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Coke Fiends, by Eli London

I am going to tell you something crazy. Except it’s not crazy. It makes perfect sense. It only sounds crazy because no one ever says it. I am going to say it now. Are you ready? Here it is…

All of it. Anywhere. Anytime. Completely. Illegal. Billboards. Pop ups. PR. On the train and on your phone. It should not exist. At all. Ever. Anywhere. I will say it again. ADVERTISING SHOULD BE ILLEGAL. If you disagree, as I am sure many of you do, first off, go to hell, second, before I begin, give me a single reason why it should exist. I’ll wait. Justify its existence for any purpose other than making more money for the already rich and powerful.

The truth is, there is none. Advertising does not help us, it hurts us, in many ways. It fills our shared public spaces with ugly images and messages to distract us, to bait us, to trick us into feeling dissatisfied and wanting more. And did anyone ever ask us, you, me, any of us, if we wanted to forfeit our space and our attention and ultimately our lives? Of course not, because we would have said fuck no.

To be very clear, advertising does not exist for us, it exists for owners of public space -- cities, real estate owners, and tech companies - to make money by selling that space to corporations who sell their products to us to in-turn buy more ad space, and so on. Owners of shared spaces and corporations benefit endlessly, and we, at no point, benefit at all. In fact, we are doubly fucked. First, we are sold, our eyes and ears and our minds, then we are sold products. In the end, we are the commodity.

What does it say about our elected officials and legislators that no one stops this insane, damaging cycle? Whose interests are they acting on behalf of? Even the most radical politician has never mentioned banning advertising. It’s unimaginable. Advertising is so pervasive, we cannot any longer conceive of a world without it. It is this loss of the notion of a world without ads that is the only justification for its existence. We’ve gotten used to it, basically, which is a horrible reason.

So, what would a world without ads look like? - open space, maybe, public art, or (gasp), nothing at all - and feel like, less distraction, less mental and physical clutter, a growing sense of satisfaction. 

Let’s say this world without advertising existed, as it should, then imagine someone suggesting covering all public and private space with images and taglines designed to manipulate you into purchasing goods and services you do not want or need. Would you think that sounded like a good idea? It would be universally deemed an absurd suggestion.

I am not saying the things we desire and want to pursue should not be available to us. If you want something, it should be available, and still would be. Don’t worry. I am not talking about regulating consumption. You can still get your face creams and blenders and branded tee shirts. You’ll still have stores you like and marketplaces you trust and favorite brands and all the shit you don’t need in bottomless quantities. But think of how much better it would be for consumers AND companies if there were no ads. Companies wouldn’t have to spend offensive amounts to compete. Products would have value because of their emotional or material quality, not because an agency was hired to come up with a brilliant campaign that taps into our individual and collective insecurity.

Advertising knows it’s wrong. It is aware, more than anyone, of its own nefarious nature. This is true of every field. Every industry knows its own darkside better even than its harshest critics. But the existence of a darkside suggests a light side which advertising does not have. It’s fully dark.

It should not exist. There is an apologetic undertone to all ads, trying desperately to fit in, to be casual, to not let down the fourth wall, the layers of rounds of revisions and money spent to make it appear what it is not, a naturally occurring part of the physical and mental landscape. It tries, ultimately, to sneak in the room without being noticed, like a thief. Only something so twisted would have to work so hard to simply appear normal. Advertising admits its own fault, always, and we admit it too. 

After all, there are forms of advertising that are already illegal, advertising using subliminal messaging was deemed too manipulative long ago, admitting all advertising is at least somewhat manipulative. But how much manipulation is okay? How much brainwashing is ok? How much violence? How much rape? How much personal invasion? I have an idea. How about none.

No one asked for the landscape of our lives to be bombarded constantly with carefully curated campaigns, images and messages with one aim, to manipulate us. Why would we? No one forfeited ownership of shared public or private space. Why would we? We were never even asked. It was simply stolen from us, and we got used to it. Well, it’s time to take it back. If you see ads, and, to be clear, you do, many of them, all the time, everywhere, burn those motherfuckers down, deface them, rip them from the frame, scrawl over them in spray paint. The fact that these petty acts are considered criminal while the massive scale of theft and manipulation of the advertising industry is considered standard is, like so many things, completely backwards.



Public space is yours. Your mind is yours. Your wellbeing is yours.

TAKE IT BACK

NYC Street vendors are in almost every corner of the city – easily ignored, but as quintessentially New York as yellow cabs. They deserve to be celebrated. 

One night I was in a bad mood getting my computer fixed at the Fifth Avenue Apple store and as I walked out I noticed a hot dog cart standing in the middle of the darkness, shining a heavenly light. That image is what inspired this series. I posted it right away on Instagram with the caption, “The heart of this city sells hot dogs on the street at 3 in the morning,” and I think it really sums up the intersection of beauty and realness I sought to capture in this publication.

