“The hardest thing to do in life is to send love in response to hate…” Those golden words scroll across a screen as you wait in a sea of black. Queuing an ethereal hip hop beat you are about to enter the world of stencil street artist, Chase.
Belgian by birth, Chase, like so many other transient artists has journeyed in search of creative outlets and experience. Once an avid skateboarder in his youth, this energy transferred over into the world of his art. Yet Chase is just another LA transplant… or is he? Searching for answers about life, fleeting youth and creative energy, where can we look for inspiration? Surrounded by a sea of rapid highways, scratchy airwaves and blinkers bouncing off concrete, we suffer in a wasteland of thought. Drones of being. But, sprinkled upon the tar and metal are rays of light and innovation.
“Remember who you are.” A mural done free of charge by a man with a simple message. This existential idea is so simplistic that at first glance you might overlook it’s significance. In the world we live in we are constantly bombarded by mindless advertisements, war, poverty, images of greed. Have we lost touch with our core and the creative energy which feeds our dreams and fuels our purpose?
Good art makes us marvel… how? Great art makes us think… why? A key to Chase’s work is forcing the viewer to appraise - not only the spaces and situations around themselves but within themselves as well. Street Art since the early days of Graffiti in the “Boogie Down” Bronx has been sowing ideas in the subconscious of society. The Lower class sent out messages of innovation and creativity and gave hope. Where there was once only a desolate landcape filled with dreary dreams and tumultuous thought, grew an imagination and a voice.
With street artists such as Chase, we see a positive message taking root in the underground and bubbling over into our everyday society. Chase has had fine art exhibits all over the world, Belgium, NYC, and Los Angeles; but it’s his ability to connect with a society on the street level that gives his message the most meaning. People young and old are yearning for inspiration packaged in small easy identifiable messages such as some of Chase’s favorite mantra’s, ” Be the Change,” “You can’t until you say you can,” “be peace” and “seek truth: knowledge is power.”
Passing to and fro in this life, humming along and spewing exhaustion into the air, we regurgitate countless thoughts and images, it all takes a heavy toll. Chase’s artwork not only implies for you to stop, relax and take a second to look and think, but his simple messages demand it.
When asked about the written messages in his work, Chase responds, “The messages definitely plays an integral role, and my work wouldn’t be the same without them. I often say that the aesthetics are just there to attract the eye, but the messages are there to stimulate the mind.” These mantras of positivity resonate deeply. Let us all go out, create and plant our own seeds of enlightenment within ourselves, and others.
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(average rating: 4.47 out of 5)
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8 responses so far ↓
1 The Vegan Warrior // Mar 20, 2008 at 8:04 am
I know what you mean about good art that makes us marvel and great art that makes you think, as a performing artist I’m always trying to challenge peoples minds, getting them out of their boxes, not only making their faces smile or bellies chuckle, cringe, or coagulate, but to activate their minds into positive artful action. Thanks for the Article it inspired me Mr. Fusco.
2 JACOBSON // Mar 20, 2008 at 1:53 pm
for the most part, it’s well-written. there are some grammatical errors and typos and some sentences sound awkward, but the article has already been published so no sense in going over those. when you use “creative energy” twice (2nd & 3rd paragraphs) it sounds more like a phrase that the artist might use a lot, and so then YOU, THE WRITER start to use it a lot. as a writer, it’s your job to bring something that the artist is unable to bring to the table, so you need to pay special attention to be your own individual as you interview someone. give it your own spin–don’t just summarize what your subject told you, but rather, interpret what you learned and bring that as a gift to your readers.
also, in general, i would have liked to be more INSPIRED. yes, your sentences are very eloquent and metaphorically diverse, but i think you need to go beyond pretty writing. this artist is doing amazing, interesting, inspiring, and innovative things in the world, both on the street and in the gallery–his story should be told by someone who is going to make the audience EXCITED about him and about his movement just by reading this article. you want to influence people in a big way, just as he is doing. you want to make the public go searching for his art. you want them to dream. you want them to start making art themselves.
i can see the photos of his art in the article and i can read exactly what you quote him saying in the article. so what i would need from you as an interviewer is to get him to say something the audience CANNOT directly see through his art. i need more contemplation from the artist. the last quote you have from him is good, but you need to push him to say something more–something fresh or unique or just plain CRAZY.
good job! holla!
3 LA Woman // Mar 20, 2008 at 3:41 pm
I love it. Very inspiring. The writer seems like a very interesting and unique individual..his lady is very fortunate
4 Rambo Goddam // Mar 20, 2008 at 4:25 pm
Yeah great article - so nice to have a background on whoever has been creating the backdrops in my neighborhood.
5 BillyJean // Mar 20, 2008 at 4:40 pm
Jacobson - If you want to be a writer write, don’t tell others how you think they should write.
6 pudgy-girl // Mar 24, 2008 at 2:27 pm
“Good art makes us marvel… how? Great art makes us think… why? ”
I’m gonna have to steal that from you.
7 BooKweefa // Mar 24, 2008 at 3:43 pm
I wish the scribblers in my neighborhood took note of this article and maybe an art class as well. When these scribblers get caught, they should be made to sign up for financial aid and take some community classes on how to improve our communities via ART.
8 Stevespastpresent&futur // Apr 21, 2008 at 5:17 pm
I enjoyed this article and artwork. To me they both personifie perfection, peace and love.
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