Image slideshow
Welcome to Rome, the Eternal City founded by Romulus after deadly dispute with his twin brother Remus. This particular story of foundation can be considered a blessing or a curse depending on how you look at it…
Welcome to Rome, the City of the Vatican where two of the best architects in the world, Bernini and Borromini, lived and hated each other in perpetual personal and professional conflict; however, it was because of this conflict that they created what was to become know as Baroque sculpture and architecture.
Welcome to Rome, a city of heart, soul, competition, and rivalry. A city where people can discuss for days the results of a soccer match to finish a bet or put to an end a childhood friendship.
Anyway, as we learned in our interviews with the artists C215, Atalas, Sten, Lex, and JB Rock, size does matter.
So let’s talk about Out-Door, the event organized by the NuFactory where we have seen the works of the French artists C215 and l’Atlas as well as, of course, the Italians Jb Rock and stencil couple Sten & Lex.
We want to say, first and foremost, that we love these artists, as you can probably see by reading our website.
But we also love the kind of challenges that represent the core of Street culture…
Let’s start with a story:
Chapter one, over one month ago:
The story begins on May 5, 2010. In an old Roman neighborhood known as Garbatella, artists Sten & Lex covered an entire wall, 26 meters high (over 85 feet, that’s about nine-stories), of a building with the face of Francesco Totti, the most famous of the Roman soccer players (perhaps most famous of the Italian players in general). The 85 foot image of Totti grabbed media attention and filled the web with photos and comments about what was going what used to be a less than newsworthy neighborhood in Rome.
JB Rock produced a beautiful image of Italian Neorealism icon, film star Anna Magnani aka Nannarella. Not as large as the Romans’ beloved Captain, 7 x 6,5 meters (23 x 21 feet), people loved all the same. At the end of the day there was probably less media coverage, but don’t worry JB, you’re Roman, you should know that soccer trumps art and film any day in this town. It was probably more about the subject matter than the size anyway…
Chapter two, Today:
On Via dei Magazzini Generali, JB Rock is realizing a wall of 3,5 x 60 meters (11.5 x 197 feet) - all alone! And this time Sten & Lex are doing it smaller…
So maybe it is about size, because this time around the press has turned its attention and its cameras toward JB. His image uses the alphabet to guide the depictions of faces of famous people and of his family, for a total of 21 larger than life size portraits. It is a work about communication and representation in the public and private realms, and most certainly has caught our attention.
Both JB and Sten & Lex are working all night long (I know well because I pass by them every evening on my way home from work). Sten & Lex are painting a very sleek and sexy panther and a lady typical of their lovely anonymous portraits, which refer to both the allure and the danger of advertising in shared spaces.
This story between Sten & Lex and JB Rock, is one, I think, that we can call a friendly rivalry. No brotherly bloodshed here. Just a love of art and of the street. And maybe like Bernini and Boromini their tête-à-tête will bring to life some of the world’s best street art.
So if you are in Rome, make sure to come by via dei Magazzini Generali this evening for the closing party of Out-Door.
Recommended by Drago