- Press Release and Photos by Sarah Sansom
BSMTV Presents: East End Mob LIVE Paint Jam
`For 5 years BSMT has hosted you at some of the freshest exhibitions in our gallery in East London. Now for the first time BSMTV will be coming to you with our first live-stream paint jam and dj set! No travel required.
Get ready for a knockout set featuring Hackney royalty Dscreet, Malarko, Mighty Mo, Rowdy and Sweet Toof streamed live to you from five secret locations across the globe, with a live DJ guaranteed to blow the roof off your lounge and the dust off your laptop.
As the gallery remains closed to keep the public safe and help the NHS the future of our space has never been as uncertain. With united support we can keep bringing you the shows you love showcasing the best of UK-based and global talent. We're fighting to make sure the gallery survives this and will still be around for years to come.
The live-stream will take place Saturday May 9th from 5-9pm [12-4pm EST] where you can watch for free. The artists will be painting in succession with time-slots TBC. There will be a donations page and all we ask is that you buy a virtual ticket for whatever price you want and enjoy your night! There will also be event merch and available artwork by all the artists.
By way of saying thank you, the gallery will be holding a commision-free show for the artists involved when we can open our doors again, and we cannot wait for the day we see you all back at one of our opening nights.
Date: Saturday May 9th 5-9pm BST, 12-4pm EST
Streaming page: bsmt.co.uk/bsmtv
Sign up for an on the day reminder at: bsmt.co.uk/bsmtv
Artist Bios:
Dscreet
Urban artist Dscreet is known for his iconic owl characters, which feature repeatedly across his canvas of choice: the walls and shutters of urban East London. With a long spanning passion for street art, Dscreet is attuned to the importance of art around the city and its power to change the world in small ways. A cute quirk, Dscreet’s signature owls are filled with childish charm while, at the same time, suffused with an uneasy, haunting quality: once you’ve glimpsed one of Dscreet’s owls, you’re not likely to forget it anytime soon.
Top and above: Dscreet work in Shoredtich, East London
Sweet Toof
Sweet Toof’s work starts with and evolves out of his street art, whether as a solo graffiti artist or in collaboration with others. Like the streets of 1980s New York, typical tags, throw-ups, and more elaborate street pieces become a whole language that informs his studio works. Equally disciplined in traditional painting and printmaking techniques, Sweet Toof masterfully blends urban detritus with bygone decadence. Sweet Toof’s skulls and gums combine layers of historical and current cultural references to create unconventional, iconoclastic art that is at once both traditional and contemporary.
Top: Sweet Toof in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Above: Stokes Croft, Bristol, UK
Mighty Mo
Mighty Mo (also known as Mighty Monkey), is a renowned London based graffiti artist famous for his iconic signature monkey motif’s – a colourful, humorous trademark character which can be seen gracing walls and rooftops across the capital, particularly if you ever stop to look up around North and East London. He began painting in 2005 around Camden, and was originally part of the London Frontline collective, before moving over to East London where he joined forces with the likes of Sweet Toof, Cyclops, Tek 33, Gold Peg, Dscreet and Rowdy, collectively known as the Burning Candy Crew. He is currently focused on his fine art career which runs in parallel with his work as a street artist.
Top and Above: Abandoned building with Mighty Mo, Malarko, Dscreet & Sweet Toof in Hackney, London
Rowdy
Established in 1987, Rowdy became an integral part of the Bristol graffiti scene. His work appears worldwide and can be found in the most unlikely places, from underground rural settings to highly visible urban reaches. Rowdy’s trademark crocodiles are often huge in scale and are indicative of the playful nature of the imagery in his work; long may we continue to see oversized mice and crocs attacking our walls.
Above: Rowdy with Dscreet in Stokes Croft, Bristol
Malarko
Mark Malarko is a British artist currently working in Barcelona, Spain. Malarko’s work engages with bad humour, unpredictability and haphazardness. With a practice that encompasses Ceramics, Illustration, Architecture and Public Art; Malarko has developed a precarious and energetic style that merges traditional techniques with unconventional references to popular culture. From within a bricolage of chance encounters, Malarko’s work slips between the abstract and the familiar, creating a unique and peculiar contemporary visual language.
Above: Malarko Shopfronts in Shoreditch, East London
