Kevin Lyons – SHITS & GIGGLES
Oct. 17th to Nov. 10th, 2013
A Collection of Art Stuff Loosely formulated to Make A Show
featuring Collaborations with Patrick Martinez, Baron Von Fancy, and Skip Class
Works on paper, cloth, and glass exploring the far reaching positive influences of St. Ides Premium Malt Liquor on Hip-Hop culture.
Opening Oct. 17th, 7 – 10pm
RSVP@hvw8.com
Beverages courtesy of Colt 45
Kevin Lyons is a creative director, designer, illustrator and typographer who lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. Most recently, Lyons was a Partner and the Design Director at the juggernaut, anti-ad-agency-turned-ad-agency, ANOMALY in New York City. In his previous lives Lyons has been a Creative at Nike, Design Director at Stussy, Art Director at Girl Skateboards, and Creative Director for Tokion Magazine. He often shows internationally and is published world-wide. His steady stream of clients include the Paris based, Colette as well as Nike, Converse, Google TV, Umbro, and Stacks. He is the founder and sole creative behind the veteran label, Natural Born.
HVW8 Art + Design Gallery
661 N. Spaulding Ave. L.A. Ca 90036
open: Tues to Sun, 1 – 6pm
ph. 323 655 4898
From the artist:
I have never even had a sip of beer let alone one of the malted variety.
No interest and therefore no real knowledge of how fucked up a forty can be.
But having grown up in Hip-Hop culture I am well aware of its existence. Old E, Colt 45, and of course, the almighty St. Ides. With its beautiful packaging and Crooked I logo, not to mention that it rhymes easily with a lot of other nouns and verbs, there is no questioning its pop culture reference dominance.
But if it was just another nice bottle, great logo, and frequent lyric that literally was solely made to simply fuck people up, then I probably would not be writing this statement on its inevitable cultural significance.
St. Ides, like Hip-Hop itself, became much more complex and ultimately filled with contradiction and controversy. Like with women, drugs, homosexuals, fighting, guns, gangs, weed, and dealing….. malt liquor is a complicated little topic in Hip-Hop. While in and of itself, it really has no redeemable purpose other than being inexpensive and coming in a big bottle, it played a significant role in the culture that celebrates it. For better, or (most likely) for worse.
St. Ides however went from just another malt liquor to one of the biggest financial supporters and patrons of the musical form we call Hip-Hop. Whoever was running St. Ides or its marketing made a very well informed decision to bring aboard several of the rap industry’s youngest and brightest talent on both Coasts. Snoop Doggy Dogg, Warren G, The Dogg Pound, MC Eiht on the West Coast and Biggie Smalls and Wu-Tang on the East Coast. All young, all literally brand new, untested talents, at the very beginning of their careers. St. Ides put itself squarely in the center of the culture. Going with untested, but very talented individuals who would resonate even today, 20 years later. This was an extremely well-timed, very educated guess probably made on the ground by some very saavy marketing people. Like with the Vatican and Michaelangelo, rap had it’s own patron saint. Outside of the Sprite recordings, it would be 15 to 20 years later before we would see rappers used this significantly in a mass-marketed campaign.
My show at HVW8 is in no way meant to celebrate the liquid of malt liquor itself. It is also not made to make any moral judgement one way or the other on marketing to urban youth and in essence, urban blight. It will inevitably bring up those conversations and I am aware that that is a risk. But my intention is really to celebrate the era it represented – when weed and a little alchohol was the worst of the shit out there. PRE – Biggie – Tupac beef. When the two coasts were at their very best. I simply am using the phenonenom of the St. Ides moment to house and package that celebration. As a good Art Director might…..
I am no artist. I do like making stuff, but as an art director, I need a client – a subject matter to react to and research. I collaborate and find things to make. And that is really what I have done here with the St. Ides mid-90s era of Hip Hop. I have made stuff that is just pure fun. Adlibs, puns, fill-in-the-punchline-type stuff. SHITS & GIGGLES.
Futura and Dondi, NYC, 1981 – 16 x 20 inch
photos by M. Selsky