Cart 1

Most street vendors are independent business owners, running these carts as a primary means of income. Many vendors are also immigrants using this as way to create a life in America. It’s important that we don’t take these symbols of opportunity for granted as they represent more than just a meal on the side of the street. My grandparents immigrated into this country through Ellis Island and they made their lives here. I’m proud to say that I’m an Italian-American born in New York. The greatest thing about this city is the fact that we all meet here.

I’ve spent most of my childhood away from New York and I always felt like a fish out of water, ready to get back home. Growing up, my family would come back here to celebrate every holiday. When my dad used to take me into the city, he’d tell me two things: First, he’d say, “Max, pick the most fleabag looking pizza place you can find and I guarantee it’s gonna be the best pizza you’ve ever had in your life.” Then, as we walked the streets together, he’d say, “I’ll buy you a fake Rolex.” I could never tell if he was joking or dead serious but these are two things that I’ll never forget, and I never did get that Rolex. But that’s what’s so great about this city, that it’s about the people and the realness, not the fancy buildings or the tourist attractions. The city is on the streets. 

Wide

Maxwell Schiano

Two up

For this first edition of my print series, I’ve decided to donate all the proceeds to the Street Vendor Project so that they may continue to protect vendors and preserve and essential part of this city. A large majority of vendors are undocumented, independent business owners who were left out of financial relief and had to continue working despite the growing fear and risk of the virus. 

This is why it’s important that we support the businesses and people that make this city great. We need to step up and nurture our community through these tough times.

Two up 2

. All net proceeds will be donated to the Street Vendor Project. To learn more about the Street Vendor Project visit their 

wideee

wide rain

ZINE

, his work leapt off the screen. I was immediately interested in knowing more about his process and the ideas that propel his creativity. Jack is an artist from Melbourne, Australia, with a focus on Digital Art, 3D design, and traditional mediums like copic markers. 

LAB 1

This above image was my first encounter with your work. Incredible! I could get lost looking at this for hours. Can you describe the genesis of this idea and the process of creating it?

I think I go through periods with my work where I feel like I'm stagnating, and this work essentially came out of a practice session where a wanted to practice my perspective, and show my self that I had progressed from a similarly-themed painting many, many years ago. 

I wanted to explore a bolder colour pallette than I traditionally use, but I had intended to leave it as a flat coloured piece. However, I tempted myself with a little bit of shading early on. A piece this complex and detailed I think become exhausting very quickly unless you can keep it interesting.

I started on the left hand side, and as an artist when it dawns on you how much work that one corner took it becomes apparent that the rest of the work (which is much much much bigger) will likely take even longer. It immediately becomes daunting, because I think in your head you can see what it would look like. 

Would you say you have a pretty clear image of what the final result will be in your mind before you begin? Or do you let the work evolve in front of you? Or more a mixture of both?

I wish I could say one way or the other - it would be a lot more predictable! But no, I tend to jump around a lot. My little buildings that kind of blew up online a few years back were purely an extrapolation of an exercise I use to get through a blank canvas. I draw a blob and then draw what I can see in that blob.

Details

Makes a lot of sense. Where did this all begin for you? Was there a moment you fell in love with creation?

I think I had always intended as a kid to be anything but an artist, as both of my parents are artists. My mum is a playwright and my dad is an actor / writer. But later on in highschool, I discovered the artwork that drives film and games and became more interested in the craft. 

Cave

Amazing! Did you parents encourage or discourage you from this path? Or did they let you figure it out on your own?

My parents were really encouraging of what ever I did - I think they were pretty shocked I was fairly decent at maths. I think geometry always sat well with me. 

When I was in highschool I moved to a smaller town with my mum to look after my grandmother - I basically moved from a public school to a private school - which was a 

I was getting bloody noses almost every day for six weeks- not from any sort of violence- just pure stress. And while I don't have very many positive things to say about that school- the art department was like a dream. We had to get a bus from the main school to get there and it very quickly became a refuge for me. 

Most of my other grades kind of suffered, but I consistently put all of my effort into art and visual design and I think that was when i realised I couldn't really do anything else.

Space Cave

MArquee

Let’s get back to this game idea. I’m also very deeply inspired by the world of games. I think it’s a function of growing up through all these different systems- from the pixel art style to immersive 3D worlds. What games have you drawn inspiration from over the course of your life?

I mean the funny thing is I didnt really have a games console until I was going to university. I was deeply obsessed with games though, I basically consumed them vicariously hrough going to friends houses or playing them with my cousins over the holidays.

I fell in love properly with video games with Black and White, the Peter Molyneux game. That game has stuck with me as an inspiration since I first saw it. I also loved a lot of the games on the N64- Banjo Kazooie 1/2, Zelda Occarina of Time, that was actually the first game that I  finished to the end.

