Across The Tracks and Through The Looking Glass

 

 

HRH Fuel

Intercrime, Cold Crush Dukes, Yardies, We Roc Hard

over Pure Evil

East London 9th July 2011

Back in the eighties I went to countless acid house parties, Wayne Anthony’s ‘Genesis’ was one amongst many such as SIN, Hypnosis, Dungeons, Land of Oz, Biology, Trip City, Krazy Klub, Karma Sutra, Hell, Rage,  the Fitness Centre, Nut House, Phantasy and others….

 

Now in 2010 acid house party pioneers Wayne Anthony from Genesis and Sirius23 are producing one of the best magazines on the planet and I’m honoured to be writing for it.

It’s an alternative lifestyle publication covering art, street art, graffiti, music, consciousness, protest, poetry, philosophy, festival culture and plenty other good vibes it really should not be missed……full of great inspirational stuff to read if you’re a head and full of great ideas to rip off…….. if you’re an 4RTFAG

EDIT

I removed the word 4RTF49 from this post as someone suggested the term could be perceived as anti gay!!!!

(just the opposite in fact, I’ve always stood up for the marginalised and taken issue with their oppressors and many of my girlfriends have been bi )…..so replace it with the following italic text and quotation.

…..if your desire to be perceived as innovative and underground outweighs either your powers of imagination or respect  for the originality and culture of your peers and forebears .

“The seed ye sow, another reaps; The wealth ye find, another keeps; The robes ye weave, another wears; The arms ye forge, another bears.”

PB Shelley

Anyhow…..

 New issue ‘Stand and Deliver’ is out now….. there’s an article I’ve written about cosmic stuff on page 210 and Sirius interviews lil’ ol’ me on page 412. click below to read in your browser…

2010 has been a great  Summer for underground painting events…..now London’s brand new ‘old’s kool’ hall of fame was  given a baptism of fire this Sunday just gone in the heat of the end of London’s summer….Instigated and organised by Insane and Choci Roc, WRH/AWE/RocStars the first ever UK writer to have painted the NY Subway trains starting in 1985 alongside Kase 2 and Mare 139 from ‘Style Wars’ and many others……

Passing through or painting were…..

Prime, Doze, Robbo, Drax, Elk, Dase IL, Choci Roc, Rage, Insane,Skore, PIC ,Krash151, Shuto, Cane, Part2, Shade, Shazer, Merc, Time, Keen One, Letty Lions, Kilo, Disk, Rage, Demon, Steam156, Oker, PIC, Dev666, Krash151, Etch, Kilo, Don, Jet (WRH juniors) Jenny who took the shots and many more…….. including a film crew from an internationally acclaimed TV network who filmed the day and interviewed many of us for a major new documentary that’s in production…..

At last…. a major UK graffiti/art documentary that’s independently produced…..should be interesting!

I can’t wait to see it, they certainly seemed to have done their homework, and seemed fully aware of the history of the movement in light of current events……

An early start meant we were  on the wall by around 9 and I started to get my outline up…

     

We couldn’t have hoped for better weather or a better spot….oh yeah and there was a few legends there too….  

Rage and Skore

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s great to see Part 2 writing again…

 My piece finished

Jet WRH juniors

  Prime WRH….and at last the place is returned to it’s true use…the locals certainly seemed grateful for our efforts.

 

News of broadcast dates will be coming when I hear them, massive thanks to all involved  especially Insane and Choci Roc/ We Roc Hard Crew and Jenny for taking most of the photos.

 

Thanks to to Keen 53 and Sharn.E for organising such a wicked weekend, (a few of us started on Friday evening) it really was the ultimate London oldskool writers’ reunion at a wonderful spot, alongside the Thames with writers painting alongside each other for what seemed like miles…

My unfinished Elate piece by me with help from Jenny and Drew, featuring  1962 rolling stock  fill and featuring personal additions from Envy, Time, Keen 53, Sharn.E, Prime WRH, Wish, Part Two, Fuem ACR, Carl 131, Merc, Coad 5, Fuel, Kis 42, Fued, Colt 45,  Cazbee DSS, Hit and Urge. People competed over the best spots on ‘the train’ to hit, just like in the old days, it was lots of fun…here’s the view across the river Thames from my spot…

After last years Covent Garden ‘writers bench’ reunion was so well attended and instantly became the stuff of legend, the organiser Keen 53 and Sian decided to take it to the next level and take it to a spot where we could all paint our own pieces with tunes ,a barbeque a gazebo and all the necessary bits and pieces for an amazing day out, but miles from anyone who might bother us and in a spectacular location ….

