SHIFT DO ART ANYTIME
Throughout the day, anytime, wherever, create, stand on the fringe of your brain and leap into a different perspective. Art is not just painting or sculpture; it is about the way you see and think and how that impacts your actions, your environment, your context. Its the possibilities of theta waves. Imagine and do something with your imagination. SHIFT. And post it here as a comment, if it is related to a specific island, mention that and it will be linked.
This part of the ISLANDS OF LA project involves installing signs on traffic islands. The first sign is based on the ubiquitous TOW AWAY NO PARKING ANYTIME sign. As of 11/20/07, 37 signs have been put up on 29 different islands around L.A. (Slideshow) The signs are meant to be temporary and are taken down in a few hours to several weeks.
They are an announcement to the city of the project. They are also the beginning of a conversation, a message thrown out to sea…perhaps an ear will form. Their removal signifies a kind of dialogue. Here is the first.
It exists as an alternative text to read. On one hand, they represent, literally, a different text from what we are inundated with on the road, which is predominantly city info, regulations, and advertising.
On the other hand, the project creates a different way to read the urban landscape. The geotag map contextualizes L.A. based traffic islands which are neglected and ignored spaces that are being converted into territories of art.
November 21, 2007 at 11:29 pm
hey, I had no idea what “signs” you were talking about.
haha. now… that’s just brilliant.
MORE!!!
November 21, 2007 at 4:18 pm
Alameda & 8th
Uh-huh. The article is just standard far-right, “personal responsibility,” “everything is a choice” stuff: the homeless CHOOSE to be homeless, the poor CHOOSE to be poor, the iill CHOOSE to be ill, people without adequate health care CHOOSE not to be cared for, etc HOWEVER, it only goes so far: you can’t CHOOSE to marry a partner of the same sex, you can’t CHOOSE not to pay the price of a small apartment in taxes for Mr Bush’s foreign adventures, and so oh. Why not? Because it’s ILLEGAL to marry a partner of the same sex, and it’s ILLEGAL not to pay taxes (unless you’re really wealthy or a corporation). So what would happen if it were illegal to be poor, or illegal not to have adequate health care? Hmmmmmmmmm.
November 27, 2007 at 8:59 pm
i jacked your sign from santa monica, sign #75. i take it with me when
i am painting and have enjoyed it, as helps make
us look like we are suppose to be there,i have more pics if you wish to
see them. the first pic is in my studio then the streets.
November 28, 2007 at 5:27 pm
Sign #75 – this sign was numbered as it was printed so this was the 75th sign printed. They were not installed in the order they were printed; this was the 32nd sign installed.
November 29, 2007 at 8:56 pm
hey guys, the web site looks good, thanks for posting the images, this
was painted today about 2 hours to paint and then bounce
i am working on some sculptural painting for some islands of LA, since
that was what the sign was for, hahaha peace till next time. BOPP.
November 29, 2007 at 11:37 pm
What this particular work about?
The indigenous warrior, his pyramid and power in the past, now rebuilt in the landscape of Los Angeles, crumbling. Don’t know, maybe that’s not it.
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Is graffiti legal? What does it mean to marginalize this work while also putting it in museums?
And not knowing who the graffiti artists is, forcing them underground, makes it feel like the city is writing itself. But why doesn’t the merchant selling oranges on the street need to conceal their identity? Both are outlaws challenging who create public space but they are different voices. The graffiti artist, the man with his face covered, spray paint gun in hand, threatens our culture of private property with words and images because of the permanence of his work while the fruit dealer participates in the culture of commerce threatening the bureaucracy of urban planning because it is a temporary, fleeting presence.
Why are these outlaws in the everyday happening? Why not let the city speak?
December 5, 2007 at 3:44 pm
some stencils on canvas posted around some glued some just sitting there
peace, bopp
see a slideshow of all of BOPP’s submissions
May 11, 2008 at 8:31 pm
LOVE what you doing to this great city! keep it up! it’s very creative and original!
June 13, 2008 at 1:31 pm
Great work. I wish I could be there this weekend (6/14). I also covet a SHIFT sign…..
July 14, 2008 at 4:52 pm
We love what you’re doing in LA.
L O O K F O R S I G N S . O R G is an action-oriented organization based on reaction.
Let’s be friends.
September 11, 2008 at 12:13 am
Hi, I’m doing some preliminary research for a group show on street sign art. Your work is the first that has challenged my point of view beyond its already stretched borders. These signs have been art and instigated art. Real symbols of changing minds and times, I think. Interested in participating in a show? Email me back with thoughts on how you could contribute something tangible – perhaps a “do art anytime” sign with a kind of photo-documentary? Whatever your thoughts are, let me hear ‘em. I’m going to write the proposal for the show in 2-3 weeks, need to know who’s out there, ready to go.