A large crowd spilled out of the gallery, onto the downtown sidewalk, where artists were busy with spray cans and imagination, painting large panels as live "graffiti battles" and cars, to express their art and feelings. Inside the gallery, where spray painted art pieces and other media decorated the walls, "dance battles" were going down, in a circle of friendly competition and absolute camaraderie. A blend of faces of every color and age mingled to share joy in the liveliness of life, expressing dance and art in harmony, with not a shred of angst or anger in sight.
"Artistry in Motion - an Urban Arts Expo" was an event in the art gallery/studio/spray paint retail store of Austin David, owner of Artissin. It was planned by Aurailieus Artist, (Marko Stevens) and Austin David. "We each brought something," said David. "I brought the DJ's, and Aurailieus brought the dancers."
"We were amazed that there were so many people here, at least 200," said David. "They were inside, out on the sidewalk, all around the building."
Speaking of planning the night's event, Aurailieus Artist said, "A lot of area artists do an art meetup every Wednesday. People like to paint live and network. It just started by me wanting to make a hip hop inspired show. I started talking about it. I always wanted to do a show like this," he said, "I had a gallery before called Raw Vibes. It was like a dance studio and art gallery. Every once in a while I put on my own art show. I like to organize. I printed out 50 fliers and posted it in social media."
Nasya Di Domenica helped with the front door. "Friends called friends, and all these people showed up," she said. There was a $5 charge to help cover the expenses of the DJ's and competition. There was a $100 prize for the dancers and also a money art prize."
The late St. Petersburg artist Bill Correira "Woo" was missed at the event, as he surely would have been there. "Bill Woo was my friend," said Aurailieus, "always giving me tips and encouragement."
Music was provided by Earl Grae, and a spoken word-rap performance was given by Pedro El Poeta. DJ's were Michael Rozak - Red Tape, and Kyle Gillogly -Earl Grae.
Cheetah Chad and Oscar Valdez were two of the artists painting large graffiti panels out in front on the sidewalk. Valdez said that he considered his performance art a free style portrait. He is independent, but currently looking for a sponsor. Stoic Glueck spray painted a panel, saying, "I build art on recycled materials. This painting is about release. When you take a certain mindset and let go of everything, you are coming to understand your true self."
Sky Ambrocio of Wicked Elements and his wife Carrie Ambrocio were there, with their break dancers. Sky teaches kids, teens and adults freestyle break dancing. "We used to train in St. Petersburg at Dance Stars," said Sky. "Now we do Thursday classes at Flowing Rivers Church. We started dancing in 1996 with three crews, Future Legends, Flooridians, and Enigma Dance Crew. Enigma Dance crew is now spread out throughout the U.S."
Teacher/Dancer Mouse Vader said, "Sky does a great job of promoting events like this. It's very organized. We have a host, DJ's and judges tonight. People come out who are interested in the culture. I teach all kinds of hip hop, and find students throughout the community through word of mouth."
Jason "Oreo" Taylor said, "I teach in Brandon, all styles. I do poppin' break dancing. I have been all around the world. I've been in Amsterdam, Germany and England. Dancing is great everywhere, because you put all your emotions into the dance. My little brother works in Cirque Du Soleil. He is classically trained. I own "Next Stage Studio" in Brandon. We run classes on Weds, Thurs, Fri and Saturdays. We will do a free Open Circle, and get people to come in and just dance. Anybody's welcome to come in the door. There's no order. The audience can judge, based on performance, showmanship, and technicality."
"Everybody keeps in touch with each other." Taylor said. "On February 26th, we have an all girls battle coming up. The boys get a lot of attention, but the girls are really great too."
"Mouse and me, we were actually rival dancers until about five years ago. Now we have the knowledge. I came all the way here from Riverview to support break dancing," he said.
Artist Lars Erik Robinson was there drawing caricatures. "I am a professional Chef in the daytime. I do my art and night and on weekends. I wanted to come out and get myself known downtown," he said. "I am usually down at the Pier on Clearwater Beach. I have a studio at my house. I call what I do Art-tainment."
The Gallery is open daily 10am to 6pm if you would like to stop by and see the work.
Closing Reception is Saturday, February 16, 2013 at 7:00 pm.
