Gajin Fujita...LA's "finest" graffiti artist

Gajin Fujita's work has strong influences from his graffiti past - Olde English lettering, East Los Angeles tags and stencils. He still uses aerosol, but he has gained a higher level of aesthetic by incorporating his Japanese hertitage and artistic traditions, like gold leaf and Ukiyo-e woodblock designs. He has also gained the establishment's respect through these initials, BFA and MFA.

These are not gang affiliations or graffiti crews Fujita is down with. These credentials are his fine arts education gained from Otis and University of Nevada. With these, Gaijin Fujita has gained entry into exhibtions at Los Angeles Contemporary Museum of Art and Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art in Missouri. He is also represented by LA Louver gallery in Venice, California.

"Made in L.A.," Gajin Fujita (2011)

High Voltage II, Gajin Fujita (2011)

Opposites Attract  What attracted me Fujita's work was his bold graffiti imagery, his strong connection to Los Angeles and the Asian influences. Samuri warriors, geishas, dragons, gold leaf. The juxtaposition of 17th Century Japanese artcraft with 20th Century "K2S" (Kill to Succeed) graffiti tags and letter styles.

Kill 2 Succeed reference book of styles, Big Sleeps and Defer

Take Two  This week, Gajin Fujita was featured in two art shows in Los Angeles. Both shows opened on the same night and I still didn't get to meet the artist. Right place, wrong time?

I got to see his work at the "LA Heat" exhibition, which runs until July 12th at the Chinese American Museum, details below.

LA Heat, Gajin Fujita (2014)

I still need to go see his drawings being exhibited at LA Louver gallery in Venice, CA.

Study for Bewitched, Gajin Fujita

"L.A. Heat" will run through July 12, 2014.
Chinese American Museum, 425 North Los Angeles St., Los Angeles.
www.camla.org.
(Suggested admission is $3 for adults, $2 for seniors 60 and over, and students with ID.)

"Gajin Fujita: Drawings" will run April 26th, 2014
L.A. Louver
45 North Venice Boulevard, Venice, California 90291
Tel: 310.822.4955
www.lalouver.com

(Berlin) Wall Project - Berlin to Los Angeles

Berlin/L.A. Wall, 2009 (credit: Wende Museum)

The Berlin Wall fell in November 9th, 1989. Twenty years later, on November 8th, 2009 a section was permanently resurrected on Wilshire Blvd. in Los Angeles by Los Angeles' Wende Museum. Watch the documentary below to hear from Germans what happened in their country.

Fast forward to to 2012  Driving along Wilshire near LACMA and it's easy to forget that the Wall installation is the largest piece of the Berlin Wall outside of Germany. These 10 sections of the Wall are nearly 40-foot long, but are easily blocked by food trucks lined up opposite the LACMA.

During a visit to the LACMA "Through the Mic series," I had a chance to walk around the Wall. On the street side, you see sections of wall painted by different artists. None of them instantly recognizable to me.
On the opposite side, the Wall reveals three other artists. All of whom are world-renowned street artists: Herakut (Germany), Retna (Los Angeles) and DFace (London.) And overshadowing the Wall is a glass-fronted building with a new installation from Retna. To see it at night, glowing from the lights, is memerizing.

Wall Project and Retna building, 5900 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles

The Wende Museum
Open to the public Monday - Thursday by appointment only from 10 A.M. to 5 P.M. (except on holidays). To schedule an appointment, call 310-216-1600 x305 or e-mail ccuevaswolf@wendemuseum.org.

The Museum is open without appointment on Fridays from 10 A.M. to 5 P.M. and a tour of the Museum’s vault is offered every Friday at 3 P.M. Admission is free.

Group Visits
For visits by groups of ten or larger please call to arrange an appointment: 310-216-1600 x305

5741 Buckingham Parkway, Suite E
Culver City, CA. 90230

L.A.'s Freestyle Fellowship rock LACMA (Aug 2012)

Another warm Los Angeles evening, another "LACMA Hip Hop Series: Through the Mic." The latest of this phenomenal series of live hip hop concerts brought together Breakestra, the old skool beats obsessed band, and Freestyle Fellowship, the rapper's rappers, for a unique collaboration for L.A.'s fans.

Everyone in the house looking for a performance from Freestyle Fellowship's landmark 1993 album, "Inner City Griots," got everything they wished for! Here's my timelapse video of the Fellowship dubbed with one of the hits from the album, "Innercity Bound," featuring  The crew also performed the intricate rhymes of their 2011 tune, "We Are," released by creative house, Decon.








Hip hop history  Before I moved to L.A. I got a copy of "Innercity Griots," but didn't know too much about Freesetyle Fellowship. So, I learned that they met and formed at the legendary South L.A. Good Life Cafe on Crenshaw and Exposition. If you want to swot up on hip hop history check out "This is the Life," an award-winning documentary about the Los Angeles underground rap scene. This is where Cut Chemist and other heads got their start!

