Sunday, February 22, 2009

Raspberry magazine

Im a lucky motherfucker...out of the nowhere i get an email asking if i wanted a copy of Raspberry magazine issue 2...a magazine i had never heard of before..and after my reply, a few days later i got a copy in the post... and as soon as i got it out the envelope i instantly had a big shit eating grin cemented on my face...me and Raspberry magazine was truly love at first sight!
Hailing not from the lower east side but good old London town, it showcases the best in street photography...yes it has all the cliches of graf and general urban decay...but when its done good - its good, and when its fucking great - its fucking great... and this is as good as it gets.
Great design (already in the lead for cover of the year - if i ever do a best of the year list...), great photography (is that Barry mcgee and amaze?), great layout (cool new use of borders), great printing...and in a satisfyingly awesome big size, Raspberry 2 is awesome. Perfect? almost!

So where do you get it? i believe the great Claire De Rouen spot on Charing Cross road but other than that try Raspberrymag@gmail.com. Its in an edition of 50, so hurry because you dont wanna sleep on this...Raspberry magazine you dropped a stone cold classic with issue 2...the Dilly salutes you!






Mike Swaneys latest installation masterpiece!









Chapuisat

Got this in my inbox today....

"hello everybody,
the chapuisat brothers are looking for extra brothers.
we have many projects all year long, starting now!

its good work and hard fun!
its not for everybody and its not your everyday job!
we pay, not much but we do!
and this includes bed, food, travel and more.
if you are interested or if you know somebody who might,
please contact us via the website.
http://chapuisat.com
take good care,
the chapuisat brothers"

So... if you want to work with two amazing people (honestly -two of the coolest people you will ever meet) on amazing projects then give them a line... look at work below and tell me that doesnt look fun...Cool people, cool work, great art being created...sweet!!!



Nuria

My good friend Nuria is having an exhibition at Turbo Galeria in Palermo Buenos Aires...if your lucky enough to be in Buenos Aires (!!!) then make sure you check it out....Nuria is awesome

JSBJ

The ever on point JSBJ finally release a printed product that us mortals can cop a copy (before the printed zines they made were done in super super limited editions)...so make no delay and click HERE to secure yourself something special




Monday, February 16, 2009

Dilly zine 06 - Marcus Oakley Sketchbooks

The first Dilly zine of 2009 is ready!

Marcus Oakley...his personal sketchbooks from 2003-2008...what more can i say???

SPREAD THE WORD AND GET IT HERE!



Japanese Rockabilly RULES HARD!

Peter Bjorn and John "Nothing To Worry About"

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Altermodern at the Tate Britain

Recently many people have slept on the Tate Britain, overshadowed by its hyped partner - the Tate modern. The Tate modern spoils us with blockbuster shows and (sometimes) quirky Turbine hall installations...while the original Tate, Tate Britain, seemed kinda sleeping or dormant in Pimlico, fading away.....The last time i went to the Tate Britain was for the Peter Doig show, and as a venue it seemed like it was fading into blue rinse land (lovely vistas for the grannies)...but this weekend everything changed...this weekend Tate Britain knocked it out the park and visually showed that it still could fuck you up with the best of the other major institutions...in fact it felt more inspiring and representing the now and the future than any other space right now in London (with this show - not as a whole)....why the change? Altermodern.
GO GO GO GO.
There. thats it...this blog post could finish now...really...GO...its not life changing, revolutionary or the best modern art show ever seen in recent times in London, no way jose...no its just a fucking great show that is huge and well worth the £8 entry fee...There are a few OK so-so pieces, but there are some amazing pieces...in fact many!
Many critics rightly point out that there is too much work, but i didnt find it uncomfortable....and in a way its a back handed compliment...theres too many interesting pieces here? thats a good thing!!!
I was really inspired and invigorated with this show...and its just a shitter that theres no photography or widely available pictures released so i cant show you my personal highlights....but if you want to kill an afternoon (or day...) go and lose yourself at Tate Britain...two big fat Dilly thumbs up.
PS also goto the drawing rooms to check out the David Shrigley pieces...and behind the Altermodern theres a giant Bamboo installation....and the sixties pop art collection by the shop...oh shit man...i might go back!



