Koze, Squirl, Matt Latchford and Dan Wilson brought their unique urban art styles into full effect to create a downtown Tokyo street scene for the event. The result is a series of Japanese inspired street art walls - complete with hand painted brickwork, graffiti, peeling posters and fantastical traditional and kawaii characters.
Founder and veteran graffiti artist Koze says, “We had serious fun painting the pieces at the studio, mixing up our unique styles to create an edgy but realistic street vibe that we felt wouldn’t look out of place in Tokyo whilst at the same time keeping real to our own work. We often work on a large scale but at 22m long and 2.5m high this is our largest piece to date. It took a lot of planning to get every detail right including the brick work, however people’s response has been fantastic.”
Bringing the Japanese street setting to life was what drove the decision to work with Soulful Gallery, according to Creative Director at N2O, Heather Devany. “Soulful Gallery took our original creative brief and created an amazing backdrop for the Yatai. Their attention to detail is astonishing and their mixture of fresh and individual styles created exactly the urban street effect we wanted. All the artists at Soulful Gallery have been responsive to our feedback, and a genuine pleasure to work with.”
Designed to engage all the senses, the Kirin Ichiban Yatai is a unique collaboration between premium Japanese beer brand, Kirin Ichiban; top London Japanese chefs, Yasuhiro Mineno and Shinya Ikeda; exciting short film makers entered in the Kirin First Cut film competition; contemporary art collective, Soulful Gallery; post-earthquake, fundraising, Play for Japan; brand placement agency, Be Communications, and experiential agency, N2O Limited. Working together, they have created a pop up Yatai bringing together the old traditions of Japan with new creativity and technology.
The bespoke Japanese street art walls created uniquely for this exciting pop up Yatai experience are being auctioned to raise money for the Japan Society Tohuku Earthquake Relief Fund. For the opportunity to own a piece of this unique work, just go http://www.n2o.co.uk/kirin-street-art - you can bid until 23:00 BST Monday 8th August 2011.
More images can be seen on Flickr.
]]>Local residents of all ages stopped and had a chat with the artists as they were creating the 16 metre mural. A couple even got to try their hand at painting under the watchful eye of Koze. So how did Soulful get involved in helping a group of 6th form students to try and transform the perception of Hackney?
Well, the project was originally the brainchild of eleven students from Clapton Girls’ Technology School who formed themselves into a group called Tick4change, and the community mural ‘We are Hackney’ formed part of the project. Helped by national charity Envision, the girls pitched their Tick4change vision in a dragon’s den style meeting to get an initial £500 funding from the charity for the project. Their aim being to make a positive change to the image of the London borough.
Soulful acted as the creative agency translating the students ideas into concepts and created various designs for review and sign off. The project was brilliant for us to work on because it fitted so well with ethos of engaging young people in art and was a joy to do because the students were so passionate and committed to the project. As Koze says: “The mural was a very exciting and inclusive project which, as well as being inspirational for all who saw it take shape, also provided a learning experience for the members of Tick4change. They not only handled the project from the start but also got the chance to work alongside established artists to help complete the painting.”
Tick4change joined Koze and Dan to put the finishing touches to the mural on Sunday. Rasidha, Tick4change team leader, says:“This project has been brilliant and worked well on all sorts of levels. Our research has brought us in contact with with the young and elderly of Hackney Borough and we’ve all learnt so much. It also puts a positive focus on Downsview Special School, where the wall is sited. Koze and Dan we’re really good at planning stage, listening and responding to our ideas and it’s been great to join them to finish the mural. Wicked!”
Diane Abbott, MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington and Shadow Health Minister, said: “Well done to the students from Clapton Girls’ Technology School who have proved themselves to be real entrepreneurs. They should be congratulated for securing funding for the mural and for getting this great community project off the ground. I can’t wait to see the results!”
More photos of the day can be found on our Flickr pages.
]]>Amazingly the guys still managed to complete this massive 9 metre mural in Southville, Bristol. So what’s the piece about I hear you say - well let me explain….
The great genie Chee-Chee towers over a world of raw potential inhaling inspiration from all around. On a quest to spread creativity throughout the universe he returns to this world to recharge. He can only continue to live for as long as he carries creativity within him.
Chee-Chee stands before three mystical totems representing graffiti, digital art and drawing. These old totems are shattering and morphing into one, providing a new source of creative energy.
The inhabitants of this world are artistic souls. They worship Chee-Chee - see their fanfare of confetti as they celebrate his return and rejuvenation at this awe inspiring spectacular. It will not be long until he can blast off into the universe, ready to ignite the creative genius that lies within all of us.
