littleghettoblaster

(This was originally written on 9.20.03, but I forgot to hit Publish)

Art shows last night, I went to 2. Well, we missed the actual show for the 2nd one (Giant Robot release and Micah’s going away party) and just made it for the party. But the first one, held in a cleared out little house known as Secluded Alley Works, was the most odd thing I’ve seen in a while.

The promotions for this were ‘urban’. With the heading Installation. Scion Series., the flyers were claiming names of worldwide artists/graf writers with very little info as to what this show was all about. A few more people told me it was being put on by URB magazine. DJ Scene was one of the DJs. See, very hiphop oriented, right?

Only wait, I walked in to see some cool art, an open bar and a few free backpacks (!). The art was fine, very graf based and some of it was really good. Along one wall there were models of cars that had been painted up by different artists. I stared wonderingly at these foot-long cars, and walked up to a table with stacks of magazines. They’re the kind of magazine that reads one-way for half of it, then you have to flip it over and read the rest the other way. The first side, the side laying face up, looked like and art-ish mag: cool colors, neats graphics and pics. It read like copy: pseudo-information and no by-lines on the “articles”. Half way through I flipped it over and realized that this show, it’s name (Scion), the backpacks, the model cars, they’re all here to promote a car.

Part of me thinks I’m disgusted and weirded out, another part is in awe and most of me is thoroughly intrigued. I saw it coming for a while, but the ‘young urban’ market is now being fully exposed (exploited?).

Thus just supports my theory that anything with an underground movement/scene and actual quality will end up as a huge marketing campaign eventually.

Trackback this Post | Feed on comments to this Post