Stik’s characters filled the space beautifully

Still pretty busy at 10.30 pm

Jo Peel gets started earlier that day

Thanks to everyone that made it to The Rag Factory last Thursday. It was our third event in a row at the same location, we absolutely love it there but I think we’ll be doing our next event somewhere different. We feel comfortable there,  but there comes a time to leave your comfort zone behind.  We aim to keep things fresh, and part of that is finding new, interesting spaces to put on shows.

Special thanks to Jo Peel + Stik for agreeing to take part at such short notice. Jo’s live painting session was amazing, it was ambitious trying to paint such a huge piece in one day and although she didn’t quite manage it, we enjoyed watching her at work. We’ll invite her back to finish the piece at our next event. Stik’s cut-out figures looked great dotted around the room, at 8 foot tall they towered over the crowd and everyone seemed to enjoy interacting with them.

Image Courtesy of Stik

Thanks to everyone that came to the Ashes 57 show last Thursday – We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did.

In case you were wondering when the next show is, you don’t have long to wait. We’re back at The Rag Factory on Thursday, 5th August,  a mere fortnight after the last event!  This time we’re taking part in Time Out’s First Thursdays Program. We got the invitation on incredibly short notice, following the cancellation of another show. We decided to accept the invite, even though we only have a week to publicise it. So please, help us to spread the word.

We are showcasing the work of 2 new LAVA artists: Jo Peel and Stik. Jo Peel is a member of Scrawl Collective. She is based at Boot St Studios in Hoxton. This year she decorated The Park Bar at Glastonbury festival, and painted the roof of Cordy House amongst many other places. Her distinctive line drawings find beauty in scenes of urban decay and construction.

Stik is a prolific and talented street artist. His minimalist characters appear in countless poses and scenarios all over London. Each piece of his is highly site specific, painted with a sensitivity that makes them resonate with their surroundings. He is preparing a new piece especially for this show; we can’t wait to see what he comes up with.

http://www.jopeel.com/      http://www.flickr.com/photos/stiklondon

LAVA Collective presents: First Thursdays at The Rag Factory. Thursday, 5th August, 2010. 6pm-11pm  Free entry.   16 Heneage Street, London E1 5LJ

Loefah gets The Message. Photo: Ashes 57

We’re excited to announce that we’re heading back to The Rag Factory on 22nd July. This time we’re showcasing the photography of Ashes 57 – see the events page for details. It is going to be a cool show; so many beautiful photos in there. My personal favourites would have to be the portraits of Madlib and Benga, which are both stunning.  As her thousands of Flikr followers will testify, Ashes is a prolific and talented photographer with a massive back catalogue to choose from.

The Rag Factory is one of our favourite exhibition spaces and in many ways it suits us down to the ground. Situated just off Brick Lane, the location is good, and Silas and his merry band of brothers are really accommodating and friendly. The smoker-friendly courtyard is a valuable asset and it is a great place for a party!

This show is on for one night only; we’ll be open from 6-11pm. We’ve invited Standard Place resident Jon Rust to DJ at the event, with support from LAVA DJs .The dubstep fraternity will be out in force for this one, so don’t be surprised if some very special guests pop up behind the decks at some point. We’ll be serving up drinks in the courtyard – have a free one on us but if you’re planning on getting drunk, we’ll be taking donations at the bar.

Keep an eye out for the next issue of Rooms Magazine – It has a piece on LAVA Collective and an interview with Talita Hoffmann. We were also involved with the Rooms Magazine Launch Party, where Jo Peel represented LAVA at the live paint event.

Rooms is a really cool little magazine, available in many shops and bars around the East End and beyond. Their first issue contained some striking artwork by Aya Kakeda, and I loved the section on Lewis Cambell, an artist I had never encountered before. There is also a double page spread from our very own Ashes 57, plus plenty more besides.

It has been fun collaborating with Rooms on the forthcoming issue. We are like-minded organisations with a lot in common and we hope to do another project with them before too long.