Follow the nosebleeds..

Mark Mulroney drops AN AWESOME SHOW...


Frederic magazine

Misaki Kawai, Mat Brinkman, Matt Lock, c.f and Shoboshobo...well thats a list of some of the best artists today...FACT...well, they have all contributed work to a new magazine...pretty essential huh? well add even more rad artists and you know that mag is gonna be got....what magazine? some hip downtown mag? hell no! straight outta France motherfucker!
FREDERIC MAGAZINE



EYE PRINTS..

Saw these on Jiros Ying Yangs blog (told you in an earlier post to bookmark that shit!)...looks like the ever awesome EYE is doing some screenprints...oh shit would i like to get one of these!

FUCK OFF!!!

Went round to my girlfriends house the other day, and her flatmate had bought this for ebay in the future...but i still couldnt believe how fucking far all this shepard fairey shit is going....FUCKING STOP IT! I DONT CARE!!!! HE DID NOT CREATE A MASTERPIECE BY WHICH ALL FUTURE ART WILL BE MEASURED. HE HAS NOT CHANGED THE RULES OF ART FOREVER....ITS A FUCKING CHEAP ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR TAKE ON A STOLEN PHOTO...ENOUGH ALREADY! HAVE WE REALLY NO MORE GOOD ART TO CELEBRATE OR DEBATE??? HELL NO!....ARGH! FUCK OFF!!! THERES AMAZING ART BEING MADE! LETS MOVE ON PEOPLE!

As if i wasn't annoyed at how far this five minutes of fame had lasted, i read the back of this sellout piece of fucking shit tat...

HOLY...FUCKING....SHIT....can you crawl up anyones anus so much by words alone? i think the benchmark has just been sent...am i reading this right? does that say what i think it says? im sorry...is this Jesus we're reading about or Shep Fairey?
From reading that you think that Shephead might have created something more important or historic than Obama himself...has he fuck...

whats left to say?.....FUCK OFF! If it wasn't the property of someone who i like, i would have burned it down and then shat on the bubbling plastic...hows that for an enduring image?


OK....he is undeniably a killer on the streets...no-one can argue how much he puts up...but can everyone PLEASE got off his cock please? PLEASE? ENOUGH ALREADY!!! everywhere i look he is there or someone is butt rubbing him - artsites, news sites, magazines...everywhere! GO AWAY NOW!

Stepping down from my soapbox...

Better off dead Vol.1

Still smarting from their last KO release (Raid Pace), The Better of Dead crew drops this, issue one in what i hope will be a regular title.
Straight outta London town, this zine showcases Jackson Pierce White, Lewis Wright, Guy Gormley, Jack Bechtler and Phoebe Collings-James talents with a camera...with them all dropping great spreads showing that each artist comes correct with a different style of photography- which is super refreshing in this day and age.
Beautifully printed, and in a number of 60 editions, if you wanna get a copy i guess contact the crew via their website.

their website





Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Old London town one saturday afternoon...

Last saturday i was at a loose end so i decided to go and check out some shows on in London...

1. Unveiled:New art from the Middle East at The Saatchi gallery
This popped two cherries - the first time i had been to his (Saatchi) new space on Kings Rd (First impressions? fuck me he's rich ) and the first time i had been to a contemporary middle eastern art show. My verdict? i liked it!
Going in with absolutly no expectations or knowledge on middle eastern arts, i was kinda non plussed as i was neither nervous or excited...probably like most of the visitors then, and therefore a good reason why this show had to be put on...the contemporary middle eastern art scene is exciting and next to nothing is known about it in the west...put that down to politics and the often irrational fear / paranoia for anything connected to muslims and islam... i dont know...but this show helped highlight the good art currently being produced there and help prove to many that there is more to the middle east than cliches like suicide bombers, dubai opulence and oil fields burning over US troops.
There are paintings that remind me of Chris Johanson or David Shrigley (Tala Madani), giant naturalistic catherdral installations, rubber oil spill maps, an amazing room full of praying tin foil ghosts, burnt out collages, clever takes on women and housework and Sara Rahbars cool Middle eastern take on the stars and stripes...so, there is a lot to see and enjoy, but if thats not enough, they also have the one exhibit i wanted to see from the previous China exhibition (that i missed) - geriatric world leaders buzzing around on mobility scooters...





