Loading...Text: Inaya Graciana Yusuf Images Courtesy of Inaya, Maxwell Collete Gallery, and GAIA.
| The street art culture is constantly expanding and a handful of artists have taken it to another level. Gaia is one of those artists that have put a lot of passion, talent and originality to make impressive large-scale renderings of wheat-pasted posters and hand-painted imagery throughout various urban environments. Currently based in Baltimore, this native New Yorker lives a double life: canvassing abandoned buildings, off-limit areas and sidewalks for creative exploration while finishing up his final year at Maryland Institute College of Arts (MICA). Beyond pioneering his work in the streets, Gaia is an artist who seeks an interesting canvas or medium beyond the common urban wall.
As a 22-year-old creatively charged artist, Gaia identifies tremendously with his chosen pseudonym for it represents his deep infatuation for anthropomorphism (animals) as the fundamental subject of his art. “Gaia” is the goddess of the earth in Greek mythology that naturally idealizes the spirit of civilization and beauty. Through art, both within his studio practice and outside in the streets, he not only inspires but also unveils the hidden realities of life through conceptual ideas and symbols. Inculcated with the principals of metaphoric language, Gaia at present uses art historical and religious references to elucidate instinctive responses to visual iconography as well as emphasize nostalgia for Greek mythology. His eclectic work takes form of human and animal hybridization that often layers spiritual, mythological and cultural symbology. Each work he produces is suitable for framing its own poetic connotations and as a collective, it represents not only what each artist strives to accomplish, but it shows what the goal of his efforts are. In short, these realistic illustrations highlight the notion of duality and survey the on-going question of morals, rights and authorities. Undoubtedly, it is quite impressive how much he has grown throughout the years bridging traditional art school techniques such as linoleum blockprinting and screenprinting with the prolific application on the streets. Growing up in New York, he is no stranger to the powerful superiority of street art across all mediums. Artists such as Elbow-Toe and Swoon have deeply influenced his art. As an aspect of this multifaceted effort, he has been actively photographing his work as a method of self-archiving, promotion and marketing. Afar the subject of street art being temporary, he is an artist who has clearly been inspired by the bustling streets within each city he interacts with; he takes his work up a notch by infusing it with rich cultural heritage and the trappings of geo-political realities. During his residency in Seoul, he trained his palette on the amalgamation of Western collective ideal into traditional Eastern practices—providing an intimate and revealing essence of everything from the Korean ancient way of life to the contemporary religious transition. Nevertheless, Gaia pushes his artistic endeavors further when he found himself venturing Chicago, a city where the debate over art vs. vandalism has raged for ages. Yet, despite the mayor’s antipathy for graffiti and street art, his esoteric art quickly took over the city. Besides, it is that very essence of illegality that stimulates his intellectual or artistic outputs and simultaneously keeps the adrenaline pumping. To an extent, his recent visit inspired him to enhance the Chicago’s visual kaleidoscope by papering specific sites that allured him the most: Humboldt Park, the West Side, and the Cabrini Green Building. Teaming up with Maxwell Colette Gallery and Pawn Works respectively, Gaia extended his presence from the public space, echoing his oeuvre into the conventional setting of a commercial gallery. His most recent exhibition, Resplendent Semblance showcases new, large scale paintings and decollage on wood that imbibe the emergent logic and romanticization of street art. Using any combination of techniques to create images, he pushes the role of the artist as social commentator and encourages reconsideration of art and society in the past years. |
Moreover, without compromising the message, the artwork hung on the walls function as an alternative platform of expression and storytelling. While creating an immersive installation throughout both spaces and unifying all divergent thought process, the show weaves in his eloquent dialogue on finding balance between the gallery scene and the street. Gaia actively pursues his blossoming career as a young visionary, enlisting different opportunities in his effort to create an artistic renaissance through collaborative art and cultural exhibits, gatherings and performance. Indeed, he is among the circle of productive talents that stands at an important intersection of the arts in the United States and United Kingdom. He was included in shows at Ad Hoc Art, Black Rat Press, Carmichael Gallery, Factory Fresh and Irvine Contemporary. His work is discussed and featured in books such as Untitled: Street Art in the Counter Culture, Untitled II.The Beautiful Renaissance: Street Art and Graffiti, Street Art New York, Brooklyn Street Art and Beyond the Street: The 100 Leading Figures in Urban Art. Deeply enmeshed in the process, Gaia instigates and conceptualizes various projects, making it happen either on his own efforts or collaboratively with close friends and acquaintances. Video Interview via What Weekly: Video/CABRINI GREEN documentation via Brock Brake: For more images and information on the artist check out his website, and his personal documentation at flickr. |
