Zane and Evolve

Representing San Deigo
ZANE and EVOLVE
Wall
Down Town San Diego

      I was actually invited to see this piece instead of me clumsily stumbling upon it  When I was taking a picture of a throw-up outside of the building, the owner of the boxing gym in front of me invited me to come in a picture the art inside.  He blushed with pride and joy getting to show off his gym.  It was obvious that these walls and the style of graffiti was made to attract and be a new and edgy factor that made his business special.  This graffiti, is a cross between a throw-up and a masterpiece.  It is on the interior of a boxing and Jujitsu studio in down town San Diego.  Since the actual painting is on the inside of a building on the wall, the artist actually painted a street on the wall so that the throw-up would still be in context.  I think it is interesting that the artist chose to recreate an environment within a different one.  He represents the street of San Diego condensed, but then fit his tag/signature spanning the entire city.  It's as if he is proclaiming that there is not a wall big enough that exists in reality to convey how he wants to be recognized.  The history of graffiti started with and has continued to be a way to take ownership over a specific territory.  Although this is not actually on a real street in the middle of down town, it is on a conceptual street that maintains the theme of ownership and pride.  The tag isn't simply painted on a wall, it is literally painted across the sidewalk.  I love that.  It is just over-emphasizing the ongoing theme of demanding recognition.

The piece itself depicts San Diego as beautiful, romantic, and cool.  ZANE and EVOLVE chose to paint this piece at sunset which gives off a purple and pink haze creating a romantic and sensual atmosphere.  The letters are a water blue color that draws attention and gives off an inviting and shadow-like experience.  The stairs wrap around the tag drawing the attention back towards the tag. The boom box in the front shows hip-hop influence and music's relationship with graffiti. For me, I think that the symbols used within the piece are a little bit cliche, but what held my attention was putting street art in an interior space. The throw-up uses shine to finish off the piece nicely making the illusion of reflecting light.

Carlsbad Village Drive

Animal Kingdom
DEF2 ASERO
Carlsbad Village Drive
Wall
(Figure 1)

Fence Tag
Carlsbad Village Drive
Wall
(Figure 2)

      Figure 1 is off of Carlsbad Village Drive on the side of a small library or book store.  I never would have seen it, if I wasn't looking for it.  But once I saw it, it seemed impossible that I would have missed it.  The colors are extremely bright and inviting.  I think my favorite thing about this piece is that is displays street art and graffiti in a really playful, and positive light.  I think it does a great job of trying to shatter the negative connotations interlaced with graffiti.  In almost every reference to graffiti in the media that I have ever seen or can think of always gives it a rough exterior, many times linking it to gang related activities.  Here, street art  and graffiti are shown in a way that is welcoming to all audiences.  The characters that the artist decided to show are colorful animals, that still show the street art style without overly sexual connotations. (like many other graffiti style piece)  I think that this piece is perfect for the environment that it is in.  It is right off of the main street of Carlsbad where many families walk to get lunch from the beach.  It is able to be visually dynamic and intriguing even without the traditional elements applied to graffiti.  The building itself seems to extend further back because of the fence that is connected to it’s side.  The artist extended the painting to be overflowing from the library to the fence in a graceful way to create and extension of it’s own body instead of cutting it off with the sharp lines.  The fence is completely covered with a throw-up as shown above in Figure 2.

     Figure 2 is a throw-up that seems to be a little bit less technical than some of the other King graffiti artists that I have seen and studied.  But, I don’t think it devalues this piece in the least.  I love that it caters to a younger audience and stands nicely next to the work directly to the right of it.  It uses light and pastel colors which goes hand and hand with the theme of playfulness.  For me, what this throw-up is lacking is contrast.  If there were bolder colors outlining the letters, it would pop out more from the background and demand more recognition.  It is decorating the fence in away that draws attention to a space that normally would be ignored.  It reminds me of the artist we looked at names Space Invader.  He often times finds the smallest corners and high-up spots that are "non-spaces" to draw attention to.  Even though this space is much larger than any of the spaces Space Invader uses, it still supplies purpose and beauty to an area that otherwise would have been looked over. 

