Barry McGee

Twenty years ago, Bay Area photojournalist, artist and graffiti/street aficionado Iqvinder Singh published his first  zine — and the first graffiti zine to emerge from Oakland.  Earlier this year, Iqvinder aptly dedicated an entire issue of his ongoing zine, Suitable 4 Framin’to Oakland, dividing it into eight distinct sections from East Oakland and the Oakland Museum of Art to the Oakland Terminal Art Gallery and Tags and Throws. What follows is a small sampling of images in a range of media that made their way into Suitable 4 Framin’, Issue #12:

Deadeyes 

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Mark Bode on denim at the Oakland Terminal Gallery

Barry McGee at the Oakland Museum of California

Broke sticker 

This All Oakland Issue of Suitable 4 Framing’ is dedicated to the late Oakland graff legend Mike Francisco aka Dream. You can purchase it, along with a few selected back issues of other zines, here. And each zine comes with a varied assortment of stickers and random goodies!

All images courtesy of Iqvinder Singh

Note: Hailed in a range of media from WideWalls to the Huffington Post to the New York Times, our Street Art NYC App is now available for Android devices here.

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While visiting the Bay Area earlier this summer, I met up with photojournalist, Juxtapoz Magazine contributor and fellow graffiti/street art enthusiast Iqvinder Singh. I was delighted to have the opportunity to interview him:

What is your first street art/graffiti-related memory?

My earliest memory goes back to the late 70’s/early 80’s in Northern India. I grew up in Rajisthan and Punjab, where it was normal there for people to express their opinions and feelings on the walls. Print and broadcasted media were still considered a luxury for the rich, and the city walls reflected the voices of the unheard. I would see people painting the walls during the daytime without any fear of the police or shop owners. The messages were written in Hindi, English, Punjabi, Gujrati, Urdu and other local dialects. It was something expected and normal in my surroundings. It was odd to see blank walls with no messages. Smaller villages were less political, but they too decorated their walls, though with cultural and religious symbolism. Geometric patterns inspired by the muhgals, swastikas, flowers of life and Hindu dieties were very common. Some farmers even branded their cows with similar symbols. Colorful walls made the cities and villages livelier and more welcoming.

What was your initial impression of the streets here?

When my mom and I moved to Oakland in 1982, I was introduced to different types of markings and monikers in the San Francisco Bay Area. Suburbia meant clean walls, and any kind of wall markings were only found in the “bad areas” of the city. At an early age, I learned to appreciate the intricate hand styles of the local graffiti artists and witnessed what was to come in the 90’s and into the new century.

Did any particular artists stand out? Inspire you?

Among my earliest inspirations were East Bay graffiti artists: Plato, Fresh Kid, Echo and Rocs. In the early 90s, I met the late Mike Francisco a.k.a. Dream at the College of Alameda. He was one of my greatest inspirations, not only from a graffiti perspective, but also because of his views and stance on social/civil rights issues. He was very vocal about police brutality and other injustices that plagued our communities. Many of us aspired to reach Mike’s style status. I also admired Dizny from the TPC crew. Dizny was from Berkeley and painted beautiful murals touching on local and global topics. Where Dream had mastered the letter form, Dizny told stories with characters and broke down complex politics for an average kid from Oakland. San Francisco also blessed us with inspiring artists like: Twist, Margaret Kilgallen, Dug 1, KR, Revyon, Caryone and UB40.

You’ve been documenting the Bay Area graffiti and street are scene for awhile now.

Yes! So many different styles came out of the San Francisco Bay Area, and I thought it was important to keep a record of it all. In 1997, I started a zine called Suitable 4 Framin’ which focused on underrepresented artists. I don’t think there were any other graffiti publications in Northern California at that time. I printed about 1000 copies of each issue and sold them at cost or traded them for other zines and magazines.  I want to capture it all. The piece on the wall, the artist painting it, and whatever else is brewing the neighborhood. I try to post stuff that others may have missed or capture it from a different angle. I try to catch the artists in action, and I try to understand their influences and histories. Bay Area has churned out so many great artists, and those same artists influenced hundreds of others. From the 80’s to today, it’s been an amazing experience to live through so much good art. Graffiti is definitely here to stay, and I hope to tell the story from my perspective.

With easy access to social media, there are so many people documenting the graff/street art scene in the Bay Area these days. It’s always interesting to meet the photographers behind their Flickr or Instagram pages. They all started at different stages, and they all have a certain focus. Some are focused strictly on selected crews, hand styles, freights, throw-ups, burners, trucks… Some are good photographers but don’t know the artists or the history, and others are seasoned veterans.

You’ve photographed thousands of images. Do any particular pieces of graffiti and street art in the Bay Area stand out?  

There are many. Whenever I see a piece by Lango, it’s always a treat. He is doing some next level painting with spraypaints. Stuff by Nychos and Aryz is always on a grand scale and their pieces always run for a while.

How has the Bay Area scene changed since you first became involved with it?

When I was active, your alias was very sacred. The goal was to be everywhere without anyone knowing who you were. Nowadays, graffiti/street artists hand you their business cards, links to their website, flyers and more. That mystery element is gone expect for the selected few. Graffiti/street art in general is a lot more acceptable. I remember when I did one of my first legal graffiti pieces in North Oakland in the late 80’s; it was a big thing at the time. Nowadays, most of the big productions are sponsored, and they are popping up everywhere, so people don’t get that excited. In the 80’s into 90’s, it was all about lettering, and there were many unique styles. Now, kids bring in characters, vegetables, clouds, animals, and other monikers as their tags. Work by guys like Ras Terms, Plantrees, and Broke speaks volume without any lettering. I personally prefer lettering, but I can still appreciate different trends. Paints are better, and there are even classes in graffiti.  It’s, also, definitely more commercialized. And with the advent of Internet, artists have a lot more resources now. Artists use graff to sell merchandise or as a stepping stone for other business endeavors. Graffiti for the sake of graffiti is gone. There’s nothing wrong with earning money from something you love, but don’t exploit the art form.

