Graffiti – UP MAGAZINE

Graffiti Writer or Street Artist? Norwegian Artist Martin Whatson Says He’s Both

In the world of public art, there’s this persistent debate that seeks to categorize art into two neat little, mutually exclusive, boxes: graffiti or street art. And artists working in public spaces are often called upon to define themselves: graffiti writer or street artist, choose a side, make a choice, fill out a commitment form, and sign it. Martin Whatson, the Norwegian artist, has an answer: Both.

Photos from Boone Avenue Walls 2023

This August, over 100 artists were invited to the 9th annual Boone Avenue Walls Arts Festival with the event culminating on August 26 & 27, 2023. Curated by Wen Cod, the invited artists included some of the best muralists and style masters in the world. Photos by Kurt Boone.

Raise the Level, Rock the Boulevard, Reach the Bourgeoisie

The opening of Shepard Fairey’s show “Printed Matters: Raise the Level” marks debut of the world-renowned street artist in STRAAT Amsterdam’s post-industrial art hall. Read UP’s firsthand account of the opening night.

Akiva Listman Lights Up New York

Akiva Listman doesn’t just paint the fantasy New York tourists come to the city for–he depicts the grit and the glow that makes up the city as it really is. (Take it from Emma Riva, a native New Yorker with high standards). Listman’s star is on the rise with a solo show at 188 Allen and a feature from the MTA, so now’s the time to learn what his work is all about.

Submissions Open for UP’s Issue 6: Graffiti

Submissions are open for our graffiti issue until July 15th. Please send photos to upmagstaff@gmail.com. Make sure you photos are labeled with the artists & photographers instagram name.

At an Exhibition in Brooklyn, Rolling Stock Graffiti Lives On

Tim Conlon has been tracking graffiti on freight trains for decades, using it to inform his artwork, including life-size photo-realistic paintings of the sides of train cars marked with company logos and graffiti art, and jumbo G scale model trains embellished with colorful renderings of tags and other aerosol artwork. Now Conlon is bringing his love for graffiti train art, including some of his hyper-realistic model trains and his full-size paintings, to a show called “The Future Now” at Julia Seabrook Gallery, 660 Franklin Ave., Brooklyn.

Phillips Gallery – Never Above 14 Street: A Downtown NYC Art Show

“Never Above 14 Street” at Phillips Gallery presented original works of art mostly from 1980’s but a few from 1990’s by artists Lady Pink, Seen, Crash, Futura 2000, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Mike Bidlo, Keith Haring, David Wojnarowicz, Martin Wong, David McDermott and Peter McGough, Dondi White and Linus Coraggio.

Ish Muhammad’s The Astros & Me

UP managing editor Emma Riva came to Chicago to interview Gary, Indiana, graffiti writer Ish Muhammad about The Astros, a graffiti-inspired futuristic retelling of an ancient Egyptian romantic drama, and walked away finding herself in a near-mythical drama of her own.

Beyond The Streets London: 40 years of Mode 2

Melissa Chemam speaks to elusive and charismatic graffiti writer Mode 2, whose work spans from the violence of colonialism to the joy of overthrowing it. Melissa caught his work at the Beyond the Streets show at Saatchi in London, and you can too up until May 9.

UP5 – The Shape of Beauty: Tony Sjöman and the Rise of Rubin415

Tony Sjöman, has adopted many names, but most will recognize him as Rubin415, the artist who brings a poetic beauty to abstract murals. From the prime age of nine, he has felt the inescapable urge to markup walls and add some color, the natural inclination of a boy who grew up around the cold concrete projects of Gothenburg.