HVW8 Art + Design Gallery presents: Original Installation and Work by Raif Adelberg
F**K I LOVE YOU LOS ANGELES
October 2, 2010- November 1, 2010
Opening Reception Saturday October 2nd 7:30 -10pm
HVW8 Art + Design Gallery
661 N. Spaulding Ave. Los Angeles, California
p. 1 323 655 4898
www.hvw8.com
www.raifadelberg.com
www.fuckiloveyoushop.com
with Support from American Rag Cie, the Standard, PBR
Hours: Tuesday – Sunday, 1 PM – 6 PM & by appointment
Step inside the HVW8 Gallery and see artist / designer Raif Adelberg transform the space into a punk rock flophouse.
Channeling CBGB, Barbara Kruger, and Vivienne Westwood, the space Raif creates is called Dead Boys Clubhouse.
It’s an environmental space that pops up around the world and creates this incestuous gang.
Bratty, caustic, and in-your-face, that’s the surface of Adelberg’s art, pop imagery that comes together in paintings and silkscreens on canvas, wood, paper and clothing. But look a little closer and you will see that FUCK I LOVE YOU is all about perception and free will. “To look at things in a negative light is a choice. When you get upset you’re really relinquishing your power to the subject matter. It’s all about the power of choice,” he says.
While Adelberg’s intent isn’t to shock you, he also won’t mind if you are…and you wouldn’t be the first. At a recent show in London (Doyle Devere Gallery) he grabbed the attention of the local bobbies who demanded that the words “FUCK I LOVE YOU” on the gallery walls inside be covered up. “It’s interesting that such a positive message can be viewed in such a negative light, I think more people need to say FUCK I LOVE YOU. Its amazing to me a simple gesture can receive such a reaction either way,” says Adelberg.
Statement
DEAD BOYS:
The Dead Boys were an American punk band from Cleveland, Ohio. Among one of the first bands to play punk rock, the band was initially active from 1976 to 1979, they reunited several times until a so far permanent break-up in 2005. Moving to New York City at the encouragement of Joey Ramone, the Ramones’ lead singer, the Dead Boys quickly gained notoriety for their outrageous live performances. They frequently played at the legendary rock club CBGB and in 1977 they released their debut album, Young, Loud and Snotty, produced by Genya Ravan. Their song “Sonic Reducer” is often regarded as one of the classics of the punk genre, with Allmusic calling it “one of punk’s great anthems.”
CLUBHOUSE:
Main Entry: club·house Pronunciation: /klŭbhous/ Function: noun Date: 1746
1. A sort of community center for people with mental disabilities. Ideally, people can reside somewhere
else and go to the clubhouse during the day for practice in basic skills that might get them a job – yard
work, secretarial skills, cooking and cleaning, etc…
2. A building that is occupied by a social club
PUNK:
Main Entry: 1punk Pronunciation: /pŭngk/ Function: noun Etymology: origin unknown Date: 1596
1. Archaic: PROSTITUTE
2. [probably partly from 3punk]: NONSENSE, FOOLISHNESS
3. a. A young inexperienced person: BEGINNER, NOVICE; especially: a young man b: a usually petty
gangster, hoodlum, or ruffian
4. A young person, especially a member of a rebellious counterculture group.
5. A style or movement characterized by the adoption of aggressively unconventional and often bizarre or
shocking clothing, hairstyles, makeup, etc., and the defiance of social norms of behaviour, usually
associated with punk rock musicians and fans.
READ MORE:
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed the perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock. They created fast, hard-edged music, typically with short songs, stripped-down instrumentation, and often political, anti-establishment lyrics. Punk embraces a DIY (do it yourself) ethic, with many bands self-producing their recordings and distributing them through informal channels.
By late 1976, bands such as the Ramones, in New York City, and the Sex Pistols and The Clash, in London, were recognized as the vanguard of a new musical movement. The following year saw punk rock spreading around the world. Punk quickly, though briefly, became a major cultural phenomenon in the United Kingdom. For the most part, punk took root in local scenes that tended to reject association with the mainstream. An associated punk subculture emerged, expressing youthful rebellion and characterized by distinctive clothing styles and a variety of anti-authoritarian ideologies.
