Tonight I was surprised to see a familiar face at my local gym. I was on doing some sit ups when I noticed a familiar face…it was the face of a warrior. A warrior that is every hero’s wing man/cohort. James Cosmo…yes, you may remember his face from such  famous films like ‘Brave Heart’ or ‘Troy’. I will admit that when I approached him I didn’t know his name. However; I knew he was an actor so I blurted out what movie I thought he was from without even thinking. That’s when I said, ” you were in Troy, right!?”… He was kind of silent for about 3 seconds…but those seconds felt like I was just about to make a complete ass out of myself. And then…. he said with a heavy accent, “ahh..yes, and I was in Brave Heart”. Whew…That was a close one…can you imagine if he was like…”um no..I wasn’t”. WHOOOPS!

Dope video…what do you guys think…?

This past weekend “33rd” in Los Angeles had live painting by artist such as Risk, Kofie, Mear and others. We stopped by for a minute to capture some of the activities taking place.

Risk

Mear

Kofie

That “R” looks like it’s jumping off the wall…

As the featured artist painted their pieces we looked on and admired their skills.During all the watching and wandering I had the great opportunity to meet “Dabs” and “Myla” from Australia. They happened to be in the building that day  to sign some posters. We chopped it up and said our farewells..Back to Australia they go. However; look out for a Civil exclusive interview with the two of them coming shortly. Here’s some of their work…just so you can get more familiar with them before the interview drops. Enjoy!

I was browsing the web last night and happen to cross over some old pictures of “Twist” (Barry Mcgee). Just thought I would share…

“Guru, a rapper from the pioneering hip-hop group Gang Starr, is in a coma after suffering a heart attack over the weekend; DJ Premier, the other half of Gang Starr, first confirmed the news on his Sirius Satellite Radio Show Sunday.” -Usmagazine

      Gangstar was a key source of ‘good’ hip-hop for me in high school. Some of my  high school days consisted of trying to educate people on what is “real” hip-hop. Even though I was no pioneer, I felt like being involved in the hip-hop/bboy culture made me a soldier for what I stood for. hahaha I guess I felt better  listeningto Gangstar instead of Nelly. It was just one of those things that separated you from the norm in high school trends. I mean…of course I wanted Nelly’s stuff to hit when I wanted to bump and grinndd…but…If  ’Full Clip’ turned on… 5 people would go nuts, but out of those five, I was included! Pushing people out of the way to get that circle going…but of course, they never played that at a high school dance. I would probably just have to settle and break dance to ‘Chronic 2001′, which wasn’t bad. Anyway; I’m just sharing  how Gangstar played a small role in my life.If you have a short story…lets hear it. Here’s a few of my favorite hits from Guru and Dj Premiere..GANGSTAR!

Friday, I had an opportunity to check out the opening reception of Haze’s gallery done in collaboration with Stussy, curated by Known Gallery. For those in the know, Haze really needs no introduction for his graff work in the streets of Manhattan’s West Side during the 70’s.

As an artist, it was no mystery what he wanted to set out to accomplish early on as a designer who roots were set in the Graff. From the streets of NY to artwork for the Beastie boys & EPMD, Haze’s handiwork can be seen and felt from many facets of differing cultures. His signaure handstyle and use of black and white, is instantly recognizable.

Going into the reception,the curation, exhibit and response were immense as well as refined. A lot of Ogs were in the building including: Revok, Mear, Abel, Risk. It was definitely nice to see the community gather together for such a fresh exhibit. The Stussy Haze collaboration project is an interesting one because it represents the union of two forces that have paid their dues in the grimey streets but continue to perpetuate to influence modern street culture and art, while having their roots etched very deep. Personally, I enjoy seeing Haze’s work on the street or a wall, where the subtle details of his work play on the context of its environment.

Cut Chemist was spinning some delicious Latin vinyl which set the mood.

One of the favorite pieces of the night…

Haze recap’s from Tokyo…