Kenny Scharf, Artist :: AXIS
Pop Art icon, Kenny Scharf shares ideas behind his stream of consciousness approach to mural painting as well as some new projects on the pipeline. The mural in the video was done in connection to his opening exhibition at the Anonymous Gallery in NYC.
Pop Art icon, Kenny Scharf shares ideas behind his stream of consciousness approach to mural painting as well as some new projects on the pipeline. The mural in the video was done in connection to his opening exhibition at the Anonymous Gallery in NYC.
About Kenny Scharf:
Kenny Scharf is an American painter who lives in Brooklyn, New York. Scharf's works consist of popular culture based shows with made up science-related backgrounds. Kenny uses images from the animated cartoons popular during his childhood, such as The Flintstones and The Jetsons. The reason Scharf uses cartoon images in his art work is to bring popular culture into the fine arts. Scharf wants to see how far he can push the line between high and low art. Scharf to this day is making artwork that makes the viewers think about where the line is and how far has the artist pushed it. In 2001, he released a cartoon of his own, "The Groovenians" of which there was only one episode.
Scharf was a key figure in the East Village art scene of the 1980s, with shows at Fun gallery (1981) and Tony Shafrazi (1984), before seeing his work embraced by museums, such as the Whitney, which selected him for the 1985 Whitney Biennial. He did the album covers of The B-52's in the mid-80s. In 1995, Scharf designed a room at the Tunnel nightclub in New York.
Scharf was friends with the graffiti artist Keith Haring and appears in the documentary "The Universe of Keith Haring". In 2004, he appeared in The Nomi Song, a documentary about his friend, opera singer and new wave star Klaus Nomi.
Bobbito Garcia, Creative Powerhouse :: Axis
NYC's favorite creative powerhouse Mr. Bobbito Garcia, gets the spotlight treatment as he takes us a ride through some of his career highs, inspirations and a life changing moment in Africa.
Bobbito Garcia, Creative Powerhouse :: Artist Profile from friendswelove.com on Vimeo.
About Bobbito:
Manhattan, NYC native and world-renowned DJ Bobbito Garcia is the Creative Chief at Project 2050 (an ideas and solutions shop). The former Bounce Magazine Editor In Chief is also the critically acclaimed author of Where’d You Get Those? NYC’s Sneaker Culture: 1960-1987 (Testify Books). In recent years, “Kool Bob Love” has done live on-air halftime reports for the NBA’s Knicks franchise on MSG Network, voiced NBA 2K video games, and hosted ESPN’s It’s the Shoes series. In ’07, he designed seven signature Nike Air Force 1 25th Anniversary shoes. Currently, the renaissance man is the annual Boost Mobile Elite 24 HS All-American Game play-by-play commentator, has a CD compilation out titled Connection (R2 Records), and will collaborate with the PRO-Keds sneaker brand on the Royal Flash hi-top re-issue dropping in Fall ’09!
You may wonder when Bobbito has time to breathe, but in the last 20+ years he has been relentlessly pursuing his passions in music and basketball. After playing pro ball in Puerto Rico and graduating from Wesleyan University (CT) in ’88, he began working at Def Jam Records. He met DJ Stretch Armstrong there, and in ’90 the two started an on-air program at WKCR 89.9FM. By ’98, the Source Magazine voted it the “Best Hip Hop Radio Show of All Time.” The duo introduced the world to unsigned acts like Nas, Jay Z, Biggie Smalls, Big Pun, Wu-Tang, Mobb Deep, and many others that would go on to change the face of the industry.
Although Bobbito a.k.a. Kool Bob Love is a bonafide Hip Hop legend, any former reader of his Vibe Magazine column would know that his musical passion goes way beyond just Rap. As a club DJ, crowds worldwide from China to South Africa have celebrated his unique blend of Rare Funk, Latin, Afro-Beat, Soul, Jazz, House, and Ballads. He’s opened up concerts for Latin Music legend Eddie Palmieri (5-time Grammy Award Winner), Afro-Funk progenitor Tony Allen (formerly Fela Kuti's drummer), Jazz-Funk legend Roy Ayers, and Soul singer D'Angelo.
What’s next? Who knows, but who would’ve ever expected a kid who started out in the music industry as a messenger to have accomplished so much, or a student-athlete who got cut from his college basketball team to one day get paid to play? Bobbito is a true renaissance man, a walking example of how it is possible to love what you do and pursue it without compromise.
Links:
José James, Vocalist + Lyricist + Songwriter :: Axis
Critically acclaimed and world renown artist, Jose James invites us to witness the Black Magic of his new record with an intimate studio session that reveals the many facets of his creative process.
Critically acclaimed and world renown artist, Jose James invites us to witness the Black Magic of his new record with an intimate studio session that reveals the many facets of his creative process.
José James, Vocalist + Lyricist + Songwriter :: Artist Profile from friendswelove.com on Vimeo.
About Jose:
Since his arrival on the international scene in 2008 vocalist José James has consistently dazzled critics and audiences alike with his deft combination of soul, hip-hop and jazz. Using his musical mentors John Coltrane, Marvin Gaye and Billie Holiday as compasses, he continues to successfully blur the lines between musical genres through his love of connecting to audiences worldwide and in the sheer joy of creation.
Blessed with a warm rich baritone reminiscent of artists of the caliber of Terry Callier, Jon Lucien and Gil-Scott Heron, José has toured internationally at venues such as the North Sea Jazz Festival, the Vitoria Jazz Festival, Billboard Live Tokyo, Centro Cultural Sao Paolo, the Hermitage St. Petersburg, Central Park Summerstage New York and London's Royal Festival Hall.
Signed to Gilles Peterson's Brownswood Recordings, his debut album "The Dreamer" was released in 2008 to worldwide acclaim, including 21 of JazzTimes Top 50 Jazz Albums of 2008. As a recording artist and guest vocalist José has worked with Junior Mance, Chico Hamilton, Gilles Peterson, Bassment Jaxx, Nicola Conte, Toshio Matsuura, Elan Mehler, The Heritage Orchestra, SOIL & "PIMP" SESSIONS, Jazzanova, Flying Lotus, Christian McBride, J.A.M., Robert Mitchell, Jazzy Sport and Simbad.
For more info on Jose: http://www.josejamesmusic.com/
http://www.myspace.com/josejamesquartet
http://friendswelove.com/video/jj-fwl-fest-envivo/
http://friendswelove.com/video/jose-james-120-secs/
http://friendswelove.com/blog/summer-concerts-in-nyc/
http://friendswelove.com/blog/articles-we-love-connecting-dots-from-bird-to-michael-jackson/