Sickboy is the name of a street artist from Bristol,[1] UK, known for his temple logo and his 'Save the Youth' slogan.[2] Sickboy moved to London in 2007 and his street art became prevalent particularly in the Shoreditch area and London Borough of Tower Hamlets.[3] It is claimed Sickboy was one of the first UK graffiti artists to use a logo instead of a 'tag'.[4]
Sickboy Burning Candy | |
|---|---|
 An example of Sickboy's temple character on a bin in Shoreditch | |
| Nationality | British |
| Known for | Graffiti, Street art, Bristol underground scene |
Sickboy originally trained in fine art[5] and, as well as painting graffiti on the street, he also paints on canvas and exhibits conventionally in art galleries. He has been painting street art since circa 1995.[3] In recent years Sickboy has become known for painting his 'temple' logo on wheelie bins, which can then be worth up to £50,000.[6]
In a 2011 The Guardian article Sickboy named Spanish street artist La Mano as a major influence. He said "At the time, graffiti was mainly seen as letter-based, but [Le Mano] just used a logo and repeated it... I'd never been a big fan of stencil work, which is where a lot of people think graffiti crosses over into more acceptable street art. La Mano stuck more closely to the graffiti aspect, which I try to adhere to now. I like the freehand, grab-a-tin-of-spray-paint approach".[7]
References
edit- ^ Miguel Cullen Graffiti gets the star treatment in Bristol, The Independent, 26 August 2011. Retrieved 2011-11-10.
- ^ Sickboy Temple Shrines London, View London, undated. Retrieved 2011-11-09.
- ^ a b Chris Osburn Londonist Interviews … London Graffiti Artist Sickboy, Londonist, 11 January 2008. Retrieved 2011-11-09.
- ^ Sickboy goes indoors for exhibition of his Bristol street art, Portisheadpeople.co.uk, 8 February 2010. Retrieved 2011-11-09.
- ^ Franco Milazzo Interview: Sickboy, Street Artist, Londonist, 30 October 2011. Retrieved 2011-11-09.
- ^ Crompton, Sarah (20 August 2012). "Graffiti's grandmasters make their mark". The Telegraph (London). Retrieved 17 September 2012.
But street art is now a profitable career. The fine arts graduate known as Sickboy, for example, covers waste bins with distinctive temple icons: they sell for £50,000. To the unconvinced and the underwhelmed, this is the perfect summation of the madness of the contemporary art world – both actually and metaphorically art as rubbish.
- ^ Emine Saner The artists' artist: street artists, The Guardian, 2 November 2011. Retrieved 2011-11-09.