Besides your documentation of graffiti, you’ve also photographed life in many ethnic communities across the country.  

Yes, for some of my previous corporate gigs, I had the opportunity to travel over the country. I started documenting immigrant communities in my travels. I photographed Indians, Japanese, Mexicans, Chinese, Hmongs, and many others. It was a cultural experience to discover their roots and learn about their struggles to achieve that American experience. And, yet, I was most intrigued by the Chinese.

Your solo exhibit, Everything’s Fine in Chinatown, was  recently on view at the historic Throckmorton Theatre Gallery in Mill Valley. Have you any impressions of the graffiti you’ve encountered in the Chinatowns that you’ve visited? And what spurs your intense interest in Chinatowns?

Graffiti was one of the main reasons I used to go to Chinatowns. Chinatowns had some of the best trucks. I think the businesses learned that there was no point in painting over this stuff, as it wasn’t hurting their business. I’m intrigued by how the Chinese, particularly the ones living and working in Chinatowns, hold on to their cultural identity like no other ethnic group. Regardless of what goes in the world, there never seems to be any politics in Chinatown. It’s always business as usual. There’s a blend of old, new and hints of the future in Chinatown. It’s a mashup of everything you want in one place: restaurants, art galleries, temples/churches, schools… My goal with these photographs is to not only capture life as it exists today but also to document the changes that are brewing in the background.

Images

1 Iqvinder Singh at the “Out of Order” art show, Bay Area 

2 Political poster in India

Barry McGee aka Twist

Barry McGee aka Twist at Oakland Art Museum

Baer

6 Nychos  

7 Ras Terms & Leaf Leaver

8  from Iqvinder Singh‘s solo exhibit “Everything’s Fine in Chinatown”

All photos courtesy Iqvinder Singh

Note: Hailed in a range of media from WideWalls to the Huffington Post to the New York Times, our Street Art NYC App is now available for Android devices here.

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Organized by Oscar Arriola and CHema SkandalZINEmercado, the inaugural Logan Square Independent Zine Fest, is happening tomorrow, Sunday, October 23, from noon to 6pm at Comfort Station. While in Chicago this past week, I had the opportunity to meet up with Oscar Arriola and check out a few of the zines.

When I first met you in NYC several years ago, we discovered that we are both huge zine fans! What is it about zines that appeals to you?

I love that you can make a zine on any topic that appeals to you and can share it with everyone. There are no rules! And you can use any materials you choose.

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Do you remember the first zine that you discovered thet spurred your interest in this particular medium?

I started collecting them before I even knew what the term zine meant or even that it existed! My favorite was the one I bought at Barry McGee’s solo exhibit at Deitch Projects in 2005. It was $25.00, a lot of money at that time!

Wow! That is a lot of money for a zine — even now! But no doubt it was worth it! Any other favorite zines?

Just about any zine by Barry McGee and his crew DFW or Down for Whatever.

twist-zine

You, yourself, have created zines. When did you design your first zine? And what was its topic?

I designed my first zine five years ago, although I’d been thinking about creating one for some time. I work for the Chicago Public Library, and so I’m around all kinds of books all day  I became intrigued by the covers of Indian books, and I began scanning them. My first zine was a collection of these images.

What spurred you to become engaged in this upcoming zine fest?

I love zines, and I love the idea of bringing the community together for an event like this.

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Have you ever done anything like this before?

I was one of the organizers for the Chicago Zine Fest three years ago.

How many folks will be exhibiting at ZINEmercado?

There will be 14 tables representing about 30 artists.

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How did you get the word out to the participants?

We spoke to people we knew, and we’ve been using social media. You can check us out, in fact, on Instagram.

What is the biggest challenge that you and CHema Skanda have faced in organizing this event? 

Making sure people know about it! We’d like to engage as many folks as possible. Our flyers include text in English, Spanish and Polish, as we want to include members of the local community. Admission is free.

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In addition to viewing, trading and purchasing zines, are there any other activities taking place?

During the fest, ZINEmercado will present a range of activities including art talks by Johnny Sampson and CHema Skandal, a performance by Wet Wallet, and DJ sets by Amara Betty and Esteban La Groue of Impala Sound Champions!

Good luck! It’s looking great!

zine-mercado-2016

 Images

1. CHema Skandal

2. Gabriel Alcala

3. DFW Crew with Barry McGee & more

4. & 5. Tom Guenth

6. Alex Lukas

7. Sonic Visual Graphics

8. Flyer for ZINEmercado, designed by CHema Skandal, featuring image of  Oscar Arriola

Interview with Oscar Arriola conducted and edited by Lois Stavsky

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For the past several years, the huge wall on Manhattan’s Bowery and Houston Street has served as a canvas for some of the globe’s most expressive street art.  Featuring the work of a diverse range of artists from the hugely talented Brazilian twins Os Gemeos to Brooklyn’s famed Faile duo, it entices and engages passersby daily. Here are a few highlights of the past two years:

Os Gemeos installation: summer, 2009:

Os Gemeos street art on the Bowery in New York

Shepard Fairey aka Obey installation, spring 2010:

Shepard Fairey street art on the Bowery in New York

Barry McGee aka Twist. mural, fall 2010:
 Barry McGee street art on the Bowery in New York
Faile, current mural, installed fall, 2011:

Faile street art mural on Bowery in New York

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