Is it really Graf?
An odd but perhaps telling thing happened the other day right in the middle of art world central: 22nd Street between 10th and 11th avenues in Manhattan, New York City. After a little haggling with our mayor, Michael Bloomberg (a good mayor who took up a silly cause on this effort), the “urban” fashion designer Mark Ecko staged a block party featuring graffiti writers painting on faux subway car sides.
Bloomberg claimed this event would encourage real vandalism. But the real coooky part is that Ecko is also the man behind “Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure, ” a video game coming out this fall for PS2, Xbox and PC. An ex-writer celebrating his past? Or, just a really good marketeer cashing in on nostalgia?
Though it was great to see artists like Henry Chalfant, Daze (who participated), my man Fab 5 Freddy and members of Tats Cru, the “legalized” block party had that new school corporate feel in spades. Hey, as a curator of one of the most recent museum exhibitions on hip hop, I can relate. At least this event was aimed to bring people to 22nd Street to see art, most of whom could care less about what hangs on the walls of the many galleries that dot one of the most important streets in the “art” world.
Franklin Sirmans
top Daze this pic Lady Pink
posted by speech at
11:49 PM
3 Comments:
Nike invested masses of money indesign ing the ‘New’ sneaker over a good 15 years. With sales progressively going down if not for Jordan and golf they would have been fucked. It took 15 years for them to know about the trade in there ‘Vintage’ sneakers from the 80’s. the japanese kids, hip hop and skaters. Now nike knows. We arent exactly spoon feed but we are eating (fuk I hate writing this).
Skateboarding has the X-games, skateboarding for TV, ESPN. Skateboarding is now extreme!!!! Ouch. When industries cash in, well they get money and portray what they leach as different to what it is,often helping define a stronger core that wont be touched.
People who spray walls, like the Germs, what we do is secret…its local/global knowledge, where the hole in the fence is at the rail depot, whats his real name?, where to get cans, who did what where and how? etc
So Im thinking this isnt graff. You don’t portray scenes, they are there or they have influences and reminances or effects.
the above anon is me blair. its like surf shorts we all have or do own them and have never surfed, thats ecko's dollar. its late/early. bxo
Of course I heard about Ecko's party in the news but I couldn't attend. Nice to see photos from someone who was actually there.
Surely, Eckos' grateful for all of the free publicity that the mayor gave him.
Stolie
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