Watch the trailer below, but don't download a bootleg - watch it on a legitimate site so the producers can get paid. Find out how to watch legally here. Support grassroots hip hop!

"The film features new interviews and rare performance footage by these teens, who went on to become some of the biggest names in alternative rap today: Jurassic 5, Cut Chemist, Chali 2na, Pigeon John, Abstract Rude, CVE, Ellay Khule, 2Mex, Freestyle Fellowship, Medusa and many more."

LACMA's Hip Hop Series: Through the Mic

Last month was the second installment of LACMA's (Los Angeles Contemporary Museum of Art) Hip Hop Series: "Through the Mic" and another great evening for all the hip hop fans in the house.



M.C. host, Murs, introduced the Hip Hop Series to the heavy Asian crowd in attendance. He then jokes - speaking in numbers so the Asians will understand..."the next event is happening on the THIRD Friday. If you're not Asian, that means next Friday 20th July!" ;)

"For too long, Los Angeles hip hop has been seen as one dimensional 'gangsta rap.' With this new series, we're giving our city's hip hop artists an amazing platform to show not only our community, but the world, that we have so much more to offer." Murs

Los Angeles in June is perfect for an outdoor stage and LACMA's Urban Light installation was a mesmerizing backdrop for the night's rappers. First up on stage was underground tomboy rapper, Dizzle. She stepped on stage and kicked off the night with a humorous, but expletive set. When Dumbfounded came to the stage the heat was on. Already listed as one of the top Asian M.C.s he took control of the stage with his band: keyboards, bass and most importantly, the drummer!

Dizzle

Dumbfounded with band

The headline act was Medusa. A veteran in the California rap game and she came with serious presence and lyrics. If you like Tribe Called Quest's "Check the Rhyme", then check out Medusa's diss to shady music industry people!  Here are my favorite pictures from the night and a video of Medusa on fire from 2010.

Medusa live on stage @ LACMA

Check back for the photos and video of the night. But if you can, check out July 20th!

B-Boy vs. World Cup

Is it wise to clash with the U.S.A. vs. England football match? I'd think not, but Miracle Mile ArtWalk has got a whole day of activities planned from 10am.

If you rush after the match to LACMA you might catch some of Justin Bua's (USC Fight On!) Urban Art Studio conversations with some of hip hop's leading lights!

Join us in the Plaza Level of the Art of the Americas Building, where BUA's Urban Art Studio will feature original paintings and drawings as the artist himself hosts conversations with leading artists, musicians, dancers, and more:

1–2pm: Mear One and Camille Rose Garcia
2:30–3:30pm: Mr. Wiggles [Rock Steady Crew, Zulu Nation]

4–5pm: Flea and Mixmaster Mike
5pm: BUA Poster Signing
6-8pm: Special Performances by Mr. Wiggles, Mixmaster Mike, The Beat Freaks, and more.

*Free tickets for each interview session will be available at the LACMA Box Office one hour before the program.

LACMA
5905 Wilshire Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90036
(323) 857-6010

Those Krauts! The art of automobiles

0-15 minutes of fame isn't quite what Warhol famously said back in the 80s, but my interpretation is fueled (ok, no more puns) by the current exhibition at Los Angeles' County Museum of Art, more affectionately known as LACMA.

The exhibition of BMW Art Cars is only on display for 12 days before heading off to New York and Mexico. The four cars, rarely seen outside of BMW's Munich museum in Germany, are designed by Roy Lichtenstein (1977 Group 5 320i with its wild wing and body work), Robert Rauschenberg (1986 6-series was not a race car so seems more restrained than the other Art Cars), Frank Stella (graph-paper 3.0 CSL), and Andy Warhol (1979 Group 4 M1 that Warhol painted with a brush). All three race cars competed at Le Mans with their new paint jobs.

As part of the exhibition are rare, behind-the-scenes footage of the four cars including a youthful-looking Warhol working on his BMW and Robert Rauschenberg sharing his inspiration and influence.


BMW Art Car By Andy Warhol

Who got the keys to my Bimmer? Not shown on this tour are the most recent additions to the BMW Art Car program which currently has 16 cars including David Hockney (1995), Jenny Holzer (1999), and Olafur Eliasson (2007) who was the man behind the controversial waterfalls installation in New York in 2008.

Surprisingly, the BMW Art Car Project was originally dreamt up in the 1970s by a Frenchman. Hervé Poulain was a racing driver who in 1975 commissioned American artist Alexander Calder to paint his BMW racing car. Since then both racing and production BMWs have been given the priceless touch by leading artists of their generation, all chosen by an international panel.

Go test drive now BMW Art Cars can be seen on display at the L.A. County Museum of Art BP Grand Entrance through February 24, 5905 Wilshire Blvd., L.A., (323) 857-6151.