Top Bristol Show This Thursday

So, it’s been a while since this blog covered up coming shows, but here’s one definitely worth checking out.

It’s down at ‘The Bristol Gallery‘, which is a newish place down by Millennium Square in the centre, here’s a map of sorts. The website seems pretty unintelligible, something to do with ‘real art’ or something…

One of the myriad ways with which one might begin to get a handle on what are difficult and challenging works of art is to think about some of the pre-histories of art-making that have brought us to the condition of contemporary art as it is practiced today.

…and that’s just the homepage.

Still though, there are some top people with work down there at a show opening this Thursday (4th March), including Sir Felix of Braun, Baron Inkie, Lord Ponk and the deadly combo of Andy Stott (D*Frost) and Jeffrow. Beezer and The Krah have got work in it too, which is very far indeed from being a bad thing.

So, filter through the pretentious art toss and get yourself down there for a beer (or maybe some snakebite, served ironically of course) and a look at some work by some proper talent. You know the score.

Friend and Co Christmas Show

Hope you’ve not got too much planned for the 11th of December, as there’s a lot on that night, here and abroad.

One you really shouldn’t miss though is the Friend and Co Christmas show, with another top line up and a good mix of people from Bristol and further afield. Namely, for those with screen readers;

Asbestos, China Mike, Dora, Eelus, Eine, Inkie, Kid Acne, Milk, Miss Bugs, Mr Jago, Mudwig, Nylon, Petro, Richt, Rowdy, Russel Maurice, Will Barras, Xenz and 45RPM.

Put all that lot together with the usual Friend and Co hospitality and fun crowd, and you’ve got something well worth a wander along to.In fact, you could do a crawl from the Beezer show, through Friend and Co and on to Weapon of Choice all on the same evening, with barely a hill encountered.

Alternatively, if you can’t make it on the night, it’s on til Christmas eve, so plenty of time to accidentally wander past it whilst the Mrs is trying to make you go Christmas shopping.

Wild Dayz Book By Beezer

More on this soon, but just a quick heads up. Just in case there’s not already enough going on on the 11th December, there’s a launch of a new book at the City Museum up by the Triangle.

It’s by Beezer, who was around the Bristol scene in the 1980’s, and had the good sense to take photos of everything whilst he was at it. Saw an annotated copy of the book a few weeks back, and it really is well done, tons of photos from around Bristol, Wild Bunch parties, St Pauls Carnival and even Glastonbury Festival.

The launch at the museum should be interesting, there’s a book signing, a showing of a specially commissioned film about the scene by Steve Haley. Looks like the museum’s started spending the money it said it was going to on ‘graffiti art’ a short while back, as two big new commissioned works by Inkie and Ian Dark are going to be on display too.

Being the museum, it’s an RSVP sort of affair, so email linda.bryant AT bristol.gov.uk by Wednesday the 9th to go along.

Massive Mayfair Pop Up Show By Inkie

One of the things to look forward to this time of year, is small short run group shows and galleries popping up to bring a bit of festive cheer and make christmas shopping that little bit easier.

The one with the biggest line-up announced so far is coming up in a couple of weeks and being put together by the indomitable Inkie.

For those with screen readers, it’s running in Mayfair for a short time only, 8th to 12th of December, and the line up includes;

Goldie, Shoe, Inkie, Eine, She One, Mysterious Al, Sickboy, Insa, Zeus, Hush, MauMau, Kid Acne, Steff Plaetz, Shazer, Chu, Shok1, Xenz, RYCA, David Walker, China Mike, Part2ism, Ben Allen, Andy Council, Pure Evil, George Morton Clark, Milk, Dora and Don.

A biggy then, if you fancy getting in for the private view, email exhibition@flying-eyeball.co.uk

There are a good few other shows coming up over the next month too here in Bristol, more on that soon…

As ever, this isn’t Inkie’s only thing coming up by a long way, here’s the man’s public calendar for the next few months…

Upcoming events:

Nov 26th: Assembly – Notting Hill

Dec 8th-13th: Group Show & Pop Up Shop – Mayfair

Dec 11th: Group Show – Friend & Co – Bristol

Feb 25th: Inkies Charity Auction Dinner @ The Paradise

March: Solo Show – Stockholm TBC

March: Sydney / Melbourne TBC

April: Solo Show – London

May: Solo Show @ Bristol-Lisboa Gallery – Lisbon
May: Solo Show – Tokyo

Get Dring Mobile – The Photos

Top night down at Paintworks last night for the Get Dring Mobile auction, some great live painting outside, great music and a whole lot of bidding for a great guy. Well, bidding for art to raise money for a great guy, Mike himself of course not being for sale.

It was interesting to see how the bidding went. Some pieces were an absolute steal, other went for far more than you would ever have thought. As a wise man put it last night, ‘a picture’s only worth what someone is willing to pay for it’. Stencil work still seems to be very much in fashion with the buyerati, wonder how much longer that will last.

In total, the auction raised something like £24,500, before you count in the bar receipts, pieces that sold outside of the auction and all sorts. So well on the way to getting Mike’s car sorted then, awesome stuff.

