FKDL

FKDL

FKDL (Franck Duval) is French street artist. Duval was born on February 2nd 1963 in Paris, where he still lives and works today. He began to paint and draw in 1983, after studying for a year at Studio Berçot. He is best known for his street art, which he pastes across walls all over the world. Each of his street pieces are large and very unique, often compromised from his huge collection of vintage French magazines and newspapers. You can find his work most easily in New York, Barcelona and Paris, although there are some pieces in London.

     Duval's work is instantly recognizable, almost always incredibly bright, bold, and basic. He sometimes uses silhouettes to create the shape of a figure, and then creates a collage to fill this area in. His work is very graphic, using harsh, bold lines to create features and accentuate curves. His use of collage sets him apart from most street artists who traditionally use paint or spray paint to create their artwork. Duval always uses paint, collage and wheat paste to create his work, which creates a long lasting, preservable piece of work. He said in a short youtube documentary, 'I never use spray paint, always a brush' he also spoke about his use of stencils, saying 'I never use an enormous stencil, but I can produce an enormous painting'.
  In my opinion, Duval's work is a lot easier to enjoy than other street art, for example, a lot of public artwork has some sort of political message behind it, leaving the audience wondering what the message is behind the artwork. Duval's work allows you to relax and enjoy the artwork for what it is, with no particular hidden messages and no pressure, although he did quote in another video that "today's world is so harsh and brutal, that these (his artwork) are like small opening's which allow me to express myself". I'd like to try and incorporate this relaxed style into my own work,step away from being so precise and learn to enjoy the piece. I'd also like to incorporate more collage into my work,and experiment with his graphical style. I created my own interpretation of his work, one a collage and the other a graphical drawing. I enjoyed this work as it didn't have to be so detailed and you didn't have to follow any specific rules.

      A collage on a wall in Brooklyn         

'Breakfast at Ixelles' pays homage to both Audrey Hepburn and Elizabeth Taylor.

One of FKDL's latest pieces

References: 

http://www.brooklynstreetart.com/theblog/2013/05/02/fkdl-pays-homage-to-audrey-hepburn-in-brussels/#.VEdy-_l4rYg

http://artbattles.com/artists/fkdl

http://www.prescriptionart.com/prescription-art/fkdl/cat_39.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FfLkMMeVbJA&noredirect=1
http://vimeo.com/79721124

Raphael Lacoste

Raphael Lacoste

Raphael Lacoste is an illustrator, best known as the former Art Director for Ubisoft. His most recognised work is his contribution towards video games Assassins creed and Prince of Persia. Lacoste is also known for his most recent role as a matte painter and Senior Concept Artist, working on several films, including Terminator Salvation and Journey to the centre of the Earth.

            Lacoste is set apart from other artists for the way in which he draws. Lacoste uses a number of different techniques to create a 3D perspective, including sketching and photoshop.  The drawings use a number of different elements to create the 3D illusion, for example the use of light and dark tone create a shadow effect. Lacoste implies where the light would be on his sketches, creating the 3D look, just as you could see where the light hits an object straight in front of you. Another thing would be the vanishing point, the point at which all the angles and lines of the drawing meet and , the point where your eye is automatically drawn to. This vanishing point helps create a depth of field, which adds again to the illusion that it’s more than a flat surface. Large figures also play a part, the form and size of things, such as buildings, mountains and people the audience imagine things more clearly, if they have other structures to compare sizes to then they are able to become more of a part of the piece, which is especially important in the gaming industry.

References: http://www.raphael-lacoste.com/www.raphael-lacoste.com/___Home___.html

Yoni Alter

Yoni Alter

Yoni Alter is a London based graphic artist, he studied art and design in Jerusalem before completing his MA in Graphic Design from the London College of Communication. Alter is probably best known for his work with the television channel, London Live. His distinctive style perfectly captures the colourful vibe of London and his clean, bold way of working ensures his work appeals to a wide audience. This is due to the fact that Alter portrays the shapes of the city exactly as they are which appeals to an audience with more classic, traditional taste. However, his use of block, bold and abstract colours allows those with a more modern taste to enjoy his work as well.
     The thing I find most appealing about Alter’s work is his love for what he draws, and the detail and effort that goes into creating each of his skyline pieces. His skyline series interprets the view of numerous different cities (cityscapes) across the world, including Tokyo, New York and London, created mainly on computer based programs like photoshop and CAD. He also uses a laser cutter to create detailed 2D models of his city, such as the one shown above.  Alter is very meticulous when it comes to imitating the skylines, especially London, as this is his home and very close to his heart. Alter said in an interview with printmag: “You might as well draw the shard circular if you don’t bother implying it’s size in comparison to the rest of London’s skyline”. His love for his work and the need for him to do the cities justice shines through in the way he speaks about it, the way he promotes it, and of course in the work itself.         
      A lot of Alter’s work reminds me of Julian Opie’s in the sense that it’s true to the original shapes of the subject, but the colours and details are changed to a more simplistic, almost childlike style. I really enjoy his use of bold, bright colours in the skyline series, cities are often the most colourful parts of a country, where most of the hubbub, nightlife and activity occurs generally, so what better way to capture the essence of the brightest, loudest, busiest areas of a country, than with a bright, loud and busy design?

References: www.yoniishappy.com