Panel discussion on Poster Boy show at Real Art Ways this Saturday

Real Art Ways
56 Arbor St., Hartford, (860) 232-1006
Poster Boy: Street Alchemy 2.0
Through Jan. 29, 2011.
Panel discussion: Sat., Jan. 28, 7:30 p.m.

Press release

Street Alchemy, an exhibition by artist collective Poster Boy, was scheduled to go on view at Trinity College in September 2011 but was abruptly canceled. According to the Hartford Courant, school administrators canceled the show due to Poster Boy's alleged practice of using materials stolen from public advertisements.

Poster Boy claimed censorship when Trinity College first postponed and then cancelled the exhibition: "They don't know where the billboards come from, and I'm not going to incriminate myself," a representative for Poster Boy said in an interview with the BBC.

The cancellation of the show received national and international attention, including the front page of the Hartford Courant's Living Section, Hartford Advocate, Art Info, the BBC, Channel 3 Eye Witness News, and on WNPR's Colin McEnroe Show.

In wake of the cancellation, Real Art Ways made the decision to present the exhibition with the title Street Alchemy 2.0. The exhibition opened on October 20, 2011 with a crowd of more than 500 in attendance.

Real Art Ways will present a panel discussion to address the multiple and wide-ranging topics that have arisen from this situation. The panel discussion will be Saturday, Jan. 28, 2012 at 7:30 p.m. This is a free event. The exhibition’s final day is Sun., Jan. 29, 2012.

“Real Art Ways supports artists and we care about community. We believe that controversy can be an opportunity for enlightenment and thoughtful communication,” says Will K. Wilkins, Executive Director of Real Art Ways. “It’s a shame that Trinity cancelled the Poster Boy exhibition, but it has created a context for dialogue.”

A few topics the panelists will discuss are: artist’s rights and freedom of expression, legal issues surrounding this work, the transgressive nature of new art and the value of billboards in advertising and society.

Panelists will include:

• Chris Knopf, CEO of Mintz & Hoke Communications Group, a leading marketing agency

• Thomas Menard, attorney specializing in intellectual property litigation at Alix, Yale & Ristas, LLP

• Dr. Randy Jacobs, Associate Professor of Communications at the University of Hartford, who teaches advertising

• Hrag Vartanian, Editor and Founder of the online journal Hyperallergic and an expert on street art

• A member of the Poster Boy collective will also participate

Moderator:
• Marela Zacarias, artist and muralist

About the panelists and moderator:

Moderator - Marela Zacarias, artist
Zacarias has painted more than thirty large public murals in the United States. Mexico and Guatemala. She was an Artist-in-Residence for the academic year ‘09—’10 at the University of Connecticut, Storrs, where she completed a mural to be part of the William Benton Museum of Art collection. Her work is currently part of the 2011 S-Files Biennial at Museo del Barrio in East Harlem, NY. She made a 30ft long site-specific sculptural painting at the lobby of the museum. You can see a short video about this piece here.

Panelists -
Dr. Randy Jacobs, Associate Professor of Communications
University of Hartford
Dr. Jacobs teaches advertising in the University of Hartford’s School of Communication. Dr. Jacobs’ interests span the social, economic and ethical implications of advertising and his most recent research looks at the effects of military advertising on enlistment decisions. Dr. Jacobs earned B.A. and M.A. degrees in Advertising from Michigan State University and a Ph.D. in Communication from Ohio State University.

Hrag Vartanian, Editor/Founder
Hyperallergic, blogazine and online forum
Vartanian is editor of Hyperallergic. His work has appeared in the Art21 blog, Brooklyn Rail, NYFA’s Current and Huffington Post. He serves on the board of the Triangle Arts Association, he volunteers on numerous educational committees and he blogs at HragV.com. He's a Brooklyn-based writer, editor and art critic who has written extensively about street art, performance art, the Internet and issues of multiculturalism. He maintains a tumblelog notebook, called A Brooklyn Art Critic’s Notebook.

Chris Knopf, CEO
Mintz & Hoke Communications Group
Knopf is a principal in Mintz & Hoke, a marketing communications agency in Avon, CT serving B2B and consumer clients. In a long career, he has won top creative awards in national and New England competitions. Knopf is also a published novelist, cabinet-maker and rock musician when he can steal the time.

Thomas Menard, Attorney
Alix, Yale & Ristas, LLP
Menard is a proud graduate of Central Connecticut State University and the University of Connecticut School of Law. As a partner in the Hartford-based intellectual property (IP) law firm of Alix, Yale & Ristas, LLP, Menard counsels clients regarding patent, copyright, trademark, trade secret, IP-related business disputes and IP litigation. The firm represents clients ranging from Connecticut-based manufacturers, to universities, entrepreneurs and a wide range of international clients through an international network of IP law firms. During his twelve years of IP practice, Menard has represented clients in state and federal courts in Connecticut and other U.S. jurisdictions. Menard believes that in-depth knowledge of the client’s business and competitive environment are essential to the strategic allocation of legal services where they will provide the greatest benefit.

The Poster Boy collective
Poster Boy describes itself as an artist collective based in Brooklyn, New York. Poster Boy is known for manipulating and repurposing self-adhesive advertisements in the platforms of New York City subway stations to create collage-like street art. Street Alchemy 2.0 centers on two altered billboards—one for State Farm Insurance and the other for The National Guard. Pictures from this exhibition can be found here.

