Some Danes just beat up commercial propagandist street artist Shepard Fairey outside a nightclub calling him an “Obama illuminati” and telling him to “go back to America.”
Shepard Fairey
I can’t believe TMZ is in the art game (you know you’re mainstream when … ) but the look on street artist Shepard Fairey’s face when his wife offers her take on if he goes out on the street posting stuff anymore is priceless. Ouch.
This video for Death Cab for Cutie’s new song was art directed by Shepard Fairey and reveals a lot of the street art maestro’s touch. The mood of the video is subdued and when explaining the concept for the video on his blog Fairey offers some thoughts about street art in general …
Jamie Alexander and Derek Song were surprised in late December of last year when they received a letter from the New York law firm of Jones Day, which represents Jeff Koons, LLC. Their San Francisco retail store and gallery, Park Life, had never attracted the attention of the art world’s big hitters before, but now, one Peter D. Vogl had sent them a cease-and-desist letter calling for the immediate cessation of their sale of balloon dog bookends. Apparently the 10.2” matte plastic pooches were threatening the Koons art empire and potentially confusing customers who are more accustomed to spending a lot more money on ten foot high hi-gloss steel versions of the same species.
The Boston art media are getting into a tiff, arguing if the newly redesigned ICA Boston is irrelevant-on-arrival. The Diller Scofidio+Renfro-designed home has actually heralded a new high point for a museum that is becoming one of the Northeast’s most dynamic, interesting contemporary art institutions.
“I was really upset this morning when I found out that Urban Outfitters has STOLEN the work of street artist Cali Killa.” — According2g.com
I’m a bit torn on this issue since I don’t know if an artist who uses public space to display their art (often illegally) has the right to tell someone else they cannot remix their work. In other words, if you remix public space, doesn’t someone have a right to do the same to you even if they make money off of it?
The art world presents an overwhelming threat to clowns everywhere as Jeff Koons sues San Francisco store Park Life and Toronto creators imm Living for producing and selling balloon dog bookends that look only slightly similar to the famous artist’s balloon dog sculptures in that they both look like puffy dogs. A cease and desist letter from Koons commanded that the bookends no longer be sold and the objects are now removed from Park Life’s shelves. If Koons should succeed in his suit to have utter dominion over all the balloon dogs he surveys, we all know who would be hurt the most: clowns, America’s greatest balloon dog producers.
Now the man who gave us Hope and then made us Hope-less is weighing in on the Blu mural controversy and it’s rather embarrassing. The good part …
Walking or driving around Miami’s Wynwood neighborhood, you’re immediately struck by the great volume of art all around, most noticeably on the wall. Some of the work is illegal but others are sanctioned through the efforts of Primary Flight, an organization which descibes itself as “Miami’s original open air museum and street level mural installation that takes place annually throughout the Wynwood Arts District and the Miami Design District.”
One gallerist told me that one “host” of a Primary Flight mural from last year loves his so much he was talking about graffiti coating it to ensure it longevity. What was remarkable about these murals, many of which were from last year, is that they look pretty much as good as the first day they were painted. Why?
I can’t remember the last time so many bold faced art names were on mainstream television. Last night, Stephen Colbert tried to convince well-known art collector Steve Martin to buy his René Magritte-like portrait but it wasn’t an easy sell. Colbert soon marched on some major artists to make it more enticing. As he said, Stella declared it art, Fairey recontextualized it, Serrano added controversy, and Colbert even added Martin’s image but still no sale. The segment is a funny and clever way to introduce some artists to a mass audience that may not be familiar with their work. For that, Colbert gets an A++. Click thru to watch the segment.