Artissin, 727-204-9004, Web site, Artissin Incs Facebook, Artissin Facebook, Flickr, Tumblr, info@artissin.com
and
Anime on Central, Facebook, 727-422-5662
2313 Central Avenue, St. Petersburg, Florida 33713
Artists Included:
Aurailieus Artist, You Tube
Dickie art Eickcid
Derek Donnelly, Saint Paint
Christian Thomas
Zulu Painter
Jenipher Chandley
M.D. Goerlich
Collin Anderson
Scott Hillis
ER
Reid Jenkins
Allen Leper Hampton
Saori
Svetlana NONSTOP
Laura Spencer Illustrates
Adam Northrop
Cheeta Chad
Eric Frost
Jason Bromley
Irma Diaz
Austin David introduced some of his good friends at the event, including Laura Spencer, an illustrator, and a recent graduate of Ringling College of Art and Design in Sarasota. Derek Donnelly is an Urban-style artist and owner of a gallery for almost a year in downtown St. Petersburg, called Saint Paint. Donnelly was spray painting his car, with help from Reid Jenkins and Zulu Painter, two other local artists, as a performance art piece throughout the event. The artists all had pieces on display in the gallery.
A fan on Facebook wrote, "Amazing turn of events last night. Thank you Aurailieus Artist, Geno Sky Ambrocio and Wicked Elements, Artissin Incs for bringing us on. It was an honor, and awesome to see hip hop once again bringing so many people together in one place with nothing but positive vibes all around. Thank you to everyone involved, and everyone that came to support Hip Hop. It lives right here in St. Pete."
See photos of the break dancers at the event here.
Watch the Video at the bottom of this article made by Aurailieus Artist, ARTISTRY in MOTION: an URBAN ARTS EXPO. "This is a short video highlighting some of the events that took place at Artistry in motion - an art dance and music infused show that took place 1-19-13 in St. Pete. Kickin’ It Old School. St Pete busts a move with live street art, hip hop and break dancers."
More videos of B-Boy and B-Girl dancing by Sky Ambrocio at these links:
BBOY SHOWCASE PART 1 | ARTISTRY in MOTION:an URBAN ARTS EXPO 2013
BBOY SHOWCASE Part 2 | ARTISTRY in MOTION : an URBAN ARTS EXPO 2013
BBOY SHOWCASE PART 3 | ARTISTRY in MOTION : an URBAN ARTS EXPO 2013
Judges Showcase | ARTISTRY IN MOTION 2013
Jester"That Sexy Boy" V.S. Indy Rock ( Fresh Kidz ) | ARTISTRY in MOTION an URBAN ARTS EXPO 2013
Mario ( Disturbed Pattern/Future Legendz ) V.S. Sleepy (Outlawed Soldierz) | ARTISTRY in MOTION 2013
Triet ( Munkyz Elite ) V.S. Edderz ( Future Legendz ) | ARTISTRY in MOTION 2013
Swift Nyce ( Future Legendz ) V.S. Sleepy ( Outlawed Soldierz ) | ARTISTRY in MOTION 2013
ARTISTRY in MOTION Urban Arts Expo ,Boys puttin it down, Kalani Blakely on the decks,
TheEarlGrae
David Austin, owner of Artissin said, "The name and logo of my company comes from this: In the past, if you were not sanctioned by the church, art was seen as a sin. Now street art is still seen as illegal and a sin."
David Austin wrote, “In the 1970's, a few artists in NYC created a new form of art using spray paints, which they named Graffiti. Since then it has evolved into a main stream art form now known as aerosol art. Aerosol art is immensely popular, loved and recognized throughout the entire world. It is because of this reason that "Art Is Sin" aka "ARTISSIN" was created.”
His company, Artissin, also known as "Art Is Sin", “is a very small North American company based in the United States that is owned by actual artists,” he wrote. “We manufacture spray paints for artists. Since we ourselves are artists; we know exactly what types of products other artists are looking for. Our goal is to provide artists with quality products at affordable prices to satisfy their needs. All products designed and manufactured by Artissin are 100% made right here in North America. There is absolutely no exception to this rule; it is something we believe in and stand firmly behind.”
Aurailieus Artist, Aurailieus Photo and Author, Crack Head Cursive
Fiction: Crack Head Cursive is a book of short stories by artist Marko Stevens. The book is a compilation of ten stories and eight illustrations, all tied together with the random wall scribblings of a homeless St. Petersburg man.