Real Art Ways has a history of championing artists and artistic expression and promoting dialogue about censored works.

aricoco show opens Thursday at Real Art Ways

Real Art Ways
56 Arbor St., Hartford, (860) 232-1006
aricoco: RUNawayHOME
Nov. 17—Feb. 22, 2012.
Opening reception during Creative Cocktail Hour: Thurs., Nov. 17, 6—8 p.m. Admission is $10/$5 Real Art Ways members.

Press release

Real Art Ways presents RUNawayHOME, an exhibition and performance by aricoco, who explores the meaning of "home" by creating a sculptural garment, made from discarded plastic bags, with which she interacts.

An opening reception on Thurs., Nov. 17 from 6—8 p.m. will be held as part of Creative Cocktail Hour, Real Art Ways' monthly third Thursday gathering. Creative Cocktail Hour is from 6-10 p.m.; admission is $10/$5 Real Art Ways members.

Aricoco creates complex woven garments from castoff scraps comprised of plastic bags, strips of fabric, buttons and even eggshells. In RUNawayHOME she will construct a moveable shelter that functions as a home and as a protective garment.

She invents ritualistic play within the nest-like structures. These performative actions serve both to revive her childhood experiences and interpret the influences of her culture.

"I perform to heal and nourish myself so that I regain strength to survive when I emerge," states the artist. "I use different materials and processes to explore specific personal or cultural meanings. Robing and disrobing my temporary shelter, I package my body to be disconnected from reality, but also to tie myself to it."

Born and raised in Tokyo, aricoco (Ari Tabei) received her BA from Sophia University in International Legal Studies in 1997. She attended the Post-baccalaureate Program in Studio Art at Brandeis University in 2001 and received her MFA from the University of Connecticut in May 2007. She was awarded the A.I.R. Gallery Fellowship for 2008-2009. She has participated in several artists' residencies including chashama, Vermont Studio Center, LMCC's Swing Space, Smack Mellon Artist Studio Program, Sculpture Space, Blue Sky Project and Triangle Workshop. She is a current artist in residence at AAI Lower East Side-Rotating Studio Program.

Also in the Galleries:

Amy Jean Porter and Matthea Harvey: The Making 'Of Lamb', opening reception Saturday, November 5 and workshop Saturday, November 19. 'Of Lamb' is an exhibition of drawings by Amy Jean Porter and poems by Matthea Harvey. Of Lamb is what Porter calls "an irreverent and irresponsible retelling of the nursery rhyme, 'Mary had a little lamb.'" Exhibition on view through Sun., Dec. 11.

Ephemeroom, on view through Sun., Jan. 15, highlights important moments and objects from Real Art Ways' history created with memorabilia, photos, ephemera from our archive.

Poster Boy: Street Alchemy 2.0 is on view through Sun., Jan. 30. Armed with a razor blade, Poster Boy manipulates vinyl advertisements to create startling, harsh or even humorous mash-ups. The works for Street Alchemy 2.0 were originally designed for an exhibition at Trinity College.

Poster Boy show, censored by Trinity College, opens tomorrow at Real Art Ways

Real Art Ways
56 Arbor St., Hartford, (860) 232-1006
Poster Boy: Street Alchemy 2.0
Oct. 20—Jan. 20, 2011.
Opening reception during Creative Cocktail Hour: Thurs., Oct. 20, 6—8 p.m. Admission is $10/$5 Real Art Ways members.

Press release

Real Art Ways presents an exhibition by Poster Boy who comments upon the wide array of political issues. Armed with a razor blade, Poster Boy manipulates vinyl advertisements to create startling, harsh or even humorous mash-ups.

An opening reception on Thurs., Oct. 20 from 6—8 p.m. will be held as part of Creative Cocktail Hour, Real Art Ways' monthly third Thursday gathering. Creative Cocktail Hour is from 6-10 p.m.; admission is $10/$5 Real Art Ways members.

The installation Street Alchemy 2.0 is an immersive spatial experience created with altered billboards. The typical relationship between individual and billboard is a curious one. Billboards traditionally loom over individuals seducing them through promises of success, security and savings. Poster Boy subverts this relationship, neuters these imposing images by bringing them down to eye level within a gallery space. The billboards in Street Alchemy 2.0 no long hold any power over consumers. We can laugh at their attempts to dupe us while relishing the clever and snide reconfigurations of Poster Boy's handiwork.

The works for Street Alchemy were originally designed for an exhibition at Trinity College. But school administrators canceled the show in mid-September. Real Art Ways has a history of championing artists and artistic expression and promoting dialogue about censored works.

Poster Boy describes itself as an artist collective based in Brooklyn, New York. Poster Boy is known for manipulating and repurposing self-adhesive advertisements in the platforms of New York City subway stations to create satiric, collage-like street art. Combining disparate elements of multiple advertisements into one composition the work calls attention to the oversaturation of commercially driven media that individuals are exposed to on a daily basis. There is always an element of humor in Poster Boy's work, and it is usually sardonic and politically driven. Critical of corporate and celebrity culture the work is a raw and spontaneous form of culture jamming inspired by "mash-ups" and the impromptu nature of hip hop "freestyling."