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We are feeling pretty generous today. Print out this coupon, or present it to a cashier on your mobile device, at our premium outlet store in Wrentham, Massachusetts, and you will get 25 percent off your entire purchase. The offer is valid from October 15th to October 29th. Go ahead and get that holiday shopping done a little bit early.
We are feeling pretty generous today. Print out this coupon, or present it to a cashier on your mobile device, at our premium outlet store in San Marcos, Texas and you will get 25 percent off your entire purchase. The offer is valid from October 15th to October 29th. Go ahead and get that holiday shopping done a little bit early.
Grafitti artist Vizie grew up in Texas and has been tagging since he was 13. He would roll with his friends and go stare at walls for hours, painted on tattoo shops, comic book stores, and skate shops.
When did you first discover your interest in the arts?
I have been more or less doing art my entire life. Both of my parents are artistically inclined people, so they encouraged me to do art early on. Typical story, I always did well in art class and it seemed to be the only thing I picked up naturally and got a positive reaction from. I grew up not paying attention in school, drawing cartoons and comic book characters, and it really never stopped. I just learned to give it more of a focus in my life. I went to a performing and visual art high school and after graduating there I went to Art College. And so on..
Travel, all the places you go to do murals? Where have you gone, which city is your favorite?
I have traveled quite a bit to do artwork. I have been to a bunch of cities in America. I’ve been to Basel Switzerland, Athens Greece, and just recently when to Bangkok and Hong Kong. I’d say that all those cities have their different variables, which make them fun but if id have to go with a recent favorite it was Bangkok.
All the people I met were really cool and supportive and the attitude of the city was so raw and free. Much different than any other place I’ve been to.
The Chicago scene. What’s it like, music, art, etc
Chicago has a vibrant young scene. I am originally from Houston Texas and I lived in Kansas City and grew up traveling in the Midwest quite a bit. Chicago is one of those cities that people are drawn to, sort of a creative epicenter. For lack of a better phrase I’d say it’s like the New York of the Midwest. Flocking from all sorts of nearby states, kids around the age of 18 to 23 are trying themselves out in Chicago. This makes for a breeding ground for young talent in music and art. A lot of creative people establish themselves in Chicago, sometimes it’s a pit stop to places like New York or LA but I feel like the scene in Chicago is where things unfold and people develop into who they will become artistically.
Why that wall location? What is the fun stuff around that area?
The wall is located at Grand and Damen. This area is kind of an in between area that connects the vibrant hip scene of Wicker Park to downtown Chicago. This area is a mix of residential, design studios/art spaces mixed in with some industrial zones too. It is an area with lots of big walls to paint on; a total artist free for all that is rapidly becoming a hot bed for graffiti and street artists to put their work up in. Great dive bars and restaurants are bike-able from this spot. And you are more likely to find some street art sprinkled throughout the neighborhood.
How many hours a day do you spend working on your art?
I’d say I more or less spend all day working on artwork. If not on my own artwork directly I am involved in some sort of artistic job. For work I paint advertisements, billboards and signs. Sometimes I work for other artists on large projects or assisting in the studio. All those things help me branch out technically so I can in turn apply what I learn at work in my own artwork. When I am not doing that I am constantly looking and gathering information. I feel like everything I do in my day has something to do with going back into making things. Being an artist should be a full time job, there should never be a time where you aren’t thinking about how something relates to you visually, thematically or even down to your work ethic.
Who inspires you and how do you keep yourself motivated?
I try to surround my self with creative people. I try to work with artists I find inspiring or frankly just people I think are better than me. If the people around you are constantly pushing the envelope and changing and doing great things it is hard not to want to compete or at least keep up.
What do you think of converse doing all this and investing in music (rubber tracks) and the arts (doing these murals around the US and Europe)?
It can be a tricky thing when you have companies directly getting involved in art making or production. Converse has taken a hands off approach to this, providing the tools or means to get it made but not being involved in the artists creative process. This directly is the difference between supporting and just hiring an artist. Supporting artists gives them a chance to create something they want to share, which makes for something authentic and mutually beneficial. It pushes an artist to create something genuine which shows a genuine interest in creating and developing culture.
