MSK members Pose and Revok (pictured above with gallerist Levine) recently visited New York City and immediately made their mark by being the current artists to work on the highly visible Bowery & Houston Mural (here & here). They also came into town to premiere respective new bodies of work at the Jonathan LeVine Gallery. The tandem exhibition (curated by Roger Gastman) was a breath of fresh air from the graffiti-based fine artists. Entitled Uphill Both Ways, the show’s name was inspired by the late graffiti artist & MSK brother NEKST. It also represents the battles Pose and Revok have faced personally with legal persecution and loss, as well as general themes of the human struggle on a macro level – one of the common threads in their bodies of work.
The works from this show may seem completely different but is much like the synergistic masterpiece the duo free-styled on the iconic B&H mural. Both artists are talented at breaking down pieces of life and synthesize visually intriguing compositions. For Chicago-based artist Pose (Jordan Nickel), his method is to take slices of various elements such as pop & comic art, skateboarding, advertising graphics and graffiti to create portraits of the human condition. His was a very impressive body of work that had viewers entranced during the opening night.
For Detroit-based artist Revok (Jason Williams), his signature style involves chopping up various urban elements and found materials to create abstract geometric panels of vibrant and intriguing shapes. We’ve always been fascinated with his unique creations, such as in his sold-out Gilgamesh exhibition at LA’s Known Gallery, but this new series takes his geometric magic to another level. His new pieces evolve his abstract shapes and multi-dimensional landscapes and kept us engaged for hours.
This show runs until July 27th, so if you’re in New York, definitely make plans to check it out.
Discuss this show here.
Discuss Revok here. Discuss Pose here.
