Star Mugs

I'm sure there's some myspace/capitalist/highschool/smoko room joke behind this but it's lost on me. I'm guessing that makes me the Starriest Mug of all ;-)

I keep forgetting to tell you that I've changed the way I edit images.
I realised that even though there's over 4 thou pics stored on google from both sites, I've only used 20% of my storage. So - no more skimping on res - now you can click on an image and get the full picture (unless the quality was so shite I had to reduce it just to get the pixels herded together). It takes me forfeckingevah to load them but I figure it's worth it so you get the max magnificence of the quality pieces - and so the toys can get off on full frontals of their frowies ;-)

AND - if you do make the executive decision to enlarge, I expect the minimum of a Sheeeeit! when you remember that every single one of these images were taken on a Nokia celly...

HINT: You have to right click on the image and select 'Open link in new tab' (Firefox - not sure about IE) or you won't get back to the site when you close it.

SCREAM | CFG

I walked up the alley and sprung DR just finishing the CFG.
I walked back down a few hours later and SCREAM was getting this up.
Creds to SCREAM for butting up against CFG and not doing a territory dog piss over it like so many would...

Lately I heard the Graf Kitchen's been generous with dishing up double helpings of Knuckle Sandwhich, including servings of Beef on the side.
Call me old fashioned but I was happy to hear this old school establishment doesn't use knives and forks and everyone's been using their fingers ;-)

Demon Invasion...

These pasteys could be classed as a new species of fungi - they've spread everywhere virtually overnight and if you have a degree in Pixel Translation you'll just barely make out the words Lucky Dragons (US).
Even though it says Dragons, for some reason my subconscious must have grabbed onto the Demon word because last night I had this Da Vinci Code type dream where I was being warned to get rid of this image and not publish or even look at those words.
WTF?!

Stuck Up

You know how SIN did the SIN throwie, then, a few days later Mount Cook and the Tui? I was impressed but not surprised that he carefully lifted this stick and painted under it both times...do unto others?



FTL's a mystery that is on the GFC file (Graf Forensics Crew) yet to solve ;-)

N DOGG | BMD

I don't know if I've told you this before but I have a One Block rule - most of the images here are from the alley but I'll put up something if it's within the surrounding block.
All in the name of keeping it freaky and bringing you more bank for your buck.

You're welcome ;-)

There's a small urban forest missing a few trees with the amount of paper getting slapped around the hood right now and we're in pastey heaven.
The above two are from a dude who shall be known as N DOGG until someone tells me different (with a Welcome to the Hood colab from Beware). We've never heard of him before but I can see why he might be attracted to the alley - it does look and smell disturbingly like a (decomposing) dogg run ;-)

I only knew this BMD heaven was here cos of seeing it on his Myspace page. My cellie doesn't like zooming so not the finest example...
BMD has spread hizself from the alley to Newtown.
I've taken so many images of his stuff in the past week that I couldn't fit him up the alley and had to put him on The Street...

OMF

We only really see the OMF crew in the school holidays.
In fact, that's how we know it's the school holidays.
However, a couple of the guys from CFG said they're all over them out the burbs...

Chalk

SIN and I took a quick dive down the alley in the weekend before going our different ways for the day and came across Erase and some of his homeboys hanging out. There had been some city thing where there was shitloads of chalk everywhere for people to draw with and the first thing we noticed was chalk tagging spread from one end of the alley to the other.
SIN and I were mocking it, contemplating the organic and sustainable nature of it as a tag medium, when one of Erase's boys did a homie stance, then, with defiance and attitude rapped out "Chalks gangstah man!!"
SIN and I looked at each other then pissed ourselves laughing ;-)

Sin Stick & Throw

I was just commenting to Beware that of all the writers and artists, SIN seems to be the most varied in what he churns out with mostly good and moments of stunning...

Slope, Slapstix and Visual Tourists...

