In the heart of Williamsburg, Brooklyn, lives this painting by Brazilian street artist Kobra. He just wrapped this masterpiece. You can find it on Bedford and North 9th Street.

As you can see, the artist painted images of legendary artists Basquiat and the father of pop-art Warhol. The piece, titled “Fight for Street Art,” creates a powerful message amidst the wide range of kaleidoscopic colors.

This raises a question: Is the street art culture dying in the city of New York?  With graffiti meccas such as 5 Pointz coming to an end nearly a year ago, it has concerned the community. We can only hope that one of the primary factors that makes New York culture what it has been for the past 30+ years doesn’t get stripped away.

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Mr. Brainwash

This week was a goldmine for street art. New murals invaded our streets. Our print of the week was released by Mr. Brainwash, who got the ball rolling with his piece,  “Art is not a crime,” which is available as a print.  This theme is very popular in the domain of street art and it can get repetitive at times, but you have to appreciate Mr. Brainwash for its clarity and its aesthetics.

Vinz

Vinz is currently painting some original “adverts” in the streets London. One of them includes the use of the apple slogan, “Think Different,” portraying a mutant fish with a human body in a straight jacket.

Nychos

Nychos‘ work had gone missing since April when he dropped a mural in Italy. He is now in Denmark where he produced this  billboard piece as a part of the billboard festival at Kunsthal Brænderigården.

Alexis Diaz

Alexis Diaz is currently in France where he spent the last two weeks working on this amazing piece for the Rio Loco Festival. 

Ludo

Ludo dropped this sweet  new piece of a beastly robot entitled “Psorophora Encaustum”. His work seems to portray a fight between species, a possible comment on extinction.

Phlegm

Phlegm has been exploring new shapes. Deviating from his long, tribal, signature character, Phlegm went back to his hometown of Sheffield, where he spent weeks working on this large piece. One aim remains consistent in his work: to paint the relationship between imaginary worlds of entertainment and creativity.

Icy and Sot

Discover the work of Icy and Sot. The Iran-based stencil artist dropped by Williamsburg, New York. The artist works with the politically charged themes of poverity, peace, youth and war in order to “remind [ourselves] that art has always been a mode of resistance, and graffiti has always been a political gesture.” If you stop by Brooklyn, you’ll be able to find this one on South 6 by the bridge.

ROA

ROA painted this piece in Linz, Austria. His gigantic mural features various images of tortured animals. The artist’s work is like a hymn for animals, shocking viewers into caring more for animals who are suffering.

Pixel Pancho

Pixel Pancho is back in the streets of Montreal, Canada

Aryz

Aryz painted this large peacock in Spain

The post Street Art: Best Of The Week appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

It began as a place to showcase the work of artist Coco Dolle‘s friends and the local emerging artist community in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The Art Pop Up Shop, or T.A.P.S, is now a gallery with monthly events.

This month T.A.P.S is showing the work of Enjoy Mika Azegami’s abstract graffiti paintings, Thomas Brodin’s Brooklyn Photographs, Joe Caswell’s surrealistic whimsical sculptures and Amanda Keeley’s electric installation.

Here’s the basic concept behind the shop:

In an industry tremendously at growth, where Art investment has surpassed Real Estate values, we believe that works of Art should be made accessible to a clientele that distinguishes itself from the Art connoisseur elite. We have encountered many potential buyers that are interested in purchasing art but are not able to afford the high pricing and pressures of the gallery market, which can be daunting for collectors and art lovers.
The Art Pop Up Shop (T.A.P.S) is concerned with granting access to an artistic experience in an open environment, informing and educating our clientele to our creative process.

The real goal is to sell affordable art, and you can purchase your next masterpiece at T.A.P.S for as low as $50. Whether you’re looking to buy or just to see some great new art, head over to Williamsburg. You’re sure to find something you like.

The gallery is located at 672 Driggs Ave in Williamsburg and is open to the public on Friday and Saturday, other days by appointment.

