" Stickers rule. When I pause to think about it, stickers have changed my life. It is hard to believe that paper and vinyl with adhesive backing can do so much. Repetition works, and stickers are a perfect medium to demonstrate this principle. As long as stickers are being put up faster than they weather or are cleaned, they are accumulating. For cities, it is a constant maintenance battle. Simple fact is, it.s, Graffiti means an inscription or drawing, message or slogan, made on some public surface. Under this broad definition, almost all stickers seen in public could be considered graffiti".
"Please use common sense and consideration when applying stickers or other propaganda materials. Giant is designed to provoke thought about the mechanics of the system we live in...not to destroy it. Everyone has to live here. Plus there are extreme individuals who wish to label all street artist as vandals and push for harsher and harsher penalties and prosecution. These people are very organized and lobby for public support. To counteract their attempts to vilify street artist, the street artist community needs to befriend local arts councils, graphic arts organizations, and anyone and everyone with political power who could be sympathetic to artists who have no sanctioned public venue to express themselves. The cities build tennis courts, basketball courts, football fields, even skate parks at millions of dollars cost to the tax payer. Where are the public mural walls? It's all about control of the public space. If the opponents of street art are the only ones who speak out then they will be the only ones who are listened to. We need to fight fire with fire and express ourselves intelligently. If we don't come across as a bunch of vandals we may find that the silent majority is actually supportive of public artistic expression. Check out the following letter to see where they are coming from".
Music
The newest addition to "Obey Giant Art" is a collaboration between Shepard Fand Fork In Hand Records. Shepard has always been influenced by music and the graphics that go with it. The Giant Rock N Roll Swindle combines the images that he has have incorporated into his underground movement and music that also falls into the underground category. The CD contains twenty tracks covering a variety of styles; The Bouncing Souls, The Suicide Machines, The Lawrence Arms, Jello Biafra (No W.T.O. Combo), Avoid One Thing and Big D and the Kids Table give the compilation its punk rock flavor. Bands such as Modest Mouse, The Hives, The International Noise Conspiracy and The Icarus Line bring an indie rock vibe to the CD. There is a good ammount of electronic music covered with BS2000 (members of the Beastie Boys), Peaches and Gonzales. Instead of putting 20 bands that all sound simliar, they tried to change things up by combining all styles of underground music.
The packaging turns the compilation into more than just a great CD. The Jewel Case is surrounded by a cardboard cover that has a perforated image of the "Obey Giant Face" that the buyer can punch out to use as a stencil. The O-Card, Booklet and Traycard all have a metallic silver ink, covered in grey to create a subtle shimmer.
In addition to the 20 tracks on the CD and the amazing packaging, they have included a multimedia CD-Rom. The CD includes The Obey Gaint Manifesto, a photo gallery of "Obey Giant Art", interviews, information on all the bands, and instructions on how to join the sticker and spraypaint campaigns. The Giant Rock N Roll Swindle is definitely a one of kind compilation. Never before has so much been offered in one release. As the newest addition to "Obey Giant Art", the CD will not only appeal to music lovers, it will also appeal to art collectors. The Giant Rock N Roll Swindle is another opportunity to collect art as well as listen to an amazing compilation CD.
TRACK LISTING
Artist Song Title
Mindlikewater Dark Star
The Hives Supply and Demand
BS2000 Wait A Minute
Peaches AAXXX
Big D and the Kids Table LA X
The Lawrence Arms 100 Resolutions
Avoid One Thing Lean On Sheena
Drexel NewNew
The Suicide Machines Perserverence
Softball Zero
Gonzales So Called Party Over Here
The No W.T.O. Combo New Feudalism
The International Noise Conspiracy Up For Sale
Favorite Atomic Hero Timebomb
Smackin1 Isaiah Send Off
The Lot Six Freezin1 Scene
The Icarus Line Keep Your Eyes Peeled
The Bouncing Souls Private Radio
Helms The Smallest World In The World
Modest Mouse White Lies, Yellow Teeth
The GIANT Rock 'N' roll Swindle CD
$15 including shipping
ATTENTION: ORDERING INSTRUCTIONS
Payments may be made using money order sent to:
OBEY GIANT ART / 3807 Wilshire Blvd. ste. 1045 / B-10 Los Angeles, CA 90010
About me:
.. My name is "street art", view my obscurity as your question mark. Or better said by Shepard, himself. "The OBEY sticker campaign can be explained as an experiment in Phenomenology. Heidegger describes Phenomenology as "the process of letting things manifest themselves." Phenomenology attempts to enable people to see clearly something that is right before their eyes but obscured; things that are so taken for granted that they are muted by abstract observation.