Chicago has a vibrant young scene. The wall is located at Grand and Damen. This area is kind of an in between area that connects the vibrant hip scene of Wicker Park to downtown Chicago. This area is a mix of residential, design studios/art spaces mixed in with some industrial zones too. It is an area with lots of big walls to paint on; a total artist free for all that is rapidly becoming a hot bed for graffiti and street artists to put their work up in. Great dive bars and restaurants are bike-able from this spot. And you are more likely to find some street art sprinkled throughout the neighborhood: Chicago, Illinoise
Originally from Houston, Texas, Josh Row moved to Austin when he was 9, a public school kid who got into trouble and tore up the town. But he was always into art, drawing mostly. In 2007 he became the art direction at No-Comply skate shop in Austin, and has been designing boards and having a blast ever since. The mural he created for the Wall to Wall series is in the heart of downtown Austin, on Sixth Street, and can be seen from I-35, and by the thousands of revelers who flock to Austin for its good vibes.
Talk about your art background, how you got started?
For as long as I can remember I have always been drawing. I don’t really remember a time when I wasn’t. It has been a life long love and I would never have been able to cope with out it. My dad put me on a skateboard from the moment I learned how to walk. I was always so fascinated by the graphics on the boards. I was hooked. It was all I wanted to do.
When did you first discover your interest in the arts?
It has always been there for as long as I can remember.
Travel, all the places you go to do murals? Where have you gone, which city is your favorite?
I really haven’t done any mural work outside of Austin. I need to widen my scope for sure. As far as a favorite city I have been too; I would have to say Philly is my fave. So tight!
The Austin scene. What’s it like, music, art, etc. ?
The Austin Art seen is awesome! Home to so many rad dudes, and so many sick galleries! Its a small town still sort of so we all just kind of chill and try and help each other. It is alive here. Gotta give a shout to Michael Sieben! The dude has helped me out so much. The gallery he is part of ( OK MOUNTAIN ) is so sick to. Check it out if you ever come through Austin! COMMON HOUSE as well! DOMY is also one of my fave book store/galleries! So many sick print shops in town as well. I work at one (INDUSTRY) and they do live printing events with artists from all over the country!
Why that wall location? What is the fun stuff around that area?
High traffic spot during SXSW! Thousands of people were gonna see it! Plus it is on 6th st. That is where the party never stops!
How many hours a day do you spend working on your art?
As much as I can! Sleep, eat, and breath what you love to do! Nothing else matters.
Who inspires you and how do you keep yourself motivated?
I’m most inspired by all of my friends around me. Not a lot of them make art but they all shred so hard and that gets me stoked! Getting crazy and swimming, biking and skating, and eating rad food, meeting girls, falling in love and getting heart broken, big highs, deep lows! It all becomes cool stuff in the end.
Located in the heart of Austin, Josh’s mural can be found on the corner of I-35 and NW 6th street. Located next to a host of bars, galleries, and in the the middle of all SxSW madness during March – the wall is a cant miss piece that adds to the Austin artistic landscape: Austin, Texas
In March, artist and resident blogger Gage Hamilton went to Tokyo for his first international solo show with Hellion Gallery x AMP. Always keen to tap into the creative scene, Gage caught up with a few major talents from the world’s largest metropolis to find out what drives them to create.
When I met Senekt, I knew of him as a prolific member of Tokyo’s live painting scene. Known for frequent collaborations and ephemeral paintings in loud environments, his work was not like most artists I encountered in Tokyo. As it turns out, I timed my trip shortly after he decided to move away from live painting in favor of more thoughtful and deliberate studio work. I caught up with him about what it’s like to make that shift.
Your style of painting seems to be a bit different from a lot of what I’ve seen here in Tokyo, it seems like you have a heavy abstract expressionist influence but with some touches of graph writing stylings. How did you come to develop that style?