3 UP TALL

A lot of my artwork is quite fantastical and otherworldy so I think games have definitely had influence on that. I work in games now, and also studied game design at university. I think the way they've influenced me now though is they make me want to inject fun and interactivity into my art. 

Not literal interactivity per say, but for example. with this most recent work, I think the thing that had me actually finish it was this: I was thinking about people looking at the piece and trying to discover details and story from the piece and thats actually kind of how games work. For example, in Bioshock (which was also a big influence on me), you come into a world and you have to piece it together based on contextual clues and environment design. Maybe it's because that's what I do for actual work, that these ideas have made their way into my personal work as well. 

Legends

What is your advice to a young creative who is trying to make the leap to a life of creativity and exploration of art?

I think with any sort of art or creativity you need to find what keeps the process fun for you.

I used to tell other artists to study anatomy or perspective drawing - but I think thats bullshit. Like they're useful tools but they're dry, dull things that are exciting for some people- and if thats what makes creating stuff fun for you, cool! But don't just focus on that at the expense of actually enjoying the process of making things. 

I met this artist in Montreal in 2014 who basically told me to stop stressing with my art and how perfect or not perfect it is and just draw and enjoy the process. 

I'm paraphrasing, but his input shifted how I thought about art- he taught me how to just draw what I was seeing and trust in my hand and eye to guide me in what I was doing.  

Moon Pink

Blood

Sins

I think the other thing is to remember every painting, drawing, 3d model etc goes through an ugly period- and half the battle of art making is getting through that. 

So to summarize: have fun, study and absorb other mediums, do lots of research, have fun, finish your pieces, and have fun! I really can't emphasize the fun part enough. Thats how you finish things. 

City 1

Sketch Book 

Great insights from a talented artist. Make sure to check out 

, who is working on some amazing projects- notably his environmental portraiture series of female ironworkers. RJ is a commercial photographer living in St. Louis Missouri, and we caught up about the project and the thinking behind it. 

GROUP WIDE

I’d love to hear more about the genesis of this project. How did this project come about?

I started this project in 2018 right I was starting in new studio space. Whenever I change environments, I like to imagine an idea for a new project in that space. I always start with really loose parameters around what I want the work to be, and then I take a step back and look for a good story. This can take a lot of time and some projects never manifest. I think a photographers ability to find good stories and new perspectives is one of our best skills, so from a creative standpoint this was that practice.


It wasn’t until I met a few of these amazing women hanging out at my favorite local bar, The Whiskey Ring, that I got the idea to build the project around these women and the unique work they do. After some brainstorming together we got a bunch of the ladies to the studio for a session after their shift. We also did a day at their training facility so we could get shots of them using their tools and showcasing a few of the skills you learn when you start your journey as an ironworker.

3 then wide

It was interesting to learn that only about 2% of ironworkers are female. That accounts for roughly 2000 workers nationwide in this particular trade. The ladies explained that they had started getting together outside of work. They described it as "creating a sisterhood amongst this brotherhood” of laborers. They called themselves the Iron Maidens. This camaraderie is what ignited the idea of doing the shoot and got us all excited to begin.

Three

That’s a beautiful, serendipitous, origin story for the project, perhaps that is why the images hold such power. The choice of black and white also adds to this power. What made you decide to shoot these in monochrome?

We setup this shoot at the studio right after the ladies got off work. It was important to try and capture the dirt and small traces of a hard day so I felt like monochrome was the best way to bring that out. I was also thinking a lot about how I wanted to print the photos. I was doing a lot of prints on pearl at the time and I really love how the black and white shimmers on that paper.

Climb

Well put. Portraiture is so much about the relationship between the artist and the subject. How did your familiarity with the subjects themselves inform the way you shot the images? We’re you able to get a more authentic window into their world because you had prior proximity to them?

Yeah, I think the most important aspect with that was to just to listen and be sure I was telling the story they wanted to tell. Each one of these women had a different experience. Some joined the ironworkers because their whole family had been in the trade, some were artist looking to find a career change, others had been ironworkers in other states and came to specialize. One thing was clear, they all wanted to encourage more diversity and inclusion within the trades.


They all were passionate about inspiring the next generation of women who dared to do this job. It reminded me of 

. Rosie is an 85 year old illustrated icon. These images, and the emotion and feeling these ladies brought to the shoot, helped inform the idea that we could update an icon like Rosie with real faces.

Smoke

That’s a beautiful sentiment. When did your journey with photography begin?

I started photographing right after I finished my business degree in St. Louis. I was working at a startup, the startup went under and I picked up a my camera and started trying to get gigs to supplement my income. Shooting constantly was important. I’ve always had a creative outlet so photography came pretty naturally.

