Just finished 4 walls for Red Bull Music Academy x Tashkeel Studio in Al Bastakiya, Dubai.

3 days of spray fumes and talented unknown musicians and not unknown like Just Blaze, Kenny Dope, Derrick May or Gareth Jones, legendary producer of Depeche Mode. Nice dudes, good music and buena onda vato.

John Conn photography. NYC Subway

It’s been a while since I don’t walk my camera around.

Yesterday I decided to explore Satwa by myself, one of those neighborhoods in Dubai you can’t find in the tourist guides.
I was looking for guetto tags in narrow backstreets, but apart of that I discovered some amazing art in doors made with steel and paint (I will dedicate an exclusive post for that later), amazing cheap places for having good natural juices, interesting spots for place some art and also a gay dude who loves to pose for my camera. Viva Satwa!

Orange and lemon juice in Satwa, Dubai.

In the Dubai of shiny skyscrapers and diamonds, there’s barely graffiti.
You may find some Arcadia Blank intense quotes in the most unexpected corners of the city, or maybe some Sya and Bow pieces in walls, mostly indoors or in events. You could even find my murals at Jumeirah Beach road and Al Bastakiya for example, but if you look in depth you can find an interesting graff movement walking around the slums of this city, like Karama, Satwa or Deira, where most of the inmigrants from India or Pakistan live.
Guetto tags and throw-ups, quotes in arab/english/god knows and funny drawings of jesus-looking characters smoking something are some of the things you may find exploring the b-side of Dubai.

Back in Tashkeel, Dubai. People still on vacation so all for me huhuhaaa
Working for my artshow in November… Can’t believe I spent almost my year here already, damn.

Astral Breakfast.

Last mission in Barcelona, back to Dubai…

Amazing days with these amigos from DC Europe in Dubai!

Holiday in Spain!

Squeezed, just like my country is.

This happened on my last visit to Barcelona

Otro día más en la oficina

Those good things at Middle East #6

Can’t get enough of this macro lens. Dead giant wasp found in my studio

Mission accomplished.
One of my goals during my year of residency in Tashkeel was to paint a mural in the streets of Dubai.
In any other country, everything probably would have been easier but here graffiti or street art or whatever is heavily punished, actually I think this is the first and only mural that exists in the UAE (someone correct me if I’m wrong).

The process has not been easy. Since consequences of being busted painting here are no joke (and you need more than 10 minutes to paint this, set up a cherry picker, etc) you need a permission.
So after locating the spot by Jumeirah Beach Road (Anna!) we had to talk with the owner of the building, who luckily was open for the project since the first moment. Then with his ok, the Tashkeel crew were struggling with Dubai authorities day by day until we finally got their OK a few months later.

Keeping in mind that sedentary lifestyle is a big issue in this city, as well as the crazy unsustainability that involves most of its massive projects, I wanted this artwork, a local guy riding a bicicamel instead of a polluting car, while eating some healthy stuff, to be a wake up call for simplicity and sustainability to all the people living here (applicable to hundreds of other countries). I’m not really expecting any change with this, but that’s the message.

After spending the whole night painting this, I passed by the next day to take some photos and to speak with the neighbors about it (mostly shops and cafeterias). They look excited about it, even though they were kind of reluctant when they saw me painting the first lines. Late night visitors after closing their stores were also rewarded for their support with a quick lift in the cherry picker or with a few shots of spray on his guetto car to hide some scratches.
Now I’m getting free haircuts and lemon-mints on the area.

Big ups to Tashkeel: Bakhita, Haiya and Lateefa. Thanks for your company Jill, Sameena, Khaled and neighbors.

For your information, this is a personal project. There’s no brands nor any kind of payment related to this wall (or any others). Hope you like it Dubai peeps and i hope this will open doors for more public art projects.

Peace out!
R.

Got some new fresh prints out of Tashkeel’s kitchen: “Al lío”. Edition of 20 screenprints, 2 colors, 64x90cm. Signed and numbered.
Drop me a line if you’re interested

As part of the public programme Artscape: Cultures in Dialogue, I created this wall in Manarat Al Saadiyat, Abu Dhabi as part of the Birth of a Museum exhibition public program.

I wanted an unusual wall to gather different artistic elements from different cultures and ages, just like [the Birth of a Museum] exhibition does… making them coexist through the same style and same colors.

If you look closely, you can find elements from the Birth of a Museum exhibition like the Rooster, the Eagle-shaped fibula from Domagnano, The Gyspy by Édouard Manet or the Lion-shaped aquamanile among others.