my body to become bigger and bolder.

You worked for Takashi Murakami, whose work is also inspired by Japanese pop culture, anime and manga imagery. What did you learn from this unforgettable co-operation?

When I was assisting Takashi Murakami, he wasn't the superstar artist he is now. Back then he rented a tiny space in Brooklyn to prepare for his solo exhibition at Marianne Boesky Gallery in Soho. Murakami and a few assistants worked at the one small table in the room, it was an intimate co- operation. 
This was right after my arrival in NY. I was very interested in the artist's life style, more than in what he created or in his artistic techniques. I was observing him, this middle aged Japanese artist beginning his world-wide career. 

What was your role in the artists' collective Faile?

My role was from A-Z, I was a creative part of Faile. 

As a solo artist you have been known to utilize a large scale of materials and techniques: acrylics, spray paint, collage, pigments, coffee stains, film, screen printing, stencils on spray cans, designing sculptures and toys, ...
Which are the main messages you are aiming to convey by means of your bright street and gallery work?

By experimenting with several techniques and materials I seek the beauty of human life. The world of today is filled with sad stories, therefore I want to focus on the positive moments of everyday life, on making things better ... The Japanese tragedy that took place last year filled me with concern. I also feel deeply for my heritage, I like talking about my roots in order to preserve our beautiful culture and tradition.

What's your view on the position of female artists in the male dominated art world?

It can be very difficult, but I enjoy my position as a very unique individual most of the time.

 Can you tell us more about your collaboration with Martha Cooper?

She's a very good friend of mine. We travel together, organize shows and mural events, lecture on the history of graffiti and street art. We simply inspire each other. It's really nice to work with a different generation's talent. 
Based on the photographs Martha took in Tokyo during the 1960's, a book called Tokyo Tattoo was published. The Tokyo Tattoo project consists of Martha's book publication, an art exhibition of images I designed, and a spray paint mural project in Europe and the US. 

Could you tell us more about your future projects?

Soon I will do a mural project in Las Vegas. This fall Martha Cooper and I will be working on the Tokyo Tattoo show in Soho NYC. In Japan I will be working on a new version of the Lady Butterfly sculpture, which is to be released this winter. A fashion project, new prints and a book will be out by the end of this year so please stay tuned on www.ladyaiko.com. 

Many thanks , Lady Aiko Nakagawa!

Streets ahead of the ordinary

Faile, work on wood

FAILE(1999) is the Brooklyn-based artistic collaboration between Patrick McNeil (b. 1975, Edmonton, CA) and Patrick Miller (b. 1976, Minneapolis, MN). The two friends met in high school and later on kept in touch whilst attending art school.


The duo created A Life in collaboration with Japanese filmmaker Aiko Nakagawa who left FAILE in 2006. A Life expresses the interaction with its environment, the deterioration of artwork caused by exposure to the elements. The detritus of the city wall was a constant inspiration …


They changed their artist name into Faile, an anagram of A Life. The trio started focusing on street art by means of large-scale screen prints, wheat pasting and stenciling recognizable pop culture images. During the early years of their career Faile’s artwork was marked by assemblage and dynamic experiments in public urban spaces.


Street art was only featured in a few galleries in New York, in spite of its history of graffiti and its status of the city of contemporary art.


Faile’s style and characteristic culture-driven iconographical language make their work very recognizable. Socio-political themes, criticism on society, consumerism and mass culture in addition to both sacred and profane cultural influences (the use of religious artifacts) are depicted in their projects.


FAILE’s recent work is marked by the consistent juxtaposition of dualities (love/hate, violence/beauty, peace/war), recurring themes which are represented by recognizable visual elements.


Their work is characterized by a certain ambiguity which allows the viewer’s open interpretation in order to be able to relate to the work. Their creations’ meaning is open and emphasizes the audience’s interactive experience.


In addition to the common street art media, they chose a wide array of media ea sculpture, architecture, multimedia, music, design and books in limited edition.


Faile and twenty one other internationally renowned artists such as Banksy, Shepard Fairey and Takashi Murakami were invited to show their work at the Spank the Monkey exhibition (2007, BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art). This show was crucial contribution towards the institutional acceptance of street art.


A year later Street Art(Tate Modern, 2008), a group exhibition featuring street artists Blu, Sixeart, JR, Nunca and Os Gomeos included Faile’s work. Thanks to this exhibition Faile was able to reach a large public. Their work increasingly received more media attention.


Street art embraces hip-hop aesthetics, fixes its eye upon to the masses expression in an attempt to regain and embellish the urban environment. Contemporary art shouldn’t be restricted to museums and galleries but be available on every corner of the street.



Article written by Ann Timmermans

More information and pics:
faile@faile.net


http://www.faile.net/