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From afar, THEESatisfaction appears to be a duo who might get fed up receiving more “cute” and “adorable” feedback than actual criticism. Being young, talented and gorgeous has its pitfalls, I suppose. All funny business aside, the group from Seattle performed a powerful and intimate set at Williamsburg’s Cameo Gallery last night and made a bold impression on the city that awaits their return.

They began precisely on time with a mixed crowd of Williamsburg’s notorious hipsters and gorgeous women with enough variations of natural hairstyles to create a salon’s advertising poster. Fans standing atop chairs for a clearer view of the stage only goes to show their enthusiasm and eagerness towards the performance.

Stasia Irons and Catherine Harris-White (or Stas and Cat, as they introduced themselves to me) made the stage their playground. A mature playground – perhaps one whose comfort is also met with brief choreography and a sense of freedom to discuss blackness, identity and bisexuality.

Cat’s afro is picked out to its extent – a side-profile view makes it look like the outline of the African continent. A simple red tank-top and a flowery dress that moves with her every juke embodies the timeless concept of “less is more.” With the venue’s lighting, Cat looks like she’s prepared to shoot an iconic 1960’s soul album cover. Stas’s red Converses and Seattle Sonic snapback swagger counterbalances Cat’s apparel and well-represents her persona as the performer who does more of the “rapping.” Their music, as well as their appearance hit you with the dichotomy between femininity and the typical masculine performance of hip-hop. With that said, their music is still difficult to define and perhaps that’s their intention.

In their performance of “On What It Means To Be Black,” off of their Transitions mixtape, their West Coast pronunciation of the letter R at the end of every word is admirable. “Earth winds and fires/elements of my surprisers…”

On the song “Pause,” Stas rhymes with a spoken-word poet’s panache and touch. This is a gift and a curse, though. Her intonations are on point, but some poems don’t translate well when transferred from an a cappella performance to a musical performance. The flow of her lyrics have a tendency to go over the strict meter of music.

Their Georgia Anne Muldrow-sampled “Do You Have The Time,” has that inescapable groove – where your body must move to complement the audio that your ears process. Black Power fists were up in the air during the performance of the perhaps Basquiat-inspired “Mourning SAMO.” One of Stas’s more on-point lyricism is expressed well here, as Cat’s soothing vocals are always a pleasure and perfect additive to the song that addresses the “same old shit.” The duo works like an on-ramp – the two have their own artistic sense of origin, but together their direction and music are stronger together.

The duo debuted a few songs off of their debut album, awE naturalE, which comes out March 27 on Seattle-based SubPop records. One song called “Sweet” – sounds a little bit like Parliament Funkadelic which provides for an easy 2-step. Another debuted track samples Anita Baker’s “Sweet Love” – which garnered the loudest response for the crowd, perhaps because of the depth of the sampled used.

Though they still sound underdeveloped THEESatisfaction shows clear signs of evolution, progress and dedication to their craft; you can tell that they love what they create. After thanking the crowd, the duo strolled offstage in a sorority-like manner, a signature portrayal of their solidarity with one another.

The crowd roared, asking for one more performance and they were granted their one wish with the song “QueenS.” The catchy chorus that orders “Whatever you do, don’t funk with my groove,” left a lasting impression on the crowd, as they couldn’t help but funk or groove to it. Dream Hampton is reportedly directing the music video for “QueenS,” and from the look of it, it will bring gorgeous visuals that represent the Queens that are THEESatisfaction.

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Red Bull Trick or Treat

This Halloween weekend, get into those costumes and check out some of the freshest BMX tricks around town brought to you by Red Bull.  Red Bull is setting up a Halloween themed course at Newtown Barge Park in Williamsburg for 32 of the most prestigious US BMX riders to compete in a Live or Die jam.

This all-ages free jam by Red Bull will feature treats such as a NEW Kink bike, DC gift certificates and more as a part of the Open Space Alliance for North Brooklyn raffle.  One lucky person will even get to walk home with the bike Red Bull rider Edwin De La Rosa rides the course with.  Winner will of the bike to be announced at the official after party only a few blocks away at Saint Vitus bar featuring a performance by Ninjasonik with DJs Yamez and Teddy King.

For more info visit: www.redbullusa.com/trickortreat

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