Bikers congregate in front of an Obey street piece

Big in the game: Russell Simmons attends the opening

Shepard Fairey at The Deitch Projects

LAVA artist Ashes 57 recently returned from NYC. She was there with the Obey crew, who were helping Shepard Fairey set up his May Day show at the Deitch Projects. Ashes was there primarily to document the event, and true to form, she took some fantastic photos. You can see the full set here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ashes_57/

New York turned out in force to attend this event; the opening reception witnessed crowd swells more akin to a rock concert than an art show. Meanwhile, it seems that Fairey has gone on the counter-offensive, with a major court case looming large on the horizon:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/10/arts/design/10fair.html

Photo courtesy of Graff à Dénoyez: (http://graffadenoyez.blogspot.com/)

Roa is so prolific on the streets of London that you would be forgiven for thinking he lives here. In fact he lives in Ghent, which is in the Flemish region of Belgium. His work really speaks for itself, so I will spare you a lengthly eulogy. His show at Pure Evil last month was great, but to really experience the full force of Roa’s work, you need to see it in the street. My favourite at the moment is the one on Hanbury Street, on the way to the Atlantis art supplies shop. The scale and intensity of his work is amazing.

The Rag Factory show was over in the blink of an eye, but fortunately we have found the perfect place to exhibit Bruno 9li and Talita Hoffmann’s work on a longer-term basis. This fantastic location, a closely guarded secret, is just a hop skip and a jump from LAVA headquarters in Dalston, East London.

If you’re into the discreet Dalston scene, you might be able to guess where it is; a lavish, bohemian hideaway not a million miles from Gillett Square. Dining clubs, sexy parties, you get the general idea. It will be a great place to display 9li and Hoffmann’s work, the show will run until 7th June.

Viewings are by appointment only, but don’t be shy; whether or not you are interested in buying one of the remaining canvases we would be more than happy to show you round.  To arrange a viewing, get in touch with us at: info@lavacollective.com

Photos: Helen Lenarduzzi & Gordon Gibbens

Thanks to everyone who made it to The Rag Factory over the bank holiday weekend.  I’m sure you’ll agree that it was a memorable show- Bruno 9li  and Talita Hoffmann lit up the East End with their extraordinary imagination and skill.

The opening reception on Thursday was pretty wild – props to Sagatiba and Vitamin Water for providing the drinks. It was a really buzzy event and the enthusiasm was evident, not just for  Bruno and Talita but also for our very own Ashes 57 and Vitriol, who showcased their work in Room 2.

Special thanks to Silas and the crew at The Rag Factory for their assistance setting up the show, it is a great environment in which to work and we hope to do another exhibition there before too long.

We still have some original art and prints left over from the show, email us if you want a copy of the catalogue: info@lavacollective.com.

STAR OF BETHNAL GREEN

Bruno 9li at The Rag Factory opens on Thursday at 7pm – check the events page for details. Sagatiba are sponsoring the opening reception, so we’ll be handing out free caipirinhas to our guests. But the fun doesn’t stop there…

After the opening reception, we’re heading to The Star of Bethnal Green for the afterparty. We have invited DJs Skipple and Crises to represent our sound, and we’ll be projecting 9li’s Video art as a visual accompaniment.

The Star is a lovely pub with a high grade soundsystem – We’re going to touch down with a dubstep / garage / funky session from 2 highly-rated pirate radio DJs. Skipple plays on Sub FM, while Crises has a weekly slot on Rinse FM, and both are getting well-known for rocking dancefloors in London and beyond.

The afterparty is from 10pm-2am, entrance is free.

LAVA Collective presents: Bruno 9li Afterparty
Thursday, 29th April, 10pm-2am, free entry
The Star of Bethnal Green
359 Bethnal Green Road E2 6LG

Director: Shane McNamara  Editor: Stephanie Tasker