Portrait of a Harlem Artist: Justin West
Posted by BLACKSTEREO in Art, Music, News, Video | 0 Comments
18
Feb
2012
Responsible for the artwork behind A$AP Rocky’s videos such as “Purple Swag,” “Peso” and “Wassup”. Resident crew visual artist Justin West steps in front of the camera for “Portrait of a Harlem Artist” from directors Christian San Jose & Phil Mao. In taking look at his beginnings, struggles as an artist, and the his thought process behind his work, it’s no wonder that West is making waves in the artistic community. With a style signature to him, it’s clear that West has had as much of an impact on Harlem as the city did on him.
18
Feb
2012
What goes up must come down. Everyone knows that, especially if you are from Uptown, Harlem.
G Dep was the talk of the town when he joined Puff Daddy in 1999. But he fell in love with the Night Nurse… 8 years after his meeting with the Hip Hop mogul, he was arrested for breaking a display model mobile phone and spent a year on Rikers Island, without anyone showing up with his $750 bail. Sometimes the nights seems endless on Allerton Ave.
Classic Hits: New York’s Pioneering Subway Graffiti Writers is a book by Alan Fleisher and Paul Iovino, with an introduction by Phase 2 that covers over 40 years of graffiti in the Big Apple. In Classic Hits, the pioneers talk about how they got started and where graffiti took them. Together, the essays offer an invaluable picture of graff in the early, playful years. Featured artists in the groundbreaking book include Ale One, All Jive 161, Blade, Cay 161, Checker 170, Clyde, Death, Fdt 56, Flint 707, Iz The Wiz, Jester 1, Joe 182, Lava, Lsd OM, Mico, Pnut 2, Roger 1, Ski 168, Snake 1, Taki 183 and Vamm. Classic Hits is available on Amazon for $25 USD.