A few mysteries demystified this past week...
Pink Boots is Eek's girlfriend. Also, I'd been hoping to see Arlo Edwards because somebody thought he might have something to do with the dotscape in Newtown.
I got my chance to find out on Friday night at Slope's opening at Manky Chops (on The Street soon) when he rocked in. He confirmed it was none other than his funky self with a little help from some friends. We also found out that these were his slaps we'd been seeing around...
I don't think I've ever spoken to Arlo when he isn't on some mission - always involving art of some sort and usually collaborative.
This time it's his latest Visual Tourist gig.

In the Museum of Curious Intent sounds like a mixed media orgy. The Eye's Wide Shut of art?
"Arlo takes pride in the look and feel of an exhibition, and will put his all into making the launch of the exhibition (26 September) a night to remember. He says the gallery will be lit for a darkened setting, complimented by red velvet curtains, extraordinary installations and a rich accompaniment of sound"
It wouldn't take anyone with a single digit IQ to get why I might have my tent set up outside in order to be first in.
Lets just say the words Darkened, Red and Rich sounds like a (hundred times) classier indoors version of the alley...

"Awarded to E and the Street Writers"...

We won.

What blew us away the most was the overwhelming positive acknowledgment of graf/street art by most of those who attended the Wellington Civic Trust Awards last night.

The montage that Callum, one of the judges of the Street Art award, compiled was stunning - the images were so clear and vivid, especially considering they were all taken on my Nokia cell phone.
And it was so cool to see everyone from Ceaper to DR and out of towners Flox, Silenc and so many more represented up on the big screen - if you'd been there you would've been so pumped to see your stuff up.

Some of the other nominees were the TS crew and Surplus Bargains. I was quietly gobsmacked at how much TS have done around the place - I had no idea and could have learnt a thing or two from their modesty last night - they were so chill and cool to hang with.

I have to do a shout out to all the writers represented - you were the stars last night. And to Beware, Sin and James from Boombox for being support crew - afterwards, it was them I kept going back to to get grounded (and a beer).

But most of all, I've told him 137 times and will keep telling him, I couldn't do what I do without Beware and when accepting the award I was really doing it on behalf of us as a team...

There was no media present and I've managed to keep my name anonymous so don't expect any tv appearances or product endorsements anytime soon but know that we're on a Mission from Graf and this award might give us a bit of foot-in-door cred for future developments.
As always - I'll keep you posted...
E

And the Award Goes To?

Tonights the night!

I have to admit being massived out by all the support Lefties has had thrust upon it since the announcement and you'll be the first to hear what happened.
And good luck to everyone else who's been nominated - see you there ;-)

IKON

Years ago I got to drive around the back blocks of Brisbane in a truck delivering chaffy stuff to stations and I didn't see one single Kanga. Not one. I came home and said that Kangaroos, and especially problem Kangaroos were a myth (just like the wind in Wellington).

I get a similar sense of mystery with IKON.
I've got so many images of his primo burners but I've never actually seen him paint. I even got to hang out with him recently when the guys were getting up behind the Opera House but he'd already finished.

I swear on my Brownie badge that the other day I walked past the above wall down the alley and when I walked past it five minutes later he was spread all over it.
What's that about?!

Whatever it is - I'm addicted.

And I know I'm not the only one who can't get enough of IKON's work - the vibrancy, variety and strength of his pieces are legendary and the RTR crew must be stoked with the prolific, high-profile reps...

Loading up on Ironlaks

I'd been looking for a new pair of jeans for a few years so got up early on Sunday and decided to be all open minded and even try on some skinnys. I wandered past Loaded in Manners Mall and remembered a rumour I'd heard that they had the cheapest Ironlaks in town so I popped in for a squiz.
260 queens heads lighter, as I was about to leave, I remembered to ask about the laks.
Goes like this...
Yes, Ironlak got the feedback that their new formula sucked and have been working on it. Now, apparently, the yellows are still a bit prematurey but the rest have mostly sorted their shit out and pretty well do what they're told and good thing is, laks are only $7.50 right now.