2. Dan Colen at Gagosian
I like Dan Colen. I think yes there's hype, but like Dash Snow i think he has the talent to back it up. Look at the work he's already produced - a recreation of his old flat wall covered in posters & paraphenalia, his stone monuments, his bubblegum and bird poo canvases, his large disney smoke paintings, his joint show with Nate Lowman, NEST...well boys got talent for sure...so i was looking forward to this...but it just didnt do it for me...one large canvas, and a free zine that basically i think was pretty shitty...yes i read the work notes, and yes i know what he was doing and saying, but i was dissapointed

3. Andro Wekua at Camden Arts centre
Saw his Nieves zine, and copped one of his books ('if there ever was one'), so i was looking forward to it. The critics slated it or covered it with a shrug, but hey, fuck em i like him. From an aesthetic point of view, i thought it was cool. I think his collage work close up aint grade A, but i still liked a few of the pieces, and i liked the sleek yellow construction inside the old victorian room. The girl on the bike (his trademark) seems to be like marmite...of friends who've seen it, half hate it half like it....if you go let me know what you think!

4. Jonathan Messe at Stuart Shave modern art
Jonathan Messe...what can be said that hasnt already been said? to me he is the fine art worlds version of early Venom albums - heavy metal with a close punk influence. And like punk or heavy metal you might not agree with everything made but you still thank fuck they are around. I didnt like the show (and my girlfriend thought it was very shit) - especially the cum/vomit paintings, but its still more interesting than a million shitty banksy wannabes. Im still gutted i missed his performance at the Tate turbine hall a while back...

5. Peter Blake
First time i've ever been dissapointed by Peter Blake. He is a genuine master of collage and pop art, so him working with vintage Venetian prints? sounds great to me...what was it like? boring, repetitive, predictable and everything else i wasnt expecting and that is the opposite of good....

6. Voodoo at Riflemaker.
This show stinks...literally. My overriding memory of this show was me stopping myself being sick...twice. On the ground floor is a giant slab of wax that smells just absolutly fucking disgusting, and downstairs there is a 'scent maker' which basically stunk like a giant piece of rancid turgid shit. Its really not a good look when my main thoughts of a show is that i kept on having to stop myself wretch....the art? the presentation? awful. I like William Burroughs dream machine, some black and white photos in the basement and Gavin Turks sculpture, but everything else? either rubbish or forgetful (including a Dash Snow collage - and i like Dash Snow)...I like the Riflemaker gallery, and they've had some real good shows on, but this stunk..in all senses.

7. Portrait prize at National Portrait gallery
I met up with my girlfriend as she wanted to go ...so it wasn't on my agenda this show, but i liked some of the entries...BUT there was a hell of a lot of filler...and if you read between the lines there, you would be correct if you thought i hated 90%... the vast crowds made my visit super unpleasant - i mean you would look at a work and then step back but and realise you've suddenly been surrounded by a sea of sweaty people...It was SO claustrophobic and stressful - so much so I really hated being there and therefore couldn't enjoy the work due to the crowds...BUT there were a few pieces i liked...

8. Dispersion at ICA
Dispersion is a collection of artists who deconstruct and remix found images. There are seven artists, mostly working in video art but i'm not a fan of video art...what i did enjoy a lot was Henrik Olesen and Anne Collier.
Henrik Olesens work documented and presented a fascinating art history lesson looking at homosexuality and gay artists. Olesen focused on the secret history, the history that had been covered up or whitewashed. Some of the points were quite sad and shocking, while other case studys were funny and humourous...it was a great, clever, absorbing and educational piece.

The other artist whose work i really liked was Anne colliers photographs, which were compositions of other objects (usually posters). BIEN MERDE!