As I was having an aimless walk in the neighbourhood, I lately bumbed into the Metanoia show (previously advertized on the blog) as well as Patrick Sullivan, the owner of the space, P.J.S. Exhibitions. An interesting meeting.

Patrick was born in Ireland. For the first two years of his life, Sullivan and his family lived on a farm in the small town of Kenmare. After immigrating to the U.S., the Sullivans resided in Westchester County, NY for four years then packed up and moved to New York City. Sullivan began his academic career at The Trevor Day School and finished at The Beekman School. Although he attended these institutions, both prestigious and educational in a conventional sense, Sullivan was also learning lessons from the city itself, continually drawing inspiration from street art around him. Around age 16, influenced by his family’s own collection and intrigued by the vibrancy of urban life, his interest in art evolved into passion. Since 2005, Sullivan’s been dividing his time between New York and Miami, mostly for buying and spectator purposes. His travels have awarded him the opportunity to not only meet and work with a handful of successful galleries, but to secure his relationships in the world of art dealing. For the past several years he’s been working with Art Watch, a program dedicated to prevent the over-restoration of paintings. After graduating from Christie’s Certificate Program in Modern Art, Connoisseurship and the History of the Art Market in June 2009, Sullivan has developed a keen eye for admiring and appreciating various media of artist expression. P.J.S. Exhibitions will be home to a series of exhibits, rotating every 45 days with a diverse selection of emerging artists’ work. Sullivan’s gallery will highlight work from photographers, tattoo artists and jewelry designers, amongst others, with every fourth exhibit aiming to benefit a non-profit cause.

METANOIA, ” a positive psychological re-building”, is constituted by a selection of works by Ryan Bonilla, Chris O’Donnell, Josh Egnew, Thomas Hooper, Jason June and Stephanie Tamez.
The show is taking place on 238 West 14th Street, between 7th & 8th Avenue, until August 29th.

Last week we escaped the 24/7 BedStuy heat by taking a day trip to Coney Island. We’ve still got two Polar Bear tickets burning a hole in our board shorts but we’ve opted to save Beyoncé in hyper drive for a later date. Instead we’re headed to the Jersey Shore to see what kind of freak shows she has in store on her boardwalks. Mural by SSUR.

On the second day I woke up late, slightly jetlagged (like I usually woke up earlier). Catch up with Gary, get to the restaurant of the standard hotel, exchange a few text messages with Estevan Oriol, wait for him to arrive to order our lunch. Estevan arrives, gives me a copy of his stunning “LA women” book, we exchange friendly introductory words on business, life, Hip Hop, Art and fashion while having our hamburgers. Then Estevan offers to take us on a trip to his shop “Last Laugh”. We accept, get to a pick up of a size probably violates any european limitation, drive through downtown as we discover Estevan’s taste for british urban music. Last Laugh is an impressively tastefully set up local where Mr Cartoon sells a selection of classic LA urban items such as pendelton shirts and customized baby buggies. A second room is dedicated to Estevan’s “Joker” brand and a backroom hosts a tattoo studio. We are introduced to Estevan’s exquisitely serviceable assistant Flaco and Estevan offers to take us to the infamous S.A. studio. Like degenerated Alices, Gary and myself fall through a delirious rabbit hole as Estevan drives through LA’s very own Skid Row, zigzagging among crackheads while Jamma’s sub-basses tickle our sinuses. As we park in front of the SA studios, I start to realize what SA studios are. Estevan and Mr cartoon’s office, but I am still very far from imagining what is coming next. As we enter, and roam the ground floor, Estevan introduces us to his own and Mr Cartoon’s collection of low riders. If anyone had asked me before that day if I had already seen a real Low Rider, I would have certainly negligently given the answer “yes”, but the truth would have been “no”. What the two european kids discovered there would probably a Dan Graham’s delirium tremens, but it most certainly was for the a dozen years of hip hop- and americano-mania’s (read: “obsession”) once-in-a-lifetime pinnacle. Then i notice that I didn’t take my newly acquired Mark II and that my old G10 is about to run out of battery. Shit

I must stop writing now, it is 100degrees Fahrenheit in NY, my computer is burning. The journey goes on, more soon.

I am in the middle of a pretty massive editing work on all the images I shot in LA. Just another preview to keep you waiting! (Shot at the AS studios, one of Mr Cartoon’s Customized vans and Estevan Oriol’s 64 Impala.)

Last day of Ed Templeton’s photography show in association with Slam City Skates at Elms Lesters Painting Rooms in London today, 12-6pm.

This weekend, SB contributor Estevan Oriol was in Rome in order to launch his new book, L-A WOMAN, published by Drago.

Below, during our visit of in the Chiesa di Sant’Ignazio di Loyola a Campo Marzio, which is a Roman Catholic titular church dedicated to Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Jesuit order.

photography by Jean L’Olivier

I am fascinated with popular or generally functional clothing much more than the fancy, elite one. It is the Uniform vs Couture. Probably one of the reasons for my appeal to the “british fashion”, much more popular, style-orientated, as opposed to the “french fashion”, full of codes and a history few people have access to.

Among others, i have always had a love/hate relation to bombers. Around here, they are very generally perceived as linked to extreme right-wing subcultures, while in america, they are simply a widespread popular garment. No need to say that the stylistic projections I abstractly make on such an item while watching The Wire find themselves severely jeopardized when confronted to an environment that’s in a general style-denial like the little swiss town i find myself in these days.

I dream about a blog that would explore the history and repertory the uses and codes linked to popular clothes, and daring to also explore their occurrences in black-american cultures, french “banlieue” styles and so on. If such a thing exists, please let me know.

But until someone does it for me or I find some time to start it myself, here are two links to blogs already taking it slightly to that direction:

http://eworkers.blogspot.com/

This one I found a link to on Thomas Hooper’s website. It is pretty serious and well done. Let the images speak for themselves, because unless you’re japanese speaking, not even google-language tools can save you!

The other one is:

http://www.drygoodsandassortedsundries.com/
Much more fashion orientated, but I appreciate the angle it is taking on clothing-blogging.

And just for the hell of it: a very non extreme right-wing use of a bomber.