There is some rather nice footage of the lovely Steve infront of the mural for the new Upfest promotional video, as well as coverage on the local news and on Exposure Room.
More photos can also be found on Flickr
]]>Last week Matt and Dan were back at school to teach Year 11 students how to create a comic book cover. Over the six week programme they will be taking students through the process of how to do this - from finding inspiration, exploring ideas, storyboarding, to designing characters and logos.
Last week was all about ideas generation and brain storming - freeing up the imagination, finding inspiration and beating writers block. Tomorrow they move onto character design. Here’s a little taster of what’s to come.
]]>At 3 metres in length this is a smaller mural than we’ve previously created - although the planning was probably more intensive given the challenges of working in a smaller space.
In case you’re wondering what it’s all about - let me explain. Soulful Towers is a high-rise ‘urban village’ that towers up into the sky as a beacon of creative energy and industry. This has been created by slow but steady growth as new ideas, skills, artists and friends come together to join the Soulful family.
The clouds part in the air, pushed away by the light and energy of the towers. They also symbolise the connection we have with graffiti art and how this continues to evolve over time.
In the foreground people are approaching some are spellbound by the sky, others focus on their new home. This artist community with its homely feel is a far cry from the bland corporate skyscrapers from which some have come. I’m ready to move in now!
More photos can be found on our Flickr page.
Video footage has also been captured of Matt and Chang during the early stages of creation by artbizness.
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Welcome to ‘Soulful Towers’ - a vertical artist community which grows taller by the day as new souls arrive to join.
During the weekend Matt and Chang will scale this up into a 3 metre mural working in spray paint, acrylics and paint pen. More detail is of course planned - we can’t give it all away now - all I will say is I’m sure we’ll see some new characters arrive at their new home.
As well as painting live, we will also be exhibiting our latest work. The Urban Art Fair is hailed as London’s largest alfresco art event and as entry is free - we hope to see you there.
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Working on pre-sprayed canvas boards with Molotow paint pens students learnt the basics of how to create a tag and work up the design in bubble letters and 3D. The results were fantastic - have a little look at what was created below.
The next Graffiti Art Workshop will be run by Amonamission and Koze run on Saturday 19th June from 2.00pm - 3.30pm at the Firestation.
]]>Nearly twenty pieces of original contemporary art are on show from Matt Latchford, Koze and Chang204 together with photography from Amonamission. There is also the opportunity to see some of the work created for the Eurostar Culture Connect press launch.
This exhibition includes a number of new paintings including Nox and Salome by Matt. Both are inspired by myth and legend - which often features in his work - however these have a darker underbelly than what we’ve seen before. Created in pen & ink they contain quirky and unexpected detail - the bottom of Salome’s dress is well worth a look.
Koze meanwhile has continued to explore the concept of stripping graffiti back to its most simple form. This and his bordering obsession with Panetone colours can clearly be seen in Raw Graff Purple and Raw Graff Aqua. Increasingly his paintings are produced in pairs - reflecting the balance of positive and negative states.
The exhibition runs until Sunday 26th June 2010. During this time we’ll also be running Graffiti Art Workshops on the 29th May and 19th June. Do come join us.
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The brief was open - but needed to incorporate both these aspects and engage people in art. So we created a gallery in St Pancras - one that showed some of the most famous pieces of art carried by Eurostar’s Culture Connect partners painted by Koze, Chang204 and Matt Latchford. These included a Monet, Van Gogh, Hirst, Matisse and Warhol - if you look closely they’re all done in the artist’s signature style. Matt’s Henry VIII (originally by Holbein) was sporting a particularly nice chain with the Adidas logo on it!
During the two hour press conference the art gallery came to life. Matt and Chang were busy creating the skyline for London, Paris and Brussels. Alongside them were students from St Martins College of Art & Design painting at easels and several younger members of the audience who worked with paint pens onto blank canvases we’d pre-hung in the gallery. Check out the candy floss ice-cream sculpture and the stain glass window hit by a tornado - seriously imaginative.
There are some photos of the build below - but essentially we created a 6 metre rectangle box that was covered with canvas. The front was pre-sprayed ox-blood red (with graffiti tags underneath) and the back was sprayed Eurostar blue with the Culture Connect logo on it so it would be visible to any passengers arriving at the station.
Our video footage of the day should be available shortly. In the meantime - you can see the full morning’s proceedings on Flickr. It was a very early start - so we may look a little jaded!