There’s more to come still too, lots of pieces left to be sold on Ebay very soon, including a lovely Will Barras that lots of people were coveting last night, so keep an eye out.

Here’s some photos from it all then, the live painting as it went along, and the works inside the auction as well.

Nick Walker opening the auction

Dicy up behind the bar

Huge Will Barras

FLX up high, above Pure Evil

With some of the postcards all framed up

The ‘artier’ side of things downstairs

Some of the £50 work upstairs

Nice framing on a Nick Walker AP print

Jody juxtaposed

That statue totally had a nob

Very nice Mr Jago up top

The Dora that started a bidding war, top left

Eco, Milk, Guy Denning

Turroe, Acer, Jef Aerosol, etc

Huge Mudwig and nice Richt

Xenz on its own stand

Miss Bugs, Brian Jones, etc

Andy Council et al

Long wall of work

Sepr, decks and so on

Lokey finished

Paris sign finished

Milk and Dora Finished

Mr Jago finished

Boswell and Vermin finished

Boswell and Vermin come back after the auction to add an ink and cider wash

Inkie finished

Xenz finished

Lokey adding a silhouetted tree

Mr Jago nearly done

Boswell and Vermin nearly done

Inkie with masking tape

FLX nearly finished

Xenz clouds finished

Eelus removing another layer of stencil

More Milk and Dora

Lokey on the background

Boswell and Vermin further on

Mr Jago further on

Inkie and Jago

View from up high

Eelus masking off another triangle

Xenz with the can control

Eelus hangs his first stencil

Mr Jago and Inkie

Mr Jago starting out with a roller

Inkie earlier on

Boswell and Vermin a bit further along

FLX early on

Milk and Dora painting together

Lokey early on

Paris paints his Pop Stop Shop sign

Boswell marking out

Get Dring Mobile – More Details

For those who don’t know about it, there’s background on the Get Dring Mobile auction coming up here. But for those who do, more details are now out about what’s going to be going on in a couple of weeks time. Here’s the chat…

The doors will be open from 11am to 9pm on Wednesday for a full days viewing of the works going under the hammer. Thursday will be a busy day with the opportunity for further viewing from 12pm.

There will be live painting by Mr Jago, Inkie, Lokey, Felix, Eelus, Xenz, Paris, Boswell, Vermin, Milk and Dora starting at 4pm and the auction including lots by Guy Denning, Pam Glew, Rowdy, Ian Francis and Nick Walker to name but a few, will commence at 7pm.

The work can be viewed on line at Dreweatts, www.dnfa.com and at www.art-el.co.uk. Bidding can be made in person or live online at http://www.the-saleroom.com on the evening, commission bids will be taken with valid credit/debit card details prior to the event. If you wish to make a commission bid and to register for bidding please contact The GDM team on 07789 971273 or e-mail getdringmobile@live.co.uk.

The event will also include a fine art ‘mystery’ postcard sale featuring work from award winning artists from all over the world, many of which have shown in the BP portrait awards and with some having work in the National Portrait Gallery their work usually thousands. This sale therefore gives people the opportunity to purchase a piece of art that would usually cost a small fortune, for just £50.

We are also running a raffle to win a portrait painted by Vincent Brown, a multi award winning portrait and figurative artist from Bristol. Tickets will be available at the event and are also available now via the GDM blog at http://getdringmobile.wordpress.com. For more information about Vincent Brown and to see examples of his amazing work please visit his web-site at http://www.vincentbrown.co.uk.

Vince himself will be attending the event and will determine the winner of our very own portrait competition. We hope to see lots of you there, with live painting, music, beer and curry this promises to be a great night.

It does indeed.

An Inkie Gallery

Thanks to Inkie for sending these in, a round up of snaps of his work over the last couple of months, Movida, Ibiza, China White, Brick Lane and Bethnal Green.  As the song goes, ‘nice work if you can get it, and you can get it if you try’.

Inkie pub wall in Bethnal Green

Inkie pub wall in Bethnal Green

Inkie paints a car

Inkie Live Painting in Ibiza

Inkie Jibbering Arts Wildstyle

Inkie in Movida Nightclub

Inkie Brick Lane Wildstyle

Inkie and Jade Jagger in Movida

Inkie 2009

Cartier polo / chinawhite live painting (yellow bar tops)

Cartier polo / chinawhite live painting (yellow bar tops)

That’s not the end of it by a long way though, he’s off around the world over the coming months for painting in various places. Here’s the current line up, with some Bristol antics in there too, most notably the excellent ‘Get Dring Mobile‘ event at Paintworks in October (which there’s absolutely no excuse for not going to), and a solo show at Friend and Co in November!

He’s doing the Secret Wars 5th Anniversary tonight in London too if you’re around, give it a google.