Not sure if improved formula or cheap as laks can help Berp on their throw up mission to conquer the world but noticing not one dribble ;-)

Left Overs From Last Week

Either a new toy or an old one who's thrown his name out of the cot and got a shiny new one - either way - need a degree in Graf Interpretation majoring in Toy Psychology to work it out ;-)

Round the Block...

We're so used to Dusk's pasteys being of voluptuous, cheeky looking femmes so this one is a bit of a change. But knowing Dusk - there's a good chance this is a statement about something she's been noticing or thinking about lately...

These two pasteys are by Eeks. Some tips on Eeks you could go to the TAB and cash in on is that his pieces never run in straight lines, the proportions are often distorted, his characters are multi coloured freak shows and he's unpredictable - the very line up that makes his stuff outstanding...

Lefties Award Nomination

www.leftbank.co.nz has received multiple nominations in the Street Art category of the Wellington Civic Trust Awards.
The awards get presented in the Icon Room (good omen?) at Te Papa between 5:30 - 7:30 on Thursday the 18th of September.

The guy who contacted me said they were really impressed to see Wellington graffiti represented. Of course, we all know there are quite a few sites, and stores & galleries also supporting graf but, maybe because the alley is so in everyones faces (and nostrils), it's the one that got the noms.

Apparently there were quite a few others nominated - Ellen Coup for her exceptional mural by the bus stop in Newtown, the creator of the relief pattern in the airport tunnel, to name a few that the dude told me.

And I was thrilled to hear that another nominee was a graf crew - he said TS so I'm not sure if it's Top Shelf or Triple S - either way - onya's!!

Do you get how good this is for graf?
All those times that you go out, after work or school, at night or in the weekends, in the cold and or rain, dragging your kit, risking getting busted (or getting busted) to get your creations up - at this moment in Wellington time - is being recognised as worthwhile and valid.
I'm not sure how it's all decided but it was the public who put in the nominations and just the fact that the Awards have created a Street Art category shows that there's more awareness and acceptance of the streets as a gallery with entertainment value and potential.

So - if you're a writer and you're in the hood on that night, I would be really honoured if you were to join me at the awards. If, by some miracle the Graf Gods poked their heads in on the night and I was to find myself accepting an award, it would be on behalf of you and I would want you there with me - whether I've met you before or not, whether you throw, burn, slap, sten or paste, legit or otherwise - as long as you're a contributor to the street, you should be there too.

I know you're publicity shy and it goes against everything you're always having to look over your shoulder for, but this could be the one night when graffiti actually gets a positive rap and I want to make sure you're represented and get the credit you work your hiney off for.

And big ups to everyone who nominated the alley.

I can't help but feel this is a break through...

NEO NATE / JeROmE CopE!uS

At Philosophy School we learnt about 'waking sleep' - that state where your brain is so busy with all its random thoughts and rantings that you don't 'see' anything around you. Classic case being driving home from work where, if someone asked, you wouldn't be able to tell them anything specific you might have seen on the way.

I remember the day I 'woke up' and saw graffiti for the first time. It was about 8 years ago - I was walking down the Dixon Street steps and F is For Fun was written on the railing. I know that I noticed it because it was such a positive message. And once I woke up, there was no nodding back off.

Dryp's characters were the first series I noticed, followed closely by Neo Nate's Bulb Head and Street Squatch. Knowing both of these artists now I can't help but laugh when I remember that I thought it might be the same person doing all these characters ;-)

My brother generously bought me a 3G Nokia to keep in contact when I was in Japan - the camera was the bonus bling and the beginning of these sites...

So - when wanting to add a bit of dimension to the Alley, it was a no brainer to ask Neo Nate if I could pester him about his art...

Knowing that his other obsession is skating, and because he had done the above pieces on the legit boards the week before, we met down the skate park.