I was influenced by graffiti a lot when I was about 14 or 15, but now my interests have shifted more towards details in nature, like maybe textures on tree trunks or things like that.
That’s a big shift. So are you more interested in nature than urban aesthetics, or do you aim to combine the two?
It is not that my interest shifted from urban aesthetic to nature. I am still inspired from various things in the city, but I find myself more frequently moved by nature. It makes me want to paint when I’m moved. I like to observe details in nature, details of sceneries or trees, leaves, and rocks. Most of my works are abstract. I find a lot of ideas for them when I focus on the details of nature.
I know you have done a lot of live painting, when did that become an interest of yours?
I started doing live paintings in 2007. When I was 13 I went to a club and saw 3 painters doing a live painting battle and it really inspired me to get involved in it myself. This year I’m stepping away from that method of painting though.
Why is that?
For the last two years, I painted live three times a week. I tried not to repeat painting similarly, so I forced myself to try something new each time. I like live painting because it is a spontaneous action, more like a performance. I enjoy that aspect of it, but now I’m more interested in spending time on a canvas and finished paintings.
Would you say your aesthetic has changed since moving away from live painting?
I haven’t recognized distinctive changes yet, but I apply the energy required for live painting to my studio works. When I work in my studio, there is no audience. I don’t have to worry about performance and time limits. I am enjoying spending time on my works right now.
How long do you spend on a painting now as opposed to a live painting?
About a month or two. The longest live painting I’ve done was 5 hours.
Live painting is something we don’t see a lot of in America, but it seems fairly prevalent here in Tokyo. It seems similar to comparing live DJ sets versus writing an album. Does the environment in a club versus a studio influence the outcome of the work?
There are differences. In a club music is usually super loud, canvas is larger, people are watching, time is limited, and I often drink. It gives me certain excitement when I paint at a club environment. It results in more gestural and quick brush strokes, unexpected drips of paints in both good way and bad way, and so on.
My current works are not influenced from live painting, but my style has evolved from that. Now, I’m usually by myself drinking coffee. I can lay my paintings flat in my studio, so I can get more effects that I would not be able to get with live painting. I enjoy both, but for now I prefer my work to be more deliberate.
To find out more about Senekt, check out The Tall Trees of Tokyo, a contemporary art book by Matt Wagner of Helion Gallery.
Converse proudly presents The City Blooms, an art installation that’s adding a blast of color to Manhattan’s SoHo neighborhood. Partnering with famed set designer Chime Serra, we’ve taken over an abandoned garage at 300 Lafayette street and filled it to the brim with a blossoming display of our love for color.
Come by this Wednesday, May 30th, 2012 to feast your eyes on our latest color collaboration.
In March, artist and resident blogger Gage Hamilton went to Tokyo for his first international solo show with Hellion Gallery x AMP. Always keen to tap into the creative scene, Gage caught up with a few major talents from the world’s largest metropolis to find out what drives them to create.
IUTER Headquarter (Milano, Italy) 2011: photo by studio CIRASA
Mhak a.k.a. Masahiro Akutagawa is a prolific artist and designer in Tokyo. Mhak has a very distinctive style and a passion for making his mark on interior spaces through wall paintings and collaborative furniture design. He has shown in Argentina, Australia, Japan, China and the US, and has many works available through Hellion Gallery in Portland. He is also known for his role as Art Director for Common Magazine.
Spanish & Bar LUZ (Shibuya, Tokyo) 2012: photo by Kou Miyama (Miyama Photo Studio)
You’ve developed a really distinct style, one that is easily recognizable as belonging to you. Did you set out to do that or did it just come naturally?
That was my intention. I originally wanted to develop my own style.
It seems like you’ve kind of taken that branding approach and really branded yourself as an artist. Is that something you set out to do while studying fashion design?
My motif is not influenced by fashion or apparel design, but the method of developing a style and how to get my work out there is heavily influenced by fashion.
