Dancing between the bright lights of Tokyo, London and Berlin, The Alternative Philosophy show illuminates a path that encompasses Spain, Australia and South America. Flickering glimpses into international street art are exposed in The Leonard Street Gallery’s latest installation.
Antipodean artist, Kill Pixie, produces insanely detailed drawings, enhancing paint and print effects in a pixelated creole of colour. Original and conventional, there is no dilution of the raw simplicity he has extended from the streets.
Based on traditional folk art, the patterns and materials he uses are indicative of an age-old art form reinvented. The artist’s geographical distance is obviously an issue, as it would have been nice to see more examples of Pixie’s work here.
Jaybo, AKA Monk, brings a unique flavour to the exhibition from his roots in the French graffiti scene of the late 70s. Re-locating to Berlin in the 80s, Jay branched out into rap and acting, before founding lifestyle magazine, Style and The Family Tunes, and streetwear label, Irie Daily, in the mid 90s.
Versatile and immeasurably talented, he flips between mediums with ease, displaying a rare technical proficiency across the board. His polished artwork spans publications from books to record sleeves, including album art for Berlin bands Seeed and The Beatsteaks.
His artwork here displays elements of Japanese culture alongside striking slashes of colour, containing echoes of the American Psycho book cover artist, Marshall Arisman.
Andy Howell’s skateboarding roots shine through in his comic book-inspired gross-out characters. Bright and brash, these pieces are reflective of the adrenaline-charged personality that drives them.
Turning pro-skateboarder in 1989, his punky artwork is reminiscent of the late, great, Ed Roth’s ‘Ratfink’ artwork. The dismembered arms and hands are rendered in violent blues and bruised purples, giving a Dawn of the Dead feel to the series.
For sheer show-stopping style, though, the young Bortusk Leer’s work stands apart here. Finely executed, finished and presented, the cane-wielding Leer’s work maintains a brilliant juxtaposition between the sublime and the ridiculous. Heavily satirical, his work invites the eye to salaciously peruse the eroticism of his lascivious ladies, tantalizingly disguised beneath animal features.
His street projects look more like Terry Gilliam’s acid fantasies having a party with Where The Wild Things Are. The municipal masterpieces are certainly the more eye-catching of his manifestations, however, this doesn’t detract from the refined results of Leer’s studio work.
Other artists exhibiting here include Californian resident, Ala Ebtekar, whose Iranian parentage and multicultural upbringing has given him a global anthropoligical critique. His work seems unfinished here, though, which is lamentable, given his immense technical talent for illustration.
Daniel Tagno’s calligraphy also shines through, with whole drawings comprised from smaller letterforms. He literally constructs pictures from words, in a true iconic sense, drawing on ancient pictorial alphabets like Chinese calligraphy and Egyptian Hieroglyphs.
Berliner, Marok’s, messy tag collages and Barcelona beatnik, Anton Unai’s, Santa Muerte style skeletal appliqué comprise the rearguard of an exhibition that is as cohesive as it is disparate.
The Alternative Philosophy runs at Leonard Street Gallery until 22 May 2008.