The FIRST AIM OF PHENOMENOLOGY is to reawaken a sense of wonder about one's environment. The OBEY sticker attempts to stimulate curiosity and bring people to question both the sticker and their relationship with their surroundings. Because people are not used to seeing advertisements or propaganda for which the product or motive is not obvious, frequent and novel encounters with the sticker provoke thought and possible frustration, nevertheless revitalizing the viewer's perception and attention to detail. The sticker has no meaning but exists only to cause people to react, to contemplate and search for meaning in the sticker. Because OBEY has no actual meaning, the various reactions and interpretations of those who view it reflect their personality and the nature of their sensibilities.
Many people who are familiar with the sticker find the image itself amusing, recognizing it as nonsensical, and are able to derive straightforward visual pleasure without burdening themselves with an explanation. The PARANOID OR CONSERVATIVE VIEWER however may be confused by the sticker's persistent presence and condemn it as an underground cult with subversive intentions. Many stickers have been peeled down by people who were annoyed by them, considering them an eye sore and an act of petty vandalism, which is ironic considering the number of commercial graphic images everyone in American society is assaulted with daily.
Another phenomenon the sticker has brought to light is the trendy and CONSPICUOUSLY CONSUMPTIVE nature of many members of society. For those who have been surrounded by the sticker, its familiarity and cultural resonance is comforting and owning a sticker provides a souvenir or keepsake, a memento. People have often demanded the sticker merely because they have seen it everywhere and possessing a sticker provides a sense of belonging. The Giant sticker seems mostly to be embraced by those who are (or at least want to seem to be) rebellious. Even though these people may not know the meaning of the sticker, they enjoy its slightly disruptive underground quality and wish to contribute to the furthering of its humorous and absurd presence which seems to somehow be antiestablishment/societal convention. Giant stickers are both embraced and rejected, the reason behind which, upon examination reflects the psyche of the viewer. Whether the reaction be positive or negative, the stickers existence is worthy as long as it causes people to consider the details and meanings of their surroundings. In the name of fun and observation".
Shepard Fairey, 1990
Who I'd like to meet: The artesian christ, plato, your eyes...
Newly fresh out-the-bag mixes to infest into your ear drums like the winds of the Peruvian desert in mid-August after you've just quit your job and the only thing in life you have left to care about is a crumbled bite-size ammount of a biscuit you couldn't eat from the Grande Ball Extrordinaire the other night. Your pits smell like death and piss because a cat sprayed on you and then you rolled over and killed a gopher when you slept in that park the other night after binge drinking at your daughters 11th birthday. You sick bastard.
Come check it out : this Friday October 2 - DCE willl be hosting the opening for the 2nd annual Derby City Espresso Tatto & Body Modification Art Show!
With LIVE suspentions by the kind folks at Twisted Images. Fire breathing, gravity pulls, henna tattoos & at 11pm Live music by Leftmore & The Funk Injection
THIS FRIDAY - reception starts at 6pm - suspensions at 8 - music at 11
Catch Week chez Les Moches! Le docteur vs Rylsee sur le ring jusqu'au 20 septembre. Viens réviser ton front facelock swinging cutter et choisis lequel des deux mérite le Top Heel! Le blog des moches.
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