Preview of ‘Obituary’: Herbert Baglione at Fifty24MX Gallery

Upper playground artist, Herbert Baglione is currently in Mexico city setting up his next exhibitionat Fifty24MX called ‘Obituary’. Opens this coming Saturday, May 18th, 1PM.

Here are some previews of the show:

Juxtapoz Magazine - Aryz "Style is the limit" Gallery

Check out Juxtapoz Magazine's Gallery of Aryz "Style Is The Limit" exhibition.

STUDIO DROP-IN: JEREMY FISH “WHERE HEARTS GET LEFT” @ FIFTY24SF GALLERY

We did a check in with Jeremy Fish at his North Beach, San Francisco last night, just to chat and take a few snap shots of what he has in store for his show at our FIFTY24SF Gallery, Where Hearts Get Left. All we are going to say is, you will be very, very surprised… there is a ton of great work going into this show… from the installation each piece of work. The Lower Haight is in for a special night on July 14…

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Photography by Mike Miller

Opening Night Photos from Mike Miller's "West Coast Hip Hop: A History in Pictures"

photos by Patrick Kawahara

Die Antwoord Installation at FIFTY24SF Gallery Wednesday, Feb 22nd

Lush Opening Night

Lush Sells His Soul in S.F. Opening this Friday with The Lusty Lady

FIFTY24SF Gallery presents "Lush Sells His Soul in San Francisco" a solo exhibition and installation by Melbourne, Australia's LUSH opening August 5th at 7pm.

LUSH is a graffiti writer who likes porn, kittens, and making people angry. His work features male and female genitalia juxtaposed with comedic messages and comic book illustrative style. He sometimes makes people, especially other members of the graffiti community, upset with his pornography graffiti, tongue-in-cheek videos, and unfiltered twitter and interview statements. When he is at his most theatrical, LUSH makes artwork inspired by other graffiti writers, created in an absurdist style demanding a call and response. Some see the work as equally offensive, equally humorous. His recent photo shoots require naked female models/strippers/porn stars to interact with his graffiti. In a recent conversation, LUSH has called Larry David an idol. Is he serious? Who the fuck does this guy LUSH think he is?

Known as both a controversial talent and grand shit talker, LUSH comes to FIFTY24SF Gallery as a much-talked about artist who has invigorated the Flickr and Twitter community over the past 24 months with the spread of his graffiti. For his first solo show in San Francisco, LUSH explores the idea that gallery shows should be events more than a place to see art. Example: If you like women naked in front of your graffiti, bring the nudity to the gallery. LUSH and team have created a real-life installation peep show, featuring models from San Francisco's iconic nude revue, the Lusty Lady. The exhibition will also feature a new series of works on canvas. Mostly, LUSH plans on keeping up on some contemporary shit-talk.

LUSH asks that you remember to bring your $1 bills to the show and 50 hand made t-shirt from LUSH will be given out during the show.

Ben Tour, Cum*, Eine, Mario Wagner, Brent McHugh, and Ryan Jacob Smith.

INSA Opens Tonight

Just a friendly reminder that we are opening a new exhibition in San Francisco tonight, for London-based artist INSA. That gif up there? That is a special piece for this show. You saw some of the murals, so come see much MORE tonight. FIFTY24SF Gallery in Association with Upper Playground presents: “MORE” – A collection of new work by INSA SAN FRANCISCO, CA [1.28.11] – Upper Playground and FIFTY24SF Gallery are pleased to announce London-based graffiti, conceptual, and fine artist INSA’s first solo exhibition in San Francisco opening on February 3rd, 2011. The exhibition is appropriately titled, MORE. Within the new body of work in MORE, INSA explores themes of aspiration and expectation, wants versus needs, and happiness versus success in his most comprehensive study to date. Using exaggerated symbols of sexuality representing the commodification of both everyday life and underground subcultures, INSA examines the illusions of seduction while employing his own iconic brand of aesthetic allure to draw the audience in. INSA’s new work revels in lurid excess, embracing the insatiability of consumerism and highlighting the duplicity of morality and enjoyment. Followers of the artist will be familiar with some of the themes displayed in MORE. INSA, constantly involved in interesting new projects, recently gained worldwide attention for his piece “Anything Goes When It Comes To (S)hoes,” (more commonly referred to as his “Elephant Dung Heels”) which were exhibited at Tate Britain in London. He has also been a pioneer in the world of graffiti on the Internet with his visually stunning, labor intensive “Gifitti.” This is all in addition to INSA”s continuing insatiable need to cover any surface with his signature “Graffiti Fetish” pattern. MORE will feature 9 new provocative works, with INSA utilizing media such as sculpture and lights adding to the “glamour” of his work. The exhibition will also feature an exclusive SF edition of INSA’s classic “Heel” print and a selection of photographic prints. MORE will run at FIFTY24SF Gallery from February 3rd, 2011 – February 28th, 2011

INSA's "MORE" opens Feb 3rd at FIFTY24SF

FIFTY24SF Gallery in Association with Upper Playground presents: "MORE" - A collection of new work by INSA

SAN FRANCISCO, CA [1.28.11] -- Upper Playground and FIFTY24SF Gallery are pleased to announce London-based graffiti, conceptual, and fine artist INSA’s first solo exhibition in San Francisco opening on February 3rd, 2011. The exhibition is appropriately titled, MORE.

Within the new body of work in MORE, INSA explores themes of aspiration and expectation, wants versus needs, and happiness versus success in his most comprehensive study to date. Using exaggerated symbols of sexuality representing the commodification of both everyday life and underground subcultures, INSA examines the illusions of seduction while employing his own iconic brand of aesthetic allure to draw the audience in. INSA’s new work revels in lurid excess, embracing the insatiability of consumerism and highlighting the duplicity of morality and enjoyment.