The classic punk rock look among male U.S. musicians harkens back to the T-shirt, motorcycle jacket, and jeans ensemble favored by American greasers of the 1950s associated with the rockabilly scene and by British rockers of the 1960s. The cover of the Ramones’ 1976 debut album, featuring a shot of the band by Punk photographer Roberta Bayley, set forth the basic elements of a style that was soon widely emulated by rock musicians both punk and nonpunk. Richard Hell’s more androgynous, ragamuffin look—and reputed invention of the safety-pin aesthetic—was a major influence on Sex Pistols impresario Malcolm McLaren and, in turn, British punk style. McLaren’s partner, fashion designer, Vivienne Westwood, credits Johnny Rotten as the first British punk to rip his shirt, and Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious as the first to use safety pins. Early female punk musicians displayed styles ranging from Siouxsie Sioux’s bondage gear to Patti Smith’s “straight-from-the-gutter androgyny”. The former proved much more influential on female fan styles. Over time, tattoos, piercings, and metal-studded and -spiked accessories became increasingly common elements of punk fashion among both musicians and fans. The typical male punk haircut was originally short and choppy; the Mohawk later emerged as a characteristic style. Those in hardcore scenes often adopt a skinhead look.
In eastern Canada, the Toronto protopunk band Dishes had laid the groundwork for another sizable scene, and a September 1976 concert by the touring Ramones had catalyzed the movement. Early Ontario punk bands included The Diodes, The Viletones, The Battered Wives, The Demics, Forgotten Rebels, Teenage Head, The Poles, and The Ugly. Along with the Dishrags, Toronto’s The Curse and B Girls were North America’s first all-female punk acts. In July 1977, the Viletones, Diodes, and Teenage Head headed down to New York City to play a four-day showcase at CBGB. Punk rock was already beginning to give way there to the anarchic sound of what became known as No Wave, although several original punk bands continued to perform. Leave Home, the Ramones’ second album, had come out in January. September saw Richard Hell and The Voidoids’ first full-length, Blank Generation. The Heartbreakers’ debut, L.A.M.F., and the Dead Boys’, Young, Loud and Snotty, appeared in October; the Ramones’ third, Rocket to Russia, in November. The Cramps, whose core members were from Sacramento by way of Akron, had debuted at CBGB in November 1976, opening for the Dead Boys. They were soon playing regularly at Max’s Kansas City. The Misfits formed in nearby New Jersey; by 1978, they had developed a style known as horror punk.
WELCOME TO DEAD BOYS CLUBHOUSE
About HVW8 Art + Design Gallery
Established in 2005 in Los Angeles by Tyler Gibney with Addison Liu, the HVW8 Art + Design Gallery is a studio/gallery space for HVW8 and friends, and based around the spirit of collaboration. The current mandate is supporting avant-garde graphic design such as Dutch designer/illustrator Parra (April 2007 + April 2009), American designer Brent Rollins (August 2007), Swedish design SSON (Sept 2007), Kevin Lyons (June 2008), Ray Noland (August 2008), the Enjoi Pop-Up Shop (March 2009), Michael, Kevin and Geoff (Michael Leon, Kevin Lyons and Geoff McFetridge Nov. 2009), the Megane Zine exhibition featuring Ed Templeton (Jan. 2010), Mos Def Ecstatic Moments (Feb. 2010) and most recently The Disaster show featuring Lance Mountain, Thomas Yu and Skypager.
Upcoming Artists/Exhibitions include Charles Munka (Ques), Noah Butkus, Bill McMullen, Brent Rollins, Dust La Rock, Grotesk, Free Gums and Swifty.
The Gallery is located at 661 N. Spaulding Ave., West Hollywood, Ca. 90036. Ph. 323 655 4898, Tuesday through Sunday, Open 1 to 6pm.
Artists:
Parra
Geoff McFetridge
Kevin Lyons
Michael Leon
Brent Rollins
Lance Mountain
Skypager
Winston Tseng
HVW8 Art Installation
Thomas Yu
To purchase or inquire about any works please contact Tyler Gibney at Tyg(at)hvw8.com