~BLACK APPLES & THE PEOPLE WHO BITE ‘EM/PUBLIC SCHOOL OPENING TO-NITE

EASTERN DISTRICT LA MODE NOIR PRESENTS:
‘BLACK APPLE IS HOME’ – A PUBLIC SCHOOL EXHIBIT
OPENING RECEPTION: FRI JAN 15, 2020 / 7-10PM
the show doesn’t look to run more than a week ? FRI JAN 15 – SUN JAN 23, 2010
EASTERN DISTRICT – 43 BOGART ST – L TRAIN To MORGAN
FOOD & DRINK BY ROBERTA’S

see: PUBLIC SCHOOL !!
see: EASTERN DISTRICT !!

3 ARTISTS – AAKASH NIHALANI, MARIO BROS. & KAHBASM – of (COLLECTIVE) EASTERN DISTRICT – are going to introduce – EASTERN DISTRICT LA MODE NOIR – A COLLABORATIVE PROJECT BETWEEN EASTERN DISTRICT GALLERY & NEW YORK FASHION HOUSE – PUBLIC SCHOOL. IT LOOKS TO BE BLACK APPLE ART-INSPIRED PUBLIC SCHOOL-MADE GARMENTS – AND MOST SPECIFICALLY – T-SHIRTS. (AS IT TURNS OUT – NOT !!)

“All 3 artists through their different mediums of work have been trying to offer people a different perspective of New York (The Black Apple) whether it be addressing social issues or just wanting people to engage with their work using public spaces.
Public school finding perfection in imperfection, holding a pen in one hand and a sword in another.
Public School and Eastern District make their home – the Black Apple home / a platform of learning.
Please join us for the exhibit – ‘BLACK APPLE IS HOME’ – curated by the Black Apples.”
About the artists:

AAKASH NIHALANI’s – “street work consists mostly of isometric rectangles and squares. Using brightly colored tape – he selectively places these graphics around New York to highlight the unexpected contours and elegant geometry pre-existing in the city itself. All execution of his street level tape work is done on site, with little to no planning.”

MARIO BROTHERS – “the latest addition (!!??) to the Brooklyn art iconoclast – whose work consists of mixed media collages. MARIO BROTHERS live and work in Brooklyn, NY.” – and is a collective.

KAHBASM – is a painter, illustrator, landscape designer and graffiti artist based in New york. Working in all mediums from the street to the studio. Cash4’s work documents the American urban experience using simple iconography and nomenclature.”

black apple

public Schoo logo


eastern district logo

UP-DATE: TUES JAN 19, 2010: OK !! – IT WAS DEF NOT A T-SHIRT SHOW – IT WAS A GROUP SHOW OF ART ON LEGIT WALLS – but due to the mean temperature on the street, i.e. the serious intent of the NYPD to shut these guys down – and, you cannot mess with the NYPD – even in a casual lighthearted way – as I guess some of these black apples have learnt – the hard way – seems like the NYPD has seriously taken a big bite out of their collective fun – they apparently don’t even feel safe in the legit white box – as opposed to the rough walls of the subway or street. even under assumed names. and as part of collectives !! (so no one individual can be held responsible unless – totally caught red-handed in the act). well, hitting up, make that – slicing up – commercial posters – was a big no no, duh !! though it made for a real live-wire mean streak, for a while there – it had the whole city – entranced. I mean can’t they lose the street brand and just use – new – assumed names for the gallery exhibits. you know, like POSTERBOY COLLECTIVE becomes MARIO BROS. COLLECTIVE. collective being the key word. a safety-in-numbers brand – if I ever did hear one.
guess not, too hardcore & too stubborn. in a nutshell: Black Apples !! and the people who love them !!
PUBLIC SCHOOL, OR WHAT !!

. . . so, from the get-go we were told, being a site that googles, and is pretty mainstream, I guess – that none of the artists were in the house . . . and, really we found out pretty quickly – the only way to approach the situation – was to take pix – and not ask names. period. plus: I don’t want to be a NYPD tracking site, either. though it was a gallery show. art on the walls. for legit sale. . . which seems to be a positive – heading in more productive & legal directions.
used to be when the (street) artists hit the gallery walls – and, they all crave recognition – they would cover their eyes, with finger gestures, bandannas, or shades, even hoodies. no more. it’s too mean out there. in the age of the internet – paradoxically anonymity rules. collectivity cloaks. we considered ourselves fairly lucky that we were even allowed to take pix of the crowd – in general.