Note to Self - My only regret is that I didn't take a voice recorder because we were rapping in seconds and Neo Nate was so interesting I knew right away I didn't have a chance of remembering everything he told me.

NN was brought up between Hastings and Te Awamutu.
He remembers his mother taking him to the library in Hastings when he was a tacker where he always made his way over to the comic books. Manga was the first and strongest influence on him and he couldn't help but start drawing. He says he's still heavily influenced by Manga even now and is attracted to the clean simple lines and range of expressions.

We started talking about his most popular characters - Bulb Head and the Street Squatch. They were his first characters that were his own and he still has the very first drawings of them.
I asked him if they were Super Heroes and he looked straight at me and said Hell Yeah!

I started reeling off all the other characters I'd photographed and I can't believe I'd never noticed the distinctive Crustation theme which he admitted to being fascinated by.

I had promised beer as the bribe to talk to me so we made our way to a local bar (including his girl). Once the beers were opened, we started talking about the scene, and if I was impressed by his work, I was stunned at how much he knew about the history of many of the writers and crews in NZ, & especially Wellington - going back years.

I don't feel like I'm doing Neo Nate justice and have stuck a Post It note to my forehead to take a tape recorder next time I find someone willing to spill but the thing that's stayed with me is how humble and unassuming he is.
It felt like a real treat to hang with him and we're all looking forward to when he gets back in a few months from his valuable whanau time in Te Awamutu...

And Happy Birthday matey potatee ;-)

There's A Pattern Emerging...

These Eeks pasteys are just across the street from the Alley. They're so random and bright and cool they stand out like dogs balls.
Or chin testes ;-)

There's a Surplus Bargains pastey just above the top one too but SB has been spreading hisfineself around a lot lately so I've put him up on The Street.

Even though Eeks got busted by the 5-Ohshitohdear, and there's been a lot of beef in the past few months, it hasn't stopped the action around town. In fact, there seem to be more slaps and pasteys going up than ever. And Ikon et al have the legit burner market covered so all this is putting Wellies right up there for eye jollies right now...

Alley to Opera House...

Some very cool European flava going on over at WWS lately...



We (the Graf hounds) have all been noticing the epic pasties going up around town lately. I'll try to get them up on The Street in the next few weeks.

Not much news from Lefties lately but today we spent a sunny hour or so watching Ikon, Editor, Cast and Drypnz getting some new pieces up behind the Opera House.
Remember how they did that last lot of burners and the car park people painted their numbers and spaces right through the pieces?

Well this time, with a bit of colab with the car park police, Ikon did the impressive job of painting the disputed car park numbers up above all the pieces. Impressive because there could have so easily been some serious damage to tender goods as he balanced precariously on the thin top hand rail of his step ladder to do it.

We never know what the guys are going to get up but one thing's consistent, and that's the 'mare with Ironlaks.
I'm pickin their sales graph probably resembles their cans about now - dribbling in a downwards motion.

SIN

Now that so many of the walls are covered down Lefties, there's not much action happening. Good in most ways but not so good when trying to be all fresh and frank here ;-)
So - these are images borrowed off SINs mem stick cos he's good like that. And there will probably be more over the next few days.
I find that SIN has a similar image taking style to mine so I don't feel all weird putting his gear up. Just a shame his camera's bailed on him...



That last one there? When I saw that, I had no idea what it was and didn't bother taking an image of it but when it turned up on SINs memory stick I raved not-so-quietly to him. It's definitely my favourite SIN...

Silenc Rap Ture

I robbed this image of Sin's MySpace page because, apart from Silenc, he was the only one I know who got it before it was buffed - Thanks man ;-)

Like an emo undergoing keemo in pareemareemo

things aint what they seem yo
martain lutha king was killed cos he dreamed
bro im headin where my team
wont in a dream boat that keeps float
but im runin out steam
yo rollin on my last 3spokes
thru the exhaust fumes n tree smoke
pety shit 4d deep blokes
who front so hard they dont even seem broke
Text from Silenc
29 Aug 08