Not Forgotten

Not Forgotten (approx. 8ftx5ft, aerosol, 2012)

True Bboy (8inx10in, watercolour, ink, acrylic, 2012)

Rest in Power to Jarrett Bortscher, a member of Edmonton's breakdancing community. I didn't ever have the pleasure of meeting him, but he was well known for bringing mad game and energy every time he danced. The Bboy community in Edmonton is pretty tightly knit, thanks in particular to the Cypher Wild crew, and cats like Lunacee, Jeff Poppin' Fresh, and Creeasian ('The DJ Creeasian who just won back to back Redbull 3Style competitions in Edmonton, and plays Fridays and Saturdays at the Backroom, you ask?' Yes.) Jarrett had Asperger's, which is on the autism spectrum, but was not the type of person to let anything stop him from doing what he loved. A true Bboy, as well as a friend and inspiration to many, Jarrett will be missed and not forgotten. Creeasian got at me to create something for Jarrett's family, and True Bboy is the piece I created. I was inspired by the stories of Jarrett's breakin' abilities and commitment to bringing high energy and flavour to every cypher. Working on this piece got me thinking about loss, and how it can be a bitter, tragic part of the human experience we all share. For me at least, sometimes communicating helps; sharing the weight of a loss can often be cathartic. Just after I'd finished Not Forgotten at the legal wall up here, a lady walked up behind me, sobbing, and said she'd just lost a close friend and basically didn't feel like sticking around anymore, and the piece meant something to her. I really didn't know what to say at all, I said something corny like "I'm glad it meant something, I hope you feel better" and by the time I could muster anything more intelligible she'd walked on. Wow, I didn't mean for this to be a depressing post at all, so let's just enjoy the hell out of all the people we like. I should have just said that right off the bat!

Bikeologification

Bikeology (36x48in, aerosol on canvas, 2012)

Aloha! What's crackin? This is a piece I painted live a few hours ago during 2012's Bikeology Festival up here in Edmonton. I had about 4 hours to set up and paint it, and wanted to create something loose, full of motion, and funky that reflected the energy of the festival, so I basically just freestyled it on the spot. This was the festivals 11th year in a row (and it's only rained once! mother nature has their back) and it was hella good time. Bikeology is a local, annual festival that celebrates the invention of the bicycle, often with an emphasis on more sustainable urban transportation in general. I can dig it. There were some dope musical performances this year, including Politic Live and Quordal Fusion (who smashed it!), and some crazy bike related activities are open to the public every year — all the audio equipment for the music is actually powered by people on bikes attached to generators, which are set up by Music is a Weapon (a rad local social enterprise). You can also blend your own smoothie using only bike power, and you can roll through and get your bike doctored up by an expert bikeologist. Props to Carly and the rest of the team that put the event on, and shout out to my man Jesse for the linkup! 

PS. So far I've had some seriously amazing responses to the contest from last post — thanks so much everbody, and keep 'em comin'!!!