NYC Graffiti Writer Cycle Brings Us The Trippy Miami Part II

CYCLE grew up writing graffiti and skateboarding. He received his BFA from George Washington University in Washington DC and then his masters from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. CYCLE makes his living producing fine art, illustration and graphic design. He has shown his fine art in galleries in New York, Washington DC, Paris, San Francisco, and Los Angeles as well as Art Basel in Miami. He most recently has had a design piece inducted into the permanent collection at the MoMA in New York as well as shown at the “Art in the Streets” exhibit at the MoCA in Los Angeles. He has also produced exterior murals and installations in New York, San Francisco and Miami. CYCLE has been commissioned by Kid Robot, Think Skateboards, éS shoes, and Disney XD for projects. CYCLE’s work has been profiled in publications such a Juxtapoz, Mass Appeal, Complex, and Time Out New York as well as in numerous books including “The Art of Getting Over” “Definition: The Art and Design of Hip Hop”,  “Up Until Now” by Upper Playground and “Fresh Paint NYC”.

 1xRUN Thru Interview

Miami Part II by Cycle

1xRUN: What materials was the original printed on  and drawn with?

Cycle: The background is a mixture of spray enamel and acrylic paint layered in a drip technique. Multiple layers were mixed till I finally got to a texture I was happy with. On top of that I painted the images of the skull, the hummingbirds and the organic bubbles and growth with acrylics with some spray effects. I had no definitive sketch when I painted it, so the painting evolved as I painted it.

1xRun: Is the original still for sale?

Cycle:   Mixed Media on Canvas, $1,800.00 Yes, it is still for sale. You can buy the original direct from myself and you can contact me through my website if you would like to inquire about purchase.

1xRun: When was the piece created?

Cycle:  I want to say maybe 2009?

1xRun: Anything immediate you would like us to highlight?

Cycle:  This piece was featured in a write up and interview I had in Juxtapoz magazine a few years back. I believe the painting was given a full page photo to itself.

1xRun: Tell us how the idea and execution came about?

Cycle:  The reason it is called “Miami Part 2” is the painting is based on a wall I painted during Art Basel in Miami a few years back. The wall was graffiti-esque and a bit cartoony. I liked the concept enough though to do a serious version in painting form, which is the art you are looking at today.

1xRun: How long did the piece take?

Cycle:   I honestly don’t remember. I guess I worked on it on and off for 2 or 3 weeks. I am usually working on more than one painting at a time and I rotate through them as I feel the need to work on them. Some I am feeling right away and are easy to paint some take longer as I need to think on them more. I do remember this painting being one of the ones that came to me easier.

1xRun: What is unique about this piece?

Cycle:  It is a mixture of realism, graffiti, and some surrealism. It’s an interesting combination of different elements

1xRun: Why should people buy this piece/print?

Cycle:  Great colors, interesting imagery. This piece has always gotten a favorable response when shown so now you can pick up your on copy.  I have a solid history as being part of the American graffiti movement and I’m striving to move on to being a gallery artist. It would be a great piece to own for someone who is a fan of my graffiti career or some one who is interested in modern surrealism.

1xRun: Describe the piece/print in one gut reaction word.

Cycle:  Trippy.

1xRun: When did you first start making art?

Cycle:  I have always been drawing since I was a child. It’s always been with me.

1xRun: What was your first piece?

Cycle:  Probably crayon on wall.

1xRun: What artists inspired you early on?

Cycle:    Skateboard graphics and graffiti were my first real art inspirations. I was shown art books early on and my mother would take me to museums as a child but it was in high school that I first started to pay attention to specific people. I liked William Stout, Sento, Ralph Bakshi, Pushead, Jim Phillips, V. Courtland Johnston, Bio, the Tc-5’s and graffiti I saw around NYC.

1xRun: What artists inspire you now?

Cycle:  Mostly just my friends. Seeing my friends do well and getting to have good conversations with them about art is what inspires me now. People like Doze Green, the Morning Breath guys, Cey Adams and Queen Andrea. People that I have a personal connection to and can discuss things with. Admiring people from a far is one thing, but the feed back from people I trust is what is most important to me.

1xRun: Do you listen to music while you work? If so what? If not then what is your environment like when you work?

Cycle:  I almost always listen to music as I paint. I rotate trough a variety of music as I paint depending on what I am painting and the mood I am in. I like latin jazz, Buena Vista Social Club, Chilled out reggae, Mix tapes from DJ Z-Tripp, DJ Neil Armstrong, Hip-Hop from the early 80’s thru about ’96, Black Sabbath.

1xRun: If you could collaborate with any living artist who would it be and why?

Cycle:  I have been lucky enough to collaborate with some good people so far in my life. as I mentioned in a previous question above personal connection with people is more important to me than admiring some one from afar. If by natural course of events I end up meeting some one and we vibe well and a collaboration happens then that is a nice bonus. I like to have things happen organically. Being involved with graffiti has really killed the concept of hero worship to me. After meeting some of my favorite graffiti persons and them turning out to be real jackasses has lead me to be more independent minded when it comes to dealing with people.

1xRun: If you could collaborate with any deceased artists who would it be and why?

Cycle:  How about the people who did the cave paintings of Lascaux. Their art has been running for thousands of years and stood the test of time. Painting in a dark enclosed space on a wall, sounds just like doing some modern day graffiti.

1xRun: What was the first piece of art that you bought? Do you still have it?

Cycle:  I don’t really buy art, just art books.

1xRun: What was the last piece of art that you bought?

Cycle:  Dalek had already given me a piece but I think I bought something off him about 7 years back for a $100 bucks. I don’t really buy art. I have been lucky enough that some of my favorites have blessed me with pieces or drawings out of the kindness of there hearts.

1xRun: What else do you have in the works?

Cycle:   I’m about to come out with an interview in an Australian art magazine called King Brown. There is an magazine launch /art show here in New York for that issue on the 26th of July at Klughaus Gallery. I also have a solo show in November at a spot in Brooklyn called Weldon Arts. I am always open to hear from new galleries about future opportunities and I am also available for doing illustration work.

1xRun: Where can people find you on the internette?

Cycle: Website – Blog –  Facebook – Instagram @chriscycle

 

-1xRUN