  A 7.30 start is a bit much normally but this was good.

…and a trickle of new arrivals…

…kept arriving… 

…until we had our own little mini festival going !!

 

There were so many oldskool writers painting and loads of legends passing through that it was hard to stay focussed on your piece for more than a few minutes until the next reunion, introduction and retelling of cherished stories …

Nearly everyone there was first/second generation (mid-late eighties) London train writer but there were some honorary additions to the roster who all helped to make it a magic day full of real golden moments that will be remembered forever by all.

In attendance were untold legends from Londons’ rich graffiti history of urban and street art, lost in the mists of time but resurrected in the sun to the live the dream once again….

the line up just went on and on as you walked…. 

 

  

  ….and seemed to go on for half a mile or so….

…. oh the joy of really not being sold anything … no stealth marketing, cynical serial media re-launches, product placement, fake posturing and definitely no toys, bandwagon jumpers, brown noses, me-me-me-ism,  investment strategies, gimmicks or hype (yawn)….

…instead we had over fifty legendary street and urban transit artists and true blood Hip Hop pioneers including Keen 53, Sharn E, Chic, Desire, Envy, Cop 205, Fuel, Prime, Colt 45, DJ Dexter, Bap, Kis42, Brave 1, Skore, Crok, Shye 131, Rave, Urge, Part 2, Crane, Time, Hit, Carl ST, Merc, Coad 5, Fume ACR, Cazbee, Doze, Ebs, Care, Owed, Kee, Fued 28, Rite, Crok,  Freehand, Urge, Ebee, Keylow, Jyer, Kem, Mef, Trans 1, Arian WD, Hert, Steam 156 and many more…..

 

…the art priceless @  $A-Dime-a-Dozen.00

 …the smiles and camaraderie heartfelt, contagious and refreshingly universal…

….our vocational thirst tempered by maturity and wisdom…

…the styles diverse, names earned and skills hard won…..

…and the day featuring absolute legends and cornerstones of global urban art history, some of whom were out painting for the first time in quarter of a century…

… ‘respect the architects’ I read on a certain brother’s shirt….

 

…never was a truer word worn…

 

  

….Elate and ‘OAP’ (old and proud) by Keen 53…

Freya, a dedication piece to her daughter,  by Sharn.E and a quick stick-up by Kis42

 Higher by Cazbee- nicked from his Flickr cheers Caz, great that you’re back out painting…

Big respect and mad love for all who reached and all those who didn’t make it but should have been there, see you next time, thanks a million to Tony and Sian for organising everything and hooking up so many legends in one amazing spot…

Praise be to the weather fairy for the sunshine, was soooo better than last years hailstone thunderstorm washout…. ta for listening gal you dun good dis time. Respect lol

 I did all the artwork for Arcadia, one of the highlights of Glastonbury 2010, the Festival’s 40th Birthday, the hottest on record and some say the best yet…

 

For two weeks we relished the bliss of perfect English midsummer in the most mystical part of the country, Glastonbury, where ley lines meet and legends were born, in The Vale of Avalon, the ancient mythic gateway to the heathen goddess; a place of pilgrimage for millennia.

I was onsite with the team of militant revolutionary dreamers and genius engineers known as Arcadia, easily the best sound system around and quite possibly the greatest show on earth.

Their meticulous attention to detail and fantastic organisation extends to the busy site canteen who kept me fed and watered with an ever-changing array of fresh veggie delights and herbal teas….

