spiritinc's blog

Awesome new work from Os Gêmeos: part of the exhibition “Viva la Revolucion: A Dialogue With the Urban Landscape” organized by the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego 2010.

I remember first being exposed to these now world famous twins through issue #6 of 12oz Prophet Magazine. The gritty graphic design for that issue and, more importantly, the stories and photos these two shared about Brasil, were awe-inspiring. São Paulo was a whole world away, yet their stories and artwork brought it to life. One of my favorite quotes from that interview is this:

We paint because it creates a portal into another world that other people can hopefully peer into in order to see another life and world that exists.

Though they were speaking about opening portals of hope for the homeless on the streets and in the shantytowns of São Paulo, their artwork opened up a whole other world of art for me as a teenager growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area. More artwork can be found at the Os Gêmeos website.

[via Ektopia]

"Robert Berman / E6 Gallery is pleased to present MISSPELLED, an alphabet by Victor Reyes, handmade in California.  The ambitious public art installation turned gallery exhibition explores the artists’ unique approach to graffiti, by dissecting individual letters and exploring the anatomy and architecture found in the symbols we use to communicate. Inspired by San Francisco’s streets, surfaces, and overall visual vibrancy, Reyes reinterprets the letters and presents them to us in a brilliant array of color and movement. These alphabets, recontextualized on various abandoned surfaces around the city, are not intended to provide answers, but to raise questions about how we interpret public spaces and the content assumed within."

Opening reception is July 7th, 6 to 9pm, at the Robert Berman Gallery in SF. There's also an accompanying book(!). Be sure to check out the article on Reyes on SF Gate as well.

[via Known Gallery]

A friend of mine traveling in Canada to protest the G8/G20 meetings there showed me this image by Mona Caron, enititled "Dystopia", which, along with it's sister image "Utopia", graced the covers of Other Magazine back in February of 2005. Its pure artistry, combined with an overt, significant political message constructed from a juxtaposition of images and subtle text, was striking. Though I found it to be particularly relevant to the G20 meetings happening in Toronto, Canada right now, the imagery speaks to larger topics such as globalization, democracy, police states, and corporate rule.

Through her website, I found that Mona had constructed a number of images I have encountered here in the SF Bay Area, from her Market Street Railway mural, to the 10th Anniversary of Critical Mass poster, to her cover for Lip Magazine and various other posters and publications. Mona's mediums range from large-scale murals to watercolor and blockprint illustration. I love the people-powered, eco-local bent that she exhibits.

You can find more of her amazing artwork on Facebook and at monacaron.com.

I've posted another new image gallery I've titled "Dark City", all night shots of Oakland and San Francisco cityscapes. [Edit: I've replaced the original posted images with my processed images (which unfortunately I neglected to post the first time) that highlight the green and gold in the spectrum and "pop" a bit more, I think.] What do you think?

I've posted a new photo album of "old school" black and white 35mm photos here. These are all circa 1996-2001. Check 'em out.

"Home" - Mixed Media on Found Wood  ~ 5' x 2.5'' - May 2010. More art here. Original image.

Resident Anti-Hero's music achieves the status of "beats to bump while manifesting dreams", a phrase I've used to describe what I would like to do with the music I create. A hip hop duo out of the Pacific Northwest, Resident Anti-Hero bridges the gap between the green/anarcho-primitive movement and contemporary urban hip hop culture. From Resident Anti-Hero's website:

"Resident Anti-Hero is committed to the ongoing development of a contemporary mythology that is both politically aware, and soundly folkloric. Through the use of music, extended metaphor, and storytelling, the band offers an in-depth narrative encompassing issues of world politics, environmental awareness, social justice, survivalism, and sustainable living. The fictional world of Resident Anti-Hero and the Anti-Hero Underground is intended to be an ongoing mythological journey, exemplifying and critiquing the world it was created within."

I think it's important to note the references to mythmaking and storytelling in their biography.  By weaving their own tales and creating an independent (purely ficitional?) narrative, Resident Anti-Hero successfully circumvents mass media lies and deception to present a viable "way of life" and world-view situated outside the realm of capitalist/consumer culture. Their full bio and mythology is well worth the read.

Their albums "Age of Dissent", the "Cut the Power" EP, and "The Battle of Mechanopolis, Vol. 1" are all available at www.residentantihero.bandcamp.com. Check out the Resident Anti-Hero myspace page as well.

Also, be sure to visit Anti-Hero producer Etheric Double's myspace and his blog My Earth Is Wild.

Big ups to Sole One for putting this together in his newsletter/on his blog. For the uninitiated, Sole has been grinding and putting out dope hip hop for years.

http://soleone.org

http://twitter.com/mcsole

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10 tricks for surviving the recession (physically, mentally, & financially)

1.) Plant a garden:  depending on where you live this is a great way to save money and get some extra joy out of your life. Depending on where you live this may or may not be cost effective, but nothing feels better than digging holes in the ground, putting your favorite vegetables in and praying for rain. I spent about 12 bucks on seeds, and was blessed with a friend who had some extra compost in his old garden; on top of it my soil was ideal (black, claylike). I spent 6 hours on my garden and have 10 rows of vegetables. 

