“TRANSITIONS” @ WHITEWALLS GALLERY
We are proud to announce ABOVE’s first ever indoor gallery show! Friend and persuader Mr. BLEK LE RAT was able to slow down ABOVE long enough to make a duo show together. WHITE WALLS (www.whitewallssf.com) will feature ABOVE and BLEK LE RAT’S works MAY 1st in San Francisco, California.
Here is what WHITEWALLS has to say about the duo show.
White Walls is proud to present a joint show: Faces in the Mirror by Blek le Rat
and Transitions by ABOVE. This exhibition brings together the original pioneer
stencil artist and his younger counterpart utilizing stencils to create public art
around the world. Please join us for the opening reception on Saturday, May 1st
2010, from 7-11 pm.
This homage to stencil art marks Blek le Ratʼs first show in San Francisco as well
as the debut indoor exhibition of ABOVE. The meeting of these two artists is a
passing of the torch from the original stencil artist to a younger generation of
urban artists following in his legacy. Blek let Rat first pioneered stencils in the
early 80s as a bold, attention grabbing form of street art that was never before
seen. ABOVE is the prominent stencil artist of the new generation, drawing on
Blekʼs methods to project a social message into the urban environment.
Blek le Rat resides outside of Paris, the very city he claimed 30 years ago as a
platform for social commentary. He was the first of his time to employ stencils
and spray paint for fast, high contrast images on city walls. Faces in the Mirror is
a collection of Blekʼs iconic imagery: beggars, sheep, rats, Mona Lisa, and
Michelangeloʼs David with an AK-47. These forms open conversation about
consciousness, social relation, mass media, and commodity fetishism. Known as
the godfather of stencil graffiti art, Blek le Rat has been the great inspiration for
artists worldwide including Banksy, Shepard Fairey, Space Invader, WK Interact,
and ABOVE.
ABOVE has devoted the past 8 years to creating street art around the world,
refusing every opportunity to show his work indoors. It is only because of Blek le
Ratʼs strong desire to show alongside him that ABOVE finally conceded to his
premier indoor exhibition. Transitions is based on three themes from his outdoor
works: sign language arrow mobiles, wordplay murals, and colorful figurative
stencils. The overarching sentiment is one of optimism, honor, overcoming
struggle, and a desire to rise above.
Please join us for the opening reception of Faces in the Mirror by Blek le Rat and
Transitions by ABOVE on Saturday, May 1st, 2010, from 7-11pm. The exhibit will
be on view through June 5th, 2010, and is open to the public.