I painted anarcho punk slogans since 82 then graffiti at the birth of UK hip hop in 84, onto London’s tube system in 86 through the golden age of train graffiti moving to acid house backdrops in 89. The nineties and new millenium saw me painting at traveller squat parties and Reclaim the Streets protest raves. Throughout the quiet renaissance of classical, surreal and visionary oil painting I was at the easel and fused my skills back with graffiti in Shoreditch in 2009 then onto MuTate Britain with the Mutoid Waste Company in Ladbroke Grove under the Westway…

Now in 2010 I feel glad to have played a small part by painting for the next underground zeitgeist, one which takes influence and energy from all those phenomenon and more, but boldly maps out a new frontier that is purely its’ own…ARCADIA.

Like all underground revolutionary movements the gold rush is for the inner treasure. The ultimate reward is the accomplishment of the dream and the actualisation of the idea. At Glastonbury 2010 Arcadia surpassed all expectations and reached dizzying new heights of inspiration, engineering, teamwork, sculpture, music, lighting, pyrotechnics, performance art and energy as this film shows….

 

The Build

 

 

When we arrived onsite the Afterburner stage was still in its early stages, the ‘legs’ of the spider are actually scrap from customs xray machines that used to scan containers and lorries. Pure genius…

The core of the beast is expertly manoevered into place…

…and it shows its’ face.

In keeping with Arcadia’s militant branding and apocalyptic atmosphere I did the line-up board using their trademark stencil lettering, and carefully distressed the fragments of plane for that ‘hauled out of the swamp 5 years after the crash’ look….

 

…with lots of help from capable hands.

The entrance arch is a couple of modified plane wings, possibly from a glider, it’d been rubbed down to the bare aluminium so to keep the burnished metal intact on the ‘pipes’ I used Belton’s amazing transparent black spray paint to get the relief modelling without losing the wonderful texture which gleamed from underneath as the sun caught the metal…The design was finalised between myself and Pip Rush and based on carvings on an ancient Aztec  temple….

 

Here’s a video of the build in progress.

 

The line-up boards go up….

I then cut back over the black with Belton’s burner chrome to get a contrast against the aluminium and carefully painted the pop rivets and ‘crazy paving’ seams by hand.

 

Pip was keen to use my ‘Circuit Splat’ style so I modified it to pure abstraction with a vivid tribal background on some pieces of aeroplane scrap to hang behind the massive ‘Arc Bar’, the sun was pounding down…

 

After painting ‘til twilight the lights go on on the new Afterburner for the very first time and the eerie entity blinks into life.

Next day the crew finish building ‘stage left’ so I can start the piece.

 

Across the field the punk tent takes shape

After being branded with the Arcadia logo by their prop maker and effects guy, Simon, he begins work on the dirty-metal-effect background for my piece….

…and I start blocking in the arrows. Some respectful inspiration drawn from amigo Keen One here, but in 3 dimensions and distressed with a strong Elate/Arcadia twist….

 

….and lots of rivets, seams, gleams, glints and the Arcadia logo in the centre….

….everyone seemed to really like this.

 

Here the graffiti began to fuse with scrap art by Simon and Sam…

 

Finally after sweat and dedication, blisters, sprains and minor sunstroke Arcadia opened on Thursday 24th June 2010 to the public ….

  …who went nuts….while many crew take the opportunity to sleep until rested before re-emerging to enjoy the weekend.

My art at the Arcadia Arc Bar ‘scuse the poor shots

 

You could feel the heat on your face from the other side of the field. Experience Arcadia, they’re doing amazing things.

 

I’ll let the Lords of Lightning sign off this post as only they know how.

All pictures of Arcadia build by me and Jenny apart from a few select shots of Afterburner show and Glastonbury used  with permission Creative Commons and taken by Luke Blackmore, lusciousblopster, mark-vauxhall, medalliamagpie, Tangentical, fussy onion, Al Green midlander123 and bfirsh; thanks to all.

Massive thanks to Pip and Bertie and all Arcadia crew.

ONE FOOT IN THE GROVE ‘Christmas special’

‘One Foot in the Grove’ is back from the 4th of December.

‘Our festival of underground art provides a welcoming, inclusive and visually astounding experience for all ages in an atmospheric 12,000 square foot setting just off Portobello Road. Walk amongst giant sculptures, installations and unique artwork and hang out for good times at our licensed bar with proper music and delicious grub.

We are featuring loads of new work including an epic wall by Elate, Vibes and Obey Giant that cracks and crumbles the Westway to rubble before your eyes!

