Chor Boogie Returns With Purgatory

CHORBOOGIE1 1xRUN Thru Interview
Purgatory by Chor Boogie

1xRun: Tell us a little bit about this piece? When was it created?
Chor Boogie:  The original is painted on the streets for the streets, all with spray paint, NO ADDITIVES NO PRESERVATIVES ALL NATURAL FLAVORS. It was created in 2005, and right now it unfortunately no longer exists. This was the first piece I painted in San Francisco and it was my gift to the city for opening it’s doors to me.

This was the start of my style which I feel has influenced a lot of artists of many different media.  This style has been and always will be painted around the world. I painted this style for the Olympics in China, on the Berlin Wall in Germany, Federation Square in Australia, to Leo Burnett Brazil in Sao Paulo to Favelas in Rio, down to the United Church in Canada, to museums and galleries in the USA, Mexico city and Puerto Rico. This style is not just for mural purposes it’s also produced on many other mediums.PURGATORY_20x13_021xRun: Tell us how the idea and execution came about?
Chor Boogie:  Basically this creation came out this way because I was trying to find a style, I and needed to see something original on the streets, from the streets. It’s my most expressive style, it’s the streets screaming. It’s love. It’s pain. It’s positive and negative emotions at the same time which brings it balance. I came up with the title Purgatory because that’s the balance between heaven and hell, positive or negative, good or bad. You will be stuck there until you choose.

What I also wanted to do was put 3D elements together with 2D  and create 5D. I feel I have been combining realistic images with 2D and 3D abstract shapes and forms and pull out an image of great expression.

1xRun: How long did the piece take?
Chor Boogie:   I think about 3-4 days.PURGATORY_20x13_041xRun: What is unique about this piece?
Chor Boogie:  The style in general and it’s form. The colors, the shapes and the forms all mixed in with the realism.  It is original and has influenced certain styles around the world.

1xRun: Why should people buy this print?
Chor Boogie:  Because they love it, why else?

1xRun: Describe the piece in one gut reaction word.
Chor Boogie:  DOPEPURGATORY_20x13_011xRun: When did you first start making art? What was your first piece?
Chor Boogie: I first started making art when I was 5 years old. My first piece was some grimy looking character, but what do you expect, I was an amateur.1xRun: What artists inspired you early on?
Chor Boogie: Yeaa man, Phase2. Old school dude from back in the day. He’s like one of my brothers. That dude is the reason why everything is where it is today, along with Riff170 and Vulcan. They brought originality and style to the game. Everyone who paints has them to thank because they simply got their style from them in some way shape or form. It’s the lineage of style and they are the 3 fathers. Phase2 and Riff 170 are my brothers in arms, they over-stand what this is all about, it’s all about ART. Honestly they can speak for themselves on the topic of the G-word, from what I understand straight up they don’t like it and felt the world took this art form in a different direction because of the dilution of it’s purity and it’s original form. Just like how everything else in history been diluted from it’s original truth. I’m talking about the art form itself. Basically at the end of the day, these two dudes are the TRUTH and I have love and respect for them. To keep them alive.

Vulcan / Phase2 / Riff170

An honest quote from the masters is “We did not get a chance to name it, why are you going to call something graffiti?” Look at it from this perspective. For such an anti-political movement–an underground movement a movement of being free– why are you going to call it something the government coined? And coined it with negative connotations so they did not like you at first and still don’t. NOW its a cool trend just like the same thing that happens to any hip hop movement/element, it gets raped.
1xRun: What artists inspire you now?
Chor Boogie: Myself…None. That’s not being an asshole, just telling the truth. There are a lot of amazing artists out there, I’m just not putting too much energy and focus on them since I have my own work to manage.

1xRun: Do you listen to music while you work? If so what? If not then what is your environment like when you work?
Chor Boogie: Of course. Hence the name BOOGIE in my name. Hip-hop. Reggae. Just plain dope music.

1xRun: If you could collaborate with any living artist who would it be? Any deceased artist?
Chor Boogie: I’d collaborate with PHASE 2 again. It would be a toss up between Gustave Klimt, Dali and Michelangelo.

1xRun: What was the first piece of art that you bought? Do you still have it?
Chor Boogie: A Yoda magnet from a friend that has the title “WORD” on the front. Yes. It’s still on my fridge. Some homeless artist was selling some of his pieces for like $20 and I hooked him up. The piece was really a really dope drawing of a skeleton getting head from some type of unicorn with rainbows in the background.

1xRUN: What else have you been up to? What do you have in the works?
Chor Boogie: I have been traveling like a mad man since the beginning of the year.  It  started out with doing murals in Baton Rouge’s Museum of Public Art then I was painting Hawaii for a bit. After that I did purgatory style mural at the Museum of Art Puerto Rico, have been working with SONY and GOOGLE + and I have some event based stuff after and some art shows here in San Francisco. Honestly I just want to chill at home for a minute, lock my self in my home studio and finish a body of work, but something always comes up. That’s my life.CHORPRWEB1xRun: Where can people find you?
Chor Boogie: WebsiteFacebookTwitter  & Instagram @chorboogie

-1xRUN