Did you see yourself painting murals when you went to fashion school?
I didn’t think I’d be getting into murals when I first went to school, but I was drawing and painting a lot. At first the purpose was to decorate my room and my living space, because I was collecting a lot of designer chairs and wanted some paintings on the wall that would go with them. I couldn’t afford to buy paintings by my favorite artists, so I decided to do it myself.
Hotel Mets Shibuya room no.1406 (Shibuya,Tokyo) 2010: photo by snp (GB.Inc)
Do you see paintings and murals differently than having your designs on cars, clocks, chairs, apparel skate decks or hotel rooms?
I don’t really differentiate products versus murals. What I think about differently is whether my work will be indoors or outdoors, because I’m very concerned about interior space and I have to be conscious about how my work will be exhibited and how the environment will be. When I paint outside I don’t need to think as much about that because I don’t need to be conscious about the arrangements of other things, like tables and chairs.
I think I told you before, the last couple years you’ve had a better presence in Portland than most Portland artists. How do you manage to stay so visible abroad while living in Tokyo?
It’s not my intention, it’s just that there are people that offer me a chance. In Portland, Matt Wagner of Hellion Gallery has done that. I feel extremely lucky to have those opportunities. But living in Tokyo actually works as an advantage because it’s a place that brings people together. I feel I have a better chance of meeting and connecting with people that can offer me more opportunities outside.
Where else has your work brought you internationally?
Buenos Aires, Italy, and Portland are the places I’ve actually visited, but I’ve shown in LA, New York, Sydney and China.
MHAK x MEISTER : KSTM Series ver, MMS Living Board of MEISTER
You’ve started working at Common Magazine as well, has that had any effect on the work you produce as an artist? Does it encourage or facilitate collaborations?
I’ve known the people at Common for awhile, so I don’t think that working for them has changed me as an artist. Common has given me some opportunities to realize my ideas though. I am very interested in artist’s studios spaces because I believe living spaces are a reflection of a person or personality traits, so the next issue in Common will feature Melbourne artist group Everfresh and it is about their studio space.
You’ve done a lot of collaboration work, do you prefer to work solo or with other artists?
I enjoy doing interior wall paintings the most. Secondly, I like doing works on products where I collaborate. And then painting on canvas. So I guess I prefer working solo on interiors.
Upcoming shows?
The next project that I’m involved in is for the launching of Levi’s Commuter line in Shibuya where I’m painting on a show window. Then I have a showcase on my collaboration furniture at Isetan in Shinjuku.
In March, artist and resident blogger Gage Hamilton went to Tokyo for his first international solo show with Hellion Gallery x AMP. Always keen to tap into the creative scene, Gage caught up with a few major talents from the world’s largest metropolis to find out what drives them to create.
YUMANIZUMU a.k.a Yuma Yoshimura is a contemporary artist from Tokyo. Formerly known for his colorful shoe paintings, he has developed a very personal style in the past couple years combining tribal figurative drawings with a monochromatic and chaotic Tokyo influence. Along with a residency in South Africa, he has shown in Germany, Japan and the US.
I met Yuma several times on my trip. Very friendly/welcoming guy, always made the effort to talk to me despite the language barrier. I saw his work at Hatos Bar, and liked it enough to look further. Was very happy I did, he’s done some great work in South Africa and really opened up about how his experiences have influenced his work.
Your drawing style seems to really embrace chaos through your line work. Is that intentional?
I intentionally bring the chaos into my work. The basis for it is growing up in Tokyo, there’s a lot of people and it can be very chaotic so I express that in my work. I don’t do it consciously, it comes naturally, but I intentionally retain those elements because of how it relates to being born and raised in Tokyo.
There seems to be a heavy influence of tribal figurative drawing in your current work, is that something you developed in Tokyo or while traveling?