Followers of the artist will be familiar with some of the themes displayed in MORE. INSA, constantly involved in interesting new projects, recently gained worldwide attention for his piece “Anything Goes When It Comes To (S)hoes,” (more commonly referred to as his “Elephant Dung Heels”) which were exhibited at Tate Britain in London. He has also been a pioneer in the world of graffiti on the Internet with his visually stunning, labor intensive “Gifitti.” This is all in addition to INSA”s continuing insatiable need to cover any surface with his signature “Graffiti Fetish” pattern.

MORE will feature 9 new provocative works, with INSA utilizing media such as sculpture and lights adding to the “glamour” of his work. The exhibition will also feature an exclusive SF edition of INSA’s classic “Heel” print and a selection of photographic prints.

MORE will run at FIFTY24SF Gallery from February 3rd, 2011 - February 28th, 2011

Noise Pop x FIFTY24SF Present "Louder Than Bombs" Album covers by PEZ

Opening Feb. 2nd at the Noise Pop Up Gallery

Rico Deniro at FIFTY24SF

Rico Deniro’s month long ‘Native Expatriots’ show at FIFTY24SF Gallery will be opening tomorrow (Saturday) at noon.  For the show, Rico has presented people that live outside of technologically based civilizations in the rural villages of Mexico with images of first-world pop culture icons and employed them with one task: to interpret those icons in a traditional Mexican wooden mask.  The craftsmen of these masks have no reference point to these images, no sense of importance tied to the celebrities that they were given, no inundation of cultural significance by media sources – and instead translate the images into form at a completely superficial and innocent level.

The resulting masks show these idols at a level which we rarely see them: exposed.  Not in the way that the news media ‘exposes’ celebrities, because in that case there’s a symbiotic dependency – but in the way that these idols are exposed for their lack of substance other than the media and marketing that convinces us of their substance.

The masks created in Mexico will be on display at FIFTY24SF Gallery at 218 Fillmore Street, San Francisco from January 6th, 2011 – January 26th, 2011.

(Photo taken by Estevan Oriol)

Herbert Baglione at Lazarides - Found Super 8 Footage

Herbert Baglione - Lazarides Gallery from Hunterz Pointz on Vimeo.

Watch the super 8 footage of Herbert Baglione working on a wall  at Lazarides Gallery.

Herbert Baglione - Lazarides Gallery from Upper Playground on Vimeo.

FIFTY24SF 2011 Gallery Lineup: Rico Deniro, INSA, KMNDZ, Escif, San, and Stussy/Stecyk/Adler

We are getting excited for 2011.

January: Rico Deniro

February: INSA

March: Shawn Stussy/C.R. Stecyk/ Thomas Adler group curated show

April-May: KMNDZ

June- July: Escif and SAN

Ericailcane Day 1 @ Fifty24SF Gallery

FIFTY24SF Gallery presents 'We Were Living in the Woods' new work by Erica il Cane

FIFTY24SF Gallery, in association with Upper Playground, is pleased to present a solo

exhibition by Italian street muralist and fine artist, Erica il Cane, entitled, We Were Living

in the Woods. The exhibition will be the second solo show that Erica has held in the United

States.

As a major contributor to an increasingly progressive and elaborate street art and mural

movement occurring in Europe over the past 5 years, Erica il Cane (translating to “Eric

the Dog”) gained international recognition for his anthropomorphic building-sized animal

murals throughout Italy and the continent. With fellow contemporaries Blu, Sam3, Escif,

and San, Erica’s large-scale murals have been viewed as fine art done within the public’s

view. We Were Living in the Woods will feature works on paper and on-site installations.

Born and studied in Bologna, Italy, Erica’s evolution to gallery work has seen depictions of

animals in unique, human situations rendered in Victorian-like style illustrations, etchings,

and short animated films. The art is often described as imagery from a dark fairy tale,

in which animals are shown within the darkness of human nature, focusing on themes

of alienation, satire, existentialism. Both gallery and mural work has also been hailed as

influential works advocating vegetarianism and animal rights.

Erica il Cane has shown throughout Europe, including Lazarides Gallery, Banksy’s Santa’s

Ghetto, the Fame Festival, and gallery shows in Milan, Rome, London, and Barcelona. He has

also shown in Los Angeles and Chicago.

We Were Living in the Woods

will run from November 11th – December 30th, with an

opening reception on Thursday, November 11th, from 7:30PM – 10:00PM.

Jason Jägel "I'll FLY INTO YOUR HEART" at Fifty24SF Gallery

JASON JAGEL “(I’LL FLY) INTO YOUR HEART” Jason Jägel has been featured in numerous solo and group shows for well over a decade, from Tokyo to Los Angeles. Recent solo exhibitions of Jason’s work have been featured at Galleri Christoffer Egelund in Copenhagen, Denmark, and AMT Gallery in Milan, Italy. His monograph, entitled, Seventy-Three Funshine (2008), was created with an accompanying ten-inch vinyl record with music by Madlib and published by Electric Works, San Francisco. He was recently featured in a 12-page interview in JuxtapozMagazine. Jägel currently resides in San Francisco with his wife and two daughters.

Regarding the title Jägel says: “(I'll Fly) Into Your Heart reminds me of the style of certain ’60’s soul songs where the inserted parenthesis creates multiple, simultaneous titles from one. It also appears as a statement of first-person dialog, leading the questions: Who or what is flying? To whose heart? For good purposes or ill?” Evident in this statement and throughout Jason’s work is a preoccupation with slippery meanings and storytelling.

“(I’ll Fly) Into Your Heart”, features new works on display at FIFTY24SF Gallery April 1-May 26, 2010.