Aurailieus Artist recently started a new project called, "No Art Here: a documentary of the St. Pete Arts Scene", which he is seeking funding for on Kickstarter. "St. Petersburg is a raging sea of wildly talented creative entities," he writes. "This is a film that would dive into that sea and explore its depths. I wish to make a documentary that explores the work and lives of these artists, and also documents the Art Scene in which these artists thrive. I have the privilege of often being in the epicenter of art happenings. I have established friendships and connections with the major players and innovators in the St. Petersburg art scene, and I really think it would be a beautiful thing to showcase what is happening here with the world at large." A video describing the project can be seen at this link.
Derek Donnelly
Saint Paint
(727) 342-2593, saintpaintarts@gmail.com
Saint Paint, 6 6th St North, Saint Petersburg, Florida 33701
Derek Donnelly, an artist, feels that although seemingly normal on the surface, St. Petersburg is a world of creativity, bursting at the seams with artistic geniuses. He opened his gallery, Saint Paint Arts. to provide a window through which this world can be seen.
Geno Sky Ambrocio, You Tube
Founder of Wicked Elementz Ninja Squad, Family Man, BBoy, Entrepreneur, Promoter
"As long as I'm around, there will always be a spot for all b-boys/b-girls to practice...going to keep the dance scenes ALIVE!!!"
Wicked Elementz Squad
Ambrocio wrote, "Wicked Elementz was created by Sky and Mouse in 1998. We are a well known dance crew in the St. Petersburg area. Our crew is more like a brotherhood, a family that is always looking out for each other. We love teaching and sharing our b-boy skills with those who are willing to learn. In addition to teaching, we enjoy competing and doing shows. That's how we make our living. We love it. Our style is very traditional, old and new school b-boyin' style of hip hop. wiickedelementz@gmail.com
Laura Spencer
Laura Spencer works at The Art Supply Store at 2429 Central Avenue, St. Petersburg. “I’ve been a part of the St. Petersburg art scene since I was a little kid,” she said. “The 600 Block has become known for art, but now this area is part of the Grand Central District, which is a neighborhood and community very supportive of one another. It is known as “Where Art is Made.”
The Art Supply Store, 2429 Central Avenue, St. Petersburg, Florida 33713
phone 727-491-3099 Email Laura Spencer at: illest.ill@gmail.com
The Grand Central District includes the 1600 to 3100 blocks of Central Avenue in St. Petersburg, as well as First Avenues North and South. It is a Nationally and State Designated Main Street Community located just west of Downtown St. Petersburg between 16th and 31st Streets.
As more artists are moving into Abraham Reid's building in the Grand Central District, the block is becoming quite a happening place. Three artists have moved into the building so far in the past year, and there is still one large space open for rent in Reid's building, a perfect space for another artist to have a nice gallery. Artist/Writer Sarah Dees has a printmaking studio in the back of Abraham's Furniture Store, Abraham's Furniture Galore. Artist Milton Rochman shares the space with Sarah, and his colorful acrylic paintings on canvas can be viewed in the gallery.
Sarah Dees Art
Milton Rochman Gallery
2309 1/2 Central Ave. N., St. Petersburg, Florida 33713, sarahdeesart@mac.com
Cheetah Chad Ruis, Visual Artist/Designer, Anna Maria Island, Florida 813-446-3763, CheetaStyle@gmail.com Facebook
The Dan Diaz Show, A Juggler for all occasions
Check out another collaborative downtown art and music event coming up, with many of these local artists participating:
Hearts on Fire
February 15th, 2013
Sake Bomb, 548 Central Avenue St. Petersburg, Florida
From 7:30 to 3 a.m.
Music - Emily Turnage, Live Forever
Comedy - "Love Doctor" Mathew Finklestein
Art - Cheryl Murphy, Aurailieus Artist, Renee Marie Little, Frank Strunk III, Jennifer Kosharek, Derek Donnelly, Laura Spencer, Sebastian Coolidge, ZOMG, Jason Bromley, Lexi West, Bato Ijacic, Cassandra Kammerer, Alexander Dropcloth, Jenipher Chandley, Lars-Erik Robinson, Lorinda Fore, Tony Lima, CyberCraft Robots, Reid Jenkins, Bella Dark Studios, Brandon Pearce DKC, Lea Umberger, John Taormina, Zos, Zulu Painter
Related Articles:
Artissin - the brainchild of creative manufacturing wiz Austin David
Fish Out Of Water gallery show by artist Mark Mitchell opens January 26, 2013
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