Jonathan LeVine Gallery is proud to present REVOLUTIONS: THE ALBUM COVER ART OF SHEPARD FAIREY in association with All Tomorrow’s Parties (ATP) music festival 2011. The opening reception of REVOLUTIONS will be held on Thursday, September 29th, 2011 from 6—9pm and will remain on view through Monday October 3rd at a pop-up location on the boardwalk in Asbury Park, NJ. The exhibition will feature over 80 pieces of Punk, Rock, New Wave, Jazz, and Hip-Hop inspired artwork based on the 12″ record cover format. In conjunction with the exhibition, Fairey will create a number of site-specific murals in locations surrounding the exhibition space and festival venue.
REVOLUTIONS: The Album Cover Art of Shepard Fairey
Opening Reception: Thursday, September 29th, 2011 from 6—9pm
Dates/Times: Friday, September 30—Monday, October 3, 2011 (Noon—8pm, daily).
Location: 1200 Ocean Avenue. Asbury Park, NJ 07712
“Long before I knew about art galleries or even street art, I was excited about album cover art, if only because it was the visual counterpart to the music on the records I loved. Album covers conjured a euphoric association with the listening experience. Most of my earliest home-made tee shirts were stencils based on punk album covers. I’ve had some very moving encounters with art in my life, especially in the street, but almost nothing can compare with the first time I heard the boots marching and first chord of the Sex Pistols’ Holidays in the Sun, or the air raid sirens leading into “too black, too strong” on the intro to Public Enemy’s It Takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, or the opening guitar scream of Black Flag’s Rise Above. Those songs did, and still do, make my arm hairs stand up. Music is visceral and accessible, but also has the additional powerful layers of the lyrics, with their content and politics, and the style,politics, and personalities of the musicians themselves. No matter how much I love art, or try to convince myself of its relevance in society, the fact remains that music is a lot cooler and way more able to reach people’s hearts and minds… but I’m a populist and I look at this way: I may not play an instrument, but I’m gonna rock it hard as nails anyway. With my art I try to capture the same energy and spirit that makes music so powerful and democratic. REVOLUTIONS is a celebration of all the great music and accompanying art that has inspired me over the years.” — Shepard Fairey
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Shepard Fairey was born in 1970, in Charleston, South Carolina, and currently lives and works in Los Angeles, California. He received a BA from the Rhode Island School of Design in 1991. In 1989, Fairey launched an ambitious campaign of stickers and posters featuring a stenciled image of the wrestler Andre the Giant. In the two decades since then, his artwork has been exhibited in numerous galleries and museums around the world. Fairey designed the iconic “Hope” graphic for Barack Obama used during the 2007-2008 presidential campaign. In January 2009, during inauguration week, the “Hope” image was acquired by the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, and became part of their permanent collection. In February of 2009, a mid-career survey of Fairey’s work over the past 20 years was the subject of his first major museum exhibition at The Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston. In 2010, the show traveled to The Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, PA, and Contemporary Arts Center in Cincinnati, OH. Fairey’s work is included in the collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum, London; the Los Angeles County Museum of Art; the Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego; and the National Portrait Gallery, Washington, DC.
ABOUT ALL TOMORROW’S PARTIES (ATP)
All Tomorrow’s Parties (ATP) is an organization based in London that has been promoting festivals, concerts and records worldwide since 1999. Their annual festival program has taken place in the UK, USA and Australia. Each year the line-up is chosen by a significant band or artist, resulting in exciting events that combine performances by legendary and influential acts with appearances by the latest crop of experimental artists from any (and every) musical genre. Past festivals have been curated by artists including: Jim Jarmusch, The Flaming Lips, Explosions In The Sky, Pitchfork Media, Portishead, Sonic Youth, The Shins, Devendra Banhart, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Vincent Gallo, Modest Mouse, Matt Groening and many more. For further information, please visit : www.atpfestival.com.