black apple # 1
HEAD DESIGNER – MAXWELL OSBOURNE – of PUBLIC SCHOOL.
not sure of PUBLIC SCHOOL’S ultimate connection to the show – except that they seem to be fans of Black Apples – in general.
read: their mission statement – for yourself !!

black apple # 2
HEAD DESIGNER – DAO-YI CHOW of PUBLIC SCHOOL.

black apple # 9
this table at EASTERN DISTRICT – kinda said it all:
“GAME ALWAYS SPOTS GAME”.

black apple # 10

black apple # 3
artwork by AAKASH NIHALANI – his street work doesn’t come with the mirrored reflection insert – shown in the gallery here, but it is the most gracious of all the street art around – hands down.

black apple # 5
AAKASH NIHALANI.
see: AAKASH NIHALANI/Youtube !!
(yo. you posted it guys – its out there – alive & kicking – nada to do with me. you can’t cut it both ways.)
(I’m just trying to help you go, make that: get – legit.)

black apple # 6

black apple # 7

black apple # 8

black apple # 11
didn’t get the name of the next artist – !!

black apple # 15
but we got the name of this Black Apple fan: LORI !!

black apple # 12

black apple # 13

public school # 14
PUBLIC SCHOOL ARTISTIC DIRECTOR and EASTERN DISTRICT GALLERY FOUNDER/DIRECTOR – MICHAEL ‘TIDO’ CABRERA.

black apple # 16
black apples are beautiful – are they not ?

black apple # 17
SEAN QUINCY – a young designer at PUBLIC SCHOOL.

black apple # 18

black apple # 19
the next group of work was by the art collective: MARIO BROS.
don’t ask, don’t tell.

black apple # 21
by my count – according to variance in style – there were at least 3 different MARIO BROS – all collage artists & one sticker artist . . . or something like that. the other 2 were on the west wall.

black apple # 22
what can I say – loved this duo – sublime.

black apple # 23
loved the sticker – MARIO BROS, right. “newcomers to Brooklyn” sort of gave it away. this is a huge huge brand with a long long history – maybe – even the most universal of tags – even kids in elementary school – do it without even thinking.
with collage art made so ‘hot’ as in notorious by POSTERBOY – safety is in collaborative universal brands. the more artists who jump on the collective bandwagon – the better ?

black apple # 26

black apple # 27

black apple # 24

black apple # 25

black apple # 37
hey, anybody could be – a ‘sometime’ MARIO BRO.

black apple # 28
the other MARIO BROS. collages were arrayed on this wall.

black apple # 29
these seemed very classic. almost academic – hard to picture them in the context of illegal street art . . .

black apple # 30
but of all the MARIO BROS. stuff – these seemed the most influenced by POSTERBOY – in their very preciseness.
but missed that large subway scale.
see: POSTERBOY/Youtube

black apple # 31

black apple # 32

black apple # 33
not sure where one MARIO BRO. ends, and another begins, guess that’s the point.

black apple # 34

black apple # 35

black apple # 36
these collages ranged in price from $750 – $1,000. they are all on the small side and unique.

black apple # 38
leaving the realm of collage & collaborative behind – there was a great piece by – Cash4 !!

black apple # 39
and then there was a big wall array by the so-called: KASMIR KAHBAZM !!

black apple # 40

black apple # 41

black apple # 43

black apple # 45

black apple # 46

black apple # 47

black apple # 48

black apple # 50

black apple # 49
look like a couple of black apples to me !! – you didn’t have to be ‘technically’ black to be one – you just had to be – bad.
but, yo – just guessing. anybody’s guess – is as good as mine ?
and. like the man said – the artists weren’t present !!

black apple # 53

black apple # 54

black apple # 55

black apple # 56
not shy – JUAN DOE !!
he had the second show in the gallery – ‘MADE In BROOKLYN’ – back in FEB/MARCH 2009 !!
super talented – painter, cartoonist, illustrator – check out: ARTIST KNOWS BEST !!
“a place where art is more powerful than hate.”

black apple juan doe
not sure if he collaborated with those comic book hero – images on the MARIO BROS. collages behind him. though I guess that’s a good guess. I dunno maybe not ?
check out: an early JUAN DOE/MARVEL COMICS/Youtube !!

ALL PHOTOS (& GUESSES): NANCY SMITH



~BLACK APPLES & THE PEOPLE WHO BITE ‘EM/PUBLIC SCHOOL OPENING TO-NITE | Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | January 15th, 2010, 2:00pm