Klor
Some other participants in this year’s POW WOW will be Scien and Klor, repping the 123Klan from Montreal. Initially formed as a graffiti crew 20 years ago, the klan has branched out to branding, creation of logos, character design, illustration and typefaces, all the while staying true to their first love – graffiti. Take a look after the jump as we sit down with the husband and wife duo for a short interview.
Scien
Arrested Motion (AM): Can you tell us a little about your background and your art? How did you come up with the moniker – 123Klan?
Scien: 123KLAN Is a graffiti writer posse we have found back in 1992 but it is also a creative studio specializes in new trends & branding since few years now.
Klor: As for the meaning of 123klan it was originally 123Kingz. the 123 comes from scien’s childhood town’s zip code. Then, we entered other graffiti writers into the crew, so we turned kings to klan as we are more like brother and sisters to each other rather than just friend.
AM: You are very well known for your graffiti/street work but also your graphic design. How does your approach differ for these different areas of creative output for you?
Scien: We do not differ our way to create, it’s just what comes out from our minds are translated sometimes on a wall with spray cans, or sometimes printed throughout illustrator. But we have only one single vision: STYLE IS THE MESSAGE.
AM: How do you feel being in group setting like POW WOW changes your art-making or does it since you don’t usually work solo anyways right?
Scien: We always like to collaborate with other artists, this is something very common for graffiti writers, maybe not for some solo artist, i’m sure the experience will be interesting.
Klor: We do not consider this as a change in our art-making, but as a jam. Graffiti writing is also an ephemeral art, ever to be covered by another piece or erased so that aspect does not absolutely be a problem and jamming with others is also easy for us. Our motto is ” improvise, adapt, dominate” so that’s what we will do…
Klor
AM: Have you ever been to Hawaii? Any plans on things you want to do or see while you are there not related to the live-painting?
Klor: Never been to Hawaii before, Parker Farm? Beaches? We wait to be there to share with the locals their vision of Hawaii. In all the trips we’ve done so far, we did not simply sightsee classic touristic things, but we have always preferred to follow our local hookups. More than a place, Hawaii seems to have a huge artistic scene, and we’re very curious to discover it through the eyes of activists.
Scien: Same as Klor. Will try to enjoy to the max, especially when you come from Montreal where actually the snow is everywhere and the temperatures are super lowdown…
AM: What kind of things shows, events, and plans you have for the rest of 2011 that you can share with us?
Klor: An exhibition is in progress in LA, and we expect to stop by Kuala Lumpur for a flagship store opening mid-April. Certainly, we will go back to Cali in July for the Agenda.
and go to Art Basel early December 2011.
Scien: 2012 will be a huge year in terms of news for 123KLAN. In fact, in 2012, 123klan turns 20 years old, and we want to celebrate it. A new book is in process, and a major anniversary exhibition is planned at the the Yves Laroche Gallery.
