Zero Zer Gallery: February 2009

Remed and Zbiok met for the first time in 2007 on the pages of Tristan Manco’s book Street Sketchbook. A year later, while preparing an exhibition OUT OF STH in Wroclaw, Zbiok invited Remed to participate. And it was only then when they met face to face. They liked each other from the start, and Remed had the opportunity to experience what Polish hospitality is, ending up with heavy two-days lasting hangover.
Zbiok admires Remed’s art for a long time now. I have been familiar with his works for quite a period of time now, and there is no escaping the fact that I am a huge fan of his and I watch his paintings with pleasure. Both the esthetics and the topics we explore are very close to me. Of course each of us has its own characteristic approach – says Zbiok.

On the 28th February in New York Brooklynite Gallery there will be an opening of their common exhibition IT HURTS.

Zbiok & Remed IT HURTS
Brooklynite Gallery
334 Malcolm X Blvd.
Brooklyn, New York 11233
February 28 – March 22
www.brooklynitegallery.com

Interview with Zbiok on www.canned-goods.co.uk

How old are you?

Hello, im 26 years old.

Where are you based?

Right now I live in Wroclaw, a really nice and old city in Western Poland.

How long have you been painting murals and street art?

I got involved in the graffiti scene 10 years ago, I quit painting classic graffiti 6 years ago. With a strong influence from the graff scene I'm more a painter than a writer right now.

How did you get into graffiti and what made you start painting?

After the fall of the Iron Curtain things really changed in Poland and without the censorship all the inluences from the west and graffiti started seriously appearing in the mid 90's… this big boom of something new and never expected pushed me in to graffiti. Before the hip-hop style of graffiti there used to be quite a lot of urban/street activities on Polish streets, mainly political stencils but with big activity from a new growing graff scene it was pushed to the margin but right now we're going back again to discover it another time.

Where did you paint your first piece of street art?

Hmm, I really don't remember but it was probably in a skate park in my town.

How would you describe your style?

Free, expresive style with a big infuence of old school cartoons, fine artists from the beginning of the XX century (like Fernand Leger), and 80's NY Graffiti.

What are the influences behind your work?

There are lots of things that insipre me… people, life, the city, it could be anything. I could say that I'm a sort of cultural garbage bin! On one hand I have influence from the punk scene, which really had an inpact on my way of looking at life and the way in which I express in my art, and on the other hand I often find my inspirations in music totally different to what I have raised myself on and made think and act in the way I am right now.

How did you choose the name ZBK and what does it stand for?

It's just a combination of letters. Finding the right combination was important when I was doing classic graf but right now it's not so important, ZBK is just shorter for Zbiok.

Do you paint under any other names?

Zbiok or ZBK, just these names.

Do you paint with any crews and if so which ones?

Yeah, I represent…

LA Crew
ALQ Crew

Have you done many collaborations with artists overseas or travelled abroad for your art and if so where is the most exciting or interesting place you have painted?

I've met quite a lot of interesting people and painted some damn hot spots! One of my favorites was during a squat party in a closed old beautiful theater in East London. :)

What are your feelings about the current graffiti and street art scene in Poland?

The Poland graffiti scene is really active with some big rockers keeping it real across the city. The only problem is a conflict beetween young graff cats and a small street / urban scene. There is a generation of "Men In Black" (a really hardcore graff movie, total damage) and they don't respect anything.

Have you done much commercial work and if so what would you say was your most well known piece of work?

I haven't done much commercial work so I don't have too much to say about that… however, if you could call it commercial, then the most interesting was Pictures On Walls and lately I've done two designs for Sixpack.

Has your painting become a full-time career for you now and if so was it a long journey to get to this stage?

It's really hard to answer that question! At this moment I try to live form my artwork but that's really, really hard in Poland. Right now artists like me, who have street / graff roots, are gaining attention but it's still difficult. I never thought about my artwork providing a sense of career.

Do you prefer doing legal or illegal pieces?

Legal or illegal, it depends of the place. Sometimes you don't have to bother with any permission and sometimes certain spots are imposible for me to paint without permission, I really hate it. A number of years ago I painted my last train, I decided that it was no longer a good idea to do it any more simply because the lack of time means poor quality and that is something that's really important to me.

Have you ever 'felt the long arm of the law' because of your art?

He he… sure! I've been caught 4 times, mostly while painting walls and pasting posters.

Do you try to keep your identity anonymous where possible?

No, it's not important for me. If I can get into some trouble then they'll have to catch me red handed! :)

Do you see yourself as an artist or a graffiti writer?

For sure I'm not a writer, an artist I don't know? I call myself a painter working in the urban space.

Which other artists work do you admire?

There are so many people that I admire the list would probably be the half of the interview! He he!

Which other graffiti artists or street artists would you most like to work with if given the chance?

Right now I'm mostly working alone, I would like to work with many people… but the question is if it would work out?

What is your preferred medium for making marks with?

Definitly paint, I'm addicted to colour.

Do you have a favourite piece of all time?

There are too many just to choose one. :)

What kind of music are you into?

I'm coming from the punk scene but I'm really open minded and I listen GOOD music, everything from jazz to death metal. Right now I really dig the electronic scene from Berlin.

What is the last album you bought?

Last album, let me think… it was the CAP BOOK which is an album about the Prague naïve graffiti crew… really cool.

What are you working on currently and what plans do you have for the future?

I'm taking part in a show from the Zacheta National Gallery in Warsaw that's happening in Rome, I'm working on some stuff for PicturesOnWalls and I'm also starting to think about a show in New York next year.

Anything else you would like to add?

Thanks for reading about my boring life, take care and see you somewhere in the future.

Canned Goods

February 11, 2009

New canvases by JOE83 in our gallery

Zbiok & Remed in New York

February 9, 2009

New walls

Joe83 - Nusing Magazine

February 8, 2009

M-city in Berlin

FRM-KID exhibition "Ctrl Z"

FRM-KID - GOB Magazine

Zbiok interview