Maya Hayuk

"Our Wall Could Be Your Life"
40 feet - infinity
salvaged latex wall paint, big fat cheap brushes, some rollers






With collaborations from oliver halsman rosenberg, Elisita Punto, kyle ranson and momo...

"A blank, legal space to free flow on is lucky to come by. in the case of this wall, it's my friend's building which houses a bunch of artist and music studios, with lots of good vibes. whether i am making public work like this, or work in my studio, i think the through line is love and the notion of gift-giving/ letting go.

"Our band could be your life" are the opening lyrics of a really sentimental Minutemen song (History Lesson II) that's stuck with me since the first time i heard it. It makes me think about our shared personal histories and what we create that's our very own. a few weeks ago some hip hop musician was seen being photographed against this wall, thus making it as much his as anyone's.

Initially the colors were left over from other mural projects i had done and then everyone living in the big white building on N3rd/ Kent got evicted, so me and my friends scavanged all the paint left behind. i like the idea that the color palette was dictated by an experience, luck and happenstance rather than something too heavily thought out.

On a really base level, pyramids have plenty of symbolism. inverted they are the symbol for a vessel or woman and as the top of a "Y", they symbolize the tree of life. right side up they are male. by stacking them up and making them get smaller and larger, they remind me of volume controls or what sound potentially looks like going louder and softer. obviously, though, it's all open to interpretation.

It's an ongoing piece i started last summer (2005) and will continue working on as long as i can. it keeps growing, new people come and paint. it's heaven."

By Maya Hayuk
http://mayahayuk.com/

A little about Maya:
Where you live/work?
Brooklyn, NY and wherever i can go to paint a wall.

One thing that people don’t know about you?
I didn't speak english until kindergarten. my parents immigrated from ukraine and we only spoke ukrainian in the house. every saturday til high school i went to ukrainian school and every summer i spent at a ukrainian para-military scout camp where we learned guerilla war tactics and learned about ukrainian history and culture. the idea was to reclaim ukraine from the russians with the spirit of song and nationalism, not guns.

Rene Gagnon

" The Bomber #2"
10 feet X 8 feet
Spray paint, enamel, latex and photocopies on canvas.

"I really don't have a fancy explanation of my work, I've always said that I'll leave that to the critics after I'm dead. But here goes... My work is ALL about the creative energy that flows inside of me. When I walk into my studio the outside world ceases to exist. I transform and give myself fully tothe creative process. I have a motto I live by, Every time I walk through the threshold of the studio I promise myself that today I will do something different. For me, each piece of art I create is part of a life long experiment of media, technique, and concept. Leaving yourself open to experimentation and making it a fundamental part of your work ensures your work will develop over time. I believe that in the same way our audible voice changes throughout life our artistic voice should also sing many different tunes.

My recent series of "Bombers" overlap two concepts, that of a graffiti bomber and a suicide bomber. It is my way of saying to the world that I submit entirely to the creative energy that flows within me and out of me, a martyr to my own cause. When I'm in the studio a war takes place between me and the canvas. There are no rules in my war. Smashing the shit out of the surface with anything I can get my hands on, swinging from the ceiling paint in hand, and detonating spray paint cans are all weapons in my war. When my attack is complete on the surface whatever is left, is my art. I rarely ever rework images. I love to work large, as large as I can afford that week or as large as my studio will accommodate.

I'm just one more confused soul losing their mind on canvas."

By Rene Gagnon
http://webmail.fecalface.com/horde/services/go.php?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.renegagnonfineart.com

Godfrey Lim

"Geist"
16 x 12 x 1.5 inches
Acrylic and collage on panel
2005
...in dedication to Kate, whose sewn paintings inspired this piece.

"The aspect of things that are important for us are hidden by their simplicity and familiarity.” — Wittgenstein

This is a simple creation, yet what a “Eureka” moment—to peg a stone to the stars! The image’s simplicity is apt, yet poetic and profound in its distillation of the mystery and essence of the Sublime. This piece is simple because it consists of nothing more than an image torn from a book about the Universe, a Rope, and a Rock. They are familiar objects which I consolidated to create an image of something hidden, mixing poetry and philosophy in equal measure. For how does one define a Spirit? And of what? Here, the rock or stone is an open symbol and metaphor for that mysterious “Geist”—of Justice (Divine or Human), of Morality, of Truth, of Knowledge, of Being, of Gravity (Nietzsche), of Mysticism, and of the Human Heart, etc.

(Done in 2 hours, but the Idea had been brewing for years… and continues to. I pasted the background images, using an acrylic medium, placed the rock on its location, drilled holes into the stars, working around the rock, and then finally, weaved the rock into place, using one piece of hemp rope. The transparent beads are actually rubber skid protectors which I glued to represent the dew of human life.)"

By Godfrey Lim
http://home.comcast.net/~godfreylim/

Tommy Kane

"Homeland Security"
21 X 24 inches
Acrylic on cardboard

"I painted this in response to the way Mr. George W. Bush was handling our war on terror. I always felt old Saddam was a scapegoat for 9/11, but what a perfect guy to be cast as the villain. Following 9/11, the current Bush administration pumped us up with fear and loathing. Now, everyone concedes Saddam was an empty suit without any weapons. Maybe the casting director should be the one to get fired. The republicans had cast George, Rummy and Cheney as the tough guys who never made mistakes and were easily winning at every turn. So in response I cast Phil Silvers, aka "Sargent Bilko" from the old 60's television show as being in charge of homeland security. A conniving sargent whose only skills were 3 card monte and black jack. The writing around the painting is the Transportation Security Administration's helpful summer travel tips to deal with anti-terrorism."

By Tommy Kane
http://tommykane.com/