]]>This marks the launch of Culture Connect a unique partnership between Eurostar and specially selected museums and galleries in London, Paris and Brussels where you can get 2 for 1 entry with your train ticket.
Eurostar will also be announcing their celebrity ‘Cultural Ambassador’ during the morning. I’d love to be able to tell you who it is, as I’m very excited, but it’s a closely guarded secret until the day.
The Soulful Crew are creating something quite unique for this event and it promises to be a real art extravaganza. Koze, Chang204 and Matt Latchford will be painting live and if you fancy it there will be the opportunity for you to paint alongside them.
So if you’re in the vicinity of St Pancras International next Friday or want to pop along we’d love to see you. Do let us know you’re coming via our Facebook page so we can look out for you. It’s going to be busy!
If you can’t make don’t worry as you’ll be able to follow all the going’s on via Twitter.
For further information drop me an or post a comment below.
]]>Original paintings by Matt Latchford and Chang204 are currently available for sale. Check out the work in it’s new home - cosy!
]]>We’ve found the workshops have worked really well in engaging students in modern art and teaching them about the use of colour, self expression, portraiture as well as exposing them to artists such as Warhol and Shepard Fairy.
So far from the feedback it looks as if the students almost enjoyed themselves as much as Matt and Koze who taught the day! If you’d like to find out more please drop a line or post a comment below.
]]>All the photos of the day including outlines and artists in action can be seen on Flickr
Also why not check out the artists blogs for the initial work up of the concept and how this all came about.
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Koze from the Soulful Gallery will be painting live creating an urban art mural to the tunes of fellow artist and DJ Chang204 on Friday 27th November at Firestation, Windsor.
The Soulful Gallery joins the brilliant 4 Motion Dance Theatre Company for what should be a great evening at The Firestation, Windsor.
Taking over both floors there will be something for everyone, whether you’re into art, dance or music.
The Soulful Gallery will be in the basement with Koze creating a live urban art mural, to the tunes of fellow artist and DJ Chang204.
Live in the bar you’ll find another Soulful fella - Matt Latchford creating digital visuals to music from Dave Darch.
In the auditorium there are 2 performances from the 4 Motion Dance Theatre Company of ‘Nomore’ and ‘Bound’ which having seen rehearsals yesterday - look amazing. Door open at 7.30pm with painting running from 8.30pm till 1am.
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A huge urban art mural will be created live by the Soulful Gallery at the Windsor Contemporary Art Fair over the weekend of Saturday 14th and Sunday 15th November 2009 at Royal Windsor Racecourse.
Bringing together the work of three local Windsor artists - Matt Latchford, Chang204 and Koze - the mural will be a unique blend of illustration, graphic design and graffiti.
Almost billboard poster size, at six metres in length by two metres in height, the mural will be one of the first things that people will see as they enter the fair.
For those interested in both urban art and also how art is produced on a large scale, this is a great opportunity to watch the artists in action and see this piece of work really come to life.
Latest artwork from the gallery including original paintings and limited edition prints and canvases will also be available for sale on Stand 64.
Tickets for the fair are available on the door for £6/£4 concessions, and children under 12 get in for free. There is also plenty of free parking.
For further information:
Windsor Contemporary Art Fair
Directions to the venue
A huge urban art mural will be painted live by the Soulful Gallery over the weekend of the Fair. Bringing together the work of three local Windsor artists - Matt Latchford, Chang204 and Koze - the mural will be a unique blend of illustration, graphic design and graffiti. Almost billboard poster size, at 6 metres long by 2 metres high, the mural will be one of the first things that people will see as they enter the Windsor Contemporary Art Fair.
For those interested in urban art and how art is produced on a large scale, this is a great opportunity to watch the artists in action and see this piece of work come to life.
The Soulful Gallery will also be running graffiti art workshops over the weekend. These will be led by Amonamission who has been organising art education workshops since 2007. All of the artists creating the mural attribute their careers in design and illustration to the influence of the 80’s graffiti movement and so hope that the workshop will inspire others.
Participants will learn the basics of how to design their name or ‘tag’ using different graffiti styles, first working up ideas on paper before transferring these on to a canvas using indoor spray paint and paint pens.
Hour-long workshops, for children over 8 years and adults in mixed groups, will be held at 11am, 1pm and 3pm on both days. Class sizes are restricted, so we recommend reserving your place.
The price is just £5.00 per person with all proceeds donated to The Prince’s Trust.
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