This year I've played beets, spinach, kale, mache, butter lettuce, basil, tomato, cucumber, Congolese habaneros, and Caribbean peppers. If you don't have space for a garden, throw some basil & mint in your kitchen. We are constantly bombarded with inhumanity, simple things like getting in the sun, keeping plants a live, and feeding yourself keep us connected with what is at our core. Now is the time to prepare your summer/spring crop. Don't be intimidated, do a little research on best practices in your area and enjoy yourself.

2.) Bath salts ok, I'm not sure if I decided this was my steez after I saw Gwyneth Paltrow reading in the bathtub on royal Tennenbaums, but this has become one of my favorite things to do. After a long, stressful day of staring at a computer, banging on beats, or writing songs, I need a way to reset my day, so I usually take a hot bath and read for a while. I realized I was going broke on Burt’s bee's bath salts, so I decided to make my own. It was really simple, you just mix up "iodized dead sea salt" (super cheap) with some lemon/eucalyptus oil (you only need a little bit) and that’s it. A cost effective way to reduce stress.

3.) Stop using your credit card: don’t be the asshole at the bar buying your friends drinks on your credit card. If you can’t afford it don’t buy it, and don’t buy people drinks that don’t buy you drinks! The "I'm gonna be rich next year" shit is played out, if things keep on, you'll be lucky to have a job next year (if you have a job).

4.) Fuck cable:  there is no reason to watch cable anymore. All the good shit is on hulu. Buy the cable to hook your VGA output to your TV. Buy a shitty dell netbook for 300 bucks and hook it up to your TV. Watch Netflix and downloaded movies you torrented on your xbox360 in a jump drive. Watch what you want when you want, don’t watch commercials and don’t be trapped by the whims of the media.

5.) Cut out middlemen: this is mainly for people in the music industry, but this advice goes everywhere. If somebody is doing a shitty job and taking a cut out of your money, or in most cases, sees more money than you do working your product, cut them out. Cut everyone out. Do the extra work. In this economy there is no time for slackers, but on top of it, the world just don't need middlemen like it used to. With the Internet you can manage an empire from Fiji, so work them extra hours, get that money, quit crying.

6.) Do what you love: in this world of uncertainty, I don’t believe that we are in a simple "recession." we are in the midst of a global shift, or a "readjustment." blue collar jobs will likely never come back. White-collar jobs will likely never come back. My advice, think hard about what you love, because if you're gonna be broke or jobless anyway, use this opportunity to make some changes in your life. It is easier to shift careers than one would think. First of all, if you are doing what you love/care about then the quality of your work will be much better and you will excel. How do you get that job? Well if you're on unemployment, take an internship at a museum, a TV station, a government office, whatever you thought you couldn't do. Or take an internship on top of the shitty job you have that’s going nowhere, double down on your life. The world is falling out from under us, what left do we have to lose?

7.) Learn to cook: this is the best. Cooking, not only connects us with what is at our core like gardening does but it sustains us. After a long tour, I just can’t wait to come home and eat some tofu, the way I make it with greens the way I like em. If you have good taste in food, then you can be a good cook. Look up some recipes online, fuck around. It’s a great thing to do as couples, its romantic, healthy, and you can be gourmet as fuck without having to tip some waiter (who has a PHD and cant find a better job). What beats a barbecue with friends? A stew on a cold day?

8.) Cut out bad (expensive) habits: there is so much bullshit people do, that is a waste of money. Like smoking cigarettes.... I'm amazed at how many smart people smoke cigarettes... weed too, sure everyone loves a joint now and then, but pot is expensive (grow your own!)... If you can't afford something, give it up, and even if you can afford it, is it worth it? Plus I find in stressful times its better to have a clear mind.

9.) Move to Denver:  A wise man once said, "you can be broke anywhere." I made this my life mantra. In my opinion Denver is the most European city in America, the entire city is bike-able, you can rent a house cheap, and be in nature in minutes if the need be.  Its high culture without being pretentious, still feels working class, and has lots of late night vegan options.

10.) Get a bike:  this is great on so many levels. Traveling by exercise. I’ve been riding my bike bout 10 miles a day since the weather got nice. It feels great to not be in a car, to feel the wind on your face and know you're not "shitting in al gores mouth." in a lot of cities it’s easier to get around on a bike. Nothing beats driving through a crowd of yuppies in the uppity district on your bike, while you're on the way to the bar knowing you don’t have to drive home drunk.

Upon digging through my old external drive the other night, I found a few pictures of the various home studio setups I've had over the years.  The pictures above span 2005 to 2010. There are a few missing configurations (namely the "MPC on the bedroom floor" setup and the "turntables on the desk in North Oakland" setup). The top left picture is of my bedroom at my parents house, circa Summer 2005.  Top right is from my San Francisco apartment, Fall 2006. Middle left is West Oakland, Summer of 2007.  The bottom two pictures are of my current spot in Berkeley, Spring 2010.