Like a lot of folks, photography started for me as a way to meet people through social media and in 2014 I spent a year traveling and got a few opportunities to work for bigger brands. I came back to St. Louis and was eager to setup my business and try being my own boss.

RJ Hartbeck

HAts

You’ve raised an interesting pint about social media. I feel like so many of my greatest creative friendships were enabled by social media, but also social media has a lot of pitfalls. What are some pros and cons of being an online creative?

I don’t know if I’d say that I can point to specific list of pros and cons about starting a creative career online, or using it to your advantage, the pros and cons are always changing online. I think social media is a powerful resource, especially for creatives. It’s a great place to connect with your peers, market yourself, and share your perspective... but it won’t teach you how to build a business around your creativity. For me, building my business takes constant learning and lots of resolve for when you have to face challenges.

Big thanks to RJ Hartbeck for sumbitting this work to our community and being so open with his knowledge. Make sure to connect with him via 

New Yorkers have been uncapping fire hydrants since the “Great Heat Wave of 1896,” which resulted in 1300 deaths in a 10 day span from heat exhaustion. 124 years later, this tradition of uncapping fire hydrants is still going strong . I’ve been documenting it with my camera over these past couple of weeks.

Its not entirely legal, but it's generally tolerated, especially on these piping hot Brooklyn summer days. People in the neighborhood have tools that they’ve concocted to open the hydrants.

Three up Kids

I’ve lived in Brooklyn for 8 years now, and to me, the first official day of a New York summer is when I see the first fire hydrant uncapped. Whether its a car just slowing down to get a free car wash, a dog getting a fresh sip of water, or people playing in the hydrants as if it were a waterpark attraction; one thing for sure is that it brings so much joy to the neighborhood.

Sierra 

Something I learned: If you reach out to the fire department, a local fireman will install or lend you a spray cap (for free) to reduce your local hydrant’s flow and waste less water. While a spray cap may feel more like a sprinkler on a suburban lawn than a specular street-level waterpark, it does help find a happy medium with your eco-friendly neighbors.

Wides 50/50

Jerm Cohen

 A7RIII. This project was a little risky to shoot since my camera would get pretty wet to get some of these shots.

Three up Kid

Three Up shoot

I've been very drawn to collage work lately, and when I came across the work of 

, I knew I wanted to learn more about his process. We caught up this week about his ideas and process working with remixed imagery and various media types. 

It's so nice to be speaking with you. To begin, can you introduce yourself to our community? 

My name's Jimmy aka Cover Art Guy, I'm from London and I work primarily on collage designs. 

2 UP SPACE

I absolutely love the way you combine and remix images, building complete ideas out of disparate parts. Where did this creative journey begin for you?

Thank you! Ever since I started working on design projects I had a process of piecing together different images from different sources. It wasn't until about a year ago when I quit a corporate job to try and make a career out of it that I saw collage art as an outlet for this. I love puzzling out pieces and creating something from images that would have otherwise been put to one side.

2 UP PASTEL

That’s a great explanation, you are breathing new life into visual ideas that might otherwise be forgotten, and through your efforts they survive and take on new meaning.

I also left a corporate job in favor of the freelance life. What sparked this transition for you and how has it changed your day to day life?

I finished university and went straight into a series of corporate gigs to pay the rent, they were always pretty well paid but never gave me any satisfaction. I saved a little bit of money for a few months rent and took the leap as I decided there was no better time than right now to try and further my career and try something new.

Freelancing is WAY more time consuming than the 9-5 life, a typical day I wake up around 6am and begin working at 7-8. Usually I'm working 12 hours or more on client work, social media, personal designs & prints. The difference is I'm enjoying that time more than the time I was spending in an office.

PAINTINGS

Yeah well put. I find the same advantages, Id rather work harder and be my own boss. Personal freedom I’ve always prioritized over job security

Absolutely! Having no stable income always drives me to push myself further as well I find.

So do you work by hand, digitally, or some combination of both?

I try to do a combination of both! I have a lot of days where the creativity isn't flowing so I'll switch between the two depending on that. I keep a load of old magazines and an image bank on my computer, a lot of the time the physical elements blend into the digital ones. 

UMBRELLA

Awesome. Amazing how much technology we have access to these days. So aside from other collage artists, from what media sources do you draw inspiration? What inputs do you have mentally that may inform some of the work you create?

It really goes back to old magazines and visuals from the 50s, 60s and 70s. I get a lot of inspiration from old advertisements from that era. The fashion and design choices in those magazines are so alien to what we use today so I really like bringing back some of those elements and stylistic choices and seeing how I can make them appealing today.

I'm lucky enough to be surrounded by some amazing artists on Twitter too, we all bounce off each other for ideas all the time and find inspiration from that. Shoutout 

 and the rest of the art cult group btw. 