In an optimal situation about 45 minutes in that quality of rendering. The boards are done pretty coarse, in commission it would be several hours and maybe with some help of airbrushes. The results are miles better than these.
What you see in de the pics is pure frustration that many of the legal works hardly survive a week, so it is not worth painting those spots. I try to get small gigs and little corners here and there to overcome this situation. I have tried using repellants, pesticides, ripping cans, deaththreats, painting a toy's face, name it, I have done it to get rid of those pests. Keep on burning, I'd say. A beatdown is too much wasted energy and attention, but burning isn't. Burning a toy is one of the most satisfying things in graffiti life. Really, a beatdown has some honour to it, slowly fading away or constantly being burned has no honour at all. :-D
On the illegal side of life: that's where it's at for respect and decency. Crazy, huh? :-)
Edit: sorry for the stories, it just hits a nerve somehow, because it is the exact reason I paint these. At home. In the early days it used to be an artform, now it's an outlet, an overcommercialized marketed way of expressing "yourself". It's sad that only commissions and illegals survive, the public chose to take our place. They can have it and shove it. On the other hand: once in a while I paint on those spots, it's hardly worth mentioning that little, to rub it in to them. Anyway, back to relaxing. :-)
Clearly you must seize a new form for your art. The hassles you now describe are for you to rip away, leaving behind key advantages of your new form. My suggestion is that you add another dimensionality to your work, that of at-event environmental large-format participatory photo art. First, you’ll have to embiggen the work itself. I mean you’ll need many very large sections of fabric. Not so much that you’ll need sergers, but sewing machines would be a good step forward. Then, you’ll need a couple of different means of hanging these because you’ll not only be doing your thing on them as you work, but you’ll be taking them down, rolling them up and taking them to parties and special events as environmental installations for people to take their pictures in front of. Every so often, with their cars in frame as well. You’ll need to examine what’s on the market in spray vinyl, for flexion and durability. You don’t want to have to touch up fragile bits.
The event photography and the prints you’ll offer is a sideline that you can outsource for markup, but there are implications for the work you might be making in this other dimensionality. You can’t just put up a dead space station overgrown by fuzzy green tentacle vines and populated by lawful evil laughing clown ghost astronauts. I mean, you could, but what people want their portraits taken in front of at winery pastry festivals or iron mongering, paper marbling, classical East Indian temple dancing cabarets revues is also an expression of their unspoken self-identification with what they do at parties.
So yes, there may be some awkward self-perpetuation of applicable stereotypes for you to navigate in your very personal antistic psychotecture, but once people see a few choice backdrops you’ve done you’ll be getting requests and attending parties you never knew were on. But, definitely, be prepared to both hang and erect as you will often only have a day in which to arrive, set your sails, and execute the new ballgame before it’s time to move onto the next. Let impermanance become your permanence. Let me know how it goes. Hoping to hear.
Thank you for the ideas! I did events years ago and it didn't bring in anything: no money, no commissions, just some laughs and good food here and there. Also: I do not like masses of people, takes up too much of my energy and focus.
The solution to that is a workshop area of my own. Which I arranged a month ago and will be starting to use by the end of June. :-) On the planning are big canvasses, both for showcasing and commerce. A gallery-owner advised me years ago to work into that direction, because he (and others) see a museum quality in the works. Well, to be honoust, I prefer having my work in a museum and then see what happens. That's also how I work: I plan things years ahead, but not really pinpointing exact. A global direction or goal and then working towards it. Having a workshop is a big step for me and certainly for the works. This work is not really plannable or scalable, since I do not strive for commercial succes, the money is a tool to help me on the road to artistic, creative en technical succes. I like making money from it, but invest a lot right back into it, since reaching a certain aristic level requires a continuety, in my case an availability of time and space, which is covered better and better with the years. It grows slowly, the sideshow of commerce, fame and approaching something completely subjective in an objective manner. What goes fast is skills, form, size and subjects, the things that really count to me.
Since I have started painting graffiti 30 plus years ago, I already realised I took up a task for many years to master. The more I master, the more tasks lie ahead to complete. I see painting as a lifelong quest where you can define your own path, just like in life, but with a clearer set of goals. A certain skill level, a certain style, objects, name it, all can and will be goals. That's how I roll: the better I become, the better the business will be. I do not like running around behind people's asses to beg for commissions. For now it is becoming more the other way around, people ask me for the works. :-)
I am very thankful for that, it gives me more motivation and love for the things made and done. :-) Hearing ideas and suggestions from other people is also very helpful in learning how others view this kind of work. It has a social function in a weird way. :-)
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These are really good! How long does it take you to create one?