SAKE1

SAKE 1
San Diego, CA
Walls
Old School 

     This piece is on a short wall that surrounds a parking lot to a jujitsu and boxing facilities.  It is in an environment that is completely surrounded by other art.  Every wall on the outside, and on the inside have graffiti decorating it.  This was a place where art was highly appreciated and loved by the city and owner's of the walls.  While I was there, taking pictures of this building the owner came out and asked if I was interested in seeing more of the art.  I said yes eagerly, and he showed me inside of the gym that was also covered with art on every wall.  I asked him who painted them and he just replied with " local homies around that we know."  Which is why I found it interesting when I found this piece on the outside of the building by SAKE 1.  Somehow the name was familiar and so once I got home I looked into his work.  He isn't a local San Diego artist, but a well known graffiti artist from Montreal.  What I enjoy most about this throw-up is that it approaches you directly in the streets.  It confronts you when you don't expect it to.  

                              " Graffiti is in the streets and always has been." - SAKE (1.)

This throw-up confronts you straight on.  Because it is on the ground, you can walk up to it and see all of the detail.  It isn't in a high up and hard to reach spot where it is nearly impossible for you to get close to. In the graffiti world, writers gain respect by getting to hard to reach spaces, but for me outside of the graffiti world as just an onlooker love it when I can physically get close to it and see it the way the artist did while he/she was painting it. It is on a wall that blocks your walk way.  It almost feels like the wall itself was designed after the graffiti on top of it.  It was intended for interruption.  SAKE 1 uses characters on both ends of his name to frame his signature.  He uses neon, bright colors to outline the work to give the effect that his name is three-dimensional.  He also uses arrows and fading color to display movement.  The only thing I really don't like about this Throwie is the rusty orange color that he used as the focal point.  I wish it was a different shade or even a different color completely to better contrast with the pink and green outline.  

1. For more information on SAKE, here is an interview he did with INFAMOUS magazine: http://www.theinfamousmag.com/2011/magazine/sake/

More images of the environment and art that was inside of the building behind SAKE's throw-up.

Off of Imperial in downtown San Diego

This is Larry.  He says he is the artist's uncle, I'm pretty sure he was lying. 

  

Larry says this is his family. 

Anonymous
Octopus Mustache
Downtown San Diego

   This is the first sign of art that I found in downtown San Diego.  It is right off Imperial and K street.  The first thing that intrigued me about this piece was the size.  It manages to take up the entire side of this building.  The second thing that intrigued me was that it was entirely closed in with locked fences surrounding it.  The only way I could get to it was to park on a side street and walk over to peep through the fence. the fact that it was locked behind these fences gave it a higher value.  It seemed like it was intentionally made to last and was fighting the temporary. The fence surrounding it also extended pride from the building's owner.  It's skill level also hinted toward it being something that was greatly valued.  What I very soon came to find out, was that the building owner was not the only one who valued this art piece. Before I could get a close look at the painting itself, I was immediately greeted by a community of homeless people who stepped in my path and beckoned me closer.  They asked about my camera and I told them I was interested in the art work behind them.  I asked them what they thought of it and they continued to tell me story after story of how they were best friends or related to the artist.  They were so excited that I was there and was recognizing the piece that they all wanted me to take their picture in front of it and make sure I identified them as a "friend of a friend" or a "distant uncle" of the man who painted it. They so obviously wanted to be a part of showing off the art that they had some sort of made up or real (who's to say?) relationship with.  

 It has a skillful level of intensity and playfulness. The colors contrast nicely with each other.  This piece, even though it is closed off and fenced in, still has a way of interrupting it's surroundings.  It is a part of these people's every day lives, and for them is something to take pride in. They all said they loved the work and raved about it's beauty.  I found it humbling and lovely to be able to experience and appreciate it the way they did daily.  Even if it was for a glimpse, it caught my attention so much that it made me pull over, and actually experience something I normally wouldn't have.  To me the most successful artist's are the ones who not only ask for attention, but demand it. This work does so not only by it's size, but by a couple of complimentary factors.  Demanding attention is not easy is a place busy with people, cars, trains, and buildings.  What I think was so successful about this was it's balance between intensity and playfulness.  The artist used green, red and grey tones to contrast each other in an intense way.  Then, used  bright colored lines that are delicate, and yet bold.  I think that while I was looking at it, I was so impressed with it's skillfulness that I didn't even look at the context, or what the painting was.  I knew it was a man's head floating on a building, but I didn't realize his mustache extended to the edges of the building and morphs into what to me look like octopus legs until I later looked at the image on my computer screen.  Although this piece standing by itself was visually stimulating and interesting, what I loved most about this was the experience I had trying to get to it.