I started using a monochromatic scheme in my work as a reflection of Tokyo as well. To me Tokyo is black and white, not a lot of color. Also the decadence of the urban city influenced my work. The recent tribal elements of my work is a result of traveling. Last year when I traveled to South Africa I was able to bring in more tribal and primitive elements and infuse that with the monochromatic urban sensibilities. So the recent artworks I’ve been doing are a mixture of what I’ve assembled through travel as well as growing up in Tokyo.
You did some really interesting murals and installation shows during your residency in South Africa, what was that experience like sharing your work in that environment?
Before I arrived in South Africa I knew a little bit about the history of apartheid, and at first when I got there people would call me “Chinese Monkey” because all Asian people were the same to them. There were a few people who knew where Japan was, but the first experience made me a bit nervous and sensitive about racism and the color of skin. Eventually I learned that there are whites, blacks and colored, which is a very complex mixture of races somewhere between, so when I started learning of the complex racism in South Africa, I thought there was some sort of synchronicity with my work that mixes white and black and grey tones. So that really solidified my decision to only use greyscale in my works. In Soweto I did a mural project with some local graffiti artists and through working with them I noticed my identity as Japanese a lot because of the visual differences.
What was their reaction to those differences?
The locals were surprised by my restricted color schemes because they would usually use more vivid colors, a reflection of the sun and natural surroundings, so a lot of people responded to the greyscale. They also wanted to know the subjects of my work, and the question gave me pause because I didn’t know how to articulate it. The chaos has always been my main thing, and the faces to me are an expression of different personalities, so I tried to explain that in my own words. In general though, it was my restricted use of color that was fresh for them and that people seemed to respond to.
I’ve noticed some of your shoe paintings use color. Do you approach those differently?
Before I shifted to strictly monochromatic, I also did more colorful artworks as well. When I began painting on shoes it was both monochromatic and colors, so those are older works. It was my time in South Africa that solidified my concept of just working with a monochromatic scheme and prohibits me from using other colors again. In some collaborations there may be colors, but for my own art that is not my intention.
Do you have a preference between working on large scale outdoor projects versus smaller drawings on paper, aluminum or shoes?
My favorite medium is working with metal, and probably wood and stones. I’m also working on paper and I want to explore that more, but my favorite is metal.
Your installation in Capetown was called ‘YIN AND YANG is IN TO YOU’. Can you tell me about the idea behind that?
The spelling of ‘Yin and Yang’ in Japanese can be read the same as ‘In To You’ in romaji. It was a wordplay. I also wanted to suggest the idea of eliminating boundaries between black and white and bringing unity.
And what about YUMANIZUMU? You speak of it in relation to love and passion, right?
I think the ideas of love and passion are not just for when I’m creating artworks, but just the basis for everyday life. It’s the source for my creativity, so I wanted to suggest it as a universal foundation.
What’s next for you?
I’d like to explore more with mural projects. I might be able to something in Melbourne in August. This year I’m going to be doing something at Kojimachi Gallery and also probably another show at Hatos. Next year I’m going to St. Louis and also Barcelona to do a show at Montana Gallery.
Converse has opened its first store in New Jersey at the Westfield Garden State Plaza in Paramus, NJ. Converse Customization is the headliner of the new store, a creative hot spot where consumers can make their own sneakers, apparel, and accessories in any and every way they see fit. The store also features an unparalleled collection of Converse sneakers and apparel.
Our flagship store on the in New Jersey’s largest mall brings the retail experience to a whole new level, making it not only interactive but truly one-of-a-kind. At the Converse Customization “Ink Bar” located in the center of the store, shoppers are able to create their own styles of sneakers, apparel and accessories by using over 200 graphics and designs. Customers will also have the ability to customize the details of Converse bags, t-shirts, and hoodies by adding grommets and drawstrings, and modifying the piece to suit their individual style. Customization Maestros are available to help guide through the creative process, providing a uniquely collaborative experience that results in a one-of-a-kind Converse item.
In New Jersey? Come check us out at Garden State Plaza.
Store Hours:
Monday – Saturday: 10AM – 9:30PM
Sunday: Closed
At the mall? Below is our exact location.