In an optimal situation about 45 minutes in that quality of rendering. The boards are done pretty coarse, in commission it would be several hours and maybe with some help of airbrushes. The results are miles better than these.
What you see in de the pics is pure frustration that many of the legal works hardly survive a week, so it is not worth painting those spots. I try to get small gigs and little corners here and there to overcome this situation. I have tried using repellants, pesticides, ripping cans, deaththreats, painting a toy's face, name it, I have done it to get rid of those pests. Keep on burning, I'd say. A beatdown is too much wasted energy and attention, but burning isn't. Burning a toy is one of the most satisfying things in graffiti life. Really, a beatdown has some honour to it, slowly fading away or constantly being burned has no honour at all. :-D
On the illegal side of life: that's where it's at for respect and decency. Crazy, huh? :-)
Time to chill, I guess. ;-)
Edit: sorry for the stories, it just hits a nerve somehow, because it is the exact reason I paint these. At home. In the early days it used to be an artform, now it's an outlet, an overcommercialized marketed way of expressing "yourself". It's sad that only commissions and illegals survive, the public chose to take our place. They can have it and shove it. On the other hand: once in a while I paint on those spots, it's hardly worth mentioning that little, to rub it in to them. Anyway, back to relaxing. :-)
Clearly you must seize a new form for your art. The hassles you now describe are for you to rip away, leaving behind key advantages of your new form. My suggestion is that you add another dimensionality to your work, that of at-event environmental large-format participatory photo art. First, you’ll have to embiggen the work itself. I mean you’ll need many very large sections of fabric. Not so much that you’ll need sergers, but sewing machines would be a good step forward. Then, you’ll need a couple of different means of hanging these because you’ll not only be doing your thing on them as you work, but you’ll be taking them down, rolling them up and taking them to parties and special events as environmental installations for people to take their pictures in front of. Every so often, with their cars in frame as well. You’ll need to examine what’s on the market in spray vinyl, for flexion and durability. You don’t want to have to touch up fragile bits.
The event photography and the prints you’ll offer is a sideline that you can outsource for markup, but there are implications for the work you might be making in this other dimensionality. You can’t just put up a dead space station overgrown by fuzzy green tentacle vines and populated by lawful evil laughing clown ghost astronauts. I mean, you could, but what people want their portraits taken in front of at winery pastry festivals or iron mongering, paper marbling, classical East Indian temple dancing cabarets revues is also an expression of their unspoken self-identification with what they do at parties.
So yes, there may be some awkward self-perpetuation of applicable stereotypes for you to navigate in your very personal antistic psychotecture, but once people see a few choice backdrops you’ve done you’ll be getting requests and attending parties you never knew were on. But, definitely, be prepared to both hang and erect as you will often only have a day in which to arrive, set your sails, and execute the new ballgame before it’s time to move onto the next. Let impermanance become your permanence. Let me know how it goes. Hoping to hear.
Thank you for the ideas! I did events years ago and it didn't bring in anything: no money, no commissions, just some laughs and good food here and there. Also: I do not like masses of people, takes up too much of my energy and focus. The solution to that is a workshop area of my own. Which I arranged a month ago and will be starting to use by the end of June. :-) On the planning are big canvasses, both for showcasing and commerce. A gallery-owner advised me years ago to work into that direction, because he (and others) see a museum quality in the works. Well, to be honoust, I prefer having my work in a museum and then see what happens. That's also how I work: I plan things years ahead, but not really pinpointing exact. A global direction or goal and then working towards it. Having a workshop is a big step for me and certainly for the works. This work is not really plannable or scalable, since I do not strive for commercial succes, the money is a tool to help me on the road to artistic, creative en technical succes. I like making money from it, but invest a lot right back into it, since reaching a certain aristic level requires a continuety, in my case an availability of time and space, which is covered better and better with the years. It grows slowly, the sideshow of commerce, fame and approaching something completely subjective in an objective manner. What goes fast is skills, form, size and subjects, the things that really count to me.
Since I have started painting graffiti 30 plus years ago, I already realised I took up a task for many years to master. The more I master, the more tasks lie ahead to complete. I see painting as a lifelong quest where you can define your own path, just like in life, but with a clearer set of goals. A certain skill level, a certain style, objects, name it, all can and will be goals. That's how I roll: the better I become, the better the business will be. I do not like running around behind people's asses to beg for commissions. For now it is becoming more the other way around, people ask me for the works. :-)
You should know, that many of us salute you for your work, both artistically, and even more so for your care and sharing, Well done brother!
I am very thankful for that, it gives me more motivation and love for the things made and done. :-) Hearing ideas and suggestions from other people is also very helpful in learning how others view this kind of work. It has a social function in a weird way. :-)