August 12th: Group Show @ Atzaro – Ibiza
August 21st: Secret Wars 5th Anniversary – London
August 27th: Spotted Cow Art show – Bristol
September: There’s No Place Like Home @ Ella Doran
September 24th: Mutate Britain 2 – Portobello Road
October: Group Show @ Brooklynite Gallery NYC
Ocotber 15th: Get Dring Mobile Auction @ Paintworks
November 19th: Solo Show – Helsinki
November Solo Show: Friend & co
December: Solo Show – London
February: Inkies Charity Auction Dinner @ The Paradise
March: Solo Show – Stockholm TBC
May: Solo Show @ Bristol-Lisboa Gallery Lisbon TBC
June: Tokyo – Solo Show TBC

Friend And Co Shows And News And That

Bit more event news for you, this time from the ever on form Friend and Co Gallery.

Tonight sees the opening of a new show by Russel ‘Gasface’ Maurice, 7:30pm opening, beer and merriment as usual!

Then next week (Thursday 27th August), there’s another of their shows south of the river at the Spotted Cow in Bedminster. Last one was a cracker, and a really fun venue too, so well worth heading down to for a pint or two. Huge list of names for it too…

Then, in early October, Bristol’s, and possibly the world’s, smallest art gallery comes to an end! Not that they’re closing, but that they’re off to a larger and more central venue, opening with a group show of Eine, Mr Jago, Mudwig, Will Barras and Xenz.

Nurse, the screens!

Get Dring Mobile – The Auction

You may have heard of this by now, but if not you should do. There’s a charity fundraising drive going on at the moment called ‘Get Dring Mobile’, which is aiming to raise enough money to sort the legendary Mike Dring of Art-el fame out with a a modified vehicle he can drive himself. For those as don’t know, here’s the backstory from the fundraising website;

Michael Dring was 23 years old when he broke his neck in a road traffic accident, resulting in paralysis from the upper chest down – medically he is classified as having a complete Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) resulting in Tetraplegia (level C6).   Between April 2009 and April 2010, friends and family of Michael are attempting to raise money to put towards the purchase of an adapted car which will enable him to drive independently.

Being the kind of bloke he is, this isn’t just about Mike either;

Any additional funds raised over and above the amount needed will be either donated to Salisbury Spinal Unit or go towards a lasting legacy of this project.  Michael has been so inspired by this initiative that currently he is exploring the possibility of setting up an official charity in order to help other people regain any loss of independence due to SCI.  If Michael succeeds in setting up this charity any additional funds will go towards this charity which will assist others to afford hand controls or vehicle adaptations.

So, lots of stuff going on as a fundraiser, but one element of it, natch, is raising funds through grafurbanstreet art. A call was put out for people to donate pieces to a fundraising auction which has had a huge response, so they’re now going to be holding the thing down at Paintworks, viewing of the pieces on the 14th and 15th of October 2009, with the auction starting at 7pm on the 15th. Get down there early on the 15th though, as there’s going to be music and live painting from 4pm, with Inkie and Mr Jago just some of the names confirmed so far.

If you’ve got a piece you’d like to donate to the auction then there’s still plenty of time. The line up’s pretty special already.

Xenz
Mr Jago
SPQR
China Mike
Rourke Vandal
Will Barras
Levi C
James Baker
Angel 41
Dan Kitchener
Ripper 1331
Hero
Grafter
Dell
Ill Joseph
Carrie Reichardt aka The Baroness
Whatson
Nick Walker
Damon Ginandes
K Guy
Eelus
Ben Allen
Mudwig
Dora
Brian Jones
Tom Hine
Eco
Pinky
Guy Mckinley
Andy Council
Ria Hill
Richt
Misteraitch
Milk
Pam Glew
Guy Denning
Replete
Mau Mau
Inkie
Doc
Romanywg
Jody
Dicy
Simon Riley
Tesura
Agent Provocateur
Kay7four
Idiom
CZK
Neverwork
Meexed
Iamcxxx
L.E.T
FAKE
Oliver Winconek
Jef Aersol
Crazy Jake
Ian Francis
Leftery
Rene Gagnon
Dan Baldwin
Cheba
Soker
Acer One
Cartrain
MrTGrowth
Rowdy

There’s loads of other fundraising stuff going on too, and this bit should be a great event for an extremely worthy cause. The only thing to work out now is how to stop Mike bidding on the pieces himself.

Inkie At Glastonbury

Not sure if Inkie’s painted Glastonbury before, he must have done, and there were a couple of old tags kicking around in the greenfields too, but don’t remember seeing much by him there.

This year though, he had some pieces down by the Dance East stage, either side of the ‘Bitch and Stitch’ stall, which was pretty cool in itself. They got painted over the weekend, and some didn’t seem to get entirely finished in the end, but either way here’s a bit of a timeline from over the week.

Two tall boards to the right of the tent, here they are sketched out on probably the Tuesday.

On the left, two rounder boards, again sketched out on Tuesday.

The round ones got done pretty quickly, here they are finished on what might have been the Wednesday the festival opened.

Close up on the left…

…and the right, with a ‘Bitch ‘n’ Stich’ message.

The ones on the right of the stall took a bit longer, this was probably the Wednesday too.

And here they are again on Sunday evening. Must have been a great festival.