Tag Archives: Da Mental Vaporz

Marseille: Gris1 solo show at Backside gallery

October 13, 2012 butterfly

Gris1 from the Da Mental Vaporz crew is having a solo show at Backside Gallery in Marseille, France, running until 8 November. Showcasing paintings and installations, Gris1 treats us with a reconstitution of his studio space, where post-it notes and smiley faces overtake the floors to the ceiling. But the most impressive part of the show is a creation of a miniature city and train station where the trains circulate featuring familiar throw-ups and tags from Gris1 and his friends, much to the delight of children and grown ups.

Full set of pics from the opening here

Gris1
Backside Gallery
Marseille, France
Until 8 November 2008

Videos

Video: DMV workshop session

June 11, 2012 butterfly

Earlier this year I visited the studio of the Da Mental Vaporz crew as they prepared for their australian show. Here is a great film by Fabien Didelot featuring the entire crew at work with Blo, Bom.k, Brusk, Dran, Gris1, Iso, Jaw, Kan and Sowat.

Books, London, Shows, Street, Videos

Paris Opening: Mausolee with Lek x Sowat

April 23, 2012 butterfly 2 Comments

On August 12, 2010, French graffiti artists Lek and Sowat found an abandoned supermarket of 430,000sq. ft in the north of Paris. For a year, in the greatest of secrets they invited forty French graffiti artists to collaborate and create an illegal graffiti Mausoleum.

As the monument is not accessible for safety reasons, Lek and Sowat recreated a few murals and installations in an abandoned apartment to share their experience with the public .

During the two years, they discovered traces of life from squatters that left in a rush. For the exhibition, the artists brought back toys, letters and objects as a tribute to the families living in the Mausolee.

An installation made of found signage on site, staff instructions and reports reminds of the golden days of the supermarket as key role to the community.

The opening was also the occasion to celebrate the release of the book (available here) and a video retracing all the visual process of this adventure.

The stop motion video made of 8000 pictures is now visible online

More info on the project and participating artists at mausolee.net

Paris, Street

Paris: Mausolee – Lek x Sowat

April 11, 2012 butterfly 9 Comments

Imagine an abandoned four storey supermarket in the North of Paris occupied by squatters, then deserted again. On August 12, 2010, French graffiti artists Lek (RAW crew) and Sowat (DMV) discovered the place much to their delight.

For a year, in the greatest of secrets, both artists continuously wandered in this 430,000 sq ft monument to paint murals and organize an illegal artistic residency. They invited forty French graffiti artists to collaborate, from the first to the last generation of the graffiti movement. Together they built a Mausolee, a temple dedicated to their disappearing underground culture. There’s always been a constant battle between street art and graffiti, and this project clearly puts graffiti back on.

On 12 April Lek and Sowat will share their experience through an installation and video. Advance copies of the book documenting the entire visual process will also be available prior to the official release.

Due to the nature of the place, very few people have seen it in person. After crossing a train rack, going through a narrow corridor full of rubbish and climbing a 13 ft high metal gate with spikes, the access is by no mean easy. Traces of previous occupants are still visible: abandoned burnt cars, variety of objets scattered accross the four floors, as well as remains of the supermarket signage. Leveraging found material in-situ such as cling film, surreal installations and murals adorn the building.

Further pics here

More info on mausolee.net

Melbourne, Shows

Melbourne: Da Mental Vaporz – Le Venin Part 2

March 11, 2012 butterfly 2 Comments

After mentioning the top floor installation (covered here) we continue our coverage about the Da Mental Vaporz exhibition at Rtist Gallery. With a brand new series of works by all nine crew members consisting of Bom.k, Blo, Brusk, Dran, Kan, Iso, Gris1, Jaw, Sowat, ‘Le Venin’ contains over a hundred artworks, from screensprints, sketches, photos, mix media paintings, to solo and collaborative pieces.

The key piece of the exhibition is an Exquisite Woman Corpse, done by all nine members, featuring all topics the DMV crew are passionate about: graffiti walls, eroticism, and imaginary characters.

Combining all their strengths, the collaborative paintings called Exquisite Corpses are a delight for the eyes, explosion of colours and styles, like Hypnotic Skull.

Reflecting on current world events, the show presents many politically engaged pieces as well as a fight for freedom of expression. Arab Spring by Kan features a halftone graffiti portrait of Stephane Hessel, 94-year-old former French resistance fighter and author of Time for Outrage (Inspirez Vous), which inspired young people to take the streets. Pieces by Gris1 highlight globalisation issues and fight for freedom of mind.

The DMV also responded to the current presidential elections climate in France. Liberte Egalite Fatalite by Sowat, tricolored animals like Pigeons by Gris1, and a sheep by Bom.k are all reminders of never fulfilled political promises “Travailler plus pour gagner plus” (work longer to earn more), or even a crucified cockerel, a French symbol, “Vive la France” by Brusk.

Using only spray cans, the level of details of Bom.k and Jaw‘s large format canvases is hallucinogenic – self portraits, imaginary bestiary and erotic distorted corpses hypnotize the viewers, who are left shocked but still asking for more.

Oniric figures by Blo present a duality of happiness and melancholy, with a constant presence of life and death.
It is also nice to see the initial sketch from Blo‘s recent Wedding Walls mural in Berlin.

Also, the DMV crew enjoy playing with words, like the 3D pieces by Bom.k (Crime doesn’t spray) or the DMV letters forming Dieu Me Voit by Gris1/Sowat (God is watching me), symbolising the big brother society.

The exhibition features many lighthearted and dark-humored pieces, like Smiley by Gris1, a collection of post-it notes and memos to Dran‘s figurative characters like Mr Tea, or Mr Propre, (Mr Clean’s household cleaner) pissing to clean graffiti walls. At first glance at Trompe l’oeil by Dran, a cute koala is happily resting in the forest, but looking closer, all that is left is a tourist backpack.

A patchwork of smaller artworks cover an entire gallery wall with Sowat‘ drippings, Gris1‘ Throw-ups, ISO‘ graffiti lettering, Bom.k screenprints, JAW‘s sketches and more.

As Channel 9 Australia was streaming live in the middle of the gallery, uncensored and fearless Sowat set fire to his calligraffiti paintings to add some unique finishing touches.