There’s new work by Joe Rush, a giant collaboration by Sam Haggerty and Dotmasters, new pieces by Teddy Baden, Wreckage, Seize, Code FC, Bleach, Best Ever, Zadok, Fuel, Skore, Crok, Mear, Towns, K-Guy, to name but a few, also light installations, lasers, stalls, bric a brac, curios, and anarchist crockery.

We have rehung our gallery room that offers exclusive posters, prints, originals, sculptures, photography, clothing and object d’art that make perfect prezzies for you and your discerning friends and family.

We provide that much needed alternative to the Xmas chaos of Oxford Street – so don’t miss out on the best show in town.

See giant fire-breathing robots walking, drink at our licensed bar, see and hear film shows, trains thundering past and experience an authentic friendly festival vibe in the heart of London.

This promises to be London’s biggest, most inclusive, interactive and underground street art event this Christmas.

Families are welcome to this multisensory extravaganza!.

Full dates and opening times below. We look forwarding to seeing you!

Opening times:

Opens December 4th to December 20th – FRI / SAT / SUN

Fri – 2pm -10pm
Sat-1pm – 10pm
Sun – 12pm-9pm

We are also open 2 Wednesdays for the Portobello Winter Festival on the 9th & 16th December – 6pm -10pm

FRI & SAT (NO ENTRY AFTER 9PM)

SUN (NO ENTRY AFTER 8PM)

£2 before 6pm / £3 there after’

www.mutatebritain.co.uk

www.mutatebritain.wordpress.com

facebook mutatebritain

www.myspace.com/mutatebritain

 

New Elate graffiti at Stik’s street art event in Mile End, East London that finishes This Sunday see blog post with full details here

Sorry for the lack of pictures and updates on this event, my camera broke, so many thanks to Art Of The State for stepping in with this, check his excellent website and blog for more pictures of this show plus lots of amazing underground and not-quite-so-underground art plus awesome photos of punk bands in furious action.

I have a new camera now so expect to resume normal service.

[WP-CUMULUS}

 

 

Many thanks to Hip Hop and Graffiti documenter and archiver Skire for allowing me to use shots from his amazing archive.

It’s thanks to people like him we can look back on a golden era.

This shot features vintage London handstyles including an old Elate tag at the legendary and much missed Groove Records in Greek Street, Soho, the Mecca for Hip Hop’s early days, and pretty much the main dispenser of all the Hip Hop Electro imports from the US in the mid eighties, and where I spent most of my money back then, starting in around 86.

The Groove Electro charts were our ever changing bible, and mainstay of the Mike Allen show on Capital Radio, the pioneering spirit behind UK Hip Hop.

This place was pretty well hit in those mad old days, as anyone who knows London’s graffiti history will see from the tags…

It’s nice to see my handstyle in its’ transformative phases, (starting with a small e and ending with a capital E at this point!) It’s on the top of the door frame below Rogue and above Noize for those having trouble….

 Also I can make out Drax WD, Jinx WD, Rogue, Crime, Up2, Dare2, Noize 207, Fuel, Daube, Cane 1, State of Art and Rome ACR amongst others I’m not 100% on. The piece was by the legendary Fade 2

If anyone else has any old Elate flicks I’d be very glad to hear.

 

Do you love graffiti? Maybe you’ve always wanted to learn but didn’t fancy getting arrested or even know where to start. Maybe you’ve tried tags or stencils and would like to learn can control skills and freehand techniques…Maybe your kids have already redecorated the garage and are running out of space or maybe you’d like to paint a message to someone special and have the photo emailed to them…

If this sounds like you it is your lucky day. Make those ideas become reality, develop your style, paint a burner.

Andy Seize is doing separate lessons for both adults and kids in Hackney, East London. Ages seven up are welcome to come and learn from a proper oldskool writer.

Lessons are very reasonably priced and all paint, safety equipment and even photos are included in the cost, just bring your ideas.

See full details and book online at Andy’s blog here.

Andy Seize has been painting graffiti since the eighties now he’s taken pop art to a stunning new level as only an old school graffiti writer could. His show is on until Monday 13th July 2009 from 12 to 4pm

More after the jump…

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