Danny Diamond’s Post-Graffiti Landscape
Summer is officially underway in Gloucester, Massachusetts. The St. Peter’s Fiesta has come and gone, making way for the city’s annual Independence Day celebration and its colorful “Horribles Parade”. The Horribles legacy is that of a rag-tag, ramshackle community effort full of home-made floats and kitschy DIY costumes. This year, Danny Diamond was commissioned to paint a float for the Cape Ann Farmers market: http://www.capeannfarmersmarket.org He was asked to paint an interpretation of the theme “Rising Tides”. This phrase calls attention to rising global sea levels and the crisis of climate change, it is also a catch-all reference to both the enviornmental changes happening and the increasing ‘green-action’ that we’ve been seeing lately in response to this crisis. Danny was inspired by a piece from local photographer David Fernandes depicting one of the gorgeous sunsets that we have here on the northwest side of the island. If you’d like to see more of Dave’s stuff, check him out at:
https://www.facebook.com/Harbors-Edge-Photography-1583461305255164/
Artists have been coming to Cape Ann for centuries because of its unique natural light-phenomena and its seemingly endless ocean vistas. Using Dave’s photo as a reference, Danny painted a vibrant sunset-scene in free-hand aerosol paint on the side of an Isuzu Hombre. The truck belongs to Gloucester writer and community activist Amanda Cook and her husband, Gloucester High School Principal James Cook. For the driver’s side of the Hombre, Danny painted the slogan “Rising Tides” in bold ‘straight’ graffiti lettering. Local photographer Martin Del Vecchio was kind enough to shoot a time-lapse video of the driver’s side, which can be viewed here:
Danny is currently scheduling new projects for the Fall of 2016, including automotive re-finishes. Please refer to the contact information at the top of the page.
Hittin’ the Bricks in Central
Tiger CTK,CTV is an urban animal that thrives in the bloodlust of the big city so I took him to an alleyway in back of Central Kitchen to stalk some graf game. Pyse LS,RTW is a slippery suburban fish that shimmers in the copper-chrome current. Painting in Central Square is always performance art; Cambridge bystanders stop and suck fumes. Tiger was vibing with a born-again who said he used to write with Boston legend Alert before he found Jesus, I guess the savior isn’t rocking handstyles in heaven. Meanwhile, I was getting hustled for half-empty cans by some dreadlock toy with bad angles. In short, this spot always spells distraction. The restaurateur makes sure that artwork wraps up by opening-time; chaperoned youth-groups show up to stress out pieces indiscriminately but Pyse & Co. persevere, slinging paint and still making the time to pose hard. The cardiographic blue pulse-line in my rope is just to show you that I got a hand steadier than an amateur surgeon after his second drink. Tiger’s piece ran for two days before a go-over by someone with less can-control than an AA meeting in Milwaukee. After this double-burner was documented, we strolled to Harvard for cheeseburgers and beers at Charlie’s Kitchen…well, beers for me anyway; Tiger’s a sober cat.
SKRIBBLEFISH 